History of Mathematics Essay Example for Free

History of Mathematics Essay If D is between A and B, then AD + DB = AB (Segment Addition Postulate). And segment AB has exactly one midpoint which is D (Midpoint Postulate). The midsegment of a triangle is a segment that connects the midpoints of two sides of a triangle. Midsegment Theorem states that the segment that joins the midpoints of two sides of a triangle is parallel to the third side and has a length equal to half the length of the third side. In the figure show above (and below), DE will always be equal to half of BC. Given ? ABC with point D the midpoint of AB and point E the midpoint of AC and point F is the midpoint of BC, the following can be concluded: Since the tangent of circle is perpendicular to the radius drawn to the tangency point, both radii of the two orthogonal circles A and B drawn to the point of intersection and the line segment connecting the centres form a right triangle. If and are the equations of the two circles A and B, then by Pythagorean theorem, is the condition of the orthogonality of the circles. A Saccheri quadrilateral is a quadrilateral that has one set of opposite sides called the legs that are congruent, the other set of opposite sides called the bases that are disjointly parallel, and, at one of the bases, both angles are right angles. It is named after Giovanni Gerolamo Saccheri, an Italian Jesuit priest and mathematician, who attempted to prove Euclids Fifth Postulate from the other axioms by the use of a reductio ad absurdum argument by assuming the negation of the Fifth Postulate. In hyperbolic geometry, since the angle sum of a triangle is strictly less than radians, then the angle sum of a quadrilateral in hyperbolic geometry is strictly less than radians. Thus, in any Saccheri quadrilateral, the angles that are not right angles must be acute. Some examples of Saccheri quadrilaterals in various models are shown below. In each example, the Saccheri quadrilateral is labelled as ABCD, and the common perpendicular line to the bases is drawn in blue. For hundreds of years mathematicians tried without success to prove the postulate as a theorem, that is, to deduce it from Euclid’s other four postulates. It was not until the last century or two that four mathematicians, Bolyai, Gauss, Lobachevsky, and Riemann, working independently, discovered that Euclid’s parallel postulate could not be proven from his other postulates. Their discovery paved the way for the development of other kinds of geometry, called non-Euclidean geometries. Non-Euclidean geometries differ from Euclidean geometry only in their rejection of the parallel postulate but this single alteration at the axiomatic foundation of the geometry has profound effects in its logical consequences. The Lobachevsky geometry is therefore consists of these statements: ? There are lines that are parallel which are everywhere equidistant. ? In any triangle the sum of the three angles is two right angles which is 180 degrees. ? Straight lines parallel to the same line are parallel to each other. ? There exist geometric figures similar with same shape but of different size to other geometric figures. ? Given three points, there is a circle that passes through all three. ? If three angles of a quadrilateral are right angles, then the fourth angle is a right angle. ? There is no triangle in which all three angles are as small as we please. ? There exist squares or equilateral quadrilaterals with four right angles.

Project Management Success Factors

Project Management Success Factors Introduction Project is a temporary, unique and novel endeavor having a clear finish date (Project Management Institute, 2013). Project success has been a hot topic of debate for the last few decades. A lot of research and study has been done in this respect but the results are elusive rather than conclusive. The fundamental reason behind this is the unique nature, size and complexity of a project. Project success is a perceived concept and there is a wide divergence of opinions concerning this. Early research on project success was done keeping into account the golden triangle of time, budget and required levels of quality (Belassi, 1996). Failure to meet this expectations/standards, the project was considered as a failure. However, in the last two decades, the focus has been more on organizational and management success. The assessment of project success is done by different interest groups- (Stockholders, managers, customers and employees). Therefore, assessment of project success must be done in accordance to different views (Stuckenbruck, 1986) (Baccarini, 1999) identified the two distinct sources of project success: Project Management Success Emphasizes on project process and the successful accomplishment of golden triangle (cost, time and quality). Also, it addresses the way a project was conducted. Product Success- Deals with the effects of products final outcome. Project success is of prime most importance as a vast majority of the projects fail, incurring huge amounts of losses (resources and time). To overcome this, prominent researchers have adopted a two-dimensional method of addressing project success, namely project success criteria and success factors. PROJECT CRITICAL SUCCESS CRITERIA AND CRITICIAL SUCCESS FACTORS   Ã‚   Project success criteria are the set of guidelines and standards used to review the success or failures of a project. These are dependent on a lot of factors/variables and will be subject to variation in perception by different stakeholders. Traditionally, project success criteria were dependent on the golden or iron triangle (cost, time and quality). Conversely, it was later on discovered that success criteria couldnt be measured based on these factors alone as the perception of project success varies from person to person. Furthermore, research also shows that it is impossible to generate a standard specification of success criteria apposite for all projects. Assessment of project was done on different criterias, including utility of the final project, client satisfaction, and the probability of making use of the finished project (Slevin Pinto, 1986). Although different researches have different opinions, there is a general consensus regarding the result areas, which covers the en tire issue of project success in the broadest sense. Some of the key elements of project success criteria are as follows: Stakeholders Appreciation. User Appreciation. Appreciation by contracting partners. Appreciation by project personnel. Appreciation by users. Client appreciation. Time. Quality. Cost. Project efficiency. Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements. (Project Management Institute, 2013). A lot of significant research work has been carried out in the field of project management to identify and determine the critical success factors. Eminent researchers , Pinto and Slevin were the first to develop a Project management tool, named Project Implementation Plan (PIP) and identification of critical success factors (Slevin Pinto, 1986). These factors were widely accepted and also used by other researchers (Scott-Young Samson, 2004) . Furthermore, it was also realized that due to complexities and subtleties of projects, this method wasnt very effective and the Project implementation tool (PIP) was used to examine the Critical success Factors (CSF) over different project life cycles (Pinto Prescott, 1998) (Adams, 1978) (King Cleland, 1983). The various Critical Success Factors associated with the dif ferent project life cycles are as follows: Project Initiation or Conceptualization Phase: (Success factors- Definition of goals, project objectives, project summary and client appreciation). (Morris Hough, 1987) Project Planning Phase : (Success factors- Scope definition, project strategy, selection of team members, work breakdown structure (WBS), resource allocation, client acceptance and management support). (Cleland King, 1983) (Belassi, 1996) Project Execution Phase: (Success factors- Scheduling, technical works, trouble-shooting, monitoring and feedback, innovation and quality control) (Morris Hough, 1987) Project Closing or Terminating Phase: (Success factors- Client feedback, work review, technical tasks, client consultation, project reports.) (Belassi, 1996) Furthermore, the success factors can also be divided into major groups covering all the aspects and elements of project management (Westerveld, 2002). These are as follows: Management of Human Resources: (Team and leadership, Project manager, stakeholder Management) Project Process: (Planning, scheduling, controlling, monitoring, quality and risk) Organizational Factors: (Resources , policy , organizational structure) Technical Factors: (Procurement, Contractor, technical works and novelty) External Factors: (Skilled human resources, experience, project size, project uniqueness, management support structure, political stability, environment and other natural hazards) Thus, it can be concluded that project success criteria emphasizes more on the result oriented areas, whereas; success factors focus more on the organizational areas of a project (Westerveld, 2002). At the same time, they both act as excellent guidelines for the management team to formulate and device their strategy, implementing and executing them in order to achieve direct or indirect project success. Also, researchers have found that that human resource management accelerates projects success more than technical skills (Scott-Young Samson, 2004). Project managers play a pivotal role when it comes to successful delivery of projects. Due to the complexity and uniqueness associated with each project, it is of outmost importance for a project manager to develop and adopt a multi-dimensional approach. As the project manager has to focus on multiple variables, it is essential for the project manager to get his management team onboard as quickly as possible and define project goals, sco pe and execution plan. A project manager must realize and understand the client and organizations expectations and design a bespoke plan of action taking into account the success criteria and success factors.

Marketing Environment Audit Of Wh Smith Marketing Essay

Marketing Environment Audit Of Wh Smith Marketing Essay Executive Summary The objective of this report is to conduct a marketing audit and appraise some of the processes, models and techniques used. This will include an evaluation of the actual external marketing environment in which an analysis of Porters Five Forces will be conducted to identify ways forward for WH Smith to stay competitive in the retail environment. P.E.S.T. analysis will be undertaken to identify the opportunities and threats facing WH Smith and an assessment of the actual internal marketing environment will be conducted in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses affecting WH Smith. This report found the relevant information from a variety of different sources including academic text books, case study texts, and various web sites including newspaper articles, the national statistics web sites, WH Smith annual reports and Datamonitor reports. Based on analysis from Porter Five Forces and P.E.S.T. the report found WH Smith lacking in the areas of expansion outside of the UK market in both the travel and high street divisions, WH Smith online store needs to be updated and more media needs to be added also the digital music download industry is worth looking into for future growth of the company along with the development of the already existing eBook website. And promotion and advertising is needed across all divisions and areas of the WH Smith. Introduction Background WH Smith is one of the leading retail groups in the UK. Its engaged in the retailing of newspapers, magazines, stationery, books and entertainment products. The company operates 565 high street stores and 490 travel outlets located at high streets, airports, train stations, hospitals work-place motorway service areas across the UK (WHSmithplc, 2008; Datamonitor, 2008). Key facts about WH Smith: WH Smith employs over 17,000 people. Every year 70% of the UKs population visit a WH Smith store On average, over 1.2 million people visit a WH Smith High Street store every day of the year WH Smith operates two divisions: High street and Travel. Every year 125 million travellers pass WH Smiths busiest Travel store at Londons Victoria Station WH Smith sells 1.5 million magazines every week; 24,000 magazines every hour they are open WH Smith sells in excess of 40 million books yearly On average, WH Smith sell 3,000 A4 pads daily End to end the sales of WH Smiths 3 best selling rulers would stretch from London to Spain (WHSmithplc, 2008; Datamonitor, 2008; Network Rail). Terms of Reference The aim