CEO Pay Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

CEO Pay - Essay Example The average CEO of a Standard & Poor's 500 company made $11.75 million in total compensation in 2005, according to a preliminary analysis by The Corporate Library. And that's just their annual take. At a time when most working families are looking at shrinking retirement nest eggs, many CEOs also have negotiated golden retirements for themselves3. The Top 6 companies noted to have offered the biggest compensation packages to their CEOs includes: Pfizer, Exxon Mobile, AT&T, IBM and Home Depot Inc, this is according to the recently published in AFL-CIO, America/s Union Movement. But how are CEOs being compensated We may ask. According to CNN/Money Staff writer Jake Ulick, these days, few corporate executives are doing the same despite a stretch of falling profits, rising job cuts and sinking stock prices. But a small dose of sobriety has emerged as companies reveal how they compensated their top executives last year. After enjoying a $17 million bonus in 2001 (Ulick. 2003), Sandy Weill, chief executive of Citigroup Inc. (C: Research, Estimates), took no bonus last year, when company shares fell 30.3 percent. The CEO of Eli Lilly (LLY: Research, Estimates), Sydney Taurel, earned a symbolic $1 salary in 2002 and was given options to buy 350,000 Lilly shares if they rise some 29 percent. The CEO of Oracle (ORCL: Research, Estimates), who took stock options but no salary and bonus last year (Ulick. 2003). Median executive compensation fell by 10.1 percent last year to $7.3 million, according to Equilar, which analyzed 161 proxies from Standard & Poor's 500 comp anies submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission. But the figures from Equilar, a compensation research firm, also showed that median salaries plus bonus actually rose 3.7 percent to $1.56 million in 2002, after subtracting the value of stock option and restricted stock grants (Ulick. 2003). Thus shows how the executive are paid.Another survey concurred. The highest-paid U.S. executives received a 5.9 percent increase in total cash compensation last year, according to the Executive Compensation Index. The figures, from the Economic Research Institute, found that executive compensation grew faster than annual company revenue, which rose 0.89 percent in 2002 (Ulick. 2003). CEOs running 100 of the USA's biggest companies pulled in median 2002 compensation of $33.4 million, essentially unchanged from 2001, based on an exclusive database analysis by USA TODAY and the Investor Responsibility Research Center, a corporate-governance watchdog. Conclusions say that CEO salaries and bonuses surged 15% in a year salaries for rank-and-file workers averaged 3.2% gains; that Instead of stock options, many companies gave CEOs large blocks of restricted shares, less risky equity stakes. Among 36% of CEOs receiving them, the median value was $2.9 million; that More than 90% received fresh stock-option grants, with a median potential value of $23.2 million while nearly one-third pulled in compensation valued at $50 million or more. Even at companies where pay fell, pay packages remained large. PepsiCo CEO Steve Reinemund's pay package fell 62%, but was a still-impressive $76.5 million (Strauss & Hansen. 2003) Economists have determined that not only is there a strong statistical link between firm performance and executive compens

Decision-Making Model Essay Example for Free

Decision-Making Model Essay The human decision-making process has been described by the development of several frameworks. The alternative for the maximize utility of the decision is selected by a fully informed, as well as, knowledgeable decision maker in the Rational Model. A satisfactory decision alternative is sought by the decision maker due to the causes of time, information, and space constraints according to the Bounder Rationality Model. It is hypothesized by the Organizational Model that available procedures are used by the decision maker for the solution of problems of decisions in a continuously updated organizational memory. Conflicting values and interests are confronted by the decision makers in the Muddling through Model, and an incremental improvement in the outcome is achieved by the selection of alternative with minimal organizational changes. An intermeshing of problems, solutions, and decision maker interest are represented by decisions that are forced by social and political factors in an anarchistic environment according to the Garbage Can Model. The criteria are met best by the identification of alternative with the use of relationship that is made between the criteria, events, and alternative by the decision maker in the Classical Decision Theory Model. During the selection process, conflicting constraints can be confronted by the decision maker, as intangible or tangible criteria would have to be dealt in uncertain events. The situation is assessed, a single alternative is generated and evaluated, and alternative for a satisfactory solution of the problem is selected by the decision makers according to the Naturalistic Decision-Making Model. Outcomes of the decision-making process are focused by some of the proposed models like Classical and Rational Decision Theory formulations. A limited set of decision activities is highlighted by other models like Bounded Rationality Models and Naturalistic Decision-Making Models. A comprehensive and integrated view of decision-making has been offered by none of the proposals. In addition, not all the situations of the decision-making can be applied with any formulations of these proposals. For instance, operational and tactical decisions can be applied with the Organizational Model. However, strategic decisions cannot be applied with this model due to incomplete understanding of the problem, as well as, limited availability of the knowledge of the problem. In this regard, the most popular model of the human decision-making process has been the three-phase paradigm of design, intelligence, and choice by the Simon. Virtually, all other proposed frameworks have been implied by this most general paradigm. However, an implementation phase of the Simon’s formulation has been concluded with the expansion of such scrutiny. Reality is observed by the decision maker during the intelligence phase. A fundamental understanding regarding the existing problems, as well as, new opportunities is gained by the maker. In addition, the general quantitative and qualitative information is acquired by the decision maker for the addressing of different opportunities, as well as, the problems. In the design phase, a specific and precise model is developed by the decision-maker, by which, the discovered problems and opportunities are examined systematically. Decision alternatives, uncontrollable events, criteria, and numerical, as well as, symbolic relationships will be consist in this model. The ensuing choice phase constitutes of the generation of recommended actions from the evaluation of the specified alternatives by the usage of explicit models logically. The analyses and recommendations are pondered by the decision maker during the subsequent implementation phase. In this regard, the consequences are weighed, and sufficient confidence is gained in the decision-making process. In addition, an implementation plan is developed, financial, human, and material resources are secured, the plan is put into the action. After the implementation of the final choice, the new reality should be observed by the decision maker. In addition, intelligence, design, choice, and implementation should be regarded and followed by the decision maker. Moreover, the need for revisions at preceding phases might be suggested by the phase’s analyses. For instance, adjustments of the previous design might be necessitated by the analyses during the choice. Conceptually, individual or group decision-making is applied with the decision-making process in the same manner. In practice, the communication-intensive aspects of cooperative problem solving must be accommodated by the group decision-making. In addition, voting, ranking, rating, and other consensus-developing methodologies should be supported by the usage of structured techniques. Group and organizational collaboration support should be provided by the development of this consensus. Decision-making model can be operated by the use of a variety of measures. Outcomes are dealt by some measures, and process outcomes are involved by the others. Positive decision outcomes can include: Increases in returns, costs reduction, and increment in the flow of information are some of the examples of the gains in the performance of the organization. When the understanding of a person regarding a current problem, as well as, its solution is developed, the decision-maker’s maturity develops. In addition, the improvement of the general problem-solving skills also results in the maturation of the decision-maker. Objectively, recording can be done regarding the number of opportunities, problems, as well as, alternatives. Experts, as well as, person’s evaluations can assess such efforts and subjective assessments. In expert’s evaluations, practice would be observed by the experienced decision makers and the examinee’s efforts will be rated. In this regard, a structured rating form will be used for its support. The examinees are used by the directed self-examinations, and a facilitator is used for the purpose of guidance. In some decision-making situations, the improvement of the organizational performance becomes impossible due to the competition, internal restrictions, external constraints, and several other factors. Under these circumstances, the main decision outcome will be the learning, training, and various other beneficial side effects during the maturation of the decision maker. Process Enhancements in the ability of a person or group are involved in the process improvements for the implementation of the phases and steps in the decision-making process. Experts, as well as, person’s evaluations can assess such efforts and with the help of subjective assessments. In expert’s evaluations, practice would be observed by the experienced decision makers and the proficiency of the examinee during each phase and step of the decision-making process will be rated. In this regard, a structured rating form will be used for its support. The examinees are used by the directed self-examinations, and a facilitator is used for the purpose of guidance. The use of accounting tools is involved in the process tracing, in which, the decision aid is embedded for the recording, as well as, reporting of the actions of the examinee during the decision-making process. In addition, the process enhancements may be manifested through: The time that is needed during the structuring of the problem by the user is reduced in a hike in personal efficiency. In addition, in a given time period, the number of alternatives is increased during the evaluation of the user, which is also an example of the hike in personal efficiency. The time of the decision-making is reduced, and the amount of pertinent information is increased from the decision-making is an improvement in the personal productivity. Objectively, recording can be done regarding the time and number of evaluated alternatives. Expert, as well as, direct self-evaluations by the activity of an individual or group can assess the amount of pertinent information, wisdom, and knowledge, that is, subjective assessments. In any particular management situation, more importance might be given to the support for some phases, as compared with the support for others. The process should be improved for at least the relevant phases by a given aid in the decision-making process. The decision outcome and process measures have been summarized in the Table 1. In addition, the measurements have been obtained by the available approaches, which have also been summarized in the table. As such, a series of guidelines has been offered by the table for the operation of the decision-making process. For instance, the implementation phase of the decision-making process consists of confidence and commitment of the decision maker. The performance of the decision maker during these steps is measured by the process tracing, expert ratings, and directed self-evaluations, as indicated by the Table 1.

