Supply Chain - Six Catagories of Cost Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Supply Chain - Six Catagories of Cost - Essay Example This means that the cost of manufacturing a product is not always stable. The manufacturers should understand variable manufacturing concepts, and how a change in cost may lead to additional expenses or even reduce the production cost. The variable manufacturing costs that affect the entire process of manufacturing includes all the steps from the material cost, cost of the required electricity for production to the labor cost (Albrecht, et at 2010). The term â€Å"fixed manufacturing costs† describes the fees required in creating an item. Manufacturers must pay the fixed manufacturing cost in order to produce the goods. According to some business principles, fixed manufacturing costs are not always fixed permanently. They often change over time, but get fixed when related to the production quantity for the period which is relevant. For example, a company which has warehouse costs fixed over the period of lease, can have unpredictable and unexpected expenses, which are unrelated to the production. This is an expense that contains both the fixed cost and the variable components. The fixed cost component shall represent the part of the cost which must be paid irrespective of the activity level achieved by the entity. The variable component of cost, on the other hand, is payable proportionate to the activity level (Drury, 2007). For example, in billing structure of a phone, there exists a monthly flat-rate charge, plus an overcharge of any bandwidth used which exceeds the flat rate. Therefore, the flat rate is the fixed component of the cost, whereas the excess bandwidth becomes the variable component of the cost. Another example is employees who get compensated by commissions (Aryasri, 2008). There is usually a salaried element which happens to be the fixed cost and the commission which is the variable cost. In accounting, total

English Legal System vs Inequalities between Individuals and Groups Essay Example for Free

English Legal System vs Inequalities between Individuals and Groups Essay English Legal System vs Inequalities between Individuals and Groups Introduction Does The English Legal System Do Enough To Address Inequalities Between Individuals And Groups?            Addressing inequalities are a vital aspect of any government legal system, not only for the economic growth and for the development of the goals such as the millennium goals, but also for security and peace perspective. The legal system of English has not been left aside in the fight against inequalities among its citizens. This is the system of law that has developed in England. Horizontal inequalities have developed and increased among people globally and England has been affected. The inequalities are taken as increasing factor to the risk of violence, conflict, which can in turn worsen the inequalities among people or groups (Haskel Slaugther, 1999).            This paper looks into how and what the English Legal System is undertaking in the fight against inequalities among groups of people or individuals. There are increasing concerns about persistent and often rising inequalities. These inequalities includes aspects such as age, pregnancy and maternity, disability; race, gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership, religion or sexual orientation among other grounds where discrimination can occur. All these grounds of inequalities are applicable to both individuals and groups people. However, each and every legal system in different countries is tasked with the fight against any form of inequality among individuals or groups of people in the society. The English Legal system has been as well on the forefront in the fight against the inequality menace among its people (Pontusson, 2005).            The law has been and continues to be a tool through which essential democratic ideals have been expressed not only in the English legal system but also in other legal systems around the globe. The egalitarian ideals expressed include the same employment chances, equal right of entry into schooling among many other aspects. Simultaneously, the legal system is on its own a site of unusual discrimination, as discovered in different degree of access of first-class legal aid, discrepancy in arrest rates, or disparity in sentencing. The researches within this field attend show how good has the English legal system done to address the issues of inequalities between individuals and groups of people. Hence, law can be used as a mechanism for equalization and in turn can produce or express inequality as well (International Labor Office, 2007).            Disparity in the legal system, the main question behind the issue of inequality is whether the law is applied fairly to all members of any group? Courts appointed attorneys providing a sufficient protection for their needy clients? Is the death judgment more likely to be forced on African Americans than on whites? Who bears the brunt of the notable increase in the detention rate? When the prisoners re released from the jails, do their potential employers discriminate against them this creating an even larger underclass? In addition, how has the increase in the number of privatized prisons affected how captives are handled? How has it altered the political process (e.g. Entrance by the prison industry) that manages how large our imprisoned residents will be? Discrimination could be integrated as a concern into goals and targets on different sectoral/thematic issues such as (politics, security, justice, poverty, education and health), through speech stressing additio n, fairness, accountability and responsiveness to all social groups throughout the framework is essential in the English legal system (Witte Green, 2012).            There is numerous discrimination by type that is experienced amongst people in the United Kingdom. These include: age, disability, equal pay or compensation, religion, retaliation, sex and sexual harassment, genetic information, harassment, national origin, pregnancy, race/color,. One of the major areas of concern in the English legal system is the issue of inequality among the disabled people in the community. Not only in the United Kingdom, there has been a unison call from all the corners of the world from the people and groups of people for the disabled people to be respected in the society just like the normal individuals in the community. There have been campaigns all over the globe fighting for the rights of the disabled people. This has been dubbed as disability discrimination, which has resulted in inequality between different people in the society. According to Equality Act 2010, disability discrimination is when a disabled person is treated less favorabl y than a non-disabled person, and is treated in this way for a reason arising from their disability, and the treatment cannot be justified (Keister et all, 2012).            The fight against disability discrimination, in the United Kingdom has been defined by numerous acts in the English legal system. These include ‘The Equality Act 2010’ this provides disabled people with protection from discrimination in the workplace. England and Wales have had laws against, against discrimination since the 1960’s. For example, the Race Relations Acts of 1965, 1968 as well as that of 1976, all of which outlawed race inequity among groups of people or individually. In addition, there is also the 1970 Equal Pay Act and the ‘Sex Discrimination Act’ of 1975 which themselves proscribed discrimination in the line of gender. Moreover, there was the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 which outlawed disability discrimination. Putting all of these acts together, in the year 2010, all, the anti-discrimination laws were confined together under one Act, namely the Equality Act 2010 (Chant, 2010).            The English Legal System comprises one of the greatest tools for people with disabilities, in order to ensure and also protect their fundamental rights. According to the ‘Equality Act 2010’ section 6 disability is defined as a ‘person who have an impairment either physically or mentally, however, the impairment should have substantial adverse as well as the lasting effects on their capability to perform their normal daily activities’. Under the act, there is direct disability discrimination as well as indirect form of discrimination. Section 15 of the Equality Act forbids the  unfavorable treatment  of a disabled person where the reason for the unfavorable treatment is not the disability itself, but something that comes up as a result of the disability (Partington, 2014).            Despite the wide and all inclusive act in the fight against disability inequality in the United Kingdom, there have been numerous cases reported of disability inequality among people, more so in the private sector of employment. The government has, however, embarked on the massive implementation of disability discrimination laws. Some of the achievements that have been beneficial to the fight against disability inequality in the United Kingdom are the implementation of the required facilities for the disabled in order for them to access services. This includes laws in building and constructions, whereby public buildings should be accessible to the disabled; this is through revision of the relevant facilities and services such as no stairs, washrooms for the disables among others. In addition, an important issue for some disabled people is the provision of adaptations of dwellings to improve safety, mobility and quality of life. Effective adaptations can lead to red uced pain and enhanced well being, self-esteem and control. Hence it can be said that the English legal system has done quite a lot in the fight against inequality among the disabled people or groups and in turn more should be implemented in terms law, implementation for the complete acceptance of the disabled people. The most affected sector where inequality is most felt is through employment (Fafinski Finch, 2008).            Another aspect that has given rise to inequality is the United Kingdom is the religious identification or differing peoples beliefs. According to human rights and anti-discrimination legislation in the UK, every person has the right to hold their own beliefs as well as any other philosophical beliefs that are similar to religion or beliefs. Under the Equality Act 2006, it is or prohibited or illegal for someone to differentiate or discriminate against another person or a group of people because of their religion or belief or else for the reason that, they have no religion or belief (Elliott, 2012).            There has been a case of religious discrimination in the United Kingdom, especially the issue of Britain’s divided schools that has been a disturbing portrait of inequality. With the increased differences between the Middle East countries and the western especially between the Muslims and other religions groups. In many cases, there has been a correlation between the increasing trend in terrorism and the Muslim religion. This has resulted in the inequality between the Arabs/Muslims in the UK and other people especially whites. Advance in achieving liberty of religion or belief and thwarting inequity based on religion or belief in the place of work and in public services has been widely advocated in the United Kingdom. Equally, the capability to draw conclusion continues to be stalled by Government’s reluctance to distinguish between the various Christian denominations, when recording people’s religious profession, either in the population censu s or the Labor Force Survey (Boaler, 2011).            Generally, the act on equality, human rights and religion or belief has been interpreted watchfully in domestic tribunals and courts as according to section 5.3 of the equality act. While some indirect inequity claims relating to dress codes and working hours have been successful, most claims based on religion have failed. This is largely because courts have mostly found that intrusion with the autonomy of belief or religion under Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) is not easily recognized. Over the years, religious conviction has played a less leading role in public culture. Temporarily, the rival status hierarchies have fallen away. The meritocratic ladder of specialized success is pretty much the only one left standing. We can see a correlation between inequality and religious faith (Warren, 2006).            The presence of religious diversity in today’s times in the United Kingdom has resulted in increased contact between religious, which has sometimes revealed deep-rooted stereotyping and prejudice, which in turn leads to tension and sometimes conflict between individuals or groups of people in the community. Indeed, religion is an indispensable component in the identity of some of the groups that make up our society, however, it has also been connected with stereotypes or depressing preconception, including the assumption of a so-called ‘clash of civilizations. Political events and popular discourse have repeatedly been revealed in the media and have negatively linked terrorism and Islam. This has in turn prejudiced social attitudes and led to a Renaissance of religious and racial discrimination in the community and most public places. A latest information on the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) found that Muslims are often fat alities of inequity, negative stereotyping and of manifestations of prejudice and hatred. These take the form of verbal threats and physical attacks on people and property and racial and mostly religion affiliation profiling (Oliva, 2008).            The growing visibility of religious and belief variety in Europe and especially United Kingdom has been depicted by an increase in unfairness, inequity, and prejudice against religious and ethnic minorities. While a great deal of development has been achieved, biasness on grounds of racial or ethnic origin and religion is still a problem for many people in our societies, even though this is tricky to accurately measure due to short of data on the religious composition of the inhabitants of the UK, mainly in regard to minority religions. The English Legal system has created a structure of legal tools, policies, and initiatives for fighting religious and racial unfairness and in turn promoting fairness. Nevertheless, it could be argued that the principles of equality and non-discrimination and the respect for the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion have not been fully implemented in all Member States (Lansley, 2012).            Despite the tremendous effort by the government and the vast established English legal law, there are still cases of religion inequality and discrimination within individuals and the UK citizens towards either an individual or a specific group or community. People affiliated to religious minorities, especially migrants; also, experiences disproportionately lower incomes and higher rates of unemployment, as they face problems accessing housing and in turn living in poor environs. They suffer from prejudice and experience exclusion or marginalization in social, political, and economic activity and from unfair treatment in public or social services (Blanden Machin, 2013).            The enactment of the Equality act 2010 in United Kingdom has redefined people’s rights regardless of their religion affiliation. The introduction of the law has targeted all people in the country, and in turn offering the right protection to people. In addition, the human rights movements have been active in fight for the people’s rights and in turn bringing along equality among the countries populace. English Legal system has been deemed as one of the all-inclusive legal system and has been a positive aspect in the fight for equality among the United Kingdom citizens. The ‘Equality Act 2010’ has been drawn-up to deal with inequality and also prevent prejudice against all sorts of people on the basis of ‘protected characteristics’. It brings together several presented laws and aims to make understanding the law simpler. It also introduces a new single public sector equality duty, which requires public bodies to actively advan ce equality. This has enabled the UK government to be able to handle the numerous issues of inequality in the society. In accordance to the question posed ‘whether the ‘English Legal System’ is doing enough to address Inequalities between Individuals and Groups, the answer is YES. Although there has been numerous handles in the full achievement of equality, the government has been able to implement laws that has been effective in curbing inequality. Moreover, the legal system has developed an effective criminal justice system which has enabled in the fight against inequality (Keister et al, 2012).            In conclusion, there are many experiences that remain invisible and ignored within the wider agendas in the fight against inequalities within the English legal system. While the inequalities are widespread and all-encompassing, the legal systems have tried to be all inclusive in solving all forms of inequalities that are experienced within the individuals, and groups in the society. It is clear that there can be an experience of far-reaching inequality, prejudice, favoritism and racism from politicians, the media, and the public. However, numerous recommendations have been made in different chapters for the introduction of ethnic monitoring, for example in health, social work, substance use services and criminal justice. In many of these domains, existing equality and human rights law provides the framework for addressing these injustices, but it needs to be proactively and effectively implemented. References Haskel, J., Slaugther, M. J. (1999).  Trade, technology and U.K. wage inequality. Cambridge, Mass.: National Bureau of Economic Research. Pontusson, J. (2005).  Inequality and prosperity: Social Europe vs. liberal America. Ithaca, NY [u.a.: Cornell Univ. Press. International Labour Office. (2007). Equality at work: Tackling the challenges : global report under the follow up to the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. Geneva: International Labour Office. Witte, J., Green, M. C. (2012). Religion and human rights: An introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Keister, L. A., McCarthy, J., Finke, R. (2012). Religion, work, and inequality. Bingley, UK: Emerald Group Pub Limited. Chant, S. (2010). The International Handbook of Gender and Poverty. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Pub.Partington, Martin. (2014). Introduction to the English Legal System 2014-2015. Oxford Univ Pr.Fafinski, S., Finch, E. (2008). English legal system. Harlow: Longman. Elliott, C. (2012). English legal system. Harlow: Pearson. Stephenson, M., Harrison, J. (2011). Unravelling Equality: The Impact of the United Kingdoms Spending Cuts on Women.Political Quarterly,  82(4), 645-650. doi:10.1111/j.1467-923X.2011.02256.x Boaler, J. (2011). Mathematics and science inequalities in the United Kingdom: when elitism, sexism and culture collide.  Oxford Review Of Education,  37(4), 457-484. Warren, T. (2006). Moving beyond the gender wealth gap: On gender, class, ethnicity, and wealth inequalities in the United Kingdom.  Feminist Economics,  12(1/2), 195-219. doi:10.1080/13545700500508502 Oliva, J. (2008). Religious Symbols in the Classroom: A Controversial Issue in the United Kingdom.  Brigham Young University Law Review,  2008(3), 877-896. Lansley, S. (2012). Inequality, the Crash and the Ongoing Crisis.  Political Quarterly,  83(4), 754- 761. doi:10.1111/j.1467-923X.2012.02357.x Blanden, J., Machin, S. (2013). Educational Inequality and The Expansion of United Kingdom Higher Education.  Scottish Journal Of Political Economy,  60(5), 597-598. doi:10.1111/sjpe.12031 Source document

