A critical analysis of an event contemporary issue

Abstract This paper provides an exploration of branding as interrelated to event management and experiential marketing. Different concepts and ideas are investigated in order to provide a relevant understanding of how adequate branding initiatives can impact future event management decisions. The relationship between brands and customers is emphasised throughout the paper in an attempt to focus on the importance of creating a personalised brand experience to different individuals. Therefore, the paper argues that branding is a fundamental element of ensuring proper event management activities in the contemporary business context. Introduction It has been indicated that brands serve different functions. At the most basic level, brands represent specific markers for the offerings provided by companies. For consumers, brands are associated with simplification of choice, reducing risk and guaranteeing a high quality level. The process of making branding decisions and undertaking particular tasks is important part of events management (Caru and Cova 2007). Brand positioning provides a relevant direction for marketing activities and establishing competitive advantage. Research shows the close relationship between brands and customers. Brand relationship quality has emerged as multidimensional because it consists of different dimensions, including self-concept, commitment, interdependence, etc. (Kotler and Keller 2006). Branding has been linked with the importance of brand experience and experiential marketing. The objective of this paper is to explore the aspects of branding as linked to experiential marketing and how this impa cts future event management decisions. This paper will explore links between branding and experiential marketing from both academic and practical angles. It will also look at how these concepts affect future management decisions (Caru and Cova 2007). The main objective of this paper is to critically review the branding importance in event management and how it impacts event management’s core decisions, how branding adds value to event management by developing a strong brand identity and new methods of linking with contemporary markets and emerging audience needs (Keller and Lehmann 2006). It is important to explore what performance signs could increase its added value for event management. Furthermore, this study focuses on the specificity of event management in terms of investigating how different trends like branding, technology, social media and events can add value to event management and improve the components of event planning. The study also investigates the contribution of branding from the perspective of b rand management research (Kotler and Keller 2006). Strong branding strategy is an essential part of the overall business strategy, as currently many multi-national corporations and event organisers are facing different challenges of achieving a position to strengthen the brand. Specificity of Branding and Its Relevance to Event Management One of the meanings of branding is intangibility, which indicates that a brand is established on intangible relations and values, making brand performance hard to define and measure. There has not been a universal definition of brand management in the literature (Keller and Lehmann 2006). Brand management faces many challenges in the contemporary business world, as companies and consumers are experiencing more products and services. It has been suggested that a strong brand holds various associations and has the capability to shorten the consumer decision making process, reduces the company risk, and sets different expectations (Kotler and Keller 2006). Furthermore, it has been argued that branding plays the same role in event planning. It has been recommended that the power of a brand lies in what audiences have learned, experienced, observed, and listened about the brand as a result of their experiences through an event (Caru and Cova 2007). The strength of a brand mostly reflects in its perception by customers, and thus it is experiential in nature. Successful event management needs to understand how the brand strategy should be executed and communicated with event audiences and how audiences respond to it. Event management companies are expected to recognise the strength of branding and how it can connect with audiences. For instance, if organisations offer a valuable brand experience to customers, they will achieve a substantial competitive advantage. Businesses choose to take part to organise an event for various reasons (Crowther 2010). Small companies may want to experience what live branding can provide. Many large and multi-national corporations prefer face-to-face interaction through different events to receive a quick response. Whether small or large, event companies generally participate for many reasons, for example to strengthen branding and event awareness, generating leads, connecting with future and exist ing audiences and educating event attendees etc. The main reason for companies to participate in an event is to launch or strengthen their brand (Keller and Lehmann 2006). Event management allows the company to grow and express its particular distinctiveness directly. Through event planning, companies normally select the perfect venue to share their ideas, thoughts, and name in the most appropriate for their purposes manner they want to show to people. Companies have been noted for their commitment to support various initiatives that popularise the brands they offer (LeSalle and Britton 2003). Many businesses decide to arrange events based on the branding opportunity offered by the event. The use of different host events is useful to create and showcase the brand of their business, as these could be charitable events or certain volunteering activities. Hosting events also allow different companies to direct the attention of their business and to attract potential audiences, which are considered more cost efficient (Kotler and Keller 2006). Organisations constantly enhance the features of their brands through the improved process of event management. As a result, their customer base grows on a regular basis. Another significant reason companies choose to arrange and participate in an event is to show their potential through brand features and enhancing different methods to improve event management and to recognise a target audience. The introduction of branding initiatives is important for companies to connect more personally with their customers (Crowther 2010). Branding may lead to extensive customer engagement, with a chance for positive personal interaction that establishes loyalty. Furthermore, event managers know that companies can understand the biggest ROI from branding and by retaining and increasing new customers. The main challenge for companies is to gain the attention of their customers accompanied by the disruption of daily work. At events, companies enjoy the chance to increase their brand awareness and revenue by introducing to their audience different types of products or services they may be interested in (Caru and Cova 2007). Branding provides organisations with an opportunity to focus on improving customers’ personal experience of the brand. Accurately planned and implemented branding can generate a huge amount of revenue after the event has ended. In other words, companies increase th e impact of their event by giving audience a reason to share their experience with products and services. Brand management frequently faces many challenges in a highly competitive environment (Keller and Lehmann 2006). In the contemporary unpredictable markets it is particularly important for event managers to monitor attendees’ needs and involvement. The brand is considered an intangible asset that strengthens the value by its strong connection with the associations, ethics and drivers of the audience. Consumers attend events for different reasons, including educational, informative, entertainment, etc. These reasons are influential and have benefits in their own ways (Crowther 2010). The information provided to individuals through branding is important to understand the nature and applicability of different brands. For instance, customers may differentiate the useful characteristics of a particular electrical appliance over another one in the market. If customers attend events for educational or awareness purposes, the branding information should be presented properly and considered the key component of an event. When a company hosts an event, it expects to gain adequate control over the e vent’s branding information and the audience it wants to draw in (Keller and Lehmann 2006). Being in this position provides the company with the authority to define how it wants to be portrayed and what type of audience it wants to attract. If companies are attentive about targeting their attendees, the ROI (Return on Investment) will be accomplished and the audience would show their interest in the company and their brand. However, this is not always the case because customer targeting initiatives may not be successful. Companies have access to an audience that is exposed to their brand and message at every turn. Furthermore, attendees enthusiastically prefer to contribute their skills and expertise in the programs and activities companies tend to provide during the course of the event (Caru and Cova 2007). Branding can be a powerful tool to generate a competitive advantage. A definition of brand culture indicates a focus on a company’s culture in which employees consider the importance of specific brand values (Keller and Lehmann 2006). The brand culture concept helps companies realise why this is so important. Brand cultures are considered important for event management. Branding also refers to aspects of pre dictable knowledge and thus expands the dimensions of brand culture (Crowther 2010). Unless they can experience products and services or encounter exceptional brand stories through events, individuals are generally determined to support the taken-for-granted option to understand the brand. In addition to the aspects of taken-for-granted knowledge, there are two motives for this stability. Psychological research suggests that branding culture is strong because individuals are cognitive (Keller and Lehmann 2006). Sociological research (Keller and Lehmann 2006) also suggests that branding cultures are strong and reliable because brand cultures are collective by including many people and being expressed in a variety of contexts (talk, product experiences, advertisements, etc.). However, there are drawbacks to these studies because branding culture is multidimensional. It cannot be simply perceived as cognitive or collective in nature. Branding normally manages events, brand images, and associations through different marketing networks. Therefore, individuals need to adopt a holistic approach to understand the dimensions of brand management (Kotler and Keller 2006). Importance of Branding and Experience Marketing A particular definition of experience marketing is the introduction of particular marketing activities that are customer-oriented and create a strong connection with customers. Based on this perspective, customer experiences arise from various aspects to include in-store interactions, communication patterns and packaging (Kotler and Keller 2006). Such