Effect of Adrenaline on Cardiac Arrests Survival

Effect of Adrenaline on Cardiac Arrests Survival Effect of Adrenaline on Survival in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrests: A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Trial Hem Patel The study shepherded by Jacobs et al juxtaposed the effect of adrenaline on survival in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests with a randomized double-blind placebo controlled trial. This study was the first of its kind to address the knowledge deficit of two majors goals: survival of the patient to a hospital discharge and return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). Cardiac arrest occurring out of hospital is a significant public health issue causing fatality rates upwards of 90%, although improving in the recent decades.1 Thus, the researchers analytically examined the relationship between the uses of adrenaline in such patients through a randomized control led trial (RCT) in the region of Western Australia (WA), under government contract with St John Ambulance Western Australia (SJA-WA). Being on top of the studies’ hierarchy, RCT studies like this one, quite evidently fortified the experiment’s internal validity. The creation of comparable groups in the study allowed the control of confounding variables enhancing the internal validity. An investigationRandomized controlled trials, such aslike RCTthis one, decreases the sampling bias by decreasing the likelihood of chance results occurring, thus enhancing the internal validity of the study. which was evident in the Jacob study. Logistic regression modeling further augmented this investigation The investigation was further augmented by logistic regression modeling which was undertakenin order to control for the effect of potential confounders1 (i.e. the patients’ initial cardiac rhythm, age and ambulance response time). on the relationship between study drug and patient outcome.1 Although, as a result of a small sample size, often the case with RCTs, and specific geographical demographics, limited external validity was a given. Low external validity was evident in this study as only one major hospital in the region of WA took part in it. The other hospitals requested did not participate due to rejection from their hospital ethics board.This was evident in this study as four of the five hospitals requested to participate felt the ethicality of the study superseded their own ethical board, negatively. Hence, the total number of patients being able to participate in this study had quite drastically decreased, in turn hampering the power of the study. However, two very crucial experimental qualities in high precision and internal validity were upheld consistently throughout the experiment, in spite of the very limited external validity. All out-of-hospital cardiac arrests attended by SJA-WA paramedics between 11 August 2006 and 30th November 2009 were screened into the experiment for entry into the trialwere entered into the trial.1.1 Patients suffering a cardiac arrest from any cause, aged 18 years or older with resuscitation commenced by paramedics were eligible for entry as well; indicating a moderately strict eligibility and inclusion criteria. Patients were excluded based on having no resuscitation commenced, were of an age less than 18 years, and eligible patients’ personal declination. n and randomization number of patient lost/As noticed, the external validity along with confounding bias of the study decreased due to the increased criterion required for a patient to take part in the trial. It may look as if few categories were used to determine the eligibility of the patient, though many factors such as patient age, male gender, bystander witnessed, response interval, and the study drug were accounted for through univariate analysis. The only confounding variable, which was accounted for, stated by the study is the factor of initial shockable rhythm (when a particular type of cardiac rhythm is treatable using a defibrillation) – one that is not very significant (p-Value of 0.24) in changing the efficacy of adrenaline in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. Being able to eliminate thisese potential confounding variables and biases, internal validity increased showing that the lack of a causal relationship between effect of adrenaline and cardiac arrests was less likely to be an upshot of an uncontrolled confounding variable, rather than one accounted for. In regards to a This studyRCT study, has a sample size of 534 patients, one that is of a moderate size in comparison to other RCT studies., out of whichOut of 534 patients, 272 were randomly assigned to the group being treated with adrenaline and 262 to that of the placebo group.1.1 As eEach of the patients had an completely equal chance to be presented with either of the treatments, and this randomization of the participants controlled for a potentiality of a sampling bias – a chance yet again enhancing the internal validity. Additionally, although very diminutive confounding bias was associated with this study, the potential of selection bias was still present as the study took place only in Western Australia. it was unable to exclude the potential for selection bias as the participation in the study by the SJA-WA paramedics was voluntary, only 40% of eligible patients were recruited. However, trial patients were well matched on baseline characteristics (age p-value of 0.69, location of arrest p-value of 0.25, volume of trial drug versus placebo drug administered p-value of 0.28).1 , Henceforth, no reason to suggest that paramedics who participated in the trial were more likely to selectively enroll patients into the trial.1 . Furthermore, to reduce the possibility of confounding bias, all paramedics in WA underwent the same type of training familiarizing them of this trial protocol; even if they were not participating in the actual experiment. This further enhanced the internal validity of the study. As mentioned above, as resuscitation commenced by paramedics, the patients were eligible for entry, where if they were administered adrenaline it would be at a rate of 1mL every 3 minutes, with no other drugs entering through tracheal administration. Prior to the commencement of each trial to be presented with an equal chance of the level of treatment for each of these patients specific training of the pharmacology of adrenaline, familiarization with the trial protocol, further practice in intravenous cannulation and cardiac simulation exercises along with testing was undertaken to ensure the prerequisite resuscitation competency standard had been achieved. This training was provided to all of the paramedics in the WA area regardless of their intention to participate in the study; being able to decline confounding bias from the patient-care givers’ aspect, enhancing the internal validity.Analyzed above in this critical appraisal are many aspects of the study that allow for a s tudy it to be very well received by majority of the readers, although there were a couple of limitations. Firstly, the researchers were unable to achieve full patient recruitment as planned (4103 patients who had cardiac arrests attended by an ambulance). This study was designed as a multicenter trial involving a five-ambulance service. , Ddespite having ethical approval from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of WA, four out of five hospitals opted out.otherwise. Thus, giving this gave the study a moderate sample size, increasing the chance of making a type two error and ; essentially decreasing both the internal validity and the power of the study. The failure to achieve an adequate sample size left the trial underpowered (power of 40%) to detect significant effects on survival to hospital discharge.1 The second limitation to the study was the ability for it to continue, as the study experimental drugs had gone past their expiry date and no additional funding wa s available. Granted,ing the patient as well as researcher blinding was well preserved in this study such that, the researchers can consider the likelihood of these factors being differentially distributed between the two study arms (placebo vs. adrenaline) to be small.1 The researchers claim that there is a significant (3.4 times) increase in the likelihood of achieving ROSC pre-hospital if the patients were administered adrenaline versus the placebo (23.5% versus 6.4%; OR 3.4; 95% CI 2.0-5.6; p-value 1).1 They base this conclusion on the oOdds ratio (OR), which were used to quantify the odds of achieving ROSC pre-hospital depending on the administration of the placebo or the adrenaline. how strongly the presence of the outcome was associated with the presence of the administered adrenaline versus the placebo saline solution2. After adjustment for confounders (age, sex, initial rhythm shockable, ambulance response interval and study drug) using the logistic regression model, there was little change in the effect of adrenaline on ROSC (OR. 3.5; 95% CI 2.1-6.0).1 The degree of precision that a study maintains is defined by a confidence interval. The experimenters claim that they are 95% confident that the odds ratio of being ROSC pre-hospital with the administration of adrenaline is between 2.1 and 6.0 indicates a moderately definite statement (explained further). However, there was insignificant evidence (OR 2.2; 95% CI 0.7 – 6.3; p-value 0.15) of the patient administered with adrenaline versus placebo to survive until hospital discharge. Because 1.0 is included in the confidence interval, the researchers acknowledge it as not statistically significant. However, from a clinical standpoint, 3.5 times greater chances of the patient achieving ROSC are significant and one should definitely consider applying such a method, if in the position to do so. Results indicated the OR for ROSC achieved pre-hospital patients at 3.4 (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.0-5.6; P saline placebo. The outcomes dictate an approximate 16% greater advantage of a chieving ROSC pre-hospital with the administration of adrenaline than having the placebo. Statistical significance is generally considered at 20%, but in aspects dealing with topic as such, upwards of 5% could statistically mean more to the medical community; allowing to save more lives.3 At an OR of 2.2 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.7 – 6.3; P = 0.15) indicates no difference between the two testing groups with the p-value greater than that of the alpha value of 0.05. Results are further negatively supported by the CI including the value of 1, demonstrating statistical insignificance; decreasing the study’s precision in this aspect of the outcome, although balanced by the significance in the previous outcome. The findings of this study are equivocal to several other clinical trials designed the to assess the efficacy of adrenaline in cardiac arrest. The most dominant feature about this study is that it is the first ever-randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial of adrenaline in cardiac arrest, while others all have been non-randomized trials. Similar results were replicated through the Rresearch conducted by Olasveengen et al. also His study reported a doubling in the proportion of patients achieving ROSC with an OR of 1.99 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.48-2.67), and achieving similar non-significant increasing results in the proportion surviving to hospital discharge4..4 Although, Jacob’s study, although further expanded on the generality of the efficacy of drug to locations of arrests, ambulance response interval, cardiac arrest witnessed (bystander and paramedic) and airway management; bringing greater appreciation to this study..1 Three sources of Mill’s Canons were evidently utilized to support the causality. The strength of association was statistically significant, as noted by the greater effect of adrenaline in ROSC being achieved pre-hospital transportation. An increase dosage of adrenaline would directly increase ROSC, and possibly an increase number of patients survive to hospital discharge.1, 5Adrenaline stimulates ÃŽ ²-adrenergic receptors which stimulate the increase of blood flow indicates the final Mill’s Canon in biological plausibility. Thus, it can be noticed that a causal relationship can be agreed upon adrenaline and increased ROSC being achieved pre-hospital. Jacobs points out the importance of his study’s contribution to clinical research on adrenaline usage during cardiac arrests, and at the same provides suggestions to further research avenues. To be able to determine the optimal dose or timing of adrenaline administered during cardiac arrest are the two main areas of further research. In my opinion, the study was done welldone, extremely well, providing sufficient evidence for a relationship between the adrenaline and an increase ROSC in 18 and above out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. With the elimination of a majority of the biases, through the use ofwith logistical regression and creating comparable groups (placebo versus adrenaline), internal validity and the precision of the study was enhanced. .The findings of this study are clinically important in that it established efficacy for the continuous use of adrenaline in cardiac arrest as currently recommended.5 With a study related to such a topic, the sample size should adequa tely be increased to allow for a greater power and external validity in the study; allowing a generalization to a greater portion of the public. References Jacobs IG, Finn JC, Jelinek GA, Oxer HF, Thompson PL. Effects of adrenaline on survival in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial.resuscitation2011; 82: 1138-1143. Szumilas, M. Explaining odds ratios.National Center for Biotechnology Information2010; 19(3): 227-229. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2938757/ (accessed 28 October 2014). Pocock, SJ. Clinical trials with multiple outcomes: a statistical perspective on their design, analysis, and interpretation.Elsevier1997; 97. Olasveengen TM, Sunde K, Brunborg C, Thowsen K, Steen PA, Wik I. Intravenous drug administration during out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: a randomized trial.JAMA2009; 302: 2222-2229. Vandycke C, Martens P. High dose versus standard dose epinephrine in cardiac arrest a meta-analysis.Resuscitation2000; 45: 161-166

