Lucretia Mott on Women’s Rights

Lucretia Mott’s Discourse on Women Speech Bibliographical Entry: â€Å"Lucretia Mott Speech. † Lucretia Mott Speech. N. p. , n. d. Web. 13 Mar. 2013. Synopsis of Argument: The general argument made by Lucretia Mott in her speech Discourse on Women, on December 17, 1849, is that women are hidden from certain parts of society. More specifically, she argues that women let their guards down when approached with a decisive man. She writes, â€Å"she needs all the encouragement she can receive. † In this passage, Mott suggests that women need the encouragement to stand up for themselves against men.In conclusion, Mott’s belief is that women should fully be a part of society and should not be afraid of the men to do so. Claims supporting his purpose: * In her speech declaring women in society, Lucretia Mott argues that women need to stand against men. Mott asserts women that men are not the only rulers, women can be too. The women need to â€Å"take a stand,â₠¬  and fight to stay on society and get the freedom they want. Mott used the power of God to motivate the women and get the attention of men, Lucretia Mott Background- Research Bibliographical Entry: â€Å"Lucretia Mott. † History. com.A&E Television Networks, 1996. Web. 13 Mar. 2013. How relevant to the speech: Mott was raised in a Quaker community that provided strong role models for her. Mott advocated antislavery and boycotted all products of slave labor. She helped found the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society in 1833 and served as its president. This sort of activity in reform groups was immediate departure for women of her era. When denied a seat in 1840 at the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London on account of her sex, Mott preached her feelings of female equality outside the conference hall.During her London visit, she befriended Elizabeth Cady Stanton. During the summer of 1848 she and Stanton organized the meeting at Seneca Falls, New York, where the Ameri can women's rights movement was launched. Mott was elected president of the group in 1852. Mott's feminist philosophy was outlined in her Discourse on Women (1850). She believed women's roles within society reflected limited education rather than innate inferiority. She advocated equal economic opportunity and supported women's equal political status, including suffrage.

Environmental Influences On Human Behavior Essay

Eating disorder is a condition wherein an individual’s eating behavior of eating or not eating is influenced by a psychological impulse, instead of a physiological need. Individuals with eating disorders generally choose to ignore the signals their bodies send out that nourishment is needed for maintenance or that enough food has already been consumed. One general feature commonly observed in an individual with an eating disorder is abnormal weight, which may be either above or below the normal weight. Normal weight has been defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as having a body mass index (BMI) of 18. 5 to 24. 9 kg/m2 (Deurenberg and Yap, 1999; Weisell, 2002). BMI is the ratio of an individual’s weight in kilograms (kg) to his heights in meters squared (m2). An individual with a BMI of 25 to 29 kg/m2 is classified as overweight, those with BMI greater than or equal to 30 kg/m2 are categorized as moderately obese, and people with BMI of 40 kg/m2 and above are identified as morbidly obese. Obesity was earlier considered as an imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure. Today, obesity is regarded as a disease that is strongly influenced by genetic, physiologic and behavioral factors (Jequier and Tappy, 1999). The global estimate of overweight people is currently 1. 2 billion, of which at least 300 million are classified as obese. Obesity has been identified as a preventable health risk, but unfortunately, the mortality rate of this disease is still high, contributing to approximately 300,000 deaths each year in the United States alone. Since the cases of overweight and obesity are continually increasing without any preference to economic status of a country, health governing bodies have put in a significant effort to promote awareness of this disease and intervention programs that would teach the public of the risks of being overweight and/or obese. A major factor that influences such excessive weight gain is the poor lifestyle choices individuals make, in terms of their eating, exercising and physical activities. Binge eating is another eating disorder that is characterized by consuming huge amounts of food in order to achieve the strong feeling of being full. This disorder is generally involved with eating bouts even when an individual is not hungry. Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that is recognized in two forms- the restricting type and the binge-eating/purging types (APA, 1994). The restricting type of anorexia nervosa involves the absolute inhibition of food consumption and does not accompany any purging or binge-eating actions. The binge-eating type of anorexia nervosa is commonly characterized by cycles of binge-eating and purging. The classic symptom of anorexia nervosa is subjecting one’s self to a starvation condition, with the main goal of preventing or avoiding gaining weight or sensing that any fat is deposited in the body. The psychological angle with anorexia nervosa is that the individual perceives himself as overweight yet actually, their weight is already below normal. The extreme condition of anorexia nervosa usually involves death due to severe malnutrition. Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder that is characterized by cycles of binge eating, purging and the employment of laxatives to remove any food that has been consumed (APA, 1994). Bulimia nervosa may be differentiated from anorexia nervosa through the feature that the individuals afflicted with this eating disorder typically have normal or above-average weights. In addition, individuals with anorexia nervosa can strongly inhibit their food intake, while individuals with bulimia nervosa find difficulty in avoiding food consumption. Bulimic individuals commonly carry a psychological feeling of guilt and shame of eating so much food, hence they try to appease themselves of their eating faults through purging and chemical elimination of the food they ate through the use of laxatives. They consider such activities as remedies or cleansing rituals so that they can immediately purify themselves of the disgrace they made from eating huge amounts of food. To date, the exact cause of bulimia remains unknown, yet there are theories that this eating disorder is strongly associated to depression and anxiety, however, a precise correlation of this cause still has to be investigated. Another theory involves the motivation of the bulimic individual to escape from reality, by treating for as a comfort instead of a source of energy and nutrition for their bodies. Childhood experiences may also possibly play a role in the cause of bulimia, because young children are often given different types of food in order to pacify them or to reward them for particular activities. Society may also play a role in bulimia, because the media strongly endorses that being thin is good, beautiful and acceptable. It has been suggested that eating disorders may be physiologically influenced by serotonin and norepinephrine. It has also been suggested that anorexia is more frequently observed in females in the Western world (Suematsu, 1986). Several theories have been proposed to explain the mechanism behind hunger and eating in overweight and obese individuals. The internal-external theory of Schachter (1971) states that hunger is influenced by external signals such as time, as shown in their experiments involving manipulation of clock rates and counting the consumption of crackers by the subjects. The research showed that faster ticking clocks that would reach meal times earlier would influence the subjects to eat earlier, while slower ticking close would influence subjects to eat later during the day. This theory strengthened the hypothesis that obese people tend to â€Å"feel† hungry based on the time of the day, and not based of the real sensation of hunger. The sensation of hungry in normal individuals is generally induced by internal signals such as an increased appetite or need to eat. The boundary theory of hunger considers the cognitive influence of hunger and satiety, wherein an individual determines the amount of food he should take in, as their limit or boundary (Hermand and Polivy, 1984). During diet regimes, the amount of food an individual eats is a little less than the set amount or boundary and in turn, the body physiologically adapts to the available sources of energy. In overweight and obese individuals, the boundary of food intake is significantly higher than an individual of normal weight. A third theory explaining the relation between excessive weight gain and eating is the set point theory, which is essentially based on the control of the hypothalamus on the body’s predetermined weight. Such set point of weight will be biologically maintained through the natural way, regardless of efforts to loss weight through diets and other weight loss regimens. A decreased intake of calories will not perturb the hypothalamus in its self-regulation of body weight. These theories are comparatively similar in terms of their goal of attempting to describe the mechanisms of obesity. The theories all emphasized that obesity is not influenced by a single factor, such as plain and simple overeating. These theories actually describe external influences of factors that result in overeating. In the external-internal theory identifies the time of the day as the major factor that triggers hunger. For the boundary theory, the individual himself, most probably with the cerebellum as the major organ, determines the amount of food he will eat. As for the set point theory, the hypothalamus controls the individual’s body weight. It is interesting to note that what the society has perceived as overweight is not really caused by a simple excessive hunger that stems from the need of the stomach to carry more food, but actually a more complex network involving the digestive system, the central nervous system and the immediate environment. Treatment for eating disorder often involves physical and psychological approaches. Psychotherapy serves as the main treatment for eating disorders, which often involves sessions with a therapist to discuss issues such as anxiety, depression, low self-esteem and body image concerns. The therapist generally emphasizes the relationship of one’s thoughts and eating activities, as well as teaching the patient that food is a source of nourishment and not a source of comfort or escape. Antidepressants may be prescribed to an individual with an eating disorder, to regulate the emotions of the depressed individual. The physician will also need to regularly check the physical vital signs of the patient, in order to monitor whether the patient is gaining weight and to determine whether any other complications may be present in the individual. Dieticians will design a well-balanced diet for an individual with an eating disorder, as well as educate the person of the nutritional value of every type of food that is consumed. The theories of hunger and eating disorders are based on the concept of primary motivation, which is mainly an interplay between psychology and the biological need to provide energy to the proper functioning of the human body. It is more complicated than the straightforward feeding mechanisms in other organisms because eating in the other species is singly influenced by the need to provide food for the normal physiology of the body. In human beings that have a more complex brain system due to evolution, we have acquired the additional capability to feed our minds, and even our souls, so to speak figuratively. It is important to individuals to understand that the mind is a powerful organ that can influence the actions and activities of the rest of the body but it is also more important to know that such choices of eating the right amount of food, as well as the right type of food, is a conscious and voluntary choice, and the consequences should be seriously considered.