experiences also take place as a result of both online and offline marketing activities. Experience marketing is viewed as a consistent and systematic approach to measuring the way in which customers feel about the brand (LaSalle and Britton 2003). Thus, the experience concept is quite different from other customer constructs in the field of marketing. Likewise, experience as part of experience marketing is different from motivational and affective factors, such as brand attachment and involvement (Kotler and Keller 2006). Brand attachment usually evokes persistent customer emotions, while involvement shows the perceived significance and personal relevance of a particular brand. Experience in this sense does not emerge as an emotional relationship concept. One of the essential concepts of experience marketing is experiential value that is closely linked with the idea of strengthening consumer bonds in organisations. Undoubtedly, an experience is found to have a much more persistent impact than an exposure to certain products and services offered by companies (Forlizzi and Ford 2000). In this way, the experience marketing concept directly appeals to customers in the sense of helping them feel what it is like to be a part of a particular organisation. Relationships between Brands and Customers Nonetheless, the relationship between brands and customers has been revolutionised to a certain degree. The new marketing era is that of experience marketing, which focuses on providing consumers with a brand experience that adds value to their lives (Caru and Cova 2007). It has been indicated that providing a real experience to individuals is an important part of persuading them about the quality of the offered products. It could be argued that there is nothing genuine about the connections between commercial organisations and customers, rather that they are a way of extracting as much money as possible from them. Experience marketing may provide adequate evidence that marketing practices have continuously evolved in the past several decades, shifting from the focus from products to building strong customer relationships and brands. It is important that positive experiences of customers become institutionalised within the respective marketing system in order to deliver the essence o f a certain brand (Keller and Lehmann 2006). This indicates that there is no gap between the promise presented with the brand and the consequent brand delivery to customers. Personal experiences enable individuals with a relevant opportunity to make informed purchasing decisions. Therefore, an adequate customer experience is more likely to produce high satisfaction in individuals who aim to purchase certain products or services (Caru and Cova 2007). Marketing communication has been identified as an essential aspect in contemporary business sectors. Marketing communication methods include advertising, direct and indirect mail, leaflets, altering the product packaging and sales promotion (Addis and Holbrook 2001). These activities are promoted alongside marketing sponsorship, public relations, and scientific, digital and live brand experiences. Research indicates that selected marketing channels are incorporated with other organisational tools to increase the impact of this strategy and more successfully achieve marketing communication core objectives (Kotler and Keller 2006). The experiential marketing approach is focused on a two-way incorporation in real-time, a live brand experience and thus a considerable deeper consumer relationship process (Prahalad and Ramaswamy 2004). Live brand experiences are typically apparent in the shape of live marketing events that permit the consumer to live, respire and experience or feel the brand through interactive transmitted connections and actions. The actions are typically designed to include value to target audiences in their own atmosphere, during their ordinary existence (Caru and Cova 2007). However, live brand experiences are basically existent in two-way branded experiences. They can be uniformly successful across many interactive scientific technologies and policies that assist marketing communication between customers and brands in real time. For example, consumers can contribute in live brand experiences on television where the TV shows substance is fluid, and they participate and add their contribution in actual time (Keller and Lehmann 2006). Creating a Live Brand Experience Similarly, a live brand experience can be stimulated online in a practical way in order to target more customers. Research shows that live brand experiences are seldom taken part in alone and the sophisticated marketing management tends to incorporate experiential marketing with other marketing tools and techniques to utilise a broad collection of marketing channels (Kotler and Keller 2006). Marketing departments in various multinational corporations prefer to utilise each marketing channel to accomplish different organisational goals and objectives (Maghnati et al. 2012). Advertising is frequently implemented in experiential marketing to achieve brand awareness program and to increase and sustain recognition of the brand or product within big markets. Advertising is normally effective at raising brand awareness; however, it is expensive to implement at a proper level (Schmitt 2010). When used on a larger level in experiential marketing, advertising can have a low cost per thousand (CPT), although generally it is a costly tool and can generally only be used to affect leading brands that can manage to run large advertising campaigns. Digital marketing or E-marketing is one of the fastest growing marketing channels in the current technological era. Consumers are linking with various brands online more than ever before, and E-marketing can also be cost-effective marketing channel for promoting brands online and generating sales and revenue via digital marketing (Maghnati et al. 2012). Viral marketing is also a rising marketing discipline, which is part of the digital range: an effective viral campaign uses a word-of-web to promote brand awareness. However, these marketing channels usually work together; at present, they are delivering successful marketing campaigns internationally for global brands and small businesses equally. Though brands and companies gain benefit from using these marketing channels, marketing departments are searching for new ways to operate and use these channels l in order to connect with their target audiences in a deeper way (Obonyo 2011). The basic idea is to build strong relationships that create brand loyalty and brand sponsorship. Additionally, experiential marketing may transform consumers from shoppers into dependable individuals who perceive the brand in certain terms, and share their personality and core marketing message or features to their families, friends, colleagues and local communities (Schmitt 2010). Experiential marketing is method way of identifying, recognizing and satisfying customer demands or needs and ambitions, engaging them through two-way marketing communications that take brand personalities into real life and include value to the target audience (Maghnati et al. 2012). Research shows that experiential marketing is incorporated into specific methodologies, which always are connected with target audiences and add value through relevant and appropriate brand communication dimensions (Schmitt 2010). The methodology was sound and objective in reaching particular conclusions pertaining to experiential marketing. The experiential marketing movement was established around one concept, involving two-way marketing communication between the brand and the target audience in actual time. As a result, live brand experiences are considered to be the core feature of experiential marketing. Other marketing communications channels are also playing their role in the process (Schmitt 201 0). They are being selected and integrated to increase marketing channels, which strengthen the impact of the big marketing idea known as live brand experience (customer experience). Conclusion This paper has explored the aspects of branding and how they are related to experiential marketing. In addition, emphasis was placed on determining the impact of branding on future event management decisions. It has been suggested that experiential creativity is at least partly concerned with offering a shopping environment that is appropriate to the customers, which can encourage them to the purchasing process (Schmitt 2010). The paper has suggested that experiential marketing provides an adequate way to achieving strong relationships with customers who may have an opportunity to experience different brands in a personal way. Furthermore, experiential marketing is also focused on getting consumer feedback, judgments, thoughts, actions and connections (Kotler and Keller 2006). All these aspects contribute to define and design a live customer experience and thinking about marketing. Experiential marketing has modified the past marketing concept that only focused on customers and custo mer service. Just as branding culture is established collectively through the participation of customers in experiencing brands, dividing branding strategies into different parts is a collective or a single branding decision for companies. It depends on the decision of branding or marketing directors to use one branding strategy over another (Caru and Cova 2007). Powerful branding provides a competitive advantage in an event not only with respect to audiences but also in relation to different brand partners (Kotler and Keller 2006). The paper concluded that a well-built brand culture also provides the firm with considerable influence in configuring event policies and negotiating with other brands. References Addis, M. and Holbrook, M. (2001) ‘On the Conceptual Link between Mass Customisation and Experiential Consumption: An Explosion of Subjectivity’, Journal of Consumer Behavior, Vol. 1 pp 50-66 Caru, A. and Cova, B. (2007) Consuming Experience, London, Routledge Crowther, P. (2010) ‘Strategic Application of Events’, International Journal of Hospitality Management, Vol. 29(2) pp227-235 Forlizzi, J. and Ford, S. (2000) ‘The Building Blocks of Experience: An Early Framework for Interaction Designers’, Proceedings of the DIS 2000 Seminar, Communications of the ACM, pp 419-423 Keller, K. L. and Lehmann, D. R. (2006) ‘Brands and Branding: Research Findings and Future Priorities’, Marketing Science, Vol. 25(6) pp740-759 Kotler, P. J. and Keller, K. L. (2006) Marketing Management, New York, Pearson Prentice Hall LeSalle, D. and Britton, T. A. (2003) Priceless: Turning Ordinary Products into Extraordinary Experiences, Boston, Harvard Business School Press Maghnati, F., Ling, K. C. and Nasermoadeli, A. (2012) ‘Exploring the Relationship between Experiential Marketing and Experiential Value in the Smartphone Industry’, International Business Research, Vol. 5(11) pp169-177 Obonyo, M. (2011) ‘Experiential Marketing, Experiential Value, Purchase Behaviour and Customer Loyalty in the Telecoms Industry’, Dissertation. Makerere University Prahalad, C. K. and Ramaswamy, V. (2004) ‘Co-Creation Experiences: The Next Practice in Value Creation’, Journal of Interactive Marketing, Vol. 18(3) pp5-14 Schmitt, B. H. (2010) ‘Experience Marketing: Concepts, Frameworks and Consumer Insights’, Foundations and Trends in Marketing, Vol. 5(2) pp55-112

