Sacred Rite - Roman Catholic Christian Sacramental Worship Research Paper

Sacred Rite - Roman Catholic Christian Sacramental Worship - Research Paper Example This paper will discuss the sacred rites around the Catholic Christian worship. Catholic catechism helps it followers understand the deep mysteries of the Church. It purports to be the only church left by Jesus Christ, and they state this in the creed the decreed the church as one, holy, Catholic and apostolic. To Catholics, a sacrament is a sacred procedure through which God uses to express his grace to humankind. In addition, sacraments depict Gods presence. Before Jesus Christ left earth, Catholics believe he celebrated seven sacraments, which they hold dear in their faith. These include baptism, confirmation Eucharist, penance, anointing of the sick, matrimony, and religious orders. Eucharist is a vital sacrament that holds most of the Catholic faith. They believe that it completes a new believer’s initiation to the church. It is the only sacrament that is celebrated daily as Catholic faithful congregate for their prayers that they call â€Å"mass.† Eucharistic sacrifice includes prayers, reading parts of the bible, singing of hymns, and priests present. The wheat and wine in some peculiar glasses are lifted to God, and the priest chants some words to invite God to do the transformation. After these prayers, Christians partake of the bread as the body of Jesus and wine as the blood of Jesus. In this, they celebrate his death and resurrection on the cross, which they believe to have washed their original sin caused by Adam and Eve. Not all Catholic Christians participate in the Eucharist in a celebration. Eucharist is sacred and therefore, Christians living in sin will not partake of it. Such Christians include married couples who did not have their union blessed in church and people who have not gone for atonement for some time and thus have accumulated sins. In the Catholic faith, ordination to the priesthood is a sacrament on its own. Every Christian has the right to choose to marry or spend a celibate life.  

Miss Maddie Mae Essay Example for Free

Miss Maddie Mae Essay Goooooood morning Omaha! It is 6:30 am and the high today is 101 degrees. Thats right, it is going to be another hot one, make sure to make it down to Linoma Beach today, well be down there giving out some cool prizes and its your chance to winI roll over on my side to hit the snooze button and I wipe my forehead with a wet cloth to cool down. I lay in bed for just a few more minutes starring up at my ceiling as I notice an annoying tick coming from my fan, which by the way, is on so high it looks like it is going to plummet from my ceiling at any given moment. Whats today? Something important is supposed to happen today, I think to myself,SHOOT! Its Thursday, I yell out stridently and I quickly jump out of bed to my feet and sprint to the shower trying not to trip over practically 18 pairs of shoes and so much clothes it would last me the rest of the summer without having to wear the same wardrobe twice. What are you in such a big hurry for? my mom asks me as I cut her off, shut the door, and hop in the shower. Its Thursday, I yell back through the walls and over the noise of the shower. And.Ma, how could you forget? Maddies plane comes in at 8:00, Im supposed to pick her up!Well, you better get a move on then Lauren, Its 6:45!I finally get out of my house by about 7:00 and I anxiously drive to the airport, praying I wont be late. I havent seen Maddie since last summer when she moved to LA to live with her dad for a while. Maddie has been my best friend for the longest time, no one could even compare to our friendship. She is the most real person anyone would ever meet. Did I mention were exactly alike? We are crazy! Im hoping now shes home for good, Im not the same without her by my side 24/7, the worst part about it all is that she refuses to tell me whether shes staying or leaving until I pick her up. It is all very stressful, it really is! I arrive at the airport just barely making it and I wait for her by the security checkpoint because youre not allowed to go any further than that anymore without a ticket. Kieny! My girl,I had to look twice at where that familiar voice came from  because she looked so different. Last time I saw her she had a light caramel brown hair but now she had gone back to being that beautiful bleach blonde hair and blue-eyed girl I knew her to be with a golden bronze tan. Wow, it has been so long, I respond with a huge smile on my face shaking my head back and forth in unbelief. Too long, she replies as we hug jumping up and down with laughter and joy. Once we had our girl screaming fest, we went to this little cafà © back out in Millard so we could sit outside and grab a cup of coffee and some breakfast to catch up on lost time. So whats it like in LA, I can see youve got their style down thats for sure, you look like a Laguna Beach chick,Maddie leans back in her chair, slides her aviators off of her nose and on top of her head, places both elbows on the arms of the chair, and swings her right leg over the left. Its a dream come true, it really is. You would love it there, Kieny So, its my first day back, what big plans do you got for us girl?I didnt exactly have anything planned, I figured we would just go with it, but if I were to tell her that she would be disappointed. I replied, Well, its supposed to get pretty hot today so I think we should go to Linoma Beach, a bunch of people will be out there anyways,Sounds good. Guess what home girl? she questions me in a tone of dissatisfaction. Oh no come on now Maddie, is this where you tell me your not staying? I asked her with great hesitation. She paused for what seemed to take 2 hours, but in actuality it was just for a few seconds, Nope! Girl you better believe Im not going anywhere!I shoot out of my seat with excitement and practically spill coffee all over her white California style tube top and her high top shoes,Thats the way it should be, I laughed,And thats the way it will always be, she said back  giving me another hug.

Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Essay -- Sexual Harassment Essays

Sexual harassment is an important issue in every business; if left unattended it could cost companies millions in damages. In 1980 the Supreme Court ruled that sexual harassment was a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. From 1978 to 1980, sexual harassment cases brought against companies cost them $189 million. This number rose to $267 million from 1985-1987. Damages are just measured only by numbers. Sexual harassment can cause harm to a company's image, reputation, customers, as well as their revenue. In earlier years, women use to think in order to get along in the workplace they must "go with the flow" of whatever may happen in the office. Co-workers often looked negatively upon people who stuck up for themselves. Men's behaviors at work had always been accepted without question. When women were sexually harassed they had no where to turn. Today, the EEOC receives more than 16,000 sexual harassment complaints in a year. This is hardly the amount of situations that happen. 95% of sexual harassment incidents are left unreported! We cannot follow in our government?s footsteps down this road. Our so-called Congress is the worse place to work in dealing with sexual harassment. Until 1994, they were not under compliance with any laws for the protection of workers in the workplace. Even the regulations of 1994 did not provide strict enforcement so the problem remains. Statistics have shown that in the Supreme Court one-third of the people has been a victim of some form of sexual harassment. A member of Congress harassed one in nine of these persons! 42% of women and 15% of men in the federal government have reported sexual harassment. Do you think our government does a great job of covering up things? It is estimated that nine out of ten women will be victims of sexual advances at work. The courts are making it easier to hold a company liable for any sexual harassment behavior that occurs within the workplace. The employer does not even need to know that the sexual harassment is taking place for an employee to file a suit and win. It is almost impossible to find a ?solution? or ?magic key? that will end the problem. There is no guarantee that anything will prevent sexual harassment from happening. There are only suggestions that might help in depleting the problem. Developing an effective policy against sexual haras... ... McGraw-Hill, 1998. Mcafee, R. Bruce. ?Workplace Harassment: employees vs. customers.? (Mar.-Apr. 1999): n.pag. Online. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Available WWW: http://www.findarticles.com/cf_o/m1038/2_42/54370819/print.jhtml. McShane, Steven L., and Mary Ann Von Glinow. Organizational Behavior. Boston: Irwin McGraw-Hill, 2000. Miramontes, David J. How To Deal With Sexual Harassment. San Diego: Network Communications, 1983. Roberts, Barry S. and Richard A. Mann. ?Sexual Harassment in the Workplace: A Primer.? n.pag. On-line. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Available WWW: http://www.uakron.edu/lawrev/robert1.html. ?Same Sex Harassment.? n.pag. On-line. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Available WWW: http://www.employer-employee.com/sexhar1.html. ?Same Sex Harassment.? n.pag. On-line. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Available WWW: http://www.employer-employee.com/sexhar4.html. ?Sexual Harassment in the Workplace.? n.pag. On-line. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Available WWW: http//www.de.psu.edu/harass/analysis/work.html. Sexual Harassment in the Workplace?: n.pag. On-line. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Avaliable WWW:http//www.flabar.org/newflabar/consumerservices/General/Consumer.Pam/37PAMPH.html.

Art Exhibit on Brown vs. Board of Education :: Race Segregation

Generally speaking, I am not one to attend seminars, talks, or museums on my spare time, simply for the betterment of my knowledge, or myself but on Wednesday, April 21st I did just that. Initially I was not very enthusiastic about my assignment to attend an event or exhibit at the university concerning Brown vs. Board of Education, but eventually I sucked it up and decided to attend an art exhibit at the Krannert Art Museum called, â€Å"Social Studies: Eight Artists Address Brown vs. Board of Education. April 21st was a beautiful afternoon, and as I approached the art museum with one of my friends all I could think about were all the things I could be doing instead of going to a museum. Moments later, my mood did not improve as I observed 4 elderly looking people entering the museum about 20 yards in front of me, dressed in suits and formal looking dresses. â€Å"Great,† I thought to myself, as I looked down at my jeans and t-shirt, â€Å"not only am I about to go into a museum, but everyone there is going to think I am a total scrub too.† Upon entering the museum, I promptly asked the woman at the front desk where the exhibit was. She directed me to it and as my friend and I walked away, a large guard yelled at my friend that he couldn’t bring his backpack with him. The guard offered no alternative location for the bag, so my friend walked around aimlessly until the woman at the front desk allowed him to leave the bag under her desk. Now, the mood was set. The museum screamed dullness and tightness at me as I strolled through two large, metal double doors into the exhibit we were there to see. As I entered the room that contained our exhibit, I discovered that there was not one other soul at the entire exhibit. I didn’t expect to encounter many other individuals, but none? I was not prepared to be one of only two people at the entire exhibit, but I had to make do with what I got. My first impression as I walked in was not a good one.

