Types of Relationships

Human relationships have always perplexed me. These seemingly simple bonds between people can amount to so much and cause such commotion that lives change drastically within minutes in these relationships. Especially in the fast changing world of today. In my piece I am going to be telling you about the three types of relationships I see taking place. Over time, I have asked myself three questions, finding the answers along the way, which is what I will be explaining to you. To begin, how much does one compromise on self-gratification for the sake of commitment? Or should one compromise at all in the name of love? Finally, what happens when love is found outside ones’ commitment? To start off, how much does one compromise on self gratification for the sake of commitment? What I have seen in regards to this scenario is basically to satisfy parents or tradition. This basically comes hard for the person making the compromise mainly because even though they may be happy, they are just not in that totally-in-love state and as a whole, not fully in the relationship. In such a relationship the person who has made the compromise is just in the relationship in a lost state where the other person is there trying to take it further and make it work whereas just being in it for maintaining it sake. The person making the compromise I would say is robbing themselves their true love as well as the other person involved. Why have someone love you and want so much from a bond when you can’t seem to find the zeal for it as well? It makes no sense to spin a top in mud; it only brings hurt in years to come. This type of relationship can be seen in families of wealth and good economic status. Secondly, should one compromise at all in the name of love? My answer to this is NO! This really makes no sense and ends up just hurting the other person badly. It’s like a slap in the face saying that you have just played with them for so long. The other person would just take it as thought you were there to satisfy and act out the role of being in a bond. Compromising in the name love is just wrong to do; whatever the circumstances. This sort of actions you would find in arranged marriages and usually it is the female that has to make this compromise and suffer. A classic example of this type of relationship can be seen in arranged marriages in Indian families, but these are not limited for Indian families in India; these can still be seen in American or other parts of the world where Indian or Muslim families reside. Only true love can set them free of this compromise but it just ends up in a big blunder because it would create a lot of friction and pose a lot of questions. When someone truly loves, they expect to have it back in return. Not an act. Lastly, what happens when love is found outside ones’ commitment? This to me is a sad thing but also a happy thing when it is dealt with maturely and with much understanding. Regarding my earlier points; imagine in this compromise that is made. It takes a true person to understand when love is found outside a relationship by the compromising partner. Although the other party is strongly in love with this person, they would understand that this was not their love story after all and should be happy that their partner found theirs. Yes it is a sad thing to happen in a relationship, but when one understands the meaning of true love only then they can let go without any qualms. In conclusion I would just like to let you know that in these relationships listed above really toys’ with emotions and in somewhat way sets people free to truly love. So next time a relationship hinders your way I urge yourself to ask yourself the questions I explained or even more ask yourself while you are in it. How much does one compromise on self-gratification for the sake of commitment? Or should one compromise at all in the name of love? Finally, what happens when love is found outside ones’ commitment? I assure you if you can analyze these three questions of relationship, you would indeed have a good approach and grasp on your commitment.