Ethics Exam Essay

1)Give the complete definition Aristotle offers of eudaimonia? EUDAIMONIA MEANS HAPPINESS/ FLOURISHING DEFINED AS AN ACTIVITY OF THE SOUL IN ACCORDANCE WITH COMPLETE VIRTUE WITH ADEQUATE EXTERNAL GOODS IN A COMPLETE LIFE This involves one’s life as a whole and consists in action in accord with reason Eudaimonia is not achieved through pleasure, wealth, honor or even virtue on its own. What is an external good? Are external goods necessary or sufficient for happiness? While internal goods are more important, adequate external goods are necessary but not sufficient condition for eudaimonia. External goods from Aristotle’s view include good birth, sufficient wealth and friends. These external goods enable a person to practice complete virtue, because in many practices we use wealth (generosity), friends and political power (justice). Aristotle also includes good birth, good children and even outer beauty. Claiming that we cannot have the character of happiness if we look repulsive, we are childless, ill-born or live in solidarity. (Book one chapter 8) Is virtue necessary or sufficient for happiness? Happiness depends primarily on character and action in accordance with complete virtue, it is not something we can passively receive from other people or external circumstances and good fortune. it is Aristotle’s view that virtue is necessary but not sufficient for eudaimonia. Virtue alone cannot bring happiness because someone who suffers the worst evils and has no friends or external goods would not be considered happy by any means besides idealistic philosophy What is the most important aspect of happiness? Why? What kind of activities is Aristotle referring to? 3 different types of activity 1. Activity done for it’s own sake 2. Activity only done for the sake of an end 3. Activity both for it’s own sake and for the sake of an end Happiness is the highest goal because it is complete in it’s self, done for it’s own sake. 2) What is Aristole’s view of self love? When is it good and when is it bad? Why do people confuse this? P146 3) GIVE EXAMPLES of 3 virtues in aristoles, showing each is a mean in regard to feeling or actions (be specific) and say what the extremes of the excess and deficiency are. Courage the mean in regard to feelings of fear and confidence in threatening situations excess: arrogant, reckless, rash, lack fear when needed deficiency: fearful, cowardice, timid Generosity the mean in regard to the action of giving and taking resources excess: wasteful, irresponsible, impulsive deficiency: selfishness, stinginess, greedy Friendliness is the mean with regard to actions that cause pleasure and pain in others excess: people pleaser deficiency: quarrelsome 4) Why are the pursuits of pleasure and honor rejected as the good life?p4 and p19 1. The vulgar perceive happiness as pleasure, a life of gratification appears slavish like animal activities/grazing cows. 2. The political person perceives happiness as honor, insufficient because it can come and go and depends on those giving honor making it too external and superficial 5) Are virtue and vice voluntary? Can we change who we are? Explain aristotles view and your own Yes, virtue and vice are voluntary, both virtue and vice are in harmony with our desires and reason. vice develops after the character of someone becomes so that they preceive what is bad as good, this person according to aristole is still held responsible for their activity even though they can’t on their own change their character due to their perception. I think we can change with outside intervention. 6) What is the relationship between knowledge and virtue in Aristotle? Are the virtues of thought necessary or sufficient for moral virtue? What kind of wisdom matters here? p162 7) What are the three types of friendship? Why is the best one the best?p121 1. Loving the other due to utility 2. loving the other due to pleasure 3. loving the other for their own sake (complete friendship) only people of virtuous charcater can have complete friendship because it requires simular virtue between 2 people and ability to know and have confidence in the other persons character. It is the only friendship that continues past utlity and pleasure. 8) What are the three features self-love and friendship have in common? 1. Enjoy spending time together 2. Love the other for their own sake 3. share in pleasure and pains With self-love: Enjoy yourself, love yourself for your own sake, have intrinsic value within yourself, and share in your own pleasures and pains. 9) What is the difference between theoretical wisdom and practical wisdom, or prudence? How is each acquired? P90 Practical wisdom or prudence – a state of grasping the truth, concerned w/action, things that are good or bad for a human being prudence and virtue are necessary and sufficient for one another 10) What is the difference between continence and virtue? Is incontinence or vice easier to cure and why? p110   incontinence: to know (or maybe just believe) what is the good action and choose otherwise, your desire is different than your reason 11) Aristotle’s ethics depend upon no metaphysics or myths regarding the gods or the afterlife, yet he does make the assumption about human nature that equates goodness with happiness. What are these assumptions? Virginia Held What are Virginia Held’s claims are the 3 main masculine biases in history of ethics? Are they relevant today? 1. Dichotomy between reason and emotion Reason:rational:male as emotion:irrational :female Reason controls emotions 2. Split between public and private Mothering: natural and biological, women just reproduce life, driven by instinct, irrelevant to morality Man is human making history cultural, transcending his animal nature 3. Concept of self as individualistic rather the dependent and having particular relationships. How it effects today: â€Å"just add women mentality is not enough to fix how emotion and private life has been left out of ethics. New theories are needed that include emotions, nurturance of children and social relations beyond the scope of business. This requires reevaluating the importance of the home and children. Achtenburg What are the 2 necessary moments in feminism? Which do you think is important right now? 1. Claiming general human characteristics that have wrongly been called male (universal principles, dispassion, autonomy) 2. Elevating characteristics considered to be only female and devalued, (passion, particular relationships and community and connection, Feminist care ethics say embrace elevate gender dichotomy) I think it is important right now to elevate those â€Å"female† characteristics as valuable, for the private to be of value as equally as the public How does Aristotle provide a solution to the split between reason and emotion? 1. For a person with well-developed character emotions and reason are in harmony, not mere continence, emotions and reasons have the same aim. 2. Emotions are types of cognition, all types of pleasure and pain are from perceiving particulars that are good as good and that are bad as bad MacIntyre What is the tension between patriotism and liberal morality? Why does each view see the other as a moral danger? Patriotism is a kind of loyalty to a particular nation this conflicts with liberal moral theory because liberal morals uphold impartiality. Patriots see liberal morality as a threat to social bonds within a community and that it endangers the survival of such because it abandons all reason for defense. Liberal moralist think patriotism justifies war and can lead us into blindly following our government

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Just War Theory and Christian Peace - Assignment Example Under the just cause argument, just cause may be defined in terms of a response to the crime of aggression, the unlawful violation of the principle of nonintervention. If aggression is being viewed as a crime in accordance to the international law, then states have a right to respond to aggression with force, given that there is no world government or world police force to espouse international law. Most importantly, the moral rationalization for intervening in the affairs of such States would be based upon considerable, clear, irrefutable evidence of their support for terrorists, which is very intricate at best to bring into being, for instance, the lack of tangible evidence that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and Iraq’s support for terrorism. Right authority was a different intervention that has also been used to respond to the issue on terrorism. Most significantly, right authority required an official declaration of war, which includes a bill of particulars that clearly articulates the moral justification and aims of the war. The other measure that the Christians undertook was to use reasonable hope of success. This criterion entailed calculation that using force would re-establish peace. This stipulation represents an attempt to protect the citizens, nonmilitary and military alike, from the imprudence and/or immoral ambitions of their leaders. The most important and very precious means were the Last Resort. This last criterion mandated that the use of force shall be the last resort, and that adequate nonviolent attempts to resolve the conflict is made and have failed. If all attempts at nonviolent conflict resolution were being reasonably made and while the conflict or threat persisted, then the criterion of last resort would have been met. Even though, the judgment that last resort can never be known with absolute certainty, a considerable effort must be made to resolve the conflict diplomatically in spite of imminent threat.

HUME Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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Feature a female fitness competitor in Pittsburgh, PA Article

Feature a female fitness competitor in Pittsburgh, PA - Article Example When Sarah’s not delivering letters, she spends the majority of her time pursuing her passion: working to become a professional figure competitor, and she’s well on her way. Sara has competed in numerous figure competitions, including Miss Hawaiian Tropic 2004, Eugenia Swimwear Bikini Jam 2004, and the OCB Golden Triangle Battle for the Sword, while also developing her training clientele. Sarah works for various nutritional and fitness sponsors, flies around the country to model for companies like Bowflex, and even has time to maintain a website and a Twitter account1. Yet with all of this success, Sarah stays remarkably grounded. Colleagues and peers that know her say Sarah is outgoing and easy to work with, and that despite her success, her ego has not grown with her muscle mass. This humility in the face of achievements comes from the same place as her motivation to stay healthy: her childhood. Sarah describes her childhood as relatively normal with two supportive an d loving parents, yet she reveals that she struggled with her weight as a young child. â€Å"I was an overweight child,† she confesses. â€Å"My parents encouraged me to start exercising through athletics. I wasn’t so receptive at first.† This initial resistance faded as Sarah became involved with cheerleading at the local Catholic school she attended, and she eventually realized a passion for athletics. â€Å"Athletics in general have tremendously made my life more rewarding and fun,† Sarah says, and this love would carry her a long way. After realizing she had more of a drive to be on the court playing than on the sidelines cheering, and after noticing she was taller than the whole girls basketball team, Sarah decided to try out. This was when Sarah’s love of athletics turned into a passion. â€Å"Soon, I went from a lethargic chubby adolescent to a thin, happy, and athletic teen. I took it to the extreme.† Sarah would go on to play softba ll and run track in addition to playing basketball in high school, yet Sarah’s favorite and most accomplished sport remained volleyball. It was her skill in volleyball, her unyielding passion for athletics and competition, and her humility in daily life that took the talented young athlete from Pittsburgh out to California University in California, PA. Here she would further refine her athletic skill playing Division II volleyball, and here she would discover the work ethic and dedication that would get her out of the bed at 4:45am years later. Sarah describes the workouts as challenging, saying she would spend â€Å"hours on the court practicing,† but this practice would quickly pay off. In her sophomore year of college, Sarah earned what she describes as one of her most memorable honors. â€Å"Our team went to the Final Four my sophomore year of college,† she says. â€Å"It was a great experience that I will never forget.† Even in the face of overwhelmi ng athletic achievement, Sarah found the humility and energy to hit the books and stay grounded in her academic work. Sarah graduated from California University in 2003 with honors, and takes pride in earning her degree in Education while also being so competitive athletically. â€Å"I did really well in college,† Sarah explains, â€Å"and I graduated Summa Cum Laude.† Her academic and athletic excellence obviously made her a hot commodity for job recruiters after graduation. Of course, in Sarah’s typical highly motivated style, she didn’