of this report is to undertake a marketing audit appraise some of the processes, models techniques used for auditing the marketing environment. This is conducted thru evaluation of the external marketing environment assessing the actual internal marketing environment for WH Smith. From this the potential impact will be assessed to identify its impact on WH Smiths marketing planning marketing mix. The report will finish with a conclusion and recommendations will be made as regards the company going forward. Main Findings Kotler (2000, p. 708) states a marketing audit is a comprehensive, systematic, independent, periodic examination of a companys-or business units marketing environment, objectives, strategies, and activities with a view to determining problem areas, opportunities and recommending a plan of action to improve the companys marketing performance. An audit should be conducted on a regular basis, thoroughly and be well organised (CIM, 2002). An audit is undertaken so a company can identify its standing in the marketplace and involves an internal and external environmental analysis. Internal environment analysis: It is imperative for an organisation to regularly asses their marketing, financial, manufacturing and organisational competencies to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of each factor (Kotler, 2000). Models used in this analysis: Value Chain Analysis PIMS (Profit Impact of Marketing Strategy) GAP Analysis Portfolio Analysis PLC (Product Life Cycle) Innovation Audit NDP (New Development Process) Experience Curves External Environment Analysis Theory: This analyses the micro and macro environments of the organisations which will lead to identifying the opportunities and threats facing the firm. Micro Environment: Factors closest to the organisation (customers, competitors, distributors, suppliers), these can have a considerable impact on the firms performance within the marketplace; the firm has no direct control over these factors but can have some influence (Businessdictionary, 2009). There are four techniques used in analysing the micro environment: Market analysis: Netmba (2007) states The goal of a market analysis is to determine the attractiveness of a market and to understand its evolving opportunities and threats as they relate to the strengths and weaknesses of the firm. Customer analysis: Identifying and understanding the needs and wants of your customers, exploring new trends for growth and expansion of the organisation (wmep, 2008). Competitor analysis: Entrepreneur (2009) describes competitor analysis as identifying your competitors and evaluating their strategies to determine their strengths and weaknesses relative to those of your own product or service Industry analysis: Industry analysis involves reviewing the economic, political and market factors that influence the way the industry develops. Major factors can include the power wielded by suppliers and buyers, condition of competitors, and the likelihood of new market entrants (Businessdictionary, 2009). A useful model that can be used when carrying out the internal analysis is Porters Five Forces: Porters Five Forces Model To quote from Hooley et al (2008, p 73) Porter (1980) suggests that five main forces shape competition at the level of strategic business units and that a systematic analysis of each in turn can help managers identify the key to competitiveness in their particular industry Competitive rivalry: Venturenavigator (2009) describes this as the intensity of competition between existing organisations in an industry. E.g. price, quality, and innovation. Threat of new entrants: Mallon (2005) suggests the risk of new entrants is based on the industrys barrier to entry, e.g. of brand capital costs, access to technology or requirements to obtain licenses. Substitutes: A substitute product is a product that replaces the need for your product altogether, e.g., Timber framed houses being replaced with steel frames (Whatmakesagoodleader, 2009). Supplier power: Buyer power looks at the relative power a companys customers has over it, size plays a factor, if the company is much larger than its suppliers, and purchases in large quantities, then the supplier will have very little power to negotiate. i.e. Tescos buying in huge amounts leads to suppliers having no power (Mallon, 2005). Buyer power: Customers can exert their power to shop around and demand lower prices; this creates price wars with companies which lead to reduced prices (Smit, 2006) also large businesses that purchase huge quantities from suppliers have greater buyer power and can demand lower prices; smaller firms do not have the same bargaining powers (Mallon, 2005). Macro Environment: Opportunities threats occur here, they are uncontrollable short-term factors that affect the organisation as well as everybody within society, and the organisation has no control or influence over these factors (CIM, 2002). In order to identify opportunities threats a PEST analysis must be conducted; this looks at four external factors affecting the firm: PEST Analysis Political: Political factors hold alot of weight over the regulation of a company e.g. consumer competition laws. Economical: The state of a countrys economy is central when deciding on business trading e.g. interest rates and inflation. Social: Social and cultural influences change from each country and must be measured e.g. changing trends, education, health system and ethnicity Technological: Technology is vital for competitive advantage, and is a major driver of globalization (Marketingteacher, 2010). SWOT Analysis: Hooley el al (2008 p42) states a SWOT seeks to identify the most significant factors, both internal and external, affecting the organisations and its markets. It provides a quick executive summary of the key issues. Secondly, however, by looking at where the strengths and weaknesses align with opportunities and threats it can help strategy formulation. The organisation can begin to see where its strengths might be best deployed, offensively and defensively, as well as where its weaknesses leave it vulnerable to change or competitor action. Porters Five Forces Analysis This analyse will report on the industry as a whole and identify ways forward for WH Smith to stay competitive in the retail environment. Buyer power High Having such a large operation gives WH Smith huge bargaining powers to negotiate