Organisation and management in the network era Essay

The following report contains a brief look into MAS holdings, the company’s history, how they have grown and developed and how they have succeeded in numerous ventures. The report then goes on to address the following questions: 1. Outline the key leadership issues confronting MAS Holdings. 2. In terms of this case, how can the CIO assist in gaining senior management support for IT initiatives? 3. In reviewing an organisation of your choice, discuss the role played by the CIO and CEO when leading an IT initiative within their respective company An introduction to MAS Holdings Markets: MAS holdings, which was established and led by progressive and visionary leader Deshamanya Mahesh Amalean, MAS Holdings pioneered and perfected the manufacture of garments including fine lingerie in Sri Lanka. The company started with a single factory and staff of 60, today MAS Holdings now is one of Sri Lanka’s largest apparel manufacturers. They produce apparel, performance wear and swimwear in the world with a net $1 billion annual turnover. MAS Holdings now has 38 world-class apparel facilities that spread over 14 different countries and employing more than 55,000 people, they have grown from a small company to an international powerhouse in manufacturing due to their sound business model and visionary, diverse development. MAS Holdings are not only the leading strategic partner for Victoria’s Secret (VS) but also effectively serve numerous global brands including Triumph International, Marks & Spencer (M&S), DIM Branded Apparel, Nike, Speedo, Adidas, Reebok, GAP and Banana Republic. The for mentioned companies are known for quality and excellence throughout the world and this is in many ways attributed to MAS Holdings dedication to their brands and commitment to provide an excellent service to their customers. Design and product development has evolved to become a key part of the business – an area in which MASHoldings has excelled. In addition to working with traditional vendornetworks, concepts and design briefs in order to create new product ranges, MAS Holdings also works to create new technology and products that will be a source of competitive advantage, this is done in a bid to redefine the industry Innovation is second nature to MAS Holdings. From working with Victoria’s Secret on fast replenishment models to lean manufacturing with rapid product changeovers, the company’s fully-integrated model allows it to innovate across the value chain. Products MAS Holdings comprise of four business units: MAS Intimates, MAS Active, MAS Fabrics and MAS Investments, a separate non-apparel business. The MAS Holdings Intimates department designs and manufactures niche-market lingerie for high-street fashion retailer and brands, while MAS Active supplies leading brands in competition sportswear. MAS Fabrics, made up of manufacturing facilities for elastics, warp-knit fabric, lace, intimate apparel accessories and moulded bra cups, it is here that we see many of the innovative products MAS Holdings produce coming together. MAS fabrics also complements the Intimates and Active divisions. Through the integrated business model, MAS Holdings innovates new and exciting solutions from state-of-the-art silicon-embedding technology toorganic and fair-trade products. Some innovative products include the Speedo Fast SkinFS-Pro swimsuit which was controversially worn at the2004 Olympics, and subsequently banned. Another innovative product produced by MAS Holdings was the Nike Revolutionary Support Bra – the highest-selling sports bra in the USA – worn by international tennis playersand athletes. In 2007, MAS Holdings launched its own intimate apparel brand, Amantà ©, which targets the Indian market. MASInvestments oversaw a diversified portfolio of investments including the development of integrated apparel and fabric parks in the region, retail and outsourced information-technology services. The divisions are brought together under a common vision and corporate governance by MAS Corporate Solutions.A successful spin off from the apparel market was MAS Investments which include two IT consulting companies, the Corporate Branding and Retail unit and a diversified investment portfolio. A brief history review shows that in 1990, Mast Industries entered into a joint venture, setting up shadow line. The next big leap for MAS Holdings came in 1992 when it entered into a joint-venture partnership with Triumph International and Mast Industries to set up Bodyline, which continues to be its single largest plant for manufacturing intimate in the area. Slimline, a company which emerged in 1993 as a joint venture with Mast Industries and Courtaulds Clothing (UK), has been a key sourcing arm of M&S and went on to establish benchmarks for excellence in employee relations and put MAS Holdings firmly on the global map. The first overseas venture for MAS Holdings was Linea Clothing in the Maldives in 1996. Since then, the group has continued to make strategic investments overseas with operations spanning five countries. MAS Holdings initiated vertical integration within the Sri Lankan apparel industry with its joint venture with Mast Industries and Charnwood Elastics (UK) to establish Stretchline, the country’s premier supplier of elastics, in 1996. Stretchline is now a globally recognised brand for narrow performance elastics with a global manufacturing base. A partnership with NoyonDentelles of France in 2004 created South Asia’s first lace manufacturing facility, Noyon Lanka. Joint-venture partnerships with Prym Intimates (Germany), Dogi International FabricandTextprint SA (Spain) consolidated the regional supply base for intimate apparel accessories, warp-knitted fabrics and fabricprinting capabilities. This diversity in the supply chain has helped position Sri Lanka and the regional centre of excellence for apparel and sportswear. MAS Linea Aqua, a partnership concern with Speedo International, is one of the first dedicated swimwear plants in the world excelling in performance swimwear. As previously mentioned, it has been MAS Holdings dedication to innovation that has propelled it to the forefront of its industry. Q1. Outline the key leadership issues confronting MAS Holdings. As mentioned above, the history of MAS Holdingshas played a role in key leadership issues that confront MASHoldings today.There are several key leadership issues confronting MAS Holdings. Due to the diverse nature of MAS Holdingsoperations and its decentralised structure, it would be difficult to have a specific company- wide leadership in place. Malesh Amalean, chairman of MAS Holdings has to deal with the vertical integration of MASHoldings. At the beginning, he succeeded in creating his own company and orienting its company strategy to an export-oriented strategy. First, he managed to secure contracts with European and American retailers such as C&A or Calvin Klein. Secondly, he organized a first joint venture with a big American retailer, MAST, which allowed him to gain his first contract with Victoria’s Secret and a strong reputation in women’s lingerie manufacturing. Unfortunately, the sudden increase of work for thecompany led to some leadership problems,the need of seasoned professional managers. MaleshAmalean has to lose a part of his control over the company by sharing his control over the business to young and unknown managers. He has to trust them in order to take advantage of this situation. The next joint ventures, with Triumph, Noyon or Sara Lee, amongst others, have further increased the issue of control and trust. Although MASHoldings can continue to develop while being part of a large company, they must learn to adapt and compromise to suit partner firms. This may involve accepting new systems, processes and procedures such as the ones instituted by Triumph. However this deal was not one sided as MAS Holdings had to learn to share their own technologies and knowledge with their partner. This can lead to some loss of control within the company if not managed correctly. In order not to lose too much power, MAS Holdings was only signing joint-ventures with companies in which they established a trusting relationship, with strong dialogue and a personal relationship, they also protected themselves by never committing 100% of their production capabilities to one particular company. Furthermore, the company clearly outlined in each contract that MASHoldings were responsible for managing the businesses from taking the order stage and MASHoldings also clearly defined the responsibility of each participant in the joint-venture. This specific repartition of tasks allowed MAS Holdings to build a specific structure for all their different tasks which they maintained a desired level of control over. Due to a desire to succeed with this new decentralized structure; MaleshAmalean made a decision to allocate leaders to each structure, segmenting the leaders from each other. MAS Holdings run the risk of deviating from its core business model as a result of this. This is one of the reasons why MAS Holdings managed to deploy its IT systems to improve knowledge sharing and information management capabilities across the organization. As the company develops and grows, they are faced with the issue of loss of control. They attempt to counteract this by implementing strategies to prevent it. Q 2. In terms of this case, how can the CIO assist in gaining senior Management support for IT initiatives? The Chief Information officer (CIO) of an organisation is the person responsible for the information technology and computer systems that support the organisation’s goals and objective (TechTarget). This position is intended to bridge the gap between information technology and the business. It is an evolving role related to performance, evaluation, and turnover. For IT initiatives to be successful, a team approach is essential at the senior level in the organization. Therefore the CIO must try to provide a link between the IT department and the company’s senior managers (Hunter, 2010). The following paragraphs would discuss ways the CIO can assist in gaining senior management support for IT initiatives in MAS Holdings. Communication At MAS Holdings, the senior management is aware of the flexibility and competitive advantage IT initiatives can bring to the organisation in a rapidly changing market. However, to assist in gaining senior management support, communication is key. The CIO must communicate in the language of business, as this is important to enable the senior management make IT funding decisions as well as strategic and business decisions. Therefore, the key information on what the IT project will enable MAS Holdings to accomplish should be stated in clear, concise, and real business terms. Stating the alignment with strategies and objectives Information technology and business alignment refers to demonstrating concise business related value from IT and coordinating the capabilities of IT with the objectives of the organisation (Hunter, 2010). In order to do this, the CIO needs to understand the strategies and objectives of MAS Holdings. Strategies of MAS Holdings include a coalition of companies, Backward Vertical Integration, and streamlining the supply chain. The specifics of potential IT initiatives should be clearly stated and explained how it may be strategically applied