Management Case Study Essay

The case study below takes place at the Sir Charles Wilberforce Hospital’s cafeteria, which is experiencing problems with the change management. Due to the new management undertaken by Keith Davis, there was a major issue of inadequate communication channels, as Keith told his employees what to do rather than consult them, especially with the decision-making. The best alternative to rectify this problem is for Keith to adapt to a consultative management style, in order for employees to take ownership in their workplace through expressing their opinions and feel more valued, however still allowing Keith to still make the final decision. Another major issue addressed in the Cafeteria was the amount of unmotivated staff. As employees feel unsatisfied with their work, the best solution to this issue is Goal Setting. Through employees setting strategic goals they will increase their motivation through achievement of these goals which will lead them to set more challenging ones. Lastly, the third major issue recognised was Keith’s poor leadership skills which made it difficult for employees to fulfil expectations and find enjoyment in the workplace. The best alternative solution for this problem is to retrain Keith’s leadership abilities so he is able to adopt all the qualities needed to become a better leader in his managing role. Although this may be an expensive method, the new leadership qualities Keith will learn will make a happier work environment for his employees and build a better employer/employee relationship. 3. Problem identification Poor communication channels Keith focuses on top down communication channels, providing a one way communication which is from him to his employees, rather than two-way which provides his employees to communicate ideas with him. This negatively impacts the hospital as the Keith is unable to discuss problems or ask questions amongst employees to see if there are any problems going on amongst the workers and therefore leading to job dissatisfaction employees. Although Keith tried to soothe Julia when the issue between her and Madison was brought to his attention, he did not follow it up or treat it as an importance. Lack of staff motivation Prior to Keith’s managing, Anne’s original foundations of self-satisfaction and close family ties seemed to motivate the employees at Sir Charles Wilberforce hospital. Keith’s changes were made to become more efficient, employees were left struggling to gain satisfaction and motivation in order for themselves to achieve their hierarchy of needs (Maslow, 1954). In this hierarchy of needs Maslow developed, employees have five needs, physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualisation, once they fulfil one of their needs they can graduate to the next one to fulfil it and so on. Without fulfilling the social needs of forming social ties or self-actualisation of gaining enough experience within the kitchen to become a supervisor, it became unknown to the employees of what they are capable of and decreased their enticements to complete tasks and feel satisfied. Insufficient leadership abilities Keith lacks major leadership qualities, as the organisational layout he uses is to tell employees what to do, depriving them of guidance and support. The Hersey Situations leadership model suggests that leadership focuses on follower’s readiness (Hersey, Blanchard & Johnson, 2001). This theory suggests that at Sir Charles Wilberforce, if the employees feel they are unable to complete a task Keith should give those clear and specific instructions. If they are willing and confident Keith needs to provide them display high task orientation, and if employees feel able but are unwilling Keith would need to use a supportive approach. Lack of teamwork The teamwork environment of delegating tasks amongst of employees was not addressed by Keith. He believed that employees needed to finish work on time, plan menus monthly and take on cleaning responsibilities, whereas, the use of team work would have provided a better suited time managed system. Through having each employee assist with cleaning duties, planning menus, helping out another if time was short as well as assisting each other to get all food out and made the kitchen would be less chaotic. This would have assisted with issues if someone was ill, allowing more than one person to prepare greater portions of meals. 4. Statement of Major Problems The three major problems that are brought to the attention at Sir Charles Wilberforce Hospital are: Inadequate communication channels Unmotivated staff Insufficient leadership abilities The poor communication channel Keith utilises is top-down communication from Keith to his employees. As this is a workplace that depends on seeking ideas from others and support from each other, two way communications between Keith and his employees is necessary. This will allow employees to feel part of the decision making and feel they can share their ideas to improve the workplace. Following this Keith must then improve his leadership skills, putting his employees first and assisting them with any help and support they need in order to achieve a positive workplace. This may involve Keith revising the organisation’s culture, or distinguishing the strength and weakness of each employee so he knows how to assist each of them. Once Keith’s leadership abilities are improved, staff motivation must be identified and given, in order for employees to become productive within the kitchen and gain job satisfaction, increasing their abilities and allowing them to feel the want to work. 5. Generation and Evaluation of Alternative Solutions Inadequate communication channels Regular work meetings Set regular meetings within the kitchen, in order to concerns amongst employees to be discussed as we as evaluation on how the business is going and openly discuss ways to improve or maintain it. Advantages Allows for feedback Employees can listen to each person’s idea and encourages discussion openly Evaluate the earnings to the previous week and that time the previous year, allowing each person to suggest ways to improve or maintain their profit margins. Disadvantages Some employees may not attend May be time consuming to discuss all ideas Consultative management style Implement a Consultative management style in order to increase two-way and open communication between Keith and the employees. Advantages Allows employees to feel ownership in decision making Allows employees to share their ideas and opinions Gives confidence to employees Disadvantages Employees may feel held back to express their opinions because they do not feel comfortable Employees may feel offended if their ideas are not taken into consideration Time consuming Unmotivated staff Goal setting Implement setting goals, which involve employees setting goals that motivate them to improve their capabilities. Advantages Gives self-satisfaction Increases productivity and performance levels Disadvantages Time consuming to distinguish appropriate and achievable goals Goals ay appear as unattainable and lead to employees to give up Job design Mr Dev can alter the job design to assist in identifying and correcting any deficiencies that affect performance and motivation. Advantages Job enlargement, can be used to increase motivation by giving employee’s more and varied tasks so the employee is motivation to try new tasks Job rotation allows an employee to work in different departments or jobs in an organization to gain better insight into operations motivating the employee to increase his/her skills and knowledge about other jobs. Disadvantages Job enrichment may lead the employee transferred too much responsibility in the kitchen and independence in the planning and control aspects of the job which may suppress motivation levels Reward and Recognition Evaluating each employee to identify which people are performing to their maximum, and rewarding them financially or non-financially for their hard work, therefore motivating other employees to improve their work standards. Advantages Employees will increase performance to obtain more rewards Will produce higher standards amongst the employees Self- enrichment Disadvantages Expensive to keep purchasing rewards and reassess each employee to recognise After a while employees may feel that rewards may not motivate them anymore Keith may not want to undertake the idea of rewarding and recognising employees Insufficient leadership abilities Retrain Keith Retraining programs for Keith within the company or externally will allow Keith to develop better leadership qualities and create a happier workplace. Advantages Positively effects employees to feel trust and support from Keith Keith can evaluate themselves as to what skills are expected to lead the employees Disadvantages May take a while for Keith to learn and adapt to these skills May be expensive Dismiss Keith Dismissing Keith will demolish the issue of poor leadership abilities and will allow the business to replace him with a more experienced manager. Advantages Re-appoint a new manager who possess all correct leadership skills Employees are in a happier environment where they can get the support they need More time appropriate and efficient than retraining Disadvantages May be hard to find a replacement Employees may find it hard to adapt to a new manager and may be resistant to give them a chance due to their bad experience with Keith 6. Recommendation Consultative management style A Consultative management style is the recommended alternative for Keith to address to his employees. The type of management style used by Keith at this point is autocratic, which involves him making decisions for the hospital kitchen unilaterally. Although regular meetings are a good alternative by providing mediation and assistant towards employees, the consultative management style involves a permanent change to the organisation. The consultative style would involve Keith discussing ideas of possible changes to be made within the kitchen, as well as employees being able to give their opinions and ideas. By implementing a consultative management style, employees at the cafeteria will be able to perform to their optimum level, concentrating on increasing common sense approach for Keith to meet the needs and wants of the employees, as well as making employees realise their own abilities and capabilities in performing tasks, (McClelland, 1987). Similarly to regular meetings, the consultative approach gives open communication, however unlike meetings the consultative approach is more permanent in the workplace and is used daily, for example in decision making, gaining assistance with a task or getting support with a concern. This will benefit the kitchen, as the employees will respond more positively to any changes to feel more a part of the workplace and a sense of belonging. Keith will benefit from this style, as he will be given a broader range of ideas as well as maintain his authority to make the final decision. Goal Setting Setting goals is the preferred alternative for Keith to use within the kitchen. Despite the fact being rewarded motivates someone to maintain if not improve performance to be rewarded again, goal setting gives motivation. Goal setting enables employees to measure their processes and work performance. This enables employees to gain feedback on their results, unlike rewards and recognition which just motivates employees to try harder to gain another reward rather than possessing the want to gain the self-satisfaction that they have improved. Edward Locke’s theory of goal setting outlines that in setting specific and challenging goals it enables process and outcome improvement (Locke ; Latham, 1990). Similarly, job design suggests a different form of motivating to increase their skills of different tasks, however it also does hold the ability to measure the improvement that setting goals do. If goal setting is adapted by Keith, his employees would be able to achieve towards a higher performance, as well as motivating them to set higher goals with increasingly difficult tasks, once they have been achieved. Through Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, this can assist in setting goals with Locke and Latham’s theory. Maslow theory suggests that ‘although no need is every fully satisfied, a substantially satisfied need no longer motivates an individual to satisfy that need’ (Robbins, Bergmann, Stagg and Coulter, 2012, p559). This suggests that in identifying each need, physiological safety social esteem and self-actualisation, employees at sir Charles Wilberforce can pinpoint what tasks they need to complete in order to graduate to the next level. For example one of the employees may find that they feel they don’t belong, in order to achieve this level they can set a goal to form relations with other employees on a professional basis. Once this goal is achieved they can move on to develop their esteem needs. Retraining Keith Although, retraining Keith may be considered a time consuming process, compared to the alternative of dismissing Keith, it appears to be a more logical approach. Through retraining, Keith is able to gain leadership skills that he may not be aware are essential skills he needs in order to be a manager. This will transform him from telling his employees what to do, to instead assisting and guiding them through changes. Despite the expenses of this method, it may also be difficult for Keith to cooperate as well as understand the concept of these skills however unlike dismissing, he will be able to improve and allow for a happier work. The trait theory suggests that it is impossible to identify and isolate characteristics from leaders from non-leaders. However there are seven traits associated with leadership, these being ‘drive, the desire to lead, honesty and integrity, self-confidence, intelligence, job-relevant knowledge and extraversion’, (Robbins, 2012, p605). Eventually with the retraining, Keith may possess these seven leadership abilities to involve his employees in decision making process and form a trust bond.

How the industrial and economic differences of the north and south helped cause the Civil War

How the industrial and economic differences of the north and south helped cause the Civil War Many historians debate the causes of the Civil war. Yet the overwhelming economic differences between the northern and southern states on the eve of the civil war contributed significantly to the growing tensions. The industrial-reliable north had a high support for the implementation of tariffs and objected the use of slave labor, while the agricultural-reliable south strongly opposed tariffs and promoted slavery.The North was very reliable on manufacturing and technological innovation. Environmental conditions in the north did not open opportunity for large plantations, and therefore much of the economy was based on textiles, lumber and fur trade. This reliability on industry put a high demand on tariffs , which would protect the manufactured goods from cheap foreign policies. Although labor was greatly needed, encouragement of immigration caused the northern labor force to be well numbered, since most Europeans worked in the factories and on the railroads in the north, rather than the South.English: Union Regimental Drum Corps from the Amer...The North was also greatly reliable on exporting goods, and therefore supported governmental involvement in making internal improvements, such as roads and railroads.The South, on the other hand, relied heavy on agriculture, more specifically on cotton. In fact, due to England's heavy reliance on American cotton, the South often referred to this economical resource as King Cotton. Not every southern resident owned a farm, and very few owned large farms, but because of the environmental conditions in the south, economy was very reliable on farming, rather than industry or manufacturing. And because of this lack of industry and manufacturing, the South also relied on imports to receive manufactured goods, and therefore objected tariffs, since they only increased the prices of imported goods. Yet these tariffs were the basis of governmental revenue, normally used on financing internal improvements, which explained why the South did not support...

