Monday, December 30, 2019

Suicide A Social Issue on the Rise - 734 Words

Imagine someone’s best friend dies. Later this person discovers that their friend commit suicide. Envision this person’s feelings and all of the painful thoughts and memories going through their mind. This person probably feels intense sadness and maybe even betrayal. Do not forget the suicide victim’s parents. Their own child felt worthless enough to kill themselves. The students at the victim’s school have confusion, start rumors, and gossip. All of the victim’s friends feel as if the suicide happened because of them. Everyone feels as if they could have done something to prevent this tragic event. Suicide is a social issue rising in severity. Each year, over a million people commit suicide throughout the world. Suicide has the name of a leading cause of death in adolescents. Suicide, a worldwide social issue, occurs when a person’s life reaches an all-time low and usually happens because of untreated mental illnesses; suicide affects every one that the victim has ever come in contact with and suicide rates can be reduced by people having an increased knowledge about what suicide is and how to help a friend if they are having suicidal thoughts or actions. â€Å"Suicide is the act of deliberately killing oneself. People willingly take part in many activities that carry a risk of death. But to be considered suicide, death must be self-inflicted—that is, it must result from self-injury or from purposefully exposing oneself to immediate fatal harm† (Kaslow and Dunn). The reasonsShow MoreRelatedEssay On Teen Suicide1332 Words   |  6 Pageswhy is there an increase in teenagers committing suicide. We all know that the rate of teenage suicide has been on the rise just as fast as the rise of social media use. Teenage suicide is never a good thing and is heartbreaking to those it affects. As social media becomes more intertwined in young people s lives there has been an increase in teen suicide from cyber bullyi ng. Often times young teens don t know the dangers and consequences social media can cause and makes it a dangerous place forRead MoreTeenage Suicide : A Devastating Event1509 Words   |  7 PagesTeenage Suicide When I was undergoing my journey through high school, there was a devastating event that affected the entire school from that point on; one of my fellow classmates had committed suicide. It was heart breaking to hear what had happened to someone at such a young age. A teenage boy drove to a spot in North Carolina where his dad had committed suicide just a few years ago. In that same exact place where his dad committed suicide, he decided to take his own life. According to WorldRead MoreConsidering The Causes Behind Increased Teenage Suicide.1536 Words   |  7 Pages Considering the Causes Behind Increased Teenage Suicide Yesterday, 16-year-old Rachel decided to commit suicide-- an all too common increased trend in America as suicide is the third leading cause of death for 15- to 24-year-olds (â€Å"Teen Suicide Is Preventable†). Rachel felt like she could not handle her life anymore. Her parents were in the process of getting a divorce, she was being bullied at school, was having trouble succeeding in academics and co-curricular activities, and was recently beenRead MoreCyberbullying And Its Effects On Society Essay1731 Words   |  7 PagesCyberbullying is a prevalent issue in our society due to the rise of technology. Teenagers and children are more connected to the internet than ever before and are in danger of cyber bullying. People can be bullied for a multitude of reasons, the number seeming to grow every year. Some children are cyberbullied because of their physical appearance, sexual orientation, for sexting, for their mental disabilities or for simply existing. This form of bullying is so dangerous because it is very difficultRead MoreSocial Networking Helps A Young Girls Self Esteem Essay905 Words   |  4 PagesSocial Networking Creates IndividuaIsolation Sitting in a room by myself, feeling sad and lonely, holding my ipad and staring at Facebook. Communication as we used to know it is disappearing into the world of social networking, its creating individual isolation, affecting ones self esteem, and removing emotions from a conversation allowing for an increase in bullying and suicides in an our adolescents in an alarming rate. Social networking is on the rise; Facebook users have gone from 1 millionRead MoreProduct Of The Copycat Phenomenon949 Words   |  4 PagesCopycat Phenomenon The copycat phenomenon is something that has been a major issue for quite some time. Dictionary.com defines copycat as, â€Å"a person or thing that copies, imitates, mimics, or follows the lead of another, as a child who says or does exactly the same as another child.† As it pertains to the phenomenon, anytime a certain crime is committed, the more that it is advertised, the more likely it will continue to happen and at a higher rate than before. In this paper, we will talk aboutRead MoreSuicide Is A Serious Issue1679 Words   |  7 PagesSuicide is one of the largest social problems today affecting many lives in one way or another. It is a serious issue with multiple contributors that have been elusive in many cases as we try to understand why many younger people are choosing to end their lives instead of receive the help they need. Suicide is a serious issue that can have lasting results on individuals, families and communities. Although suicide rates decreased from 1990- 2000, suicide is on the rise again and now the â€Å"10th leadingRead MoreSuicide: Root Causes and Possible Prevention Strategies659 Words   |  3 PagesSuicide Prevention Methods Over the last several years, the issue of suicide and how to prevent it has been continually brought to the forefront. This is because these numbers are high in many countries around the globe. The different figures are showing, how 877 thousand lives are lost to it worldwide every single year. These amounts will vary from one country to the next, with Europe and the United States reporting the highest levels. Most notably: 10% for every 100 thousand deaths (in Europe)Read MoreThe Growth Of An Economy And Society1279 Words   |  6 Pagesindividualism and its harmful effects. Countries that are formerly collectivist are shifting to individualism which leads to the rise of suicide rates. As more countries take on Western ideals and values such as materialism and greed due to globalization, individualism becomes prevalent which then can cause the collapse of communities and dangerously high rates of suicide. Asia is known to be one of the fastest growing countries both in population and economically. It is also a continent with countriesRead MoreSenior Suicide : An Overlooked Problem1531 Words   |  7 PagesReferences Ellson, N. (2007). Senior suicide. New Jersey Nurse, 37(5), 5-9 2p. Monette, M. (2012). Senior suicide: An overlooked problem. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 184(17), E885-E886. doi:10.1503/cmaj.109-4287 Isometsà ¤ ET, Heikkinen ME, Marttunen MJ, Henriksson MM, Aro HM, Là ¶nnqvist JK. The last appointment before suicide: Is suicide intent communicated? Am J Psychiatry 1995;152:919-22. Suresh Kumar, P. N., Anish, P. K., George, B. (2015). Risk factors for suicide in elderly in comparison to

Saturday, December 21, 2019

Essay Ethics Article Review - 886 Words

Ethics Article Review Ethics Article Review The topic of ethics usually revolves around business practices. Included in these businesses practices are accounting and financial decision-making. Both of these require high standards of ethics as many people rely on the information produced by them. The lack of ethics results in misinformation and the lack of trust. This paper will first provide a brief summary of an article that discusses ethics in accounting and financial decision-making. After that, this article will be related to assigned readings and to an organization’s current accounting practices. In addition, there will be a discussion on the importance of ethics and The Sarbanes-Oxley Act in accounting and financial†¦show more content†¦17). ParexUSA and Ethical Accounting ParexUSA is a manufacturing company. Usually manufacturing companies perform two forms of financial accounting and reporting. One is for the external stakeholders and the other one is referred to as management accounting (Engle, 2005). The external stakeholders are from the parent company in France. ParexUSA practices these two forms of accounting. To produce these two forms, the accountants at ParexUSA must ensure that they are producing accurate information and are not being unethical in their reporting just to please the stakeholders. Management must also be given an accurate picture of the financial position of the organization to make better decisions. However, to paint a better picture for the stakeholders, some financial information is at times inflated or not shown. This does involve some unethical behavior as true information is being hidden. The recommendation for ParexUSA would be for the parent company of ParexUSA to provide more guidelines and controls on financial reporting. At the same time, outside auditors sent by the parent company who is not biased for either side should be used to ensure that accurate information is being reported (Staubus, 2005). Importance of Ethics and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act Being ethical in accounting and financial decision making is important because investors depend on the information produced byShow MoreRelatedEthics And Negotiation Article Review772 Words   |  4 PagesEthics and Negotiation Article Review Author Mark Young of Sharks, Saints, and Samurai: The Power of Ethics in Negotiations enlightens readers on his standpoint on ethical negotiation practices. Mr. Young states there are three main types of negotiating practices. The three techniques of, sharks or a method of negotiation referring to a win-lose style, saints acts as the win-win style and the samurai approach of following the correct course of action for being just, true, and moral, without regardRead MoreEssay on Empirical Literature Article Review of Leadership Ethics1195 Words   |  5 PagesLiterature Article Review of Leadership Ethics Lillie Johnson LDR 800, Ethical Dilemmas and Stewardship June 4, 2013 Empirical Literature Article Review of Leadership Ethics The opportunity to evaluate original research serves as one of the many foundations to both scholarly writing and research (Grand Canyon University, 2013). Therefore, to enhance this process I will critique empirical research articles for the purpose of demonstrating the effectiveness in understanding leadership ethics. So,Read MoreAssignment: Business Ethics Across Cultures Article Review3518 Words   |  15 PagesAssignment: Business Ethics Across Cultures Article Review Crystal Williams XMGT/216 May 23, 2010 Elizabeth Berg Business Ethics Across Cultures Article Review The first Article that I read is titled Business Ethics in China. In this article the author talked about how China is open to considering the ethical issues as they want to be global players. The Chinese are aware of some of their own corrupt business practices such as favoring family and cronies. Because the Chinese are doingRead MoreXmgt/216 Business Ethics Across Culture Article Review1313 Words   |  6 PagesBusiness Ethics Across Culture Article Review Matthew Todd XMGT/216 June 2, 2012 Mike Ishmael Business Ethics Across Culture Article Review The first article I would like to elaborate on would be one about business ethics in Singapore. This country has the reputation of being very strict in nature and sometimes unforgiving in the consequences that they often give to people. Over time they have loosened their grip on social matters but still seem to be strict in their manners of businessRead MoreExample Of Studies Essay735 Words   |  3 PagesSignificance of Study The data reporting on ethics training in public sector organisations have primarily been comprised of international studies, which have been conducted in developed countries (15 out of the 16 articles). Subsequently, a systematic review was applied in the current study in order provide information from existing research on ethics training programmes. This is one of the few South African study’s to apply a systematic review on specific ethics training programme elements. The aforementionedRead MoreWhat Is A Practical Checklist Which May Improve The Effectiveness Of Ethics Training744 Words   |  3 Pageseffectiveness of ethics training programmes. Significance of Study The data reporting on ethics training in public sector organisations have primarily been comprised of international studies, which have been conducted in developed countries (15 out of the 16 articles). Subsequently, a systematic review was applied in the current study in order provide information from existing research on ethics training programmes. This is one of the few South African study’s to apply a systematic review on specificRead MoreThe Effects Of Dementia On Health And Social Care1285 Words   |  6 Pagesresearch ethics guidebook 2016). What you find from the studies may turn out to be â€Å"raw data† for examination and clarification (the research ethics guidebook). Research studies may differ in how much information is provided (the research ethics guidebook)â€Å"Also study authors sometimes also act as sources of information about the detail of existing research† (The research ethics guidebook 2016). â€Å"One reason why ethics is an important consideration in systematic and literature reviews is that itRead MoreAlahmad and Murphy on Business Ethics Essay981 Words   |  4 PagesThe first two journal articles that were compared and contrasted were Ala Alahmad’s 2010 article on To Be Ethical or Not to Be: An International Code of Ethics for Leadership and Patrick Murphy’s 2009 article on The Relevance of Responsibility to Ethical Business Decisions. Some key findings of Alahmad’s writings were that ethics and leadership were closely tied together; they were found to be derivatives of one another. He mentioned that ethics is an individual thought process of making good orRead MoreEthics And The Auditing Culture : Rethinking The Foundation Of Accounting And Auditing974 Words   |  4 PagesArticle #3 Abstract. The article reviewed was Ethics and the Auditing Culture: Rethinking the Foundation of Accounting and Auditing. The key of the abstract is to demonstrate how traditional ethical settings led to unethical behavior and financial scandals of Enron, WorldCom, and Arthur Anderson (p. 271). The authors emphasize the role of the AICPA Code of Conduct and ethical perspectives for accountants and auditors. Introduction. The authors study profiles of firms that included the accountingRead MoreHealth Coverage Through The Private Market1008 Words   |  5 PagesThere has been a sharp increase in articles in recent years addressing ethics in healthcare with the rapid reforms and the millions added to healthcare coverage. The American Medical Association published just this month an article titled, â€Å"Ethics in Expanding Health Coverage through the private market†. (2015 #13). As this may not address specific compliance concerns, it does present an over all concern for the implications of the ACA, primarily being that this law does not guarantee coverage for