Marriage :: Literary Analysis, Gregory Corso

Gregory Corso’s poem â€Å"Marriage† is a beautiful, comic poem. The author is the main character and he is thinking about his future and the possibility of him getting married. He is trying to deeply think about all the possible scenarios he might face, he tries to think about the right decision to take in regard of him getting married or not getting married. So he takes a scientific approach to the dilemma, he first lays out all the possible options he has, and then he simulates every decision in his mind and tries to realize its consequences. Corso opens his poem by a question to himself â€Å"Should I get married? Should I be good?† this line suggests two possible interpretations. The first interpretation is relating being good as a result of getting married. The second interpretation is giving two options cannot go together, either being good or getting married. By only the first line Corso was able to set two perspectives on marriage. Corso talks about the girl next door and how he would astound her and go out on a date with her. Corso will not follow all the traditions while dating this girl, for example, he will take her to cemeteries instead of taking her to the movies, then he will kiss her and try to make love to her, but she refuses. He gets angry, but he does not show it, and he tries to convince her to sleep with him â€Å"You must feel! It’s beautiful to feel!† (Line 7) Corso says, but she still refuses. Then Corso starts his backup plan to ponder about the bright constellation in the sky . What a genius! When Corso meets her parents he feels so uncomfortable. He tries to look very educated gentle man, so he does not ask where the bathroom is even though he wanted to use it. He realized traditions have set these stupid rules for him to follow if he wanted her parents’ approval. Even when he gains the approval â€Å"Say All right get married, we’re losing a daughter, but we’re gaining a son† (Lines 21-22), he was not sure whether to ask for the bathroom â€Å"And should I then ask where’s the bathroom?† (Line 23). He shows his disgust from people’s actions around him when he gets married. He describes the priest’s look at him as I he was doing something bad â€Å"he is looking at me as if I masturbated†.

Health promotion Essay

Health promotion is the art and science for helping people develop of their preferences between optimal health and their major passions. What motivate people to achieve optimal health, and what supporting then in lifestyle changing to movie forward to the optimal health. I strongly believe that optimal health is emotional balance, physical, spiritual, intellectual, and social health. Changing of lifestyle based on combination of increase motivation, learning experiences, build skills and creation of different opportunities that give us access to environment that provide positive health practice like the best choice. Moreover, health promotion is amount of information for individuals, communities, and family education. Health promotion is promotion of healthy lifestyle and healthy ideas and help people to achieved their best status of health. According to the definition of Health Promotion motivate people to take control over to improve their health. For health promotion we need to have support such as: create supportive environment for health and develop personal skills. Health promotion is the most important part of nursing care. Nurse plays important role in public health promoting. Focus for health promotion for nurses more point of disease prevention and changing lifestyle of individuals and their behavior. Moreover, that main purpose of health promotion in nursing is educate people and encourage them respect their health. Nursing role as health promoters is very complex, because of multi-disciplinary experience and knowledge of health promotion in nursing practice. Main idea of health promotion developed to improve community based practice according to the health policies. My idea is that healthcare professionals guide other people to the right health decisions. Nurses make people re-evaluate their health ideas and moreover we help not just for individual, we help even families, organizations, and communities. Nurses proved models toward health promotion and appraise how effective is evidence-based practice for the future researches. How are nursing roles and responsibilities evolving in health promotion? Nursing of public health practice is focused on population and  required a lot of different knowledge, skills and competencies. Nurse must have unique knowledge by focusing working in the community participation in health promotion and prevention. Nursing Role in primary care very important and can redesign of the primary nursing care system when patient is the center of the medical facility. All nursing field working for patient`s care such as: communication with the patients, visit patients at the home for their daily care. Many resources used for public health nursing practice and centered on improving health of population by prevention methods. Moreover, nurses are advocates and planning for the patients by multi level view of health. We know what our patients needs because we are at bedside and in the community. We take care of patients every day and every hour because nursing is 24 hour care. Nurses improve the health outcome for everybody in the community by applying their clinical skills and experience in health care. Health promotion is focusing on removing bad influences on health to developing healthy environment and supporting individuals and communities to take control and charge of their own health. Moreover, health promotion build on health education and help people prevent many illnesses and injuries by supporting right healthy behavior. Programs for health promotions include intervention such as lifestyle changing, smoking cessation and primary method of prevention. Unfortunately, people rarely change their behavior that’s why implementation methods must be started in community as a first step for global changes. Local health promotion will bring to the people right set of priorities which can support to promote health. Health Promotion has three levels: primary prevention, secondary prevention and tertiary prevention. The major one is to protect people from experiencing an injury and protect people from developing a disease. For example: education about quit smoking, the importance of exercise regularly, good nutrition , dangers of alcohol and other drugs. Regular screening tests to monitor risk for illness. Secondary prevention is intervention after disease or risk factor have already diagnosed. The goal is to catch disease in slow face or in earliest stage. As educators we have to tell people to take daily low dose of aspirin as a prevention of stroke or heart attack. We can recommend regular screening tests and exams in people who have risk  factors for diseases. Tertiary prevention more about helping people take care of long-term health problems such as diabetes, cancer, and heart attack. For example rehabilitation programs for stroke, support group chronic pain management programs for the patients. I am nurse in Rehabilitation Center and Long –term facility. I have seen every day how rehabilitation program help people to manage their new lifestyle and how to fight with their illnesses. Else in our facility we have support groups. People can discuss to each other about their health problems, their prognosis and future expectations. Moreover in that group people share with their own experiences and can provide right and helpful information for the patient who just was diagnosed and have a long way ahead to accept that new role in family and community. For a lot of health problems primary, secondary and tertiary interventions combination is necessary to achieve a right level of protection and prevention. For ideal world Primary prevention is the best but unfortunately in our modern busy world not all of us follow the best way. The main role here play limit of knowledge about causes of some particular injury or diseases. Although, primary and secondary prevention are clear in areas as heart disease and cancer, may be not that much useful for musculoskeletal illness. In that case prefer to have primary prevention then secondary and tertiary. I am wound care nurse in long term facility and I believing that primary prevention for pressure ulcers is the best way to promote health for all patients. Bed sores are not a disease process and preventive method must be on the first place. Elderly population has higher risk factors to have bed sores because of age, fragile skin, complicated disease, chronic disease. Prevention is the best way to keep such patients in a good level of health. Many resources now available to prevent pressure ulcers in the long-term facilities: Air mattresses, turning and reposition every two hours and as needed, incontinence care every two hours and as needed, skin barrier, Moreover, physical and occupation therapy intervention: schedule patients for out of bed daily, special cushion to prevent pressure ulcer from prolong sitting. All of that can promote health to geriatric population and make their lives longer and more comfortable. Else, in wound care preventive measures less cost than treatment. Money that is saved on treatment can be good resources for future researches of wound care field. Wound Care still needs new researches to promote healing. The  main reason of prevention in wound healing is sepsis which can lead to death of the patient. We have to take care about our patients and the best care is prevention method. By that we can save people lives and make them feel better and more comfortable in their diseases and injuries. Art of science of Health Promotion Conference  Michael P. O’Donnell (2009) Definition of Health Promotion 2.0: Embracing Passion, Enhancing Motivation, Recognizing Dynamic Balance, and Creating Opportunities. American Journal of Health Promotion: September/October 2009, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp. iv-iv. International Journal of Healthcare Management. Apr2014, Vol. 7 Issue 1, p53-59. 7p. DOI: 10.1179/2047971913Y.0000000058. , Database: Business Source Complete ASCs for the promotion of the wound healing of radiation ulcers via angiogenesis. †¦.. J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg 2010 JOURNAL OF WOUND CARE SORBION SUPPLEMENT 2010. http://www.jcn.co.uk/key-topics/wound-care/