terms without the risk of losing suppliers as switching costs are low and this makes industries highly competitive in reducing prices to win contracts with companies such as WH Smith (Datamonitor, 2009). Supplier power Low Supplier power becomes reduced for industries such as books, cards, stationery and entertainment because of the large number of companies within these industries that can supply WH Smith, also switching costs is relatively low (Datamonitor, 2009). Threat of new entrants High The rivalry from established competitors such as WH Smith discourages new entrants into the market but because the industry does not involve huge investment this encourages other businesses to start up (Datamonitor, 2009). Substitutes High eBooks threaten the traditional form of books but are a relatively new idea and currently not as popular as the traditional book concept, the reading devices are expensive which can turn customers off initial purchases, but WH Smith has adapted to this idea with the introduction of http://ebooks.whsmith.co.uk in October 2001 (Encyclopedia, 2002) another substitute to WH Smith is the increasing sales of second-hand books on sites such as Amazon and eBay. Competitive rivalry High WHSmithplc (2008) states large customer such as Tescos sell almost everything that WH Smith but at a reduced price such as cutting the prices of CDs to under  £10 damaging WH Smiths market share (Cope, 2003), all the while giving its customers the opportunity to carry out their grocery shopping at the same time. Consumers are looking for more value for money and it seems consumers are swapping trips to the high street in favour of a spin around a virtual store (Rigby, 2006), online retailers as Amazon give customers easy access to products online while facilitating easy access to compare prices and get more value for money. WH Smith needs to offer reduction and offers to match retailers such as Tescos and build on their web site. P.E.S.T Analysis Political: National minimum wage increase Threat The Office for National Statistics show that in October 2009 an increase from  £5.73 an hour to  £5.80 for adults was awarded with 18-21 year olds increased from  £4.77 to  £4.83. The majority of WH Smith employees would have benefited from this increase but WH Smith will be at a disadvantage with higher over heads being the main issue at a time when the economy is on a downturn (Hopkins, 2009). VAT increase in 2010 Threat Hopkins (2010) states the VAT increase of 2010 is another hit to WH Smiths profit margins as it increases from 15% to 17.5% in January, as this is necessary to bring stability to the UK economy it is also putting the company at a disadvantage, WH Smith high street stores have already seen a drop in sales over 2009 due to the economic downturn in the UK, this shows expansion is needed into other countries to avoid such risks throughout the company but as the WH Smith annual report shows there are no new plans to expand the high street division (WHSmithplc, 2009). Terrorist attacks Threat WH Smithplc (2009) states The spread of a deadly disease, an act of terrorism or war could decrease the number of customers visiting WHSmith outlets. The Travel division of WH Smith was particularly affected by such events on 11th September 2001 (New York City) and 7th July 2005 (London), which saw decreased amounts of commuters using airports and public transport which lead to a drop in sales (WHSmithplc, 2009). Due to the United Kingdoms involvement in the current war in Afghanistan WH Smiths Travel and high street divisions will be devastated by every terrorist attack in the UK for the foreseeable future due to their locations. Economical: Economic recession Threat The office of national statistics shows that the UK contracted by.02% in the third quarter of 2009 and remains 5.1% lower than the third quarter of 2008; however there is an increase in activity from the second quarter of 2009 showing the economy is slowly starting to recover. WH Smith (2009) Annual report shows high street division recorded a loss in sales of 2.3% over 2007 another loss of 5% over 2008, along with the closures of book outlets such as Borders and Woolworths this increase in the economy is good news for WH Smith in 2010. Interest rates Threat Interest rates were left unchanged at 0.5 per cent by the Bank of England today, as the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) continued its policy of keeping the price of money at record lows to stimulate the flagging economy (Sabbagh, 2010). Ian McCafferty, the chief economic adviser at the CBI, states the unchanged interest rate is unsurprising due to the fact that recovery in the UK is likely to be slow and drawn out, similar to that following the 1980s recession with sub-par growth continuing into 2011. This hold on rates will promote consumer spending but is still a threat to WH Smith as this is not a permanent hold on rates and can be increased. Unemployment Threat The office of national statistics identifies that as of 16th December 2009 the unemployment rating stood at 7.9% which was relatively unchanged from the previous quarter and has risen 1.9% on the same quarter in 2008, this stands at one of the smallest increases in unemployment since spring 2008 giving hope that the economy is back on track, with more people in employment it will promote consumer morale and more spending which will lead to increased profits for WH Smith. Social: Increase in the travel industry Opportunity A survey conducted by Travelzoo showed that over half of the UK respondents said they had plans to travel more in 2010, 66% of UK respondents are hoping to take one or two holidays and 31% are thinking about more than three trips. This shows the importance of holiday to UK residents as 25% will give up nights out, 22% will give up house improvements and 52% will get rid of luxury goods in order to be able to travel in 2010 (news.holidayhypermarket, 2009). With more people that ever travelling in 2010 it shows the travel industry is back on track and will promote increased profits for WH Smith in 2010. Acquisitions and partnerships Opportunity WHSmithplc (2009) shows acquisitions of Leeds-based UNS with 71 retail units, 8 Caffee Nuovo coffee shops in 62 hospitals and 23 airport units from Alpha Retail UK Limited also a franchise deal with Road Chef was also confirmed in 2008 (Hasell, 2008). 