Friday, December 13, 2019

Sensation and Perception Free Essays

Sensation and perception are two terms that are related, but that each one has a different meaning. Sensation refers to the feeling we experience in response to information received through our sense organs. Sensation is also the basic immediate experiences generated by single isolated stimuli. We will write a custom essay sample on Sensation and Perception or any similar topic only for you Order Now On the other hand, perception is the way our body is organized to interpret those feelings; recognition of objects that comes from combining the sensations with the memory of previous sensory experiences. In other words, perception can be understood as the appropriation or capture of the surroundings, and sensations are the tools, by which you may perceive that environment. Summarizing, we can say that while sensation involucres feelings, perception involucres ideas. Let’s look an example to see the difference between them. When a musician plays a note on the piano, its tone and volume characteristics are sensations. If you hear the first four notes and you recognized as part of a symphony, one can say that perception is experienced. The differences between sensation and perception are not clear, but it is considered that in some cases one pass just after the other. It is said that the feeling usually comes before the perception and that functional difference is a simple and easy; in the sensitive process a stimulus is perceived as a door alarm, then analyzed and compared (perception), the information this stimulus gives is resolved with an attitude of alert to any danger or simply a matter of turning off the button accidentally activated the alarm. All of this is the accumulation of great information that is interrelated to reach a conclusion. Related to the vision world there are many terms that we should take into account. Some of them are Rods/Cones, Trichromatic and Opponent-Process Theories of Color Vision, Afterimages. Rods and Cones are retinal cells that contain chemicals that respond to light. When light strikes these chemicals, they break apart, creating a signal that can be transferred to the brain. While rods respond in dim light, cones are involved in color vision. There are two main theories that explain how the vision world works. The Trichromatic theory states that by mixing pure versions of blue, red and green light in different ratios, they could produce any other ratios. The Opponent- Process theory suggested that color sensitive visual elements in the eye are arranged into three kinds of pairs and that the members of each pair oppose, or inhibit each other. Each elements signals one color or the other (red or green, blue or yellow, black or white), but never both. The last concept, afterimage is an optical illusion that refers to an image continuing to appear in one’s vision after the exposure to the original image has ceased. Together, the Trichromatic and opponent process theories explain most of what we now know about the complex process of color vision. We see colors because our three types of cones have different sensitivities to different wavelength of light. But it is more complex than all this. The cones are connected to ganglion cells that contain pair of opposing elements that respond to different colors and inhibit each other. This explains the basis for afterimages. Therefore, the Trichromatic theory explains color vision as it relates to rods and cones, whereas the opponent-process theory explains color vision as it relates to the ganglions cells (helps to explain afterimages).. How to cite Sensation and Perception, Papers

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Advanced Diploma of Community Services Global Market