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

LAB 2 - Essay Example Specifically, the most common and accepted method of measuring strain is using the electrical resistant strain gage. The strain gage is a gaunt conductor made of a wire or a metallic foil that is in a grid-like pattern. In particular, the grid-like pattern maximizes the amount of strain in the parallel direction. The experiment uses a conductor (carrier) that is of thin strips of metallic film placed on a non-conducting substrate material. The wire is to the specimen and facilitates the transfer of the strain from the specimen to the strain gage. Accordingly, the transfer makes a linear change in the electrical resistance. Precisely, the electrical resistance of a conducting wire fluctuates when the length of the conductor changes in a process called deformation or stretching. Consequently, the basis of the electrical resistance strain gage is the deformation. Under an ideal situation, the strain gage resistance ranges between 30 ÃŽ © to 3 kÃŽ ©. Fundamentally, the resistance changes only a fraction of a percent in a full force range of the gauges. For this reason, a higher resistance change cause s a permanent deformity to the test specimen. Therefore, a successful use of the strain gauge calls for a measure of small changes under high

Supply Chain Simulation Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Supply Chain Simulation - Term Paper Example An effective system of production management is sufficient to make a company stand out. This report provides effective and efficient ways of handling the production activities of the firm so as to ensure its financial strength and enhanced earnings. Table of Contents CHAPTER 1 4 1.1Problem Statement/ Opportunity 4 1.2Scope of the Report 4 1.3Background 5 1.3.1Legacy Technology 5 1.3.2Customer Satisfaction 5 2.1Proposed Solution: Supply Chain Management 6 2.2Cost of the Project 6 2.3Adequacy of Funds 9 2.4Project Benefits 11 2.4.1Estimated Annual Savings 11 2.4.2Just in Time and Lean Operations Usage 13 2.5Management of Inventory 14 2.6Work Cells Vs. Straight line Method 15 2.7Continuous Improvement Program 16 The main objective of the organisation has always been to achieve total quality management throughout the organisation. Therefore, every new project is sufficiently scrutinized with the aim of establishing the impact it has on the rest of the organisation. To achieve total quali ty management with the new project, employees will be adequately empowered through training, constant feedback and engagement in the implementation of the supply chain management to ensure maximum contribution from them. 18 CHAPTER 3 18 3.1Conclusion 18 References 19 CHAPTER 1 1.1 Problem Statement/ Opportunity Our current production capacity is not up to the industry standards. To begin with, our client base has expanded in recent years and nothing has been done to adjust the production process to accommodate the changes being experienced. The present production capacity of the firm does not meet the present market needs. This has perhaps to a great extent contributed to the loss of customers every year. The fact the company gains new customers every year cannot in anyway justify the loss of the existing ones. A lot of company finances are usually spent in attaining new clients which can be cut by engaging in activities that facilitate customer retention. Among those ways of retain ing customers entails engaging in company practices that ensures that the needs and expectations of the customers are met in terms of service and product quality, availability of sufficient products as and when they are needed as well as appropriate pricing. This report was generated with the main aim of bringing to light the means by which the current production processes can be adjusted to enhance company performance as well as please and increase the client base. 1.2 Scope of the Report This report shows the production activities that our company can engage in to enhance the company performance. Matters of the supply chain management and any possible changes that can enhance the company performance have been analysed in this report. Resource allocation in the form of budgetary control was kept into consideration when developing this report. The probable changes in the finance structure of the company are presented in the form of balance sheet and income statement in the form of a ttachment in this case. The best ways of supply chain management such as just in time, lean operations as well as effective management of the inventory are well outlined in this report. 1.3 Background Despite the fact that ABC Limited Company has been successfully running its operations to a certain extent, more can be done to achieve more success. Increased efficiency and effectiveness could be achieved by making changes in certain

Creating Cross-Functional Teams Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Creating Cross-Functional Teams - Essay Example Hence in most of the cases, it is better to have customer oriented teams design such products. Customer oriented teams have the advantage of understanding more clearly the specific requirements of the customer due to their â€Å"customer first† approach; responding adequately to varying needs on account of their flexibility, and giving a better and more customized solution to the customer based on their combined set of skills. 2. Anyone who has worked in team situations has discovered that some members of the team work harder than others; nonetheless, the whole team is often rewarded based on the overall results, not an individual effort. How could team evaluations be made so that individual efforts could be recognized and rewarded? Ans Team evaluations can be made to focus more on individual contributions in many different ways. Firstly, one can evaluate the performance of each member against the tasks he was assigned, thus in this manner, the performance of each member can b e compared with the other members of the team. Secondly, we can judge how much effort each member is putting into teamwork by observing his performance and inputs during team discussions, and his willingness when the group task is divided among the members.  This case can be a model for such an organization n that it effectively describes the steps that can be undertaken by the company management to become more customer oriented. This case accurately describes the essential requirements for a private organization to become more customer-aware, such as user-friendly systems, team-oriented approach etc. also it effectively describes the firewalls against activities such as pleasing bosses, by creating cross-functional teams and diluting a strict hierarchal structure. 4. What are some major impediments to implementing customer-oriented teams in service organizations? Ans One major impediment towards the implementation of customer-oriented teams in service organizations is the system of processes and procedures in the organization, particularly the inflexibility attached to those processes. This can be crucial as for an organization to become truly customer oriented; a certain level of flexibility in operations is required so as to respond to each customer in the most optimal manner. Another impediment is the hierarchal structure in the organizations, as it causes difficulty in formation of teams within the organization. Lastly, employees’ attitude and personalities also become an impediment towards the development of an effective team, especially one that is cross-functional (Webber, 2002). Employees may not feel comfortable working with one another and may not prefer equal status. This creates issues in the effective operation of a team, even after teams are created.

Italian American Immigrant Essay Example for Free

Italian American Immigrant Essay Many Italians migrated to United States as early as 1848. They migrated in small numbers due to revolutionary movement’s failure that occurred in Italy. Most of the Italians migrated to America between 1880 and 1960s. These Italians came from Sicily and Southern Italy. They had very little knowledge in education and were poor. Majority of these immigrants were men. The poor economy that existed in Italy at that time contributed a great deal to the migration of Italians. Italians upon reaching America used to settle in specific places. One of the regions that were dominated by Italians was nick named ‘Little Italy’. In ‘Little Italy’ the Italians there had good relations and interactions with each other. They enjoyed cooking their favorite foods that were quite different from what American citizens cooked. Italian’s food was richly spiced compared to that cooked by American Citizens. These included spiced sausages and Zeppole. Italian immigrants formed a common culture in ‘Little Italy’. Italian immigrants normally had very little money and very minimal sophistication. Most of the Italian neighborhoods were dominated by slums. The sanitation in the neighborhood was quite poor and un-admirable. Many of them suffered from many ailments due to the poor sanitation and overcrowding. During World War I it was difficult for Italians to migrate to United States. These Italian immigrants faced much discrimination based on their religion. Many of them were lynched. Five point three million Italians had moved to United States by the year 1978. Some of the Italian immigrants never intended to stay there for a long time. They just wanted to make money and then go back to their mother nation. Research however shows that only one Italian among four would manage to return to the home country. Many of the public schools in United States gave Italian immigrants children a new language to speak. The children found that the patriotic symbols differed from those in their home country. Some of them were even given new names that were Anglicized. This created a very big gap in the culture of Italian children compared to the culture embraced by their parents. With time many labor unions incorporated the Italian immigrants. This gave Italian immigrants a chance to get experience and therefore advanced their carriers. With time Italian –American immigrants started owning businesses. Some of them even became managers in industries and Companies in United States. Some of them like Enrico Caruso became artists. Culture A close looks at Italian –American Immigrants shows that they still hold onto their culture. This is clearly seen in the food that they eat. They still cook Italian food. Their food is very rich in spices compared to the food that is cooked in United States of America. This includes their Italian drinks which are still preferred by many Italian-American Immigrants. They still hold onto Italian art that is quite beautiful. Italian –American immigrants still hold their feasts that are really rich in their culture. Unlike Americans they are quite committed to their members of the extended families. They include cousins, uncles, grandparents and parents in laws etc. In these extended relations they include business relations which bond them together. In fact they marry their close relatives like first cousins. They are very committed to their families. During 1940s Italian –American immigrants had very big impacts to music industry in United States. This was also witnessed in the year 1970. They also had big influence to movies that were featured in United States. This was mostly common in movies that were culture based. It was quite evident because Italian words were incorporated in communication of the characters. However many of the characters were not always in a position to speak the language very fluently. This language has also been incorporated by television presenters in America. One thing that really amazes about Italian immigrant’s culture is their feasts. They were often carried out in ‘Little Italy’. These feasts include Our Lady of Mount Carmel ‘Giglio’ which is commonly celebrated in Williamsburg New York. This feast has been celebrated for more than one hundred and twenty five years in New Jersey. It is normally celebrated annually. There is also the San Gennaro feast that is usually held in New York. Another feast is known as St Joseph’s feast. These Italian feasts are very funny. They have displays on devotion that is done to patron saints and to God. The feasts are quite Italian based since they show their life approach. In the feasts communal meals are taken. They also include religious services. Others also incorporate games known as games of chance. These feasts give people the opportunity to show off their skills and prowess in various sectors like dancing. There are different statutes that are used in these feasts. Different kinds of jewels are normally shown off in these feasts. In fact in communities where they are practiced, they are taken very seriously. These feasts or celebrations take quite a long period of time like several days. The church community is the one that is responsible for the preparation of these feasts. These preparations take several months for all plans to be in order. Research shows that approximately three hundred Italian feasts are celebrated in United States. Millions of Americans from diverse backgrounds normally attend these feasts. In fact many of them concur that they enjoy Italian food. Religion Research shows that many Italian immigrants were Christians of catholic denomination when they were still in Italy. When these Italians migrated to United States, they even became more devout. This was quite evident even in their communication with friends, coworkers and employers. They introduced themselves as Catholics. This shows that they were very religious and a God fearing people. However there are also religious minorities that exist in Italy. They include Italian Jews, Greek Orthodox and also Greek Catholics. Even the celebrations that are carried out show their religion. An example is that which is celebrated on 19th March every year. This is called Saint Joseph’s day which includes parades. There is also Columbus Day that is also enjoyed by many Italian immigrants staying in United States. There is St. Januaris that is celebrated on 19th September. Many immigrants from Sicily celebrate Santa Rosalia on 4th of September every year. Saint Rocco’s is celebrated by immigrants who originated from Italy in a place known as Potenza. Most of Italian immigrants do celebrate the famous Christmas season. The Feast of the seven fishes is also included in their celebrations. Research shows that some of the Irish and German Catholic leaders discriminated against some of the Italian American Catholics. This forced them to leave the Catholic Church and join Episcopal. Current research carried out in United States shows that there are Italian-American immigrants that are not Catholics. In fact many of them have joined the Episcopal Church. Most of the immigrants claim there are many similarities between the two churches. There are also a number of immigrants that changed from catholic to Baptist church. This was accelerated by influence of neighborhood who attended the Baptist church.