Literature Review on Employability of Women Essay

Employability of Women†¦ Introduction†¦ Employability in relation to gender, age and race has changed significantly over the years as factors of our society change the way we live and work. As social norms change, so does the spectre of employability. History proves that the employability of women in relation to men has progressively shifted in recent years, as women become increasingly attractive to employers. In the past, it was thought that it was harder for women to gain a job than it was for men, however is this the case in our modern day society? In the past, women have been penalised with lower pay and less hours than men but recent history has stopped these things from occurring with new laws and regulations for employers to follow, such as the Equal Pay Act 1970, which will be looked at in more detail in the review. This literature review will attempt to analyse the differences in the past, and those which are still apparent today between the employability of men and women. Is it harder for a woman to get a job than a man? Firstly, it will cover the history of employability of women. Then the review will try to discover when things started to change and women started to become more employable. Following this it will discuss the employability of women in today’s society. Lastly, will be a conclusion, in which the findings will be reviewed. History of employability of women†¦ Prior to the Second World War, there was a certain stereotype that women were’ housewives’: social roles were clearly defined. A woman’s place was at home, while a man should be at work. It was acceptable for a woman to work outside of the home, providing she did not have a family to look after, but she would have been paid less than a man, even when doing the same job. The Second World War changed everything. As the men left to go to war, the women had to run the home alone, but they also had to get used to going to work. However, ‘It was understood throughout the war that what Britain’s women were doing was really ‘a man’s job’. So many of them were dismissed from their work once peace was declared†¦ In industries that were not heavily unionised, however, some women were kept on – not least because they were cheaper to employ than men.’ (Harris, 2011). Despite all of the work the women did during the war, they were still not truly appreciated and in fact the ‘housewife’ stereotype was still around in the 1970’s, probably due to the men regaining the majority of the work once returning from the war. This is backed up by the Women and Employment Survey in 1980, ‘The collection of employment histories in the Women and Employment Survey (WES) in 1980 started to break down the stereotypes still around in the 1970’s about women’s careers. The tendency had been to think that a woman’s main role was as a mother , working at domestic tasks.’ (Scott, Dex and Joshi, 2008). Even though the stereotype had continued into the 1970’s, it was clear that it was slowly fading, the effort put in by the women during the war was starting to be appreciated, and as a result women were starting to become more employable, as shown by the fact that ‘women constituted 29 per cent of the labour force in Britain in 1911, and 29 per cent in 1951, but this had risen to 34 per cent by 1966 and had reached 43 per cent by 1991’ (Crompton, 1997). In the early 1990’s the rapid increase in the employment of women started to level out. This was largely due to the recession between 1990 and 1992, as the younger, less stable women chose to go back to school rather than seek employment in the recessionary job market. After 1992 though there was a strong economic recovery, which in turn, led to the rise of women in employment, to what it is today. When did it all start to change? The gender composition of the labour force has changed considerably in the twentieth century. Before the Second World War over 90 per cent of all men of working age or more were in employment, and that was mostly unchanged until after the War, but since then the percentage of men in employment steadily declined to only 73 per cent in 1991. On the other hand, ‘Women’s employment has moved in the other direction. Up until the Second World War (1951) only about a third of all women of working age or more were economically active. Since 1951, however, women’s employment has been growing steadily, and by 1991 half of all women of working age or more were economically active.’ (Crompton, 1997). There are a few major reasons for this shift in employability, the first being the Second World War, which went some way towards changing the stereotypes about a woman’s role and making them more employable, as they showed that they were capable of doing the same jobs as a man just as well as they could, if not better in some cases. This has been explained in more detail previously. However, the main reason for the enormous rise in employability of women has to be the introduction of the Equal Pay Act in 1970. The Equal Pay Act 1970 has had a dramatic effect on the way female employees are viewed and the amount of money they are paid, in relation to men over the last forty years ‘Before 1970, it was common practice in the private sector and some parts of the public sector for there to be separate, and lower, women’s rates of pay†¦ The Equal Pay Act introduced an ‘implied equality clause’ into all employees’ contracts. This had the effect of eliminating separate lower women’s rates of pay†¦ women’s average earnings compared to men’s rose by 5%, from 72% to 77%, over a 5 year period in the 1970s – the biggest ever increase in this ratio.’ (Hastings). This was not the only change the Equal Pay Act 1970 caused. The Act also led to the use of job evaluation being used for more frequently, this is where you compare different jobs in order to put them into a rank order based on the difficulty of the work, this would then be the basis for the employees grading and pay, and not the fact that they were a male or female. There were other effects of the Act as well, such as that of the effect on collective bargaining. Over the years there have been many changes in technology and the way businesses are run which has led to the old collective bargaining arrangements becoming out-dated, but it is not only because of the changes in technology, equal pay legislation has also had an impact. Due to these factors, collective bargaining arrangements in many organisations have been harmonised. Employability of women in today’s society†¦ Since the Equal Pay Act was passed, the gap between the average hourly pay of men and that of women has drastically decreased. However, ‘It is 40 years since the Equal Pay Act and yet women working full-time in the UK are still paid on average 15.5% less per hour than men†¦ That is one of the biggest gaps in the European Union and Britain appears to be becoming a tougher place still for women to work. The recession has seen many part-time jobs go; the majority of such jobs are held by women. Over the last 12 months, 4.5% of the female workforce experienced redundancy compared with just 3% of men.’ (Allen, 2011), illustrating that despite the vast increase in the employability of women, a difference still exists today, albeit a considerably smaller one. In today’s society, it has been shown that girls remain in education for longer than boys, and also achieve higher grades. This could help to further explain why women are far more employable now than they have been in the past, and this trend only looks to continue in the future. Yet, the reason for the rise in employability of women today is it not only due to the laws that have been imposed; it is also due to the change in status of women in today’s society. As, women have become more powerful, it is clear that businesses should employ more women and treat them equally to their male workers, if not only to protect themselves from law suits, then to enhance the reputation and customer base of their business and reap the reap the rewards financially. ‘Research in Europe and the United States suggests†¦ that companies with several senior-level women tend to perform better financially.’ (Georges, Sandrine, Mary C., 2008). Conclusion†¦ By looking through the history and changes of female employability and at what it is like today, you can clearly see how society has gradually changed their views from the sexist view that was adopted by men, and some women, before the Second World War, to the very much equal society we have today. However, is it really equal in today’s society? The research shows, that despite the colossal rise in the employability of women and slight decline in the employability of men, there are still some differences, for example the fact that ‘†¦women working full-time in the UK are still paid on average 15.5% less per hour than men†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Allen, 2011), this is not acceptable, but unfortunately there may always be a difference, even if it is a very slight one. References†¦ Allen, K. (2011) ‘Women look away now: you are working for free’ The Guardian, 4th November 2011 [Online] [Accessed 14 November 2011] Crompton, R. (1997) Women and Work in Modern Britain. 2nd Impression Edition, Oxford: OUP Oxford Desvaux, G., Devillard-Hoellinger, S., Meaney, M. (2008) A business case for women. Mckinsey Quarterly. Issue 4, p26-33 Harris, C. (2011) ‘Women Under Fire in World War Two’ BBC, 17th February 2011 [Online] [Accessed 14 November 2011] Hastings, S. ‘The Equal Pay Act: It’s Impact on Collective Bargaining, Grading and Pay’ [Online] [Accessed 14 November 2011] Scott, J., Dex, S., Joshi, H. (2009) ‘Women and Employment: Changing Lives and New Challenges’. Edward Edgar Publishing Ltd Reflective Report†¦ How I found Literature Review. My first thoughts when being set this assignment were ones of panic and anxiety. I was a little apprehensive of how to approach it as I was unsure about what it consisted of, and how to go about writing it. This concern was increased as it was the first assignment I have been set since joining the university so I was not sure whether it would be up to the standards of the university. As I started to get into the review, it started to become easier, although, I did still have trouble with the referencing, and was uncertain of the best way to layout the review. I found turnitin very easy to use, and I liked the idea of being able to check my work was acceptable before finally submitting it. On the whole though I feel that this assignment, although challenging, was extremely worthwhile and will stand me in good stead for the future, especially using turnitin as I will now easily be able to hand in my future assignments. Meeting my mentor. My mentor rung me and we arranged to meet at the canteen in Mithras House. My first impressions of James were that he seemed a very nice approachable guy, which, indeed he was. We started talking and he asked me how I was finding University life, both the social side of it and the work load. I responded by telling him that I was very much enjoying the social side of university as I have enjoyed meeting all new people and making new friends. I then proceeded to add that I was finding some of the workload quite hard as it is a big step up from A-levels, but also that I found it all extremely interesting, especially the Marketing, Law and Economic elements of the course, which has made it easier to read up on it as I am interesting in it. Subsequently, we then mutually decided on some goals that I could set myself, they were as follows; Firstly, we set the target that I must achieve a high 2.1 or a 1st at the end of the course. Secondly, was the target that I must find a job. The last target was that I must meet all of my deadlines and attend all of my lectures and seminars, unless there were extenuating circumstances. James then gave me his e-mail address and told me to contact him if I needed any help with anything in the future. Lastly, we arranged another date to meet and then we both parted ways. Personal SWOT†¦ What are my strengths? What do I already have that I might be able to build on?I feel that one of my strengths is my existing knowledge of businesses and how they operate. I gained this knowledge through research I conducted in A-Level. Good Presentation is another thing I view as a strength of mine.| What are my weaknesses / areas for development?I believe my main weakness is the speed at which I work. This directly contrasts with one of my strengths (Good presentation) as I try to make everything look neat and therefore spend longer than I should on the work.| What opportunities do you see to develop yourself?I have a vast amount of opportunities available to me at Brighton University. These opportunities include; Teachers to give me advice when I get stuck on something, Libraries so I can easily find the books/journals I might need to help me write my essays, Other students who I can ask for their input on my work and how I could improve it (Peer Review)| What threats do you see to your personal development, or barriers that may need to be overcome?