Consider the extent to which firms within the UK post Hargreaves are now better placed to engage with eCommerce The WritePass Journal

Consider the extent to which firms within the UK post Hargreaves are now better placed to engage with eCommerce Introduction Consider the extent to which firms within the UK post Hargreaves are now better placed to engage with eCommerce ) Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on Collective Management of Copyright and Related Rights and Multi-Territorial Licensing of Rights in Musical Works for Online Uses in the Internal Market, COM(2012) 372 final, Brussels: European Commission. Ghafele R and Gibert, B (2012) The Economic Value of Fair Use in Copyright Law: Counterfactual Impact Analysis of Fair Use Policy on Private Copying Technology and Copyright   Markets in Singapore, MPRA, 2012. Hargreaves, I (2011) Digital Opportunity: An Independent Review of Intellectual Property   and Growth, London: Intellectual Property Office. Manyika et. al., (2011) Big Data: The Next Frontier for Innovation, Competition and Productivity San Francisco: McKinsey Global Institute. Mettler A and Williams, A (2012) Wired for Growth and Innovation: How Digital Technologies are Reshaping Small- and Medium-Sized Businesses and Empowering Entrepreneurs, Brussels: Lisbon Council. OECD, (2012) â€Å"Internet Economy Outlook 2012† Samuelson, P, (2010) The Copyright Principles Project: Directions for Reform, Berkeley:   Copyright Principles Project. Veugelers, R. (2012). New ICT Sectors: Platforms for European Growth, Brussels: Bruegel.

How does Shakespeare present Iago as a tragic villain in Act 1 Essay Example

How does Shakespeare present Iago as a tragic villain in Act 1 Essay Example How does Shakespeare present Iago as a tragic villain in Act 1 Paper How does Shakespeare present Iago as a tragic villain in Act 1 Paper Essay Topic: Literature Shakespeares Iago is the antagonist of Othello but what makes him tragic is an enigma as he is reticent and seems motiveless. However, Shakespeare prints three possible motives into the play that present him as tragic. Iago is a Machiavellian villain as was Macbeth in Macbeth, written two years after Othello, and A.C. Bradley notes how Italian villainy was prevalent in Shakespeares time1. Machiavelli was an Italian philosopher and political adviser. One of his most famous works is The Prince that outlines how a monarch should gain control by deceiving his opponent as an ally. Iago says he will follow Othello only to serve my turn upon him2 in that he may achieve his revenge. He is also a character built on amorality. A.C. Bradley says that he is a psychological impossibility and a product of imperfect observation3 but if he were to be perceived as amoral then his behaviour and scheming may be explained due to him being psychotic there was little knowledge of psychotic behaviour in the 16th century and insanity was diagnosed by religious leaders as being influenced by the devil which Iago is realized to be in Act five, scene two by the other characters: I look down towards his feet; but thats a fable. If that you best a devil, I cannot kill thee. I bleed, sir; but not killed. The feet signify the devils hooves and the mere wound Othello deals Iago acts as evidence that Iago is the devil. The word fable also recognises the story that Iago has conjured up that has hid his true identity. The first motive is that he wants revenge on Othello and Cassio for preventing his promotion as he is worth no worse a place the first indication that he sees himself as above others. He is snide about how Cassio is an arithmetician that never set a squadron in the field, which illustrates how better equipped he is for the position and how Cassio is: A fellow almost damned in a fair wife. The word damned indicates how malevolent an act he sees making a man into a cuckold which may insinuate a tragic past. Secondly, Iagos villainy may sprout from racial prejudice, as it was unusual to have a black hero in Shakespeares time. When shouting at Brabantios window he distinguishes between Desdemona and Othellos colour and denotes how primitive he finds their sexual relationship using animal imagery: an old black ram Is tupping your white ewe. In his soliloquy at the end of act one, scene three, he accuses Desdemona of only being interested with Othellos body: when she is sated with his body, she will find the error of her choice. The rationale behind Iagos disdain for Othello is that he sees him as an animal. Iagos egoistic personality insists his dislike towards animals, as they are seen as inferior in intelligence and will as they rely on primitive, innate drives: Drown thyself? Drown cats and blind puppies. This line is spoken in reference to when Roderigo expresses how he wishes to drown himself and Iago can only insist that an inferior being is more worth death. The word blind also suggests the idea that they are useless, thus pointless, which makes them eligible for death in preservation of his self. He also, already, has a preconceived view of Othello as he claims that These Moors are changeable in their will implying that all Moors are the same just as animals are and so the comparison to animals is the source of Iagos racism. What is also notable about Iago is that he speaks to Othello in verse but prose to Roderigo, which shows how he is a sycophant but also as his rhetoric usage is superseded by Othellos he feels he is forever in Othellos shadow. Another source for his hate. Lastly, and most importantly, Iagos third possible motive for delivering vengeance upon Othello is that Othello made a cuckold of him by sleeping with Emilia. Iago proclaims this in Act one, scene three: I hate the Moor, And it is thought abroad that twixt my sheets Hes done my office. He is even unsure of whether it is true but the thought infuriates him so much that he decides that the idea is as worthy of being revenged as if it were true: I know not ift be true But I, for mere suspicion in that kind, Will do as if for surety. The idea of Emila having an affair with Othello may be what prompted him to assume that Desdemonas interest in him was purely sexual and so we begin to see how Shakespeare has created a tragic villain as he is drawing from his own misfortune and jealousy to fulfil his prophesy of revenge. It may even be a misconception that Emilia and Othello have had an affair as there is no further evidence that this is true and we, the audience, do not know what has stirred this possibility in Iagos mind another aspect of him that creates the villainous image as we do not know what he is thinking: It is absolutely certain that Othello appointed Cassio his Lieutenant, and nothing else is absolutely certain. If what he says is true, however, and if the audience could understand the possibility of this truth, then this would evoke a strong sense of pity as we could then see that he is almost the victim of the play and a victim from his own thoughts our raging motions, our carnal strings, raging and carnal suggest how angry and disturbed he is. Through the possibility of this motive we can understand the volume of his jealousy that makes him tragic: It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock The meat it feeds on. In Act three, scene three, Iago speaks this line as advice to Othello but it is possible that Shakespeare uses this technique to express Iagos pain in a safe way without damaging his ego by disguising it as advising anothers pain; guidance as opposed to confession. The meat it feeds on could quite literally be his meat and sense of self, which has now reduced him to insecurity. More likely than him feeling hurt by the betrayal of his wife is his sense of self through ownership and possession of Emilia that has been stolen from him. On the other hand, when he stabs Emilia he exclaims Villainous whore! This display of passion shows how it has tormented him. In Act five, scene two, Iagos insecurities remain sheathed by his reticent nature as he says: What you know, you Know. From this time forth I never will speak word. He chooses these words because he is unsure to what extent he has been right about Emilia and Othello. In the first act Iago places a large emphasis on being a cuckold so for him to become one is the greatest insult of all. He kills Emilia without hesitation but the possibility that she had not made a cuckold of him would of truly damaged his great pride, his self assurance; it would challenge many of his amoral beliefs. To express his claims and be wrong would completely destroy his mind so he remains silent which suggests his insecurity and inner turmoil. Iagos phrase defeat thy favour with a usurped beard means to reinstall manly hood, which may be another means of defining him as tragic as his fragile mind in a patriarchal world leads him to the assumption that maybe this is how he should react, to be a man by domineering the situation: a possible way of Shakespeare illustrating mens true powerlessness from a demanding patriarchy in terms of what makes manly behaviour. From this, we can see that Iago wanted to make Othello suffer the same strength of jealousy as he has done to him. This may not fit Hegels idea of tragic collision but each character certainly has been negating and damaging [the] power of the other5. They may not be suffering each others guilt but they do cause one another to suffer jealousy. Othellos (possible) misdeed negates the power Iago has over his mind and Iago avenges this by reciprocating. Iago is a tragic villain in that he has had to suffer and through his amoral conscience and egoistic nature he has become consumed by the loss of trust in his love. The line tis in ourselves suggests that he accepts who he has become and the line permission of the will validates that he is amoral and that he recognises he is significantly different from others in the way that he thinks: I never found a man who knew how to love himself This implies that he is this man and Aristotle would agree that he is true to life and yet more beautiful.

France's Demands during the Two World Wars Essay

France's Demands during the Two World Wars - Essay Example During both the wars they attacked France from fronts where she was undefended. They searched the French people in the newly occupied areas and forced the French coal miners to work under their supervision during the Second World War. The terror and atrocities prevailed all over. Sleepless nights, uncertainty of returning in the evening to one’s home, fear of separation any moment from the family, burning figures everywhere, unable to leave home without a gas mask, German soldiers walking into homes to rape women and cut off children’s arms, dead bodies strewn all over †¦this was the scene that existed during both the wars. The soldiers’ life became secluded in the trenches and food became sparse; medical help and sanitation declined. The troops living in the muddy, rat-infested trenches died due to diseases rather than attack of the enemies. Even then the fellow feeling and the attitude to share prevailed, unlike the Germans where solidarity gave way to soc ial unrest. The atrocities of the Germans on France were not limited to humans alone. They tormented and used the French circus elephants to haul timber as the Germans felled trees for trench props. During the war France lost vital iron ore and coal resources; territory was lost too. Women and children had to take over the farms and agriculture as 41% of the men mobilized for the war were peasants. This caused great losses in cattle and grains too. In the Second World War France lost about 25 % of its wealth and people compared to 10% in First World War. People were either missing or had died during the war. The battlefields were scarred by trenches and littered with dead bodies. France suffered the most as most of the fighting took place on her soil and she lost millions in the trench warfare. The devastation that was left behind after both the wars can move mountains, why just humans.  

Discursive essay Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Social Media Usage in the Workplace - Research Paper Example Research indicates that many employees spend a significant part of the day at the workplace on social media, both for professional and personal benefit. However, research indicates that many companies in the modern world have not embraced the use of social media in the workplace. A study showed that less than 43% of companies have an open policy for social networking at the workplace (Abate et al. 2011, p. 6). Nevertheless, of those companies that prohibit the use of social network among employees, less than 30% blocks the use of these social networking channels altogether (Al-Deen and Hendricks 2011, p.221). Furthermore, findings show that many firms are continuing to embrace social networking at the workplace citing benefits brought by social networking. The study found out that firms restricting the use of social networking at the workplace have been dropping by 10% annually since the introduction of social networking (Abate et al. 2011, p. 6). This has left a lot to be desired of the argument that social media has no place in the modern the workplace. The world has experienced increased growth in the usage of social media over the past few decades. The growth continues to be witnessed with many firms offering social media sites coming up. The most prominent social media sites in use currently include twitter, facebook, mySpace, LinkedIn, and YouTube, just to name but a few (Abate et al. 2011, p. 8). These social media sites give people the opportunity to interact with friends and families all over the world. However, its usage in the workplace has been controversial with some arguing that it has no place in the modern world. Those who argue in this manner put a strong case against social media in the workplace. One of the arguments put forwards against embracing social media in the workplace is that it decreases employee productivity (Al-Deen and Hendricks 2011, p.222). Researchers reveal that many managers oppose social media usage in the workplace since i t wastes employee’s time, which can be used for productive purposes.

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

Kouros - Essay Example This is because of the fact that Kouros statues usually exhibit a supreme form of geometric symmetry, reminding us of the realism and naturalism of the ever famous artworks of the Renaissance Era later in the history of Europe, from which the artworks from this period of Greece became an inspiration. From the measures of the eyes and the face, to the muscles of the body, it can be seen that almost all of the components are very proportionate and exact with regards to the symmetries of the body of a real male youth. In addition to this, most of the Kouros statues usually pose in a certain form: a standing pose with â€Å"their left leg moved forward, their arms close to their bodies touching the side of their thighs...† all depicted â€Å"as simple geometric forms† (Ancient-Greece.org n. p.). One of the main references for the artists to gain symmetry in creating Kouros without utilizing a rigid measurement system was through appropriating proportions in the Kouros using â€Å"heads:† in fact, â€Å"several Kouros exhibit the 1:7 head:body proportions† (Ancient-Greece.org n. p.). Works Cited Ancient-Greece.org. â€Å"Kouros.† Ancient-Greece.org. Ancient-Greece, n. d. Web. 7 May 2011.

