I Knew a Woman by Theodore Roethke - 1110 Words

Jaimee Barbee ENGL 300 Bouton Poetry Analysis I Knew a Woman by Theodore Roethke Theodore Roethke wrote of the beauty of a woman and how she captivated a man in his poem I Knew a Woman. Roethke describes a sexual attraction radiating from the man towards the woman that eventually is explored. Who the man is to the women is never revealed but one may interpret him as someone who didn t get to spend his life with this woman but rather had a beautiful love affair with her long ago and is now reminiscing. Roethke s opening verse is arresting in it s artful refutation of the cliche about beauty being only skin deep. I knew a woman, lovely in her bones, When small birds sighed, she would sigh back at them; Ah, when she†¦show more content†¦Gander is a male goose while the female is referred to simply as goose. Why Roethke choose geese as a comparison to these lovers is not clear. The full lips of the stanza s second line provide succulent imagery that distracts the speaker and pulls him in. The musical references of the earlier sing in chorus may be reinforced by played, quick, light, and loose, but those words are not restricted to a single area of meaning. The final four lines of this stanza are heavy with sexual imagery. The speaker describes the woman as an instructress skilled in the art of lovemaking, blessed with beautiful legs, and rabbit-like in her enthusiasm and other -asms. The line in parentheses refers to her motion during intercourse. She moved in circles, and those circles, another reference to her breasts, moved. The concluding verse is dizzyingly philosophical and fittingly so, after all of the turning, whirling, and circling motions of the previous stanzas. Let seed be grass, and grass turn into hay: I m martyr to a motion not my own; What s freedom for? To know eternity. I swear she cast a shadow white as stone. But who could count eternity in days? These old bones live to learn her wanton ways: (I measure time by how a body sways). The reader notes the musicality of the alliterative martyr...motion...my,Show MoreRelatedI Knew A Woman By Theodore Roethke1974 Words   |  8 Pages The poem† I Knew a Woman by Theodore Roethke† is a very sensual poem as it illustrates in several lines about to love making. Even though, it is a poem that shows the poet’s extreme sense of love and remembrance for his beloved. T. Roethke describes the cherished image of the woman that he loves and admires in many ways, and thoughtful tone also describes her as â€Å"lovely in her bones† ( ). He has compared her virtues with a goddess by using the phrase â€Å"of whom only God could speak† ( ). The dualRead MoreObligations1410 Words   |  6 Pagesobligation? Is it defined as something that one has to do because it is necessary for their living or is it something that one has to do because someone says they have to? I would define an obligation as something that one has to do because it is necessar y for their living. What I do not understand is how one person can dodge their obligations. I see people choose to live a life where their obligations are pushed aside as if they were choices. Obligations are not choices, but yet something that needs to beRead MoreEveryday Use by Alice Walker1461 Words   |  6 Pagesgranted. Dee makes the bold proclamation that she is not longer going by the name Dee, â€Å"‘Not Dee,’ Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo!’† (Walker, 3013). Not only has â€Å"Wangero† shocked her mother with her new name, but goes to attack those her family history, â€Å"I could not longer bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppressed me.† The author make a substantial point by connecting Dee’s new beliefs to disowning her heritage and her ancestors. Despite the rejection of her family’s humbled lifeRead More`` Gold Glade `` And The Love Song Of J. Alfred Prufrock1811 Words   |  8 Pagespower and confidence when it came to making decisions and dating. T.S Eliot conspicuously introduced a complex interpretation of a simple concept and sentiment. In Theodore Roethke’s â€Å"The Light Comes Brighter†, a familiar sense of clarity showed the upcoming change in seasons. By shifting into a new season as the poem proceeded, Roethke helped convey his thoughts and stance on the influence of nature in human culture. His peculiar word choice brought forth a new and interesting perspective on the

United States Vs Midwest Solvent Recovery Environmental Sciences Essay Free Essays