Example Solution Manual Essay

PESTEL analysis is a useful starting point for environmental analysis, encouraging students to think wide. Exhibit 2.2 provides an initial PESTEL analysis of the airline industry, giving students the general idea. The first question asks for additional elements in the analysis. For example, under Political, you might add subsidies for local airports; under Economic, you might add the rise of Asian economies; and under Legal, you could add the trend towards airline privatisation. A key danger to highlight is of long lists of forces or influences that are too unwieldy for practical action. So the second question challenges students to assess which of the forces are likely to be of most significance in driving industry change. Here students should justify their views in terms of the evidence from the past and the likely impact in the future of any particular influence. The end-chapter case example on the European brewing industry also asks students to do a PESTEL analysis. Illustration 2.2 Scenarios Scenarios help students think long term and very broadly: here the World Economic Forum and its members are looking a decade ahead, and thinking about geo-economics in general as well as just the market in a narrow sense. The question asks about whether companies have more influence over government policy or geo-economics. It then goes on to ask about how companies might influence government. This also obviously touches on issues of corporate social responsibility, pursued in Chapter 4. Companies probably do have more influence on policy coordination, but the issue is which governments they should be talking to (the United States, China?) and whether it is only governments that matter (United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organisation?). They should also consider how they can best influence governments, individually or collectively through, for example, the World Economic Forum or the Business Roundtable, the group of CEOs of leading American corporations. To some extent, the power is likely to be exercised negatively: through lobbying against and criticism of  proposals for financial re-regulation. It is worthwhile also asking about the influence these corporations can have themselves on geo-economic shifts: some Western company headquarters are shifting away from their home-countries, for example, the global headquarters of American civil engineering conglomerate Halliburton moved to Dubai and Swiss/Swedish engineering company ABB moved its global robotics business headquarters to Shanghai. Illustration 2.3 The Steel Industry The steel industry provides a fairly easy-to-understand case of rapid structural change, and one led by industry actors. Understanding how the leading companies are making an impact helps to counter a risk of ‘determinism’ in Porterian analyses; in other words, a sense that structures are given rather than changeable. The first question particularly invites a comparative analysis using the radar-plot introduced in Exhibit 2.5. The radar-plot might look roughly like the following, with the continuous lines indicating rough positions in around 2000 (10 years earlier than the illustration) and the dotted lines indicating positions in 2010. The comparative positions highlight the increasing power of suppliers such as the iron ore producers (negative); the high power of sophisticated buyers, somewhat mitigated by the declining power of the Big Three (mildly positive perhaps); and the beginning of decreased rivalry (positive) as the larger steel companies such as Mittal try to consolidate the industry. It might be said that the new entry threat has stabilised and even reduced, though continued investment by Chinese players may increase rivalry especially if they turn to overseas markets. Overall, comparing the size of the two radar plots over time suggests only a marginal change in favour of the steel producers. With regard to the second question, the acquisition strategies seem driven by the desire to reduce rivalry by reducing the number of players and even capacity. You might ask students what is necessary to make this work: here you might highlight the importance for reduced rivalry of both simultaneous cuts in capacity investments by, for example, the Chinese and strong barriers to new entry. With regard to the third question, success in raising barriers to entry (e.g. through technological change) and in  reducing rivalry (through continued consolidation) would make the industry more attractive. Vertical integration strategies into sources of supply (e.g. iron ore) would help too. A potential negative is significant progress with substitute materials. This depends on technological progress, hence providing a useful link between the Porter 5 Forces and PESTEL. Illustration 2.4 Chugging in the Charity Sector The aim of this Illustration of course is to show that industry structure analysis is relevant to not-for-profits as well. Indeed, charities appear ruthlessly competitive – hence the High Street chuggings. The first question points to at least three of the Porterian forces as causing problems: (i) There are low barriers to entry, with ‘constant refreshment’ of the industry by new charities; (ii) there is strong buying power on the part of local authorities commissioning services; (iii) there is intense rivalry because of the number of competitors and tendency towards overlap and duplication of charitable services. In addition, they face substitutes in the form of local authorities and other agencies performing services in-house, but at this point the trend in that respect was in their favour. The suppliers of funds – donors – have many alternative charities to give to. The mergers and increasing concentration levels (the largest are growing fastest) imply growing industry consolidation. At the moment, the industry structure might be described as highly competitive, but there may be widespread advantages to it moving towards a more oligopolistic situation. Illustration 2.5 Cycles of Competition The ‘wisdom’ in strategy theory has been that competitiveness is about building up a long-term competitive advantage and then defending it against competitors. The idea of cycles of competition takes a more dynamic view as to how competition in an industry will work its way out over time. It also highlights the potentially destructive nature of competition (at least from the point of view of industry players) and the value of trying to avoid it. Indeed, a key point is that these competitive cycles are not inevitable. Signaling to competitors, and interpreting the signals of others’  competitive moves, can help avoid head-on competition. Retaliation (Section 2.3 under barriers to entry) is a key principle here, as are the basics of game theory (Chapter 3). With regard to question 1, Francotop might have slowed down or rebuffed entirely Deutschespitze’s invasion of the French market by retaliating hard against its initial move: even though the youth niche was not so important to Francotop, a determined response there would have signalled the likelihood that attacking the core French market would be so fiercely opposed that it might not be worth Deutschespitze’s while even to try. With regard to question 2, Francotop would have been hard-pressed to avoid escalating competition in the business market. However, one possibility might have been for Francotop to focus on a particular neglected niche (say the small firms segment). By signaling clearly through advertising or similar that this niche was the extent of their ambitions, Francotop might have encouraged Deutschespitze to concentrate on its best opportunities, leaving the French get on with their specialism in peace. Illustration 2.6 Key Debate: How Much Does Industry Matter? This debate addresses an enduring source of controversy in strategy research, and allows students to review the importance of the contents of Chapter 2 (particularly the ‘five forces’), at the same time as introducing the more internally focused issues of Chapter 3 that follows. For Porter, industry matters a lot. The sceptic might argue ‘he would say that, wouldn’t he’? After all, this is exactly what his training in industrial economics and the standard products of his consulting firm would favour. However, the important thing here is to recognise the extent of the research he (and collaborators such as Anita McGahan) draw upon to make their case. It is worth pointing out to students that strategy theories are more than ‘just theories’: there is solid empirical research involved too. When meeting a new theory, students should get used to asking: where is the research evidence? What the research seems to suggest is that an industry is no t the be-all and end-all, but that choosing an attractive industry is a very good starting point in strategy: industry accounts for about two-fifths of the explained variance in the Porter and McGahan study (leaving aside control variables etc.). Turning to the precise question, the kinds of industries  that influence members’ profitabilities more than others seem generally to be service industries (explaining the greater industry effects in the Porter and McGahan study than in Rumelt’s). But to go on from here, industry influences are most likely to be strongest in highly competitive and mature industries. In such industries, sources of firm-specific differentiation are likely to be few, easily imitated and easily competed away, so making it hard to earn above-normal profits. At the same time, standard recipes for competing would have been established, so only the incompetent would perform substantially below the norm (and competition should have eliminated most such incompetents by the industry maturity stage). These conditions would probably prevail in service industries such as hotels, restaurants and retail. Newer industries are likely to offer more scope for innovation and differentiation, and have fewer commodity competitors and suppliers, so allowing persistent variability in profitability. Video Questions Hiscox Hiscox is a specialist insurer in the Lloyds of London insurance market. The company specialises in niche areas such as property and casualty insurance for high net worth individuals and companies, as well as cover against such risks as hacking, kidnapping and satellite damage. The video case is quite complicated, so best viewed after a thorough working through of the chapter material. 1.The industry is facing more buyer power, with the rise of online price comparison sites. On the other hand, there is a process of consolidation with the rise of ‘consolidators’ (companies such as Resolution), who are acquiring weaker companies in order to build position. This is likely in the long term to reduce rivalry. Major failures such as that of the American giant AIG (American Investment Group) are likely to reduce rivalry too. It is clear that general recessionary pressures are also influencing the market at the time of the video, reducing demand and likely to make it more price-sensitive. 2.Hiscox has a specialist position, aside from companies like AIG or the general insurers that Resolution is trying to buy, and its power in its niche is reinforced by its brand (well known in the United Kingdom). It also has the advantage of having both an underwriting (issue of insurance policies) and investment business, which mean that Hiscox is protected from short-term cycles or crises in one part  of the business, probably helping to buffer it from price competition in the short term too. Assignment 2.1 PESTEL Analysis PESTEL analysis is a useful starting point for environmental analysis. Illustration 2.1 provides a model. A ‘blank’ of the basic template of illustration 2.1 can be provided to students who can then be asked to complete it for the forces at work in a particular industry. The danger is that long lists of forces or influences can be generated by this device. So the second question challenges students to assess which of the forces are likely to be of most significance in driving industry change. Here students should justify their views in terms of the evidence from the past and the likely impact in the future of any particular influence. See the discussion of the PESTEL for the end-chapter case on the European brewing industry for an example. Assignment 2.2 Building Scenarios Assignment 2.2 requires students to focus on change in industry characteristics and competitive forces through the construction of scenarios. Guidelines for the construction of scenarios are given in Section 2.2.2 it is recommended that students follow these, building either two or four scenarios for a given industry. The work done in Assignment 2.1 should provide the bases of identifying the key industry forces or influences which will enable them to do this. Some of the problems of scenario building should be emphasised to students: Students may try to build in too many factors and, therefore, not be able to limit the number of scenarios. They may find difficulty in generating scenarios with a coherent and compatible set of factors. Some may be wary of having to exercise judgement; and others will confuse judgement with hunch. Try to encourage a realistic debate that tests out assumptions and projections against known facts and trends. A particularly useful exercise is to ask stude nts to build scenarios for