Essay --

Postpartum depression affects 8-15% of mothers within a few days or weeks after giving birth. Some mothers experience a mild form of this disorder, while others experience a more rare and intense version. This intensified postpartum depression is known as postpartum psychosis. According to the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law, Nau, McNiel, and Binder (2012) express â€Å"Postpartum psychosis occurs in 1-2 of 1,000 births and frequently requires hospitalization to stabilize symptoms.† These symptoms include: Hallucinations, restlessness, disturbed sleep, insomnia, drastic mood or behavior change, delusional thinking, thoughts of suicide or death, and extreme depression. In The Journal of Women's Health, Sit, Rothschild, and Wisner described postpartum psychosis as â€Å"an overt presentation of bipolar disorder that is timed to coincide with tremendous hormonal shifts after delivery†. Approximately 72%-88% of mothers who experience postpartum ps ychosis (PP) have bipolar illness, schizo-affective disorder or a family history of either which is why PP is classified as a psychotic disorder by the APAA. Many women who are affected by postpartum psychosis are too afraid or embarrassed to come forward and claim the disorder. This is dangerous for both mother and child(ren) as the disorder has a 5% suicide rate and a 4% infanticide rate. Even if there is no physical harm done to the child there may be emotional harm. The behaviors that are exhibited by the mother to the child may â€Å"interfere with the children's emerging cognitive skills...†(Sohr-Preston & Scaramella, 2006). It has been theorized both before and after birth the mothers' health, physical and emotional, may affect the child's cognitive skills later in li... ...omeone do this to their child?†. There have been many similar cases where the mother was found not guilty, so why was Yates found guilty? The answer may come from the website Andrea Yates: Ill or Evil? â€Å"In America, there are no clear standards in court for dealing with mentally ill mothers—not even in the same city.† This is a sad, but true statement. People tend to use their own morals and experiences as how they perceive things. Of course what Andrea Yates did was wrong, but she was also seriously ill. Postpartum psychosis is an extremely scary and dangerous disorder. PP is treatable, however there are no guidelines for treatment at this time. Most patients have been treated using a combination of pharmaceuticals and psychotherapy. Even though treatment options are still being evaluated, the sooner any treatment starts the better off mother and child are.

Characterization of Tom in “The Great Gatsby” Essay

In the first three chapters of The Great Gatsby by F.Scott Fitzgerald, he characterized Tom Buchanan as violently aggressive in order to show the kind of man that had turned out from the Ivy League school and have contributed to two different social classes. For example, in the first chapter of the book, Nick introduces us couple of characters as well as Tom Buchanan and he says the following â€Å"Now he was a sturdy straw-haired man of thirty with a rather hard mouth and a supercilious manner. Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance over his face and gave him the appearance of always leaning aggressively forward† (pg.7). We are told that Tom has a hard mouth and arrogant eyes. He is said to be always leaning forward aggressively, making up for the unmanly clothes he’s wearing at the time and very muscular with a â€Å"cruel† body. Nick describes Tom looking aggressive just by his looks without any further detail of how he acted aggressively. As a graduate from a prestigious school, Tom would be expected to be more characterized as a good, pleasant character when describing an educated man, however Tom was the opposite and Fitzgerald does this to show that the characteristic of a man does not depend on the school they had attended and graduated from. Furthermore, in chapter 2 it is proven that Tom is violent â€Å"Sometime toward midnight Tom Buchanan and Mrs. Wilson stood face to face, discussing in impassioned voices weather Mrs. Wilson had any right to mention Daisy’s name†¦I’ll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai- Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand† (pg.37). At their little gathering party, Tom there breaks his lover, Myrtles, nose just because Myrtle had not stopped chanting Daisy’s name even if she had been warned by Tom before. Tom expresses his aggressiveness when he becomes violent when Myrtle does not stop. Fitzgerald is showing that not all man graduating from Ivy League school such as (Yale, Oxford, and Princeton) are all well-mannered, with a good characteristic as one would think.

The crop protection industry Essay Example

The crop protection industry Essay Example The crop protection industry Essay The crop protection industry Essay The AHP firm Cynamid was purchased by German based company BASF in 2000. This purchase results in a reduction of the competitive ability of AHP and increases the threat posed by BASF. Previously Monsanto had entered agreements with Cynamid in which they were able to sell glyphosphate for use in the herbicide created by Cynamid called Extreme. This increase in the products ability to provide protection is an example of Cynamids focus strategy, providing particular customers with their specific needs. BASF is a major power in the pharmaceutical organisation with many branches into different areas of research. While this draws on its resources it also provides substantial revenue for RD which is essential in the biotechnology industry. More recently BASF claims to be aiming to remain the worlds leading chemical company. (Dorothe Myer 2005) They intend to do this by helping customers and providing sustainable development. While farmers who purchase technologies may want to produce the best yields they also want their customers to be happy with their products. For this reason the strategy BASF is adopting is appropriate for achieving future profits. Monsanto focuses its business on agricultural crop growers. It exceeds in this industry and has obtained a large amount of revenue due to its creation of the Roundup herbicide. Novartis is not completely concerned with crop protection but concentrates on health products. It does not focus solely on crop protection and I dont believe they pose the most significant threat to the market share of Monsanto. BASFs firm Cynamid has developed products that directly impact Monsantos market share. The organisation accumulates large revenues each year and through this revenue can spend more on RD then less successful companies. These revenues are spent over a number a more substantial area as BASF is involved in more industries then crop protection. I dont believe that they are the most significant threat to Monsanto as they have just acquired Cynamid and are not as established as some other organisations in the crop protection industry. DuPonts firm Pioneer focuses on crop protection and in the past has developed useful and profitable products using Monsantos glyphosphate ingredient. Although it has proved competitive it has used Monsantos technology to its advantage and has increased profits partly due to Monsantos patent conclusion. Pioneer is still a threat but I do not believe it is as much a threat as the established Syngenta organisation. Syngenta is another competitor of Monsanto that focuses solely on crop protection. It is a greater threat to Monsanto as it has worldwide operations with high revenues and continually innovative products. Syngenta had sales in 2004 equal to approximately US$7. 3 billion. (Syngenta 2005) It has also been granted recent court ruling that allow it to enter markets and compete with Monsanto. (Corey Gillam 2004) Syngenta is also responsible for releasing a new combination product called LOMAX which provides season long control of broadleaf weeds and grasses. (Syngenta2005) I believe Syngenta has the resources to create innovative products and threaten any thoughts of a monopoly by Monsanto. It is a well established organization with the revenue and technology to expand in the crop protection industry.