to accomplish the MAS Holdings’ goals and objectives. In cases where IT projects are not aligned, but may still be important, the CIO needs to tell senior managers why and how. Alignment is usually facilitated through communication. Specifying the anticipated benefits Usually senior management do not specifically care about the technology itself, but how it would enable the organisation accomplish its goals. MAS Holdings work with a coalition of companies, so apart from competitive advantage, IT initiatives would provide a transparent model which allows information and knowledge to flow within the MASHoldings group companies and through the value chain, from customer down to various suppliers. This would make the retail business more efficient; cost competitiveness and speed would be enhanced, while providing flexibility. MAS Holdings biggest customer, Victoria’s Secret needed to shorten the concept-to-market time of its products. An ERP solution would help produce a demand-planning system that would have â€Å"the right product on the shelf at the right time†. Showing the focus on MAS Holdings’ top priorities The CIO must understand the organisation’s priorities, and the identified IT initiatives must address these priorities. MAS Holdings priority is to understand how each of their partners work, what is important to them, and what their expectations are. Therefore in order to gain senior management support for IT projects, the CIO should show an understanding of the culture of the MAS Holdings and its partners, and to provide the IT solution that would support that. Q 3. In reviewing an organisation of your choice, discuss the role played by the CIO and CEO when leading an IT initiative within their respective company. The company we have chosen to review is Marks and Spencer. We feel this is a specifically good fit as they fall under the MAS Holdings umbrella of brands. Marks & Spencer CEO Marc Boland: Marc Bolland, originally from Holland is the current CEO of Marks & Spencer’s. He was noted in 2010 as one of the most influential people in business and in 2011 he was named as â€Å"most admired business leader† in the UK by Management Today magazine. He worked for Heineken and Morrison’s before Marks & Spencer’s. When Marc took over at Marks and Spencer in 2010, he faced the challenge of improving sales and increasing profits. His aim was to do this through using the most up to date and innovative technology. Marks and Spencer set Cheshire Oaks as their flagship technology store. â€Å"Cheshire Oaks is the first Marks and Spencer store to make extensive use of all the latest technology and innovations in multi-channel to create an enhanced, more convenient and inspirational customer shopping experience.† The Cheshire Oaks and subsequent stores have adopted and utilised technologies : HD screens throughout the stores showcase the latest looks offered. Browse and Order screens allow catalogues be viewed and ordered from. Staff equipped with iPads to assist customers with item searches Leading technology such as the ‘Virtual Makeover’ and ‘Duvet and Pillow Selector’ keep Marks and Spencer at the forefront on technology. QR codes and free customer Wi-Fi also feature throughout the store. It is essential that Marc Boland works with the CIO when he is implementing or improving any information technology process or policy. Collaboration between CEO and CIO is essential. Marc’s role is to approve of and support IT initiatives. Backing the technology and using his expertise and resources efficiently will help any implementation succeed. Marc must be an informed leader and ensure that the team and himself keep up to date with the constantly changing world of E-Commerce and technology. Being an informed leader will help Marc in his role of ensuring Marks & Spencer’s keep up to date with their competitors. Customers value and demand the newest and most up to date technology. Providing services that meet the demand is a key role in Marc’s goal of improving the situation Marks & Spencer found themselves in when he acquired the C.E.O. role. Marks and Spencer CIO – Darrell Stein Darrell Stein is CIO of Marks & Spencer’s and he plays a crucially important role in leading I.T. initiatives throughout the organisation. Although Chief Information Officers will always be involved in I.T. initiatives, Steins vision, enterprising spirit and ambition ensure many successful I.T. projects under his tenure. Stein is the key man that led I.T. change within Marks & Spencer resulting in it being a very successful organisation today. Stein was initially brought in as an I.T. director with some responsibilities for logistics, however he moved away from the logistics side so he could give his full attention to I.T. Using his knowledge and experience, he shortly found himself overhauling the I.T. systems company wide, no easy task for an organisation with over a thousand stores and almost  £10billion in annual revenue. Stein learned lessons from recent high profile disasters in the retail sector, and his approach is to look at all aspects of a project while planning the project, he is also involved in getting the right people in place and employs a tactic of not moving too fast, his successful techniques have been proven with the high success rate of projects which he has co-ordinated. Crucially, he also realises how much that I.T. projects which don’t work, hurt the organisation on a day to day basis. Perhaps the most rewarding I.T. initiative that Stein was a leader in implementing was the roll out of SAP software within the company. SAP was initially rolled out in the finance department, and after its initial success, it was expanded to other departments within the core business system. Stein’s role was to justify the implementation of the software, as well as convincing the board at M&S that the heavy initial investment in SAP would lead to a bottom line benefit to the company and overall cost savings in the long run. Stein also faced a challenge in integrating SAP into the existing business process and his full support and backing of the I.T. project was key to its success. When Stein initially rolled out the SAP system in the finance department it led to instant savings. Stein cut M&S’s procurement spending by a quarter as a direct result of the implementation of the SAP system (TechRepublic, Top 50 CIO). Due to its success in the finance department, Stein rolled out SAP systems to other business areas including HR, supply chain and the foods division. This wide scale roll-out became part of a â€Å"2020-Doing the right thing† initiative which in essence, is an I.T. &supply chain overhaul that cost  £400million in 2011 alone (M&S completes first phase of 3 year SAP rollout, 2010).Steins role in this long term project is key and he is the catalyst for I.T. change within M&S. Stein was also integral in pushing through the I.T. change projects with the goal of lowering overall company operating costs. His ethos â€Å"of not seeing himself as a technology person, but as a business person who utilizes technology to benefit the company†, has been fundamental to M&S and its rebranding strategy of â€Å"more for less†. Stein helped reduce running costs through implementing I.T. initiatives, and this led to money being freed up within the business and being invested in other sectors, such as business development projects. It is clear that Darrell Stein has been a fundamental player in leading I.T. initiatives in M&S and his reputation both within the company, and the wider business world, mean the decisions he takes are looked at with optimism and excitement from his colleagues, and with caution from his competitors. Stein has tried to focus on building the trust and strong relationship the M&S brand has with its customers, he sees this as key to keeping â€Å"sticky† customers, whose return business is vital to the company’s continuous success. He has done this through developing feedback channels with customers through more interaction, he has also focused on building the e-commerce aspect of the business, and it is largely due to the measures Stein implemented that M&S has achieved 75% annual increase in its online sales turnover. Stein is now in a position within M&S where he has contributed to them becoming market leaders through, in part, his leadership in pushing through I.T. projects. As mentioned above, it is imperative that Darrell Stein works in harmony with Marc Boland to ensure that two of the most influential men in the company work together to achieve organisational goals. Key to the pushing through effective I.T. initiatives in M&S was the close professional relationship Boland and Stein had. Both men regularly communicated with each other about implementing change and integrating the I.T. into the business model. The rich communication channel reinforced any project the men were involved in and made the implementation of technology very smooth. All scenarios involving the new technology would have been talked about prior to its implementation. Communication was a key factor to success in many projects such as the introduction of the â€Å"virtual makeover† application. Boland and Stein were also both innovators, they looked to set themselves aside from competition through innovative thinking and applying new techniques in the retail sector. Having a CEO and CIO with such a good relationship was essential to some of M&S’s innovative approaches as technology was a key tool used in implementing the change. One such project was the introduction of M&S TV online, which promoted customer interaction with the overall aim of boosting sales. M&S TV pioneered many of the campaigns you see today, for instance, they were first to do a video on â€Å"where does the milk on the shelves come from? Meet the farmer†. These videos made the customer believe they are shopping local and such ads can be seen today by firms such as McDonalds, for their beef, and Supervalu for their produce. The dedication both men had to their jobs was also crucial to many successful projects. Both men had a passion for what they were doing and firmly believed all measures they put in place were for the benefit of the company. In conclusion, we feel both Marc Bolland and Darrell Stein added to Marks and Spencer’s success, and their co-operation and partnership has boosted innovative techniques and introduced new technologies to the firm. References: If necessary – answering a question so not sure? -TechRepublic, CIO 50 most influencial, innovative tech chiefs. www.techrepublic.com/cio50/Darrell+Stein/6385891/ -â€Å"M&S completes first phase of three year SAP roll out†, Leo King, Computerworld UK, published May ’10- www.computerworlduk.com/news/applications/20416/marks–spenser-completes-first-phase-of-three-year-SAP-rollout/ References Brief: How can CIOs improve their presentations to senior management? URL: http://www.rms.net/lc_briefs_cio_present.htm Hunter G. (2010) The Chief Information Officer: A Review of the Role. Journal of Information, Information Technology, and Organizations TechTarget: Definition of Chief Information Officer (CIO). URL: http://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/CIO .Watson.N,Story.J. (2006).MAS Holdings: Strategic Corporate Social Pesponsibility in the Apparel Industry.3-4.02/2006-5340 2.Various(Author)(2007).Business Superbrands.54-55.UK:Superbrands Ltd View as multi-pages