an industry for which there is a company case (or for their own industry/company if possible) and then to assess the company’s strategic position in the light of the different scenarios (e.g. see the notes above on the brewing industry). One of the issues that might surface is the ease  or difficulty with which scenarios can be constructed. It usually emerges that scenarios are much easier to construct where the number of key forces at work in an industry is relatively few. They are less easy to construct if the number of important forces is high because the number of variables the student is trying to handle becomes too great. This, in turn, raises another issue. Scenarios are of particular use in uncertain environments as a means of helping managers to think through possible futures. However, uncertainty may arise for a number of reasons. If uncertainty arises because of the unpredictability of a few forces, then arguably scenarios may be very helpful, but what if uncertainty arises primarily because there are a large number of forces at work: to what extent are scenarios of use in such circumstances? There are a limited number of very important forces at work in the brewing industry: but what of fast-moving hi-t ech industries where there are many different forces at work? Assignment 2.3 Five Competitive Forces Five forces analysis is an absolutely fundamental technique in strategy. Section 2.3 should give students the ability to carry out a basic five forces analysis of any industry. They should be encouraged to consider all of the elements of each of the five forces: so for example, under barriers to entry, scale and experience effects, channels, retaliation and so on. The radar-plot technique of Exhibit 2.5 should only be used as a summary once the full analysis is complete; the danger is of it being used to short-circuit the analysis. Students should be expected to do more than simply list elements; they should clearly identify the implications (positive or negative) of each. The second question about conclusions for industry attractiveness should underline the importance of drawing out implications, rather than just listing. Assignment 2.4 Comparisons between Industries and Over Time This assignment allows students to build on Assignment 2.3 in order to consider the investment implications of differences between industries and change over time. The assignment is a substantial one if relying on students’ own research. However, time can be saved if two case studies are used (e.g. brewing, pharmaceuticals or hi-fi, perhaps looking backwards at  change over the past three to five years, rather than change in the future). Similarly, students may save time by using the radar-plot technique (Exhibit 2.5), as in the discussion of Illustration 2.3. It is important to note the two follow-up questions. Explicitly asking for justification helps students avoid the superficial analysis which is easy to do with five forces. Asking the question about investment helps students think about concrete implications, again something that five forces analyses often neglect. By looking over time, students will learn to be cautious about investing in industries with declining attractiveness. By comparing industries, students can also consider industry attractiveness in their diversification decisions, an issue picked up in Chapter 7. At the same time, it is worth countering the implications of five forces analysis with two thoughts: Industries that are highly attractive are likely to have high barriers to entry, so the costs of entry may outweigh the benefits of entering. An industry that is becoming relatively unattractive may be neglected by competitors, and, if you enjoy a strong competitive advantage in that industry, it may still be a source of profit to you. Assignment 2.5 Strategic Groups This assignment builds on the notion of strategic groups and strategic space outlined in Section 2.4.1 in the text. Figure 2.8 provides an example of how the exercise could be carried out. This could, for example, be applied to the European brewing industry: Key strategic dimensions might come under either of the scope or resource commitment characteristics in Section 2.4.1 – for example, product range or extent of vertical integration. Possible key strategic dimensions in the European brewing industry might include geographical coverage, strength of brands, diversification, size of firm, type of distribution, and so on. Students are encouraged to draw more than one strategic group map if they believe that more than two dimensions are important. It is useful to ask them to consider the extent to which different bases of such maps give rise to similar or different configurations. They might find, for example, that however the maps are drawn up, some companies always tend to end up in the same groups. In other words, some companies may have a very similar set of strategic characteristics along many dimensions. Students are asked to examine the  strategic group maps to see if there are any under-populated ‘white spaces’ in the industry. For example, in brewing, is there an opportunity for a giant specialist in making ‘own brand’ beer for the large retailers? However, students should assess carefully why there are few competitors in any such white spaces. White spaces can often turn out to be dangerous ‘black holes’ rather than attractive opportunities. Assignment 2.6 Critical Success Factors and the Strategy Canvas It is very likely that students will concentrate on success factors that are salient to them as consumers – for example, the product ranges of a clothing retailer. Less visible elements, such as ownership by a diversified parent company, may be neglected. However, for a short assignment, this need not matter too much: the essence is comparison in order to identify areas of (potential) competitive advantage. The key insight of a strategy canvas is to encourage competitors to compete where it is relatively easy to secure a significant advantage (Blue Ocean), and not necessarily to compete fiercely over the top-rated success factors if advantage can only be obtained at very considerable cost (Red Ocean). You can introduce less visible, but strategically significant elements after they have done their basic analysis. Integrative Assignment Full Analysis of an Industry or a Sector This assignment would be a demanding research project over a significant part of the course. It is however a very good test of students’ ability to apply tools to real data appropriately, as well as developing their research skills. Students will see it as practical and, if allowed a choice of sectors, relevant to their own interests. Good research resources are essential. As well as free web-based resources such as company reports, trade association statistics and some government or supra-governmental (EU, UN) reports and statistics, students would likely need limited-access resources such as the business press and journals available through BusinessSource Premier, Factiva or Proquest, and reports from organisations such as Euromonitor, Key Notes and Mintel. Your institution’s librarian will advise you on what is available to students and how proficient they are likely to be in using such sources. You would also want to guide students  on which industries or sectors to choose. Very broad industries – for example, the world airline industry – are likely to overwhelm students with data. It might be helpful to encourage focus – for example, the airline industry in India, or similar. Industry focus also reduces the risk of plagiarism. There are many student assignments of a similar nature available for a fee on the web, and it would definitely be wise to avoid allowing students to research the same industries in successive years. Requiring a specific focus on particular themes (e.g. internationalisation) or some less common concepts (e.g. the strategy canvas, cycles of competition etc.) can also reduce plagiarism. Insisting on precisely citing sources for key data and points (through an end-note system or similar) makes simple plagiarism harder too, as well as being good practice. If allowed, students will find very helpful a couple of example assignments from previous years to guide them roughly on what they are supposed to do. A report length limit of around 2000–2500 words would encourage students to focus on what is really important. Requiring an ‘executive summary’ would also force students to consider what is really important and what are the key implications. Over a two semester course, this assignment could be stage one of a two-part assessment regime; the second semester could have as an assignment asking students to consider implications of the first part for the strategy of a particular company in the original industry or sector. Case Example The European Brewing Industry This case focuses on the key techniques of PESTEL and five forces analysis that are central to this chapter. Full cases such as the pharmaceutical industry can be used develop students’ skills in seeing trends in industry data and drawing conclusions as to the likely impact of those trends on particular companies in an industry. PESTEL Here it would be helpful to ask the students to draw on wider knowledge or research (you may have beer drinkers from many countries in your class). Depending on how extensive students’ additional research and thinking are, a wide-range of issues may be raised. To highlight some for the purposes of illustration: Political: government campaigns against drink driving Economic: the rise of the Asian economies Social: rise of beer consumption in southern Europe Technological: few clear in the case, but innovations around products such as ice-cold lager might be raised Environmental: few clear in the case, but packaging issues are likely to be important Legal: few clear in the case, but changes in licensing laws and permitted alcohol limits for driving are relevant. PESTELs can often seem somewhat inconclusive, so it is important to pull out key issues and conclusions. The increasing hostility to drinking (under P and L) and the rise of Asian economies and southern Europe (under E & S) seem particularly important trends. One way of drawing some simple conclusions is to assess the overall balance (positive or negative) under each of the PESTEL headings: in the case of the European brewing industry, most of the headings are likely to be negative. The Five Forces There has traditionally been a wide variation of industry structures across Europe. The United Kingdom is fairly competitive. Denmark, Holland, Italy, Belgium and France, on the other hand, have been in near monopoly situations. However, with increasing exports and imports and cross-border acquisitions, national markets are becoming less protected. An interesting issue, then, is at what level to conduct industry structure analysis. If at a European level, the broad issues to consider under each of the five forces are as follows: Buyers: With more than one fifth of beer sold through supermarkets, and increasing resort to ‘own-label’, these buyers are increasingly powerful (underline that buyers are not the ultimate consumers). Suppliers: The high concentration of the packagers suggests that these are becoming increasingly powerful. Substitutes: Wine is clearly a dangerous substitute. New entrants: Internationalisation through M&A and increased trade is introducing new entrants into previously protected markets: most countries see increasing imports (Table 2). Anheuser-Busch and SABMiller are two obvious new entrants into Europe. Students might be alerted to the potential threat of TsingTao and the other Chinese brewers. Although not prominent in the case, there is still the potential of small new brewers entering using micro-breweries or contract brewers (e.g. Cobra). Rivalry: falling demand,  international entrants and over-capacity obviously increase the scope for rivalry. However, note that sales values are rising, that innovation and branding can mitigate price-competition, that there has been a history of price-fixing cartels, and that leading players are attempting consolidation through M&A. It might be useful to ask the students to compare industry concentration ratios in 2000 and 2009: that is, the share accounted for the top three or five players (Tabl e 3). As ever, it is important to draw conclusions. On balance, the European brewing industry does not seem attractive, and unlikely to become more so until the current round of consolidation is completed and brewers achieve greater leverage against their buyers and suppliers. Impact on Particular Brewing Companies The three companies are chosen to represent different types of ‘player’. A–B InBev is the largest player, after a succession of spectacular mergers. It is remarkable how the company is withdrawing from fast-growing China and Eastern Europe, however. Greene King is tiny in comparison to A–B InBev, with just one key domestic market, the United Kingdom. However, domestic focus and its own pubs may be giving it a strongly defended local position. You might ask whether there are competitors who might be tempted to buy such a company. Tsing Tao is the wild-card here. It is strong in its booming home market, but it is also interested in moving overseas. But would it make Europe a priority region for expansion, or choose another market?