Question: Describe about the Advanced Diploma of Community Services for Global Market. Answer: Introduction In the modern market condition, each and every company try to implement strategies that help them to sustain the market competition. Among the various strategies, opening global markets for the products of the company is an effective strategy that considered by the managers. International marketing allows the company to increase its market base and thereby earn higher revenue and profit margins. The organisation needs to consider a specific strategic plan while implementing the process of global marketing for the products. In this particular activity of the study, the organisational vision and goals of the Dunkin Donuts are discussed in order to understand the current market position of the company and the plan of the managers regarding the opening of the global market (in China) for the products offered to the customers. The new work process that would help the managers to achieve the organisational goals and the vision is discussed in the study. The strategic plan of the company will be revised in order to make the specific changes that will help to carry out the international marketing. The current organisational vision and goals The organisational vision and the goals play an important role in the organisation as it allows the managers to describe to the stakeholders what the company plans to carry out in terms of market share, growth and profitability. The appropriate setting of the goals and the objectives allows the company to show the employees their priorities and thereby keep them focused and increase their level of motivation. the setting of the goals of the company using the SMART principles helps to make the goals specific to the company needs, measurable, attainable relevant and achievable within the allotted time (Meissner 2012). The goal of the organisation indicates what the company tries to achieve while the vision of the company refers to the ways in which the goals are to be met and why they are considered. The current mission of Dunkin Donuts is to become a principal contributor of variety choices of beverages baked product all over the kingdom in an expedient, comfortable, welcoming environment that ensures the high-quality product. On the other hand, the current mission of the company is to reach a suitable position in the market so that they are able to great coffee beverages and delicious complimentary donuts bakery products that the customers would enjoy (DunkinDonuts.com. (2016). Dunkin Donuts intends to effectively open global markets for the products it offers to the market. The vision of the company is to be able to earn higher profit from the international marketing. With the help of the international marketing, the managers aim to increase the market growth and the share of the company. The goal of the company is thus to obtain advanced growth and development of the new products as per the global market need in order to enter and sustain the global market. In the opinion of Papadopoulos and Heslop(2014), the organisation can effectively meet the mission and the vision by implementing effective strategic plans within the workplace. The strategies and the proper market research about the market in which the organisation tries to enter allow the managers to understand the market condition and the market demand. The market analysis further supports the business to develop new products to meet the needs of the customers and thereby sustain in the global marke t (Chandra, Stylesand Wilkinson 2012). Accommodation of new work processes intended outputs and organisational objectives in the vision and goals The work process of the organisation indicates the complete procedure of the company in which the activities are performed. The work processes of Dunkin Donuts includes the acquiring of the raw materials, contracting the vendors, organising and manufacturing products, marketing, promoting and selling of the products. The company considers the several new work processes while opening the global market. The market analysis of China is performed in order to understand the demand of the product that Dunkin Donuts tries to launch in the market (Bradyet al. 2015). The situational analysis of the market is carried out with the help of the SWOT analysis to understand the internal environment and the PESTLE analysis to evaluate the external environment. After the market research, the target and segmentation are to be performed (Laufs and Schwens 2014). The newly accommodated work process helps the organisation to meet the objectives of the company that is to expand its business in the international market and obtain higher profit margin. The organisations strategic plan and determining the areas where changes are needed The main strategy of Dunkin Donuts is to please its customers. Being one of the largest fast food companies, the company tries to stick to their original ways of producing fresh coffee and doughnuts. This helps the company to make their potential customers turn into loyal customers and thus retain the customers. The strategic planning of the company includes improving themselves for the benefits of the customers, the society and the environment (Shani and Chalasani 2013). The company do not have many operating stores nor does it have a proper supply chain revenue stream. Dunkin Donuts licences its product manufacturing and distribution to the third party. The strategic planning of the company includes minimising the risk of the company through channel distribution. Their strategic focus is to maintain a proper grocery chain within the organisation. The grocery chain helps to diversify the risk that arises from the poor economic cycle (Sintonenet al. 2012). However, in order to meet the international marketing objectives of the company, it is important for the company to revise the strategic planning. There are certain changes in the strategic planning that would help Dunkin Donuts to carry out international marketing activities. The managers of the company plan to use innovative data and technologies that would help to boost up the sales and focus on the growth in the international business. The company carries out a proper market research analysis of the market to drive the sales in the US. The changes in the strategic planning that would help the company in achieving the expected outcome are to make considerable changes in the advertising and media marketing. Apart from the quality of the food, the company needs to focus on the standards and the safety of the foods. According to the concept of Czinkota and Ronkainen(2013), the menu of the company needs to be designed effectively. Since the company tries to enter the market of China, it is crucial for the company to revise its menu as per the needs and the preference of the individuals in China. Required changes Paliwoda and Thomas(2013) opined that the company can effectively enter the markets of China and sustain in the highly competitive market if it studies its current strategic planning to identify the areas that need the changes and make according to changes. Themanagers of the company identified that the media marketing of the company needs to be altered as per the market of China and also the other markets in which Dunkin Donuts tries to enter in future. The implementation of the innovative tools and techniques need to be considered. The company tries to change the media marketing process by considering mobile order and pay along with the obtainable digital initiative of social media marketing and online incidence. The focus of the company needs to be changed from the only serving of high-quality products to the focus on standards and franchise profitability. The implementation of the franchise model within the business will allow the company to ensure faster growth in the internatio nal market and make the franchise opportunity remain attractive in the long term. Sandberg (2013) argued that opening into the global market includes a number of risk factors that are capable of causing a huge loss to the company. However, the risk can be addressed if the company collaborates and consults a wide range of experienced individuals who have a proper knowledge about the international market or about the marketing process. This may include the collaboration and consultation with the stakeholders, the suppliers, the customers and the employees. The process of the interaction will provide the managers with huge knowledge based on which the new strategic planning can be formulated in order to meet the goals and the objectives of the company (Stttinger, Schlegelmilch and Zou 2015). The managers of Dunkin Donuts can collect the required information through a market analysis using tools and techniques. A face to face conversation with the individuals or survey questionnaire is effective in obtaining the data. The data experts of the company can analyse the obtained data with the help of the data analysing tools such as regression analysis and trend analyses (Buckley, Burton and Mirza 2016). The outcomes of the data analysis help the managers to decide whether the expansion in the particular market is beneficial or not. Gaining stakeholder support for amended or new strategic plans Dunkin Donuts have a strong engagement with a wide range of stakeholders that include their employees, franchisees, guests, regulators and shareholders in order to ensure long-term success. Dunkin Donuts includes all its stakeholders to obtain support in the amendment process of the new strategic plans. The authorities of the company find it important to include all its stakeholders as the stakeholders are different from each other and therefore have different views and perceptions about the company (Cadogan 2012). The planning of the new strategies is a crucial process that needs to focus on all the pros and cons of the decision and choose the best possible plans for the company. The role of the stakeholders and the level of their participation in the strategic planning of Dunkin Donuts depend on the mission of the project and their relationship with the project management officer (PMO). Both the internal as well as the external stakeholders play an effective role in the strategic planning process of Dunkin Donuts while they try to expand into the global markets of China. The internal stakeholders of the company contribute to the process by estimating the scope of the project, defining the work product, evaluating the task attributes and the life cycle of the project, evaluating the cost and the efforts, preparing budget plan, identifying the risk factors, planning data management and reviewing the project plan at a fixed interval of time (Malhotra, Wu and Whitelock 2013). On the other hand, the external stakeholders are almost similar to the ones carried out by the internal stakeholders yet there is a limit to their involvement in the project. An effective strategic plan can be obtained by the companyif the company sets the strategies based on the SMART objectives. Maintaining a scorecard helps the leaders to measure and manage the strategic plans. The progress of the plan needs to be tracked. While executing the plan, the managers need to identify the issues related to the plan in order to make the final changes in the plan. After being completely sure of the effectiveness of the strategic planning the plan is to be implemented in the workplace. As opined by Berthon et al. (2012), the strategic planning can effectively deliver the appropriate outcome, if it is communicated properly to others related to the company. The communicating strategies help Dunkin Donuts to address the communication issues while communicating the strategic plans. The strategies state that the message needs to be simple yet bottomless in the significance, construction of behaviour base on market and customer insight, using regulation framework and making the necessary investment (Cavusgil et al. 2014). Conclusion Strategic planning plays a very important role in Dunkin Donuts in the process of opening to the global market. While the company decides to enter the market of China to sell the existing as well as newly designed products it needs to consider the revision of the strategic planning. The necessary changes allow Dunkin Donuts to sustain in the competitive market of China. the required changes that would help the company in the international marketing needs to be identified and efficiently implemented so that the competitive advantage over the rival companies in the market of the home country and in the international market. Activity 2: Introduction The study focused on all the important aspects, which are required by the organization to focus towards a proper implementation of a strategic plan. Developing a proper framework in the organizational process includes developing and implementing different kinds of strategies. The study focused on all the key aspects, which the managers of the organization focused towards implementing a proper strategic output in the managerial procedure. Importance of a proper communication plan in the organization, implementation of strategic plan, effects of controlling and monitoring system in the organization are few of the important attributes which are reflected in the overview of the study. It is one of the primary jobs for all the managers to develop an effective communication process. It is the key parameters for all the managers in the organization to focus on an effective communication process, which will bring transparency in the organizational procedure. There are several ways, which managers of different organizations tries to develop a proper communication system in the organizational process. Developing a proper communication plan in the organization helps the managers to convey the message to the members. It influences the level of efficiency and simplicity of the communication methods. Some of the important mode of communication in the organizational process includes word of mouth, emails, press release and conferences. Strategies are developed by the managers in the organization to make an efficient as well as a smooth managerial procedure. On the other hand, it is equally important for the managers of the organization to develop an effective communication system at all the management level (top level, middle level and bottom level), in order to communicating the strategies to the employees. There are certain organizational goals and objectives, which most of the business firm in spite of the nature of the business tries to accomplish in the organizational process (Aras and Crowther, 2012). If the employees of the organization are aware of the organizational goals and objectives, it will guide them in a proper manner towards achieving the goal. In order to communicate the plans and strategies in the organization there are different modes of communication process, which the manager of the organization follows in the decision-making process. However, selecting the best mode of communication process i s one of the most challenging jobs for the managers. There are different ways which will provide a clear image of what the strategic plan is intended to accomplish. Based on the nature as well as the objectives of the business it is the job of the managers to develop an effective measure, which will focus towards implementing a proper strategic input in the organization. Planning is one of the important perspectives in the organizational process and on the other hand, implementation of planning in the organizational process is equally important (Daft, 2012). Nevertheless, implementation of planning is one of the most essential parts of the strategic planning process. There are certain variations towards implementing a proper strategic plan in the managerial operations. However, some of the basic steps, which the entire managers follows in implementation, process (George and Jones, 2012). The following part of the study, evaluated all the important procedure, which the managers as well as the leaders of the organizations follows towards implementing a proper strategic planning process. Evaluating the strategic plan In the first step of the implementation process, the managers need to evaluate the objectives of planning to all the members of the organization. It will aware all the employees of the organization about the strategic planning as well as about the objectives (Hellriegel, 2012). Highlighting the objectives of the organization provides a proper direction to all the members in a common ways. This will translate all the efforts of the individual towards accomplishing the common organizational goals and objectives. Creating a proper vision towards implementing the strategic plan The second step, which the managers of the organization need to follow, is to create a proper a proper vision of strategic planning. It will provide a clear idea of all the beneficial aspects of the strategic planning process in the organization. For example every business organization in spite of the nature of the business tries to increase sales and profit of the firm simultaneously (Hitt, Black and Porter, 2012). If the mission and vision of the organization are clear to all the employees, it will guide all the employees in an effective manner, as the responsibility of the employees contribute as one of the vital factor in the organizational process. Selecting the right members in the allocation process Resources of the organizational are limited. It is one of the most challenging jobs for the managers to evaluate all the organizational activities in a proper manner, which will accomplish the goals of strategic planning. Allocation is one of the vital jobs for every manager, as it requires a continuous decision making process. The third step is about the selecting the right employees for the right job in the organization (Kotler and Keller, 2012). It will automatically increase the efficiency level of the organization. Implementing a proper controlling process Developing a proper controlling process is the forth step, towards the implementation process. The process of controlling is one of the effective monitoring processes, which the manager performs to counterpart the definite presentation along with the planned presentation. If any deviation takes place, effective measures are often taken by the managers to bring the proceedings of the organization back on track. These are the four effective measures, which the managers need to perform, in order to implement an effective strategic planning process. The answer to this particular question covered all the important aspects towards evaluating an effective monitoring as well as controlling system in the organization. It is important for all the mangers to develop an effective controlling system in the organizational process as it will differentiate between the actual plan and the original plan. A management control system towards implementing a proper strategic plan requires a logical integration of management tools to gather data and report the organization to evaluate performance (Norton, 2012). There are certain advantages in the process evaluating a proper management controlling system in the organization to implement strategic planning. There are certain reasons, why controlling system in the organization is required in strategic planning. With the help of a proper controlling system in the organization, the managers will be able to clearly communicate the goals of strategic planning, which will ensure every members of the organization to focus on the specific objectives, which are required to achieve the common goals of the organization (Robbins and Coulter, 2012). It will also ensure that the management control system adjusts to change in the business environment. With the help of a proper monitoring system in the organization, it will allow the organization to develop an effective control system over the organizational performance. There are different kinds of methods, which are required by the organization to perform an effective controlling and monitoring system in the organization. Some of the important monitoring processes, which majorities of the managers performs, are reflected in the following part of the study. Developing an effective tracking system With the help of increasing an appropriate tracking system in the organization will allow the managers to identify the flaws in the organizational operations. It will make a clear idea about what are the different kinds of issues, which the organization is facing towards implementing a proper strategic planning process (Schermerhorn, 2012). Coordinate business and marketing plan With the application of a proper controlling and monitoring system in the organization, the managers will be able coordinate between the businesses as well as with the marketing plan. It is very important for the managers to make coordinate between the marketing plans as well as with the organizational plan. With the help of an effective monitoring system in the organization, the managers will be able to implement a proper strategic planning the overall organization process. Implementing Changes when required Implementing change in the overall organizational process brings a lot of positive impacts in the managerial operations (Seleshi Sisaye and Birnberg, 2012). If the manager of the organization finds any deviations towards implementing a proper strategic planning system in the organization, necessary measures are taken by the managers to bring back the organizational process on track by implementing change when required. Conclusion The concluding part of the study analyzed all the crucial aspects, which ensures towards a proper implementation of strategic planning in the organization. Importance of communication in the organization steps, which are adopted by the managers to implement an effective strategic plan and importance of controlling and monitoring system in the organization of strategic plan are some of the key areas of the important aspects of the organizational process. With the help of this particular study the organization will be able to focus on its objective with the view of implementing a proper strategic outcome. References Aras, G. and Crowther, D. (2012).Business strategy and sustainability. 1st ed. Bingley, U.K.: Emerald. Daft, R. (2012).Management. 1st ed. Australia: South-Western. George, J. and Jones, G. (2012).Understanding and managing organizational behavior. 1st ed. Boston: Prentice Hall. Hellriegel, D. (2012).Management. 1st ed. Cape Town: Oxford University Press. Hitt, M., Black, S. and Porter, L. (2012).Management. 1st ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. Kotler, P. and Keller, K. (2012).Marketing management. 1st ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall. Norton, M. (2012).Sustainability. 1st ed. London: Routledge. Robbins, S. and Coulter, M. (2012).Management. 1st ed. Boston: Prentice Hall. Schermerhorn, J. (2012).Organizational behavior.. 1st ed. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley. Seleshi Sisaye, and Birnberg, J. (2012).An organizational learning approach to process innovations. 1st ed. Bingley, U.K.: Emerald. Berthon, P.R., Pitt, L.F., Plangger, K. and Shapiro, D., 2012. Marketing meets Web 2.0, social media, and creative consumers: Implications for international marketing strategy.Business horizons,55(3), pp.261-271. Brady, M.K., Crittenden, V.L., Crittenden, W.F. and Grant, K., 2015. The Importance of the Service Encounter in International Marketing Strategy. InProceedings of the 1999 Academy of Marketing Science (AMS) Annual Conference(pp. 123-123). Springer International Publishing. Buckley, P.J., Burton, F. and Mirza, H. eds., 2016.The strategy and organization of international business. Springer. Burgess, S.M. and Steenkamp, J.B.E., 2013. Editorial: introduction to the special issue on marketing in emerging markets.International journal of research in marketing,30(1), pp.1-3. Cadogan, J.W., 2012. International marketing, strategic orientations and business success: reflections on the path ahead.International Marketing Review,29(4), pp.340-348. Cavusgil, S.T., Knight, G., Riesenberger, J.R., Rammal, H.G. and Rose, E.L., 2014.International business. Pearson Australia. Chandra, Y., Styles, C. and Wilkinson, I.F., 2012. An opportunity-based view of rapid internationalization.Journal of International Marketing,20(1), pp.74-102. Czinkota, M.R. and Ronkainen, I.A., 2013.International marketing. Cengage Learning. DunkinDonuts.com. (2016).Home | Dunkin' Donuts. [online] Available at: https://www.dunkindonuts.com [Accessed 22 Nov. 2016]. Laufs, K. and Schwens, C., 2014. Foreign market entry mode choice of small and medium-sized enterprises: A systematic review and future research agenda.International Business Review,23(6), pp.1109-1126. Malhotra, N.K., Wu, L. and Whitelock, J., 2013. An updated overview of research published in the International Marketing Review: 1983 to 2011.International Marketing Review,30(1), pp.7-20. Meissner, H.G., 2012.Strategic international marketing. Springer Science Business Media. Paliwoda, S. and Thomas, M., 2013.International marketing. Routledge. Papadopoulos, N. and Heslop, L.A., 2014.Product-country images: Impact and role in international marketing. Routledge. Sandberg, S., 2013. Emerging market entry node pattern and experiential knowledge of small and medium-sized enterprises.International Marketing Review,30(2), pp.106-129. Shani, D. and Chalasani, S., 2013. Exploiting niches using relationship marketing.Journal of Services Marketing. Sintonen, S., Tarkiainen, A., Cadogan, J.W., Kuivalainen, O., Lee, N. and Sundqvist, S., 2016. Cross-country cross-survey design in international marketing research.International Marketing Review,33(3), pp.454-482. 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Thursday, November 28, 2019