Housing in a Free Market Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Housing in a Free Market Economy - Essay Example With the end of the housing blast of the past decade, the UK government under Gordon Brown wants to energise the housing sector of the economy. The government’s interference in housing and its authenticity in playing a role in the housing market through its policy initiatives is being seen doubtfully by experts as they perceive the ups and downs of the market functioning a part of the business cycle of regular intervals of boom and bust OR the government’s desire to meddle in the housing affairs just shows the obsession of the people to own a home of their own OR the government has started realising the importance of hosing market in the overall economy of the country, needs o be analysed (The Telegraph, 5 June 2008). The government can intervene in housing sector by planning its role through various choices and taking certain measures. It can initiate a national homes saving scheme by facilitating first-time home buyers to use their tax-free 5-years period deposits. It can allow parental help by making the contribution in the housing of their children tax-free. It can increase the stamp duty to a certain limit to minimise the impact to new buyers. The government can declare a stamp duty ‘holiday’ for a stipulated time to boost the housing market. It can loosen the regulatory grip so that home building activity becomes hyper. It can be lax in insisting on Home Information Packs, which are offered and paid by the sellers. The government can limit the number of ‘affordable homes’ on the upcoming housing locations to boost housing growth as house making is less profitable for making affordable homes (The Telegraph, 5 June 2008). Competition is very important in housing market to disrupt the rent-seeking tendencies by powerful builders. Rent seeking, laissez-faire and state intervention not only kills competition between the market forces but comes in the way of innovation. Government level intervention can bring about greate r transparency in the housing transactions (Hooper, 2009). Arguments in Favour of Government Intervention in Housing Sloman and Sutcliffe (2004) state a number of reasons inviting government intervention in business. To fulfil the aim of social efficiency, which is attained when marginal benefits become equal to marginal costs from production or consumption activity, government can interfere in the specific business market. Response of market to changes in supply and demand may be slow, which can impair the level of equilibrium and cause instability. A free market does not consider the needs of less-affordable people and therefore, the production of merit goods could be insufficient. Market irregularities can be corrected through taxes and subsidies. Taxes can be increased to equal the size of the marginal external cost and offering subsidy equal to the marginal external advantage. The government can regulate the market behaviour by making certain laws to be abided by for the benefi t of common man. These are some of the steps government can take to interfere in the market for any business activity. The current discussion on government role in housing market has gained momentum because of the global financial crisis, which has drawn the attention of policy makers in the UK government. It wants to rescue the housing and banking sector, as housing and finance are inter-related sectors; without getting loans sanctioned by the financial organisations, the home buyers cannot purchase houses and the housing industry cannot attain growth. On its part, the British government through the Bank of England made $352 billion available via the Special Liquidity Scheme to enhance the

Portfolio Project Part 6 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Portfolio Project Part 6 - Assignment Example In order to measure the performance of an accountant, it is significant to use the critical incident and BARS methods. A combination of these methods would sufficiently measure the performance of an accountant in the company. A performance management should be able to give employees unbiased, constructive feedback on their performance. In order to ensure success of performance management of an accountant, reviews and measurement of the worker are normally done annually. Measure of improved performance The following combined methods will be used to measure the performance of an accountant i. Critical Incidents ii. Work Standards iii. Straight or Simple Ranking iv. Paired Comparisons v. Rater distribution Using the straight or simple ranking, the accountant will ranked according to overall performance. He or she will be compared with other employees. In addition, all comparison will be based on single criterion, such as overall performance. This is effective because it Compares perform ance of each employee with every other employee in the group. Using the forced distribution method, I will be able to understand how the accountant has performed. This is because the rater assigns individual in work group to a limited number of categories similar to a normal distribution. Further, it assumes all groups of employees have the same distribution (Mondy & Mondy 2010). In rating work quantity of the accountant, i will give careful consideration things such as effect of employee on the general flow of work, amount of work produced in terms of the specific job especially annually, employee’s application to the job, and skill in handling specific assignments of the company. I will award the score as follows: poor, 1 to 6 points; average, 7 to 18 points; good, 19 to 25 points. In turn, I will be able to understand if the accountant has improved performance or not (Smith & Mazin, 2004). BARS and performance evaluation The Critical Incident Method is a form of performanc e appraisal method that requires an individual to keep records and all relevant information of both good and bad employee work behaviors. In case a critical incident influences the company’s ability to operate either negatively or positively, the manager records the information. The BARS method is very effective in portfolio management of workers since it is easy to monitor the actions or behaviors of the worker while at work (Mondy & Mondy, 2010). For instance, when an employee misuse the company resources for personal use, it is easy to report the case to the manager. When it comes to accounting, this method is applicable in the sense that when an accountant makes valuations and evaluation of the company’s expenses and profits for a week, month, or a year, it is easy to monitor the trend of their actions. If the accountant kept the records in a timely way, the management can easily detect problems in their financial system and come up with ways to improve its financi al control systems. The BARS especially the critical incident method can also be applied as a means of job analysis in the sense that it helps analysts to determine actions that are focused on work and other work activities. It helps in making an entire analysis of work and permit transparent performance leading actions to be targeted (Smith & Mazin, 2004). In evaluating performance of a worker, it is vital to have job description and specification. This is because Job descriptions offer precise and a concise

Housing in a Free Market Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Housing in a Free Market Economy - Essay Example With the end of the housing blast of the past decade, the UK government under Gordon Brown wants to energise the housing sector of the economy. The government’s interference in housing and its authenticity in playing a role in the housing market through its policy initiatives is being seen doubtfully by experts as they perceive the ups and downs of the market functioning a part of the business cycle of regular intervals of boom and bust OR the government’s desire to meddle in the housing affairs just shows the obsession of the people to own a home of their own OR the government has started realising the importance of hosing market in the overall economy of the country, needs o be analysed (The Telegraph, 5 June 2008). The government can intervene in housing sector by planning its role through various choices and taking certain measures. It can initiate a national homes saving scheme by facilitating first-time home buyers to use their tax-free 5-years period deposits. It can allow parental help by making the contribution in the housing of their children tax-free. It can increase the stamp duty to a certain limit to minimise the impact to new buyers. The government can declare a stamp duty ‘holiday’ for a stipulated time to boost the housing market. It can loosen the regulatory grip so that home building activity becomes hyper. It can be lax in insisting on Home Information Packs, which are offered and paid by the sellers. The government can limit the number of ‘affordable homes’ on the upcoming housing locations to boost housing growth as house making is less profitable for making affordable homes (The Telegraph, 5 June 2008). Competition is very important in housing market to disrupt the rent-seeking tendencies by powerful builders. Rent seeking, laissez-faire and state intervention not only kills competition between the market forces but comes in the way of innovation. Government level intervention can bring about greate r transparency in the housing transactions (Hooper, 2009). Arguments in Favour of Government Intervention in Housing Sloman and Sutcliffe (2004) state a number of reasons inviting government intervention in business. To fulfil the aim of social efficiency, which is attained when marginal benefits become equal to marginal costs from production or consumption activity, government can interfere in the specific business market. Response of market to changes in supply and demand may be slow, which can impair the level of equilibrium and cause instability. A free market does not consider the needs of less-affordable people and therefore, the production of merit goods could be insufficient. Market irregularities can be corrected through taxes and subsidies. Taxes can be increased to equal the size of the marginal external cost and offering subsidy equal to the marginal external advantage. The government can regulate the market behaviour by making certain laws to be abided by for the benefi t of common man. These are some of the steps government can take to interfere in the market for any business activity. The current discussion on government role in housing market has gained momentum because of the global financial crisis, which has drawn the attention of policy makers in the UK government. It wants to rescue the housing and banking sector, as housing and finance are inter-related sectors; without getting loans sanctioned by the financial organisations, the home buyers cannot purchase houses and the housing industry cannot attain growth. On its part, the British government through the Bank of England made $352 billion available via the Special Liquidity Scheme to enhance the

Oedipus the King and Oedipus at Colonus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Oedipus the King and Oedipus at Colonus - Essay Example When Jocasta conceived and had a baby, it turned out to be a boy (Bartleby.com). Laius tried to stop the prophecy by piercing the baby’s legs and binding them then leaving him for death up at a mountain. A shepherd on his own errand picked up the baby and took him to his king back home, King Polybius of Corinth (Jebb). Polybus named the picked baby boy Oedipus which held the meaning of swollen foot. He raised the child as his own; hence Oedipus grew up a normal being knowing that his real father was Polybius and not having the slightest idea of his own identity of fate. Oedipus grew up normally, and when he got to his adulthood, he decided to consult the Oracle of Delphi to know about the future that lay for him like any normal man. He learnt about his prophesied life from the oracle, and it was the same prophesy that had been told to his father. The problem was that the oracle did not tell him who his real father was, so him knowing that Polybus was his real father and trying to avoid killing him, he left. He left for Thebes so that he would be away from his ‘father’ Polybius and avoid prophesy, and with that, he thought he would avoid it all (Crane). On his way to Thebes, Oedipus met with pilgrims who were on their own way heading to Delphi. He asked the pilgrims to get out of his way so that he would pass and continue with his journey, but they refused. Having refused to yield to his demand, out of rage he killed all the pilgrims. What he did not know was that his biological father was the leader of the crew of the pilgrims. He had fulfilled part of the prophesy by murdering Laius his biological father mistakenly. He thought and felt nothing about his act of having killed the pilgrims and carried on with his journey. When he got to Thebes, he got that Thebes had problems of its own (Unit 3: Athenian Drama, ppt). There was a sphinx which had stationed herself outside the gated of Thebes and was posing a riddle to everyone. The riddle was à ¢â‚¬ËœWhat has four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon and three in the evening?’ The sphinx put it clearly that would anyone answer correctly; she would leave, and if not she would eat the unfortunate person. When Oedipus got to Thebes, so far no one had managed to answer the riddle appropriately,  so he tried his luck and guessed that the answer was man. He got the riddle correct, and the sphinx left which made the people filled with so much joy that they made Oedipus king. As king, he married the sitting queen who happened to be Jocasta. The full prophesy had come to pass; Oedipus had murdered his biological father and wedded his own mother. Oedipus and the queen Jocasta got married and had four children, Polynices, Antigone, Etocles and Ismene. A plague then happened to hit the city of Thebes, and was to stop until the earlier king passes away. Lauis’ murderer had been avenged. Oedipus swore that he would kill those guilty of the murder once he knew them. What he did not know was that he was the guilty murderer of Lauis. They tried to solve the mystery as much as they could, but to no avail; hence they consulted the great seer, Tiserias. Tiserias told them the truth about the whole prophecy, who it involved and what had really happened. Jocasta was so horrified about the revelation that she committed suicide through hanging herself and Oedipus gorged out his personal eyes, limiting and banishing himself. Oedipus at Colonus After banishing himself from Thebes, Oedipus leaves with his daughter

Culture Day Topic Essay Example for Free

Culture Day Topic Essay History of Judo was created by Jigoro Kano. He was a highly educated man; he was considered the founder of the modern Japanese education system. He wanted to preserve and combine the ancient martial traditions of Japan. One of the most important innovations was the emphasis of â€Å"randori†, or non-cooperative free sparring practice. The majority was based on pre-arranged sequences of attack and defense known as â€Å"kata†. For several years Kodokan Judo reigned supreme. Kudo was challenged by a man named Mataemon Tanabae. Maeda Mitsuyo Maeda became one of the greatest fighters in the history of Judo. Maeda retired without ever losing a fight. The Gracies, Maeda settled in Brazil and created an academy of â€Å"Jiu Jitsu†. One of his students was Carlos Gracie. After studying for several years he opened his own academy. He and Maeda created the â€Å"Gracie Challenge†, all challengers were welcome to compete in the challenge. The Gracie fighters were victorious against all kinds of fighters from different backgrounds. Several members of the Gracie family began to go to the US in the late 1980’s. The Gracies and their particular brand of fighting has had a major impact on martial arts today. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Brazilian Jiu Jitsu was very similar in many ways with to Judo and other systems of Japanese Jiu Jitsu. Judo was originally designed as a powerful system of self-defense. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is divided into three categories: self-defense, free fighting competition, and sport grappling. The fighting strategy of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is to make a physically smaller or weaker person be able to defend from a larger or stronger attacker. When applying BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) techniques leverage is key. As leverage is the secret to the most use of force.