string(75) " from beginning to beginning within a state depending on national demands\." In the instance of the United States v. Midwest Solvent Recovery, I believe that the the suspect ( Midwest Solvent Recovery, Inc. ) was negligent in the operation of the installations and that the two sites became a public nuisance. We will write a custom essay sample on United States Vs Midwest Solvent Recovery Environmental Sciences Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now First of all, in the class of runing its concern, Midwest Solvent placed a big figure of membranophones on belongingss next to the Midco # 1 site without the permission or presentment of the belongingss ‘ proprietors. It was besides a residential country. In add-on, the country # 1 was n’t guarded and they was n’t fenced-in, intending that they did non make much to forestall accidents. The membranophones incorporating risky stuff were besides non stored or disposed suitably ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . This is negligent of the suspect because they were neglecting to exert the attention expected of a reasonably prudent individual in such fortunes ( Cornell University Law School, 2011 ) . Then fire of enormous size broke out on Midco # 1 and in the class of the wining hebdomad ravaged the site. The fire consumed much of the chemical waste stuffs stored in the 1000s of membranophones stacked on the land and on each other. The fire caused the coevals of toxic exhausts and caused a big figure of the 55-gallon membranophones to rocket up to 250 pess in the air ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . Besides, the toxicant waste penetrated through top dirt, possibly even making H2O tabular arraies. I believe this is a nuisance because it was something unauthorised that became deleterious to the community at big ( Adams, 2006 ) . An injunction to forestall pollution prevents a threatened hurt, preserves the position quo, or restrains the continued committee of an on-going incorrect but can non be used to right a consummated wrong or to undo that which has already been done. On the other manus, an injunction that requires remotion of pollution attempts do undo what has already been done. If we evaluate the cost-benefit analysis, it would do more sense to hold a preventive attack as it is less dearly-won and frequently less work/trouble/complicated than to take pollution that is already in the air, H2O, and/or dirt ( Mayer, 2007 ) . Besides, in public wellness our end is to forestall diseases because if we merely took action after everyone had diseases, it may be excessively late for some ( no hope of acquiring better ) . As it is best described â€Å" an ounce of bar is worth a lb of remedy † . This is the same rule with the environment. If we do non forestall pollution, so it could make threshold and our wellness could endure. Although there may be ways to take some beginnings of taint, non all taint from the air, dirt, and H2O is possible. It may besides be excessively late to recover what we one time had. This is why we are seeking to take action on planetary heating effects today before it does excessively much harm to our environment, therefore our wellness ( Mayer, 2007 ) . The general responsibility clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ) has criterions that require employers to take control steps for the dangers of specific jeopardies or operations ( e.g. electricity and confined infinite work ) . However, the authorization who created and wrote the OSHA Torahs understood that it would be impossible to anticipate and make a criterion for every jeopardy in the workplace. Therefore, they added a subdivision to the jurisprudence necessitating employers to protect against other foreseeable jeopardies non covered by a specific OSHA criterion. This is what they call the aa‚ ¬Aâ€Å"General Dutyaa‚ ¬A? clause ( McGuire, 2004 ) . For a jeopardy to be covered by the general responsibility clause it must be recognized. Over the old ages, OSHA has issued reading letters bespeaking specific jeopardies that could be considered recognized, including most notably ergonomic hazards, heat and cold emphasis and workplace force ( Demby, 2009 ) . As earlier, OSHA will find whether a peculiar jeopardy is recognized on a individual footing. But the new Field Operations Manual clarifies the standard OSHA will utilize to measure acknowledgment of jeopardies. More significantly, the standards themselves are highly wide and will do it much easier for OSHA to happen that a jeopardy was recognized ( Demby, 2009 ) . A material safety informations sheet ( MSDS ) is a signifier with informations sing the belongingss of a peculiar substance. It provide workers and exigency forces with processs for managing or working with that substance in a safe mode, and includes information such as physical informations ( brassy point, runing point, boiling point, etc. ) , toxicity, wellness effects, foremost assistance, responsiveness, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and spill-handling processs. MSDS formats can change from beginning to beginning within a state depending on national demands. You read "United States Vs Midwest Solvent Recovery Environmental Sciences Essay" in category "Essay examples" The MSDS besides provide instructions on proper substance usage, therefore supplying utile hazard communicating and ways to assist forestall workplace hurts ( U.S. Department of Labor, 2010 ) . Because of the earnestness of these safety and wellness jobs, and because many employers and employees know small or nil about them, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ) issued the Hazard Communication Standard. The basic end of the criterion is to be certain employers and employees know about work jeopardies and how to protect themselves ; this should assist to cut down the incidence of chemical beginning unwellness and hurts. The Hazard Communication Standard establishes unvarying demands to do certain that the jeopardies of all chemicals imported into, produced, or used in U.S. workplaces are evaluated, and that this jeopardy information is transmitted to affected employers and exposed employees via MSDS ( U.S. Department of Labor, 1998 ) . A material safety informations sheet ( MSDS ) is a signifier with informations sing the belongingss of a peculiar substance. It provide workers and exigency forces with processs for managing or working with that substance in a safe mode, and includes information such as physical informations ( brassy point, runing point, boiling point, etc. ) , toxicity, wellness effects, foremost assistance, responsiveness, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and spill-handling processs. MSDS formats can change from beginning to beginning within a state depending on national demands. The MSDS besides provide instructions on proper substance usage, therefore supplying utile hazard communicating and ways to assist forestall workplace hurts ( U.S. Department of Labor, 2010 ) . Because of the earnestness of these safety and wellness jobs, and because many employers and employees know small or nil about them, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ) issued the Hazard Communication Standard. The basic end of the criterion is to be certain employers and employees know about work jeopardies and how to protect themselves ; this should assist to cut down the incidence of chemical beginning unwellness and hurts. The Hazard Communication Standard establishes unvarying demands to do certain that the jeopardies of all chemicals imported into, produced, or used in U.S. workplaces are evaluated, and that this jeopardy information is transmitted to affected employers and exposed employees via MSDS ( U.S. Department of Labor, 1998 ) . Despite the name, the Superfund trust fund lacks sufficient financess to clean up even a little figure of the sites on the National Priorities List ( NPL ) . As a consequence, the authorities will typically order potentially responsible party ( PRPs ) to clean up the site themselves. If a party fails to follow with such an order, it may be fined up to $ 25,000 for each twenty-four hours that non-compliance continues. A party that spends money to clean up a site may action certain other PRPs under the CERCLA. A related proviso allows a party that has reimbursed another party ‘s response costs to seek part from other PRPs, during or after the original case. An â€Å" orphan portion † is the portion of waste at a Superfund site that can non be collected because the PRP is either unidentifiable or insolvent ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . Although the reply to this hebdomad ‘s treatment inquiry can convey up controversial argument, I believe that it ‘s just that the exercising of due attention is non considered a defence in Superfund. If person by chance contaminates an country with risky waste, it should be their duty to clean-up their muss, whether or non care was taken to forestall this accident. By making so, it teaches people that they need to take duty for their actions and should guarantee that preventive steps are taken to guarantee to no accidents occur in the first topographic point. It ‘s the same rule as having a Canis familiaris. The Canis familiaris may be fenced-in the backyard, but if that Canis familiaris someway digs a hole under the fencing and does damage to the neighbour ‘s pace, it ‘s still the proprietor ‘s duty to take attention of that Canis familiaris and to repair what the Canis familiaris damaged ( apt ) , despite that steps were put into topographic poin t to forestall this. In add-on, the costs associated with the killing of risky stuffs should non come out of guiltless taxpayers ‘ pockets because finally, they are n’t the 1s managing the risky waste and have n’t do the accident. The 1s that are responsible should pay the monetary value for their errors ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . Sick edifice causes are often pinned down to blemish in the warming, airing, and air conditioning ( HVAC ) systems. Other causes have been attributed to contaminations produced by outgassing of some types of edifice stuffs, volatile organic compounds ( VOC ) , casts, improper fumes airing of ozone ( by-product of some office machinery ) , light industrial chemicals used within, or deficiency of equal fresh-air intake/air filtration ( Sick Building Syndrome and indoor clime control, n.d. ) . Some edifice proprietors view ill edifice syndrome as the fact that many people feel better when they are non at work. However, if more than 20 % of edifice residents complain of symptoms such as centripetal annoyance of the eyes, nose, pharynx ; neurotoxic or general wellness jobs ; clamber annoyance ; nonspecific hypersensitivity reactions ; and olfactory property and gustatory sensation esthesiss, it is considered as Sick Building Syndrome ( SBS ) ( Lawrence, 2002 ) . Several ill residents may describe person symptoms which do non look to be connected. The key to find is the increased incidence of unwellnesss in general with oncoming or aggravation within a reasonably close clip frame, normally within a period of hebdomads. In most instances, SBS symptoms will be relieved shortly after the residents leave the peculiar room or zone. However, there can be lingering effects of assorted neurolysins, which may non unclutter up when the resident leaves the edifice. Particularly in sensi tive persons there can be long-run wellness effects ( EPA, 2011 ) . The ordinances by OSHA are intended to turn to indoor air quality in indoor work environments and besides try to command environmental baccy fume. The ordinances are of peculiar involvement because they are directed at landlords and renters likewise. Specifically, an employer is defined under the ordinance to include edifice proprietors and leaseholders who control airing or care of premises where employees of other employers work. In cases where there are multiple employers/lessees within a individual edifice, the ordinances contemplate a sharing of duty. OSHA specifically states in its remarks on the proposed ordinances that â€Å" where there is a multi-employer work site, [ it is contemplated ] that the affected employers will split up the duties in the mode in which they make the most sense † ( EPA, 2011 ) There are more than 100,000 known species of cast, some of which can do respiratory jobs, skin/nose/throat annoyance, sinus congestion, chronic weariness, and oculus annoyance to call a few. Many place and workplace related complaints are now being attributed entirely or in portion to model. The dangers are potentially fatal to babies and persons with weak immune systems ( EPA, 2010 ) . Mold is most likely to turn where there is H2O or moistness. Preventing mold taint before it starts is best because the undertaking of decontamination could be overpowering. The four primary activities to assist forestall the spread of cast toxins are: 1. Excess wet decrease 2. Dust control 3. Ventilation and control of toxins 4. Education ( Lawrence, 2002 ) In general the EPA does non urge trying unless an resident of the infinite is diagnostic. When sampling is necessary it should be performed by a trained professional who has specific experience in planing mold-sampling protocols, trying methods, and the reading of findings. The most common signifier of trying to measure the degree of cast. Sampling of the interior and out-of-door air is conducted and the consequences to the degree of cast spores inside the premises and exterior are compared. Often, air trying will supply positive designation of the being of non-visible cast ( EPA, 2010 ) . Of class the first measure in work outing an indoor cast job is halting the beginning of wet. Next is to take the mold growing. Common remedies for little happenings of mold include: * Sunlight * Ventilation * Non-porous edifice stuffs * Household cleansing agents ( EPA, 2011 ) As a general regulation, merely killing the cast with a biocide is non plenty. The cast must be removed since the chemicals and proteins, which cause a reaction in worlds, are still present even in dead cast ( Maine Indoor Air Quality Council, 2010 ) . I believe that the proposed indoor air criterion was ne’er put into consequence because since the proposal was issued, many provinces and local authoritiess and private employers have taken action to restrict smoke in public countries and in workplaces. In add-on, the part of the proposal non related to environmental baccy smoke received small attending during the rulemaking proceedings, and much of that consisted of commenters naming into inquiry important parts of the proposal. As a consequence, record grounds back uping the non-environmental baccy smoke part of the proposal is thin ( EPA, 2011 ) . In peculiar a licence may be issued by governments, to let or restrict an activity that would otherwise be forbidden. It may necessitate paying a fee and/or turn outing a capableness. The demand may besides function to maintain the governments informed on a type of activity, and to give them the chance to put conditions and restrictions ( Burton and Sanjour, 1970 ) . Emissions trading is an attack used to command pollution by supplying economic inducements for accomplishing decreases in the emanations of pollutants. The overall end of an emanations trading program is to minimise the cost of run intoing a set emanations mark. The cap is an enforceable bound on emanations that is normally lowered over clip, taking towards a national emanations decrease mark. In other systems a part of all traded credits must be retired, doing a net decrease in emanations each clip a trade occurs. In many cap-and-trade systems, organisations which do non foul may besides take part, therefore environmental groups can buy and retire allowances or credits and therefore drive up the monetary value of the balance harmonizing to the jurisprudence of demand ( Environment, Climate Change A ; Water, 2011 ) . A cardinal authorization ( normally a governmental organic structure ) sets a bound or cap on the sum of a pollutant that can be emitted. The bound or cap is allocated or sold to houses in the signifier of emanations licenses which represent the right to breathe or dispatch a specific volume of the specified pollutant. Firms are required to keep a figure of licenses ( or carbon credits ) equivalent to their emanations. The entire figure of licenses can non transcend the cap, restricting entire emanations to that degree. Firms that need to increase their emanation permits must purchase licenses from those who require fewer licenses. The transportation of licenses is referred to as a trade ( EPA, 2003 ) . In consequence, the purchaser is paying a charge for fouling, while the marketer is being rewarded for holding reduced emanations. Therefore, in theory, those who can cut down emanations most cheaply will make so, accomplishing the pollution decrease at the lowest cost to society ( En vironment, Climate Change A ; Water, 2011 ) . How to cite United States Vs Midwest Solvent Recovery Environmental Sciences Essay, Essay examples

Power of the APIi Economy

Question: 1: Write a 1 page paper on the API Economy. Why is the IT industry excited by it and what types of companies are basing their business around API's. What is the future of API's as it relates to other technologies you have learned about in class? 2: Write a 1 page paper on IoT. What is it and what types of opportunities does this technology offer the workplace? What about society? Answer: API Economy: (API) Application programming interface economy is a phrase that portrays the way or method in which APIs can positively and emphatically affect an associations profitability as well as productivity. API Economy in IT industry: APIs can broaden the range of IT associations core resources, permitting organizations to be reused, resold or shared, as an innovative income stream. Applications, as well as their fundamental information, are long-established cornerstones of various IT organizations. However, the API economy becomes the territory of inner Information Technology departments (Holley, 2015). Organizations basing business around the API's: API economy is the arrangement of programming guidelines as well as measures that permit one bit of programming to request that another play out the service. If anyone purchased a live overhauled or updated Amazon items using any outside website, as well as viewed the Google Map embedded into the discover us part of the website, then they use API economy. Additionally, if a website is used to purchase an online movie ticket, that such websites surely utilized the API economy to affirm the purchaser payment details through the remote application. Therefore, such kind of companies uses API economies like Uber taxis and many IT industries basing their organization business around the API economy. API's Future: Todays clients are requesting a more customized service that is incorporated in their ways of life this is interpreted toward the conveyance of cutting-edge services, for instance, taxi services as well as the banking and additionally for the payment industry. Therefore, in the future need for the API economy is increased (Lane Watters, 2011). IoT: IoT is turning into an increasingly developing topic of discussion, both in the working environment as well as outside of the workplace. IoT is a concept which does not just have the potential to affect how people live, but additionally how people work (Uckelmann, Harrison, Michahelles, 2011). Services IoT provide at place of work and its effect on society: IoT is like a data machine which means that organizations will need to re-examine how they gather as well as examine data that not only decision-makers want to learn as well as adapt another type of information intelligence, yet the type and amount of data delivered by Internet of things will likewise introduce innovative or extended parts for information investigators, strategists, as well as significantly client service." Internet of Things possibly makes the working environment life as well as business procedures much more gainful and effective. As per a rising agreement and virtually each walk of society life and industry segment of society will be changed by the Internet of things, including SCM, manufacturing, wellness and health sector of society, transportation, household living as well agriculture (Weber Weber, 2010). References Holley, K. (2015). Power of the api economy. [Place of publication not identified]: Ibm Press. Lane, K. Watters, A. (2011). Business of APIs. [United States: CreateSpace]. Uckelmann, D., Harrison, M., Michahelles, F. (2011). Architecting the internet of things. Berlin: Springer. Weber, R. Weber, R. (2010). Internet of things. Berlin: Springer.