Style Essays (526 words) - Suit, Workwear, Clothing, Fashion

Simply Stylish: Your Ideal Silhouette What is Style? Style is the image or impression that you project to the world. Is it innate, or is it something that can be learned and refined? For some women, putting themselves together well is purely instinctive as they are naturally drawn to the right styles and colours for their body. For others research, an understanding of their body shape and good advice can be the right ingredients to achieving personal style. Even the most stylish women often have mentors or stylists to help them make the right clothing choices. Women with style consider carefully what they purchase and give thought to whatever they wear and wherever they wear it. Style isn?t about money, it is about making the right clothing choices. Stylish women understand how to mix and match their wardrobe and they have good taste. Stylish women also know how to adapt current looks to suit their age. Few things are more self affirming than dressing well. As Yves St Laurent said, ?fashion fades, style is eternal? How to Achieve Style Five major elements go into the creation of a garment. These are shape or silhouette, design details, colour, fabric weight and texture and fabric print and pattern. To find a garment with all these elements ideal for you can be difficult, but aim to achieve at least 3 out of the 5. With this knowledge, you can choose the best style suited to your shape, colouring and personality. In developing your personal style, consider also: Comfort ~ wear clothes that fit you perfectly, suit your personality and lifestyle. Confidence ~ know that you are presenting yourself at your best. Illusion ~ accentuate your positives and camouflage your challenges. Individuality ~ be you, not a clone of someone else. Appropriateness ~ dress appropriately for every occasion. Attitude ~ be positive. Current ~ maintain a current appearance. Body Proportion Analysis Your Ideal Silhouette is designed to provide women with an objective approach to successful dressing. Armed with only your dress size, shopping can be a frustrating experience if you have no real idea about what suits your body type, resulting in time wasted in the fitting room and money wasted on clothes that may or may not fit well or which may or may not be flattering to your figure. The programme will help you to take control of your wardrobe by eliminating poor clothing choices and aid in the selection of only those items that maximise positive features and minimise problem areas. Emphasis is placed on how to project a professional, polished and self-confident image. Measuring Up A woman?s body is divided into 4 sections to determine her proportions. The ideal body is supposed to be equal in each section. The sections are from the top of the head to the full bust, the full bust to the full hip, the full hip to the centre of the knee, the centre of the knee to the floor. Unequal proportions are not a problem. It is important, however, to know where you are long and short so that garment lengths can be altered to give you a balanced appearance.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Lascaux Cave Closed essays

Lascaux Cave Closed essays I think that they should keep the caves closed from public access. I believe that prehistoric caves with preserved art that starts to deteriorate due to human disturbances should be closed to preserve the findings for professionals and for future generations. The cave in Lascaux has wall art showing the animal life living around the artists. There are over 1500 pictures of animals and proof of wild life from centuries before. Humans are not depicted naturally; they were drawn more like stick figures. There are also historic treasures hidden for centuries found in the cave everywhere you look. This cave was found by accident and now gives meaning to historical evidence. The Rouffignac Cave, also known as The Cave of the Hundred Mammoths, is still open to the public, but can only be explored by electric train tours. The artwork is threatened by the same causes as the artwork in Lascaux Cave. This prehistoric art is at risk and the cave requires a critical equilibrium. Caves work as a great preservation spot for artifacts. Deterioration can come from natural causes, or animal or human disturbances. Alternate freezing and thawing causes scaling of the rock, or also a form of peeling. Modern day environment changes have caused severe weather causing peeling to occur more rapidly. Increased openings have caused more natural light into the caves, which increases the growth of mosses and other vegetation on the cave walls. Artificial lighting from light fixtures mounted on the cave walls, which causes damage to the cave walls and fades the pictures. If caves are open the air masses circulate more easily, also excess amounts of carbon dioxide would circulate from the air and visitors breath. Carbonic acid dissolves the limestone of the cave walls. Seepage of rainwater mixed with modern day thermal conditions causes calcite on the walls of the caves, which would cover the wall paint...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

America is Finished Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

America is Finished - Essay Example Spence, an economics professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, a superior fellow in the Hoover Institution and former chairperson of Growth and Development Independent Commission, lives in Italy and California. The book is a nonfiction depiction of the future based on current trends and statistics in relation to previous happenings. The book talks about the Industrial Revolution third century, which is the era we are presently living in. As scholars that one can find can deduce it from limited resources, it is found that for numerous hundred decades until approximately 1750, the growth of the economy was insufficient anywhere in the Globe. By the world’s standards, majorities of people were pitiable and only a small group of the elite was rich. In some parts, there existed a small middle class, who were commercially oriented. This was the case visible almost the entire world. In 1750, England began a new and much improved course of the Industrial Revo lution raising the income per capita. The growth increased and was maintained for the pioneer time in the world’s history. This was the case for almost twenty decades until the Second World War began. By 1950, the standard earnings of persons living in the Industrial nations had increased by twenty times and in the case of more developed nations, this value rose more than this. This dramatic change of the growth pattern was limited to what we term industrialized or advanced nations. This changed the lives of about 15% of the globe's population. Apart from this group, the pattern of the previous hundred years merely presided thus little growth and people were still poor. This is to explain that, the global pattern was just one of the rapid divergences between the already developed and advanced verses others who are not. Commencing after the Second World War, the shift in pattern was tough at the initial stages to perceive it as a prominent trend started again. The nations in t he developing world began to develop. Initially, the growth was comparatively slow and only in distinct cases, there which it started to step up and spread. This signified the start of the international economy century extensive journey. The result is probably the world that 75% of its people reside in advanced nations with all that it comprises: escalating income growth with comparatively accelerating patterns of energy consumption and use. The next convergence is likely to bring debates how well to continue in the post crisis era and reset the equilibrium between national and global economic welfare and temporary fixes and continuing sustainability. Main Body With the Industrial revolution of the British, a fraction of the globe's population commenced to encounter peculiar economic growth that lead to gaps in living standards and wealth between the developed Europe and the rest of the globe. This trend of divergence was reverted after the World War II and presently we are halfway through 100 years of escalating and high development in the developing countries and a novel convergence with the developed nations are enormous but still comprehended. This book dates about further than 100 years that started in 1945 and will go into mid 21st century meaning that after two hundred years of high speed and accelerating divergence, a trend of convergence has engulfed the world. The author boldly and precisely outlines what is at stake globally as he portrays the future of the manner in which the global economy will rise over the subsequent fifty years. A number of our most renowned econopundits dwell in such basic, commotional public speaking, particularly in periods of market confusion and