Managing Service Operations

Managing Service Operations Raised in Tokyo, Hiroaki Aoki managed to launch his first business in the United States. Taking advantage of his origin, he opened a Chinese-Japanese cuisine restaurant offering a unique experience to its customers. The food process was transformed to an exceptional food experience and with the opening of a chain of in total 15 restaurants Hiroaki Aoki proved to be a pioneer in the restaurant industry. The way he managed to succeed this, was through revolutionary moves regarding restaurants environment, financial operations and service structure. By decorating his restaurant with Japanese elements and employing Japanese chefs as showmen, the perception of dining at Benihana changed. This new perspective was further supported by reducing the kitchen-room as to have more space for tables and fully adapt the Japanese philosophy as well as creating an unparalleled image for his business. Due to the uniqueness of the Benihana restaurants, franchise as a growth strategy brought upon many problems: starting from a lack of communication between managers and the Japanese speaking personnel, to inexperienced managers in franchised businesses abroad. This led Hiroaki Aoki to reconsider his options and deciding to expand through other models (joint-venture and hotel-corporation) and in other areas of food industry (retail and quick service food sector). Whether this is a sustainable move or not will be identified within this report. Benihanas concept is based on an authentic Japanese atmosphere. The use of American food favourites (chicken, steak, etc.) combined with the hibatchi method of presentation makes this restaurant very different from others (Sasser, 2004). Glushko and Tabas (2008) state that service management and design success depend on the interaction between employees and customers. Thus the quality of the service experience relies on the front stage activities displayed in a restaurant. Furthermore, Frei (2006) adds that the line of visibility is the factor that separates the front stage and the back stage (Appendix 3). If Benihana was to compare with a McDonalds and a Gourmet Restaurant the service encounters would be very different (Appendix 4) (Frei, 2006). In the case of McDonalds the line of visibility for the front-stage is very small and depends on waiting lines and self-service, whereas all the production lines occur in the back stage, thus the customers experience is very limited (ibid.). A customers experience in a gourmet restaurant has a balance between the front-stage, dining room experience, and the kitchen-backstage-area (ibid.). Compared to both of these, Benihana enhances the experience of their customers by treating the chef as a showman and having a different production line to service (ibid.). The front stage is the largest part of the operations with the chef cooking and serving the dishes together with the waiter, whereas the kitchen preparation is a very small part of their process (Sasser, 2004). This different concept increases customer satisfaction: 9 As seen in Figure 2, customer satisfaction is rated as excellent, which implies that the Benihana service concept is successful. In order to further develop this aspect of their business, Benihana also developed several other concepts in relation to their design, their bar and their customer batching in groups, which will be further discussed in Chapter 3.2.2 Benihanas Restaurant Design. 10 Benihana created a concept that includes food, atmosphere, entertainment and hospitality, while trying to be consistent, with their Japanese heritage. Furthermore, the owner is planning expansion steps to appeal to a wider range of clientele. However, Hiroaki Aoki has two major concerns. The first issue is how to sustainably expand and upgrade his product and services to cater a wider range of audience, while keeping the quality and the Japanese traditional atmosphere. The second issue is how to define what Benihana is selling. Data Analysis Benihanas Strategy Considering the growth of Benihana from a humble 40-seat unit to a chain of 15 units across the country, Hiroaki Aoki had a very successful strategic planning behind the concept of his restaurant (Figure 1) (Sasser, 2004). Strategic planning can be defined as an organizational process of allocating its resources in order to pursue a strategy that includes its capital, employees and most important its clients (Haines Schmidt, 2005). The owner, Rocky, approached a combination of inputs (operations), customers satisfaction and outcomes (financial results) in order to provide a new idea behind the strategy of a normal restaurant, maximizing its strengths and diminishing its weaknesses (Appendix 2) (Heskett, Sasser Schlesinger, 1997). Figure 1 : Benihana Strategic Planning Note: Adapted from Heskett, Sasser Schlesinger, 1997 Benihanas strategic planning took into consideration five important aspects: Construction, Finance, Marketing, Human Resources and Operations (Heskett, Sasser Schlesinger, 1997). They provide the framework for understanding how the firms operational investment is translated into its profit. Furthermore, Benihanas concept and cost-structure will be presented in relation to this model in order to understand the true authenticity behind this different restaurant management approach. Benihanas Concept Benihanas concept is based on an authentic Japanese atmosphere. The use of American food favourites (chicken, steak, etc.) combined with the hibatchi method of presentation makes this restaurant very different from others (Sasser, 2004). Glushko and Tabas (2008) state that service management and design success depend on the interaction between employees and customers. Thus the quality of the service experience relies on the front stage activities displayed in a restaurant. Furthermore, Frei (2006) adds that the line of visibility is the factor that separates the front stage and the back stage (Appendix 3). If Benihana was to compare with a McDonalds and a Gourmet Restaurant the service encounters would be very different (Appendix 4) (Frei, 2006). In the case of McDonalds the line of visibility for the front-stage is very small and depends on waiting lines and self-service, whereas all the production lines occur in the back stage, thus the customers experience is very limited (ibid.). A customers experience in a gourmet restaurant has a balance between the front-stage, dining room experience, and the kitchen-backstage-area (ibid.). Compared to both of these, Benihana enhances the experience of their customers by treating the chef as a showman and having a different production line to service (ibid.). The front stage is the largest part of the operations with the chef cooking and serving the dishes together with the waiter, whereas the kitchen preparation is a very small part of their process (Sasser, 2004). This different concept increases customer satisfaction: Figure 2 : Customer Satisfaction Note: Own design according to Exhibit 4, Sasser, 2004 As seen in Figure 2, customer satisfaction is rated as excellent, which implies that the Benihana service concept is successful. In order to further develop this aspect of their business, Benihana also developed several other concepts in relation to their design, their bar and their customer batching in groups, which will be further discussed in Chapter 3.2.2 Benihanas Restaurant Design. Benihanas Cost Structure In terms of Benihanas cost arrangement the owner implemented a strategic cost structure to the business by lowering the cost of labour and food and beverage. The cooking labour is cost efficient due to the cost reduction that was done through their chefs; they did not only prepare the food, but also served it (Sasser, 2004). With concerns to the food and beverage costs, due to their limited menu, inventory reduction also occurred (ibid.). Taking into account all the mentioned measures, the results have a direct impact on the financial statement of the restaurant. Figure 3: Benihana ´s Partial Income Statement Note: Sasser, 2004; Bank of America, 1968 As seen in Figure 3, Benihana ´s Earnings Before Income Tax and Depreciation (EBITDA) is on average between 15 and 35% higher than ones of a typical service restaurant (Sasser, 2004). It is observed that there are two factors, which increase profitability: lower food and beverage cost (limited menu, fewer inventories) as well as lower labour cost. The lower labour cost is the influential reason behind this high difference in marginal profit. Analyzing the employee that plays the most important role in the restaurant, the Benihana chef, an employee profile was created (Appendix 5). PayScale (2010) provides an immediate accurate snapshot of the job market and gives facts of employees salary data in the world. Thus it was used as a source to calculate the annual average salaries of the food and beverage segment as well as the job specification of a chef in 1964 (Appendix 6) (ibid.). The average annual salary of a Benihana chef can be analyzed through the figure below. Figure 4 : Benihana ´s Chef Annual Average Salaries 1964 Note: PayScale, 2010 It can be noticed that the Benihana master-chefs have a slightly above average income compared to the market. As the success and the reputation of the restaurant depend on these employees, it is very important to keep them motivated and this further demonstrates that the owner, Rocky, also has a human resources operation strategic planning as seen in Figure 1. Benihanas Restaurant Capacity Managers are continuously challenged with balancing customer demand and service capacity (Klassen Rohleder, 2002). The capacity of a business can be seen as their ability to meet the demand; for the production of goods this can be easily done, but for services it is very difficult as four critical factors have to be taken into account: time, labour, infrastructure and equipment (ibid.). Thus capacity has to be planned ahead in order to achieve cost effectiveness and the customer satisfaction. In the case of Benihana, an estimation of the maximum demand rate for an evening dinner period was calculated in order to foresee the capacity to sustain it: Figure 5: Benihana ´s Capacity vs. Demand Rate Note: Own design; Sasser, 2004 It can be noted from Figure 5 that in a case of maximum demand rate, Benihanas capacity will not be able to fit 360 clients in one night. Although the restaurant has already a limited menu, Benihana also took into consideration a decrease in dining time. The chefs also plays an important part by offering the guests the ultimate gastronomic experience and politely annoucing them that their dinner is over by bowing at the end of the meal-presentation (Sasser, 2004). Benihanas Production Process System Before a company can actually decide on which customer target market it will serve, it has to define its value proposition and its position in the market (Kotler Armstrong, 2010). The positioning of a company is defined as a consumer`s appreciation of the product compared to competing products (ibid.). As one can see in Appendix 7, Benihana has a high customer value and a differentiated position in the market. Hiroaki Aoki achieved this position, through an unprecedented service experience and design (Sasser, 2004), which will be highlighted in the following chapter. Benihana`s Service Design Every service idea starts with a service concept, where the purpose, target market and the customer experience are defined (Russell Taylor, 2009). By opening an authenticable Japanese restaurant in the United States, Hiroaki Aoki focused on two main criteria, Americans enjoy when they are going out for dinner: an exotic surrounding and a place where they can watch the preparation of their food (Sasser, 2004). Referring to the previous chapter, out of this observation, he created a completely new service concept: the Benihana dining concept, where the food is prepared by professional chefs on hibachi tables right in front of the guests. This newly developed concept was both, revenue- and cost-effective (Heskett, Sasser Schlesinger, 1997). A service package is a mixture of physical items, sensual benefits, and psychological benefits (Russell Taylor, 2009). The specialty of a Benihana restaurant is their design according to historical authenticity. All the physical items (walls, ceilings, lights, etc.) are from Japan and the materials are originally shipped to the United States (Sasser, 2004). Sensual benefits are supported by the highly trained native Japanese chefs whose form of cooking is mainly showmanship (ibid.). The psychological benefits in a Benihana restaurant are the exotic surroundings and authenticity of the place. The combination of all three components concludes in an effective service design (Russell Taylor, 2009). Therefore, the connection is presented in the service design process: Figure 6: The Service Design Process Note: Adapted from Russell Taylor, 2009 Derived from the service package, specifications for performance, design and delivery are specified. Based on the customer expectations (exotic surrounding), the design (original materials from Japan) and delivery (downtown Manhattan) are created (Russell Taylor, 2009). Benihana`s Restaurant Design The design of a typical Benihana restaurant is created to increase efficiency and profitability. A typical Benihana restaurant design, which presents the floor plan of the Benihana West restaurant on West 56th Street in Manhattan (Sasser, 2004), is shown in Figure 7. It is comprised of 112 to 120 seats in the dining area as well as 55 to 60 seats in the cocktail lounge and the typical operation has between 5,000 and 6,000 square feet (ibid.). Figure 7: A typical Benihana Floor Plan Note: Sasser, 2004 Once guests enter the restaurant, they first pass the cocktail lounge. The bar in the first Benihana restaurant only seated eight guests as the design was concentrated on food-service sales (Sasser, 2004). Along the openings of new restaurants, the founder realized, that the small space was insufficient and enlarged the bar space with every opening. He found out, that in peak times, the bar is well used as a buffer and therefore increases the beverage sales (ibid.). When all the 14 tables in the dining area are occupied, the guests are waiting here for an aperitif, until there are seats available. In the bar, the guests are batched in groups of 8 and are leaded to the dining area. The main attractions in the dining area are the teppanyaki tables, which cover eight diners per table and are served by one chef and a waitress (Sasser, 2004). Due to the hibachi tables, the conventional back-stage kitchen can be