Marketing Management First Assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Marketing Management First Assessment - Essay Example Virginia Community Capital Inc. is however unique because it is a non-profit motivated bank. The bank target mostly low income and middle income earning individuals to empower them. While at this, the bank often earn considerable amount of profit that is majorly given back to the community with regard to communal services (Savitz, 2013 p.12). This is the first pillar of the Triple Bottom Line analysis that is to be employed to analyze the overall performance of Virgin Community Capital Inc. (VCC). The bank’s greatest source is the interests it earns from the loans it advances to the community for various activities they take. VCC is approximated to have issued out loans worth a total of $419 million. Below is analysis of the financial statement that reveals the ideal position of the organization (Chhabra, D., 2010 p.13). The bank is believed to have reported an earnings ratio of about 66% in the year 2012. This is higher than the 35% registered in 2011. This implies that the expense of interest increased more than the increase of the interest earned by the bank. Deposition amount obviously was higher than the amount of loans in the year before. This depicts that at that particular juncture; the bank was working towards a negative ground and was registering a loss (Savitz, 2013 p.13). This is also portrayed by a trend analysis whereby the income interest increased as from the year before, 2011, 50%, compared to a lesser value in 2012, 17%. However, the interest from expense rose from 65% to 121% by 2012. It is prudent to note that the profit ratio is seen to have increased from 0.056 to 0.072 and is an indicator that bank is self sustainable due to the earned profit. The provision rate of loans in VCC is seen to have gone down. This depict that solvency of the bank in situations of default would be prudent since the bank is at less riskier loans in the current year. This is clear when you look at the decreasing loan loss provision ratio

Salem Witch Trials Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Salem Witch Trials - Essay Example There were even those who were wrongfully accused but were able to save their lives as they accepted that they had indulged in the act. These incidences took place in the region of Salem and these incidences were recognized as Salem Witch Trials. On the front the main reason for executing individuals was witchcraft, but the main reasons that are rational in nature are quite different. The rational reasons for the incidences of Salem Witch Trials include: post traumatic stress and disease called ergotism. Body The main cause of Salem Witch Trials was that two girls named Betty Parris along with her cousin accused an Indian slave named Tituba for practicing witchcraft on them and due to her practices; they ended up acting in an abnormal manner. There are various theories that explain why the girls were acting in an abnormal manner. Linda R. Caporael in her article titled as â€Å"Ergotism: The Satan Loosed in Salem?† states that those girls who resided in the region of Salem wer e acting in abnormal manner because they were experiencing a disease recognized as ergotism (Caporael 1). These girls were experiencing ergotism because they had consumed bread that was affected by a fungus called ergot. The bread they consumed was made out of the rye grains on which the fungus had spread and these grains mostly grow during summers as well as warm springs. The symptoms of the disease called Ergotism are similar to the manner in which the girls who were thought to be under the control of the devil were experiencing. These symptoms includes: experience of something crawling inside the skin, headaches, experience of hallucinations and others. Since the behavior exhibited by the girls is similar to the symptoms experienced by those who experience ergotism, it is plausible that the girls were not under any spell and were experiencing ergotism. Another possible explanation of the events of the Salem Witch Trials has been provided by Mary Beth Norton in her article titled as â€Å"They called it Witchcraft† (Goss 63). She states that issues experienced by a human in their everyday life are quite commonly associated to witchcraft and similar practices. She further argues that these events are a response to the issue of post traumatic stress disorder experienced by the individuals as they were exposed to the war that took place between the American Indians and the Puritans. This is possibly a rational reason because those who were first held responsible for witchcraft mostly included Indian women including Tituba. Tituba and other American Indians were held responsible because Puritians did not like them due to the war and because the puritans were of the idea that these Indians were people who were chosen by God. The girls who accused Tituba as well as other Indian slaves might be holding a grudge against the Indian because they might be holding them for the death of their loved ones in the war. Another possible reason that can be attributed to the events of Salem Witch Trials is boredom (Roach xxiv). Those who are said to be under the spell were mostly young teenage females who had little or no entertainment and were always practicing religion and were not allowed to experience entertainment because of the rules of the Church. These teenagers might have thought that accusing Indian slaves of indulging in the act of Witchcraft might bring entertainment to their lives and they might become the center of attention of others. The outcome of these accusations was that several individuals were sent to prison and several of them were even executed for being a part of witchcraft. Conclusion Salem Witch Trials

The Necklace by Guy De Maupassant Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Necklace by Guy De Maupassant - Essay Example This essay discusses that the author cleverly represents a lot of elements through the diamond necklace, most prominent of which is the high social statuses and wealth. While a diamond necklace represents beauty in the real world, within the novel it is representing the evils of the society. The satirical reference is clearly visible during the story as Madame Loisel is not content with her dress which is worth 400 francs, but would rather have the necklace too. She considers it unruly and humiliating for herself to go amidst rich women with a dress but no expensive jewelry. When she is asked to select between the different jewelry items by her friend, she skips on the Venetian cross, pearl necklace, and bracelets, and selects a diamond necklace instead. This shows her thirst for wealth and needs to belong to the upper class. She clarifies it herself when she states that the party will be attended by many riches and she doesn’t want to feel left out because of her social statu s. In the late 1800s, wealth was a factor that many people cared about, and social class even more. Maupassant uses situational irony and the social satire to deliver his message that money is not always wealth. Maupassant learned from his seniors about observation and reporting of daily life occurrences in a biting way. Very rarely would he show the sympathy for his characters? The Necklace was also inspired by his clerical work experience in the Public Instructions Ministry.

Explain how inbound logistics, conversion operations and outbound Essay

Explain how inbound logistics, conversion operations and outbound logistics converge to provide intergrated logistics - Essay Example rations involves several essential elements of a business such as production management, information flows, transportation of goods, warehousing, inventory control etc. Handling such activities with precision has become inevitable for the companies to gain competitive advantage over their competitors and strengthen its market positioning. It covers several operational aspects of a business, such as order processing, distribution of goods, as well as packaging which are essential for the timely receipt of raw materials as well as delivery of the finished products to the end users. Logistics can be defined as â€Å"The process of planning, implementing, and controlling procedures for the efficient and effective storage of goods, services, and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption for the purpose of conforming to customer requirements. This definition includes inbound, outbound, internal, and external movements1.† While the business dictionary defines logistics as â€Å"planning, execution, and control of the procurement, movement, and stationing of personnel, material, and other resources to achieve the objectives of a campaign, plan, project, or strategy. It may also be defined as the management of inventory in motion and at rest.2† Michael Porter’s Value Chain Model3, is an essential tool that helps in analyzing the various activities through which, the firms across the industry, seek to create competitive advantage. This model involves a series of support activities which are shown in the following diagram: The basic idea behind this model is to depict the various activities that create value to the organization which should be far greater than the cost involved in providing the product or service, hence creating a substantial profit margin in the process. These activities are explained through the case study of the â€Å"Bombay Dabbawalas† (Lunch box carriers from a city in India), a six sigma operation, recognized as a

Music Jongleur Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Music Jongleur - Essay Example During the 9th century, the song â€Å"Veni creator spiritus† has been utilised in various kinds of religious observances. Apart from the Religious observances which commonly haunted the music in medieval periods, there also exists some place for the love songs which dominated spiritual music. The composer has composed the love songs in his native language where he lived (usually in Old Occitan or Latin or Old French).One of the best example of love song is â€Å"Sic Mea Fata† which was written in latin and was seen in a manuscript from the abbey of St.Martial in Limoges. Jongleurs usually perform their work along with some dance. One of them is ‘estampie’. The above mentioned form consists of two successive melodies which was given a name as ‘puncta’ of which the first part ends with an unclosed ending and the second part ends with a concluded ending. Therefore ‘La Uitime Estampie Real’ meaning ‘The Eighth Royal Estampieâ₠¬â„¢ was one among those French dances which was performed by the Jongleurs in the early period. ‘Souvent Souspire’ is also one of the famous French dance song performed by Jongleurs. Also earlier Jongleurs commonly came across ‘hurdy-gurdy’ type of music supplemented with dance.