Free Essays on Aunt Julia And The Scripwriter

1. Point of view Characterization Imagery Magical realism 2. Pablo Enrique Manuel Hernandez was on his way to the biggest game of his life. He was once the most famous and best basketball player around. But then the tragedy happened. Today, he was a man who had reached the prime of his life, his fifties, and in his person-broad forehead, aquiline nose, a penetrating gaze, and the very sole of rectitude and goodness. However today Pablo was not going to play in the game today, but to coach it. 3. The narrators of this novel are Mario Vargas Llosa, Marito, and Pedro Camacho. Each one of these narrators is there for a different purpose. Pedro serves the purpose of writing magical realism and adding comedy to the work. And since this work is semi-autobiographical Mario Vargas Llosa is in a way talking through Marito. Marito brings a sense of reality to the story. 4. Sgt. Lituma is a minor character that appears repeatedly throughout the even chapters. The one thing that seams constant throughout the even chapters is that Lituma remains a character with high moral standards. This is important to the book, because in the even chapters he is just about the only one who has any morals. 5. Big Pablito is a minor character found throughout the odd chapters. He is important to the novel from a social standpoint. He was pretty much a nobody lackey at the radio station throughout the novel. At the end of the book though, you come to find out he has become a very successful man. 6. The unique structure in this novel is very noticeable. Every other chapter was about something totally different. They are connected because as Pedro is going insane in the chapters narrated by Marito, the characters in Pedro’s serials were getting increasingly getting mixed up. 7. This novel exhibits several different traits of Latin American culture. The novel shows that it might be a cultural norm fo... Free Essays on Aunt Julia And The Scripwriter Free Essays on Aunt Julia And The Scripwriter 1. Point of view Characterization Imagery Magical realism 2. Pablo Enrique Manuel Hernandez was on his way to the biggest game of his life. He was once the most famous and best basketball player around. But then the tragedy happened. Today, he was a man who had reached the prime of his life, his fifties, and in his person-broad forehead, aquiline nose, a penetrating gaze, and the very sole of rectitude and goodness. However today Pablo was not going to play in the game today, but to coach it. 3. The narrators of this novel are Mario Vargas Llosa, Marito, and Pedro Camacho. Each one of these narrators is there for a different purpose. Pedro serves the purpose of writing magical realism and adding comedy to the work. And since this work is semi-autobiographical Mario Vargas Llosa is in a way talking through Marito. Marito brings a sense of reality to the story. 4. Sgt. Lituma is a minor character that appears repeatedly throughout the even chapters. The one thing that seams constant throughout the even chapters is that Lituma remains a character with high moral standards. This is important to the book, because in the even chapters he is just about the only one who has any morals. 5. Big Pablito is a minor character found throughout the odd chapters. He is important to the novel from a social standpoint. He was pretty much a nobody lackey at the radio station throughout the novel. At the end of the book though, you come to find out he has become a very successful man. 6. The unique structure in this novel is very noticeable. Every other chapter was about something totally different. They are connected because as Pedro is going insane in the chapters narrated by Marito, the characters in Pedro’s serials were getting increasingly getting mixed up. 7. This novel exhibits several different traits of Latin American culture. The novel shows that it might be a cultural norm fo...

BMW Luxury Cars

BMW Luxury Cars The core customer value for BMW luxury cars are prestige and hi-tech performance in their endeavors. Having full understanding of the specific needs of their target group, BMW has largely considered the psychographic factors of its customers.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on BMW Luxury Cars specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More As it has been revealed, BMW targets active individuals who have achieved success at their early age, desiring prestigious and super-performing luxury cars like themselves. Notably, the customers of BMW are technology oriented and very active in their life-time, as they pursue success in their ventures. In this regard, the brand seeks to establish strong relationship with its customers by providing them with the driving experience they desire in their life-time. As it has been revealed, the luxury cars having the BMW brand name are in three series including MBW 3, MBW 5 and MBW 7. These three series of the MBW brand are the ultimate core aspects for maintenance of customer loyalty to the BMW luxury cars. More specifically, the MBW 3 series provides its users with extra-ordinary performance as it is made to facilitate self actualization among the customer target base. Precisely, BMW 3 series seeks to establish trust and loyalty with its customers by offering splendid personalized experiences with the product. After the users of BMW 3 advance into more experience with BMW luxury cars, they move further to acquire BMW 5, which is more expensive, but maintaining the outstanding performance of BMW luxury cars . On the other hand, BMW 7 series is meant for the already established customer base for BMW luxury cars as it propels higher the user-oriented experience with the BMW products through its advanced features to facilitate prestige and higher performance than 3 series. It is important to note that, 7 series is much more expensive that 3 series since it is mainly meant for compan y’s loyal customers who have had prior experience with the former series. Following the currently competitive global markets, the development of products to achieve competitive advantage forms a real of success among brands marketers. Since the customers’ needs of BMW products are based outstanding performance, more innovations of the existing products need to be done to come up with more superior luxury cars capable of competing with potential competitors like Mercedes Benz among others. More so, powerful advertisements based on psychographic factors of the customers’ needs to be made. For instance, creation of short films showing the uniqueness of BMW products on the context of other competitors may be quite appealing. Since visual advertisements are more accurate and highly effective, the films will be able to attract target customers’ attention largely. As a result, success and efficiency in marketing BMW products will be realized.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Further, a variety of channels in marketing the BMW luxury cars would be more appropriate to reach wider customers base. Since the target customers for BMW are always busy and very active, the use of precise and direct advertisements over the internet would be quite effective so that the customers don’t waste time interpreting information of the advertisement. It can also be recommended that, the product promotion uses the internet to collect information about the needs of their customers with respect to the specific aspects of the luxury cars which need to be improved. By having enough data about the accurate needs of the target customers, it would be easier for the company to modify the cars to intersect with the specific needs of the customers.

Select a form of global business and explain where you might go. Also Essay

Select a form of global business and explain where you might go. Also say how you might find the best business climate - Essay Example Branches will be opened in every continent across the globe to ensure that the business satisfies all customer food requirements. The management of these hotels will be under the leadership of fully qualified professionals who have prior experience in running similar businesses. I intend to find the best business climate by considering the micro and macro conditions that might affect the business. In considering the micro environment, I will consider the availability of my suppliers of raw materials and other supplies (Mathis and Jacks 56). I will also consider the presence of my target market, the accessibility to the hotels and the competitors in an area. The macro conditions to be considered include the factors influencing the operations of the business, but are beyond our control. This will involve the evaluation of demographic, normal, fiscal, political and the technological environments (Mathis and Jacks 76). I will consider the legal restrictions that certain countries impose on the type of business to ensure the operations of the business run smoothly. I will also consider issues such as security since the business will depend on it to maintain our customers. The best business climate is the one that will adequately satisfy the above conditions henc e ensure effective competition and success of my hotel

Should robots be given the same rights as human Essay

Should robots be given the same rights as human - Essay Example tties of their life to make it easier and accelerate in a supersonic velocity with three laws of robotics injected within the mechanisms of robots so that they cannot surpass the superiority of the humans, their creator. The three laws of robotics goes with the convention that a) A robot will not injure a human being or, will not allow a human being to come to harm through force, b) It will definitely obey the orders entrusted upon it by the human beings except in cases where such orders gets contradicted with the First Law , c) It will shield its existence until and unless such shielding gets inconsistent with the First or Second Law (Isaac Asimovs "Three Laws of Robotics). But with the advancement of artificial intelligence, Cyberneticists have proved that the robots can imitate behaviors, can learn from the mistakes, posses the power of generation multiplication through probabilistic mode of self reproduction, and can become possessor of unbounded life span through self repairing mechanism (McNally and Inayatullah). Robots after gaining these powers will definitely claim equal human rights. However if equal human rights are bestowed upon the robots the world can face tremendous devastations or advancement with the possibility of subordination of the human race under the authority of robots unless and until the three laws of robotics do not gets

Research the causes of the Global Financial Crisis and its subsequent Essay

Research the causes of the Global Financial Crisis and its subsequent impact on the banks behavior on UAE banks - Essay Example Daigee Shaw (2011) stated Japan suffered a -5.2 growth rate in 2009. The financial crisis is characterized by the collapse of the United States housing bubble in 2007. Consequently, the housing bubble triggered the devaluation of the securities listed in the United States stock exchange markets; the securities were secured by real estate properties. The United States market situation created rippling effects simultaneously spreading to the United States trading partners within the global market place. The economic downfall of the United States stocks unfavorably created after shocks. The aftershocks include the significant decline in several stocks listed in the stock markets as well as and commodities markets around the world. The central banks of other countries were unfavorably influenced by the United States’ economic depression, starting in 2008. Benton Gup (Gup 2011) emphasized the United States’ Levin –Coburn Report gave the reasons for the United States financial disaster. The investments in high risk financial investments are part of the economic depression. The conflicts of interests among the United States financial entities contributed to the unprecedented United States economic debacle. The failure of the government agencies to check the reliability of the credit status of a majority of United States companies contributed to the United States economic crash of 2007. The credit-monitoring agencies failed in their duty to monitor and report the credit ratings of each company listed in the United States companies listed in the stock exchange. May Khamis (2010) theorised the current financial status of the banks in the United Arab Emirates suffered minimal effects from the global financial crisis that cropped up in 2008. UAE’s Dubai was the hardest hit (Katzman 2010). Consequently, Dubai had to push for a debt restructures (Rice