reduced as the cooking itself takes place front-stage at the customer`s table. This leads to shorter serving distances and one team of chef and waitress can handle two tables at once. The arrangement of the tables (see also Figure 6), also results in lower cost of labour (Sasser, 2004). Examination of the Production System The design of the production process comes along with the design of the restaurant space. The whole production line moves towards the service of the customer. It starts in the bar, where the guests are grouped together in batches of eight before having their dinner (Verweire Van den Berghe, 2005). It has to be taken into consideration that the combination of batches is satisfactory for smaller groups arriving, since they do not know each other (Appendix 8). This batch concept leads to higher beverage sales and allows using the whole provided capacity in the restaurant. According to Russell and Taylor (2009) design simplification reduces the number of parts, subassemblies, and options in a product. Benihana`s menu consists of four main food items (filet mignon, steak, chicken and shrimp) accompanied by unvaried side dishes (zucchini, onions, bean sprouts, fresh mushrooms and rice), which can be combined as entrees or main dishes (Sasser, 2004). As seen in Figure 4 this standardization of ingredients cuts the food costs down to 30-35% of food sales and leaves nearly no waste (Sasser, 2004; Russell Taylor, 2009). This also minimizes the space for food storage, which results in less space in the back stage of the restaurant. Since services are defined as front-stage activities, the dining room of a restaurant is the service part, whereas the kitchen is classified as the production part (Teboul, 2006). Through the preparation of the meal in front of the customer, not only the service experience is greater, but also a conventional kitchen is not necessary anymore. This enlarges the productive dining area and reduces the back area (preparation areas, dressing rooms, storage and office space) of about 22% of the total space (Sasser, 2004). According to Verma and Boyer (2010), the aim of successful process design is to maximize the output. To identify possible limitations, a bottleneck analysis is helpful. A bottleneck in a process is the step with the slowest cycle time in a given process (Verma Boyer, 2010) and verifies the process productivity. Figure 8: Process Flow Diagram of the first Benihana Restaurant in Manhattan, 1964 Note: Adapted from Verma Boyer, 2010 While analyzing the process flow diagram (Figure 8) of a Benihana restaurant, one can see that the bottleneck hereby is the dining time of 60 minutes. This bottleneck determines the pace of the whole system even though the waiting time at the bar in peak times is only 12 minutes (Verma Boyer, 2010). As identified in Chapter 3.1.3, Figure 9 the demand of a Benihana restaurant exceeds capacity. To resolve the problem of the bottle neck, Benihana decreased the dining time and enlarged the bar capacity to cover more waiting customers. Over the years, Benihana first doubled the bar area to 16 seats and eventually reached up to 55-60 seats (Sasser, 2004). Figure 9 shows some scenarios for different bar and dining area arrangements and waiting times. The maximum dining capacity of 120 seats allows a bar capacity of 48 seats (Figure 9). Figure 9 : Scenarios for different Bar and Dining Area Arrangements and Waiting Times Note: Own Calculations Concerns regarding Diversification Plans According to Ansoffs Growth and Expansion Matrix, one can find four different options of development: market development, diversification, market penetration and product development (Campbell Craig, 2005). Benihana took into consideration the following strategies: Figure 10 : Expansion Plan of Benihana Note: Adapted from Campbell Craig, 2005 The first one, market development (1), is the growth of an existing product into new market sectors (Campbell Craig, 2005). Regarding their diversification plans, Benihanas attempt is to expand in other countries where they have to take into consideration the customs of each nation, its rules and regulations. The same principles cannot be applied for all regions, so in order to develop successfully the restaurant chain these concerns should be well evaluated. Furthermore, it is very difficult for the company to be franchised, since not all owners have previous experience in the restaurant business (Sasser, 2004). Communication with the staff is also very difficult, since the majority is Japanese. Moreover, it is very demanding to supervise and keep control of what is happening in restaurants around the world. Hence, Rocky decided for the near future, instead of attempting to franchise his restaurant business, to move either into a joint-venture or into hotel-corporations and expand in two areas: Japan and overseas (ibid.). Diversification (2) is known as an approach of involving new products in new markets (Campbell Craig, 2005). Rocky also decided to widen his business into other fields connected to the food industry. A first attempt in the retail production and selling is under discussion. Entering the retail-sale-market is time consuming and has high advertising costs, so Benihana should probably re-evaluate their advertisement budget and more likely reduce the promotion funds for the restaurants, which is a risky move (Restaurant Worx, 2010). If someone is not satisfied by the quality of the product he/she will probably create a negative idea about the company and never visit a Benihana restaurant. It is also uncertain how unique the product is or how likely it is for other similar products to be created in the near future (ibid.). Product development (3) is known as increasing the market share by developing new products (Campbell Craig, 2005). In general Benihana restaurants have middle-income customers as its target group (Sassa, 2004). This is linked directly to the quality of the services offered, restaurants atmosphere and prices. Alternatively, they have no young audience in Benihana restaurants. This is one of the reasons why Rocky is considering of opening a quick service restaurant as to be able to satisfy younger crowds needs as well (ibid.). To put this project into action, firstly a market research was made about the restaurant needs of the people, the food that will be provided in these restaurants, deciding on a combination of Asian cuisine Chinese and Japanese and their location. Furthermore, cooperation between Rocky and an oil company will be formed as to provide small gas units to his new restaurants (ibid.). Even though a thorough research was conducted for this expansion a very significan t element was neglected; the culture of the locals. Maybe the proposal of a Chinese-Japanese quick service restaurant was innovative for that time, but not all the neighbourhoods were prepared to welcome that idea (ibid.). The last one, market penetration (4), is known as the use of existing products in existing markets, which are already served (Campbell Craig, 2005). The United States therefore give three areas for growth: primary markets (New York, Los Angeles), secondary markets (Pennsylvania, Harresburg, etc) and Suburbia. Due to the already mentioned inefficient franchise strategy, Benihana will not only expand internationally but also domestically through joint-ventures and hotel-affiliations (Sasser, 2004). Concerns regarding the loss of identity Benihana is selling to its customers a whole new perception of food consumption. Starting its business in 1964 in the U.S., it introduced to the market an innovative procedure of food preparation and presentation to the customers (Sasser, 2004). Instead of cooking the food inside a spacious kitchen, they used more room for the restaurant area as to prepare meals in front of the customers on a teppanyaki table with the hibachi cooking method. Benihana created a culture for the chain based on Japanese cooking method by well trained chefs and Japanese design. The environment of Benihana restaurants decoration and atmosphere is of vast importance for the company, since the philosophy of Benihana is to make people happy through the food experience (Bitner, 1992; Sasser, 2004). However, the environment is important not only for the customers who should feel satisfied, but also for the employees. In turn for the employees to feel motivated and perform their best, their working surrounding s should support their needs, as to be able to enhance companys values to the customers (ibid.). Consequently, Benihana should continue providing such services and facilities to its customers and employees as to sustain the chemistry between them and therefore continue to be a successful company. Presentation of Solution and Recommendations Benihana had a very successful strategy so far due to its construction, finance, marketing, human resources and operations management. They were able to translate market trends into their concepts and adapt them efficiently. Furthermore, they managed to reduce the back stage kitchen area into a front stage environment that displayed cooking and entertaining as one. The concept was so innovative that Rocky was actually able to reduce expenses. According to the diversification plan, Rocky intended to expand his business into more fields of the food industry. To develop his company, he tried to take advantage of the Benihana recognition, as to enter further markets, but on the other hand this step would be risky, because if the new concepts would fail, it could damage Benihanas reputation. Sasser (1976) states, that good planning is the key to successful management of supply and demand in service industries. As discussed in this paper one of the biggest problems that Benihana is facing, is how it will sustainably expand, while keeping their quality and their concept (limited menu, chef as a showman, Japanese atmosphere). Furthermore, as seen in Figure 10, Rocky has made a lot of plans regarding the growth and diversification of the Benihana restaurant. It is recommended that before attempting to implement all his ideas, a development strategic plan should be developed in order to best fit this expansion. Therefore the supply and demand matching concept should be taken into consideration: Figure 11 : Strategies for Matching Supply and Demand for Benihanas services Note: Adapted from Wisner, Leong, Tan, 2005 Lovelock (1994) further states that this can be accomplished through shifting demand to match capacity or adjusting capacity to meet demand (Appendix 9). In order to resolve the second issue, Benihana should focus on selling Japanese food and promoting their philosophy. One of the main key points of Benihanas achievements is the unique food experience it sells to its customers. Therefore, the basic elements of this successful recipe should be included in any other expansion step the company and Rocky decide to take. Without the fear of being imitated, they should take advantage of their uniqueness and develop in other areas of food industry. Through this move they would also be able to focus on other target groups, such as younger audience, which currently are not part of Benihanas targeted clientele. In this way Rocky will be able to launch his restaurant name and not only become a current trend, but also establish his brand in the hospitality industry, by providing Japanese authentic services. Action Plan Evidence Of Success Evaluation Process : Increase in Demand Increase in Profitability Customer Satisfaction Survey Employee Satisfaction Survey References: Benihana (2010). About Benihana. Retrieved 18.09.2010, from: http://www.benihana.com/about Benihana Training Guide (2004). Benihana Training Guide. Al Bustan Rotana Hotel Bitner, M. J. (1992). Servicescapes The Impact of Physical Surroundings on Customers and Employees. Retrieved 18.09.2010, from: http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=585119 sid=3Fmt=3clientId=45065RQT=309VName=PQDuserid=008BW87KK7passwd=WELCOME Campbell, D.J. Craig, T. (2005). Organisations and the Business Environment. Burlington: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann Glushko, R.J. Tabas, L. (2008). Bridging the Front Stage and Back Stage in Service System Design, in: Proceedings of the 41st Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences Big Island, Hawaii: IEEE Computer Society Press, January (2008), p. 106 Frei, F.X. (2006). Breaking the Trade-Off between Efficiency and Service. Boston: Harvard Business Review, Vol. 84, No. 11, page: 93-101 Haines, S.G. Schmidt, T. (2005). ABCs of Strategic Management The Systems Thinking Approach to Creating a Customer-Focused, High Performance, Learning Organization. San Diego: System Thinking Press Heskett, J.L., Sasser, W.E. Schlesinger L.A. (1997). The Service Profit Chain How Leading Companies Lead Profit and Growth to Loyalty, Satisfaction, and Value. New York: The Free Press Ivy Thesis (2010). Executive Summary Benihana International Restaurant. Retrieved 18.09.2010, from: http://ivythesis.typepad.com/term_paper_topics/2009/09/executive-summary-benihana-international-restaurant.html Klassen, K.J. Rohleder, T.R. (2002). Demand and Capacity Management Decisions in Services, How They Impact One Another. Bingley: International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Emerald: Vol. 22, No. 5, p. 527-548 Kotler, Ph. Armstrong, G. (2010). Principles of Marketing. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall Lovelock, C. (1994). Getting the Most Out of Your Productive Capacity. Boston: McGraw Hill PayScale (2010). Free Salary Report based on Job Title, Location, Education, Skills and Experience. Retrieved 19.09.2010, from: http://www.payscale.com Restaurant Worx (2010). Restaurant Retail Sales. Retrieved 18.09.2010, from: http://restaurantworx.com/services-2/restaurant-marketing-solutions/restaurant-sales-solutions/retail-sales/ Retail Fix (2010). Features Benihana. Retrieved 19.09.2010, from: http://www.retailfix.com/ featured_benihana.cfm Russell, R.S. Taylor B.W. (2009). Operations Management Along the Supply Chain. Upper Saddle River: John Wiley Sons Sasser, E.W. (2004). Benihana of Tokyo. Boston: Harvard Business School Teboul, J. (2006). Service is Front Stage- Positioning Services for Value Advantage. New York: Palgrave MacMillan Verma, R. Boyer K.K. (2010). Operations Supply Chain Management World Class Theory and Practice. Mason: South-Western Verweire, K. Van den Berghe, L. (2005). Integrated Performance Management- A Guide to Strategy Implementation. London: SAGE Wisner, J.D., Leong, K.G. Tan, K.C. (2005). Principles of Supply Chain Management A Balanced Approach. Mason: South-Western