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Jews and Slavery Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Jews and Slavery - Term Paper Example In ancient times, Jewish laws and society permitted slavery (Schorsch 37). Slaves made up a significant part and property of a Jewish household. This paper will discuss the Jew’s involvement in slavery and the slave trade. Religious literature on Judaism contained in the Hebrew Bible, also known as Tanakh, contain various laws on the ownership and handling of slaves. The initial Israelite slavery laws as seen in the Tanakh have a resemblance to the slavery laws of the 18th century (Faber 21). The Passover, which is a holy time among the Jews, relates to freedom from slavery. In the middle ages, the Jews, just like their Muslim and Christian neighbors, owned slaves and took part in the slave trade (Schorsch 37). When Portugal and Spain expelled their Jewish subjects, the Jews involved themselves in all types of trade, including the slave trade. Their first participation in the slave trade was recorded in the 5th century after Pope Gelasius allowed them to bring slaves into Ital y from Gaul (Faber 19). Later, in the 8th century, a king called Charlemagne gave the Jews authority to act as the sole mediators in the slave trade. The Spanish Jews then sold slaves as body guards to the Caliphs of Andalusia. Jews formed the key traders in the sector of Christian slaves in the medieval ages (Shavit 24). They financed the trade and plotted to enslave, convert and sell non Jews on routes previously created by Muslims and Christians, rarely creating their own routes. They were active in North Africa, Slavonia, Eastern and Central Europe. Their most significant territory was in Portugal and Spain between the tenth and fifteenth centuries (Shavit 20). During the colonization of the Americas by Europe, Jews owned Latin American and Caribbean slaves, most notably from Brazil, Jamaica, Barbados and Suriname. Slave trade was their key occupation and became the region’s largest slave holders (Shavit 12). In that period, the Jews owned large plantations in these count ries. Later, in the 17th century, North African Muslim states were more tolerant to the Jews than were the Christians of Spain and Britain. This led to many Jews living in the North African region and establishing business contacts with the people. The most notable buyers of Christian slaves were the Jews from Algiers (Shavit 31). Their counterparts, the Jews from Italy were the key planners of ransom negotiations for the Christian slaves in Algiers and their subsequent freedom and return to their home countries. Following the expulsion of Jews from Portugal and Spain, they heightened their activities in the Atlantic slave trade (Shavit 19). The discovery of the New World further fuelled the activities. In the Atlantic slave trade, the Jews moved African slaves to the New World from Africa in exchange of sugar and manufactured goods (Schorsch 14). There was also a significant participation in the slave trade, in Brazil, by Jews and their descendants who had converted to Christianity , also known as New Christians. The Jews dominated the trade to such an extent that the Christians of Brazil became envious of the plantations owned by the Jews in the Pernambuco river valley (Schorsch 15). In the southern regions of the United States, Jews were not significantly active in the slave trade, and they only represented less than 2 percent of all slave owners in that region. Rather than Judaic laws, the practice of slave

Monday, November 18, 2019

Externalities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Externalities - Essay Example , implications will be generated regarding whether Profit Ltd should embrace upon changes due to consideration of externalities or it should attempt to resist the change with the help of lobby groups. The objective of this research paper is to incorporate comprehensive understanding of the concept of externalities and various issues in relation to regulations towards externalities. Externalities occur when the producers or consumers of goods and services unintentionally create indirect impacts upon other producers or consumers of goods and services (Zilberman, 1999). Externality is such an aspect of the economy that although it does not depict any monetary effect upon the producers or consumers of goods and services but bears an impact upon the society’s standard of living. Most of the economists consider externalities to be a market failure. This is because upon the occurrence of externalities, the market prices do not represent the actual marginal costs or benefits coupled with the goods and services dealt with in the market. The concept of externalities can be prominently associated with the activities related to production or consumption or both. Both production as well as consumption externalities occur when the respective activities of production and consumption of one individual inflicts costs and benefits towards the other individuals that are n ot spread precisely in the course of various market operations (Zilberman, 1999). Externalities can be either positive or negative. Positive externalities occur when the individuals’ actions generate benefits for the other individuals. The concept of positive externalities can be best understood through citing the example of technological overrun. The positive externalities in this regard occur when an invention of a firm benefits the entire society due to the technological up gradation along with the firm. On the other hand, negative externalities occur when the action of one individual generates harmful

Friday, November 15, 2019

Non Print Media On Education Education Essay

Non Print Media On Education Education Essay The positive impact of non-print media on education is increasingly important among students who are struggling to learn English in school settings. As Aufderheide (1993) claims, media influences peoples understanding of social reality. In particular, non-print media has a close relationship with contemporary technology which students have access to in their daily life. The value, belief and understanding of the world views may be constructed from non-print media. For example, the first point is that their participation in online chat provides a precious opportunity to communicate with people in the whole world so as to improve their language expression and construct the world views. Secondly, commenting on fan fiction processing and evaluating online information are beneficial for students to share opinions and develop critical thinking. Thirdly, playing video games, in some ways, develops students narrative thoughts, which is helpful for improving their written compositions. Theref ore, we need to recognize the genuine pleasures and benefits students receive from non-print media. Compared with the previous blog 3, I place an emphasis on the teachers input this time. The teacher will teach students language structures which will be used in photo captions and utilize non-print media such as movie segments and photos to guide students. When students understand what they need to do in the final presentation, they will pay more attention to non-print media effectively in the preparation stages and gradually find non-print media assisting their language learning. Barthes (1968) indicates that a writerly text has various meanings, and it requires people to actively explore and appreciate it. Students are asked to make photo albums and recreate or delete one character based on the original movie they choose. In the preparation stage their abilities of innovative thinking and language proficiency are gradually developed. For example, in my activities, the teacher gives examples of how to use language structures to write photo captions. It is a helpful way to construct students basic knowledge. When students understand the instructions, they can take the initiative to discuss, search for useful information and work in cooperation with each other. Task 2 requires students to recreate or delete a character and this part is not taught in class but needs students active exploration and appreciation. In the presentation, students need to do reasonable assumptions and give detailed explanations. In my activities, formative assessment will be used to monitor students learning progress and score their final presentation because formative assessment is an effective tool to adapt the teaching to meet students need. There are some reasons why I use formative assessment. First, it helps the teacher to know what students learn at a particular period and modify the instruction accordingly. For instance, when students ask the teacher questions or present what they have done, the teacher will know current status of their language ability and give them advice. Because of effective feedback from the teacher, students may find opportunity to revise and rethink their learning. I think students need to ask themselves what I have done and what I need to improve in every step. Second, it helps students to reduce pressure. Formative assessment is an ongoing assessment and it focus on process rather than results. In every stage, students may receive the teachers feedback and other peers sugges tion, so they may have clear direction how to do better in the final presentation. To a certain extent, it releases students pressure. Their participation in discussion and feedback time also gives them chances to modify and replan the upcoming presentation because the role of formative assessment is to improve learning. So the purpose of using formative assessment is to help the teacher and students clearly know learning improvement in every stage. A students feedback form will be designed as one part of formative assessment because I think students self-reflective process is very important. When filling in the feedback form, they may rethink what they have done, where they should improve and what they learn from this cooperation work. Students feedback form helps the teacher to modify the instruction, and create appropriate lessons and activities next time. Teaching material and Assessment Target group: F.6 ESL students with high English proficiency Class Size: 6 groups of 4 students (24 students) Learning Objectives:  ·impart basic knowledge of language structures  ·improve communication and cooperation skills by using non-print media  ·develop critical perspectives on movie characters adaptation  ·improve their confidence in speaking English Non-print media involved:  ·Photo  ·Movies  ·Electronic Magazine  ·Facebook  ·Websites Requirements:  ·Students work in groups of 4.  ·Each group needs to make a photo album and the photos (not more than 15) need to be chosen from the movie they watch. Task: 1 Present photo captions (15 minutes each group) by using certain language structures (the teacher will give the input before the presentation). Every student need to attend the presentation. 2 Based on the original movie, recreate or delete one character and state reasons. Date Duration Input Output Sep 4th Lesson 1 40 minutes Break 15 minutes The teacher needs to 1 teach students some language structures which are used in photo captions 2 tell students what content and features should be involved in captions The students will 1 understand how to use a one-sentence or two-sentence description in a photo caption 2 know how to use a photo caption to best present the movie theme Lesson 2 40 minutes 3 show some movie segments and choose photos which best present the theme 4 give the examples by using language structures to describe photos Students preparation stage 1 Students review what they learn in class individually. 2 Students discuss which movie they want to choose and what photos best represent the theme. (Remarks: Students can share ideas after class or use online tools such as Facebook because it functions as a discussion board and photo sharing platform. 3 Students can read some electronic magazines because they include the latest news of movies and characters, a great number of photos and film reviews. 4 If necessary, students can ask the teacher questions when they meet difficulties. 5 Each group spends some time rehearsing the presentation. Date Duration Students The teacher Sep 16th Lesson 3 50 minutes Break 15 minutes Continuous 50 minutes 1 play some movie segments and briefly introduce the main theme and content 2 show photos album and use certain language structures to describe the photos 3 Illustrate the reasons why your group recreate or delete one character 4 Other groups students can ask questions if necessary 1 assess each groups presentation 2 ask questions after the presentation Feedback Form: Presentation Group ___ Group members name:___________________ Grade:________ Assessment items Needs improvement Satisfactory Good Excellent Ideas and organisaiton 1 Can use certain language structures to describe photos 2 Can link the movie theme and supporting details to photos 3 Can express reasons why recreate or delete a character 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 Language 1 Can use appropriate words and expressions 2 Can use grammar structure clearly 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 Pronunciation and delivery 1 Can pronounce words clearly and accurately 2 Can speak at a measured pace 3 Can make the voice heard satisfactorily 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 Communicative strategies 1 Can use appropriate body language (i.e. eye contact, movements, gestures) 2 Can use the available time to cover the main point 3 Can finish the presentation in the regulated time 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 Cooperation and Responses 1 Can cooperate with group members fluently 2 Can answer the teacher and other students questions immediately 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 Comment Students feedback form Non-print Media Less use Appropriate use Usually use More often Photo Movies Electronic Magazine Facebook Websites Do you think non-print media is useful in your language learning? If Yes/No, state some reasons. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What difficulties you meet when you start your group work? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ In your mind, what do you need to improve in your final presentation? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What do you learn from this group work? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Do you have any suggestion for the next activity? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Symbolism in August Wilsons Piano Lesson Essay -- August Wilson essay