Living with Strangers Essay

To top the essence of discomfort off, Hustvedt states that â€Å"On the subway, I found myself in intimate contact with people I didn’t know, my body pressed so tightly against hem, I could smell their hair oils, perfumes and sweat. † (p. 1, l. 4-16) This closeness is something that most of us, Hustvedt as well, saves exclusively to boyfriends and close family – This exclusiveness only survives because of the ‘Pretend it isn’t happening’-rule. Throughout the essay Hustvedt takes us down her memory-lane of New York, where she tell us the things that can describe exactly why her view on urban living is how it is. The ‘Pretend it isn’t happening’-rule seems to be the most visible theme in the essay. To an outsider taking a stance against something that is clearly wrong seems logical, if not almost necessary. Whereas Hustvedt says that in New York that is uncommon and almost illogical behavior, because of the possible outcomes when someone is asked to stop whatever they felt they had the right to do. This is allowed because of the aforementioned rule. To explain her point further Siri Hustvedt exemplifies it for us. Hustvedts’ husband had witnessed a man stepping on the subway with a lit cigarette, another man confronted him politely by stating that it’s illegal to smoke on he subway, the smoker had then replied â€Å"Do you wanna die? To much luck the smoker had to get off the subway at the next stop, which resulted in a quick ending to the affairs, but Hustvedt points out that this couldVe ended much, much worse. Siri Hustvedt almost attempts to Justify the ‘pretend it isn’t happening’-rule, by showing the dangers ot not pretending. Hustvedt points out that New Yorkers barely even notice that they’re doing it, it’s such a custom reaction to these situations that in the urban cities you’re raised with them – Just as you’re raised with table manners. To exemplify this Siri Hustvedt mentions her daughter, Sophie, who has adapted to the behavioral pattern already as â€Å"she feigns deafness when the inevitable stray character comes along and tries a pickup. † (p. 2, l. 80-81) and that her daughter has been â€Å"refining the frozen, blank expression that accompanies the Pretend law. † (p. 2, 1. 76-77) In the same example Hustvedt explains that her daughter often gets hit on and some of these admirers are more stray than others. One day Sophie had experienced a man who had been shamelessly staring at her, but when he stepped ff the train and the daughter didn’t, the man had thrown himself against the window and yelled â€Å"l love you† at her. Sophie had felt embarrassed and frightened, but the man next to her had commented â€Å"It looks like you have an admirer†. To this Siri Hustvedt explains that â€Å"His understatement not only defined the comedy inherent in the scene; it lifted my daughter out of the solitary misery that comes from being the object of unwanted attention among strangers. † (p. 3, l. 92-94). This example turns the essay towards a new point-of-view, whereas the reader started out ith having a sense of displeasure and discomfort towards urban living, Hustvedt turns the entire essay around in the end where she enlightens us that urban living is not all that bad: â€Å"Nevertheless, compliments, insults, banter, smiles, and genuine conversations among strangers are part of the city’s noise, its stimulus, its charm. † (p. 3, l. 102-104) in this quote, Hustvedt points out to us that isn’t not only incredibly dull, if urban life only revolved around â€Å"pretending it’s not happening†, but that is it almost down-right impossible. She also states that because of this rule, those who break it make a turning point to everyday life and it’s those people who make urban living all the more charming. Siri Hustvedt mentions that â€Å"Sometimes a brief exchange with an unknown person marks you forever, not because it is profound but because it is uncommonly vivid. † (p. 3, l. 112-113) and to end the essay she mentions a moment 20 years earlier in her life, where a homeless man had called her beautiful and asked her to dinner, and when she politely said ‘no’, he then had grinned and aid â€Å"Lunch? This example not only supports her statement that it has indeed marked her forever, but it almost seems like what then wouldVe seemed rather creepy – now is a little comical and it probably even lifts her spirit when thinking about it. l, for one, believe that the statement is as true as anything can be. It’s not always the deep conversations you have with your family and closest f riends that mark you, it’s the sudden situations; because they’re not forced and that makes them all the more real and therefore deep. I may not live in a true urban city like Copenhagen or New York, but the ‘pretend’-rule is everywhere – and because of that all of the times that it’s broken may seem a little odd or even scary at first can make the rest of one’s day all the more interesting. A sudden compliment, a smile to a stranger or even a short conversation with someone about why the train is delayed – yet again. It gives one time to reflect over the minor things in life and sometimes it may even remind you Just how little you actually are – in a good way, of course.

Trade Union Negotiation and Strikes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Trade Union Negotiation and Strikes - Essay Example While the trade negotiations can be, and often are, filled with emotional hot buttons for both parties, game theory gives the parties tools to use to evaluate their prospective positions, and weigh the possible outcomes of their negotiations, and hence arrive at an agreement which is mutually beneficial for all parties, a win - win situation if you will. Too often, trade negotiations can devolve into a win-loose argument, in which the management is seen as taking from the unions in order to gain for itself, or vice versa. When the trade talks head in this direction, the parties seldom are able to make positive progress toward goals which can benefit both management and labor. Only be reaching toward a cooperative agreement can they create a positive work environment, and a financially healthy company. To understand how game theory benefits labor negotiations, one must first understand the five elements of game theory The game theory is defined as an interaction between a number of parties in which the following five elements are present. 1. The players: there are a defined number of players with defined roles. Game theory must identify how many players there, and whether or not natural elements outside the persons play a role, or if chance can play a role in the decisions. 2. The conditions or roles of the players: The players must be understood, along with their possible decisions. In other words there should be a minimal number of known decisions which the parties can undertake in order to apply game theory. 3. Information: the information which the players have with which to make decisions should be known. In other words, all the variables in the negotiations must be known in order to assist the parties using game theory. 4. Payoff Consequences: the parties must know what the course of their decisions will produce. Parties must know and understand what will be the consequences of choosing A or B or C in the negotiations. 5. Player preferences: Finally, a thorough knowledge of the preferences which the players would like to pursue should also be on the table. (see Duffy, 2003) When these 5 elements are known by the participants in the trade negotiations, then game theory can help them move toward effective resolution of their issues, as well has help them understand the payoff and the costs of their respective decisions. Game theory is often called a means for making moral decisions. The theory seeks to find a solution which works toward the benefit of the greatest number of people, maximizing all parties return. Thus, the theory's outcome has been compared to morality in decisions making. However, one way to undermine the effectiveness of this theory is for parties to come to the table with the assumption that their particular perspective or their desired outcome is the moral high ground. This assumption by one of the parties is a sure path toward defeating the effectiveness of game theory. According to Hardin (1988, 2003, negotiators should be wary of moral theorists that claim universality for their

Usual arrangement of chairs in a college classroom Essay

Usual arrangement of chairs in a college classroom - Essay Example The problem with the classrooms today is that the schools and universities tend to overcrowd them, thus destroying the effectiveness of the seating arrangement in class. Although the U-shaped form of arranging desks helps ease the problem of whether the student can hear the professor or not, it does not solve the problem of whether the professor can effectively see his students when one raises his hand to pose a question or clarification on a topic being discussed. That has been a problem that I have struggled with ever since I got to college. My learning is hindered by the arrangement of the seats and the fact that the arrangement is meant to pack in as many students as possible within a class. Interaction among students? That isnt necessary in a classroom setting where the main focus should be on the teachers lecture and not what is happening at the next desk. That can be saved for group study hour. What I am trying to say is this. I believe that effective learning fully depends upon how much of the class lecture a student can hear, absorb, and a take note of. The most effective learning tool for a student is being in a position within the classroom to ask questions of his professor. But that will not happen when the desks are disorganized in the classroom. So Mr Stone is right, the arrangement of the chairs within a meeting can actually dictate the successful outcome of a gathering. If a student has a comfortable desk set within a good enough distance from which to see, hear, and question the professor, and an attentive professor to boot, then a student will be in the finest form possible to learn as much as he can within the