Post-modern Performing Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Post-modern Performing Art - Essay Example One feature of recognizing dance as a performing art is recognizing its evanescence. Once we accept the transience of dance in this sense, we must still acknowledge its permanence: that the very same dance can be re-performed at some later date. But that fact itself must be explained. And if we want to understand the performing arts a little better here, it is first necessary to say something about the arts more generally. The critic writes an interpretation of a work of art—a poem, a painting or a dance. These interpretations are centrally, often exclusively, verbal in character, even when they are interpretations of dance or music. We call these ‘critic’s interpretations’. Second, there is the interpretation of the performer in a performing art. The performer is irrelevant to what the work of art (in a performing art) means, although my earlier remarks may have tended in that direction. It is not as though something that could be interpreted by the critic is instead interpreted by the performer. Rather, whenever the critic confronts the work of art itself (rather than the score, say) he necessarily confronts something already interpreted by some performer, if this is a work in a performing art. Works in the performing arts come, as we have seen, with a label reading ‘And now perform it’. The content of such a label is always relevant to the meaning of such-and-such a work of art. For only in performance is a token of that type-work available for criticism. The performer’s interpretation does not really.... But that fact itself must be explained. And if we want to understand the performing arts a little better here, it is first necessary to say something about the arts more generally. The critic writes an interpretation of a work of art-a poem, a painting or a dance. These interpretations are centrally, often exclusively, verbal in character, even when they are interpretations of dance or music. We call these 'critic's interpretations'. Second, there is the interpretation of the performer in a performing art. The performer is irrelevant to what the work of art (in a performing art) means, although my earlier remarks may have tended in that direction. It is not as though something that could be interpreted by the critic is instead interpreted by the performer. Rather, whenever the critic confronts the work of art itself (rather than the score, say) he necessarily confronts something already interpreted by some performer, if this is a work in a performing art. Works in the performing arts come, as we have seen, with a label reading 'And now perform it'. The content of such a label is always relevant to the meaning of such-and-such a work of art. For only in performance is a token of that type-work available for criticism. This means that the performer's interpretation does not really constitute a level of interpretation at all. For one cannot confront the work of art except in this 'interpreted' form. So speaking of the dance/language analogy, and of the linguistic character of our understanding, emphasizes that the place at which the meanings of dances are most readily located is in discussions of those dances, that is to say, in the linguistic element which is

Immigration In The US Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Immigration In The US - Essay Example   The constant acculturation causes a hybrid culture as both minority and majority culture traits are fused together while assimilation assumes a majority static culture that has to be adopted by smaller ethnic groups but discounts the influence of small ethnic groups on the majority culture.  Pluralism encourages group diversity along with maintenance of group boundaries and can be seen as opposed to assimilation. Structural pluralism holds that segregated communities exist within the larger cultures who conduct social relations internally through localized institutions. In contrast, liberal pluralism allows the individual to choose how pluralist one wants to be such as many people associate with ethnic traits and practices generations after immigration. The resistance by Euro-Americans is available as evidence of pluralism such as by marriage within local groups only.  Transnationalism is the creation of combined plural civic and political memberships, economic involvements, social networks and cultural identities which link people and institutions in more than one diverse nation state in a multi-layered pattern. Immigration in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century’s created a back and forth movement of immigrants who helped move cultural values across borders through effective means of communication and transport. Such immigrants developed trans-local boundaries in order to protect the ideas of citizenship and belonging to their mother countries. Changes in the early twentieth century ensured that immigrants developed a plural identity in America and their mother state’s without fear of opposition. The present day transnationalism is far more diverse and encompasses private and public spheres of operation. Second generations of transnational immigrants display mobility in parental ethnic groups as well as in America society. The best method for immigrants to adapt to the host society derives through a combination of pluralism an d transnationalism. Immigrants cannot be expected to revoke their ethnic, cultural and religious ties to the mother country within a few short years of arrival in the host country. Instead the immigrants hold onto their identities in the form of transnatinoalism while the host society has to display pluralism in order to make the immigrants more accepted in society. The use of assimilation would on the other hand lead to friction between immigrants and host societies as a revocation of values is deemed necessary for cultural integration. Do women have more to gain or more to lose from migration (for instance, compared to men)? You can think about this issue in terms of the causes of migration, the relative difficulty/ease of migrating for women, the occupational and economic status of women migrants in the host society, or the impact of migration on women’s social status within the family/household. Women like men stand to gain and lose at the same time due to immigration but their losses are considerably greater than those experienced by men.

MME Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

MME - Assignment Example The private and public sector all have a managing system designed to run the organization’s operations from day to day. As was created at privatization, the British railway industry structure still remains much the same according to the Department of transport (1992: 33). Giving of incentives efficiently to both train operators and privately owned infrastructure providers was a fundamental principle that to some degree still remains and by being made to suffer the financial setbacks of their inefficiencies, this reduced the call on the taxpayer. That is a discipline is meant to be created in any other shareholder company, through take the taxpayers to the companies the risk in which the value of the owners' assets are at stake. The Nation railway in the United Kingdom was run by an executive committee of rail company managers and controlled by the government in the First World War. A decision then had to be made in 1919 on how the railways would be returned to the private sect or. In 1947 in order to provide an economical, efficient, adequate and properly integrated system of inland transport, a British Transport Commission was set up (Department of transport, 1992: 33). ... 63). In the early 90’s the problem the government was trying to solve was a familiar one with that of the national railways, that is how to without unacceptable reductions in the scale of the railway service, reduce the demands on the national taxpayer. The main principle running the British railway was not changed after the 1990’s policy of privation. The main aim of this policy was to maximize the railway sector competition and come up with a low-cost efficient railway sector. The implementation in the beginning did yield results where the customer service, ticketing, time table and traffic improved greatly. However the strategy set soon fell foul as a result of management strategies and styles applied and interference from politics as a result of a change of government right after privatization. The new labour government was not comfortable with privatization of the railway industry. Later Railtrack ran into financial trouble and the government took its opportunity t o acquire the control of the railway industry again. Unfortunately the British railways provision of service declined greatly with no competition and the lack of proper management. For any organization to survive today’s market, it is utmost that they establish an ongoing process of coping with current market demands, with the management level going back to the drawing board to review the company’s vision, lest they become obsolete. Any public sector thinking about carrying out strategic management change, should first understand the type of organization they have in the sector. To understand organization means to look into the level of competencies, look at the

Post-modern Performing Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Post-modern Performing Art - Essay Example One feature of recognizing dance as a performing art is recognizing its evanescence. Once we accept the transience of dance in this sense, we must still acknowledge its permanence: that the very same dance can be re-performed at some later date. But that fact itself must be explained. And if we want to understand the performing arts a little better here, it is first necessary to say something about the arts more generally. The critic writes an interpretation of a work of art—a poem, a painting or a dance. These interpretations are centrally, often exclusively, verbal in character, even when they are interpretations of dance or music. We call these ‘critic’s interpretations’. Second, there is the interpretation of the performer in a performing art. The performer is irrelevant to what the work of art (in a performing art) means, although my earlier remarks may have tended in that direction. It is not as though something that could be interpreted by the critic is instead interpreted by the performer. Rather, whenever the critic confronts the work of art itself (rather than the score, say) he necessarily confronts something already interpreted by some performer, if this is a work in a performing art. Works in the performing arts come, as we have seen, with a label reading ‘And now perform it’. The content of such a label is always relevant to the meaning of such-and-such a work of art. For only in performance is a token of that type-work available for criticism. The performer’s interpretation does not really.... But that fact itself must be explained. And if we want to understand the performing arts a little better here, it is first necessary to say something about the arts more generally. The critic writes an interpretation of a work of art-a poem, a painting or a dance. These interpretations are centrally, often exclusively, verbal in character, even when they are interpretations of dance or music. We call these 'critic's interpretations'. Second, there is the interpretation of the performer in a performing art. The performer is irrelevant to what the work of art (in a performing art) means, although my earlier remarks may have tended in that direction. It is not as though something that could be interpreted by the critic is instead interpreted by the performer. Rather, whenever the critic confronts the work of art itself (rather than the score, say) he necessarily confronts something already interpreted by some performer, if this is a work in a performing art. Works in the performing arts come, as we have seen, with a label reading 'And now perform it'. The content of such a label is always relevant to the meaning of such-and-such a work of art. For only in performance is a token of that type-work available for criticism. This means that the performer's interpretation does not really constitute a level of interpretation at all. For one cannot confront the work of art except in this 'interpreted' form. So speaking of the dance/language analogy, and of the linguistic character of our understanding, emphasizes that the place at which the meanings of dances are most readily located is in discussions of those dances, that is to say, in the linguistic element which is

MME Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

MME - Assignment Example The private and public sector all have a managing system designed to run the organization’s operations from day to day. As was created at privatization, the British railway industry structure still remains much the same according to the Department of transport (1992: 33). Giving of incentives efficiently to both train operators and privately owned infrastructure providers was a fundamental principle that to some degree still remains and by being made to suffer the financial setbacks of their inefficiencies, this reduced the call on the taxpayer. That is a discipline is meant to be created in any other shareholder company, through take the taxpayers to the companies the risk in which the value of the owners' assets are at stake. The Nation railway in the United Kingdom was run by an executive committee of rail company managers and controlled by the government in the First World War. A decision then had to be made in 1919 on how the railways would be returned to the private sect or. In 1947 in order to provide an economical, efficient, adequate and properly integrated system of inland transport, a British Transport Commission was set up (Department of transport, 1992: 33). ... 63). In the early 90’s the problem the government was trying to solve was a familiar one with that of the national railways, that is how to without unacceptable reductions in the scale of the railway service, reduce the demands on the national taxpayer. The main principle running the British railway was not changed after the 1990’s policy of privation. The main aim of this policy was to maximize the railway sector competition and come up with a low-cost efficient railway sector. The implementation in the beginning did yield results where the customer service, ticketing, time table and traffic improved greatly. However the strategy set soon fell foul as a result of management strategies and styles applied and interference from politics as a result of a change of government right after privatization. The new labour government was not comfortable with privatization of the railway industry. Later Railtrack ran into financial trouble and the government took its opportunity t o acquire the control of the railway industry again. Unfortunately the British railways provision of service declined greatly with no competition and the lack of proper management. For any organization to survive today’s market, it is utmost that they establish an ongoing process of coping with current market demands, with the management level going back to the drawing board to review the company’s vision, lest they become obsolete. Any public sector thinking about carrying out strategic management change, should first understand the type of organization they have in the sector. To understand organization means to look into the level of competencies, look at the