Organisational Transformation in Practice free essay sample

A printed extract of the Academic Regulations, known as the Assessment Regulations, is available for every student from your Faculty Office MAMBAS (all new students will have received a copy as part of their welcome pack). In the unlikely event of any discrepancy between the Academic Regulations and any other publication, including this module guide, the Academic Regulations, as the definitive document, take precedence over all other publications and will be applied in all cases. Introduction to the Module This module provides the opportunity for students to personally explore the relationship between personal change and organizational change/ transformation (De Varies and Balsas, 1999). And personally relate to the leadership and organizational challenges of transformational change in organizations. The module uses different activities to explore the nature of personal change issues required for successful employee engagement in an organizations change agenda. In the management and leadership field much is written and discussed about the following seven elements: (1 ) behavior, (2) knowledge 3) skills / capability (4) belief systems, (5) values, (6) identity, (7) vision/ purpose. We will write a custom essay sample on Organisational Transformation in Practice or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Using various methods, students will be encouraged to make sense of each of these ideas, and the interrelationship between them. This will be set against a real/simulated strategic learning context. Module participants are actively encouraged to reflect upon their own existential experience and development through dynamic relations with others and performing roles. It is hoped the module will lead to students developing profound personal insights and also achieve personal growth. The duel uses different activities to enquire into, reflect upon and diagnose personal, group and organizational leadership and transformation. Students will be able to diagnose where a/ their team or organization is weak and design interventions that can help to guide significant change or transformation. The student will be equipped with a clear methodology for guiding his or her own development as an achiever or leader of the future. Assessment is by way of portfolio. 3. Intended Learning Outcomes Learning Outcomes (threshold standards) On successful completion of this module the student will be expected to be able to: 1 Knowledge and understanding understand the values and leadership behaviors that create the modern enterprise and equip individuals to manage / lead in globally transformational contexts 2 Knowledge and understanding Develop a robust understanding of leadership and change management within the context of organizational transformation 3 Intellectual, practical, affective and transferable skills Utilize a 7 element framework as a diagnostic tool to evaluate leadership capability in a team or Organization 4 Intellectual, practical, affective and transferable skills Demonstrate an ability o reflect upon ones own management development journey against the context of employability in global and transformational settings of the future 4. Outline Delivery Wok Electrochemical/Workshop Reading Organizational change Action Learning Sets Sets De Varies 2 Personal change Patchwork text Sets De Varies Jung 3 Personal change organizational cinematographer text Sets De Varies James and Arroba http://treadmill. Com/publications. HTML 4 Manager as person Patchwork text Sets De Varies Tony Watson 5 Management leadership Patchwork text Sets De Varies Keith Grin 6 Managing leading change Patchwork text Sets De Varies Managing Leading change Patchwork text Sets De Varies James and Arroba 8 Change contemporary text Sets De Varies 9 Change processes Patchwork text Sets De Varies 10 Organizational role Patchwork text Grants and Malta 11 Wheel of change Patchwork text Sets De Varies 12 4. 1 Attendance Requirements Attending all your classes is very important and one of the best ways to help you succeed in this module. In accordance with the Student Charter, you are expected to arrive on time and take an active part in all your timetabled classes. If you are unable to attend a class for a valid reason (egg: illness), lease contact your Module Tutor Anglia Risking will closely monitor the attendance of all students and will contact you by e-mail if you have been absent without notice for two weeks. Continued absence can result in the termination of your registration as you will be considered to have withdrawn from your studies. International students who are non-EYE nationals and in possession of entry clearance/leave to remain as a student (student visa) are required to be in regular attendance at Anglia Risking. Failure to do so is considered to be a breach of national immigration regulations. Anglia Risking, like all British Universities, is statutorily obliged to inform the Border and Immigration Agency of the Home Office of significant unauthorized absences by any student visa holders. 5. Assessment Students are required to assemble a patchwork text (Lilies, 2003; Winter, 2003) which relates your current or future workplace role. The patchwork text may be developed or based upon the following: Sets De Varies (2004) suggests that people are prisoners of their past. Evaluate and reflect upon how your past might influence your future workplace role and development. Evaluate and reflect upon a personal experience of change in your workplace Apply Grants and Malts (1997) role analysis to your current workplace experience. Using the triangle of conflict (De Varies, 2007), evaluate and reflect upon a major incident of conflict in your life. Consider your learning/ experiences in relation to your future workplace role. Apply James and Arbors (2005) reading and carrying framework to critically evaluate and reflect upon how you interact with others. Consider the implications in relation to your future workplace role. Conduct and develop a critical self-analysis using Jung notio n of individuation (Carr, 2002), and relate this to your leadership archetype. Critically evaluate, and reflect upon your own resilience and relate this your existing and future leadership competencies Guidance Notes for Students (see Smith and Winter, 2003) Your assignment will be assembled gradually during the progress of the module through a series of written tasks, which you will share with each other in small groups.

Foreigner visit essays

Foreigner visit essays To a foreigner coming to India, I would first welcome him to our country which is rich in culture and good in heritage. I will then take the opportunity to give a proper introduction to him of our country. Our country has diversity in unity. Our country is democratic and believes in secularism. It abounds in flora and fauna. Also, Our country is a land of myriad languages, a veritable Babel of tongues and numerous moves of apparel and countless mannerisms and multiplicity of ethnic groups. India has produced luminaries such as Buddha, Mahavira, Shankaracharya and Mahatma Gandhi who gave the message of peace and non-violence, which the world needs more then ever before. Mahatma Gandhi used non-violence to win freedom for the country and showed the way to bring about a peaceful world order. Though, India was under subjugation of British rule for about two centuries; after attaining freedom it has taken giant strides in the field of science, information technology, medical and agriculture. Moreover, our GDP growth has been growing steadily ever since. I will then make the foreigner be familiar with the sights of our country particularly the Taj Mahal, which is the 8th wonder of the world, located in Agra, monument of love and imagination that represents India to the world. Besides Taj Mahal, I will introduce him with Red Fort, Qutub Minar and India Gate located in New Delhi. Lastly, I will assure the foreigner that people in India welcome guests with open arms and that he will go with a good impression of the country. ...

An Overview of the Origin of Swimming

An Overview of the Origin of Swimming Written records of swimming date back to near 2000 BC, however, nowhere are strokes or techniques mentioned, children were simply taught to swim. A record from between 2160 BC and 1780 BC from an Egyptian nobleman says â€Å"his children took swimming lessons with the king’s children† (Colwin 4). In addition, many passages from the Biblical Old Testament mention swimming or the act of swimming; such as in the old testament book of Isaiah: â€Å"as he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his hands to swim† (KJV Isa 25:11). Until around the 1500s, no swimming manuals teaching specific techniques existed. In 1559, Sir Everard Digby wrote, in Latin, A short introduction for to learne to swimme. Later Christofer Middleton translated Sir Digby’s work into the common English â€Å"for the better in|struction of those who vnderstand not the Latine tongue† (Digby 1). Digby wrote instructions on how to swim â€Å"like a dog† and â€Å"like a dolphin† as well as many other forms (Digby table of contents). From there, other manuals were written to further refine strokes. While swimming originates as an old pastime, until the early 1800s competitive swimming’s history did not exist because competitive swimming itself did not exist. Up until then, swimming acted as a pleasurable pastime intended more for relaxation than exercise. That mentality shifted during the 19th century in Britain with the opening of St. George’s Baths in 1828, the first indoor public pool. Following that in 1837, the British National Swimming Society made many more indoor pools and began holding swimming competitions (Sharma 1). While the sport remained on the back burner for several decades it steadily grew in popularity until swimming debuted on a global scale in the Grecian Olympics of 1896. In recent decades, athletes such as Mark Spitz, Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Nathan Adrian, Natalie Coughlin, Katie Ladecky, and Missy Franklin have rocketed the swimming world into becoming one of the most televised sports during the summer Olympics. The language the sport of competitive swimming employs many words from non-aquatic sources. For example, the butterfly stroke, though allegedly invented in 1933 by Brooklyn swimmer Henry Myers (Colwin 30). Instead the butterfly stroke derives its name from the butterfly insect since the technique somewhat resembles that of its namesake. Several other words in swimming’s lexicon follow the same mentality. Named not for who invented the technique, but rather for what it looks like. Kicks such as the dolphin and whip kick when categorized in this way provide pristine examples for this method. The dolphin kick looks like that of a dolphin’s tail moving up and down in the water. The whip kick, sometimes called the frog kick, also makes sense because as human legs perform the kick they mimic the action of frog legs. The swim strokes themselves hold other examples of words coming from non-aquatic sources. Butterfly (previously explained), backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle all have nothing to do with water. The back and breast strokes seem to explain themselves, one executed while swimming on your back and the other executed while swimming with your chest or breast side of your body facing downward in the water. While the easiest to swim, freestyle tends to exists as a more complex term to understand. Technically breast, back, and fly exist as alternate strokes for the freestyle though usually traditionally performed as the complete reverse of backstroke. The stroke of free takes on the dictionary definition of â€Å"enjoying personal rights or liberty† (â€Å"free†), which allows swimmers to swim whatever stroke they deem the easiest or the fastest for themselves. Most of the words in the following lexicon find their roots in Germanic languages. Old Norse, Old Dutch, Old English, and even Old Frisian boast the origin of these words. Invented in Britain, competitive swimming has its lexical language background in these and other Proto-Germanic roots. Of the words in the following lexicon only five can have their origins traced back to Latin, French, or Greek. Of the five outliers, three are Latinate in origin. ‘Dolphin’ derived from a term for the animal and the constellation ‘dolphinus’, ‘paddles’ from the Medieval Latin term ‘padela’, and ‘cap’ from the word cappa. The Old French word ‘touch’ from ‘tochier’ joins with a Germanic word ‘pod’ to make the compound ‘tochierpod’ or ‘touchpad’. Finally, swimming gets its word ‘cards’ from the Greek word ‘khartes’. Verbs and nouns entirely comprise the lexicon list, evidence for this observation lies in the reasoning that verbs and nouns describe either an action or a piece of equipment. However, three words defy normal constructs of language. ‘Dolphin’, ‘whip’, and ‘flutter’ are normally used in language as a noun and two verbs respectively. In swimming, these words take on the role of an adjective because they are describing the type of kick used in a stroke (the dolphin kick in butterfly, the whip kick in breaststroke, and the flutter kick in backstroke and freestyle). Swimming, with its complex history of starting as a leisure activity and evolving into a competitive sport, becomes a wonderful example of how a language can adapt its words to fit a new activity. In addition to creating a new lexicon, a competitive swimmer may ignore old definitions as new definitions are created such as the case of ‘dolphin’. The following lexicon presents a collection of twenty swimming terms that demonstrate all of what has been previously written.