Week 3-Sheila Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Week 3-Sheila - Coursework Example They make this move with an aim of increasing the knowledge base the organization is going to rely on when making decisions. However, this technological move comes with the challenge of team members lacking trust in one another. Therefore, the management has to consider some factors in order to create trust in team players (Allison, 2013). The first factor is employing of proper communication tools to be used by the globally distributed worker teams. Such tools should be those which can be used to make long distance communications effectively. They should also be appealing enough so that the team can at least trust the channel used to pass the information. For example the use of videoconferencing is appropriate in instilling trust in team members (Boundless.com, 2014). Commitment among the members is another key factor that determines the trust that globally distributed worker teams will have on each other. Committed team members will ensure they are always ready to participate, and the work they do is perfect. In such a case the team players in different parts of the world will trust the knowledge and work done with their fellows as far as they may be situated (Carmody, 2012). Having common goals as a team is another factor that builds trust in the globally distributed team. The common goals are going to bring the team players together and this is a way of building trust among them. For example, with common goals, members will trust the information brought in by another member since they all believe in satisfying same goals (Chesebro, 2012). Organizational portal is one of the new technologies that improve communication among members of an organization or a team who are far away from each other. The tool is based on the idea of creating many platforms that every member will use to communicate to the rest of the team. the technology behind creating a portal for a team or organization is supported with a

Creating a Structured Lesson Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Creating a Structured Lesson Plan - Assignment Example This would include knowledge of the theories of acquisition of second language and the characteristic of the learner (Skowron, 2010). It helps the teacher to bring his or her own sense of learning and teaching into the classroom. When creating the lesson plan, the teacher must consider the student’s background, lesson objectives, and the skills to be taught, the resources to use in teaching, the activities, the time constraint, and the connection between the previous as well as forthcoming lessons. The teacher should adhere to requirement of competency and the published standards that the lesson will be addressing. The teacher should note what was covered in prior lessons and what the student need to learn in the next lesson (Hensworth, 2011). This should include the goal and objectives of the lesson. The teacher should plan the seating arrangement for the student to allow effective teaching or instructing to students. The teacher may consider mixing up the talkative and quiet students to ensure that there to ensure maximum engagement and cooperation. The tutor should anticipate where the lesson might break down. The instructor should have forethoughts and have probable solutions to make them more comfortable and confident as they teach. Finally, the lesson plan should have a section left for comments at the end of each experience (Wolfe,

Theoretical relationships between market structure and bank Essay

Theoretical relationships between market structure and bank performance - Essay Example Besides, most banking institutions are failing to engage with customers due to the rising competition from other customers. As opposed to this, it remains the duty of the bank to re- arrange itself in order to beat the other competitive banks in the market. For instance such a bank needs to sell its services well to its potential clients outside through sales representatives ( Gutek, Barbara, & Theresa, 2000). The market structure is normally very sensitive for any institution to sell its services to the publics. The banking institutions at time sell customer products and services they do not comprehend. This makes it easier for banks to really charge these services rather than focus on customer needs which is the most important aspect in the market. High concentration in market encourages organizations to collude. A bank in a more concentrated market will earn higher profits than a bank operating in a less concentrated area ( Etro,2009). In order a bank to know the relation that exi sts between market structure and their performance it should employ or investigate the effects that are caused by changes in the structure or formation of the market. There are two theories that are used to explain how a bank can determine its profitability and understand better its relation with the market structure. They are namely; the structure-conduct- performance (SCP) and the efficient-structure (E-S) hypotheses. The bank will also use the following measures to evaluate the banks performance; return on asset (ROA), return on capital and return on capital ( Baligh, 1997). Structure-conduct-performance theory Structure-conduct -theory determines the degree of a firn’s performance....Most banks may therefore end up in lobbying in order to stop or delay the success of any competitive policy. The market power may however be lost if banking institutions establish non-competitive prices in their products and services. This theory mainly uses market share to measure efficient structure hypothesis. This hypothesis is negatively related with profitability. Market power is the ability of a company to control the prices in the market by manipulating the demand or the supply of goods and services or both. The ability of a company to control prices can have a negative effect on the bank performance due to lower interest rates that will have to be charged on the clients when acquiring loans from the commercial banks. This is due to monopoly in provision o services and goods which money supply low ( Etro,2009). â€Å"Quiet life hypothesis† indicates that the banks tend to enjoy the market power through foregone revenues and the savings on the costs, while the â€Å"efficient structure hypothesis† describes companies are able to make bigger profits into the company than their competitors due to maximum efficiency and not sales or provision of services.

Animal Testing Is Cruel and Unnecessary Essay Example for Free

Animal Testing Is Cruel and Unnecessary Essay Is the Statement Animal Testing is Cruel and Unnecessary Correct? It is common knowledge that many animals are used in medical and scientific research. These innocent animals are often obliged to undergo countless of cruel processes and endure great suffering as a result. Despite all the disputes and discussions regarding whether or not animal testing is actually necessary, they wouldnt change the fact that it is, in fact, an extremely cruel thing to do. Therefore, it is only to be expected for the need for product testing involving experiments on animals to be strongly debated. The debates themselves usually revolve around scientific, ethical and even political implications, often based upon biased beliefs. For example, an animal lover would clearly be against animal testing. They would, in fact, not care whether it is necessary or not. A doctor desperate for a new research, on the other hand, would clearly think animal testing is necessary, and ignore the fact that thousands of animals are endangered because of it. I personally think animal testing is cruel. It is an inhumane thing to do, as animals too deserve to be treated normally, and not as objects that are just used to test whether a mascara is safe enough for a persons eyelashes or not. Furthermore, it has been proven that about 9% animals such as rats, rabbits and mice end up dying after going through these experiments. Do you honestly think the decreasing number of these animals is worth a new type of blush-on or eyeliner? Regarding the statement Animal Testing is Cruel and Unnecessary, I would have to agree with the first point: Animal testing is, indeed cruel. Nevertheless, as I am not exactly experienced in the medical field, I managed to do some research, and eventually found a rather interesting quote said by two doctors, Ray and Jean Greek, who briefly mentioned the necessity of animal testing in their book Sacred Cows and Golden Geese. They said: Animal experimentation is not necessary. It is expensive. It is inaccurate. It is misleading. It consumes limited resources. And further, it is detrimental to the very species it professes to be working to help humankind. Coming from doctors, I found their explicit quote to be rather surprising. Moreover, even though animal testing is not always accurate, there isnt a definite answer as to whether the term Animal Testing is Cruel and Unnecessary is true or not. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, to each their own, thus I couldnt help but fathom their statement. With all these advanced technology, knowledge and finances, have we indirectly dehumanized ourselves?