Cost Club Week Essay Example for Free

Cost Club Week Essay The issues against discharging an employee with any reason can be very harmful to any business. This opens the door for a lawsuit to any organization because, an ex-employee could file a lawsuit against the employer for alleging that they had been discharged wrongfully. The civil right law act in 1964 provides protection to the employees against wrongfully discharge. This describe that companies cannot terminate their employees basis of race, gender, skin, religion, color etc, (Employment law for business, 2007)†.) For example, if their at-will relationship exists between the employee and employer this does not mean that employer may terminate the employee, in a discriminatory manner. This mean the organization has to follow the legal principles before discharging their employee. There are so many laws that protect the individuals even though we are an, at- will state. The Federal anti-discrimination law prevents employees from wrongful discharge by the employer (Lawson, 1998)†. This scenario does not say that the employees were not let go due to the basis of any reason. This lawsuit against the organization for wrongful discharge could be very risky for the Cost Club since there were no reasons for terminating their employees. Reduction in Employee Costs There are many ways to reduce company cost. One thing a company can do is to outsource their HR. This will help reduce the cost of the employee benefits  program by bring in an outside company like GNA Partners. The GNA Partners have many ways to save the company money but, may bring cost to the workers. The GNA Partners provide negotiation insurance rates, which the plan cost are determined by what age group the employees fall into. Next the company can choose higher deductible plans, which this reduces, the cost of benefits plan. †¢ The business can offer robust benefits package by making their employees contribute. †¢ Using different types of workers like temporary workers, contract employee, part-time employees, employees and, non-employees work hours. These job types can be helpful to accomplish the seasonal demand of the organizations plus can cause the increase within the organizational performance. The organization knows all different categories of workers who can hire to save money for definite and indefinite period. Organization understands that temporary workers directly reports to the employer and receive their reimbursement from the company. When a company hires a contract employee, temporary and, part-time employee they know that they do not have to pay this employee benefits or high rates. Like vacation, sick, and part-time workers are usually define a workers, who have shorter working hours other fulltime workers. The rules, policies and, procedures for the part-time employee are not the same as the regular employees but quite different from the temporary workers† (Part Time and Temporary Employees, 2009). According to â€Å"Bennett-Alexander, Hartman, â€Å"by hiring independent contractors, the cost of overtime is eliminated (the federal wage and hour laws do not apply to independent contractors) and the employer is able to avoid any work-related expenses, su ch as tools, training, or traveling. The employer is also guaranteed satisfactory performance of the job for which the contractor was hired because it is the contractor’s contractual obligation to adequately perform the contract with the employer, while the employee is generally able to quit without incurring liability (Employment law for business, 2007)†. For example, the company manage is an employees work who sets an employee’s schedule, along with deciding the method the employee uses to perform their work. An independent contractor is a person who provides particular services to an organization. Whether it be a short or long-term assignment. This is very effective low cost and saving the companying money because; temporary, contract or part-time employment arrangements provides several benefits to any business. Injury and Damages According to Tort Law, the Cost Club will be liable for the misconduct of employees with the customers. Tort laws are laws that offer remedies to individuals harmed by the unreasonable actions of others. Tort claims usually involve state law and are based on the legal premise that individuals are liable for the consequences of their conduct if it results in injury to others (McCarthy Cambron-McCabe, 1992). Tort laws involve civil suits, which are actions brought to protect an individual’s private rights. The second situation, the employee is liable for physical harm to the customers’ property. Therefore, the company who hires the employee will be held liable for their employees negligent. The last situation, the business will not be liable for the acts of a real estate agent, because, the real estate agent is not controlled by the business. Therefore, the Cost Club should let their customers know they, are not responsible or that the real estate agent is an independent and organization contractors and that they have no control on his or her activities so, Cost Club will not be liable for the tort of him or her (Tort Liability Basics: Strict, Vicarious, and Joint Liability, 1999). Resolving Disagreement Processes Resolving disagreement between company and its employees, the can †¢ Set up a subject box  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Have a meeting once a week with the manager, and employees to discuss the problem that may arise between co-workers and managers. †¢ Includes third party as the mediator between employees and company. †¢ Grievance procedure, corporate due process, mediation etc., †¢ Clear as the formal complaint by the employees that they are behaved wrongly by the management decisions (Open door policy) These steps can be very effective to resolve between most companies’ problem. Which, if not settled could cause a big problem like violation of law, and just a perception of unfair treatment by the employees and managers. This method has to be effective in order to achieve long-term success and to facilitate and to accommodate between the employees and the company. Employment Law Concepts for Selection Employment law concepts for selection would include several legal implications. According to Bennett-Alexander, Hartman, â€Å"the Civil Rights  Act 1964 prohibits the employers from discrimination among the potential employees on the basis of race, gender, color, region etc. in its recruitment and selection process. The next step is once the employee is hired, the company should make sure they follow steps are, training, appraising, compensating, and implementing employment decisions that determine such things as promotions, transfers, and layoffs† The selection procedure should also be job related and concern with the business necessity. The company should always follow the State HR Laws, and all the employees should be treated fairly and equally (Employment Tests and Selection Procedures, 2008). The Age Discrimination in Employment Act should also be considered in the selection procedure by the management. Reference: Beatty, J.F. Samuelson, S.S. (2009). Introduction to Business Law (3rd ed.). Cengage Learning. Bennett-Alexander, D. D. Hartman, P. L. (2007). Employment law for business (5th ed.). New York: McGraw–Hill. Retrieved October 29, 2012 from University of Phoenix, rEsource. Part Time and Temporary Employees. (2009). Retrieved October 29, 2012 from http://employment.findlaw.com/employment/employment-employee-overview/employment-