Is artificial intelligence possible? Essay -- Computer Science

Is artificial intelligence possible? IS A.I. POSSIBLE? In the science fiction film, The Terminator directed by James Cameron, the computers in the movie "get smart" and rise up against their human masters. In other words, the computers in the movie were able to become independent of their programmers and developed a kind of artificial intelligence (A.I.). This essay will prove that in real life, computers will never realize artificial intelligence, and also even though functionalism is based on an analogy between humans and computers, it is an effective way to describe the interaction between the mind and body. Two essays will be evaluated in this essay. The first essay was called; "Can Computers Think?" by John Searle which rejects the theory of A.I. The second essay was called; "Escaping from the Chinese Room" by Margret Boden, which supports A.I. A functionalist view of the mind is one that draws an analogy between the functioning of the human brain and the functioning of the digital computer. The strongest view says that the mind and the brain are just digital computers. This is called strong A.I., which is a term coined by John Searle. American Hilary Putnam was one of the first to make the analogy between the brain and the computer Putnam said it made no more sense to compare the mind and the brain then to compare the software with the hardware of a computer. He also made the point that psychologists were like programmers and electrical engineers were like physicians. Putnam also made the point not to take the analogy too far. There are important differences between computers and humans. One of the differences Putnam felt was that "à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦all humans were able to learn from their experience and so change their own program but few computers could do that unaided" Hilary Putnam also argued against identifying psychological events with neurophysiologic events, and even against the attempt to do so. He felt mapping the brain to the mind was a waste of time. Jerry Fodor was another well known functionalist. Fodor, like Putnam felt that functionalism alleviated many of the problems associated with other mind body theories. These other mind body theories included Cartesian Dualism, materialism, behaviorism and the identity theory. Cartesian Dualism is the theory that that the mind and the brain are two separate things... ... as these are products of people not brains." She tries to demonstrate that the robot and the human brain are the same, in that they are both made up of small very stupid parts which build into a collective brain that is capable of understanding; "The fact that a certain light sensitive cell can respond to intensity gradients and that one neuron can inhibit the firing of another" Problem with this explanation is that now instead of input from a keyboard, the robot now receives its information from its sensors. The input will still be processed programming in the CPU of the robot. Boden did not disprove Searle's point that the syntax of a program is not sufficient for understanding of a digital computer system. Boden could not show that non-biological entity did have understanding, but she did show that Searle's argument on this point was a little weak because it relied on in tuition. The functionalism theory was shown to be an attractive theory a long as it was not taken too literally. Consequently it was shown in this essay that due to syntactical nature of computer programs and the computers lack of causal powers needed for a machine to have mental states.

Female Power, Maternity and Genderbending in Shakespeares Antony and C

Female Power, Maternity and Genderbending in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra The 19th century essayist and literary critic William Hazlitt wrote of Cleopatra, "She is voluptuous, ostentatious, conscious, boastful of her charms, haughty, tyrannical, [and] fickle," which are "great and unpardonable faults" (Hazlitt 2-3). Much of the criticism of Antony and Cleopatra has recycled this judgement, depicting Cleopatra as a villainess uses her eroticism and sexuality to motivate Antony to seek power. Cleopatra is memorable for her propensity for violence as well. While Antony and Cleopatra was written after the death of a violent English queen, Elizabeth I, Shakespeare may have been faced with a dramatic dilemma: how to make a woman seem believably violent and intimidating on the stage. Coppà ©lia Kahn notes that Cleopatra was "Rome's most dangerous enemy" (111),i but how does one make the Queen of the Nile seem like such a threat during a time when women had little social and political power. Shakespeare does several things to accomplish this task: 1) he loca tes Cleopatra's power in a foreign or supernatural realm; 2) he inverts her gender role with that of Antony; 3) he suppresses her maternal qualities; and 4) he allows her to be redeemed only in death. Indeed, it is the only way to handle a difficult woman on the Jacobean stage. Locating Codes of Female Power In Antony and Cleopatra, the Roman values of honor and bravery embody masculinity, while Egypt and the Orient symbolize feminine weakness and fragility. Caesar and Agrippa are depicted as reasonable, logical, and practical, especially in matters of strategy and war. Cleopatra and her servants and eunuchs are consistently referred to in terms of laziness, let... ...ication of her superior intelligence. She understands that, should she live, she will be taken to Rome and will suffer the humiliation of seeing "some squeaking Cleopatra boy my greatness / I' th' posture of a whore" (V, ii, 216-217). iv In addition, Cleopatra has demonstrated her readiness in the past to ruin Egypt for Antony's sake. Without blinking, she considers "unpeopling" her country in order to send a new messenger to Antony in Rome every day. To mirror Antony's "Let Rome in Tiber sink," Cleopatra says, "Let Egypt in Nile melt." v Of course, her actions indicate that, as a Roman wife, her entire existence must center on Antony only, which means a rejection of anything else, including her earthly children ("What should I stay--"). The point is to emphasize her selfishness and her absolute focus on Antony, a constant of the queen's personality.