A summary of Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A summary of - Essay Example Pattakos affirms that despite a vast connection to a large group of friends, the modern socializing platforms are not of certified quality as those in the ancient days described by Aristotle. In his case, Pattakos, an author of the bestselling book internationally Prisoners of Our Thoughts, explains the relevance of every individual having a Facebook account. Pattakos provides detailed evidence while declaring his well-understood thesis in the second paragraph. In his thesis, Pattakos ascertains that electronic media currently replace the enjoyment of the real human contact and interaction. The electric stimuli that are a typical form of shallow friendship as narrow social connections are in contrast to the type of true friendship described by Aristotle (Pattakos 1). Aristotle placed more value on real friendship as an important determinant of a meaningful life. Modern association is largely losing its ascribed meaning as everything becomes digitalized. People including prominent leaders in the world fail to appreciate the role of friendship in shaping their social ties. The author explains the view of Zuckerberg a famous computer expert and Eduardo Saverin, a core founder of Facebook, who disputes the idea of a single soul dwelling in their two bodies. Pattakos seeks to establish the implication of technology such as Twitter on real friendship in modern life and its role in promoting meaningful existence addressed by Aristotle. As a result, the search for knowledge is the primary intrinsic motivation of man. Studies reveal that technological advancement contributes to losing of friends reducing the number of trusted acquaintances that individuals could turn and share vital information. Pattakos utilizes a mixed strategy of questions to make the reader relate to his argument and try to answer the rhetoric questions directly. Use of questionnaires is a crucial strategy for drawing meaningful information that any author is interested in

Interpersonal communication paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Interpersonal communication paper - Assignment Example This makes the process difficult and complicated no matter how simple it appears to someone who is looking at a situation. Many conflicts arise during communications and the resolution or its becoming worse all depend on how the players act and react during the process. With the simplicity of communication that usually brings people in various complicated situations, many scholars are getting interested to the study of communication and propose concepts about the subject matter, supplement the information with suggestions on understanding and improving verbal and non-verbal communication to improve relationships. For instance, one of the foci of studies is the communication between husband and wife, which is very relevant to today’s world because of the seemingly dying image of marriages which are even more magnified with the news of celebrities marrying today and getting divorced tomorrow. However, saving marriages is not just the only reason for the intensive researches performed and being performed for further studies but also looks into other relationships like employers to their employees, businessmen to their customers, doctors to patients and the list goes on. The point is, communication does not just affect the rich, famous or a chos en few but largely impacts all ages regardless of sex and status and the effect could either be damaging or constructive and no one would like the former. Instead, everyone would like the constructive effect of communication that is why studies are given priority on communication to find what seems to be a secret only a few are able to find. With the rise in the number of researches, people are coming to a better understanding of the process and indeed, knowledge could become a powerful tool to a person if it is used wisely. A lot of people are now encouraged to work further on their communication skills and are trying their best to purposefully make the process a good experience

Strategic Planning for Digital Marketing Communications Essay

Strategic Planning for Digital Marketing Communications - Essay Example SV has expanded footings catering section for airlines (Saudi Airlines a, 2012). SV has partnered with Sky team Alliance; a group of 18 international Airlines to provide more flexibility, convenience and choices to customer of member alliances (Saudi Airlines b, 2012). SECTION 1: CHALLENGES AND OBJECTIVES Section 1a: â€Å"General† marketing communications challenges ISSUES CHALLENGES 1 Global business is moving around the slogan of â€Å"Be Global – Act Local† (Amey, 2012). Globalization &Localization on increasing destination as well as service. 2 Tightening of policies, increasing taxes resulting in job losses; counts up to 1.6 mn in UK in 2010 the trend continues till date (The Economic Times, 2012), US waiting for sustained pick up in consumption, Top ten areas of change in consumer spending worldwide are aimed to be financially considerate (Delotte, 2011). Adopting product marketing that persistently stands business product to be best value for money spent. 3 Spending moved from bricks to clicks and now on to mobile. 52% of US consumers using mobile for purchases overall with more than 20% of air-tickets are purchased through mobile. Availability and adaptability with most digital mediums. 4 51 % rely on online shopping for product search and evaluation. In 2012, 167 million people shopped online with average amount of $1800. Sufficient information with easy purchase option to attract customer base. Accelerated pace of globalization with media in general and social media in specific Performance is open is for anyone and everyone for evaluation; more importantly beyond managements control. Priority challenges and risks: Globalization expansion in China (Amey, 2012). Increased accessibility: increased communication through interactive mobile. Huge risks are associated as increasing pace of digital has not been adopted with similar pace. Currently flight passengers’ account in 58% of Saudis, 22% of Arab and while70% is guest trave lers. Consistent travelers are less (for instance, seasonal travelers in holy months). Travelers’ consideration of SV as best value for money can be ranked medium as it ranks n 6th among the top 10 economy class (Sky Trax, 2012) but mainly accounts for the guest. Focusing mainly on guests and not growing business class is risk. Digital connectivity for flight bookings only (Clear Trip, 2012). Industry challenges ISSUES CHALLENGES 1 Post 9/11Security issues. Redeveloping travelers trust along with strong force than 9/11 updates on various mediums. 2 Fuel prices and economic uncertainty increasing continuously shrinking profits. IATA project Airline profit $ 3.0 Bn. Maintaining effective flights schedule and promptly passing on updated information to customer at easiest disposal 3 Deregulation/privatization of airlines; advertising fare regulation (Zacks Equity Research, 2012) Retaining customer along with detailing price component of tax in advertisement 4 Blocks or strategic alliances to maintain Selection of marketing tactic to exploit benefits of alliances and possible issues. Priority challenges & risk 1. SV developed alliance with Sky team gained the benefits cost saving, flexibility etc but not marketed other than press releases updates on member websites (Sky Team, 2012). 2. For increasing efficiency its flight program Al- Fursan has been developed. This program has been provided with internet based marketing as present on the airline’

Time Management for the Adult Learner Research Paper

Time Management for the Adult Learner - Research Paper Example Before actually getting enrolled in a course, the adult learner needs to layout reasons as to why or why not there is a need to go back to the university. For regular students, this task may not seem to be of any difficulty at all. For the adult learner, giving up receiving paychecks on a regular basis to earn a degree is a challenging dilemma. Though the degree would give them a better shot for a promotion at work and in getting more digits on the paychecks, the whole course would cost a lot and would add up to the monthly bills waiting to be settled on a regular basis (KeyOrganization.Com, 2011). The dilemma goes on with regards to weighing paychecks that are currently being received with the diploma which is still a goal to be achieved. Even with the better opportunity that lies ahead once the diploma is received, would it be worth it to sacrifice the instability of not earning enough to support the cost of living at present? Though there are scholarships that are being offered, the hours spent at the university could be spent at work to earn additional amount of money (Zupek, 2009). There are companies who may consider employees who are working part-time due to the fact that as the employee is enrolled at a course. However, there are also establishments that have particular needs with regards to working hours and most of the time could not make any special arrangements to accommodate adult learners who are employed under their firm. If the latter situation applies in the firm an adult learner is employed, therefore the student would need to give up the career and look for another that can accommodate school hours (Zuperk, 2009). This factor is just the start of a number of dilemmas that the aspiring adult learner needs to arrange before the actual learning experience in a school environment. It is a totally different story once the actual education experience takes place. Once the adult learner enters the university, there is