Relationship Between the Brand Equity and the Sales of Bottled Water Industry Essay Example for Free

Relationship Between the Brand Equity and the Sales of Bottled Water Industry Essay This research basically pertains to find out the relationship between the brand equity and the sales of the product. The questionnaire was constructed and the pilot study using 15 respondents from ICBS was carried out to ensure that there were no confusions or ambiguities in the questionnaire. All ambiguities or confusions found were removed before administering the final questionnaire. The questionnaires were divided into two parts. On first of June the questionnaires were administered among half of the sample. The other half of the questionnaires among the remaining samples on 1st July 2007. As our research was basically descriptive in nature, we then quantified the values we were given in the questionnaire results and used them to graph the responses of the elements of the research. The results were then analyzed. Introduction The broad area of the research is related to the currently existing situation in the bottled water industry. As the bottle water industry is flourishing in Pakistan and new competitors are entering the market but still Pure Life has managed to maintain the considerable amount of market share due to its brand equity. The concept of brand is integral to the success of any given product. Brand equity necessarily affects the performance of a product. The concept of brand equity can have a marked effect on the longevity of a products performance. Brand equity is defined as the bundle of intrinsic features/attributes delivered by a branded product or service. It is measured as the price differential someone is willing to pay for a particular branded product or service over an identical product or service that is unbranded. Alternatively, this definition can be re-crafted to state that brand equity is the difference in utility between two products or services that are perceived to deliver an identical set of tangible benefits at the same price. Consumers see a particular brand name as a contract. A brands name may reduce consumers sense of uncertainty, allowing them to purchase, uncertainty reduction, or trust, thus improving their sense of value. Background Nestle have taken a strong interest in Pakistan at a time when the country’s food, drink and retail industries in general are all actually struggling to attract large-scale multinational investments of this nature. Although these companies all have more profitable product categories, which are their primary concerns in more developed markets, in Pakistan a key element of their business strategy at the present time is a strong presence in the increasingly competitive bottled water industry. Should economic growth continue, the introduction of their added-value, more premium products, will simply prove a bonus at a later date? Such investment cannot help but drive bottled water sales in Pakistan, while inflows from multinationals also provide much needed jobs and contribute to essential infrastructural developments in the country. However, there is a huge flipside to these advantages the creation of a population, which can barely afford to spend beyond necessity, reliant on a product that is still considered a luxury item in some of the worlds most developed economies. Pakistan’s response to this dilemma affects not just its population, but its likelihood of establishing itself as a destination for much sought after food, drink and retail industry investment in the future. Literature Review Brand equity is the value built-up in a brand. It is measured based on how much a customer is aware of the brand. The value of a companys brand equity can be calculated by comparing the expected future revenue from the branded product with the expected future revenue from an equivalent non-branded product. This calculation is at best an approximation. This value can comprise both tangible, functional attributes (e. g. TWICE the cleaning power or HALF the fat) and intangible, emotional attributes (e. g. the brand for people with style and good taste). It can be positive or negative. Positive brand equity is created by effective promotion and consistently meeting or exceeding customer thoughts. Negative brand equity is usually the result of bad management. In the early 2000s, the Ford Motor Company made a strategic decision to brand all new or redesigned cars with names starting with F. This aligned with the previous tradition of naming all sport utility vehicles since the Ford Explorer with the letter E. The Toronto Star quoted an analyst who warned that changing the name of the well known Windstar to the Freestar would cause confusion and discard brand equity built up, while a marketing manager believed that a name change would highlight the new redesign. The aging Taurus, which became one of the most significant cars in American auto history, would be abandoned in favor of three entirely new names, all starting with F, the Five Hundred, Freestar and Fusion. By 2007, the Freestar was discontinued without a replacement, and Ford announced record losses. In a surprise announcement, the discarded Taurus nameplate would be re-used on an improved Five Hundred which had disappointing sales and whose nameplate was recognized by less than half of most people, but an overwhelming majority was familiar with the Taurus. Brand Equity and Market Share Very often only the market share of a brand is looked at as a means of determining how successful the brand is. Although market share is of importance in assessing the performance of a brand, its relationship with brand equity is of great significance, as this relationship can be an indication of the potential success of a brand, or alternatively can direct strategy on how to attain such success. The following diagram illustrates the relationship between brand equity and market share: Brand equity and market share are not always proportionate. As can be seen from the diagram, the ideal place for a brand to be situated is in the top-right quadrant. This shows that the brand is successful in that it has a strong brand equity and high market share. However, this may not always be the case. It is possible that a brand may have high brand equity, but may not have an accordingly high market share (top-left quadrant). In order to improve the market share of a brand in cases such as this, regard must then be had to in-store issues such as display, shelf space, distribution etc. Thus, understanding brand equity plays an important role in that it gives an indication of how a brands performance can be improved. Where there is low brand equity and a strong market share (such as the bottom right-hand quadrant), the situation is extremely tenuous. Although the picture may look good owing to the strong market share, the reality is that, with weak brand equity, the product is vulnerable to competitor or other in-market activity. Therefore, measuring only the strong market share does not give the complete picture brand equity must also be considered, and by improving this, the full potential of the brand can be secured. What is Brand Equity? In layman terms brand equity is the value that a consumer attaches to a certain brand. Although brand equity can be measured tangibly by way of certain indicators, a large component of the concept is intangible, i. e. what perceptions and associations people have of a certain brand, and the familiarity of those brands in the mind of the consumer. The diagram below illustrates how brand equity is made up: From the diagram, it is evident that the sources that drive brand equity (brand awareness, consideration and the factors associated with it) will lead to certain outcomes. And the more powerful the sources are, the more significant these outcomes will be. Thus, a strong brand loyalty and ability to command a price premium will lead to resilience against any negative short-term market factors. And this is why brand equity is essential in assessing the performance of a brand: it has the potential to secure the success of the brand against many variable in-market factors. Further, the importance of brand equity is that, by understanding how brand equity drives market share, it is then possible to make use of this knowledge in order to grow the market share of a brand. Understanding the link between brand equity and market share will thus assist marketers in which strategies are required to grow market share. The Benefits of Brand Equity: What are the benefits of strong brand equity? Well, strong brand equity leads to, inter alia, strong market share, customer loyalty, more favorable response to price increases, less vulnerability to competitor activity, brand extension opportunities, and communication messages which reach the consumer. In attaining these benefits, strong brand equity will ensure that a product is of an enduring nature. Ultimately, strong brand equity will improve profitability. To build a winning brand, therefore, is to understand the relationship between brand equity and market share, and to leverage both to their full potential. In so doing, a brand will be successful and sustainable in the long term. It must be kept in mind that increasing market share does not increase brand equity, whereas increasing brand equity invariably leads to increased market share. Another benefit of brand equity is that it’s an asset which can be sold or leased. The importance of brand equity to customer loyalty: Keller (1998) argues that brand equity is unique from customer loyalty, and can be defined as: †¦ the differential effect that brand knowledge has on consumer response to the marketing of that brand. He argues that a brand possesses positive customer-based brand equity when customers react more favorably to a (brand identified) product and the way that it is marketed as compared to when it is not. Brands can also possess negative customer-based brand equity, expressed when consumers react less favorably to the marketing activities associated with a brand, as compared to an unnamed or fictitious named version of the product. Keller (1998) further states that one of the characteristics of brands possessing strong brand equity is stronger brand loyalty. This position appears consistent wit that of Aaker (1991) who argued that brand loyalty could be considered both a dimension and an outcome of brand equity. Problem Statement The problem statement of the research is to find out that â€Å"Are pure life sales greater than competitors due to brand equity of Nestle? † Nestle pure life was launched in Pakistan in 1998. The brand now holds a solid position as number 1 in Pakistan by having more than 50 per cent of the countrys small bottled-water market of 33 million liters (35 million quarts) a year. Pure Life is everywhere at roadside stalls, gas stations and rest stops. Its hawked at street corners in traffic-clogged Lahore. Middle-class shoppers buy it by the case in supermarkets. On the remote mountain road leading from Islamabad to the hill town of Murree, Pure Life billboards urge drivers to drive only Nestle Pure Life. At small stores along the way, a flurry of banners proclaim: Pure Safety, Pure Trust. The ideal water. From Nestle with love. As the purchase of the bottled water involves low involvement of consumers therefore factors such as price, packaging and taste are not as important as compared to the brand image of the product. Therefore, the research is conducted to find out whether the equity of a brand affects the sales of the product or not Limitations, Delimitations and Assumptions The concept of brand equity is important to every brand therefore it can be applied to every product in the Pakistani market. For the purpose of simplicity, researchers chose water bottled industry of Pakistan. In this industry Nestle Pure Life was chosen due to the fact that as purchase of bottled water involves low involvement of consumer so the only thing that matters for