Transformational leadership compare articles Essay

Transformational leadership compare articles - Essay Example ose of this study is examine the relationship between transformational leadership in a business environment in France and how employees perceive fairness in terms of distributive, interactional and procedural fairness. This study is important, according to the authors because there exists very little if any, information about the relationship between leaders and other factors such as trust and satisfaction among followers. This study is very significant because it aims to tap in to this area and reveal important information that can help organizations improve relationships between leaders and employees (Bacha, and Walker,2012). The other article is ‘Ethical Preferences of Transformational Leaders: An Empirical Investigation’, written by Krishnan Venkat and Banerji Priyanka. The main objective of this article is to study the relationship between four main factors of transformational leadership and the individual preference of leaders regarding unethical behavior. According to the authors, this study is important because it aims at studying the impact that leaders have in managing unethical behavior in organizations through transformational leadership. The study examines five different ethical scenarios in an attempt to determine how transformational leadership can be used to manage such scenarios (Banerji, & Krishnan, 2000). In the first article, Bacha and Walker (2012) focus on filling the gap in research with regard to transformational leadership by studying the relationship between transformational leadership and the perceptions of employees on the concept of justice or fairness. This area has been overlooked in most scientific studies and these authors aim at revealing substantive information to improve the relationship between employees and their leaders (Bacha, and Walker,2012). The main research question for this article therefore is to find out how transformational leadership can be used to improve the employees’ perception of the concept of justice

Public Policy - Prescription Drug Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Public Policy - Prescription Drug Abuse - Essay Example There are intense wellbeing dangers in taking physician endorsed pills. This is the reason they are taken just under the forethought of a specialist. Furthermore and still, after all that, they must be nearly observed to evade dependence or different issues (Barnes et al, 2013). Numerous pills appear to be identical. It is to a great degree unsafe to take any pill that you are unverifiable about or was not endorsed for you. Individuals can additionally have distinctive responses to pills because of the contrasts in every individuals body science. A medication that was alright for one man could be exceptionally hazardous, even lethal, for another person. Doctor prescribed medications are alright for the people who really have the medicines for them and nobody else. According to Kraft and Furlong (2013), the rational analysis and decision-making model represents a series of analytical stages that are both comprehensive and evaluative in nature, which seek to identify important aspects and an in-depth understanding of a problem. This technique serves to provide valuable information such as defining what the problem is, identifying who it affects, factors that may have caused or contributed to the problem, highlight goals and objectives desired, examine an array of alternative solutions, individually assess each alternative to clarify its consequences, and ultimately establish which option would have the most probability to resolve the issue. It’s a multi-step approach to the policy process and a concept that follows a logical structure and affords practical application of clear and sensible methods for problem solving. Analysts ultimately seek to provide policymakers with the most pertinent and complete data necessary in order to fully un derstand the nature of an issue, as well as offer the best available options for effective problem solving. Although the sequence of steps and at what stage of the process they are applied may vary as well as

Democracy & sacred term Essay Example for Free

Democracy sacred term Essay Democracy is a sacred term associated with freedom. Freedom is an issue that has been fought for by a lot of nations worldwide. Freedom is a result of being independent, of possessing self-respect and dignity. Democracy is associated with freedom and vice versa. A true democracy is said to exist when the people of a given country are not deprived of their rights to vote, to express their feelings with the use of proper channels and when they can freely chose their leaders. The people sitting in government have a responsibility to its people, most especially to those who are oppressed and uneducated. It is often the case that during election time politicians gives out promises about the programs that they want to implement such as providing education for the poor. But, once these candidates are already proclaimed as winners they forget about their promises and do nothing about fulfilling them. There is an underlying reason for this and it is worse than what people think. In most third world countries, the reality is that politicians do not exert too much effort in alleviating the plight of the poor because they are afraid to educate the poor or make them literate. When these voters become literate or have gained knowledge, they would be able to vote wisely and this would mean that some politicians would not be put into office. The votes of the poor are the only things that matter to them and most of the politicians do not have a real concern about these illiterate people. The number of illiterates equate to the number of votes by which a potential candidate can use for his candidacy. The poor or the illiterate are segments in society that candidates and politicians alike would never give up on because they know that these people could help a lot in ensuring their success in elections. Thus, it can be said that there cannot be a true democracy if the people who compose the government are illiterate. (Bove, Carol. 2008. The Educational Theory of Jonathan Kozol. Retrieved from website http://www. newfoundations. com/GALLERY/Kozol. html). The reason for this is that these illiterate are deprived to choose the best people who would govern them. Education and knowledge are very important tools to the success of a nation. A government which deprives its constituents of the opportunity to learn cannot call themselves as living in a state of democracy. Instead, the opposite is true that without knowledge and education the government is destroying the lives of its people. The lack of education brings about many untold sufferings in a society and it is also the root cause of many problems. For one, the lack of knowledge or good education is the cause of poverty. Poverty is the evil that destroys the lives of many because many people use this problem as an excuse to commit crimes. This is the reality that gives life to the quote given by James Madison saying â€Å"A people who mean to be their own governors, must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives. A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both. † It is very important for any government that seeks to impose democracy to breath life and meaning to it. A democratic government should start by investing in the education of its people so that it can really be said that the former is a government for the people and by the people. The people and the government should work together if a true democracy really exists. The government should show that it is giving utmost importance to the participation of its people by taking into consideration the suggestion of the latter in making laws, rules, or other important functions. Douglass and Kozol are both correct in their observations and opinions that the cost of illiteracy is high and the damage are great. As already pointed out earlier, the problem on illiteracy deserves more consideration and in-depth study of how it would be addressed. An educated person is given endless possibilities in life to become the best that they can be, this privilege and opportunity is taken away from the illiterate who merely depend on what others tell them out of fear or desperation. Thus, these people who are illiterate are deprived of the freedom to live out their life as they please because they lack the knowledge on how to maximize their full potential. Kozol was correct in saying that â€Å"democracy is a mendacious term when used by those who are prepared to countenance the forced exclusion of one third of the electorate† since the educated and powerful people use the weaknesses of the illiterate to their advantage. The reality existing in society today is that good education is available only for those who can afford to pay for it. The government of the United States provide for free or low cost education which is not of good quality. Private schools in the country are very expensive thus the students enrolled therein are given the best that money can buy. Although the state provides for public education it is not as good as those being received by the students enrolled in private schools. Thus, there is an inequality at this level. The argument of Kozol that there should be a shift in the quality of education in that it should be made at par with those of private schools is within the concept of ‘malign neglect’. In essence, ‘malign neglect’ wants to give out the message that there seems to be neglect in the quality of education being received by the students of public schools. There should be equal opportunity of education to be received by all. (Kozol, Jonathan. May 23, 2002. Malign Neglect. Retrieved on May 6, 2009 from website http://www. thenation. com/doc/20020610/kozol. ) A high quality of education would help the government and the society to produce better individuals who can compete globally for the advantage of everyone concerned. The quote by Kozol saying that â€Å"This is the society which most of us did not create, but which our President and other leaders have been willing to sustain by virtue of malign neglect† is very accurate because the problems on illiteracy and poor education has been in existence for a very long time. Therefore it is a great challenge today to try to change the way on how things are at present as a result of the mistakes committed in the past. But, it can be done. If only the government would cooperate and listen to the needs of the people, changes could be proposed and implemented for the good of the society. It is not impossible to educate the illiterate or to give quality world class education to all children. It is not unknown to many that a lot of countries worldwide have fought for democracy to the point of shedding thousands of lives to achieve freedom and independence. A country which calls itself as a democratic nation should live by the true meaning of the word ‘democracy’. There is true democracy if the government is composed of people who were chosen by its people because they believe in their officials and not because they were lured by the latter to vote them as a result of false promises brought about by their illiteracy and poverty. Another aspect that deserves consideration is the need to upgrade the quality of education being received by students. There should be a proposal for the government to provide for an adequate budget for a good education for everyone without regard as to the social status of an individual. Without these aforementioned criteria’s, democracy remains to be a word that exists only in theory. Reference: 1. Bove, Carol. 2008. The Educational Theory of Jonathan Kozol. Retrieved on May 6, 2009 from website http://www. newfoundations. com/GALLERY/Kozol. html. 2. Kozol, Jonathan. May 23, 2002. Malign Neglect. Retrieved on May 6, 2009 from website http://www. thenation. com/doc/20020610/kozol.