ANALYTICAL REPORT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

ANALYTICAL REPORT - Essay Example The research was carried out by using interviews and surveys in collecting the data, the researcher was able to accomplish the projected goals of the study. The main sections of the body were created to provide response to the numerous research questions. The weighted ranking, which showed the critical success factors for the company, was tabulated and used in analysis (DuBrin, 2005). Interview Method Under this data methodology, the participants were drawn from four departments within Wal-Mart stores (Selim, 2007). The different categories under which the participants were divided were based on the management level, with few senior managers participating. Figure 1: Percentage of participants based on job type Procedures In carrying out the research, the researcher already had set questions for the interview, thus the process was semi-structured (Scribner, 2008). However, the questions did not have a particular structure. Measures The interviewees were asked three questions related t o the organizational culture and stress. Since the questions were open-ended, the participants were expected to give their opinion on each problem (Coates, James & Baldwin, 2005). The three basis questions for the interview in this case were, What words come to mind when asked to describe the ‘feel’ of this department as it is now? Second, can you tell me about events that are usually stressful at work for you? Finally, what are the most common things that trigger the experience of stress at work? Surveys This was another method that the researcher used in collecting the data. In this case, all the employees from the four departments were allowed to participate (Derouin, Fritzsche & Salas, 2005). The researcher used non-convenience sampling because it does not employ probability that could bar someone from participating (Tabachnick, Fidell & Osterlind, 2001). Due to its non-probability mature, 225 people participated with an average age of 37.06, standard deviation of 1 0.18 whose ages range from 17 to 61 years. The research also established that the average worker in the industry has stayed for 6.61 years, with a 5.90 standard deviation (Dholakia & Kshetri, 2004). Participants According to Department Figure 2: Percentage of participants based on department There was also a group who strongly believed that the company procedures and legislations caused strain since most of them were so elaborate and needed more time for implementation. Factor Analysis Age and Tenure per Department Table 2: Age and tenure by mean and standard deviation per department Department 1 Department 2 Department 3 Department 4 Total Age Mean 42.00 37.66 35.07 35.05 37.06 St Dev 10.84 9.18 9.51 10.65 10.18 Tenure Mean 9.73 6.25 6.08 5.57 6.61 St Dev 7.24 4.70 6.26 5.41 5.90 The research also indicated that the majority of participants were people with adequate experience in the internal affairs of the company, thus consisted of 196 respondents who were permanent and full time employees. Figure thee gives more details. Employment Type According to Department Figure 3: Number of participants by their employment type for the overall dataset. In other findings, the researcher realized that the males and females were almost evenly distributed in the first, second and third departments. However, the second departed showed disparity with 67 females to only 17 males. This was attributed to the nature of work that was

Organisational Behaviour Essay Example for Free

Organisational Behaviour Essay The concept of the balanced scorecard (BSC) was first introduced by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton (1992) in their now widely cited Harvard Business Review article, â€Å"The Balanced Scorecard—Measures that Drive Performance.† The widespread adoption and use of the BSC is well documented. For example, Kaplan and Norton (2001) reported that by 2001 about 50% of the Fortune 1000 companies in North America and 40% to 45% of companies in Europe were using the BSC. The basic premise of the BSC is that financial results alone cannot capture value-creating activities (Kaplan Norton, 2001). In other words, financial measures are lagging indicators and, as such, are not effective in identifying the drivers or activities that affect financial results. Kaplan and Norton (1992) suggested that organizations, while using financial measures, should develop a comprehensive set of additional measures to use as leading indicators, or predictors, of financial performance. They suggested that measures should be developed that address four perspectives: 1. The financial perspective. Measures in this perspective should answer the question, â€Å"How should we appear to our shareholders?† 2. The customer perspective. These measures should answer the question, ABSTRACT. Although the application of the balanced scorecard (BSC) in the business sector is well documented, very little research has been reported regarding the adaptation or application of the BSC in the education sector. In this article, the authors (a) describe how the Baldrige Education Criteria for Performance Excellence has adapted the concept of the BSC to education and (b) discuss significant differences as well as similarities between the BSC for business and the BSC for education. The authors also present examples of the BSCs of three Baldrige Education Award recipients. financial performance (Kaplan Norton, 1996). Thus, the BSC enables managers to monitor and adjust the implementation of their strategies and to make fundamental changes in them. The Baldrige National Quality Program: An Overview The Baldrige National Quality Program is the vehicle of implementation of The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act of 1987–Public Law 100–107. This law was enacted on the basis of a set of â€Å"Findings,† one of which was that [T]he leadership of the United States in product and process quality has been challenged strongly (and sometimes successfully) by foreign competition, and our Nation’s productivity growth has improved less than our competitors’ over the last two decades. (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003a, p. 61) â€Å"How should we appear to our customers?† 3. Internal business processes perspective. Measures in this perspective should answer the question, â€Å"What processes must we excel at?† 4. Learning and growth perspective. These measures should answer the question, â€Å"How can we sustain our ability to change and improve?† A critical factor for an effective BSC is the alignment of all the measures in the four perspectives with the company’s vision and strategic objectives. The BSC allows managers to track short-term financial results while simultaneously monitoring their progress in building the capabilities and acquiring the intangible assets that generate growth for future The primary objective of the Baldrige Program is to help American businesses improve their competitiveness in the global market. Businesses can improve their competitiveness by identifying role-model organizations, recognizing them, and disseminating their best practices throughout the United States. The Baldrige Program is widely recognized as a very significant factor in strengthening U.S. competitiveness in the global market. In its 1995 report Building on Baldrige: American Quality for the 21st Century, the Council on Competitiveness made the following statements: â€Å"The Baldrige National Quality Award and its state and local offshoots have been key to the effort to strengthen U.S. competitiveness† and â€Å"The Baldrige Award Program, having galvanized U.S. quality efforts, is now positioned to become the vehicle to stimulate and coordinate efforts to expand quality as a national priority† (Council, p. v). The Council (p. 22) also stated that it â€Å"is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization of chief executives from business, higher education and organized labor who have joined together to pursue a single overriding goal: to improve the ability of American companies and workers to compete more effectively in world markets, while building a rising standard of living at home.† In 1995, The Council was chaired by Paul Allaire, CEO, Xerox, with Thomas E. Everhart, President, California Institute of Technology, and Jack Sheinkman, President, Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union, AFL-CIO, CLC, as vice-chairmen. Recipients of the Baldrige Award are obligated to present their â€Å"best practices† at one national and two regional conferences. In addition to these obligatory presentations, there is a great demand for additional presentations. Through 1998, past Baldrige Award recipients made approximately 30,000 presentations. The centerpiece of the Baldrige Program is the Criteria for Performance Excellence. These criteria define a stateof-the-art management model that integrates the following seven areas into a comprehensive system: leadership; strategic planning; customer and market focus; measurement, analysis, and knowledge management; human resource focus; process management; and business results. In Figure 1, we show the framework of the criteria in a systems perspective. The criteria maintain currency through annual revisions and improvements that incorporate emerging issues and best practices (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003a). The criteria place heavy emphasis on the development of a comprehensive measurement system that is aligned with the company’s strategic objectives. The measurement system yields results in the following areas (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003a): 1. Customer-focused results 2. Product and service results 3. Financial and market results 4. Human resource results 5. Organizational effectiveness results, including key internal operations performance measures 6. Governance and social responsibility results Clearly, this set of results is consistent with the basic concept of the BSC. The financial and market results are the only lagging indicator and cover the BSC’s financial perspective. The customerfocused results obviously cover the BSC’s customer perspective. The product and service results together with the organizational effectiveness results cover the BSC’s internal business perspective. The human resource results cover the BSC’s learning and growth perspective. The governance and social responsibility results were added in 2003 and represent a new perspective in view of the recent, well known collapses that giant corporations experienced owing to unethical practices. The Baldrige Education Criteria for Performance Excellence In 1995, the Baldrige National Quality Program began the process of converting the business criteria for use in the education sector. This process culminated in the development of the Education Criteria for Performance Excellence and with Congressional approval of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for Education in 1999. In Figure 2, we show the framework of the education criteria in a systems perspective. Clearly, this framework is very similar to that of the business criteria shown in Figure 1. In 2001, three educational institutions became the first recipients of the Baldrige Award. The BSC in the Education Criteria for Performance Excellence Although the concept of the BSC has been widely adopted and used in the business sector, the education sector apparently has not embraced the BSC concept widely, as indicated by the dearth of published research on this topic. A thorough review of the literature yielded few significant publications. For example, Cullen, Joyce, Hassall, and Broadbent (2003) proposed that a balanced scorecard be used in educational institutions for reinforcement of the importance of managing rather than just monitoring performance. Sutherland (2000) reported that the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California adopted the balanced scorecard approach to assess its academic program and planning process. Also, Chang and Chow (1999) reported that responses in a survey of 69 accounting department heads were generally supportive of the balanced scorecard’s applicability and benefits to accounting programs. The importance of measurement permeates the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence. The focus on measurement in the criteria first appears in the set of â€Å"Core Values and Concepts.† These factors comprise the philosophical foundations of performance excellence and are as follows (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003b): 1. Visionary leadership 2. Learning-centered education 3. Organizational and personal learning In the â€Å"focus on the future† core value, the criteria state that â€Å"a major longer-term investment associated with your organization’s improvement is the investment in creating and sustaining a mission-oriented assessment system focused on learning† (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003b, p. 3). The criteria recommend that organizations use both (a) formative assessment to measure learning early in the learning process to allow for timely intervention, if needed, and (b) summative assessment to measure progress against key relevant external standards and norms regarding the knowledge and skills that students have (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003b). In the â€Å"management by fact† core value, the criteria make the following statement: â€Å"A major consideration in per-formance improvement and change management involves the selection and use of performance measures and indicators. The measures or indicators you select should best repres ent the factors that lead to improved student, operational, and financial performance. A comprehensive set of measures or indicators tied to student, stakeholder, and/or organizational performance requirements represents a clear basis for aligning all processes with your organization’s goals† (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003b, p. 4). The congruence of the portion in italics with the basic premise and the perspectives of the BSC is clear. In the â€Å"focus on results and creating value† core value, the criteria state that â€Å"the use of a balanced composite of leading and lagging performance measures offers an effective means to communicate short and longer term priorities, monitor actual performance, and provide a clear basis for improving results† (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003b, p. 4). The criteria make the following statement in the â€Å"systems perspective† core value: â€Å"Alignment means using key linkages among requirements given in the Baldrige Categories to ensure consistency of plans, processes, measur es, and actions† (Baldrige National Quality Program, 2003b, p. 5). The 11 core values and concepts are embodied in the following seven categories: 1. Leadership 2. Strategic planning 3. Student, stakeholder, and market focus 4. Measurement, analysis, and knowledge management 5. Faculty and staff focus 6. Process management 7. Organizational performance results In Figure 2, we show the framework connecting and integrating these seven categories into a comprehensive system. In describing Figure 2, the criteria state, in part, that â€Å"Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management (Category 4) are critical to the effective management of your organization and to a fact-based system for improving performance.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini Essay Example for Free