the consumer is the brand name. Furthermore another reason for choosing Nestle Pure life was that the researchers assumed that the sales of Nestle Pure life were greater than competitors due to brand equity of Nestle. There was another limitation that the researchers would only focus on a particular age group of people i. . people between 20-25 yrs of age. Theoretical Framework In the research the independent variable is brand equity, the dependent variable is sales, whereas there are three intervening variables identified which affect the relationship of independent variable and the dependent variable which are, production capacity, distribution and availability. There is a positive relationship between the independent variable and the dependent variable because it’s assumed that the brand equity causes an increase in the sales of a product which is Nestle Pure Life. Coke and Pepsi entered the bottled water industry as their production capacity was 18000 crates but after production of sodas their production plant was idle so they decide to jump in the bottled water. industry. They had the advantage that the industry is developing and consumers are becoming conscious of the importance of pure drinkable water. And their setup was already developed. Their distribution is extensive and they can capture all the consumers who buy their sodas. There is a positive relationship between sales and the intervening variables that are production capacity, distribution and availability. Nestle has an advantage over the other bottled water competitors due to the fact that they are the market leaders and their production and distribution is much more then the other competitors and their production plant and capacity is only used for the bottled water only. Their availability is much more extensive because nestle food products are distributed all over the country and hence they utilize their already developed distribution setup. Hypothesis The hypothesis that the researchers intended to test was the following: â€Å"Pure life sales are greater than competitors due to brand equity of Nestle† Nature of study The type of research is basic or pure because the study aimed to find out the affect of brand equity on sales of Nestle Pure Life and literature review was done to find out the relationship between brand equity and sales and primary study was also conducted by distributing questionnaires to MBA students of various universities. The relationship between the brand equity and sales is also generalizable. No matter what the product is there is always the positive relationship between them. Purpose of Study The purpose of the study is descriptive. The study will help in better understanding of the relationship of brand equity of a product and its sales. It will also help the organizations to make decisions related to brand awareness, brand loyalty and brand preference that will affect the brand equity of a product. It will also help other researchers to work on the similar concept. Throughout the study the researcher interference was minimal as there was no control of researcher on the independent variable which was brand equity. The type of investigation was correlation as the study aimed at finding the relationship between the independent variable and dependent variable. It was a field study done in non contrived settings. Methodology Data Collection The initial data for research was obtained through secondary sources of information, which included internet articles, journals and books. It would not be enough to substantiate the hypothesis; therefore, the data collection technique of questionnaire survey shall be used. Population Our target population consists of business schools students in the age group of 20-25 years using Nestle Pure Life. Sample â€Å"Proportionate stratified random sampling technique† was used for the sample. UniversitiesNumber of Elements Proportionate sampling NCBA250250 * 32% = 80 LSE350350 * 37% = 130 GCU200200 * 25% = 50 Sample Size Out of the total of 800 students the size of the population, the sample was 80 students of National College of Business Administration, 130 Students of Lahore Scholl of Economics and 50 students of Government College University Lahore. The sample sizes were determined using table given by Uma Sekeran, using 90% confidence interval and standard error of 9. 5. Instruments Questionnaires were used as a tool to gather the primary data for the research. The questionnaire consisted of 7 questions and was administered among NCBA, LSE and GCU students. The questionnaire used in this study was a non-standardized instrument constructed solely for the purpose of this study. Copy of the questionnaire is attached in Appendix I in the report. Scale Dichotomous scale was used for five questions. YesNo Category scale was also used. Multiple items were given to elicit a single response from the respondent. From ranking scale forced choice scale was used which enabled the respondents to rank the brands of water bottles according to their preferences. Pilot Study A pilot study using 15 respondents from ICBS was done to ensure that there were no confusions or ambiguities in the questionnaire. All ambiguities or confusions found were removed before administering the final questionnaire. Reliability The reliability of the instruments was ensured through split- half reliability method. The instrument of the study which was questionnaires was divided into two halves. On first of June the questionnaires were administered among 40 NCBA students, 75 LSE students and 25 GCU students. The other half of the questionnaires among the same number of students on 1st July 2007. The reliability test will reflect the correlation between the two halves of the questionnaires. Validity The validity of our instrument was checked by the content and construct validity test. Results Question 1 Do you buy bottled water? Our population included only those elements who are users or buyers of the bottled water. So as the sample is the replica of the population then it can be said that the sample contained all the users or buyers of the bottled water. Question 2 Rank the following brands of water bottles according to your preference. As this question asked to rank the brands in order of preference it helped us to find out what brand people prefer. The results showed that 45% or 117 consumers prefer Nestle Pure life. Aside from that the other preference were 20% or 52 prefer Aqua Fina , 15% or 39 prefer kinley, 13% or 34 prefer Sufi and the least was aqua safe which is 7% or 18. It showed that the highest demand or preference is of Nestle Pure life. The name Nestle Pure Life was used because it is known as Nestle or Nestle Pure Life among people. Question 3 What are the reasons of your preference? This question asks about why the brand is preferred? And what is the reason for there preference? The results showed that 37% or 96 for international brand, 21% or 55 marked companied credibility, 18% or 47 went for quality seal, 11% or 29 marked packaging, 9% or 23 for price and 4% or 10 for certification. By these results we concluded that most people don’t know about quality seal and certification and some brand don’t have them so it wasn’t marked. One aspect was that those who marked nestle as their preferred brand marked international brand and company’s credibility as their reason for preference. Price and packaging was not such a major factor in their reason for the preference. It was only marked by consumers who use aqua safe and Sufi. Question 4 Do you recall any advertisement of your preferred brand? The results showed that 83% or 216 answered yes and 17% or 44 answered no. It showed that one reason of preference was the advertisement showed. Research shows that it has a major impact on people as it repetitive. It leaves the impression and the companies or brands qualities and messages in peoples mind. They do remember and recall it when buying a product. Question 5 How long have you been using your preferred brand? The results showed that most of the people have been using the brand for more than a year 45% or 117. 37% or 96 were using it for a year, 12% or 31 for 6 months and 6% or 16 for a month. The results also showed that most of the people have been using Nestle and Aqua Fina and Sufi and Aqua safe had a few consumers as they have not been using it for so long. Question 6 In your opinion are you brand loyal to your preferred brand? The results showed that 87% or 226 were brand loyal and 13% or 34 were not. The result showed that students are not brand loyal. But it has been observed that when people ask for drinking water they ask for nestle water. We also observed this at super stores that while passing by the water bottle shelves they pick Nestle. This behavior is same as schools and colleges. Question 7 What if your preferred brand is involved in an unethical business or fraud, will you still buy it? The results for this were that 64% or 166 answered as Yes and 36% or 94 answered as No. It showed that if a companied credibility is in doubt people back of from it. It does show a sense of rightness in people and also that for a brand to be successful it’s important that the company should be credible. As brand equity is the goodwill of the company and it’s important for a company to succeed and be reputable. Is also important because now, with media awareness people are becoming more conscious to these factors, so, the companies have to be conscious of these factors. Question 8 Would you prefer a brand which is popular in your social circle? The results of this question were that 55% or 143 answered as Yes and 45% or 117 answered as No. t helped to show that is the preference dependent on the social behaviors. But the result showed that it has a 10 % difference so it is slightly significance. For some people it who look for acceptance from their circle but it’s not that important as it low involvement purchase and it related to thirst which know no boundaries. But for some its status symbol to use bottled water as some peop le don’t care as long as its water. Discussion If the hypothesis is selected it would mean that the brand equity and brand image is important for the customers. They do take it into consideration while buying as its imprinted in their minds. Advertisement helps the customers to see the attributes of the company and the product . It keeps the brand equity in the minds of the customers. If the hypothesis is not substantiated by the questioner’s results, it would mean that some other factors are involved in the greater sales of the brand besides it brand name and the research would have to be conducted again with a new hypothesis. . Conclusions The conclusion of the study is that the Pure Life sales are greater than competitors due to brand equity of Nestle. The company should concentrate on things like brand preference and brand loyalty. They can do this by a lot of advertising and other promotional campaigns like public relations. Brand preference, brand loyalty and trust leads to establishment of brand equity which can be said as goodwill. Implications Brand equity is the customer’s subjective and intangible assessment of the brand, above and beyond its purely perceived value. In a market where many products are rather similar (i. e. commoditization), the brand can have a large effect on whether customers want to buy the product and what price theyre willing to pay. Brands therefore add more and more value to the basic product or service. Example: although a blind test panel taught researchers that most people prefer Pepsi above Coca-Cola, yet Coca-Cola is much stronger on the market. Our research findings shall help marketers understand the relation between brand equity ad sales. We have used Nestle Pure Life as a model for the study to illuminate the same relationship. As mentioned earlier, if there is a relationship between the variables, the marketers need to take it into account while designing their marketing strategies and policies.