Graduation Speech: Become People With Passion -- Graduation Speech, Co

Christmas Eve in Princeton, N.J, usually fulfills the picture-postcard promise of Christmas. And it was so, on that one particular Christmas Eve long ago. A light snowfall kissed the quaint Princeton houses, and door-to-door carol singers made their way to one particular door. The violinist's home. "O little town of Bethlehem," the boys sang, "how still we see thee lie..." In moments the door opened, and the gentle violinist stood in the doorway to greet the carolers. "Above thy deep and dreamless sleep, the silent stars go by..." The musician turned away, turned back into the house. Shortly he returned with his violin! The great man, the gentle old musician, accompanied the midnight carolers on his beloved instrument through each verse of the age-old hymn. Then, without a word, the young people turned away silently, and the old man slowly closed the door. And if this true story, if it is made more wonderful, it is not because a seasoned violin was brought out of retirement for one l ast spontaneous recital, but because the violinist himself has the best reason of all not to celebrate that snowy Christmas scene. The great genius was a Jew, and so revered was he that the very presidency of Israel once could have been his. But here is the rest of the story. Musicians will tell you, every great genius has his idol. This violinist's idol was Mozart. Once, a friend asked the violinist to comment on modern times. When the musician was a boy, wars were fought with rifles and cannons. Now the entire world might be devastated. What did that mean to the old man? The violinist hesitated, sat back thoughtfully in his chair. "It would mean," he said at last, "that people would no longer hear Mozart." For him, this most deeply conveyed the end o... ...lace for an answer. But, fellow graduates, you are here now, and I want to tell you that you do not have to live with the hopeless view that comes from this story. The one thing that Einstein was lacking was a relationship with the God I serve, who is Jesus Christ my Savior. If this genius would have allowed Him to answer his deepest question, he would have experienced a hope that would know no ends. Graduates, classmates, friends, the same hope that Einstein lacked is open for you to have. It is a choice you must make, to receive it or not, but I would be a selfish, inconsiderate person if I didn't share with you the hope that I have at the last opportunity that I will ever have to speak to each and every one of you. Class of 2012, I pray that you will become people with passion - passion for pursuing your dreams, and passion for the One who can give you hope.

A Mutable Self

Haley Wiedenman English 101 Brit Ashley 4/8/11 When reading â€Å"A Mutable Self†, by Mary Catherine Bateson, I am forced to analyze why I am myself. For several years I have stubbornly believed that I have become myself by myself alone and have not been influenced by the things and people around me. I didn’t want to admit that I am in fact tightly connected to people of my past and they have influenced who I am greatly. Bateson makes it clear in her writing that â€Å"no one –fetus, child, or adult- is independent of the actions and imaginations of others. Though we have the power to alter ourselves, the fact that we do so because the influence of others proves that we can never break the connection of the people who we have been subject to, making us somewhat dependent of those around us. Bateson brings this subject to our attention to spread an awareness of how we come to be under the influence of others. Not only does she inform us of the ways of ourselves b ut also she enlightens the reader of cultures around the globe.Taking in this information has the potential to change readers view and allow them to have a greater understanding of the world around them. In opening this door Bateson is creating a continual awareness that will aid the reader in their daily life though the understanding of themselves and others. On the contrary to popular belief, Bateson has faith that â€Å"the self is learned, yet ironically it often becomes a barrier to learning. The way that I perceive this is that we often are so stubborn with the views of ourselves that we deny any opposing views given by others, which in turn blocks our access to further knowledge. Once we have an idea in our head about a certain thing, it is often difficult to persuade us otherwise. In the works of Bateson she writes a personal story about her visit to an Iranian kindergarten. In her visit the teacher allowed a period for drawing time to the students. At the end of there time the teacher went to each student, collected the drawing pencils, and threw away each of there creations.I come from a home where my first piece of art I brought home remains framed in our living room. So, to me, it is extremely sad that these children are not rewarded for their creative efforts. Instead of a high five and gold star on our artwork, these small children just watch as their masterpieces fall into a trashcan. The difference between Iranian culture and my own is huge. Though I am sure they have there own motives for their ways, I personally am glad I grew up in a home where I was praised for my hard work.Even though I enjoyed reading this essay, I do believe there are a few things Bateson could have done my successfully. Her writing is a bit repetitive, which I suppose is an effective way to make your point clear, however it can also make the reading a bit dull from time to time. Another item she could have improved on is her connection to the reader. Many of her exampl es where of other cultures, and while this may be extremely interesting, it does not relate to the most the people who will be reading this essay.It could have been more triumphant if Bateson would have both related to the common reader and added other cultural insight. Connections between the Essays: 1- The self is ever changing – pg. 252 What is the Self? & pg. 272 A mutable Self 2- People and culture around you shape the self – pg. 261 What is the Self? & pg. 269-270 A Mutable Self Questions 1- Can we disconnect ourselves from our family/community to become independent and find our true selves? (w/ out outside influence) 2- What effect does our childhood have on our lives?