Economy Of South Africa Economics Essay

Economy Of South Africa Economics Essay South Africas economy is the largest in Africa and is 24 of its GDP in terms of PPP.A quarter of the population is unemployed and real unemployment rate is 40. South Africa has a comparative advantage in agriculture, mining and various manufacturing products. It has shifted from a primary and secondary economy to an economy driven primarily by the tertiary sector which accounts for an estimated 65% of GDP. Its economy is reasonably diversified with key economic sectors including mining, agriculture and fishery, vehicle manufacturing and assembly, food-processing, clothing and textiles, telecommunication, energy, financial and business services, real estate, tourism, transportation, and wholesale and retail trade. The unemployment rate is over 25%, and the poor have limited access to economic opportunities. Including this many issues such as crime, have in turn hurt investment and growth, having a negative effect on employment. Crime is considered a major constraint on investment. South Africa has struggled through the late 2000s recession, and the recovery has been largely led by private and public consumption growth, while export volumes and private investment have yet to fully recover. The long-term potential growth rate of South Africa under the current policy environment has been estimated at 3.5%.Per capita GDP growth has proved mediocre, though improving, growing by 2.2% over the 2000-09 decade. This is a table of the trend of South Africas gross domestic product at market prices estimated by the  International Monetary Fund: Year GDP, USD bln US Dollar Exchange in early January Unemployment rate Per Capita Income,  % of USA 1980 80.547 0.8267 Rand 9.2 22.6 1985 57.273 2.0052 Rand 15.5 9.8 1990 111.998 2.5419 Rand 18.8 13.1 1995 151.117 3.5486 Rand 16.7 13.2 2000 132.964 6.1188 Rand 25.6 8.5 2005 246.956 5.6497 Rand 26.7 12.4 2010 363.655 7.462 Rand 24.9 15.5 2015 (fcast) 510.937 22.8 18.0 Economic overview of South Africa (Sector wise) Natural resources Mining has been the main driving force behind the history and development of Africas most advanced and richest economy. Large scale mining started with the discovery of a diamond on the banks of the Orange River in 1867 by Erasmus Jacobs and the subsequent discovery and exploitation of the Kimberley pipes. The Witwatersrand Gold Rush and the subsequent rapid development of the gold field are the biggest of all. Though minings contribution to the national GDP has fallen from 21% in 1970 to 6% in 2011, it represents 60% of exports. The mining sector accounts for up to 9% of value added. In 2008, the countrys estimated share of world platinum production amounted to 77%; kyanite and other materials, 55%; chromium, 45%; palladium, 39%; vermiculite, 39%; vanadium, 38%; zirconium, 30%; manganese, 21%; rutile, 20%; ilmenite, 19%; gold etc. It also accounted for nearly 5% of the worlds polished diamond production. The countrys share of world reserves of platinum metals amounted to 89%; hafnium, 46%; zirconium, 27%; vanadium, 23%; manganese, 19%; rutile, 18%; fluorspar, 18%. It is worlds third largest exporter of coal. Agriculture and food processing The agricultural industry contributes 10% of formal employment, relatively low compared to other parts, as well as providing work for laborers and contributing 2.6% of GDP. Due to the aridity of the land, only 13.5% can be used for crop production. Agriculture sector face problems of increased foreign competition and crime. Maize production, which contributes to a 36% has also experienced negative effects due to climate change. South Africas critical exports include edible fruit and nuts, beverages, preserved food, tobacco, cereals, wool , miscellaneous food, sugar, meat, milling products and starch. Important imports include: cereals, meat, soya-bean oil cake, soya-bean oil and its fractions, tobacco, palm oil and its fractions, spices, coffee, tea, and preserved food. The competitive pressures from China and India resulted in decline of exports for the food, textiles and paper sub-sectors. Manufacturing The manufacturing industry contributes just 13.3% of jobs and 15% of GDP. Labor costs are low, and the cost of the transport, communications and general living is higher. The automotive industry is about 10% of South Africas manufacturing exports, contributes 7.5% to the countrys GDP. BMW, Ford, Volkswagen, Daimler-Chrysler, General Motors and Toyota all have production plants in South Africa and the large component manufacturers are Arvin Exhaust, Bloxwitch, Corning and Senior Flexonics. Companies producing in South Africa can take advantage of low production costs and access to new markets due to trade agreements with the European Union and the Southern African Development Community. Service industry Telecommunications infrastructure provides efficient service to urban areas as to cellular and internet services. In 1997, Telkom, was partly privatised and entered into a strategic equity partnership with SBC, a U.S. telecommunications company. In exchange of providing certain services for 5 years, Telkom assumed an obligation to facilitate network modernisation and expansion into the unserved areas. Five companies provides service to 20 million subscribers and South Africa considered to have the 4th most advanced mobile telecommunications network worldwide. Business process outsourcing South Africa and particularly the Cape Town region established itself as a successful Call center and business process outsourcing destination with a highly talented pool of productive labor. The Carphone warehouse, Delta airlines and others have established inbound call centers within Cape Town as a means of utilizing Cape Towns low labor costs and talented labor. Tourism South Africa is a popular tourist destination, with around 860,000 arrivals per month. Revenue equaling between 1% and 3% of GDP is generated by the tourism industry. Among the main attractions are the picturesque culture, the game reserves and local wines. Financial services The country has a sophisticated financial structure with the JSE Securities Exchange, a large and active stock exchange in terms of total market capitalization as of March 2009. The banking industry regulated by the South African Reserve Bank is dominated by four local players: Nedbank, ABSA, Standard Bank and First Rand. Banks operating in South Africa, when left with short of liquidity, need to borrow from the SARB at a fluctuating repo rate. Income Distribution South Africa is affected by vast differences in incomes and wealth. The high level of overall income inequality has accentuated: the countrys Gini coefficient increased by four percentage points, and income has concentrated in the top decile. Rural poverty rates remain higher than those in urban areas, urban poverty rates are rising and rural rates seem to be falling. Between-race inequality also remains a central issue and many blacks in the country still live in poverty. National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS) data suggests that 47% of South Africans live below the poverty line: 56% of blacks live in poverty compared to 2% of whites. Human Poverty Index ranked South Africa 85 out of 135 countries. A 2011 study published by the University of Cape Town found that nearly 40% are black, where this group had once been almost exclusively white. While only 29% of the absolute wealthiest South Africans are black, this jumps to 50% among the entry-level. Current Economic scenario Trends: Monetary Policy   The primary objective of monetary policy in the country is to achieve and maintain price stability and balanced economic development. Price stability reduces uncertainty and therefore, provides a favourable environment for growth and employment. Moreover low inflation contributes to the protection of the purchasing power of all South Africans specially poor. The Bank has full operational autonomy. Monetary policy is set by the Banks Monetary Policy Committee,  which conducts monetary policy within a flexible  inflation-targeting framework and  it allows for inflation to be out of the target range as a result of first-round effects of a supply shock. This flexibility does not relieve the Bank of its responsibility with respect to returning inflation to within the target range but allows for interest rate smoothing over the cycle. GDP Growth Rate of South Africa GDP % (Yearly) Year 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 GDP % 0.6 3 2.6 3 1.9 3.5 4.9 5 5.1 3.1 -1.8 2.8 3.1 Inflation Rate of South Africa Inflation rate (consumer prices) (%) Year 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Inflation rate 5.5 5.3 5.8 9.9 5.9 4.5 4 5 6.5 11.3 7.2 4.5 5 Unemployment Rate of South Africa Unemployment rate (%) Year 1999 2000 2001 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Unemployment rate (%) 30 30 37 37 26.2 26.6 25.5 24.3 22.9 24 23.3 24.9 Imports of South Africa Imports (Billion $) Year 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Imports 26 27.6 28.1 26.6 33.89 39.42 52.97 61.53 90.57 66.01 77.04 102.6 Exports of South Africa Exports (Billion $) Year 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Export 28 30.8 32.3 31.8 36.77 41.97 50.91 59.15 86.12 66.54 76.86 104.5 Foreign Exchange rates in South Africa (Dec., 2012) Tthe comparison of South African rand with top ten countries as per trade. South African Rand 1.00 ZAR inv. 1.00 ZAR Euro 0.087595 11.416206 US Dollar 0.114545 8.730185 British Pound 0.071077 14.06928 Indian Rupee 6.204247 0.16118 Australian Dollar 0.109217 9.156089 Canadian Dollar 0.11348 8.8121 Emirati Dirham 0.420736 2.37679 Swiss Franc 0.106176 9.418325 Chinese Yuan Renminbi 0.71349 1.401561 Malaysian Ringgit 0.349072 2.864742 foreign Direct investment Foreign direct investment flows to South Africa from 43.6% in the first half of 2012 compared to the same period last year, while FDI rose by 5%. The decline in FDI to Africas biggest economy came amid an 8% drop in global FDI inflows because of heightened global economic uncertainty. The report said FDI inflows to South Africa fell to $1.7-billion in the first six months of 2012 , reflecting sluggish domestic economic growth as well as a slowdown in developed economies. The IMF forecasts South African GDP growth of 2.6% this year, and recently cut its 2013 growth forecast to 3% from a July projection of 3.3%, due to its close links to struggling Europe. The IMF has also trimmed its 2012 forecast for Africa to 5% from 5.4% but raised its projection for 2013 to 5.7% from 5.3%. SOUTH AFRICA BALANCE OF TRADE C:UsersMicrosenseDesktopsouth-africa-balance-of-trade.png SOUTH AFRICA INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION C:UsersMicrosenseDesktopsouth-africa-industrial-production.png Industrial Production in South Africa increased 2.50 percent in October of 2012 over the same month in the previous year. Industrial Production in South Africa is reported by the Statistics South Africa. In South Africa, industrial production measures the output of businesses integrated in industrial sector of the economy such as manufacturing, mining, and utilities.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Essay -- ALS Medical Medicine Essays

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ABSTRACT At this time, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis(ALS) is a very confusing and elusive disorder. While the clinical presentation and diagnosis of ALS dates back to the early 1900’s, with Charcot being the first to scientifically report and document his findings, there simply has not been definitive evidence since that time for the etiology for ALS. This fundamental problem has befuddled the most qualified researchers and its ensuing answer has eluded the most clever experiments for some 80 years. This paper is being written to address some of the most plausible candidate causes which have come to the forefront of ALS research in the last few years. This paper will also try to tackle the formidable task of possibly uniting some of the findings and results of experiments from all over the world in the last 4 years. While an exact, definitive etiology, treatment, or answer is not possible at this time, there does seem to be a few underlying trends and findings that have reinforced their own importance. These are the findings that will be evaluated and will hopefully act as a genesis for, perhaps a premature, minimally complete conclusion of the available pool of knowledge that has been amassed on ALS. In addition to this, possible treatment, including pharmacological intervention, will be reviewed. INTRODUCTION ALS is a disease of the skeletal muscular motor neurons throughout the nervous system that usually affects both upper and lower motor neurons. The progressive wasting and weakness of muscles that have lost their nerve supply is a characteristic sign of lower motor neuron damage; signs of spasticity and exaggerated reflexes are indications of damage to the upper motor neur... ...0. Rowland. Babinski and the diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neurological Institute. 1993. Vol. 33, #1. 11. Hubert and Blanchard. Pertussis toxin Pretreatment abolishes the inhibitory effect of Riluzole and carbachol on D-(3H)aspartate release from cultured cerebellar Granule cells. Neuroscience Letters, 1992. Vol. 140, pp. 251--254. 12. Cheramy, Barbeito, Godeheu and Glowinski. Riluzole inhibits the release of Glutamate in the caudate nucleus of the cat in vivo. Neuroscience Letters, 1992. Vol. 147, pp. 209--212. 13. Benoit and Escande. Riluzole specifically blocks in-activated Na channels in myelinated nerve fibre. European Journal of Physiology, 1991. Vol. 419, pp. 603-609. 14.Drachman and Kuncl. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: An un-conventional autoimmune disease? Annals of Neurology, 1989. Vol. 26, pp. 269-274.(Outdated, but useful)