Leadrship Development And Business Ethics Example

Leadrship Development And Business Ethics Example Leadrship Development And Business Ethics – Coursework Example Evaluation In the business morals I learnt numerous good issues that emerge ready to go operations. Through the business morals, one can comprehend the directing standards inside the nature. It is the moral rules that are the foundation for the law set by the legislature to direct business operations. Through these laws, the conduct of the business practices is controlled and consequently guarantees that there is decency between the players in a business nature. Around the zones that are controlled by business morals incorporate Finance, human assets administration, property rights, generation and deals and showcasing around others territories. One zone that I might want to be enhanced through stronghold of waterproof lawful framework is the issue of encroachment of property rights. This moral issue has gotten to be so affirmed as a consequence of rise of the computerized ranges, accordingly, the licensed innovation holders are losing income and their learned rights. The morals conce rning the property rights have gotten antagonistic issues and numerous lawful suits have been recorded in courts over the globe. It is basic for the universal group to create a shared view in exertions to control the encroachment of the property rights on the grounds that the world has turned into a worldwide town. The inconceivable encounter on business morals has turned into an establishment for my future business engages. Through the morals class, I have figured out how to approach distinctive business issues without rupturing the existing business standards. The contrasts between the social develops and the common rights have kept on existing as to responsibility for. Business morals are paramount devices for administration and regulation of organizations.

Compare And Contrast Medical And Psychological Models For Understanding And Intervening In Children’s Development.

Compare And Contrast Medical And Psychological Models For Understanding And Intervening In Children’s Development. Medical and psychological models of children's development have tended to follow two discrete paths. The medical model tends to assume a line of pathology that seeks causation and remediation. Psychological models tend to embrace a developmental approach, in which social and cultural norms play an equal, if not larger part, in pursuing the interests of the child. This essay seeks to compare the two models, using Down's Syndrome and autism as the main vehicles for analysis and discussion and to contrast how the two approaches attempt to address children's development.One fundamental difference in the medical and psychological approaches has been in the use of terminology. The medical model seeks to diagnose a patient with a disease or symptoms that requires treatment. It often uses terms that label the child in ways that seek to categorise the child, as if, ownership of a disorder were solely attributable to the individual.Boy with Down Syndrome using cordless drill to ass...This cont rasts with most recent psychological approaches that conceptualise the child, as a member of a wider social group who has certain needs, that with intervention will attempt to enable him or her to live as normal a life as possible. It is implicit in this approach that whilst the child may have a disability, the "‹ÂÅ"problem', belongs within society. (It is probably fair to say that this is, albeit to a much lesser extent today, still aspirational) It could be argued that in both models a "‹ÂÅ"problem' exists, in some cases, because there are wider cultural expectations that require individuals to behave and conform in certain ways to defined developmental milestones. Thus, there is an (unwitting) attempt to homogenise individuals within social norms.With Down's Syndrome it is now clearly understood as a congenital condition. Although there are several variations of the syndrome, by far the most common are...

Patrick Cleburne - Civil War - Confederate - Army of Tennessee

Patrick Cleburne - Civil War - Confederate - Army of Tennessee Patrick Cleburne - Early Life Career: Born March 17, 1828 in Ovens, Ireland, Patrick Cleburne was the son of Dr. Joseph Cleburne. Raised by his father after his mothers death in 1829, he largely enjoyed a middle-class upbringing. At age 15, Cleburnes father passed leaving him an orphan. Seeking to pursue a medical career, he sought admission to Trinity College in 1846, but proved unable to pass the entrance exam. Possessing few prospects, Cleburne enlisted in the 41st Regiment of Foot. Learning basic military skills, he attained the rank of corporal before purchasing his discharge after three years in the ranks. Seeing opportunity in Ireland, Cleburne elected to immigrate to the United States along with two of his brothers and his sister. Initially settling in Ohio, he later moved to Helena, AR. Employed as a pharmacist, Cleburne quickly became a respected member of the community. Befriending Thomas C. Hindman, the two men bought the Democratic Star newspaper with William Weatherly in 1855. Expanding his horizons, Cleburne trained as a lawyer and by 1860 was actively practicing. As sectional tensions worsened and the secession crisis began following the election of 1860, Cleburne decided to support the Confederacy. Though lukewarm on the issue of slavery, he made this decision based on his positive experience in the South as an immigrant. With the political situation worsening, Cleburne enlisted in the Yell Rifles, a local militia, and was soon elected captain. Aiding in the capture of the US Arsenal at Little Rock, AR in January 1861, his men were ultimately folded into the 15th Arkansas Infantry of which he became colonel. Patrick Cleburne - The Civil War Begins: Recognized as a skilled leader, Cleburne received a promotion to brigadier general on March 4, 1862. Assuming command of a brigade in Major General William J. Hardees corps of the Army of Tennessee, he took part in General Albert S. Johnstons offensive against Major General Ulysses S. Grant in Tennessee. On April 6-7, Cleburnes brigade was engaged in the Battle of Shiloh. Though the first days fight proved successful, Confederate forces were driven from the field on April 7. Later the following month, Cleburne saw action under General P.G.T. Beauregard during the Siege of Corinth. With the loss of this town to Union forces, his men later shifted east to prepare for General Braxton Braggs invasion of Kentucky. Marching north with Lieutenant General Edmund Kirby Smith, Cleburnes brigade played a key role in the Confederate victory at the Battle of Richmond (KY) on August 29-30. Rejoining Bragg, Cleburne attacked Union forces under Major General Don Carlos Buell at the Battle of Perryville on October 8. In the course of the fighting, he sustained two wounds but remained with his men. Though Bragg won a tactical victory at Perryville, he elected to retreat back to Tennessee as Union forces threatened his rear. In recognition of his performance during the campaign, Cleburne received a promotion to major general on December 12 and assumed command of a division in Braggs Army of Tennessee. Patrick Cleburne - Fighting with Bragg: Later in December, Cleburnes division played a key role in driving back the right wing of Major General William S. Rosecrans Army of the Cumberland at the Battle of Stones River. As at Shiloh, the initial success could not be sustained and Confederate forces withdrew on January 3. That summer, Cleburne and the rest of the Army of Tennessee retreated through central Tennessee as Rosecrans repeatedly outmaneuvered Bragg during the Tullahoma Campaign. Ultimately halting in northern Georgia, Bragg turned on Rosecrans at the Battle of Chickamauga on September 19-20. In the fighting, Cleburne mounted several assaults on Major General George H. Thomas XIV Corps. Winning a victory at Chickamauga, Bragg pursued Rosecrans back to Chattanooga, TN and commenced a siege of the city. Responding to this situation, Union general-in-chief Major General Henry W. Halleck directed Major General Ulysses S. Grant to bring his forces from Mississippi to reopen the Army of the Cumberlands supply lines. Successful in this, Grant made preparations for assaulting Braggs army which held the heights south and east of the city. Positioned at Tunnel Hill, Cleburnes division manned the extreme right of the Confederate line on Missionary Ridge. On November 25, his men turned back several frontal assaults by Major General William T. Shermans troops during the Battle of Chattanooga. This success soon was negated when the Confederate line further down the ridge collapsed and forced Cleburne to retreat. Two days later, he halted the Union pursuit at the Battle of Ringgold Gap. Patrick Cleburne - Atlanta Campaign: Reorganizing in northern Georgia, command of the Army of Tennessee passed to General Joseph E. Johnston in December. Recognizing that the Confederacy was short on manpower, Cleburne proposed arming slaves the following month. Those that fought would receive their emancipation at the end of the war. Receiving a cool reception, President Jefferson Davis directed that Cleburnes plan be suppressed. In May 1864, Sherman began moving into Georgia with the goal of capturing Atlanta. With Sherman maneuvering through northern Georgia, Cleburne saw action at Dalton, Tunnel Hill, Resaca, and Picketts Mill. On June 27, his division held the center of the Confederate line at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. Turning back Union assaults, Cleburnes men defended their part of the line and Johnston achieved a victory. Despite this, Johnston was later compelled to retreat south when Sherman flanked him out of the Kennesaw Mountain position. Having been forced back to Atlanta, Johnston was relieved by D avis and replaced with General John Bell Hood on July 17. On July 20, Hood attacked Union forces under Thomas at the Battle of Peachtree Creek. Initially held in reserve by his corps commander, Lieutenant General William J. Hardee, Cleburnes men were later directed to restart an offensive on the Confederate right. Before the attack could commence, new orders arrived instructing his men to move east to aid Major General Benjamin Cheathams hard-pressed men. Two days later, Cleburnes division played a key role in attempting to turn Shermans left flank at the Battle of Atlanta. Attacking behind Major General Grenville M. Dodges XVI Corps, his men killed Major General James B. McPherson, commander of the Army of the Tennessee, and gained ground before being halted by a determined Union defense. As the summer progressed, Hoods situation continued to deteriorate as Sherman tightened the noose around the city. In late August, Cleburne and the rest of Hardees Corps saw heavy fighting at the Battle of Jonesboro. Beaten, the defeat led to the fall of Atlanta and Hood withdrew to regroup. Patrick Cleburne - Franklin-Nashville Campaign: With the loss of Atlanta, Davis instructed Hood to attack north with the goal of disrupting Shermans supply lines to Chattanooga. Anticipating this, Sherman, who was planning his March to the Sea, dispatched forces under Thomas and Major General John Schofield to Tennessee. Moving north, Hood attempted to trap Schofields force at Spring Hill, TN before it could unite with Thomas. Attacking at the Battle of Spring Hill, Cleburne engaged Union forces before being halted by enemy artillery. Escaping during the night, Schofield retreated to Franklin where his men built a strong set of earthworks. Arriving the next day, Hood resolved to frontally attack the Union position. Recognizing the folly of such a move, many of Hoods commanders attempted to dissuade him of this plan. Though he opposed the attack, Cleburne commented that the enemy works were strong but that he would carry them or fall trying. Forming his division on the right of the attacking force, Cleburne advanced around 4:00 PM. Pushing ahead, Cleburne was last seen attempting to lead his men forward on foot after having his horse killed. A bloody defeat for Hood, the Battle of Franklin saw fourteen Confederate generals become casualties including Cleburne. Found on the field after the battle, Cleburnes body initially was buried at St. Johns Episcopal Church near Mount Pleasant, TN. Six years later, it was moved to Maple Hill Cemetery in his adopted hometown of Helena. Selected Sources Civil War Trust: Patrick CleburneNorth Georgia: Patrick CleburneCivil War Home: Patrick Cleburne