2010 will see six units opening in Delhi airports giving WH Smith a good share of the Indian market and shows the division is set on further international expansion outside of the UK. An alliance with Penguin in which Smiths will stock only Penguins overseas guides in the majority of its travel stores in airports, and rail and bus stations to the exclusion of all rival brands titles is another step forward in a time of retailing giants like Tescos taking over the book industry WH Smith has taken steps to ensure its competitiveness in the marketplace as discounts from suppliers ensures lower prices for end users (Freedman, 2009). High street benefited from the closure of the Woolworth stores in 2008 with WH Smith looking to have control of ten of the Woolworths stores before the end of 2009 (Felsted Lemer, 2009), this is another step forward for the UK market but having only two stores outside of the UK shows high street needs to be more active in foreign expansion. Technological: On-line sales Opportunity Whsmith.co.uk was launched in May 1999 with the intention of winning a third stake of the online book-market within three years but problems identified in customer service, lack of products available and poor promotion the site is losing customers to bigger competitors such as Amazon, the same can be said of the entertainment and eBook sites WH Smith operates (news.bbc, 1999). The economic recession is making more people price sensitive and so many more consumers are searching the internet in the hopes of better deals and a bigger range of products, as Rigby (2006) states Shoppers, it seems, are swapping trips to the high street in favour of a spin around a virtual store. Investment, promotion and management into the online stores would yield endless profits for the company. Digital music and eBooks Opportunity Encyclopedia (2002) shows WH Smith has made advancements into the eBook industry starting with the launch of http://ebooks.whsmith.co.uk in October 2001, but as with whsmith.co.uk the eBook site is lacking in promotion and available products on the web compared to Waterstones who identify eBooks as being a big part of their business and a fast growing part of the book industry over the past twelve months (Allen, 2009), also digital music is an area WH Smith has no investment in but should be taking steps to invest in as more customers are turning to digital music rather than purchasing CDs as Garrahan (2009) states Physical album sales have fallen sharply as music retailing has evolved from CD album purchases in retail outlets to digital downloads of songs from online stores. According to research the author defines the strengths and weaknesses as follows: Strengths: Widely recognised brand in the UK WH Smiths (2009) states their business model is based on their widely recognised and respected brand which has been part of the UK economy for the past 217 years, Datamonitor (2009) states The Companys brand is an important asset and strongly appeals to the customer, thereby positively affecting the companys business an example of this would be 70% of the UK population visit a WH Smith store every year (WHSmithplc, 2009). Wide retailing operation in the UK Travel operates 490units: 135 are in airports, 114 in railway stations, 118 in motorway service area, 95 in hospitals and 19 in locations such as bus stations and workplaces, nine units are in four non-UK locations, in Paris, Shannon, Copenhagen and Stockholm (WHSmithplc, 2009). High street operates in 565 High Street stores located in almost all of the UKs major high streets (WHSmithplc, 2009), it benefited recently with the closure of Woolworths and is taking the appropriate steps to expand its presence with plans to take over ten of the Woolworths sites as stated by Felsted Lemer (2009) and the recent collapse of the 45 stores Borders book chain occupied in the UK was another opportunity for expansion of the high-street stores which WH Smith decline to invest in, WH Smith had initially shown interest in a deal but then pulled out of talks (Marlow, 2009). The company has show to be a strong competitor in the UK market but more focus is needed in expansion into foreign markets as competitors such as Amazon have done. Strong performing travel division 2009 showed profits of 17% to  £48million and 8% profit growth, the division operates from 490 units (2008: 449 units), 135 are in airports, 114 in railway stations, 118 in motorway service area, 95 in hospitals and 19 in locations such as bus stations and workplaces, nine units are in four non-UK locations, in Paris, Shannon, Copenhagen and Stockholm and these units have shown to perform higher in rush hour than some lower performing high street stores (WHSmithplc, 2009). 2010 will see six units opening in Delhi airports which will give WH Smith a good share of the Indian market and shows the strength of the travel division, its stability in an economy downturn and shows the division making the necessary steps for foreign expansion (Hall, 2009). Weaknesses: Geographic concentration: Datamonitor (2009) identifies high street as having two locations outside the UK: Paris and Belfast with travel operating nine units in four non-UK locations Paris, Shannon, Copenhagen and Stockholm with six more to be opened in Delhi airports in 2010 (Hall, 2009) . WH Smith is open to many negative environmental factors having all of its operations in Europe, one such factor is the current economic recession that resulted in a 2.3% loss in sales over 2007 and another 5% loss over 2008 for the high street stores. Competitors like Amazon have operations in Canada, Japan, UK, China, France, Germany and the US; also Borders operate in Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates (Borders, 2010; Amazon, 2010). As Travel is taking steps for foreign expansion high street has no plans for expansion as WHSmithplc (2009) points out The High Street plan remains unchanged thus making the company vulnerable to adverse market conditions in the region and puts it at a competitive disadvantage over global retail giants (Datamonitor, 2009). SWOT Analysis Strengths Widely recognised brand in the UK Wide retailing operations in the UK Strong performing travel division Weaknesses Geographic concentration Opportunities Increase in the travel industry On-line sales Digital music and eBooks Acquisition and partnerships Threats National minimum wage increase VAT increase in 2010 Terrorist