Marketing Management Assignment-Smu Essay

Q.1 A. Explain the six criteria for effective market segmentation * Identity – The marketing manager must have some means of identifying members of the segment i.e., some basis for classifying an individual as being or not being a member of the segment. There must be clear differences between segments. Members of such segments can be readily identified by common characteristics as they display similar behavior. * Accessibility – It must be possible to reach the different segments in regard to both promotion and distribution. ln other words, the organisation must be able to focus its marketing efforts on the chosen segment. Segments must be accessible in two senses. First, firms must be able to make segmented customers aware of products or services. Second, they must get products to them through the distribution system at a reasonable cost. * Responsiveness — A clearly defined segment must react to changes in any of the elements of the marketing mix. For example. if a particular segment is defined as being cost-conscious, it should react negatively to price rises. If it does not, this is an indication that the segment needs to be redefined. * Size – The segment must be reasonably large to be a profitable target. Lt depends upon the number of people in it and their purchasing power. For example, makers of luxury goods may appeal to small but wealthy target markets whereas makers of cheap consumption goods may sell to a large but relatively poor target markets. * Nature of demand — lt refers to the different quantities demanded by various segments. Segmentation is required only if there are market differentiation in terms of demand. The marketing manager should not only be able to find out the total demand and the differences in demand patterns in each of these segments. * Measurability — The purpose of segmentation is to measure the changing behavioural pattern of consumers. For example, the segment of a market for a car is determined by a number of considerations, such as economy, status, quality, safety, comforts, etc. B. Discuss the types of target marketing strategies. * Undifferentiated marketing strategy or mass marketing strategy In the absence of a proper mechanism to classify the market into a number of markets segments and analyse their potential, many firms decide on the mass marketing strategy. In this case, the marketer goes against the idea of a differentiated market and decides to sell the product to the whole market. Here the marketing manager ignores the idea of segment characteristics and differences, and develops a unified marketing programme for the entire market. This strategy keeps the overall marketing costs low and makes it easier to manage and track the market forces uniformly. The marketer tries to find out commonalities across various segments rather than focusing on the differences between segments. * Concentrated marketing strategy In the second alternative strategy, the marketing manager decides to enter into a selected market segment instead of all the available market segments. When resources and market access are limited and the company has to face intense competition, the marketing manager has to stretch the budget for market coverage. In this case, the company is likely to follow the concentrated marketing strategy. * Differentiated marketing strategy Many marketers choose to target several segments or niches with a differentiated marketing offer to suit each market segment. Maruti is the leading automobile company, which has the distinction of having different products for different market segments. Q.2 Explain the consumer buying decision process. * Problem recognition A buying process starts when a consumer recognizes that there is a substantial discrepancy between his/her current state of satisfaction and expectations in a consumption situation. A need can be activated through internal or external stimuli. The basic needs of common men rise to a particular level and become a drive. From their previous experiences, they know how to satisfy these needs like hunger, thirst, sex, etc. This is a case of internal stimulus. A need can also be aroused by an external stimulus such as sighting a new product in a shop while purchasing other usual products. * Information search After need arousal, the behaviour of the consumer leads towards collection of available information about various stimuli. ln this case, information about products and services are gathered from various sources for further processing and decision-making. The first source of consumer information is the internal source. This means the consumer first search the information regarding the relevant product from his/her inner memory. If the information is not available from internal source for making a purchase decision he or she may collect information from external sources. A External sources for desired information can be grouped into four categories. * Personal sources (family, friends, neighbors, and peer group) * Commercial sources or market dominated sources (advertisements, salesmen, dealers, and company owned sales force) * Public sources (mass media, consumer rating organisations, and trade association publications) * Experiential sources (handling, examining, and using the product) The marketer will find it worthwhile to study the consumers’ information sources when: * A substantial percentage of the target market engages in the search * The target market shows some stable patterns of using the respective information sources. * Alternative evaluation Once interest in a product(s) is aroused, a consumer enters the subsequent stage of evaluation of alternatives. Evaluation leads to formation of buying intention that can be to either purchase or reject the product/brand. The final purchase will however depend on the strength of the positive-intention, which is the intention to buy. * Purchase decision Finally the consumer arrives at a purchase decision. Purchase decisions can be any one of the three – no buying, buying later, and buy now. No buying takes the consumers to the problem recognition stage as their consumption problem is not solved and they may again get involved in the process as we have explained. A postponement of buying can be due to a lesser motivation or evolving personal and economic situation that forces the consumer not to buy now or postponement of purchase for future period of time. If positive attitudes are formed towards the decided alternative, the consumer will make a purchase. * Post-purchase behaviour Post-purchase behaviour refers to the behaviour of consumers after their commitment to a product has been made. It originates out of consumers’ experience regarding the use of the product and is indicated in terms of satisfaction. This behaviour is reflected in repeated purchases or abstinence from further purchase. A satisfied product-use experience leads to repeated purchase, referrals from satisfied customers to new customers, higher usage rate, and also brand advocacy. Q.3 A. Discuss the Henry Assael model on buying decision behaviour. Henry Assael has come up with an explanation to analyse why consumers buy the goods they buy. He explained the relationship between the level of involvement by the consumers in the purchase of goods and services and the level at which diverse goods or services differ from one another. High involvement Low Involvement Signiï ¬ cant differences Complex Variety Seeking between brands Buying Behaviour Buying Behaviour Few differences Dissonance Reducing Habitual Buying between brands Buying Behaviour * Complex buying behaviour — Consumers are highly involved in a purchase and aware of significant differences among brands. This is usually the case when the product is expensive, bought infrequently, risky, and highly self-expressive. Typically the consumers don’t know much about the product category and have more to learn. Example: personal computer. * Dissonance-reducing — sometimes, the consumer is highly involved in a purchase but sees little differences in the brands. The high involvement is based on the fact that the purchase is expensive, infrequent, and risky. Example: carpet. After purchasing the carpet, consumers might experience dissonance that stems from noticing certain disquieting features of the carpet or hearing favorable things about other carpets. * Habitual buying behaviour – Many products are bought under conditions flow consumer involvement and the absence of significant brand differences. Considering salt, consumers have little involvement in this product category. They go to the store and reach for a brand. If they keep reaching for the same brand, it is out of habit and not strong brand loyalty. * Variety-seeking buying – Some buying situations are characterized by low consumer involvement but significant brand differences. Here consumers often do a lot of brand switching. Consumers do the brand switching for the sake of variety rather than dissatisfaction. Example: wafer potato chips. B. Explain the five stages of Adoption Process. * Awareness – During the first stage of adoption process, the product innovation is explained to the consumers. This process gives information about the new product or service. * Interest – When consumers develop an interest in the product or product category, they search for information about how the innovation can benefit them. * Evaluation – The evaluation stage represents a kind of ‘mental trial’ of the product innovation. Only if the consumers’ evaluation of the innovation is satisfactory, they will actually try the product. In case the evaluation is unsatisfactory, the product is automatically rejected. * TriaI- ln this stage- consumers use the product on a limited basis. Their experience with the product provides them with the critical information that they need to adopt or reject it. * Adoption -In this stage, consumers decide to make full and regular use of the product. Q.4 Describe the components of the micro environment of marketing * The company Some company factors that affect the marketing decisions are: Culture and value system — Organizational culture can be viewed as the system of shared values and beliefs that shape a company’s behavioural norms. A value. is an enduring preference as a mode of conduct or an end state. The value system of the founders of the organisation has a lasting impact on it. The value system not only influences the working of the company and the attitude of its people but also the choice of its business. 1. Mission and objectives — The mission and objectives of the company guide the priorities, direction of development, business philosophy, and business policy. 2. Management structure and nature – Structure is the manner in which the tasks and sub-tasks of the organisation are related. Structure is concerned with the hierarchical relationship and the relationship between the management of different functional areas like the structure of the top management and the pattern of share holding. 3. Human resource – This concerns factors like manpower planning, recruitment and selection, compensation, communication, and appraisal. * Intermediaries intermediaries are independent business units and they carry the company’s products and services to the customers. Prominent intermediaries include wholesalers, retailers, merchants, selling agents, brokers, etc. Their objective of being in business is different than being in a firm, so the intermediaries will be interested in maximizing their profits. Any trade promotion scheme will motivate them to push competitors’ product deeper and faster. * Public Positive and favorable public opinion is crucial to marketing success since the public is the authority that permits the existence and operation of competitive marketing systems. This environmental factor includes the general public, its support, the government, and the set of public who have a direct bearing on business. These public can be classified as welcome public, sought public, and unsought public. As a marketer, one must understand that the general public grants the license for conducting business with an expectation that the company will practice fair play. Lack of this supportive framework as evidenced by declining sales or adverse public opinion can lead to eventual failure of the firm as well as the marketing system. * Competitors Success or failure of an offer largely depends on how competitors react to the company‘s offer. Godrej was a successful refrigerator manufacturer. Once competition intensified, the company started losing market share. Today, though there is a growth in refrigerator industry, Godrej as a brand is not growing as fast as its competitors. Through the years, marketing systems have become increasingly competitive. Traditional economic analysis, views competition as a battle between companies in the same industry or between substitutable products. Marketers, however, tend to accept the argument that all firms are competing for a limited discretionary buying power. Though we can say that Maruti as a car manufacturing-company is facing competition from other car manufacturers, ultimately it is the consumer’s disposable income for which shampoos, soaps, and scooters are also competing with Maruti. A customer is expected to allocate his disposable income optimally and in the process a category also competes with another category to be in the active consideration set of customers for such an allocation. Industry has found numerous new uses for existing products, with the whole arena of competition being expanded. While this forces business to reassess long-established marketing practices, it also opens new avenues of business opportunity. Emergence of computers with multimedia as a tool of infotainment and knowledge sharing device has challenged traditional products in the entertainment market. * Suppliers Increase in the price of raw materials will have a bang on effect on the marketing mix strategy of an organisation. As a result, the prices may be forced up. This is the impact that the suppliers can have. Closer relationship with suppliers is one way of ensuring competitive and quality products for an organisation. * Customers Organisations exist because of customers. No customer means, no business. Organizations on how they meet the needs and wants of the customers and provide them with maximum benefits. Failure to do so will result in a failed business strategy. Q.5 A. Explain the types of Marketing Information systems MIS supplies three types of information, which are: * Monitoring information – Monitoring information is the information obtained from scanning external sources which include newspapers, trade publications, technical journals, magazines, directories, balance sheets of companies, and syndicated and published research reports. Data are captured to monitor changes and trends related to marketing situation. Some of these data can be purchased at a price from commercial sources such as market research agencies or from government sources. * Recurrent information — Recurrent information is the information that is generated at regular intervals like monthly sales reports; the stock statements, the trial balance, etc. ln MlS, recurrent information is the data that MIS supplies at a weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annual interval, which are made available regularly. It can also provide information on customer awareness of company’s brands, advertising campaigns, and similar data on close competitors. * Customized information — Customized information is also called problem-related, which is developed in response to some speciï ¬ c requirements related to a marketing problem or any particular data requested by a manager. B. Discuss the different components of MIS The overall Objective of an Ml IS to provide inputs from marketing environmental factors like target markets, marketing channels, competitors, consumers, and other forces for creating, changing, and modifying marketing decisions in the formulation of relevant and competitive marketing strategies. * Internal record systems — Internal record systems are available within the company across various departments and provide relevant, routine information for making marketing decisions. The most evident internal record system is the purchase and payment cycle systems. It records the timing and size of orders placed by consumers, the payment cycles followed by consumers, and the time taken to fulfill the orders in the shortest possible time. * Marketing intelligence system – A marketing intelligence system is the system of collecting and collating data. This system tries to capture relevant data from the external environment. It collects and manages data from the external enviro nment about the competitors’ moves, government regulations, and other relevant information having a direct impact on the marketing environment of the firm. *Analytical marketing systems – Analytical marketing systems are also known as Marketing Decision Support Systems (MDSS). A MDSS is a coordinated collection of data, systems, tools, and techniques with supporting software and hardware. Using this collection, an organisation gathers and interprets relevant information from business and environment and turns it into a basis for marketing action. lt involves problem-solving technology consisting of people, knowledge, software, and hardware integrated through the information technology platform into the sales management process of the organisation. * Marketing research systems – Marketing research systems are based on systems and processes that help marketing managers to design, collect, analyse, and report data and ï ¬ ndings relevant to a specific marketing situation facing the company. It also involves analysis of information, which includes a coordinated collection of data, systems, tools, and techniques with supporting software, and hardware by which an organisation gathers and interprets the relevant data and turns it into a basis for marketing action and tactics. Q.6 Describe the factors to be considered while developing an Effective marketing mix. To develop an effective marketing mix the company should consider the following factors and then choose the most appropriate mix of elements (7Ps) to target the customers: * Company’s resources – These are one of the prime factors affecting the company’s marketing mix. The financial, human, and technological resources available with the company affect the composition of the marketing mix. The firm needs to conduct a Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat (SWOT) analysis for the business unit. * Demographics — It implies to the changes in the composition of the market, the demand of the population, the opportunities in the country, etc. that affect the marketing mix. Current and projected economic conditions – It connotes the economic factors like inflation, employment, taxes, and other economic factors that influence marketing mix decisions. * Market potential – Analysis of market potential for new products considers market growth, prospect’s need for your offering, the beneï ¬ ts of the offering the number of barriers to immediate use, the credibility of the offering and the impact on the customer’s daily operations. * Competitors – They are important considerations that affect the marketing mix of a firm as the potential for competitive retaliation is based on the competitor’s resources, commitment to the industry, cash position, predictability, and status of the market. Porter’s Five Forces Model * Supplier power- The power of suppliers to drive up the prices of inputs. – * Buyer power- The power of customers to drive ‘down products’ prices. * Competitive rivalry — The strength of competition in the industry. * Threat of substitution – The extent to which different products and services can be used in place of a particular product. * Threat of new entry — The ease with which new competitors can enter the market if they see that a product is making good proï ¬ t and then drive your prices down. By thinking about how each force affects a product and by identifying the strength and direction of each force, you can quickly assess the strength of a product’s position and ability to make a sustained proï ¬ t in the industry.