Description of Water Pollution Sources in Lake Victoria Research Paper

Description of Water Pollution Sources in Lake Victoria - Research Paper Example Lake Victoria has a surface area of 68800 km2 hence making it the second largest lake in the world. Currently, the lake is characterized by eutrophication and low dissolved oxygen due to pollution from human activity (Scheren et al., 2000). The pollution load is mainly domestic in nature with little industrial pollution. The article tries to identify a reliable method to gauge this pollution in terms of intensity and quantity from the various sources. Since the lake shares among three nations, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, the research determines the pollution load from each side and the management policies in place and their effectiveness is curbing the pollution into the lake. The article also views policies for sustainable development useful in the region (Scheren et al., 2000). The lead researcher and author of the article are M. Scheren. A member of The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation based in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire (Scheren et al., 2000). The organization is responsible for monitoring and advising both the region and the United Nations Security Council on the effects of Industrial development on the environment. The second Author, H.A. Zanting is a member of the Faculty of Technology Management and center technology for sustainable development in the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands (Scheren et al., 2000). His expertise in sustainable development is key to the research as pollution due to increased human activity is an issue of sustainable development. A. M. Lemmens is a corresponding author in the research and often consulted on technical matters that require specialized opinion (Scheren et al., 2000). The increased pollution of Lake Victoria is the recent past that has subsequently resulted in immense alterations in the chemistry and biology of the lake’s ecosystem necessitated the research.

Hemophilia Disease Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Hemophilia Disease - Essay Example The oral condition of the human being is characterized by episodes of tooth loss and damage of the gums which leads to bleeding. Keeping the gums and the teeth healthy usually requires procedures that are invasive ( prone to injury). One can just imagine the gravity of the situation to people with hemophilia. That is why one can find numerous studies and researches about the People with hemophilia or congenital bleeding tendencies are a priority group for dental and oral health care, since bleeding after dental treatment may cause severe or even fatal complications. Maintenance of a healthy mouth and prevention of dental problems is of great importance, not only to quality of life and nutrition but also to avoid the dangers of surgery. . Plaque accumulation causes inflammation of the gums (gingivitis) due to the action of bacteria. This may progress to the damage of the attachment of the teeth to the jawbone (periodontal membrane) resulting to inflammation and damage to this membrane (chronic periodontitis). Ultimately, this leads to the loosening of a tooth and then tooth loss. With the plaque allowed to calcify, tartar develops above and/or below the gum-line making further accretion of plaque result to Fig 2. The Parts of A Tooth Gingivitis is painless but leads to the ... Thru the process of prophylaxis or cleaning of the teeth and gums by the doctor, gingivitis can be prevented thereby limiting bleeding of the gums and eliminating the need for surgery. This can be seen as a pro-active step rather than waiting for the gums to bleed and make use of factor concentrates to stop the bleeding. The treatment of hemophilia has been undergoing significant innovations since the development of factor VIII concentrates. The current trend of thinking is that prophylaxis is a beneficial therapy for patients with hemophilia A as compared to on-demand treatment. The observed benefits include reduced number of bleeding episodes, improved joint function and a relatively healthier patient. Hoots et al reviewed the literature about the topic and weighed the value of these benefits against the increased expense due to increased factor use. (Hoots et al, 2006) How Is Dental Surgery Performed To A Hemophiliac Performing dental surgery on a hemophiliac patient, even for a simple dental extraction, must be thoroughly planned such that the risk of bleeding, hematoma formation or excessive bruising is minimized. To prevent any problems or complications, the two following points must be realized: Rarely will emergency dental surgical intervention be required as control of pain can be registered without resorting to an unplanned treatment. Discussions with Hemophilia patients requiring prophylactic cover concerning the treatment plans must be done For those suffering from severe hemophilia, factor replacement is a necessary pre-surgery procedure along with regional block injections or scaling. Those suffering from hemophilia A usually require a dose of 50 iu/kg of factor VIII and a dose of 100 iu/kg of factor IX in hemophilia

Managing Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Managing Change - Essay Example From this study it is clear that successful implementation of change very much depends on the manager’s ability to handle and ease the employees and the members into the new processes in the organization. According to the paper managing change in healthcare organizations is essentially similar to managing change in economic or political organizations. The same concept of resistance among employees very much hinges on the organization’s and the manager’s ability to shake off its traditional practices. Throughout this change process, it is important for policies and structures to be altered for purposes of innovation and improved performance. Therefore, â€Å"individuals and groups have to be motivated to continue to perform in the face of major turbulence†. Given time, this major turbulence would not have as much devastating effects on the organization as originally perceived by its members. This paper shall discuss the concept of managing change in an organization. It shall present a case study of how change was managed in a healthcare organization. It shall then discuss the different concepts and issues involved in introducing and integrating change into differen t organizations while considering the events as they unfolded in the case study. A decision and analysis about the management of change shall be drawn from this discussion.

Corporate Finance System of Vodafone Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5250 words

Corporate Finance System of Vodafone - Essay Example Figure 10 Dividend payment of Vodafone as a percentage of net profit/loss (Source: Money.CNN.com) Figure 11 Dividend payment of AT&T as a percentage of net profit/loss (Source: Money.CNN.com) Figure 12 Dividend payment of Verizon & BT as a percentage of net profit/loss (Source: Money.CNN.com) Figure 13 Total Current Assets of Vodafone (Source: CNN Money) Figure 14 Total Current Liabilities of Vodafone (Source: CNN Money) Figure 15 Current Ratio of Vodafone Figure 16 Cash Ratio of Vodafone Figure 17 Total Assets and Total Liabilities of Vodafone (Source: CNN Money) Figure 18 Vodafone's withdrawal from committed facilities in 2004, 2005 and 2006 (Source: Vodafone Annual Report 2008. pp57) 1.0 Executive Summary This report is a comprehensive analysis of the corporate finance system of Vodafone. The analytics presented here is based on the published information by Vodafone on their corporate website and independent market information about the organisation from global financial analysis organisations. Overall, Vodafone is a large group with multiple legal entities. However, the CEOs of all the legal entities report to the group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) manages consolidated finance for the group. The analysis presented herewith is pertaining to the consolidated finance of entire group and not of their individual legal entities. The entire analysis is divided into five chapters. The first chapter deals with the background information about the company whereby their corporate objectives, details about finance division, sources of finance, shareholder analysis, and corporate governance have been presented in brief. In the second chapter, the systematic and unsystematic risks associated with Vodafone and... The first chapter deals with the background information about the company whereby their corporate objectives, details about finance division, sources of finance, shareholder analysis, and corporate governance have been presented in brief. In the second chapter, the systematic and unsystematic risks associated with Vodafone and the global telecommunications industry as whole. The risk reports have been taken from Ernst and Young's assessment of global telecommunications industry risks, Deloitte's report on Vodafone's risks (published on the website of Vodafone) and the 2008 annual report of Vodafone. In the third chapter, the Capital Structure of Vodafone and have compared the same with old theories that have been accepted by accounting community largely. The Debt to Equity ratio of Vodafone is compared with similar companies in the telecommunications industry and the results are analyzed. The last part of this chapter deals with application of dividend payment theories in these companies. In the fourth chapter, the empirical theories of Working Capital management of firms and the usage of Money Markets has been presented with the help of literature review. Thereafter, the working capital management of Vodafone and their usage of money market instruments have been analyzed.

Digital revolution in the music industry Research Paper

Digital revolution in the music industry - Research Paper Example Nevertheless, the digital revolution has posed several challenges especially on management in the music industry. This has been mainly due to piracy and illegal downloading of music. Ways to mitigate these challenges have been found, for example introduction of legitimate downloading services and lawsuits for illegal downloading of music. The music industry has also restructured its strategies and focused on developments such as involvement in advertisements, computer games, the television, films, as well as sale of ringtones, which are alternative revenue streams. Industries are basically concerned with the production of goods for mass consumption. Apart from production, industries today are also involved in marketing and distribution of most of their products, which include intangible goods and services. The term music industry has had numerous definitions, which make the meaning of the term unclear. Some definitions suggest that song writers, producers, musicians, music publishers, and record companies form the core of the definition of the music industry. At this point, live music is regarded to be part of the performing arts industry. According to Wikstrom, â€Å"the music industry consists of those companies concerned with developing musical content and personalities which can be communicated across multiple media† (2009, p. 49). The music industry however constitutes recording, publishing, and live performance. The music industry began with the commencement of mass distribution and commercial use of music. The industrialization of music began in the late nineteenth century, and was marked by â€Å"mass production and organized marketing of musical instruments and sheet music copies, plus the organization of professional musical entertainment in the theatre, vaudeville show, music hall or dance hall† (Horn, Laing, Oliver, & Wicke, 2003, p. 251). The second half of the nineteenth century was marked by great expansion in the

Corporate Finance System of Vodafone Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5250 words