In The Piano Lesson each central character learns a lesson. August Wilson uses plenty of symbolism throughout his play, the strongest symbol being the piano itself, representing the family's history, their long struggle, and their burden of their race. Throughout the play, the conflict revolves around the piano, and Berniece and Boy Willie's contrasting views about its significance and about what should be done with it. Berniece is ashamed and cannot let go of the past, or the piano, and Boy Willie wants to move his life forward, and use the piano to do so. Wilson portrays the 'lesson' of the piano as accepting and respecting one's past and moving on with one's life gracefully, through Berniece and Boy Willies contrasting actions and the play's climactic resolution. Berniece believes the piano represents the spirits of the past and should be left alone and never bothered, and is afraid to accept or embrace her family?s history. The piano represents a particularly bloody and disturbing past for her. She sees Sutter?s ghost and senses his presence, and is constantly haunted by the thought of the dead spirits coming into her life. She believes the piano stands for the bloodshed in her family?s history, and is ashamed of the violence associated with obtaining it. When encouraged to play the piano, she refuses steadfastly, saying ?that piano?s got blood on it.? She thinks that the spirits in the piano are bad, and is ashamed of the bloodshed they have caused. ?All this killing and thieving,? she exclaims. Berniece also believes the piano has strong sentimental value, and won?t agree to let go of it any way. She remembers how her mother cared so much about it. Berniece says, ?For seventeen years she rubbed on it till her hands bled.... ..., and Boy Willie finally realizes the true power and significance of the piano, the conflict is resolved. Wilson demonstrates how one should accept and respect the past, move on with their life or slow down to pay respects to their family?s history, by describing the struggle over a symbolic object representing the past like the piano. Often people will sulk in the past and struggle with themselves and the people around them when they cannot come to terms with their personal history or a loss. Others will blatantly ignore their personal history and sell valuable lessons and pieces of it for a quick buck to advance their own lives. Berniece and Boy Willie in The Piano Lesson are great examples of these people. Through these contrasting characters and supernatural occurrences, Wilson tells the tale of overcoming and embracing a rough and unsettling family history.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Air Asia Strategic Management Recommendations Essay