attacks Economic recession Interest rates Unemployment Marketing mix: Product WH Smith offers a wide variety of Books, Stationary, Gifts and Cards, Magazines, DVD, DVD formats, UMD formats, Blue-ray and HD DVD, Music, Games, eBooks, PC and Electronics in the high street and travel division. WH Smith needs to invest heavily in digital media; along with eBooks focus must be put on investment in digital music as this market shows huge growth with ITunes being the market leader. Price Due to the increased amount of competition entering the market WH Smith needs to adjust its pricing structure in line with its competitors to ensure customers feel they are getting value for money thus increasing its market share, as customers become more price sensitive and shop around for better deals online and high street. Agreeing partnerships as the travel division has done with Penguin is an example, this ensures a reduced prices for the customer at the till as it reduces supplier costs, and this in turn increases competitiveness with such rivals as Tescos and Amazon. Place WH Smith high street has 564 stores present in almost all of the major high streets within the UK and travel has 481 units in airports, hospitals, motor service, bus and train stations within the UK, the UK market works well for WH Smith but it now needs to focus on foreign markets. Travel occupies nine travel units in Paris, Shannon, Copenhagen and Stockholm, the recent plan to open six units in Delhi airports in 2010 is such a way forward but more expansion into other countries is needed to stay competitive. High street offer two stores outside of the UK in Paris and Belfast with no plans to expand further in 2010, while competitors such as Amazon and Borders have a presence worldwide WH Smith needs to expand to stay competitive with such companies. WH Smith online has a weak presence, a huge amount of investment in promoting and managing the site is required. It has been shown that more people are moving to the internet for day to day purchases, research on products and value for money, if WH smith is not seen to be offering these to consumers they will move to competitors such as Amazon. Promotion Advertising offered by WH Smith is poor for all divisions as this has an impact on sales, more focus needs to be put into the advertising and promotion of both divisions, i.e. TV, radio, internet, ideas such as sponsoring Universities/teams as students would cover a big part of WH Smiths customers, reduction in prices would also be classed as advertising, cutting prices below competitors and this would also lead to customer passing on the information thru word of mouth. Marketing planning (strategic tactical planning): Businessdictionary (2010) states Tactical planning is Systematic determination and scheduling of immediate or short-term activities required in achieving the objectives of strategic planning, while Strategic planning is a business process that many companies employ to identify their critical success factors that set the course for future growth and profits (Gaw, 2009). Tactical planning as relates to WH Smith includes short term plans including pricing structures, discounts, and loyalty cards. Strategic planning is more focused on long term goals such as expansion into new markets such as the move into India with six travel units opening up also developments in industries such as digital music downloads needs to be a main focus of WH Smith going forward as the world is moving into the digital age. Conclusion The report found WH Smith to possess a huge market-share within the UK, but lacking in the areas of expansion outside of the UK compared to other competitors such as Amazon and Borders which leaves it vulnerable to negative effects on the economy such as the current economic recession. Also retailers as Tescos and Asda can offer drop down prices of mostly all products WH Smith sells included in a customers weekly grocery shopping which heightens competition for WH Smith with these retailers WH Smiths attempts into the digital era is lacking, the companies websites (entertainment, eBook, whsmith.co.uk) were found to be in need of attention is areas such as customer service, products available and promotion as customers are not satisfied with the current system. Also the digital music industry was found to be a growing market and it would be in WH Smiths interest to invest in this area. Recommendations The report finds that the WH Smith needs to be more active in promoting the company outside of the UK, competitors such as Amazon and Borders have done this successfully, expansion into other countries reduces the chance of being affected by economic factors such as the economic recession in the UK which has had negative effects on WH Smith high street division with a reduction in sales over 2007 and 2008. WH Smith on-line needs vigorous investment in all online stores, customer service, availability of products and promotion are the main issues to start with. Amazon has a great online presence as it markets its site very well, targeting its customers with items relating to previous purchases, this is a good idea for WH Smith to work on. Investment in digital music downloads is advised as this market has shown to be growing rapidly with ITunes as market leader. More partnerships like Penguin need to be agreed in both divisions, thus reducing supplier costs which can be passed onto customers; this will help with competition from Tescos and Asda. Reference/Bibliography Allen, K (2009), E-readers turn heavy textbooks into a light read just like Dan Browns latest, http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/sep/10/sony-readers-boost-ebook-market (date accessed: 12/01/2010) Amazon, (1996-2010), http://www.amazon.co.uk/ (date accessed: 06/01/2010) Bintliff, E, (2009), Borders UK goes into administration, http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/87e1fc72-dac1-11de-933d-00144feabdc0.html (date accessed: 07/01/2010) Borders, (2010), Borders stores around the world, http://www.borders.com/online/store/InternationalStoresView (date accessed: 06/01/2010) Businessdictionary, (2009), Micro environment, www.businessdictionary.com/definition/microenvironment.html (date accessed: 25/11/2009) Businessdictionary, (2009), Industry analysis, www.businessdictionary.com/definition/industry-analysis.html (date accessed: 25/11/2009) Businessdictionary.com (2010), Tactical Planning, http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/tactical-planning.html (date accessed: 10/10/2010) CIM (2002), Marketing environment stage 1, London, BPP Publishing limited Computergram, (1998), WH SMITH BUYS EUROPES BIGGEST ONLINE BOOKSTORE, http://www.cbronline.com/news/wh_smith_buys_europes_biggest_online_bookstore?print=1 (date accessed: 07/01/2010) Cope, N, (2003), WH Smith blames Sars and fall in CD sales for profits slump, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/wh-smith-blames-sars-and-fall-in-cd-sales-for-profits-slump-537378.html (date accessed: 06/01/2010) Datamonitor, (2009), Company Profile WH Smith Datamonitor, (2009), Industry Profile Stationary and Cards Datamonitor, (2009), Industry Profile Books Dickson, M, (2005), Swann Upping, http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/575ea15e-b2cb-11d9-bcc6-00000e2511c8.html (07/01/2010) Directgov, (2010), VAT Value Added Tax, http://direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/Taxes/BeginnersGuideToTax/DG_4015895 (date accessed: 10/01/2010) Drummond, G and Ensor, J, (2004), Strategic Marketing planning and control, second edition, Oxford, Butterworth Heinemann. Encyclopedia, (2002), http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-82247922.html (date accessed: 07/01/2010) Entrepreneur, (2009), Competitive analysis, www.entrepreneur.com/encyclopedia/term/82078.html (date accessed: 25/11/2009) Felsted, A Lemer, J, (2009), WH Smith eyes more Woolworths stores, http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6fc55222-2fd8-11de-a2f8-00144feabdc0.html (date accessed: 10/01/2010) Freedman, S, (2009), Booksellers get down to business, http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/may/28/writers-kindle-revolution (date accessed: 10/01/2010) Garrahan, M, (2009), Apple joins forces with record labels, http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/28129982-7a18-11de-b

black holocaust :: essays research papers

â€Å"Black Holocaust for Beginners ‘Death Ships’† By Anderson S. Black Holocaust for Beginners â€Å"Death Ships†, is a realistic, and trapping article about the slave trade. Instead of the former stories on slavery and giving it a general description telling reader how slavery is bad and slavery is immoral, this article goes in and describes what it was like in a slave ship. It made the reader feel the pain of the middle passage in every page. There are three things in the article that is very compelling to me as a reader, the living conditions of the slaves in the ships, the rape the women faced, and the punishment styles the rebellious slaves had to endure. What they endured was almost like hell on earth, it was almost genocide, but without the intention of genocide. The living conditions were horrible, according to the article Black Holocaust for Beginngers â€Å"Death Ships†, â€Å"You see the vomit above you and alongside you and you come close to passing out. You can barely breathe. You are trapped. You can’t move a leg or arm without increasing someone else’s misery. The chains rattle as we try to shift out bodies to get away from the running yellow brown stream and odor from next to us, from above us. The flies and mosquitoes begin to swarm around you. But you can’t swipe at them without yanking your chained brethren or sisteren.† Such condition sound like how a pig lives, only the slaves did not want to live like that. The writer wrote it as if the reader was in it, I thought I was a slave. The rape of the female slaves, was described by the writer as an almost normal occurrence in the ship as the article Black Holocaust For Beginners â€Å"Death Ships† states â€Å"†¦we hear African screams and white men’s laughter. To the women, to the girl, we KNOW. Many of us have been in the Enemy’s presence now for four to six months and we know that rape is always a grab away†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Later in the article it put the reader in as the rape victim who, get raped by the first mate. The rape described in the article was more violent than the rape we now know.

Antigone :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ee cummings once said, â€Å"to be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else—means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight.† That quotation is exemplified in many works of literature, but the opposite is too. No matter what people try to be or not to be, they don’t always succeed. For example, in the play, Antigone, by Sophocles, the character, Antigone displays the idea of being her own person, but Creon displays the opposite of that.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the prologue, Antigone tells Ismene that she will do whatever she wants pertaining to their brother, whether or not Ismene agrees and wants to do the same. Antigone tells Ismene, â€Å"If that is what you think, I should not want you, even if you asked to come. You have made your choice, you can be what you want to be.† Antigone displays ee cummings’ thought. The gods want her to think and act a certain way  their laws  but she has her own belief that her brother, Polyneices, should be buried and his spirit should have the proper life, instead of being punished. Even if he was brave, he should be punished. But Antigone doesn’t believe in that. No matter what the consequences, she fights it and does what she thinks is right.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Creon, the king of Thebes, exhibits cummings’ idea. Kings are always supposed to be these big, mighty, terrors that triumph over all and tell their kingdom what to do. Even if Creon did not want to commit someone to demise, he would, because that’s what he’s â€Å"supposed† to do. Creon may be trying to stray from being everyone else, and be his own person, but he’s not succeeding. He is what everyone else wants him to be: a controller over everyone. Creon believes that, â€Å"this is [his] command, and you can see the wisdom behind it. As long as [he is] King, no traitor is going to be honored with the loyal man. But whoever shows by word and deed that he is on the side of the State, --he shall his [Creon’s] respect while he is living, and [his] reverence when he is dead (Scene 1, line 38).† But he doesn’t follow through on that statement. If Creon were to commit someone to his death, he would not give him r espect when he’s dead.