Corporate Finance System of Vodafone - Essay Example Figure 10 Dividend payment of Vodafone as a percentage of net profit/loss (Source: Money.CNN.com) Figure 11 Dividend payment of AT&T as a percentage of net profit/loss (Source: Money.CNN.com) Figure 12 Dividend payment of Verizon & BT as a percentage of net profit/loss (Source: Money.CNN.com) Figure 13 Total Current Assets of Vodafone (Source: CNN Money) Figure 14 Total Current Liabilities of Vodafone (Source: CNN Money) Figure 15 Current Ratio of Vodafone Figure 16 Cash Ratio of Vodafone Figure 17 Total Assets and Total Liabilities of Vodafone (Source: CNN Money) Figure 18 Vodafone's withdrawal from committed facilities in 2004, 2005 and 2006 (Source: Vodafone Annual Report 2008. pp57) 1.0 Executive Summary This report is a comprehensive analysis of the corporate finance system of Vodafone. The analytics presented here is based on the published information by Vodafone on their corporate website and independent market information about the organisation from global financial analysis organisations. Overall, Vodafone is a large group with multiple legal entities. However, the CEOs of all the legal entities report to the group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) manages consolidated finance for the group. The analysis presented herewith is pertaining to the consolidated finance of entire group and not of their individual legal entities. The entire analysis is divided into five chapters. The first chapter deals with the background information about the company whereby their corporate objectives, details about finance division, sources of finance, shareholder analysis, and corporate governance have been presented in brief. In the second chapter, the systematic and unsystematic risks associated with Vodafone and... The first chapter deals with the background information about the company whereby their corporate objectives, details about finance division, sources of finance, shareholder analysis, and corporate governance have been presented in brief. In the second chapter, the systematic and unsystematic risks associated with Vodafone and the global telecommunications industry as whole. The risk reports have been taken from Ernst and Young's assessment of global telecommunications industry risks, Deloitte's report on Vodafone's risks (published on the website of Vodafone) and the 2008 annual report of Vodafone. In the third chapter, the Capital Structure of Vodafone and have compared the same with old theories that have been accepted by accounting community largely. The Debt to Equity ratio of Vodafone is compared with similar companies in the telecommunications industry and the results are analyzed. The last part of this chapter deals with application of dividend payment theories in these companies. In the fourth chapter, the empirical theories of Working Capital management of firms and the usage of Money Markets has been presented with the help of literature review. Thereafter, the working capital management of Vodafone and their usage of money market instruments have been analyzed.

Finance Problems Speech or Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Finance Problems - Speech or Presentation Example In order for the company to have the credit standing â€Å"comfortably within the A range,† the target range to be chosen should be at the lower end of the ranges, or the upper limit of the lower rating as its lower limit, and the upper limit of the A rating for the upper limit. Thus, for the fixed charge, the company must choose 3.40x – 4.30x; the lower limit is the upper limit for the Baa rating. For the funds from operations/total debt, the range should be 55-65; 55 being the upper limit for Baa. For the long-term debt/capitalization, the range should be 22-30; the 30% being the lower limit for the Baa rating, rating below the A rating. One of the factors to be included in the decision include the companys research and development spending, which as mentioned in the question can be assumed as capitalized and part of the intangible asset of the company. Because this is an intangible, other investors may not buy into it as a security in terms of providing higher amounts of loans to the company, compared to its competitors. While it has higher than average spending for R&D, this is not a tangible cost that could back up any claims for insolvency, which is also a concern to the investors. Also, the companys ability to use other tax credits is another consideration for settling with the target ranges, because these has effect on the three key figures for the company to qualify for a certain credit rating. Because R&D is capitalized, the additional tax credits by increasing the leverage may not be so significant to the company when R&D is capitalized into intangibles. Because it invests in higher than average R&D, and has higher foreign credits, if these are not affected by increasing the financial leverage of the company, it does not give huge benefit to the company in the process. II. (18-A10 Dividend adjustment model) Regional Software has made a bundle selling spreadsheet software and has begun paying cash

Feasibility Report Essay Example for Free

Feasibility Report Essay The company will sell custom-made cakes, cupcakes and coffee. The revenues from the business will come from the sale of decorated cakes and cupcakes, as well as coffee for customers who visit the shop. The business will raise revenue from service: cake decoration and creation of the centerpieces of many of the most remarkable occasions of the lives of clients. Service revenue will come from different customized cake designs, decoration and bake creations. The business will use many different designs as discussed by Graham (2007) and Wilson (2011). The major revenue source during the initial year will be service revenue, including drink, cakes, and cupcakes sales. The business includes walk-in service. It will have two ordering delivery channels; phone orders and via online ordering. In addition, parking bays will be provided at a fee. The projected revenue from parking bays will be $75000 per year. The revenue from the sale of cupcakes, cakes and drinks is projected to be $100000 yearly. The revenue from custom-making service will be $50000 annually. Therefore, the total projected revenue will be $225000. Cost Drivers The business will consider the costs in order to stay in business (Marron, 2014); (Kidder, 2012 ). a) Upfront Costs Since the business is new, there will be several starting costs before  official opening. Upfront costs consist of the purchase of furniture and fittings (table, chairs, coffee machines, installation of EFTPOS (electronic funds transfer at point of sale) and computers, cutlery, and front decoration (Ilasco and Seto, 2012 ); (Spencer, 2010). Advertising expenses will consist of the advertising campaign in the initial year. The advertising drive will be geared towards increasing sales to cater for the other costs (Marquis, Demand Media, 2014). Materials for shop decoration will be used to attract new customers. The total cost will include the cost of employing an interior designer. In addition, the business will consider the bond for the rent. This is because the expense must be paid prior before the business is opened. There will be other upfront costs that will include the certificates and legislations required for the business opening (Department of Health, 2014). b) Fixed Costs Owing to the scenic area of Melbourne, the high cost of rent must be taken into account. Utilities like lighting, heating, telephone lines, internet router and air conditioning have to be considered before the official opening. The business will choose a cheap electricity supplier. There are many to choose from (Smart Utilities, 2014). For an attractive design of the display in the shop, an interior designer with experience will be sought once per year. The cost associated with this will be recorded as ‘expenses for design.’ Besides, the parking bays’ rental will be a yearly fixed cost paid to Melbourne City Council (Hamer, Currie and Young , 2011). The parking bays will be provided to increase revenue. The business will take legislations into consideration, because set annual fees will have to be paid to the relevant bodies to ensure business continuation. c) Variable Costs These are the expenses that will change with the output of the business. The main variable cost in the cake and cupcake shop is raw materials used in the production of cupcakes, coffee and cakes such as lollies, vegetables, fruits, flour, milk, coffee beans and chocolate (Leach and Melicher, 2014). The cost of vegetables and fruits will change depending on seasonal and weather changes. There will be other variable costs like package expenses: boxes, bags, staff wages and utilities. The workers in the shop will include 1 baker 1 decorator Junior casual staff Wages will be paid fortnightly. Additionally, the business will offer staff uniforms and training opportunities. There will be allowance of discount expenses owing to the high-inventory turnover and the need to supply fresh products. On special occasions, the business may have deals or offers that will reduce the unit profit. There will be other expenses like machinery maintenance, new fittings and insurance. These will be required as the business grows. Resource Requirements/Mapping Human Resource It will be very easy to get the key employees as it will only involve placing adverts on the street notice boards. There will be an added cost of interviews, as well as paying the Melbourne City Council (City of Melbourne, 2014). Physical Resource Property for lease is available in the area identified. Due to the scenery of the area, the cost of lease is high. However, the expected returns are high. The business premises will be gotten under a one-year lease. This will save the cost that may be incurred in paying monthly costs. Similarly, it will avoid the costs associated with monthly rent increases. Financial Resource The total startup cost is $130000. The business will raise $30000 and $100000 will be obtained from the bank as loan. Costs for maintenance will be catered for by the revenue from the business. Investment Size The business plans to raise $130000 to meet its startup cost. The funds will be used for: Developing the company’s cupcake and cakes store location Financing for the first year of operation Capital to buy baking equipment and ovens The company will contribute $30000 to the venture. The remaining $100000 will be financed by the bank as loan. Projected Startup Costs Initial Lease Payments and Deposits $20000 Working Capital $60000 Security Deposits $20000 Opening Supplies $10000 Company Vehicle and Lease Deposits $2000 Marketing Budget $10000 Miscellaneous and Unforeseen Costs $8000 Total Startup Costs $130000 References Aaron Marquis, Demand Media , 2014. The Average Profit Margin for a Cake Bakery. [Online] Available at: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/average-profit-margin-cake-bakery-14214.html [Accessed 11 05 2014]. Department of Health, V. A., 2014. Starting a food business. [Online] Available at: http://www.health.vic.gov.au/foodsafety/bus/foodbus.htm [Accessed 11 05 2014].  Graham, J., 2007. The Crabapple Bakery Cupcake Cookbook. Print ed. London: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated. J. Leach, Ronald Melicher, 2014 . Entrepreneurial Finance. 5 ed. Stamford: Cengage Learning. Kidder, D., 2012 . The Startup Playbook: Secrets of the Fastest-Growing Startups from Their Founding Entrepreneurs. Illustrated ed. San Francisco : Chronicle Books. Marron, D., 2014. Cupcake Economics. [Online] Available at: http://dmarron.com/2009/11/28/cupcake-economics/ [Accessed 11 05 2014]. Meg Mateo Ilasco, Catherine Seto, 2012 . Mom, Inc.: The Essential Guide to Running a Successful Business Close to Home. Illustrated ed. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. Melbourne, C. o., 2014. Rates and valuations. [Online] Available at: https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/buildingandplanning/ratesandvaluations/Pages/RatesandValuations.aspx [Accessed 11 05 2014]. Paul Hamer, Graham Currie, William Young , 2011. Parking Price Policies – A review of the Melbourne congestion levy. Australasian Transport Research Forum 2011 Proceedings , 1(1), pp. 1-16. Spencer, P., 2010 . Start a Cupcake Business Today. London: InformationTree Press. StartupBizHub, 2014. Starting a Cake Business. [Online] Available at: http://www.startupbizhub.com/starting-a-cake-business.htm [Accessed 11 05 2014]. Utilities, S., 2014. Compare Electricity Rates in Victoria. [Online] Available at: http://www.smartutilities.com.au/electricity-comparison-victoria/ [Accessed 11 05 2014]. Wilson, D., 2011 . Bakers Field Guide to Cupcakes. Unabridged, reprint ed. New York City: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Literature Review Of Companies And Supermarkets