Introduction An analysis of the External Environment would be done so as to facilitate a direct comparison between the generic elements where AirAsia has been founded in. The report then would delve into an internal analysis whereby the Porter’s 5 Forces would reiterate the direct forces that would affect the Airline Industry and subsequently, AirAsia itself. The capabilities and core competencies of the firm would be explained in greater detail towards the latter part of the report before a series of analysis would be done to segregate the more influential ones from the rest. A series of strategies would be then recommended for AirAsia to undertake so as to continue building brand awareness and brand equity throughout the world as a low-cost carrier. 1.0 EXTERNAL ANALYSIS 1.1 Industry Identification AirAsia belongs to the airline industry. Competition in the airline industry is very intense and is growing rapidly together with the increase in demand for budget fares across Asia. The different airlines are making use of several strategies to compete with one another in the airline industry and it is crucial for airline companies to identify their competitive advantages so as to be able to achieve profits and brand equity globally. 1.2 External Environment Analysis Political/Legal: Political factors such as changes in regulation and the global trend toward privatisation of government-owned or government-regulated firms have had implications on the general environment. Furthermore, taking budget flights out of Malaysia can be quite a challenge. Many governments have been instrumental in dabbling in the success of airline companies in Asia. Most airline companies in Asia have had full or substantial state ownership as well as management and control. A prime example in Malaysia would be Malaysian Airlines System (MAS). Such companies are often well-subsidized by their governments and do not face much competition. Instead of being profit-oriented, they are more focused on fulfilling national objectives. As such, privatization and de-regulation have paved the way for new routes and airport deals via the use of open skies agreements between countries and permission of entry of private airlines (Dellit 2002) As such, they would give new airlines that are low-cost carriers such as AirAsia, Jetstar and Tiger Airways chances to access domestic routes and tapping into market share of the airline industry. However, in light of globalization, the airline industry has also been hit by threats such as terrorism, accidents, attacks and disasters. A drop in customer confidence in a particular airline company would be detrimental to a company’s profits as well, hence a low cost carrier would be subjected to factors such as aviation restrictions, consumer preferences and geographical infrastructure of Asia (Steverman 2009). To combat such uncertainties, a budget airline company would have to be meticulous in selecting favourable routes in it’s day to day operations so as to avoid any form of possible negative impacts. (Dellit 2002) Economic: Despite standard of living observed to be improving globally, there exist variations within and between countries. Economic downturns in the recent years have cost companies to lose profits in the industry. However, this proved to be an opportunity for budget airlines. The result of the recent global economic downturn which led to a worldwide stock market plunge also caused aircraft leasing costs to be reduced by 40%, and this led to an environment that had lesser competition in the airline industry. This then enabled many budget airlines to lease their aircraft at a cheaper rate, which resulted in cheaper ticket prices for their customers (AirAsia 2009). However, the possible impact of fluctuating oil prices in the economy would take a toll on operation costs when fuel prices appreciate (Milmo 2011). Revenue and profitability of the company as a whole would fall if fuel prices become too high. As such economic factors are not within airline companies’ control and are unavoidable, the opportunities would outweigh the disadvantages, presenting further opportunities for them to continue in its expansion across Asia. During economic downturns, there would be an expected demand for affordable low airfares amongst budget-conscious buyers, especially for travellers who are travelling on leisure (Ernst & Young 2012). Social-Cultural: The changing societal attitudes and cultures such as growing environmental awareness has implications on the emphasis placed on corporate social responsibility. Furthermore, in order to stay globally competitive, firms now have to consider placing more resources into sustaining competitive advantage with being environmental friendly at the same time. Rapid economic growth has also paved the way for a growing middle class within Asia’s large population, especially so in Malaysia (Ernst & Young 2012). Together with the constant and gradual increase in trade and tourism activities within Asia, the demand for travel has also increased. People are now keener on exploring places far away from home and are willing to fork out money for such experiences. In doing so, the idea of low cost airfares that would allow them to save more to spend at holiday destinations is appealing to them (Ernst & Young 2012). The attractiveness of budget airlines lie primarily with their low-ticket prices and hence would present itself as a major opportunity to budget airlines. For an airline to differentiate itself from its competitors, it has to be able to have value-added services apart from low fares to distinguish itself and outstand the rest. This works out to be a competitive advantage, which may present itself as an important factor for airline companies to have so as to succeed as a low cost carrier (DestinAsia 2012). Technological: By utilizing information technology to aid companies in e-transactions and e-commerce activities, the traditional ticketing and travel agent systems were soon replaced by e-ticketing and internet booking systems (Mouawad 2010). This meant that alongside with globalization, even the process of booking tickets have gone through a massive restructuring. Airlines are now able to save the cost of issuing physical tickets and can now do away with large and expensive booking systems as well as tour agency commissions (PRLOG 2010). However, an airline must ensure that it is not over-reliant on the Internet systems as if it is not handled properly, the risk of system destruction and database overload can affect online sales heftily. The technological aspect of the airline business would pose to be a threat if systems are not properly backed up and maintained on a regular basis (Mouawad 2010). Environmental: Global warming has become an increasing issue facing businesses all around the world as there has been increasing number of evidence of rising dangers from the ongoing buildup of human-related harmful greenhouse gases. Global emissions of carbon dioxide experienced a sharp increase peaking in 2010, hence having a greater impact on how most businesses are carried out (The New York Times 2012). Considering the fact that airplanes contribute to a large proportion of about 13% of transport-derived carbon dioxide emissions, is a cause for concern for the airline business (Whitelegg 2000). 1.3 The Industry Environment In order to analyse the attractiveness of the airline industry, Porter’s five forces framework can be employed. This evaluation is crucial to determining the Air Asia’s best strategy later in the report. Bargaining Power of Suppliers: In the airline industry, the suppliers are namely aircraft suppliers and airline employees such as the flight crew and pilots. Depending on the switching costs that are associated with changing airplanes, the bargaining power of the aircraft suppliers will vary. The bargaining power of suppliers is higher when purchasing new airplanes while it is smaller for second-hand airplanes. Labour unions specifically the pilots’ and mechanics’ unions have high bargaining power as their skills are hard to replace. In addition, there has been an observed trend whereby successful union strikes in the airline industry have led to negative abnormal returns (Finance Department Faculty Publications University of Nebraska Lincoln 1991). Furthermore, wage rates accounts for a larger proportion of costs in the airline industries as compared to other industries (Lehn 2000). Bargaining Power of Buyers: The main buyers in the airline industry are passengers consisting of Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) and small business travellers. As the majority of airline customers are unable to organize and coordinate, their bargaining power is low. Furthermore, with the need for organizations to negotiate well in advance and that discounts are dependent on airline expected demand, offers, and decisions forecasts and not so much on buyers, the corporate bargaining power stays low. Besides catering for passenger travel, there is also the cargo transportation whereby bargaining power is increasing with it being one of the key drivers of revenue in the airline industry. Threat of New Entrants: Although there is deregulation and liberalization in the airline industry, there are still high operating costs and upfront costs that may deter entrants such as high fuel operating costs and purchasing price of airplanes (Mint 2012). However the trend of deregulation and liberalization in the airline industry has enabled for new entrants in the industry to enter easily despite the high costs associated with start-up and operating (Moorman 1993). Also, considering that there has been an increase in demand for low-budget air travel coupled with the deregulation, there is increased competition as a result. Hence, the threat of new entrants is moderately high despite the high barriers to entry. Rivalry amongst Existing Firms: As seen from the case, there was a rapid emergence of low cost carriers across Asia as well as the neighbouring regions in a fierce competition to succeed alongside established airlines (Lawton & Doh 2008). Hence, the rivalry amongst firms is observed to be very intense. In the Asia region, other competitors that dominate the airline industry include Scoot, Jetstar, Tiger Airways and in Malaysia itself, Malaysian Airlines (Wassener 2012). Firms can differentiate themselves based on factors such as differentiation and cost leadership. Hence, the choice of providing better service or choosing to lower prices on a further and continual basis are examples of strategies that firms have employed to differentiate themselves from their fellow competitiors. This further reiterates that price competition makes rivalry amongst existing firms very high. Threat of Substitutes: The threat of substitutes for the airline industry is medium as apart from transportation methods such as rail, ship and buses, there is no direct substitute for freight services. This is due to the geographical location of the Asian region in comparison to the United States and the United Kingdom that makes it time consuming to make use of other means of transport (Lawton & Doh 2008). Hence, ferrying customers via air would reiterate that the threat of substitutes for alternative modes of transport is fairly low. However, there are many other substitutes within the airline industry for alternative low budget airlines that offer the same services with no frills and at a low cost for customers (Sreenivasan 2010). In the case of a low-cost leadership strategy that has been adopted by the industry leaders such as AirAsia, other airlines would follow suit in lowering costs to entice their competitors’ customers. Is the Airline Industry Attractive? Investors may find that the airline industry is a slightly volatile investment, however if the airline has a good establishment in the market, and is cost effective and profit generating, this will highly improve industry attractiveness. 1.4 The Competitive Environment There is a current trend of customers who favour low cost airline hence there is an increasingly number of airlines that are offering the same sort of services and products as AirAsia. This led to stiff competition in the airline industry. AirAsia’s direct competitor in this case would be other budget airlines such as Tiger Airways and Jetstar Asia (Sreenivasan 2010). This can be seen by their target market of customers being similar to their competitors across all of these firms and the strategies adopted are often identical to each other (Sreenivasan 2010). As AirAsia is deemed as the lowest cost airline in the world as of 2007, it sustained first-mover advantage, which stemmed from moving directly into undertaking a low-cost leadership initiative (Mahtani 2012). It was only after it happened that that other budget airlines begin to break into the market with replicated strategies. 1.5 Opportunities and Threats Opportunities Stimulated Market Growth: By having a plane ticket cost less than a bus ticket, bus passengers will probably want to switch to air travel. As a result, the demand will increase significantly. This same kind of market stimulation occurred when Ryanair , an Irish low cost airline, was launched. Liberalization of Geographic Markets: Full liberalization of the Asian market would open doors to AirAsia helping them expand their routes. Malaysia’s underdeveloped aviation market: Even though Malaysia’s geography may encourage air travel, a survey held in 2001 showed only 6% of the population was doing so. Therefore, it shows good opportunity for them to promote air travel in their home country. Introduction of Biofuels: Following other airlines initiatives, it is an environmentally-friendly alternative to reduce carbon emissions. Market of Potential Travelers in Indonesia, China and India: Indonesia which is located close to Malaysia has a population of 235 million. These are potential travelers specially with the joint venture already in place. India and China combined have 2.5 billion people. These sizeable markets create a potential to add new routes to and within those countries. Further Expansion into Cargo Tansportation: An agreement with a cargo company was made in 2007 and as stated by AirAsia, it to section of their ancillary income, considerably contributing to the company’s bottom line. Perhaps AirAsia can reach other deals with other cargo companies. Oakland airport: The airport is located on the west coast of the United States and may serve as an entry route into the American market. Passengers would be able to get a connecting flight to many other destinations within the US from there. Threats Firstly, a number of budget airlines would enter the market and become a threat as well existing ones who may become more competitive. At the moment there 50 budget airlines in South, East and Southeast Asia. Secondly, AirAsia may lack bilateral agreements with some counties thus deterring the optimal free flow of passengers. On the other hand, competition in the tourism industry might entice countries to open up their borders. Thirdly, important players from other regions may be willing to join the market posing a threat to AirAsia. Richard Brandson from Virgin Blue, for example, is interested in making investments in a low cost airline in Asia. Lastly, an increase in the cost of fuel may limit the company’s expansion plans as well as compromising the low cost fares brand position they hold. 2.0 INTERNAL ANALYSIS 2.1 The Firm’s Resources: Tangible and Intangible Tangible: AirAsia’s fuel efficient airbus 320 helps to maintain its low-fares brand position and at the same time being environmental friendly. Financially with the company’s IPO, there is capital available for further expansions. In addition, with the company’s hardware costs locked in coupled with the availability through the very strong surge orders that followed, AirAsia’s cost competitiveness and capacity are improved. Intangible: AirAsia has gained great favour with the Malaysian government and this enabled for easier business negotiations and relations in the country. Tony Fernandes, who had started AirAsia, is a valuable asset to the company considering his strong marketing and operational abilities. In addition, Fernandes hired leading low-cost airline experts to restructure the company’s business model and has acquired more valuable assets onboard as such. With AirAsia’s established presence through sponsorship of sports teams such as Manchester United and market leadership in the Malaysian domestic market, they have an advantage over competitors with their brand recognition. The company’s strong relationship with cargo management company, Leisure Cargo, is another intangible resource. Lastly, the airline’s low start-up operating benefit and internet booking and ticketless travel allow for the lowest possible costs structure and low distribution costs respectively. 