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini Essay A strong, healthy relationship between a father and son allows for a happy family and lifetime. In The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini illustrates the fragile relationship between Baba and Amir and how easily a third party could affect the relationship. Amir can now transcend his relationship with his father by confronting his past, locating his courage and portraying his redemption. Amir confronting his past allows him to transcend his relationship with his father. Amir first attempts to confront his past by travelling to Afghanistan. Amir must confront his memories of the horrible things that he created. Amir forced Ali and Hassan out of his house and more importantly, out of his life. This is a desperate attempt to become closer to Baba. To confront his past, Amir must remember Hassan and remember what they used to share. Amir referred to the letter Hassan wrote for him, and remembered â€Å"Hassan had said in his letter that the pomegranate tree hadn’t borne fruit in years. Looking at the wilted, leafless tree, I doubted it ever would again. I stood under it, remembered all the times we’d climbed it, straddled its branches, our legs swinging, doppled sunlight flickering through the leaves and casting on our faces as a mosaic of light and shadow. The tangy taste of pomegranate crept into my mouth.† (Hosseini 276-277). The pomegranate tree represents Hassan and Amir’s friendship. When Hassan and Amir were good, happy and caring friends, the tree produced delicious fruit. Now that Hassan and Amir have not been friends for many years, the tree is wilted and all life from the leaves have disappeared. The tree will no longer produce any fruit and Amir and Hassan will not have anymore chances to become friends again, but Amir can repay Hassan. Another reason that Amir went back to Afghanistan was to rescue Sohrab; Hassan’s son. This was Rahim Khan’s dying wish. Amir is confronting his past by fighting for his friend’s loved one. Amir is confronting the fact that even though he cannot face Hassan, he will face his son. This is the way Amir will be good again. Rahim Khan knows how Amir can fix his problems, Rahim also knows that â€Å"There is a way to be good again† (Hosseini 202). Rahim Khan’s way to be good again for Amir is to rescue Sohrab. Rahim knows this act will be very beneficial for Amir’s future. In Amir’s childhood, he also had to deal with bullies and in that regard, Assef was the major antagonist. Even when Assef is older, he is still a problem in Amir’s life. Assef is part of the Taliban, terrorizing many people. Amir was face to face with his bully and when he discovered that Assef was abusing Sohrab, Amir spoke his mind and confronted Assef on how horrible he has become. Amir was furious, he had to confront Assef and stand up for what he believes is right, because he knows â€Å"’Stoning adulters? [.] Raping children? [.] Flogging women for wearing high heels? [.] Massacring Hazaras? [.]’† (Hosseini 297-298). These things should not be allowed to continue without any punishment to the person causing them, in this case, Assef. Amir has confronted his past and is now able to move onto his other problems, problems he has with his father. Aamir has to locate his courage so he can face all of his other problems with confidence. While Amir was in Afghanistan, trying to find Sohrab, he tried looking in a local orphanage since Sohrab’s parents had been murdered. When Amir arrived at the orphanage, he asks for Sohrab. The man who runs the orphanage (Zaman) claims to not know of Sohrab. Amir pushes and pushes for Zaman to tell him where Sohrab is. Finally, it is revealed that Zaman sells children to the Taliban. Amir had to locate his courage to tell this man what he was doing wrong. Amir sees this act as greed in order to receive money. Zaman told Amir that â€Å"’[t]here is a Talib official,† he muttered. â€Å"He visits once every month or two. He brings cash with him†¦.† â€Å" Usually he’ll take a girl. But not always.† â€Å"And you allow this?’† (Hosseini 268). Amir confronts Zaman because he found the courage to speak what was on his mind and what he belie ves in. Amir has never been in a fight because he always had Hassan to protect him. Now that Amir did not have Hassan anymore, Amir was challenged to fight Assef to save Sohrab. Amir found the courage he needed because he knew he was finally going to get what he deserved. Sohrab was worth fighting for. Assef has a principle he follows, nothing was free, he demonstrates that Amir have Sohrab for free because everything comes with a price. As Amir tries to take Sohrab, Assef challenges ‘â€Å"I didn’t say you could take him for free.’ I turned. ‘What do you want?’ â€Å"You have to earn him.’† (Hosseini 300). Amir fought Assef to prove a point and so he could finally stand up for what he believes in and that took courage. Baba always stands up for what he believes in, Amir admired that. When Amir stands up for what he believes in, he is transcending his relationship with Baba. Amir wants to adopt Sohrab, but when Amir arrives at the American Embassy, he soon finds out that it will be tough to adopt him. Amir finds out he will need a good immigration lawyer to be able to adopt Sohrab. Amir learns of this difficulty that will come with the adoption, but he needs clarification, he asks the worker â€Å"’You mean to pursue this?’ †¦..’Then I advise you to get a good immigration lawyer.’† (Hosseini 348). Amir was given a warning about his challenging future endeavor. He needs to adopt Sohrab. Going through this process to get Sohrab requires courage, Amir is ready to take on these responsibilities. At last, Amir is â€Å"good again.† (Hosseini 202). Amir portrays many emotions, feelings and states of mind when he returns back to America: happiness, cheer, compassion and most importantly, redemption. Without even knowing it, Amir becomes a role model. Amir models how to fix mistakes and also how to treat one another. This is how Amir portrays his redemption. Amir teaches equality, these are his new beliefs. Amir stands up for his beliefs because Amir is a new man. Amir taught this lesson to General Taheri: ‘â€Å"And one more thing, General Sahib,’ I said. ‘You will never again refer to him [Sohrab] as a ‘Hazara boy’ in my presence. He has a name and it’s Sohrab.’† (Hosseini 380). This passage from the novel contributes to Amir’s ability and process of transcending his relationship with Baba. Amir is not himself anymore, he is acting and portraying someone else he knew who has a better relationship with Baba. Amir is portraying Hassan’s way of life: forgiveness, loyalty, affection, empathy, and more. The most dominant expression that Amir is portraying, is redemption. Amir portrays his redemption by being loyal. Loyalty was a principle in Hassan’s life. Amir showed his new found loyalty to Sohrab by stating the same words Hassan spoke to Amir to show his loyalty towards Amir, ‘†For you, a thousand times over’† (Hosseini 391). Amir grew a new, deeper connection than being friends with Hassan; Hassan’s loyalty lives on through Amir. This allows Amir to leave Baba and his relationship because he is now a new man. Amir remembers that he has been redeemed because he has a life changing event, he is thankful for this. Amir now knows what it takes to redeem himself and this way, he is more forgiving of others. Since Baba lied to Amir and hid the truth about Hassan and Amir being half brothers, he could see past that because he has transcended his relationship with Baba. Amir remembers his redemption by remembering the person who allowed him to redeem himself, Hassan. Sohrab would always be told about what his father and Amir had shared, this is how Amir connected to Sohrab. Sohrab was told about Hassan and Amir’s kite fighting experiences; ‘†Watch, Sohrab. I’m going to show you one of your father’s favorite tricks, the old lift-and-dive.’† (Hosseini 389). As this plan helps remind to remind Amir of his journey, it also makes Sohrab feel more comfortable around Amir because Sohrab now knows that his father shared something special with Amir. Amir also helps Sohrab remember his father in this same way. By Amir portraying Hassan, he is portraying his redemption and transcends his relationship with Baba. Throughout The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini demonstrates the fragile relationship between Baba and Amir and how easily a third party could affect the relationship. Amir is now able to transcend his relationship with his father by confronting his past, locating his courage and portraying his redemption. This process of Amir transcending his relationship with Baba allows Amir to withhold a new relationship between an uncle and nephew. Also illustrated in this novel is a strong, growing relationship between an uncle nephew can last a lifetime if happiness, loyalty, affection and compassion are present in the relationship. This theory holds true to life and does not just live in a novel. Works Cited and Works Consulted Hosseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. N.p.: Anchor Canada, 2004. Print.