Strategic Management Report on Toyota

Strategic Management Report on Toyota Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) is the largest producer of automobiles in Japan and the worlds second largest automotive manufacturer based on production and sales. In 2010, Toyota sold 7.24 million units (Toyota, 2010). Toyota diversified operations include financial services, telecommunications, prefabricated housing and leisure boats. Besides its 12 plants and a number of manufacturing subsidiaries and affiliates in Japan, Toyota has 52 manufacturing companies in 27 countries that produce Lexus and Toyota brand vehicles and components. Toyota employs approximately 320,590 people worldwide, and markets vehicles in more than 170 countries. The company is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan and had an operating income of approximately 397.05 billion Yen (Toyota, 2011). And the main competitors of Toyota are General Motors, Honda Motors and Ford Motors (Daily Finance, 2011). 3. Analysis of Toyota Strategic Capabilities: 3.1 Company Capabilities Grant (2010) says about Lean production integrates capabilities relating to the manufacture of components and subassemblies, supply chain management, production scheduling, assembly, quality control procedures, systems for managing innovation and continuous improvement and inventory control. 3.1.1 Resources Innovation has always been a Toyota resource. In the 1970s Toyota began to produce smaller, more fuel-efficient cars, which customers desired after oil prices rocketed. Recently, it has used both diesel technology and the electric car. 3.1.2 Organizational Culture However, Toyotas main resource is the Toyota Way, the 14 principles behind the Toyota Production System (Combe, 2011). These originated in the post 1945 environment, when it was imperative to make the maximum use of scarce resources. Challenges, improvement, Kaisen, go and see (genchi genbutsu); respect and teamwork are the main tenets of these principles, which can be outlines as follows. Management decisions should be long term, as opposed to short term, although they should be arrived at consensually. Problems should be highlighted by continuous process, not hidden and resolved immediately so that a quality product is produced immediately. Only existing and trustworthy technology should be used and tasks need to be standardized so that the workload is leveled out and the workers are continually improving. Management should understand all aspects of the companys operations, and pass on their dedication to the companys goals to others. All workers, suppliers and affiliated should always be challenged to improve their performance. The latter means that Toyota becomes a leaning organization with workers being empowered to make changes as they perform their daily tasks. The Toyota Way has given Toyota a comparative advantage in both quality and reliability. 3.1.3 Supply Chain According to Winfield and Hay (1997) part of the strategic capabilities of Toyota includes the strategic capabilities of the supply chain. The pattern and organization of a supply chain is perceptibly a comprehensive topic, concerning inter dependencies between research and development, marketing and production roles, creating considerable courses of goods and technical, market and financial information. 3.2 Core Competencies Toyotas global competitive advantage is to build trust and confidence with customers by delivering outstanding quality products and services that add real value to their business. According to Drejer (2002), However, in recent years there has been a number of recalls of multiple models of Toyota, which are amazingly reliable. How could this possibly happen to the car company that was the undisputed leader in quality. 4. Evaluation of Possible Future Strategies for the Company: The main strategic issue for Toyota is maintaining its position as the worlds leading car manufacturer after the recent mass vehicle recall. 4.1 Future Strategies for Culture Change Based on the book titled 7 Lessons for Leading in Crisis written by George (2009), Toyota needs a credible leader with a strong, cohesive plan (George, 2010). 4.1.1 Face reality, starting with yourself Toyota blamed the problems on stuck floor mats and panicky drivers. Instead, Toyota should acknowledge that its vaunted quality system failed. CEO Toyoda should take personal responsibility by saying that he pushed too hard for growth and neglected quality. 4.1.2 Dont be Atlas; Get the world off your shoulders Toyoda needs a crisis team reporting directly to him, working 24/7 to get problems fixed permanently. He should add the worlds top quality experts to his fix it team and listen carefully to their advice. 4.1.3 Dig deep for the root cause Management should have required its best engineers to get to the root cause of this problem and every other quality problem being reported. 4.1.4 Get ready for the long haul These problems wont just fade away. In fact, they are likely to get worst before getting better. Toyota must invest heavily in corrective actions while its sales shrink and profits implode, requiring major cash resources until its reputation can be restored. 4.1.5 Never waste a good crisis For all the pain Toyota is experiencing, this crisis provides a unique opportunity to make fundamental changes required to restore Toyota quality. Employees are ready for new direction, and they are willing to make radical changes to renew the company. With Toyodas leadership, Toyota automobiles can be restored to the worlds highest quality. 4.1.6 Youre in the spotlight: Follow True North Toyoda must come out of hiding, take personal responsibility, and subject himself to intense questioning by regulators and the media. Then he should make a personal commitment to every Toyota customer to repair the damage, including buying back defective cars. 4.1.7 Go on offense; focus on winning now Coming out of this crisis, the market will never look the same. Toyota cannot wait until all its quality problems are resolved. It must play defense and offense simultaneously. To win, Toyota has to offer advanced features and superior quality, better value for consumers, greater safety, and improved fuel efficiency. 4.2 Future Strategies for Innovation Like Volkswagen, Toyota could design cars for specific markets (Welch, 2010). Penetration of the price sensitive Indian market could be achieved by producing its low cost car soon (The Economic Times, 2010). Toyota needs to pay more attention to the Chinese market, which is the largest and fastest growing. As Chinese families are smaller than their Western equivalents, this could be an opportunity for increased sales of the smaller Camry model (Xinhua, 2010). Retracting in Europe could fund expansion into these blossoming Asian markets. Specific markets could also be entered by joint ventures with local manufacturers. Volkswagen is aiming to do this in India, by acquiring a stake in Suzuki, which is a market leader there through its subsidiary Maruti (Ran Kim and Hetzner, 2009). Another possible strategy for Toyota is to restore its benchmark for quality and reliability, which has been severely impaired with the second recall of 4.2 million vehicles in 2009 (Bunkley, 2010). Crucial to this strategy, is the introduction of twenty dedicated technology facilities to highlight defects as quickly as possible (Guardian, 2010). In addition, the new regional quality subcommittees have the power to make improvements without head office approval. This would eradicate defects quickly, and, in turn reassure customers. 5. Implementation of the Strategic Change: Recently, public criticism focuses on complaints of too much computerization, problems with global sourcing, and the effects of Toyotas single-minded pursuit of becoming the worlds largest automaker. In fact, the recent criticism of Toyota in these areas demonstrated how leadership holds the keys to success and failure to organizational transformation. New Technology and Leadership Toyotas recent strategy to become the worlds number one automaker has been underpinned by using new know-how, new technology and new materials to improve, perfect and break through auto design and manufacturing. However, the strategy also required that Toyota shifted its focus form manufacturing engineering and built-in-quality toward research and development product design. When a company shifts its focus form lean production to technology innovation, there is an embedded obstacle culture change. On one hand, the essence of lean production dictates the elimination of waste. On the other hand, the uncertainties in new product development require that the manufacturer build in redundancy to manage the risks of the unknown and unsure a high level of safety. Trying to balance lean production with the need for redundancy is a difficult act that requires the leadership to be instrumental in making key decisions as well as leading and managing the change. Global Sourcing and Leadership Toyotas decisions on strategic positioning impacts its cooperation with suppliers. The suppliers original alignment of competitive advantages, core capabilities and value propositions needs to change along with that of Toyotas. such changes, unavoidably, will be reflected in vehicle quality, customer satisfaction and even customer safety. Some would view this as a by-product of the vehicle makers strategic move directed by its leadership. Others think the leadership should consider such impact as part of the change management alongside strategic planning shifts. Whatever it is, the key is the alignment, especially with corporate culture, people capabilities, acceptance of stress and pressure, and the ability to coordinate and change. World No. 1 and Leadership The new leadership certainly has felt the pressure. It is the responsibility of the leaders to sort out the alignment and coordination between strategic direction and operating model. Hopefully, the recall crisis will be treated once more as an opportunity to align its lean production culture and its operation excellence capabilities with its desire to leverage new technology, to continue sourcing from the globe while continuing to stay on the No. 1 pedestal. A transformation already is apparent. Toyota has become less defensive and has responded quickly to new complaints of defects. Leadership is no longer absent and now appears to be leading from the front. In consideration of the various issues, Toyotas growth strategy for the continued realization of Genchi Genbutsu and high quality at affordable prices will centre on a thorough customer first perspective (Toyota, 2010). Specifically, Toyota will review their product lineups to match customer needs in each region and create a production system that responds to changes in market structure while optimally allocating resources in areas where Toyota want to advance. 6. Conclusion Recommendations: Toyota seems to have abandoned one of its core competencies quality. Toyota is suffering from trying to get too big, too fast. Toyota sensed weakness from its auto rivals in the American market, and also noted opportunity in emerging markets such as China and India. So, it started enormous expansion around the world. In doing so, Toyota abandoned one of its core values, which is to never build a new product in a new factory with a new workforce. Toyota may have won the rights to brag as the worlds biggest car company, however, that appears to have come at a heavy cost to its reputation for quality and in turn customer dissatisfaction. Management needs to make sure that their projects and their goals are aligned with organizational values and core competencies. Understanding the importance of competencies and core values, and how they need to work in conjunction, is profoundly important for management success. Management should give thought and efforts towards developing both of these sets of attributes and remain focused on business goals. This is a challenging menu, and this crisis is the true test of Akio Toyodas leadership. Believe this is a great company that will resurrect its reputation and restore its leadership.