2.2 Capabilities Identification Use of Information Technology (IT): Making bookings via the internet and having e-transactions for ticketless travels meant that it not only saved customers time but also gave them the convenience of being able to book their travel tickets anywhere and anytime (The Economist 2012). This also helped in reduction of costs when it comes to issuance of tickets and entertaining bookings via the phone or in person. Making use of IT made the overall process fuss-free and easier to handle for the company. Air tickets can also be purchased from designated Automated Teller Machines (ATM) as well as post offices, which showed how far Airasia went in making the purchase of tickets convenient for their patrons. Airasia’s ability to leverage on IT far surpassed its competitors in the field. Transportation Switch: AirAsia also went forth to dominate the domestic market by enticing current and prospective customers to make the switch from road to air transport (Lawton & Doh 2008). This can be seen in low fares that were offered from Kuala Lumpur to Penang, this tactic allowed customers to experience the in-flight comfort of the low cost airlines and boosted publicity for AirAsia (Lawton & Doh 2008). Furthermore, their decision to go into cargo transportation was a significant move in their expansion plans. AirAsia’s Brand Equity: has been rising stealthily throughout the few years that it has established in the airline industry. Having established it’s reputation as the ‘World’s Best Low-Cost Airline’, it has also won many other awards throughout its time in the airline industry (AirAsia 2007). The company’s branding initiatives are deemed to be successful, as they have been continually pushing for aggressive marketing and sustaining their growth organization-wide. (Silverstein 2010) With the airline earning such a reputable name, it has gone into establishing alliances with other airports within and outside it’s geographical region, this further advertises their brand name on a global scale. (Khor et. al 2009) Organizational Structure: The corporate structure of AirAsia is relatively simple and flat as it comprises of few levels of management so as to reduce cost and increase efficiency (AirAsia 2011). The levels of management are streamlined and together with the use of IT, employees are empowered with decision-making skills with only one or two people to report to in the organization structure. Employees are regarded as equals, and inputs are often encouraged regardless of hierarchical positions. Furthermore, as incentives are distributed based on performance of the company, employees are motivated to work harder cohesively. Product development and Innovation: Aircrafts were designed by the company to combat wear and tear as well as costs and reduction of cleaning time. Innovative ideas include setting up their own branded credit card as well as offering corporate travel loyalty points (The Economist 2012). Their aircrafts bear the logo and the name of the company, which makes it a form of advertisement and establishes it’s brand presence in the eyes of the customers (AirAsia 2007). The ‘Fly Thru’ program is an example of an innovative idea developed by the company. It reduces check in time for multiple flights and gives passenger ease of travel from the booking stage to the transit stage, reducing discomfort of having to re-check in at their transit destinations (Periabras 2012). 2.3 Core Competency Analysis From the core competency analysis, it can be deduced that some of the firm’s capabilities outstand others. Brand Equity stands for having a strong brand image and this is deemed to be one of the most sustainable competitive advantage in the long run. Factors such as use of information technology, organizational structure and product development and innovation would also make AirAsia outstand like-minded firms in the airline industry. Whereas transportation switch may be a capability that AirAsia has but it would only sustain the firm on a temporary basis and may be similar to similar capabilities that other companies have. Identifying the more outstanding factors would aid the company in recognizing its sustainable capabilities as the returns would also be higher compared to other factors. 2.4 Value Chain Analysis Primary activities Support activities Firm infrastructure Business strategies; shareholder management; partnership management; relationship building Inbound logistics Monitoring competitors; In-flight catering; flight scheduling Human resource management Pilot and sales force training; in-flight training; career planning; operational training Operations Check-in, baggage handling; bookings; cargo management; coordination of stations and hubs; on-board service; Technological development Computer reservation systems; Flight scheduling system; market research; baggage tracing system Outbound logistics Flight connections; security procedures; baggage systems; commission payments Procurement Monitoring suppliers; branding (online); delivery instruction specification Marketing and sales Advertising and promotion; loyalty card; group sales; online sales; travel agent programs Service Baggage claim service; car and hotel reservation; customer profiling service; customer relationship management 2.5 Weaknesses At the moment AirAsia is disadvantaged in that they have a majority of wide body aircrafts that are not as economical for short haul flights. North American and European low-cost carriers have around 77% narrow-body planes compared to AirAsia’s 29%. In addition, the company is limited in their ability to expand services and volumes due to limited availability of suitable terminals. There needs to be a greater supply of low-cost airlines terminals at national and international airports. These terminals allow low-cost airlines to keep costs down through quick turnaround and taxi times and therefore charging customers cheaper fares. 2.6 SWOT Analysis STRENGTHS  · Lowest cost airline in the world  · Low distribution costs  · Market leader in Malaysia  · Being innovative  · High profit margins – 35%. Amongst highest in the airline industry  · Good brand recognition  · Good management skills WEAKNESSES  · Too many wide body aircrafts instead of narrow body for shorter flights  · Lack of low-cost carriers terminals at national and international airports OPPORTUNITIES  · Stimulated market growth  · Liberalization of geographic markets  · Underdeveloped geographic market in Malaysia  · Use of biofuels; reducing carbon emissions  · Further expansion into cargo transportation  · Large market of potential travelers in Indonesia, China and India  · Oakland airport as a entrance route to the US market THREATS  · Competing budget airlines entering the market  · Lack of bilateral agreement within countries enabling a free flow of passengers  · Important players from other markets willing to join the market  · Increase in fuel cost 3.0 Strategies and Recommendations 3.1 Current Strategies Single Class, Low Fares and No Frills Airasia adopts a single class and no frills service for its airline services. (Airasia 2012) This meant that unlike global airlines, Airasia does not provide meals, entertainment or amenities for its customers. Their sole purpose is charging the customers for the most basic airfreight experience, with the goal of the destination in mind. On the other hand, they do not compromise on customer service as a result of giving reduced cost services. The products offered onboard are also standardized with characteristics that are deemed acceptable to the customers. Establishing ticket prices that are deemed the lowest competitively, Reduced Fixed Costs AirAsia’s strategy is in line with its mission to be the world’s lowest cost airline. (AirAsia 2012) The low cost structure was attributed to the company’s good planning of resources such as fuel consumption and maintenance costs so as to give customers the best yet lowest prices they can offer. (AirAsia 2008) Efficient Distribution System Seats are deemed as single class which means that there is only one class seating and it is not assigned, passengers would seat themselves on a first come first serve basis. This is done so in fairness and to save the hassle of allocating seats on the company’s behalf. (AirAsia 2012) E-ticketing also aids in saving the cost of issuing hardcopy tickets, this makes it convenient for customers and saves costs for AirAsia. (AirAsia 2008) Use of Secondary Airports AirAsia typically operates from secondary airports which mean that they would benefit from lower parking, landing and ground handling fees. Secondary airports are also less busy than main airports with most of them having shorter runways, this in turn reduces fuel consumption during take-off, landing or taxi. Fuel consumption is one of the main expenses that AirAsia has hence this is a beneficial cost saving. (AirAsia 2012) Secondary airports are often closer to urban districts which makes it more appealing to some travellers and hence increases the number of potential customers for the airline. The use of secondary airports help in boosting sales and keeping operating costs low. (AirAsia 2012) Point to Point Network AirAsia adopts a point-to-point network model whereby the flights they embark on are short-haul ones within four-hour radius or less (AirAsia 2008) Their sister airline, AirAsia X would focus more on the longer flight routes, hence the point-to-point network is based on the goal of flying a customer from the origin to the destination. Customer Loyalty Programme – ‘BIG’ AirAsia has implemented a Customer Loyalty Programme named BIG Loyalty Programme which enables for the accumulation of BIG Points and allows for the members to redeem free flights. This programme is also a collaborative approach with other BIG Partners where if customers spend their money at, they are also able to accumulate BIG points. 3.2 Future Strategies Use of E-Commerce AirAsia’s current electronic online booking system expanded to cater to different payment methods like billing and settlement plan (BSP) and computer reservation system (CRS) channels after they realized that sticking to the direct-sales only channel was a self-destructive strategy. This has created an ease of booking for customers. However, to further enhance the organization’s IT capabilities, AirAsia can hire an IT expert team to oversee the electronic commerce systems, improve web design, and include more payment methods as deemed fit. As AirAsia operates in a fast-moving services industry, the IT expert team will then meet up regularly to review the electronic commerce systems, gather the problems that surface, and provide consolidated solutions and recommendations to each problem. In addition, AirAsia has adapted Revenue Management Systems, Inc. (RMS) as their revenue management partner and selected airRM as its revenue management system (Revenue Management Systems, Inc. 2012). This has led to the organization’s ability to analyze historical data and forecast demand in order to create efficiency and hence cost savings (AirAsia 2007). In addition to this already set up system, there could be a collaboration of the IT expert team with the financial and marketing team to determine the most effective way to management inventory and revenue besides just leaving it to the IT expert team. Undoubtedly, there will be risks and barriers that will be faced when implementing these suggested strategies. One of the potential risks of E-Commerce is the fact that it increases the possibility of making wrong decisions and the impact is usually huge and swift (International Symposium on Government in E-Commerce Development 2001). Another barrier could be the culture barrier between the different functional teams (i.e. marketing, financial, IT team) that could possibly cause the collaboration of the teams to be unsuccessful. As a result, this could lead to wastage of resources. In-Flight Advertising Initiatives It is essential for AirAsia to continue building on its brand image and brand equity as it is deemed to be a capability that would not only bring in the revenue but would also establish AirAsia as a niche budget airline across households. This can only be done through further advertising and marketing initiatives. In-flight marketing is an ideal way for AirAsia to reach out to its first-timer flyers and possible returners to continue flying with AirAsia (Kirby 2010). Discounted tickets, package holidays and credit points brought forward from previous travels with AirAsia would entice customers into flying more with AirAsia. This can be done within the aircraft where customers would not be able to leave the premises (Leslie n.d). Such marketing initiatives can be incorporated into mini leaflets or flyers so that customers can explore their future holiday options on board the flight to their current holiday destination. Furthermore, flyers onboard have a receptive mindset which is due to the fact that they are excited about the new destination that they would be heading to therefore advertising to such a target audience would bring forth more responsive results (Leslie n.d). Implementing this initiative would require documents to be printed in precise and bold as well as eye-catching manner that would seize the attention of the flyers on board. It has to be attractive so that customers would enquire about it and not just take a quick glance before chucking it aside. Further reiteration can be done by in-flight staff, which could bring personal marketing into this initiative by offering their knowledge upon request. It is an inexpensive procedure for certain in-flight advertising products and it would require more initiation from interested customers. This method is ideal compared to the more expensive ideas that would require mass media for advertising purposes. In-flight advertising can take the form of magazines, radio, video or catalogs. The downside of running this strategy an in-flight marketing initiative would be the reduced target audience, which stems from having an outreach that is only aircraft wide. Limited availability of flyers on flights that are emptier compared to other flights would make the advertising initiatives redundant. Furthermore, it could incur the irritation of customers who may wish to rest and not have to deal with anything else on the flight. In-flight initiatives such as radio and videos would incur higher costs as compared to paper advertising on catalogs and magazines. Furthermore, if the advertising placement is too intrusive, consumers may in return develop negative attitudes towards AirAsia’s marketing regimes. Use of Biofuels Brazilian airlines as well as American, Canadian, German, French, Australian within many others around the world have started using or have plans on using biofuels (Lane 2012). In Asia, specifically, Thailand and Indonesia announced plans of moving towards aviation biofuels (Lane 2012). AirAsia could join the group: Sustainable Aviation Fuel Users Group (SAFUG) formed in 2008. It may be an alternative when oil prices will likely continue to rise and it is environmentally friendly, therefore they will be able to increase the number of passengers without increasing carbon emissions (Wassener 2011). Since many airlines have started or plan on switching to this kind of fuel, perhaps supply may not be enough and prices go up with high demand (Wassener 2011). Another risk would be the fact that if you are using edible crops to produce biofuel, food prices may go up. Moreover, in an attempt to increase production getting more land, natural habitats might be destroyed by deforestation (Gao, Skutsch, Masera & Pacheco 2011). Finally, a proportion of the market may be skeptical of flying on aircrafts utilizing aviation biofuels. Aggressive Promotional Campaigns AirAsia can continue creating aggressive promotional campaigns as ‘Malaysia with love’. It will make them standout in the competitive airline market. Due to the fact that social media is so widely used nowadays, social media campaigns and efforts are an excellent idea to increase brand awareness and recognition. Statistics show that 58% of firms who have used social media for over 3 years have reported an increase in sales over that period and 85% of businesses say they have had an increase in market exposure (Forbes 2012). Delta Airlines, for example, has introduced bookings through Facebook perhaps AirAsia can do the same or simple create an innovative campaign (The Independent 2010). Risks to the implementation of social media promotional campaigns is the fact that rival low cost-carriers may decide to copy this strategy allowing them to gain market exposure as well and consequently steal market share if their efforts prove to be more successful. In addition, customers who may have had bad experiences with the company will have the story quickly spread in social media networks, making it more harder for firms to contain negative publicity. References AirAsia 2008, AirAsia wins Airline Strategy Award: Finance Category Real 5 Star carrier gets Real 5 Star honour! Available from: . 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