Literature Review Of Companies And Supermarkets As companies/supermarkets have race to introduced technology that enables the customers to get service on their own (Bitner, M. Amy, L. Ostrom and Matthew, L. 2002). Growing number of customers interacted with the technology to create service outcomes instead with a service firm employee (Matthew, L. Amy, L. Ostrom, Robert, I. And Bitner, M. July 2000). The overall affect model is based on the consumers feelings toward the use of technology (Pratibha A. and Dabholkar 1996). The Supermarkets which introduce self-service checkout systems wish to gain rapid acceptance and usage of these technologies by potential consumers. (Jungki, L. and Allaway, A. 2002) According to Merriam-Websters Dictionary (2008), Innovation is a new idea, method or device, or the introduction of something new.Drejer (2002) argues that innovation is more than just invention, that idea cannot be innovative as a pure, it must be put in practice and be commercialized; otherwise it is too earlier to speak of innovation. Blackmon (1996) provide us with the best summary for a context of this research: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ technological change is used to describe changes in knowledge that increase the volume of output or allow a qualitatively superior output from a given amount of resources à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and thus in driving organizational evolution à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The sales profit is a simple conceptual framework chain to linking with the employee satisfaction as well as customer satisfaction and financial performance. This sales profit chain is the relationships between employee and customer satisfaction (Gary, W. and Loveman, 1998). The benefit of the customer retention and satisfaction has been characterized by using the repurchase intention or a factor score of quite a few measures repurchase goal, and price tolerance. So that the purpose to use the customers management strategy that is the based on managing both satisfaction and benefit of customer retention (Narayandas, D. 1998). Performance expectation and the actual performance have major significance in the Evaluation process, as we need to determine the dimension of product and service performance. Most customers do not switch from satisfied seller to their competitors, but, there are several factors that could affect customer behaviour to switch to different service provider such as mistake in core service failure, service encounter failures, variable prices, inconvenience, responsive to service failures, attraction by competitors, ethical behaviours and involuntary switching etc. (Hawkins, Best and Coney, 2004). Retailers need to analyze what makes a new product from the point of view by the customer if customers facing problems understanding the reason behind the introduction of new self-service checkout systems (SSC) they will not use the system. As we launch new self-service systems, we need to analyse the consumer behaviour as well. The consumer should be involved in some way or another at most stages in the introduction of self-service checkout system. Every retail or sales companies should take care of customer wants and needs (Wright, R. 2006). Consumers feel a sense of pleasure in understanding that they have found a unique store that they can, and do, frequent. This suggestion is suggested on the notion of value as a function of both worth (Oliver, 1999) and scarcity. People feel good when they find something of worth that is not easily available the feel good feeling from the ordinary and the mundane, is different from satisfaction in that it consists qualitative effects such as enjoyment and happiness. In contract, satisfaction is an evaluative judgment (Oliver, 1997) and more cognitive in nature (Howard and Sheth, 1969). Satisfaction can be defined as a cognitive evaluation resulting from the fulfilment expectations. Satisfaction is a judgment based on either a cognitive or emotional appraisal, made by the customer whether his or her expectations were met (Oliver, 1997). Positive affect is a pleasurable emotional response (Bogozzi, Gopinath, and Nyer, 1999). If organizations want to consider total customer experience, satisfaction by itself is a weak measurement (Barlow and Maul, 2000) As a result, when a consumer experiences more differentiation value in the store, consumer will be more likely to feel more positive responses toward the store (Holbrook and Hirschman, 1982) The literature in retailing and customer behaviour has identified commitment as ones motivation to keep a relationship with the retailer (Bendapudi and Berry, 1997 and Fournier, 1998).The self-service checkout system (SSC) into the service come across necessitates research to improved understand customers attitudes toward overhaul providers and technologies, and their intentions to employ technology-based facility delivery systems. In this research, the authors build up and experiment three structural models that include a pecking instruct of consumer attitudes toward together the psychological and the technological factors of the come across to better appreciate their intentions to utilize Self Service Technologies. The result indicates that intentions to exercise self-service technologies options are ambitious by manifold, hierarchical attitudes. In calculation to the direct belongings of attitudes toward exact self-service technologies and individual employees, the findings corrob orate that higher direct worldwide attitudes toward service technologies pressure intentions to use self-service technologies. fascinatingly, the findings indicate that heavy self-service technologies users rely more on attitudes toward specific self-service technologies than do light self-service technologies users, who rely more heavily on universal attitudes toward self-service technologies when formative intention to utilize an self-service technologies. (James, M. Matthew, L. Meuter and Carol, F. 2003) Kano Model Analysis: The customer satisfaction model from professor Kano is a marketing and quality management approach that can be used for assessing and establishing customer satisfaction and happiness. Kano model has six categories of customer quality characteristics, but, only the first three specially relate to customer satisfaction. (Kano, 2007) These factors are: Basic factors Excitement factors Performance factors Basic factors The prerequisite factors that will cause dissatisfaction if they are not met, but, do not establish customer satisfaction. If they are fulfilled or cross expectations customer regard this as essential and basic factors contribute to market entrance threshold Excitement factors These requirements if they are met can increase customer level satisfaction, but, if they do not meet the requirements, do not cause customer dissatisfaction. These factors come to customers as surprise and create satisfaction. A company can come out from crowd from competitors in a positive way using these factors. Performance factors These factors are concerned with the performance level. So, we can conclude that customer satisfaction is directly related to the performance level, if the performance level is high, then, customer satisfaction will be met, but, if the performance level is low, cause dissatisfaction. These factors are directly related to customer desires, wants and needs etc. So, company should try to be competitive in a market. (Adapted from Prof. Kano, 1994) Customer point of view in relation to Self Service Checkout System (SSC) Researcher forecasting about the adaptation of the self service checkout system have been gone against the past recommendation, instead, customers are using this technology more and embrace this technology with open arms. Reasons for Supermarket to adopt this technology: Customers do prefer to use their bank cards in privacy and anonymity. Queue awaiting time reduction; Need for self-service; Quick payment; Shoppers feel empowered; Retail market is shifting towards radio frequency identification which will replace the bar code. However this might be a foundation for increasing working hours, as supermarkets not depending on a cashier. Due it is not many research have been done in the UK the USA practise might be relevant for this research and will be in future referred as a compare base. Theoretical Framework Porters competitive advantage theory is a classical and one of the foundational in business literature, however lately it was criticized by some authors (Day and Wensley, 1988 and Hunt and Morgan, 1995). Therefore some complementary concepts have been suggested. In order to reinforce research the Porters value-chain theory was complemented with the more current Value-Network model of Stabell and Fjeldstad (Stabell and Fjeldstad, 1998). Value-chain theory and the value network model are presenting the different activities of a company where value can be configured and added through SSC systems. This model allows the researchers to investigate the different activities of companies on which the implementation of technology-based self-service as an innovation can have an effect. Theoretical Framework Implication In order to fully understand the impact of introducing SSC in ASDA supermarkets it is necessary to look into: role and importance of innovation in a business context, product life cycle connected to SSC; competitive advantage theory and complementary concepts, value chain theory, and finally the importance of customer relationship management in the new self-service economy. Innovation Before we are going to analyze stage it is important to understand what innovation in business context is. The full understanding can be obtained through definition of the term. According to Merriam-Websters Dictionary (2008), Innovation is a new idea, method or device, or the introduction of something new. Drejer (2002) argues that innovation is more than just invention, that idea cannot be innovative as a pure, it must be put in practice and be commercialized; otherwise it is too earlier to speak of innovation. Blackmon (1996) provide us with the best summary for a context of this research: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ technological change is used to describe changes in knowledge that increase the volume of output or allow a qualitatively superior output from a given amount of resources à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and thus in driving organizational evolution à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ In the following relation, the innovation in a business context is a product, device, service, programme, service provider, or methods of services delivery that are new, unusual, or in other ways different from those previously used and positively reflects in overall output of the organization in form of added value directly to the organization or its customers. In the case of this research, innovation in form of SSC brings changes into service delivery. In order to understand the impact of the innovation it is necessary to understand to which area of service delivery it related. Dabholkar (2003) made a classification of technology in service delivery with three dimensions. By whom the service is delivered and who operates the technology. Where the service is delivered (at the shop or in customers home); and how the service is delivered. Depending on which category the service belongs to different factors will affect the customers evaluation of the service quality. This classification can be useful in guiding companies in the development of their marketing strategies when implementing SSC systems. Table At service site At customers place Direct contact Customer goes to service site and performs service using technology at service site. E.g. ATM, self-service at retail checkouts. Customer uses technology from home/office to perform service. E.g. internet shopping. Indirect contact Customer goes to service site and uses automated telephone system to perform service. E.g. automated wake-up calls at Hotels. Customer calls automated telephone service from home/office to perform service. E.g. automated ticket-ordering over telephone. Source: Dabholkar, 1994 in Anselmsson, 2001, page 13. Shadowed cell is the relevant technology for this research. Using this type of SSC, the customer goes to the service site and performs the service by using the technology provided at the service site. This implies a greater importance and wider range of quality issues in the interactive marketing function of the organisation. Product/service life Cycle In a business context everything is going through different level, stages of performance. It is similar to the any life development. From the cell of life to the maturity and death, the products are repeating same way from idea to implementation and ultimately death. Particularly in our case the service as well as product must be planned and introduce to employees, customers and eventually be accepted by them. It is crucial for the managers to adjust and control its performance while it goes through different stages. The effect respectively will be also different on different stages. Therefore, considering the life cycle of SSC systems is important when investigating the effects on company competitiveness. Figure: Source Cordiant Technologies Limited The product life cycle tend to go through the five stages of products: Service/product development; Market introduction; Growth stage; Mature stage; Stage of decline. Each stage is different in effectiveness of the product, expenses, revenue, etc. The first stage usually money intensive as there is no sales revenue and all expenses are covered by different organizations activities, in our case no effectiveness gain from reducing cost of operation. Stage two is quite expensive in our case as technological cost is very high. The purchase of the machineries and shops infrastructure adjustments to accommodate it are required. Moreover the staff and customers trainings and special promotions materials must be prepared. The third stage is continuous use of SSC by customers and therefore operational cost reduction becomes positive revenue, which might cover the marketing expenses. The fourth stage is characterised by very low costs of operation as number of customers who is using it increased. The final stage might come as soon as more efficient and productive technology will arrive and current become outdated. (Day, 1981) The progression of a product through these stages is not certain however. Some products may stay in the mature stage forever, for example commodities such as milk, others might not even rich stage of maturity. These products go through their life cycle as marketers marketing mix strategies change. For example, advertising is informative stage of the introduction, maturity stages, winning in the growth and in the decline stage reminder-oriented. In the early stages the promotional budget tends to be highest, and as the product gradually taper off matures and decline. Product characteristics, pricing, distribution also tend to change. (Day, 1981) The concept of product life cycle, applied to Self Service Checkout System (SSC) innovations, has also been introduced as