Chocolate Package Design Combined with Price Setting

Chocolate package design combined with price setting: A consumer purchase intention and overall impression investigation Cao Youjia, Wang Yicheng, Li Simei, Gao Junhong Abstract In our experiments, the research sheds light on consumers’ purchase intention and overall impression towards six types of combination of chocolate package and price: 1. aesthetic package with a relatively high price, 2. aesthetic package with an intermediate price, 3. aesthetic package with a relatively low price, 4. plain package with a relatively high price, 5. lain package with an intermediate price, 6. plain package with a relatively low price. After the six between-subject experiments, we find that package design and price setting do have influence on customers’ preference to purchase, but not as strong as our perception. On the other hand, the packaging has significance influence on the customers’ overall impression towards the product. The aesthetic package with the highest price l eaves the customer the best impression. Implications for future application for businesses are discussed in the final part.Key words: Package design, price setting, analysis of variance, purchase intention. Introduction â€Å"Man shows that he is affected by appearance, by something that causes him pleasure over and above the immediate utility of the object† (Clay, 1908). Designing aesthetic products to satisfy the consumers’ need is of growing importance in marketing. As core attributes of product, such as quality and functionality, become increasingly homogeneous (Reimann, Schilke, & Thomas, 2010), firms are shifting their efforts from concrete product characteristics towards less concrete ones such as package designing.This trend towards aesthetics in product differentiation may be based on the insight that aesthetic designs seem to trigger certain positive responses in consumers such as an immediate desire to own the product (Norman, 2004); an increased inclination to show off and care for that product (Bloch, 1995); and a higher willingness to pay for it (Bloch, Brunel, & Arnold, 2003). More importantly, products with aesthetic qualities may be treasured long fter their functional value fades (Martin, 1998). However, little is known about the preference of purchasing and the impression when consumers experience different designed packages with certain prices. Although packaging, as an integral design element, has recently been investigated by Orth and Malkewitz (2008), they comment that there is no good psychological theory when it comes to packaging aesthetics as well as the related prices and further research is necessary.In summary, we propose that the combination of the package and the price will shed light on the consumer purchase intentions and overall impression, therefore, may enlighten the businesses to wisely appropriate the capital on packaging with a certain price. One fundamental problem limiting work in the area involves the me aning of the concepts: packaging aesthetic is indistinct and elusive construct that often is mistaken for imprecise adjectives like â€Å"goodness, or luxury, or shininess, or weight† (Crosby 1979).Because definition is difficult, researchers often depend on one-dimensional self-report measures to capture the concepts (Jacoby, Olson, and Haddock 1973; McConnell 1968; Shapiro 1973) and thus must assume shared meanings among consumers. In experiments 1a, we attempt to differentiate aesthetic from plain package design by measuring scores given by participants between differently packaged chocolate. In experiment 1b, we attempt to figure out buyers’ subjective perceptions of price.Finally, applying the data from experiment 1a and 1b, experiment 2 uses 2*3 matrixes to shed light on the underlying correlation impact with packaging and price on buyers’ preference of purchasing as well as the overall impression, which helps explain consumers behavior and gives suggestio n to the domestic chocolate businesses. Furthermore, we slightly investigated the utility differentiation when the price and packaging is taken into consideration. Conceptual background and hypotheses H1.Given a certain product, when refer to the purchase intention, people are more likely to choose one with aesthetic package and relative low price, though package design and price setting have little influence on customers’ purchase intention of chocolate. Packaging is often important to the customer’s first impression of a brand, its quality, or its value (Harckham 1989). Price, the extrinsic cue receiving the most research attention (see Olson 1977 for a complete review of this literature), appears to function as a surrogate for quality when the consumer has inadequate information about intrinsic attributes.H2. Package design has significance influence on the customers’ overall impression towards the chocolate product. Aesthetic package with a relatively high p rice owns the best evaluation. Considerable empirical research has investigated the relationship between price and quality (see Olson 1977 for a review of this literature in marketing) and has shown that consumers use price to infer quality when it is the only available cue. Experiment 1a Overview and method In our first experiment, we attempt to differentiate aesthetic from plain packages through the scores that participant given.Our between-subjects, repeated measure experimental design included two different conditions: in the aesthetic condition, we presented chocolate packages that were pre-selected according to important visual aspects of aesthetic package design such as beauty, unity, and prototypically (Orth & Malkewitz, 2008; Veryzer & Hutchinson, 1998). In the plain condition, we presented the other package that was pre-selected based on their functionality and practical utility. Each trial started with a brief preparation phase show the chocolate, followed by the packagin g to hold the chocolate.Picture stimuli were pretested among 32 undergraduate students, which were given aesthetics versus plain product packaging. Participants were then asked to assess the picture given as being plain or aesthetic (scale from 1 to 6). Randomly eight boys and eight girls were kept for aesthetic packaging and another eight boys and eight girls were exposed to plain packaging. The questionnaires of the experiment are attached to the report as appendix 1. Result We simply counted the number of choices in both conditions and found that participants in the aesthetics condition give higher scores than the plain condition[pic].Sex has no effects on the given scores[pic] and[pic]. Discussion In experiment 1a, when the visual product stimuli were richer in their aesthetic appeal, participants have the inherent perception of which should get higher marks. Experiment 1b Overview and method We intended to get the acceptable price range of the given image of chocolate and then figure out the relative high price, intermediate price and the low price, which will contribute to accuracy and efficiency of experiment 2.We show the same image of chocolate without packaging (the same image of the first phase of experiment 1) to 32 randomly chosen undergraduates (16 girls and 16 boys). Then ask them how much they would pay for that kind of chocolate (x/500g). As we usually don’t have a clear mind of how much the chocolate usually worth the money, we give the price of Dove chocolate as the reference point (53/500g). The questionnaires of the experiment are attached to the report as appendix 2. Result We collected the data and draw the graph as follows: [pic] And sex has no effects on the given scores[pic].Discussion After experiment 1b, we decided to use the relative low price as ? 20/500g (minimum), intermediate price as ? 53/500g (median) and relative high price as ? 100/500g (maximum). Experiment 2 Overview and method This is our main experiment. Problem Formulation 1. aesthetic package with a relatively high price, 2. aesthetic package with an intermediate price, 3. aesthetic package with a relatively low price, 4. plain package with a relatively high price, 5. plain package with an intermediate price, 6. plain package with a relatively low price.Which Combination does the consumer most likely to buy? And which combination can get the best evaluation from customers? Determination of Sources of Information Sources of information are from text books, literature About package theory as well as information comes from experiment 1a and 1b. IV and DV The independent variables— there are two pairs of Independent Variables of our research: 1) Package: aesthetic and plain. 2) Prices: high, intermediate and low. The dependent variables 1) The intensity of consumers’ purchase intentions. 2) Customers’ overall impression towards the chocolate product.Sample We chose our schoolmates as our research participants. Forty subje cts were selected from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and were randomly assigned to four treatment groups. As a total of 40 respondents participated, resulting in a data set of 40 different product choices. Procedure During the experiment, there was no evidence to suggest that subjects were aware of the different sets of experimental material provided and the subjects showed little concern in the experimental materials of others. All above has showed that our experiment is a between-subject experiment.Design of Data Collection Method and Data Collection forms We use a combination of PPT auto play and the questionnaire to carry out our experiment We separate our PPT display to 4 parts: 1. Product category and product image presentation, which lasts 4 seconds. 2. Chocolate presentation, which lasts 4 seconds 3. Package image presentation, which lasts 4 seconds. 4. Price presentation (price appear on top of the picture of the package), which lasts 4 second. Follow on, the participants a re asked to answer a questionnaire about their purchase. The PPT is shown as following: PPT: pic] [pic] The questionnaires of the experiment are attached to the report as appendix 3. Result After collecting the data, we get the following result, |sources of |DF |SS |MS |F |P | |variation | | | | | | |packaging |1 |1. 35 |1. 35 |0. 77 |0. 383 | |price |2 |2. 8 |1. 4 |0. 8 |0. 454 | |interaction |2 |1. 2 |0. 6 |0. 34 |0. 711 | |Error |54 |94. 3 |1. 7463 |? |? | |Total |59 |99. 65 |? |? |? |FIGURE 1 THE IMPACT ON CONSUMERS’ PURCHASE INTENSION Judging from the data above, though we may draw the conclusion that packaging and price has no significant influence on the purchase intention as we expected. There do exist some influence when we have a glance at the following graphs, we can find that customer tend to choose the one with the aesthetic packaging and low price. EXHIBIT 1 [pic][pic] FIGURE 2 THE IMPACT ON OVERALL IMPRESSION |sources of |DF |SS |MS |F |P | |variation | | | | | | |packaging |1 |10. 167 |10. 4167 |7. 69 |0. 008 | |price |2 |3. 7333 |1. 8667 |1. 38 |0. 261 | |interaction |2 |5. 7333 |2. 8667 |2. 12 |0. 13 | |Error |54 |73. 1 |1. 3537 |? |? | |Total |59 |92. 9833 |? |? |? | We can easily find that packaging has significant influence on the overall impression. EXHIBIT 2 [pic] [pic] Another interesting discovery is that given the aesthetic packaging, when the price is higher, the overall impression improves. DiscussionThe purchase intention doesn’t fluctuate a lot with the change of package and price, which is quite reasonable when the attributes of chocolate is taken into consideration. We just try to sell the same chocolate and chocolate is a certain kind of food, that intensity to purchase will not have an abrupt change with the extrinsic variation. The result of the experiment also shed light on the information as follows: People are more likely to purchase what is not only cheap, but also packaged well. But a better packaging and h igher price will contribute to better impression among the customers. ApplicationAlong with the research above, we also investigated other factors to influence the purchase behavior and get some useful data. Chinese people’s preferences towards chocolate, according to our experiment results, are relatively high. The index turns out to be 4. 5/6, females enjoys an even higher 4. 7/6. Therefore, there exists potential Chinese market for daily chocolate consumers. We suggest chocolate producers to provide customers with a fair price (lower than that of imported chocolate) and a plain package. What we want to stress is that in that circumstance, consumers’ experience is needed.Relatively plain and casual package can choose a relatively low price to gain bigger sales. As we can see from our data, the majority of Chinese consume chocolate only when holidays such as on the Valentine's Day. Therefore, we suggest chocolate companies focusing on the â€Å"festivals and holidayà ¢â‚¬  market. We emphasize that the design of the chocolate should be aesthetic. As we can see from our results, high-end chocolate may choose relatively high prices in order to give consumers a deep impression for the benefit of building a good brands reputation.Moreover, people are more likely to consider that kind of chocolate as gifts for others. Acknowledgments The authors thank Dr. Wang Liangyan for helpful comments and suggestions on earlier version of the manuscript. The research was supported by Antai College of Economics & Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Reference T Aharon, I. , Etcoff, N. , Ariely, D. , Chabris, C. F. , O'Connor, E. , & Breiter, H. C. (2001). Beautiful faces have variable reward value: fMRI and behavioral evidence. Neuron, 32(3), 537? 551. Arnheim, R. (1974).Art and visual perception: A psychology of the creative eye. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. Bechara, A. , Damasio, H. , Tranel, D. , & Damasio, A. R. (1997). Decidin g advantageously before knowing the advantageous strategy. Science, 275 (5304), 1293? 1295. Berlyne, D. E. (1974). Studies in the new experimental aesthetics: Steps toward an objective psychology of aesthetic appreciation. Washington, DC: Hemisphere Publishing. Bettman, J. R. , Luce, M. F. , & Payne, J. W. (1998). Constructive consumer choice processes.Journal of Consumer Research, 25(3), 187? 217. Bloch, P. H. (1995). Seeking the ideal form: Product design and consumer response. Journal of Marketing, 59(3), 16? 29. Appendix Questionnaire for experiment 1a: Hi, we are now carrying out a survey of consumer behavior. Please choose the answer and fill in the blanks according to your OWN conceptions. Your time and kindness are highly appreciated, thank you! NOTE: This survey is carried out anonymously, please feel free to answer. A1? Please score the chocolate package on the slidePLAIN 1 2 3 4 5 6 YES AESTHETIC Questionnaire for experiment 1b: Hi, we are now carrying out a survey of con sumer behavior. Please choose the answer and fill in the blanks according to your OWN conceptions. Your time and kindness are highly appreciated, thank you! NOTE: This survey is carried out anonymously, please feel free to answer. A1? How much would you like to pay for the chocolate on the slide, just write down the number in the blank. /500g Questionnaire for experiment 2: Hi, we are now carrying out a survey of consumer behavior.Please choose the answer and fill in the blanks according to your OWN conceptions. Your time and kindness are highly appreciated, thank you! NOTE: This survey is carried out anonymously, please feel free to answer. A1? Purchase intention NO 1 2 3 4 5 6 YES A2? Overall impression BAD 1 2 3 4 5 6 GOOD A3? usage SELF USE 1 2 3 4 5 6 AS GIFTS GENDER Male Female YOUR AGE__________________________________________________ B1? Do you like chocolate NO 1 2 3 4 5 6 YES B2? How often do you buy chocolateA Seldom B On holidays C Once-twice per month D Three times or m ore per month ———————– ?100/500g (high price) ?53/500g (intermediate price) ?20/500g (low price) ?100/500g (high price) ?53/500g (intermediate price) ?20/500g (low price) Dove chocolate? 55/500g Price Presentation (4 seconds) Package Presentation (4 seconds) Choc? 20/500g (low price) Dove chocolate? 55/500g Price Presentation (4 seconds) Package Presentation (4 seconds) Chocolate itself Presentation (4 seconds) Product category Presentation (4 seconds)

The Human Brain Essays - Neuroanatomy, Central Nervous System

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Project Managment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Project Managment - Essay Example I will be discussing some salient points relative thereto project management and will also discuss how these key points will contribute to the enhancement and achievement of targeted company goals. The matter will be answered in accordance to the lessons learned from the module of this course which provided us learners the opportunity to work, plan, and manage a project using standard theoretical precepts. Some project management tools and techniques will also be used to introduce a technique in resolving organizational issues and concerns with sensitivity to available budget allocation and dynamics of the organization. In this questionnaire, I am expected to also use the tools for negotiations, teambuilding and quantitative estimation that can be drawn from the lesson using the case presented as my springboard for analysis. 2.0. Introduction Project management refers to the strategic capacity of an organization to put direction and implement programs and projects in accordance to sp ecific goals and objectives set by the company with a purposive end in mind (Lock, 2007). The outcome could either be about gaining profit, about organizational strengthening, attaining performance efficiency or developing a collaborative action with potential partners, venture-interest, or with possible business associates (Dinsmore, & Brewin, 2011). 3.0. Discussion 3.1. Case study Johnsons is a major player in the UK dry cleaning industry. Management has decided to move operations to a new site. The new site will allow Johnsons to expand its operational base by 50% and bid for new public sector contracts. Currently at its site, Johnsons has a capacity to deal with 20,000 kg of laundry. However, management prefers to work at 80% of its capacity. At a recent board meeting, the HR manager has been asked to explain the reason for poor workforce planning and lack of discipline which has reduced the working capacity to 60%. The above information can be used to define various terms. 3.2. Designed Capacity This is the average allowable level of capability, fitness and power of competence in the performance of services. In the case cited, the Johnson Company has a capacity to deal with 20,000 kg of laundry but considering some variables in the organization, e.g. human resource availability, laundry machines, spaces, and resource operational availability. 3.3. Effective Capacity This refers to an organizational design and value chain analysis pertaining to effective capacity management (Capacitas, 2013, p. 1). Often this correlates to the nature of organizational structure, model or framework of operation, the available resources with services, repository of service, information and system of reporting, scope of managerial function, and the training or educational capacity of the company’s human resources (Capacitas, 2013, p. 1). From the cited case, what is clear here is that from its designed capacity, the management agreed that it can only effectively delive r and perform 80% services. From the allowable percentile of work production, the company can only perform or produce services at a rate of 16,000 kg of laundry. It is further unclear, given the many variables, if these 16,000kg constitute the daily laundry operation of the company or in a weekly status or in a month. The case given have not expressly cited the time and days that such 60,000 kg average laundry service is attained. It’s also unclear about the technology that will be used for laundry operation and neither is the case clear