Forensic Psychology Essay -- Papers

Forensic Psychology 1). Forensic Psychology is the application of the theories of psychology to law and the legal system. Issues of violence and its impact on individuals and/or groups delineate the main and central concerns in Forensics within the adult, juvenile, civil, and family domains. Forensic psychologists provide advice to legislators, judges, correctional officers, lawyers, and the police. They are called upon, for example, to serve as an expert witness, diagnose and treat incarcerated and probationed offenders, and screen and evaluate personnel in the law enforcement and judicial systems. Forensics encompasses a wide range of academic orientation. Synonyms for Forensic psychologists include criminal psychologist, correctional psychologists, police psychologists, and social-legal psychologists. However, Forensics is considered a single discipline. Just as one social psychologist may focus on group behavior while another may focus on interpersonal interaction, Forensic Psychology is best consi dered as a large all-encompassing field, for which correctional, police, and legal psychology are all sub-disciplines. 2). Erich Fromm defines benign aggression as a brief reaction to protect us from danger. In contrast, malignant aggression is hurting others purely for the sadistic pleasure. Fromm believes people feel helplessly compelled to conform to the rules of society, at work, and to authority everywhere. This lack of freedom to make decisions and the inability to find meaning and love in one's life causes resentment and sometimes malignant, sadistic aggression. How and where does this hostility show itself? Some people get pleasure from hurting, killing, and destroying; Hitler was a prime example: he killed 15 to 20... ...de where fires are set in or around the home and result in attention from family, friends, and neighbors. The instrumental person's act is usually characterized by a desire to resolve interpersonal conflict by setting fire to a building in a retaliative way, external to the arsonist. This offence often involves prior threats to the victim plus a specific behavioral trigger just prior to the attack. The expressive arsonist's object of target is on very public buildings affording as much public attention as possible and thus increases psychological relief for the fire setter. Emotionally charged 'non-specific' triggers are common prior to the event. These offenders will often return to the scene and observe and participate in the response. The Instrumental object of the instrumental fire setter is generally a means of achieving some criminal goal such as theft.

SUMMERTIME AND SPRING RAIN Essay example -- Essays Papers

SUMMERTIME AND SPRING RAIN Upon first sight, it appears that John Sloan’s Spring Rain and Edward Hopper’s Summertime only common characteristic is that they are both oil paintings on canvas. Spring Rain, from the school of Impressionistic art, was painted in 1912. Summertime, which possesses a simplified, schematic style, was created over thirty years later, in 1943. Therefore, there are extreme differences in the two artists’ technique and style. However, despite these differences, the two painters’ works embody the same theme: They are both scenes of urban realism characterized by isolation and loneliness. John Sloan’s painting depicts a dismal view of municipal life. The painting’s gloominess is achieved most effectively through Sloan’s use of color. He uses deep shades of purple with the contrasting color green in the background. This color scheme provides an eerie fog throughout the painting. The woman’s clothing also accentuates the dark tone of Spring Rain. She is dressed entirely in black. This signifies that her personality is somber and perhaps conservative. However, it is interesting that the woman is wearing red stockings. The fact that Sloan chose such a bold color suggests that he wished to show a slightly daring side of the woman’s personality. Hopper, on the other hand, uses a much lighter color scheme. However, the lightness does not diminish the painting’s melancholy mood. Light gray, seen in the building’s face and the sidewalk...