P&G analysis Essay

Euromonitor International’s report on Procter & Gamble Co, The delivers a detailed strategic analysis of the company’s business, examining its performance in the Beauty and Personal Care market and the global economy. Company and market share data provide a detailed look at the financial position of Procter & Gamble Co, The, while in-depth qualitative analysis will help you understand the brand strategy and growth prospects of Procter & Gamble Co, The. This report examines: Company share by region and sector Brand portfolio New product developments Marketing and distribution strategies A detailed SWOT analysis of Procter & Gamble Co, The provides strategic intelligence on: Strengths and weaknesses Category and country opportunities for growth Challenges and threats from current competition and future prospects Global and regional market positions Research You Can Trust: Euromonitor International’s company profile reports are written by our Beauty and Personal Care research team, a dedicated group of analysts that knows the industry inside and out. Buy this report to inform your planning, strategy, marketing, sales and competitor intelligence functions. Growth opportunities in combining shaving and skin care products P&G oral care dynamic but Colgate drives product development High brand loyalty but losing oral care share in emerging markets Opportunities exist for P&G in premium fragrances P&G stresses Cover Girl’s American essence Brand Strategy Gillette brand enjoys broad geographic reach Procter & Gamble aims for more premium image for Pantene Procter & Gamble looks to cross-category branding for Olay Operations P&G emerging market manufacturing sites by country 2012 Recommendations Beauty portfolio in need of greater segmentation

Fundamental of Laws

We would first need to establish if there is a valid and legally binding contract formation between Iris (â€Å"the offeror†) before deciding on the likely outcomes for the parties. A proper contract constitutes an offer, an acceptance, the provision of a consideration of value and parties’ intention to legal relations. There was no depute as to the presence of a valid offer because Iris did indeed make an offer to sell the piano for a specific price and its terms i. e. keeping the offer open for Diana till noon on Saturday, were communicated to Diana. In return, Diana had also put up her consideration towards the formation of the contract by making an effort to raise the money needed to buy the aforementioned piano from Iris. Beside the elements of acceptance, which we shall discuss in the latter paragraphs, the collective actions from the both parties suggested that they were intending to form legal relations with each other. OFFER Offer and acceptance analysis is a traditional approach in contract law used to determine whether an agreement exists between two parties. Agreement consist of an offer by an indication of one person, the offeror, to another, the offeree, of the offeror’s willingness to enter into s contract on certain terms without further negotiation. At law, an offer is the indication by one party to another of his willingness to enter into a contract with him on certain terms. It must be communicated to the offeree. It may be kept open if supported by consideration. Also, an offer may be terminated. On Monday, Iris communicated her offer to sell her piano to Diana for ?500. Therefore, Iris is the offeror. At law, a promise to keep an offer open for a certain time or to give someone ‘first refusal’ will not be legally binding unless the offeree gave some payment to the offeror in return for the favour. Otherwise, the offeror is making only a gratuitous promise: giving something for nothing. Such a promise is not a contractual one, since it lacks consideration – Goldsborough Mort & Co Ltd v Quinn (1910) There is no option present as Diana did not give anything of value to Iris to keep the offer open. Therefore, Iris promise to hold the piano till Saturday was not legally binding. Thus, the offer was invalid. ACCEPTANCE There are two elements for acceptance to be valid. At law, acceptance must be Final and Unqualified. The general rule is that acceptance is effective only when is communicated to the offeror. Diana’s acceptance is final and unqualified as she phoned and left a message with Iris’s daughter, Athena, saying that she got the money and would collect the piano on Saturday morning. However, the acceptance was not communicated to Iris as Athena forgot to pass the message to Iris. Thus, Diana’s acceptance of offer is invalid as it does not fulfill the requirements for the acceptance to be effective. The acceptance was not communicated to the offeror. REVOCATION At law, offeror may revoke an offer at any time prior to the offer being accepted even if the offeror has promised not to revoke it – Routledge v Grant Notice of revocation is crucial; it is not effective unless the offeree knows it. Offeror are entitled to change their minds and withdraw offers at any time right up to the moment of acceptance. An offer can be revoked by the offeror any time before it is accepted. This is analogous to the case of Byrne & Co v Leon Tienhoven & Co (1880) Personal notification is usual, but is not essential as long as the offeree knew or reasonably should have know that the offer had been withdrawn. Dickinson v Dodds (1876, CA) Revocation must be communicated to the offeree – Byrne v Van Tienhoven (1880) On Thursday, Iris was visited by Juno who said that she would pay ?600 for the piano. Later that day, Iris posted a letter to Diana on Thursday to revoke the offer. The revocation of the offer was invalid as the letter of revoca tion did not reach Diana. This was due to the fact that Mercury, the postman, delivered the letter to the wrong address. Thus, revocation was not communicated to the offeree. However, Iris would argue that the revocation was valid as at law, Iris did not receive an acceptance from Diana and she could revoke the offer at any time prior to the offer being accepted. But, Iris was not aware that the letter of revocation did not reach Diana. On the other hand, Diana would argue that the revocation was not effective as she gave her acceptance on offer to Iris’s daughter on phone on Wednesday. Diana did not know that the acceptance was not communicated to Iris and she did not receive the letter of revocation. Thus, Diana assumed that her acceptance on offer was valid and appeared with a hired van to collect the piano on Saturday evening. Henceforth, Iris revocation on Thursday was not effective as the letter of revocation did not reach Diana. Revocation was not communicated to the offeree. CONCLUSION The offer between Iris and Diana is valid as well as Juno offer to Iris. The acceptance between Iris and Diana is not legally binding due to it was just a verbal promise that Iris would hold on to the piano for Diana till Saturday morning if Diana could raise the money. On Wednesday, although Diana’s acceptance was made to Iris’s daughter, Athena, it was not direct to Iris. If Diana’s acceptance is invalid it can be argued, but if there’s this, Juno’s acceptance may be valid. But the contract between Juno and Iris was invalid still due to Juno’s offer was given to Iris on Thursday. Although Iris accepted the offer, there’s still no legal contract between them until Saturday. But Iris did something, she sent a revocation letter to Diana but Diana didn’t receive it. Therefore, Diana can actually sue Iris for compensation.