Pc Gaming Vs Console Gaming Media Essay

Pc Gaming Vs Console Gaming Media Essay It wasnt that long ago that the PC was the only choice you had if you wanted to play games online. The first console that had online capabilities was the Sega Dreamcast, that lead the way for other consoles. The Dreamcast didnt sell very well, and the company wasnt able to support it anymore and went out of business. It wasnt until 2002 that PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube introduced online capabilities. Now that developers knew what gamers wanted it was very natural for a console to have online capabilities, to even be close to a successful system. Online games are very common in the gaming world, with Microsofts Xbox Live service leading the way with 23 million registered users. Sony has some tricks up there sleeve, and has big plans for online content for the PlayStation 3, consoles are starting to get game downloads only available on the PC. A few titles can now be played across systems, Final Fantasy XI uses this system and people with PS2, PC, and Xbox 360 can all explore the same world simultaneously. However, Computers still have the largest selection of online games. Some of the most popular games in the world are exclusive to the PC only. Games such as World of Warcraft and Counter Strike Source make up 40% of online PC gamers. There are many things to think about before deciding which device you want to buy. You have to decide what type of games you want to play, and how much money you are willing to spend, and if you need a computer for other things besides gaming. Ideally we would all have both a PC and a console, but if thats not an option, then a comparison of the two is needed. Multiplayer gaming has been made easy with Microsoft offering online services for their products. The Xbox comes equipped with a network card right out of the box, making it a simple hook up to a DSL or Cable Internet connection to get into multiplayer games on Xbox Live. With Xbox Live players are able to play with people around the country rather than having to play the AI, or have to go through the hassle of inviting friends over to play. You are able to trash talk your opponents if they you where in the same room. While these things are possible on a PC, consoles are built for this right out of the box. The biggest reason PC gaming isnt bigger than console gaming is mainly the cost. Most consoles today sell for less than $500 unless its within the first couple months of release, often with a couple games included. A PC around the same graphical power as an Xbox 360, or a PS3 can cost double the price of the console. On the PC, you have a very large range of often options everywhere you look. . Prices for a high-end PCs can get expensive very quickly A desktop can start at anywhere from $1,500 to $1,700. Not that you have to spend that much but, if youre going to spend time gaming on a PC, shouldnt you make the experience worthwhile? And, that startup cost presents a serious drawback for a lot of people (Charlie Deitch, Cityweekly.net). Everything in a PC is customizable to fit the gamers needs. You can pick and chose what you want to be in your computer, and when newer technology comes out you have the power to upgrade your computer if you want to. The second most obvious advantage is simplicity. PC Gaming can be a technical nightmare when trying to install games. People with Xboxes or PS3s can take their newly purchased game home and be playing within a matter of minutes. There are no operating systems to configure or drivers to update, you have the assurance that your game will work on your system unlike a computer. Console games are rented out more frequently than PC games, and more easily returned to the retailer if youre not satisfied with them. In other words, it is difficult to return PC games because they are easy to copy, and resale. The other problem with renting PC games they run off a CD/DVD with a serial code only working one time, so its not possible to Rent these games or return them. You have to take this into consideration when looking at the games available for both platforms. You will be able to rent games you dont want to buy, and if you do indeed buy the game you are able to return it and get something else if you are not satisfied. With the PC your return will just be simply rejected. Although sealing everything in one unit does seem like a good idea, when some of the components inside the box become out-dated there is no way to upgrade your console, or even repair your system without voiding a warranty. If you void your warranty by opening your system to try and upgrade or repair yourself then you can no longer send your Xbox in for repair meaning you have to buy a new one if you cant fix it yourself. The only safe choice you have to repairing your system is sending it back to the manufacture and waiting 4-6 weeks to get your system back. Consoles perform only one task really well, where PCs can be a wide variety of things. Some manufactures are trying to make consoles more flexible, but it is clear that it will be a long time before consoles will be able to run applications like the PC does. Keyboards use many more keys to do the same tasks you can do on a controller, but PCs offer a lot more control of the game, but it comes at a cost of hours of tutorials and practicing at the game. There is an obvious lack of connectivity between the different console brands. Many games are only available to a specific type of system, which means you can only play other people who own the same system as you. This means that people with Xboxes can only play against other people with Xboxes, for example there is no way for a person with a PS3 to jump the countless PC World of Warcraft servers available. The PS3 has made some progress in this area, paving the way for multi platform gaming between PS3, Xbox and PC users, but there are only a couple of titles that support this, and there done very poorly. While the PS3 and Xbox both have online capabilities a broadband connection is required for both systems. PS3s online services are free, while Microsoft charges a yearly fee for use of the Xbox Live service. One of the biggest advantages the PC has over consoles right now is that there are a lot more games available for the PC than there are for consoles, particularly when it comes to multiplayer online games. Not only are the vast majority of MMOGs designed for the PC, but PC gamers also have the option to play MUDs, email games, browser games, and a wide variety of titles that are distributed digitally or available as free downloads. As mentioned above, another clear advantage PCs have over consoles is that you can use them for a lot more than playing games. Furthermore, if you like to modify games or edit maps for them, a PC is essential, and you have to take a break from gaming sometime to read gaming sites. PCs are always on the cutting edge of gaming technology. The current generation of consoles with high-definition capabilities did briefly narrow the gap, but well-equipped PCs continue to offer superior graphics. Computer monitors can be found with considerably higher resolutions than HDTVs, and the latest multi-core processors and dual GPU solutions make it possible to build a remarkably powerful game system. Even if a console offers incredible technology upon its release, there is no way for it to compete with the rapid hardware advancements that have become a way of life in the computer industry. When it comes online gaming, PCs give people a variety of ways to connect to the Internet, and to each other, which arent restricted to proprietary services or software. Different brands of computer and event different operating systems generally communicate very well with one another. This is quite different from services like Xbox Live, for example, which is the only option available to Xbox users that want to play online, and is closed to everyone that doesnt have an Xbox. Finally, as your PC ages, there is a reasonable chance of extending its gaming life with a component upgrade, although it can get a bit messy. While PCs have come down considerably in price over the years, they are still quite expensive compared to consoles. There ways to economize on a PC, such as building it yourself, but its not easy to get the cost of a PC down to a price comparable to even the most expensive console. Computers are also getting a little more user friendly, but eventually every PC gamer will encounter some technical complication that interferes with their gaming, be it a device driver that needs updating or components that are simply incompatible. PCs are also much more vulnerable to viruses and other security breaches. The truth is, installing a game on your computer is always a bit of a gamble. You never really know if its going to work until youre actually playing the game, and even then, in the back of your mind, youre expecting it to crash at any moment. Unlike most console games, PC games have the potential to get ridiculously complicated. This can give a game depth, but it can also result in tedious arrays of keyboard commands and lengthy tutorials which one must endure to learn how to play. PC games are often not well-suited for playing on the couch, especially given that the mouse and keyboard are the preferred PC game controllers. Unlike console games, you also wont find many PC games that support two players on one machine at the same time. The latest round of consoles has a lot to offer online gamers, and if youre into sports and racing titles, consoles are a good way to go. If you like massively multiplayer games and online shooters, there are a great deal more to choose from on the PC. Online play options for consoles are getting better all the time, but proprietary networks and fees for services like Xbox Live make them a bit less attractive. For the most part, PCs are still the dominant platform for online gaming, and that appears likely to continue for a while yet.

John Steinbeck :: Essays Papers

John Steinbeck John Steinbeck was born on February 27, 1902 in Salinas California, shortly after the end of the Civil War. His mother was a schoolteacher in the public school system in Salinas. Steinbeck grew up in the fertile California where he found the materials for most of his novels, and short stories. Steinbeck demonstrated a great imagination, which was kindled by writing at a very early age partly due to his mother, the schoolteacher, whom read to him at a very early at the many great works of literature. During his teen years, Steinbeck played various sports in high school, worked numerous part time, dead end jobs, and wondered around the fertile valley. The lessons, and observations he made while wandering provided much of the material for his later works. Steinbeck entered Stanford University in 1920, and even though he attended the school until 1925, he never graduated. Lacking the desire to acquire a formal degree from the Stanford University, Steinbeck wandered to New York to pursue a writing career. While working on his writing, and while receiving an endless supply of rejection slips, Steinbeck worked odd jobs. The New York American newspaper was where Steinbeck held a job, writing various articles, for some time before the newspaper went bankrupt. The failure of the newspaper and endless supply of rejection letter forced Steinbeck to return to California, broken but still hopeful. Steinbeck’s first novel, Cup of Gold, was published in 1929, two months before the horrific stock market crash, causing the novel to nearly unnoticed with barely fifteen hundred copies selling. 1930 was a very important year for Steinbeck in two areas. First he married Carol Henning and the newlyweds settled in Pacific Grove, which he often wrote of. There, Steinbeck met Ed Ricketts whose friendship strongly influenced Steinbeck’s works. During the Great Depression of the nineteen thirties Steinbeck knew many people who were considered to be the cross section of society, and shared many of the problems of the times with them. His father like many men, helped is family through the depression with a small house and twenty-five dollars a week. Throughout the depression era Steinbeck wrote of people struggling to make ends meet around the California, Mexico region. One of Steinbeck works, Tortilla Flat, marked a turning point in Steinbeck’s literary career.