Job Security And Motivation Of Employees

Job Security And Motivation Of Employees Information Technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications. The term in its modern sense first appeared in a 1958 article published in the Harvard Business Review, in which authors Leavitt and Whisler commented that the new technology does not yet have a single established name. We shall call it information technology (IT). IT is the area of managing technology and spans wide variety of areas that include but are not limited to things such as processes, computer software, information systems, computer hardware, programming languages, and data constructs. In short, anything that renders data, information or perceived knowledge in any visual format whatsoever, via any multimedia distribution mechanism, is considered part of the IT domain. IT provides businesses with four sets of core services to help execute the business strategy: business process automation, providing information, connecting with customers, and productivity tools. IT professionals perform a variety of functions (IT Disciplines/Competencies) that ranges from installing applications to designing complex computer networks and information databases. A few of the duties that IT professionals perform may include data management, networking, engineering computer hardware, database and software design, as well as management and administration of entire systems. Information technology is starting to spread further than the conventional personal computer and network technologies, and more into integrations of other technologies such as the use of cell phones, televisions, automobiles, and more, which is increasing the demand for such jobs. In the recent past, the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology and the Association for Computing Machinery have collaborated to form accreditation and curriculum standards for degrees in Information Technology as a distinct field of study as compared to Computer Science and Information Systems today. SIGITE (Special Interest Group for IT Education) is the ACM working group for defining these standards. The Worldwide IT services revenue totaled $763 billion in 2009. DOMAIN OF THE IT INDUSTRY: A wide variety of services come under the domain of the information technology industry. Systems architecture Database design and development Networking Application development Testing Documentation Maintenance and hosting Operational support Security services GROWTH POTENTIAL: The strong demand for electronic hardware and software in India has been fuelled by a variety of drivers including the high growth rate of the economy, emergence of a vast domestic market catering to the new generation of young consumers, a thriving middleclass populace with increasing disposable incomes and a relatively low-cost work force having advanced technical skills. Indeed, the Government has also identified growth of this sector as a thrust area as there remains great expectation for significant growth given the fairly low levels of penetration of technology among the 1.1 billion populations; there were only 60 million Internet users in 2009, 7 million DVD players and personal computers were sold in 2008-09, and 11 million new mobile subscribers were added every month in the same period. In this scenario there is now a big opportunity to step up the production to gain higher global share besides meeting the domestic demands. The Indian IT sector has also built a strong reputation for its high standards of software development ability, service quality and information security in the foreign market- which has been acknowledged globally and has helped enhance buyer confidence. The industry continues its drive to set global benchmarks in quality and information security through a combination of provider and industry-level initiatives and strengthening the overall frameworks, creating greater awareness and facilitating wider adoption of standards and best practices. FUTURE OF INDIAN IT INDUSTRY: The Indian IT sector persists to be one of the flourishing sectors of Indian financial system indicating a speedy expansion in the coming years. As per NASSCOM, the Indian IT exports are anticipated to attain US$ 175 billion by 2020 out of which the domestic sector will account for US$ 50 billion in earnings. In total the export and domestic IT sector are expected to attain profits amounting to US$ 225 billion along with new prospects from BRIC nations and Japan for its outsourcing operations. The industry is likely to continue growing from strength to strength, as local players incorporate best in class practices from global counterparts whilst retaining their edge in terms of lower cost of labor and focused governmental investments. New graduates with degrees in related fields such as electrical engineering and computer science can hope to achieve significant professional growth and a healthy remuneration from companies looking to hire the best talent available, given the high proportion that leave to pursue jobs in this sector overseas. IT professionals perform a variety of duties ranging from data management, networking, engineering computer hardware, database and software design, to the management and Administration of entire system. With the already high penetration of conventional personal computer and network technology, coupled with the growing convergence of information. In order to perform the complex functions required of information technology departments today, the modern Information Technology Department would use computers, servers, database and cryptography. The department would be made up of several System Administrators, Database Administrators and at least one Information Technology Manager. The group usually reports to the Chief Information Officer (CIO). FEATURES OF THE IT INDUSTRY AT A GLANCE: Economies of scale for the information technology industry are high. The marginal cost of each unit of additional software or hardware is insignificant compared to the value addition that results from it. Unlike other common industries, the IT industry is knowledge-based. Efficient utilization of skilled labor forces in the IT sector can help an economy achieve a rapid pace of economic growth. Adversely impacted by the recent rupee-dollar volatility and the slowdown in the global economy, the IT sector is treading cautiously on salary rewards. Therefore study of influence of the global crisis on employees is crucial. Introduction to variables Independent variable: Global Crisis Dependent variable: Job Security Motivation Global Crisis Since 2007, nations around the world experienced a series of major economic and financial problems. The events began with the financial crisis of 2007-2008, considered by many economists to be the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The 2008-09 global meltdown was a fallout of corporate greed, malpractices and lack of government control. Banks and companies collapsed for their own fault. While the band-aid came in the form of government bail-outs or, in simple terms, socialising private losses, one has to bear in mind that we are no longer looking at the prospect of failing companies or banks It resulted in the threat of total collapse of large financial institutions, the bailout of banks by national governments, and downturns in stock markets around the world. In many areas, the housing market also suffered, resulting in evictions, foreclosures and prolonged unemployment. The crisis played a significant role in the failure of key businesses, declines in c onsumer wealth estimated in trillions of US dollars, and a downturn in economic activity leading to the 2008-2012 global recession and contributing to the European sovereign-debt crisis. Job security Job security is the probability that an individual will keep his or her job and high level of job security is such that a person with the job would have a small chance of becoming unemployed. There are several factors which affect job security such as economy, prevailing business conditions, and the individuals personal skills. It has been found that people have more job security in times of economic expansion and less in times of a recession. Also, some laws (such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964) bolster job security by making it illegal to fire employees for certain reasons. Unemployment rate is a good indicator of job security and the state of the economy and is tracked by economists, government officials, and banks. Typically, government jobs and jobs in education, healthcare and law enforcement are considered very secure while private sector jobs are generally believed to offer lower job security and it usually varies by industry, location, occupation and other factors. Personal factors such as education, work experience, job functional area, work industry, work location, etc., play an important role in determining the need for an individuals services, and impacts th eir personal job security. Since job security depends on having the necessary skills and experience that are in demand by employers, which in turn depend on the prevailing economic condition and business environment, individuals whose services are in demand by employers will tend to enjoy higher job security. To some extent, job security also varies by employment laws of each country. A worker in Continental Europe, if asked about his job security, would reply by naming the type of statutory employment contract he has, ranging from temporary (no job security) to indefinite (virtually equivalent to tenure in US universities but across the whole economy). However, peoples job security eventually depends on whether they are employable or not, and if businesses have a need for their skills or not, so although employment laws can offer some relief and hedge from unemployment risk, they only have a marginal contribution to job security of individuals. Individuals need to have the right skill set to have good job security. Job security index is a measure of job conditions. Developed by Scorelogix, Job Security Index is represents how economic factors, internet and computers, international trade and competition,outsourcing, off-shoring, job migration, etc., are impacting the demand and supply of employment. A higher Job Security Index for a region, such as a ZIP code, county or metropolitan statistical area (MSA), indicates that people in that region have a better opportunity of finding jobs and remaining employed. A lower Job Security Index for a ZIP or county means that job are relatively difficult to find and keep. Typically, cities and counties that have a larger concentration of government jobs or education related jobs have a higher Job Security Index values as these jobs are less impacted by the economy. Motivation The processes that account for an individuals intensity,direction, and persistence of effort toward attaining a goal -specifically, an organizational goal. Three key elements: Intensity how hard a person tries Direction effort that is channelled toward, and consistent with, organizational goals Persistence how long a person can maintain effort Motivation is an individual internal process that energizes, directs, and sustains behaviour and acts as a personal force that causes us to behave in a particular way. Classical theories of motivation Maslows hierarchy of needs theory Abraham Maslow is well renowned for proposing the Hierarchy of Needs Theory in 1943. This theory is a classical depiction of human motivation. This theory is based on the assumption that there is a hierarchy of five needs within each individual. The urgency of these needs varies. These five needs are as follows- Physiological needs- These are the basic needs of air, water, food, clothing and shelter. In other words, physiological needs are the needs for basic amenities of life. Safety needs- Safety needs include physical, environmental and emotional safety and protection. For instance- Job security, financial security, protection from animals, family security, health security, etc. Social needs- Social needs include the need for love, affection, care, belongingness, and friendship. Esteem needs- self- respect, confidence, competence, achievement ,freedom, recognition, power, status, attention and admiration Self-actualization need- This include the urge to become what you are capable of becoming / what you have the potential to become. It includes the need for growth and self-contentment According to Maslow, individuals are motivated by unsatisfied needs. As each of these needs is significantly satisfied, it drives and forces the next need to emerge. Herzbergs Two Factor Theory of Motivation In 1959, Frederick Herzberg, a behavioural scientist proposed a two-factor theory or the motivator-hygiene theory. According to Herzberg, there are some job factors that result in satisfaction while there are other job factors that prevent dissatisfaction. According to Herzberg, the opposite of Satisfaction is No satisfaction and the opposite of Dissatisfaction is No Dissatisfaction. Hygiene factors are those job factors which are essential for existence of motivation at workplace. These do not lead to positive satisfaction for long-term. But if these factors are absent / if these factors are non-existent at workplace, then they lead to dissatisfaction.It includes pay ,company policies,fringe benefits etc. Motivation factors According to Herzberg, the hygiene factors cannot be regarded as motivators. The motivational factors yield positive satisfaction. These factors are inherent to work. These factors motivate the employees for a superior performance. These factors are called satisfiers. It includes Recognition, sense of achievement, growth etc. Theory X and Theory Y In 1960, Douglas McGregor formulated Theory X and Theory Y suggesting two aspects of human behaviour at work, or in other words, two different views of individuals (employees): one of which is negative, called as Theory X and the other is positive, so called as Theory Y. According to McGregor, the perception of managers on the nature of individuals is based on various assumptions. Assumptions of Theory X An average employee intrinsically does not like work and tries to escape it whenever possible. Since the employee does not want to work, he must be persuaded, compelled, or warned with punishment so as to achieve organizational goals. A close supervision is required on part of managers. The managers adopt a more dictatorial style. Many employees rank job security on top, and they have little or no aspiration/ ambition. Employees generally dislike responsibilities. Employees resist change. An average employee needs formal direction Assumptions of Theory Y Employees can perceive their job as relaxing and normal. They exercise their physical and mental efforts in an inherent manner in their jobs. Employees may not require only threat, external control and coercion to work, but they can use self-direction and self-control if they are dedicated and sincere to achieve the organizational objectives. If the job is rewarding and satisfying, then it will result in employees loyalty and commitment to organization. An average employee can learn to admit and recognize the responsibility. In fact, he can even learn to obtain responsibility. The employees have skills