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International businesscoca cola Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

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Evaluation of the existing operations

Evaluation of the existing operations Introduction In the initial part of this report, I critically evaluate the existing operations and identify areas of improvement in the system. While undertaking this process, I have also identified some problems in the existing operations, and have suggested some approaches to overcoming them, in line with modern approaches. I have chosen to undertake an analysis of the operations of TBS Publishers Distributors for my work. Methodology The information in this assignment is largely sourced from the primary source of information. I personally visited, observed and conducted various surveys and interviews with employees, management and customers for undertaking this assignment. Various websites, journals and online materials have been researched for undertaking this work, though primary source of information is stresses more and given more significance. I have approached this whole assignment, applying the principles and concepts of Total Quality Management (TQM), i.e., through continuous assessment and improvement of the whole operations system and looking at it holistically from customers perspective, as well as demanding the consistent participation of all the stake holders involved in the continuous improvement of Quality. The Quality Circles approach and Quality Function Deployment (QFD) has also been applied/recommended to suggest resolution of quality issues that might arise while implementing TQM. Scope and introduction to the problem TBS is one of the top selling book shops in Calicut, India. During peak seasons and the launch of bestselling titles, there is tremendous waiting time for customers, resulting in customer dissatisfaction and decreased/lost customer loyalty. After detailed analysis of the operations system (explained in the later part of this report), it was found that the high waiting time for customers was due to the inefficient forecasting of demand, which also contributed to insufficient number of employees. This could be solved by non-adoption of latest modern forecasting methods, as well as integrating all the various resources of the company by implementing an advanced Enterprise Resource Planning software solution such as SAP or Peoplesoft. About the company According to its website, TBS is a leading provider of books, music, and other educational services and products in the state of Kerala in India[1]. Kerala is located in South India, and is renowned for its high literacy rate and its advancements in modern educational institutions. TBS have become one of the top book-stores and publishers in Kerala with revenues estimated to be over INR 20 million by their unique combination of customer service, innovation, efficient operations and cost competitiveness. [2] TBS is headquartered at Calicut in northern Kerala and has branches spread across Kerala in places like Kannur, Kottayam, Trivandrum and Trichur. It also has a vast network of agents across Kerala through which it distributes its products. TBS also sells office stationery, all types of lab equipments, raw materials for labs including chemicals, surgical items and apparatuses, equipment for   small industries, computer and IT components, sports   and athletic goods.[3] 80% of TBS revenues, and 85% of its profits are estimated to be from its books business alone, and hence this piece of my operations management work focuses on the books business alone, and whenever a specific shop location has to be mentioned, the main bookstore of TBS at Calicut is taken as reference.[4] Total Quality Management (TQM) TQM helps in the delivery of highest quality standards and the subsequent increase in operational efficiency and effectiveness. Thus, TQM constitutes the following: strategy implementation, plans and operational strategies for bringing together all the relevant practical quality control methodologies (Quality Assurance, Reliability Analysis, Statistical Quality Control, Random Sampling Inspection, etc) with the entire organisational mechanisms encouraging the consistent and continuous quality improvement. TQM concentrates in the entirety of the whole system and not just in its individual parts. Failure could be caused by various factors such as culture clashes/shortfalls, teamwork related issues, leadership and management issues, HR related issues, individual motivation issues and employee commitment issues, and other psychological and social issues as well as skills shortage or inadequacies of technical manpower and equipments.[5] Under TQM, customer is the primary focus, and every aspect of improvement is to be seen from a customers perspective. A holistic approach is used from an overall organizations perspective, and the customers are the most crucial and focus point of the whole approaches, and they are treated as the vital component of the whole operations. All stake holders must work together to achieve its objectives, i.e., a holistic approach with customers as the focal point, and involving all stake holders of an organization. Thus empowerment of employees as well as their team work is very critical for this approach to succeed.[6] Customer Satisfaction Survey According to David Garvin, eight characteristics that customers are interested are the following[7]: Since Customers are the central focus of TQM, a customer satisfaction survey was conducted with a sample size of 250 customers based on a survey questionnaire, to find out what matters most to the customers. In this survey conducted to evaluate the above parameters, it was observed that Features and Performance were the main lagging indicators, and there was much scope for improvement in these areas. The following chart demonstrates the customer satisfaction index (out of a total score of 10), the blue being the present score and red showing the areas which has scope for improvement. Analysis of Operations Processes under consideration The operations of TBS was analysed using the concepts of TQM (Total Quality Management). TBS could be categorized into a mass service business, with high capital investment and high volumes, medium variety of service offerings and low level of customization for its customers. The basic business proposition of TBS is that of a service provider of quality books and other services from the publishers to the potential end customers (Figure 1). TBS business can also be classified as a service business involving both Transformation of Place and Transformation of Ownership operation. Transformation of place because this business involves a great amount of storage and transportation, and Transformation of Ownership because it involves the change of ownership from TBS to the end customer. The Value Generation Process / The role of customers in the system Applying the principles of Total Quality Management (TQM), the customers play a major role in TBS business since the business of educational services in Kerala is highly competitive, with a lot of small bookstores and a greater competition from pirated books market. There is usually no intellectual property rights or exclusivity agreements, and hence almost all leading book stores in this market offer the same product services. However, TBS has managed to have a competitive positioning in this market, by ensuring a loyal customer base. By helping end-customers buy magazines, lab equipments, CDs, books and other educational items, in a very straight-forward and effortless method, TBS generates value for its end customers. Again applying the principles of TQM, for any efficient organization to succeed in the long term, they must offer a bargain for both itself and the customer. This bargain in this case, could be explained in figure 2: The value generating model could be characterized by the five key tenets (Figure 3) as per the model of service management system[8] by Normann. Applying the principles of TQM, it can be seen that People, Systems and Processes should work in perfect harmony with each other, under a conducive culture, effective communication and excellent commitment from all stakeholders, as described in Figure below: Market Segmentation The demographics of end customers of this educational market segment transcends across occupations, genders, ages and financial conditions. The key distinguishing feature is the need of these end customers for TBS educational products. By applying the principles of TQM, in my observations, it was found that the categories of customers that shop at TBS are (figure 3): Service blue printing technique[9] By using the service blue printing technique[10] of Zeithaml Bitner (2003), the following process maps in the next few pages demonstrates the various buying flow map of TBS various customer segments. The various type of customer segments found were: Focussed Customers Topical Customers Unfocussed Customers These are explained in detail in the next few pages. Focussed Customers these were customers who knew precisely what product they would like to buy, seek advice from the customer service personals on its price and stock availability and then make the buying decision. These customers usually only bought the precise product they came looking for, and would spend very little time in the store. The frequency of purchases made by this segment of customers were found to be very high, compared to the other two segments. Topical Customers these were customers who were interested in particular topics. However, they usually are not aware of a specific title/product. They would directly go to the appropriate section of the store, look at various titles under that topic and the various offers etc, and finally make a decision on which title /product to buy. The frequency of purchases made by this segment of customers were found to be lower than Focussed Buyers, though much higher than Unfocussed customers. Unfocussed Customers These were completely random customers, who came to the store without having any plan on which title or topic to buy. They would randomly go through various sections of the store, and make impulsive purchasing decision. The frequency of purchases made by this segment of customers were found to be very low, compared to the other two segments. Service Concept Applying the principles of Total Quality Management (TQM), the service concept of TBS can be classified based on the identified customer segments into Core services and Peripheral services Core: a. Location vital for any book store. TBS in Calicut is situated very close to a busy bus terminal and a leading supermarket, thus making it a very convenient and accessible spot for customers. b. Information counter/desk it is very essential and important because it helps TBS customers make decisions on which CDs, books or other educational products they need to buy, its location in the store and its inventory status. c. Variety a vast number of different services and books are offered at each TBS store, helping customers select their based on their individual preferences. d. Customer care facility    TBS offers excellent customer care facility to serve their customers. For this, they employ: e. Ease of reading/browsing The store layout has been carefully designed in such a manner that the customers can search efficiently and effectively e.g. adventure books by author, Playstation CDs by release date etc. Peripheral: Posters, Newsletters and other communications helps to enhance TBS visibility and information services by providing helpful information to customers. Sofas TBS always encourage customers to spend more time in their stores. They have realized that, more time customers spend in the book store, the more they purchase. Sofas are provided inside the store for reading the books in comfortable areas. Internet Connectivity There is Wireless Internet (WiFi) inside the TBS stores, giving additional revenues to TBS. It also attracts a lot of new and potential customers to the stores, especially travelers and tourists who want to access the internet. Coffee shop inside the stores Customers use this additional facility as it enables them to spend more time inside the store by having some refreshment during or after shopping. This facility also attracts potential new or future customers to the store. Delivery System In line with the principles of TQM, for delivering maximum value to its customers, TBS has designed and implemented a delivery system which is sketched out in Figure 4. The main components of this system include: For catering to ever changing customer needs and demands, TBS has ensured that it maintain many distinct layers of inventory. In each store, a back-office inventory is always maintained, to ensure availability of much demanded books, whose availability is important to prevent lost sales); also local warehouses are also maintained, enabling TBS to ensure that realistically fast-selling books are available in a timeframe of a maximum of 2 days; a central warehouse is also maintained to ensure that specialized books are stored, for those books that end-customers usually have to wait up to a maximum time frame of 5 days. TBS views inventory as both an asset and an insurance/guarantee against fluctuating demand, which is common in this turbulent market. However, the large amount of inventory at any point of time in their supply chain costs a lot for TBS, including: Physical/Geographic location: This is a very important factor of its business, because TBS relies primarily