Cultures of Pakistan Essay

Culture is the characteristics of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. Culture may be defined as behavior peculiar to human beings, together with material objects used. Culture consists of language, ideas, beliefs, customs, codes, institution, tools, techniques, works of arts, ceremonies and so on. According to Allama Iqbal: â€Å"Culture encompasses all the mental, Spiritual and Physical activities of a Nation. It includes the basic beliefs and faith, values and literature, art and architecture, music and mode of dress, manners and customs prevalent in a given Society.† PAKISTANI CULTURE IS A ISLAMIC CULTURE Pakistan is an ideological Islamic State. Its very existence is due to Islam, so the Pakistani culture is primarily based on the Islamic way of life. All other ingredients of culture are inspired by Islam. Pakistani culture is highlighted by its grandeur, simplicity, firm convictions and noble deeds and ideas. If we study the cultures of Pakistan there are four different types of cultures at provincial level. They are different from each other in some aspects and similar in some aspects. Punjab People: Punjabi people are very warm hearted and fun loving. Punjabis are heterogeneous group comprising of different tribes, clans, communities and are known to celebrate each and every tradition of their culture. Some popular casts of Punjabi’s are; Jats, Maliks, Mughals, Arains, Gujjars, Awans, Rajputs, Gakhars, Khokhars, Sheikhs, Aheers, Kambohs, Niazis, Legharis, Khosas, Dogars, Thaheem, Mirani, Qureshis, and Syeds. Languages: Punjabi is the provincial language of Punjab. It is spoken as the first language by majority people in Punjab, even spoken and understood in areas beyond the confines of Punjab. Facts and figures show that Punjabi language is spoken as first language by 44% of Pakistanis. Urdu language is also commonly spoken in this region. Key Punjabi languages/dialects are: Dresses: Costumes of Punjab are an indication of the bright and vibrant culture and lifestyle of the people. The costumes are a mix of colours, comfort and beauty and Punjab is well known for the use of phulkari(embroidery) in its costumes. In most of the villages of Punjab men wear Pagri(turban), dhoti/lacha, kurta, khusa. Women wear gharara, or choridar pajama or colorful shalwar kameez, paranda, choli/duppata, khusa, kola puri chappal or tillay wali jutti. Whereas in urban areas of Punjab men and women follow latest trends and fashion, generally they wear different styles of shalwar kameez. Cuisine: The extensive cuisine of Punjab can be vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Most Punjabi food is eaten with either rice or roti. There are some dishes that are exclusive to Punjab such as Mah Di Dal, Paratha, Makai ki rotti, Saron Da Saag, and in cities Choley, Haleem, Baryani and other spicy dishes are popular. In beverages, tea is consumed in all seasons and as a custom most of Punjabis serve tea to their guests. Punjabis are also fond of Zarda, Gulab-Jamuns, Kheer, Jalaibi,Samosy, Pakorey etc. During summers people drink lassi, doodh-soda, aloo bokharey ka sharbat, lemonade etc. Sports: Punjabi people have fanatical interest in sports. Punjabi’s are fond of kabaddi, and wrestling. Other games being played in Punjab region include Gilli-Danda, Khoo-Khoo, Yassu-Panju, Pitho-Garam, Ludo, Chuppan-Chupai, Baraf-Panni, Kanchy and some major sports include cricket, boxing, horse-racing, hockey and football. Cultural Festivals: There are numerous festivals which are celebrated by Punjabi people including some religious festivals such as Eid-Milad-Un-Nabi, Jumu’ah, Laylat-ul-Qadr etc. Urcs (devotional fairs),which are held at the shirnes of sufi saints, Melas and Nomaish (exhibitions). Lahori’s are famous all over the country for their celebrations particularly for Basant festival (kite flying) in the spring season. Dance and Music: Bhangra is most commonly known Punjabi music genre and dance style. Punjabis passionately love folk songs/music, Qawali and Punjabi music  is recognized throughout the world. The Tabla, Dhol, Dholki, Chimta, Flute and Sitar are all common instruments of this delightful culture. Different forms of dance in Punjab are: Loddi, Dhamal, Sammi, Kikli, Gatka, Bhangra, Giddha and Dandiya. Customs and Rituals: Some of the customs followed in Punjab have no foundation in Islam. However, the Punjabi culture has adopted those ceremonies and traditions from Hindu culture. Birth Rituals: Punjabis celebrate birth of their child with great enthusiasm. Grandfather or grandmother or some respected elder member from the family puts honey with their index finger in child’s mouth called Ghutii. Sweets are distributed among friends and relatives and people bring gifts for the child and mother. Generally on 7thday child’s head is shaven and Aqiqa ceremony is held, also sheep/goat is slaughtered. Punjabi Weddings: Punjabi weddings are based on traditions and are conducted with strong reflection of the Punjabi culture followed by several pre-wedding customs and rituals (dholki,mayun,ubtan etc.) Traditional customs and the ceremony generally lasts for 3days, Mehndi, Barat (Nikkah+Ruksati) and Walima, followed by Chauti (bringing the bride back to her parents’ home the next day). Funeral Rituals: At funerals after namaz-e-janaza it is customary to offer lunch to people who came for condolence. On 3rdday of the funeral, Qul is held and every following thursday the Quran is recited (jumah-e-raat) followed by prayers for deceased and after 40days the chaliswaan is held. Literature: Punjab is very rich with literature and Sufis adds more in its literature. Punjabi poetry is renowned for its extremely deep meaning, beautiful and hopeful use of words. The large number of Punjabi poetry is being translated throughout the world into many languages. Some famous poets of Punjabi are Sultan Bahu, Mia Mohammad Baksh, Baba Farid, Shah Hussain, Anwar Masood etc. Waris Shah, whose contribution to Punjabi literature is best-known for his seminal work in Heer Ranjha, known as Shakespeare of  Punjabi language. Bulleh Shah was a Punjabi Sufi poet, a humanist and a philosopher. The verse from Bulleh Shah primarily employed is called the Kafi, a style of Punjabi. Some other popular folk tales of Punjab include Sassi-Punnu, Sohni Mahiwal etc. that are passing through generations. Arts and Crafts: Punjab is the major manufacturing industry in Pakistan’s economy and here each art enjoys a place of its own. The main crafts created in the highlands and other rural areas of Punjab are basketry, pottery, bone work, textile, cloth woven on handlooms, cotton, silk etc. embroidery, weaving, carpets, stone craft, jewelry, metal work along with truck art and other wood works. Baluchistan Baloch culture is opposite to the general perception about it. Though Balochistan is an area of barren lands, deserts and mountains, the Baloch culture is full of traditions, arts and crafts. Balochi embroidery is one of the most popular arts and crafts which are done by the females. Baluchistan is also known for its tribes and festivals. Another distinct feature of Baloch culture is the storytelling tradition. Poets and story tellers are highly respected in Baloch culture. Language: The people belonging to Baloch tribe speak balochi language. Marriages: In Baloch culture marriages are different and unique than in the other provinces of the country. The marriages are according to Islamic principles in presence of a Mullana along with the presence of witnesses. Every member of the family takes part in the marriage; they express their joy and happiness by following the traditions of their culture. Usually the marriages are done in young ages (teenage) but are arranged in early childhood or at birth. Dressing : Like all the other provinces of Pakistan the national dress shalwar kameez with distinct additions and modifications are worn in Baloch culture. Turban is the common headwear of Bloch men along with wide loose shalwar along with knee-long shirts. Females dress consists of a shirt  having a big pocket and embroidery and embedded round mirror work in front. A big Dupatta/ Chaddar is taken to cover the head and shoulders. Festivals : Both religious and social festivals are celebrated by Baloch people. The religious festivals are same as across the country like Eid-ul-Azha and Eid-ul-Fiter. Baloch culture is full of many social festivals like Sibi festival which has folk music performance, cultural dances, handicrafts stalls, cattle shows and a number of other entertaining activities showing the colorful side of Baloch people. Music: Baloch culture is rich in folk music dances and songs. Famous wedding songs of Baloch culture are Nazenk and Salonk. The instruments used are mainly a flute, locally called Nal, Tamboora and Soroz. A common Baloch folk dance is known as Dochaap. Women also move in a circle clapping their hands on certain occasions. Other dances include the Lewa, Latti and Hambo. Food: Usually Baloch people have meals in morning and evening. Men and women eat separately. Wheat, millet and rice are part of the Baloch meal. Meat is also an important part; â€Å"Sajji† is the favorite dish of most people. Sajji is the food eaten with knife other than that Baloch people usually eat with hands. Milk, butter and vegetables are also part of Baloch cuisine. Sports: Popular games include chauk, and Ji. Also games like wrestling, horse racing, shooting and hunting pastimes among the wealthier people of tribes. Card games and gambling are also popular among groups of some tribes. Sindh Sindh is one of the four provinces in Pakistan located at the Southern border. The province of Sindh has been named after the famous River Indus. In Sanskrit, the province was dubbed Sindhu meaning an ocean. Language: Sindhi language is an ancient language spoken in Pakistan and many other parts of the world. Government of Pakistan issues National Identity Cards to its citizens only in two languages; Sindhi and Urdu. Festivals: The people of Sind love their religion and the two festivals of Eid-ul-Adha and Eid-ul-Fitr are celebrated with zeal and enthusiasm.  Different domestic festivals are arranged by the local people to provide people with new things they buy on Eid’s occasion. On different occasions, the Folk dance of Bhagat is also performed by professionals to entertain the visiting people. Hence, a Sindhi Cultural Festival is a compound of folk dances, music and cheap entertainment for local people. Lifestyle: People of Sindh are more inclined towards an agricultural based lifestyle. The fertile Indus Plains provide a valuable source of income for the local people who practice farming on these lands. Inland fishing is also practiced along the Indus River in Upper Sind providing further opportunities for local people. Itinerant way of lifestyle is commonly seen in the desertic regions of Thar where people move from place to place in search for drinking water sources along with their animals. Arts and Music: Sindhi society is dominated by great Sufis, the mystics and the martyrs. It has always been the land of peace, love, romance, and great cultural and artistic values. There were the great theologians of the Naqsh bandi order in Thatta who translated the fundamentals of the religion of Islam into their mother tongue. There were the great Sufi (mystic) poets like Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai who was the cherisher of truth and spent all his life in its propagation, pursuit and quest. Bhitai was also an excellent musician. He invented a new type of musical instrument, Tambura (drone instrument), which till today, is a primary source of music in rural Sindh. The beauty of Shah’s verses is enhanced by his blending of traditional Indian rag with the Sindhi folk songs and music. Cultural character:The ancient Sindhi civilization was the place, where the aesthetic utilization of leisure was freely indulged. There has been evidence, that the excavations of sites dating back to 3000 B.C. (all over Sindh) is also true, around 1200 years ago when Jaina Dakshiniya Chihna (778 A.D.) described the distinguished features of Sindhi’s in this way: â€Å"Elegant, with a lovely, soft and slow gait, they are fond of the art of harvas (that is, songs, music and dancing) and full affection towards their country.† Sindhi’s celebrate Sindh Cultural day worldwide on 6th December by wearing Ajrak & Sindhi Topi on that time. Pashtun The history and the origins of Pathans has been a controversial debate however not much of a consensus could be formed . There were theories ranging from Pakhtuns having an Aryan, Jewish, Arab or mixed origin. None was convincing enough to form a conclusion. Patahns are extremely obsessed and curious to know about their origin of their race, however it might not be a major concern for many other races. Holidays , special events and Traditions: Gham khadi,Wada Koidana,Topak tamacha,hujra,kat bistara along with those is the arrival of Sparlay or Spring, known as Nava Wroz (New Day), is also celebrated by some Pashtuns. It is an ancient annual Pashtun festival which celebrates both the beginning of spring and the New Year. Amongst some Pashtuns, Sheshbeeyeh, a prelude festival to Nava Wroz is also celebrated. Food: One of the most famous dishes includes tikkah,serge,sugi ka halwa,kawa,chapali kabab,kabala palao,special long naans. And many more Poetry: Pathan are very famous for their poetry ,they are very passionate and patriotic which is obvious from their poetry. Some of the famous poets are include Amir Kror Suri, Khushal Khan Khattak, Rahman Baba and many others. Dances Attan: In this dance, the dancers perform to the music.This dance is performed by both the genders involving 2-5 steps, ending with a clap given while facing the center, after which the process is repeated again. This dance is typically performed with the musician dictating the duration and speed. Khattak dance: The Khattak Dance is performed by the Khattak tribe. Mahsud dance: A unique dance routine using rifles performed by the Mahsud tribe of Pashtuns. Originally it was used to dance at the time of war, but later on became a cultural dance. The dancers dance empty handed and require only large drums. Nowadays though it is danced with the guns in the dancers hand. Waziri dance: Two drummers and a flute player play a particular tune. Two persons leave the circle; go dancing towards the drummers, and come back  dancing in the same manner. During performing both the persons turn around two times at a time once towards each other facing face to face and once keeping faces in opposite direction. After doing this separately they march while dancing to the assembled crowd. Clothing: Pashtun men usually wear a Partoog-Korteh in Pashto(salwar kameez is Urdu)with a pakul (Pashtun hat). In the Kandahar region young men usually wear different type of hat similar to a topi and in the Peshawar region they wear white kufis instead. Leaders or tribal chiefs sometimes wear a karakul hat, like Hamid Karzai and others. Women and girls wear traditional long dresses with a light piece of cloth used to cover their hair.They also wear beautiful hand made jewellery. And beautiful pakhtoon frocks. Sports: Some Pashtuns participate in buzkashi, which is a sport introduced in the region during the Mughal era.. The word â€Å"buz† means â€Å"goat† and â€Å"kashi† means â€Å"dragging† or â€Å"pulling†. Not a team sport, it is every man for himself and that becomes apparent as soon as the game starts. Although buskashi is primarily an individual sport, alliances are built up between various players. Between the alliances, the strongest players finally take control .This is very similar to polo. Football is another sports very enjoyablely played by pathans of Khyber pahktoonwar.