and capabilities. Their logical capabilities should be fully utilized. In other words, the creativity, resourcefulness and innovative potentiality of the employees can be utilized to solve organizational problems. Thus, we can say that Theory X presents a pessimistic view of employees nature and behaviour at work, while Theory Y presents an optimistic view of the employees nature and behaviour at work Modern theories of motivation ERG theory of motivation To bring Maslows need hierarchy theory of motivation in synchronization with empirical research, Clayton Alderfer redefined it in his own terms. His rework is called as ERG theory of motivation. He recategorized Maslows hierarchy of needs into three simpler and broader classes of needs: Existence needs- These include need for basic material necessities. In short, it includes an individuals physiological and physical safety needs. Relatedness needs- These include the aspiration individuals have for maintaining significant interpersonal relationships (be it with family, peers or superiors), getting public fame and recognition. Maslows social needs and external component of esteem needs fall under this class of need. Growth needs- These include need for self-development and personal growth and advancement. Maslows self-actualization needs and intrinsic component of esteem needs fall under this category of need. McClellands theory of motivation David McClelland and his associates proposed McClellands theory of Needs / Achievement Motivation Theory. This theory states that human behaviour is affected by three needs Need for Power, Achievement and Affiliation. Need for achievement is the urge to excel, to accomplish in relation to a set of standards, to struggle to achieve success. Need for power is the desire to influence other individuals behaviour as per your wish. In other words, it is the desire to have control over others and to be influential. Need for affiliationis a need for open and sociable interpersonal relationships. In other words, it is a desire for relationship based on co-operation and mutual understanding. Goal setting theory In 1960s, Edwin Locke put forward the Goal-setting theory of motivation. This theory states that goal setting is essentially linked to task performance. It states that specific and challenging goals along with appropriate feedback contribute to higher and better task performance. In simple words, goals indicate and give direction to an employee about what needs to be done and how much efforts are required to be put in. Reinforcement theory Reinforcement theory of motivation was proposed by BF Skinner and his associates. It states that individuals behaviour is a function of its consequences. It is based on law of effect, i.e, individuals behaviour with positive consequences tends to be repeated, but individuals behaviour with negative consequences tends not to be repeated. Reinforcement theory of motivation overlooks the internal state of individual, i.e., the inner feelings and drives of individuals are ignored by Skinner. This theory focuses totally on what happens to an individual when he takes some action. Thus, according to Skinner, the external environment of the organization must be designed effectively and positively so as to motivate the employee. This theory is a strong tool for analyzing controlling mechanism for individuals behaviour. However, it does not focus on the causes of individuals behaviour. Reinforcement theory explains in detail how an individual learns behaviour. Managers who are making attempt to motivate the employees must ensure that they do not reward all employees simultaneously. They must tell the employees what they are not doing correct. They must tell the employees how they can achieve positive reinforcement. Equity theory of motivation The core of the equity theory is the principle of balance or equity. As per this motivation theory, an individuals motivation level is correlated to his perception of equity, fairness and justice practiced by the management. Higher is individuals perception of fairness, greater is the motivation level and vice versa. While evaluating fairness, employee compares the job input (in terms of contribution) to outcome (in terms of compensation) and also compares the same with that of another peer of equal cadre/category. D/I ratio (output-input ratio) is used to make such a comparison. Assumptions of Theory The theory demonstrates that the individuals are concerned both with their own rewards and also with what others get in their comparison. Employees expect a fair and equitable return for their contribution to their jobs. Employees decide what their equitable return should be after comparing their inputs and outcomes with those of their colleagues. Employees who perceive themselves as being in an inequitable scenario will attempt to reduce the inequity either by distorting inputs and/or outcomes psychologically, by directly altering inputs and/or outputs, or by quitting the organization. Expectancy theory of motivation The expectancy theory was proposed by Victor Vroom of Yale School of Management in 1964. Vroom stresses and focuses on outcomes, and not on needs unlike Maslow and Herzberg. The theory states that the intensity of a tendency to perform in a particular manner is dependent on the intensity of an expectation that the performance will be followed by a definite outcome and on the appeal of the outcome to the individual. The Expectancy theory states that employees motivation is an outcome of how much an individual wants a reward (Valence), the assessment that the likelihood that the effort will lead to expected performance (Expectancy) and the belief that the performance will lead to reward (Instrumentality). In short,Valence is the significance associated by an individual about the expected outcome. It is an expected and not the actual satisfaction that an employee expects to receive after achieving the goals. Expectancy is the faith that better efforts will result in better performance. Expectancy is influenced by factors such as possession of appropriate skills for performing the job, availability of right resources, availability of crucial information and getting the required support for completing the job. The theory concentrates on the following three relationaships- Effort-performance relationship: What is the likelihood that the individuals effort be recognized in his performance appraisal? Performance-reward relationship: It talks about the extent to which the employee believes that getting a good performance appraisal leads to organizational rewards. Rewards-personal goals relationship: It is all about the attractiveness or appeal of the potential reward to the individual. Vroom was of view that employees consciously decide whether to perform or not at the job. This decision solely depended on the employees motivation level which in turn depends on three factors of expectancy, valence and instrumentality. Chapter 2 Review of Literature Lubna Rizvi D/O Dr Javed1* Khawaja Atif Siddiqui, 2012 The paper tells about the relationship of Motivation with organization climate, engagement, and job security in a service organization, where it is going through rightsizing. It study finds out as to how employees working in the organization perceive it and how much they feel connected to it. The level of competition in the media industry has intensified in recent years, driven by several factors such as the decline in household wealth, rising unemployment, rapid globalization, unclear economic picture. Viewers have also become extremely conscious, especially as other channels have come in the market with lot of good programming. In this scenario the aim of the organization is simply to grab as much market share as possible and that can only be done by giving attractive programming to viewers. Target will be achieved if the employees working in the organization are productive which can only be achieved if they are motivated. The focus is to examine the employee Motivation in relation to employee commitment, culture and job security. The climate of the organisation and the level of employee engagement also affects the motivation level of employees. Fatimah, O.1, Noraishah, D.2, Nasir, R.1 Khairuddin, R.1(2012) Economic instability around the world has resulted in many organizations having to lay off workers and also shutdown to save their business. This economic strain and stress have impact on the workers job satisfaction and well being through job insecurity. This paper examine the moderating effects of employment security on job security and job satisfaction and well being among workers in the banking sectors and manufacturing sectors who were most affected by the economic downturn. Participants were 600 workers of which 200 represented the workers who work in the bank, 200 in electronic industry and 200 in textile industry. They were randomly selected to participate in the research. A set of questionnaire comprising of Employment Security Scale, Job Security Scale, Job Satisfaction Scale and Well-Being Scale were used to measure the variables. Results from the multiple regression analysis showed that employment security did not moderate the relationship between job security and job sat isfaction and well being of workers. However, job security had a direct relationship with job satisfaction and well being of workers .Thus, result from this study implicated that it was not the employment security that worried the workers but the security of their job that they were holding that impacted on their job satisfaction and well-being. Impact of recession on Indian economy ET bureau Aug 8, 2011 The recession started in US has touched the boundaries of india. India is facing the position of recession as globalisation showing its negative scenario. It is a phase wherein rupee depreciates, cash crunches, money market slowdown, inflation rises. During this period it is difficult to get money from the pockets of individuals. If the producer starts reducing the price of the commodity believing that the customers will buy it, it can happen only when he cuts the cost of production. Cost cutting means reduction in variable cost. As the price of steel ,iron , equipments , machinery are touching sky , the only option left to reduce the cost is by reducing the employees. Hence people fear job security. In the fear of job security people are generally shifting their purchasing. Mehri, iqbal, hekmat, ishak,2011 To achieve the competitive advantage in the current changing and dynamic environment satisfied human capital has become a strategically very important for the organizations. During the past decade the financial crises has shattered the economic stability of different economies all over the world. A phenomenal change has been witnessed in the banking industry of Iran in recent years, due to the liberal reforms executed by the Central Bank of Iran and the effective restructuring of banks. This research demonstrates how a global financial crisis has recently affected the occupational and skill profiles of job in banking industry of Iran. Global economy woes force local workforce off for National Statistics(2009) Global economic firms have started to cut job in India as the economy worsens and chances of crisis in the western world aims business outlook forcing companies to scrap funds raising and MA plans. More than 200 have been laid of in investment banking. The Asian crisis of 1997 led to many including Dresdner and Societe General to close leaving scores countless. Decade later subprime crisis forced many such as Merrill and Credit Suisse to reduce headcounts. The European crisis has just started to impact. HSBC which planned to eliminate 30000 jobs worldwide has told 120 employees to search for new jobs, sacked 12 employees from executive positions from small and midium size enterprise while Credit Suisse ,the second biggest swiss financial services has already aid more than 14 people from India wealth management team A study on facets of HR during slowdown phase Ram Anand , Sr. Faculty ,IPE, Hyderabad Hr departments of Indian organisations have faced many issues in managing people during the slowdown phase. The role of HR and HR interventions administered in organisations during this phase served as an opportunity to survive and face the slowdown is the premise is studied in this paper. The comprehensive view on the various HR interventions during the downturn ensures an understanding of the HR strategies adopted by the organisations to overcome the slowdown phase. The intent of the paper is to provide a template for organisations to focus on HR interventions during slowdown phases which may occur in future. These strategies facilitate the organisations during the slowdown phase. Randall, Oct 2008 Many businesses have frozen wages and many have cut wages by as much as 10%. As the economy has started recovering, organisations income statements may be starting to look decent. But what would they look like with previous pay levels restored is the question. With unemployment around 10% ,employees retention hasnt been much of an issue but that wont last forever so it may be prudent to begin restoring compensation sooner rather than later, especially for key employees. During the meltdown some businesses eliminated entire job functions from overheads. Those cuts may not be sustainable in the growing economy, so a decision must be made. Many businesses hav deferred maintanence on buildings and equipments and cut back on employee training. Organisations cant afford to let important physical and human assest deteriorate. Tih Koon Tan, 2008 By using a sample of 277 firms from eight East Asian economies, the relationship between financial distress and firm performance during the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997-1998 was tested. The crisis provides an exogenous shock which reduces the endogeneity issues between firm performance and leverage. The results from this study reaffirm that firms with low financial leverage tend to perform better than firms with high financial leverage. Additionally, the crisis magnifies the negative relationship between financial distress and firm performance. High leverage firms experience worse performance during a crisis. Limitation of the study is that the sample contains firms from eight countries. For those countries with an adequate number of firms, a separate study to analyze the individual country to provide more insights on what might be driving the results is planned. Chapter 3 Research Methodology Problem statement The research will be conducted to find out the impact of financial crisis on job security and motivation of employees working in the IT companies in Bangalore. The existing literature supports the view that the sensitivity of employee motivation and job security level magnifies during financial crisis.This study is important to company employees as it will show how the financial crises can disturb their jobs. Research design Based on different views of authors and literature review a conceptual framework was developed which determined the association between the impact of global crisis , job motivation and job security by a questionnaire. Correlation and Regression analysis was used to support the above model. Objective To study the relationship bet