an important concept that also contributes to affecting competitiveness. The Value-Chain Porters value chain framework today still is the accepted language for representing and analyzing the logic of firm-level value creation, and is also a framework for analyzing firm-level competitive strengths and weaknesses. In value chain analysis competitive advantage is understood by these discrete activities of the value creation process that contribute to the firms relation cost place and produce a basis for segregation. These activities are the building blocks from which a product or process is created that is valuable to the firms customers. The different activities have different economics and thus contribute differently to the valuable characteristics of the product or process. The value creating activities in Porters model are divided in two levels. Primary activities consist of directly interact to create and bring value to the customer, while support activities facilitate and develop the performance of the primary activities. Figure: Source: (Porter, 1985, 1990) The primary activity level consists of five actions: inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, promotion and sales and service. The maintain actions are procurement, technology growth, human supply management, and firm infrastructure. It is important to note that the different activity categories are not the same as organizational functions. Using the value chain for analysis, costs and assets are assigned to the value activities as a first step, and are further analyzed as structural drivers related to the scale and scope of the firm, linkages across activities, and environmental factors. Cost and value drivers are usually analyzed separately. Moreover, drivers are partly related to internal relationships, partly to external factors, and partly to relationships between internal and external factors as well. The main drivers of value are policy decisions made by product and segment choices when the firm is established or repositioned. (Stabell and Fjeldstad, 1998) According to Porter, the value-creating logic of his value chain with its generic activity categories is valid for firms in all industries. However, he further states that the specific activities that are vital to a firms competitive advantage depend on which industry the firm operates. (Porter, 1985, 1990) Stabell and Fjeldstad (1998) however have investigated the application of the value chain model to a variety of industries and have experienced problems in applying the value chain frame work to more than two-dozen firms. They have found that the value chain is suitable for describing and understanding the value creation logic of manufacturing firms, but that it proves problematic when analyzing activities in service industry firms. They argue that problems arise from difficulty to assign and analyze activities in terms of the five generic primary value chain categories proposed by Porter, leading to unclear explanations of value creation. Therefore, Stabell and Fjeldstad (1998) suggest that the value chain can be considered as one of three generic value configurations to facilitate the understanding and analysis of firm-level value-creation logic for a broad range of industries and firms. The additional two value models besides the value-chain are the value network and the value shop. The importance shop model applies to firms where price is created by mobilizing income and performance to resolve an exacting customer difficulty, for example professional service firms dealing with medicine, law, architecture and engineering. The value network model refers to firms that generate cost by facilitating an organization relationship among their customers using a mediator technology. Stabell and Fjeldstad (1998) also propose alternative presentation formats for both models that represent their unique value creation logic. For the purpose of this research both Porters value chain and Stabell and Fjeldstads value network is of importance. Although Stabell and Fjeldstad state that according to their findings the value chain is mostly useful for manufacturing firms, for our investigation of supermarkets traditional operations, the value chain is most fitting, with one small alteration. However, in also considering the introduction of a new type of service offering through technology-based self-service checkouts, it is found necessary to complement the value chain model with the value network model in order to be able to capture the value adding activities of SSC. The combination of the different value-creating logics, as suggested for this research, has also been proposed by Norman and Ramirez (1993). Since the main purpose of the research is to investigate the effects of SSC in supermarkets, the value network is of central importance, which is discussed in further detail below. The Value Network Value networks use a mediating technology to link clients and customers who wish to be interdependent. According to Stabell and Fjeldstad (1998), the firm provides a networking service through the mediating technology and thus facilitates exchange relationships among customers distributed in space and time. For the consideration of SSC, the value network idea is modified to mean that the firm is the network itself, linking its customers not to each other but to the firm itself, facilitating a more interdependent exchange relationship between the firm and its customers. Customer Satisfaction To measure the customer satisfaction of how your organisation`s `total product` performs in relation to a set of customer requirements. (Gower, 1999) If you like to measure the customer satisfaction of the customers and you need direction exactly what you are measuring. Understanding the concept of customer satisfaction is very easy and can be done by assuming yourself as a customer in a supermarket. Satisfaction is simple. If you get what you wanted and your requirements are met, you are satisfied. The starting point of a customer satisfaction management is to set the objectives. There are different customer satisfaction objectives that can be set. Customers` requirements (important ratings) Customer satisfaction (Satisfaction ratings) Comparison with other organizations PFIs (priorities for improvement) Customer satisfaction index A track able measure of satisfaction The internal perspective Firstly, you should identify customers` requirements and there are many things customers want and need but we need to identify most relative of customer requirements. Secondly, you must measure customer satisfaction. Organisational performance is directly related to customer satisfaction and list of customers` requirements. Thirdly, if you could go a bit further to analyse the customers` requirements as compared to other same organisations. (In our example `supermarket`) This will give you the opportunity to get the benchmarking. By using benchmarking, you could analyse the requirements of your supermarket customers` as satisfied or not satisfied. Fourthly, after getting the customers` satisfaction measures, you can use these measures to produce some survey outcomes and the first of that step is to identify the PFIs (Priorities for improvement) Fifth, you will need to measure the overall customers` satisfaction. We call it a satisfaction index and it will indicate us to monitor progress from the one year to the next for the overall customers` satisfaction. Finally, customers` satisfaction survey has to be done inside the supermarket to know about the understanding of employees about their customers` requirements. It will help any supermarket to indentify that if their employees know about their customers` requirements and can indentify gaps. An internal survey can also be used to help the management to make the decision making process and strategic management. (Gower, 1999) Achieving Customer Satisfaction: Customer satisfaction is measured frequently. Sampling is extensive. Surveys are quantitative as well as qualitative. The measures are taken very seriously. They are reviewed unfailingly by Top management: the development of such measures is taken very seriously as the development of budgetary measures or product reliability measures. Evaluation of people in all functions at all levels is significantly affected by the satisfaction measures. (Tom Peter, a Passion for Excellence) Customer delight seems very credible people say things like: In today`s competitive markets customer satisfaction is no longer enough; you have to delight the customers, give them something they did not expect to keep their business. In customer satisfaction, the link between customer loyalty, customer retention and profitability can make get better customer satisfaction. It has been shown that customer retention can boost profit of the supermarket as it is very easy to keep the existing customers than getting new customers. After getting the trend data and established the satisfaction- loyalty ratio in your market for your organisation, you make some models. Some companies now have `business performance models` based on their customer satisfaction management survey results that have quantified the exact links between customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, sales and profit. They know that how much one percent improvement in customer satisfaction will improve loyalty how much that contributes to profits. Precisely, this is a very powerful forecasting tool. Customer satisfaction Business success Employee satisfaction Customer Retention Figure: (Ch. BABAR 2010) Customer Satisfaction and the Performance: Customer satisfaction can be defined as more loyal customer and it involves emotional and complicated process. Every customer has certain level of product or service expectation and desire. If customer expectation level increased as a result of using that product or service, then, customer experiences satisfaction. (Simon Homburg 1998, Page 44) However, Satisfaction has also recently been described as the emotional reaction to this cognitively defined process of comparison. (Homburg and Rudolph 1995, page 31) In this context, customer experiences that the outcome of the process of comparison will not always give the correct result about the expected satisfaction outcome and actual level of satisfaction outcome. Instead, direct effect of these outcomes or satisfaction levels also interacts with satisfaction. (Bolton et al. 1991 page 376) The customer satisfaction has been in research for long time, mostly research and investigation has been done on the customer satisfaction, but, not on the customer retention. It is the experience and attitude of the employee in closest contact with customers that customers are satisfied, loyal and customer retention has been achieved. The Satisfaction is an a overall attitude of customer towards the service provider (Levesque and McDougall, 1996) The companies are more successful, later research has showed if they adopt customer retention rather than customer satisfaction. (Knox, 1998) Customer satisfaction brings many benefits. Satisfied customers are fewer prices sensitive; they purchase more items, not go to competitors and stay longer. (Zineldin, 2000) Customer satisfaction is directly related with the customer complaint process management. If customer complains more, then, it increases more customer satisfaction. Customer complains about the product or service he/she receives, then, supermarket can achieve more customer satisfaction (Johnston, 2001) The product innovations, staff service, price, convenience and business profile are all determinants of customer satisfaction. (Athanassopoulos, 2000) Later, Bejou et al. (1998) propose that customer satisfaction can be enhanced through relationships, provided they are developed and managed to the customer`s satisfaction Customer retention is not directly related with the customer satisfaction. Sometime customer do not change service provider because of the alternative circumstances, but, customer satisfaction level remain the same. Sometime customers do not have any choice to change their service provider, so, they stick with their existing provider. Hallowell (1996) argues that customer satisfaction cannot produce life time customer loyalty even though customer satisfaction has been increased, but, retention can be related with customer satisfaction. Retention can be understandable as to do business or exchange a commitment to continue with a particular company on an ongoing basis. (Zineldin, 2000) Retaining old customers are easy and cheap to keep as compared to the new customers because they are more loyal and less price sensitive. They keep their loyalty to their existing service provider and do not change their loyalty to the new service provider. It increases customer retention, satisfaction, lower price sensitivity, higher market share, higher productivity and higher efficiencies. (Reichheld, 1995) The authors suggest that in order to retain customers, companies should always change and developing their product and services to meet the ever changing needs of customers. The concept of acquiring, developing and retaining customers from a cognitive and affective perspective, they provide examples of how cognitive and affects are used to increase retention. (Desai and Mahajan, 1998) Customer satisfaction is a direct determining factor in customer loyalty, which, in turn, is a main presentation of customer retention. (Gerpott et al., 2001) Customer satisfaction can be achieved by customer retention. Customer complaint process can increase the level of customer satisfaction that result in customer retention. Employee perspective is also very important with relation of the customers. Individual relationship with the customer can boost the level of customer satisfaction. It is direct related with the mental theories of customer and employee perspectives. Managers should be aware of customer wants and needs as well as employee mental perspective. Different employees keep different level of relationship with the customers that could affect the customer satisfaction and retention level. Therefore, Managers must keep eye into employee/customer relationship and set realistic goals to achieve. (Spreng et al, 1995) Good section Customer Retention Customer retention is directly linked with the customer satisfaction. The framework guide managers to decide which part of customer satisfaction has more collision, which part of customer satisfaction needs to be improve and make strategies to retain existing customers. An individual level model of loyalty and customer retention has been developed, that can be used to predict effects of service level improvement at supermarket. Customer satisfaction has been changed recently from transactional marketing to relationship marketing. (Grà ¶nroos, Sheth and Parvatiyar, 1994) To all marketing activities directed toward establishing, developing, and maintaining successful relational exchanges (Morgan and Hunt, 1994) Customer satisfaction has been treated as essential instrument for the customer retention, has gained significant importance in relational marketing approaches. (Rust and Zahorik, 1993) Kotler sums this up when he states: The key to customer retention is customer satisfaction (Ko