on end customers who visit its stores. With more customers visiting its stores, the more probability of sales. Also, it was observed that many new customers who primarily visit the stores coffee shop become buyers of TBS other product offering. TBS has a characteristic store plan/layout system, in which titles are grouped into topic (history, economics, politics etc), category (Posters, Blue-rays, books etc) and genre (comics, film etc). TBS also has different parts for specials such as new arrivals, offers/sale etc. to help customers. In addition, facilities such as sofas, coffee shop within the store, clean premises including passenger lifts and toilets. Also, other intangible factors such as a bright   and open atmosphere, large passages, passenger lifts and meticulously designed and implemented book-organization helps make it a comfortable experience for end customers. TBS has always ensured that good relationships with their vendors, suppliers, and publishers are maintained. This ensures more author visits, timely availability, higher priority treatment for new releases, and excellent price bargains from these vendors/publishers. Critical Evaluation of TBS operating and service delivery system For measuring the true most important strengths of TBS operating and service delivery system, it has to be assess at different levels: Based on my personal observations of the TBS bookstore and the feedback obtained with the interviews and interactions about the different kinds of customers who frequent TBS, the effectiveness of the operations management system could be evaluated by the following main criteria: a. Variety:   TBS end customers demand a vast variety of products including Books, CDs and magazines, and variety inside each of these categories as well. Hence, TBS has to ensure a right mix of volume as well as variety of CDs, magazines and books. TBS does not have a demand forecasting system right now, and hence it is very difficult to make any reasonable and accurate forecasting of demand in the near future. b. Availability: The buying decision of any customer is highly dependent on the ready availability of the product. In case the product they are looking for is not available, it is possible that the customer might buy it from its competitors. This is especially critical because TBS stresses a lot on customer retention and loyalty. c. Customer service experience: The customers overall experience in the store has to be pleasant, and is a very important factor. TBS ensures the availability of different ranks of customer-care service staff, who are well versed with specialist knowledge. Each of them serve about 6-7 customers/hour, and each customer on an average spends 6-10 min at the customer-care counter. TBS provides extra facilities such as a coffee shop, sofas, very clean wash rooms, baby feeding rooms and toilets. It was observed that almost 30% of the customers visit the coffee shop on course of their shopping experience in TBS. d. In-store promotions: These include promotions such as buy 1 get 1 free, festival celebrations, discounts, celebrity visits and authors book signing events. During my observation for two hours (2-4pm on a Saturday), 25 in 92 customers opted for a book which was under the promotions section. e. Purchase quantity per customer About 35% of customers purchased a minimum of 1 Magazine/CD/book. As described in Figure 6, we could plot a matrix to identify the various type of customers based on the amount of time they spent in the store, and the number of purchases they made. TBS uses this matrix to identify the most profitable high value customers as well as the least profitable unprofitable customers. The operational efficiency of the system determines the long term success of a business such as that of TBS. This could be evaluated and measured in various ways: a. Inventory flow is crucial for a fast-moving business such as educational books. Success is not defined by the quantity of books stocked in each store. But, how fast the product is transferred from the supplier/vendor to the end-customer determines the ultimate success of the business rather than finding the total number of books stocked. b. We must remove any bottlenecks that are there in any operations system. In the case of TBS, the main bottlenecks identified are: Bottlenecks in Supplier stage It is difficult to obtain enough quantities of some best seller books (especially those around which a hype is created even before the launch) from the supplier, as they are sought after by all book sellers, thus resulting in lost sales. This is the case especially during the initial launch of books (Eg: Harry Potter books). Bottlenecks in in-store Queuing system Customers are very demanding it terms of the time they spend in a queue in a shop, due to the fast lifestyles and increasing availability of online book shops. During my observations, it was found that the average dispensation time for each end-customer was 1.5 minutes, and the average queuing time was 6-8 minutes. Bottle neck in Customer care desk Customer satisfaction is very important in a highly competitive business such as book stalls. Any lack of customer care personnel, or the quality of service offered, could result in lost sales. The number of customer care personnel in TBS was limited during peak hours, and each customer during peak hours had to wait for an average of at least 3 minutes before he/she got some kind of help/support. c. Inventory Forecasting In the books business, it is crucial to effectively forecast demand and manage an optimum level of inventory in the whole system, i.e., both in-store and in warehouses. It must be able to predict much in advance, the expected peaking of sales (for eg: Cake cooking books during Christmas season or sports magazines during the time of a major sports event). TBS does presently this by using a multi-stage inventory, and promotional free home delivery offers during such peak periods. Suppliers as well as buyers possess enormous amount of power in the educational book industry. To have a profitable business, the books selling companies sign prior long term agreements with different stakeholders: a. Contractual agreements with publishers The negotiations with publishers are centered around the following areas: b. Business factors Book stalls has to consider other factors such as employee salaries, cost of maintaining the stores, the annual rents etc. The success of TBS depends heavily on the commitment and performance of its employees, both in-store employees and warehouse employees. The following considerations are needed : A major book shop like TBS requires many types of personnel for manning the various department inside the store such as administrative, billing, marketing sales, commercial, Human Resource Management and Inventory Management etc. TBS employees work in triple shifts and at any point of time, employs 13-17 employees inside the store, and during peak hours the number of employees can go as high as 20. b.  Ã‚   Employee Training Employee training is expensive, and it costs time, effort and money for TBS. To ensure that employees are working to their maximum efficiency, they have to be trained need to be ready to handle the high standards expected of them. c.  Ã‚   Efficiency The efficiency of staff has to be monitored continuously, and this could be done by measuring various parameters such as average time per customer, average time to fetch a book, number of positive customer feedbacks, etc. The largest customer who contribute maximum to the bottom line of TBS was found to be the unfocused buyers. Hence, it is imperative that TBS tries to get more of this customer segment to visit their store, and make them spend more time in-store (time spend in the store has shown strong correlation to the purchasing decision). I would like to recommend the following changes, in line with principles and practices of TQM and Quality Function Deployment (QFD), with the primary focus on customers and continuous quality improvement respectively as their goals. 1. Establishing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution To effectively have a holistic and total approach as envisaged by TQM, I recommend establishing a companywide Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution such as SAP or PeopleSoft. This system will integrate all the sub systems of TBS such as Inventory Management, Inventory Forecasting, Billing, Logistics, Human Resource Management, Marketing, Customer Service, Information Management etc. For instance, under the inventory management module, if the stock(inventory) gets below a particular amount (counters set in advance), the system will automatically place the orders for additional stock from the publishers/suppliers. 2. Suppliers could also be given access to the stock levels of each store, or when the customer places a new order, for their particular products. Thus the principle of Just In Time (JIT) inventory management is also implemented. By implementing this system, the waiting time in-store could be reduced drastically resulting in better customer satisfaction. Also, information and orders can be placed/obtained at any place, or customers in remote locations could order and gift products to their friends in Calicut, by ordering online as envisaged by TQM. Delivery system demand forecasting before implementing ERP system 3. Improvement in online/web presence There are a lot of customers who visit the physical TBS store, however this has created bottlenecks in the system, especially in terms of billing counter and customer care desk. This has translated into customer dissatisfaction, and hence applying the principle of TQM, I recommend establishing a full-fledged, easy to use website, where customers can view the books, preview its pages, and make an order using debit or credit card, and have the book delivered at home. The delivery and payment mechanism could also be made flexible, such as reserve and pick-in-store, cash-on-delivery etc. Thus the principle of Total Quality Management is applied effectively and efficiently. 4. Loyalty Programs On top of the in-store customer experience and promotions, TBS should also offer loyalty programs (eg: Reward/Discount cards) to reward and promote repeat/high value customers. 5. Starting a DVD/CD/Blueray rentals section instore. The number of customers switching from Books to CDs and DVDs are increasing. Since, we are renting them, customers would come back to return them possibly resulting in future sales. It must be linked both to the online presence of TBS as well as to the ERP solution to be implemented. Thus, customer satisfaction could be improved because they can get all necessary related products from the same roof. Thus, the prime objective of TQM can be successfully satisfied by meeting the demands of customers and making them satisfied. 6. Increase the number of customer-care service personnel Non availability of personnel or high waiting time for customers in the customer care results in immense customer dissatisfaction, and lost customer loyalty. These have a long term effect on TBS brand and customer perception. Thus, this will ensure that Quality Function Deployment (QFD) objectives are also met, and could save TBS considerable amount of money that would have been lost due to bad quality. Simple changes such as installing a ringing buzzer in the counter could potentially resolve these issues. 7. Modern Billing Self-Desks These days, customers are becoming increasingly sophisticated and comfortable with modern technology. They can without difficulty self use a Radio Frequency ID (RFID) billing self-desk by their own. Thus, savings on Human Resources as well as decrease in waiting time for customers can be obtained. 8. Well qualified and personable support personnel Staff must be well aware of the locations of various titles, and should be passionate about the products they are dealing with. They must be extremely patient, and hospitable. Staff must be always be well dressed and hygienic, and if they are not, it could result in a bad customer experience. By applying the concepts of Total Quality Management (TQM) and Quality Function Deployment (QFD), we can provide immense value to customers, and drastically improve their satisfaction levels, at the same time providing value to us as well. I recommend, primarily the implementation of an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solution that will holistically and totally look at and improvise all the different components of the service delivery system. Customers are the key focus, and priority is given for Do-it-right-the first-time approach, rather than rectifying after a problem arises. Thus by implementing the suggested recommendations, the operational profitability of the firm should increase. [1] http://tbsbook.com/About.php (accessed: 22/01/2010) [2] http://tbsbook.com/About.php (accessed: 22/01/2010) [3] http://tbsbook.com/About.php (accessed: 22/01/2010) [4] Estimates, based on Personal Interviews with Management of TBS [5] RDI Online Course Materials for Operations Management [6] RDI Online Course Materials for Operations Management [7] Garvin, David Competing on the Eight Dimensions of Quality, Harvard Business Review, December 1987 [8] Richard Normann (1991), Service management: strategy and leadership in service business, Wiley (1991) [9] Zeithaml, Valarie A. and Mary Jo Bitner (2003), Services Marketing, International edition New York: McGraw Hill, third edition [10] Zeithaml, Valarie A. and Mary Jo Bitner (2003), Services Marketing, International edition New York: McGraw Hill, third edition