The History Of Markup Languages Information Technology Essay

The History Of Markup Languages Information Technology Essay Document markup is a process of writing codes in a document to identify structure and format of a final appearance of a document. Markup was done by copy editor writing instruction on document that was followed by typesetter, before the computerization of printing industry. After computerization, text formatting languages were written. Copy editors markup was converted into the normal markup by a typesetter. When computers spread over the world, people began using word processing software to write documents. Each word processing program had its own feature and technique of markup. All electronic documents which store text use some form of markup. These markups can be visible, hidden or self-generated. Document markup divided into two categories specific markup and generic markup. Specific markup uses instructions which are specific to the certain software that produces document. Generic markup indentifies structure of a document. The beginning of generic markup was macros for typesetting language. Series of commands can be executed by software instruction which called macro. Furthermore, macro keeps track of chapter numbers in document and the change of macro can modify the feature of the chosen chapter. The first presentation about markup languages was made by William Tunnicliffe at Canadian Government Printing Office in 1967. Later in 1969 Raymond Lorie, Edward Mosher, and Charles Goldfarb created Generalized Markup Language (GML). GML was based on ideas of Tunnicliffe. In 1978 GML committee decide to make changes in markup and make it generic. They limited database searches to title by marking title as instead of and . It was a beginning of SGML which was based on both GML and Gencode. SGML was developed during the years and now it is used by major government agencies. HyperText Markup Language (HTML) is a markup language that creates web pages. Nowadays, all web pages are made by using HTML or another language which uses basic elements of HTML. Since 1990 when Tim Berners-Lee invented HTML, this markup language started to advance and now it is the most primary language in a world of web. HTML developed from HTML 1.0 to HTML 4.0 in 7 years. In 1994, first HTML 2.0 document was released First draft HTML 3.0 was released in 1995 In 1996, HTML 3.0 was developed to HTML 3.2 HTML 4.0 was released later in 1997. HTML 4.0 is the current version of HTML. -XML XML was created in 1996 by XML Working Group which was lead by Jon Bosak. The design goal of XML was: XML should be easily accessible over the internet Various applications must be supported by XML XML should be similar to SGML. SGML is another markup language which was created before SGML. More precise information about SGML will be given in the next section XML should be designed brief and official. It should be easy for beginners to create documents in XML XML, Extensible Markup Language, is a standard for document markup which is supported by World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). XML is markup language and a restricted form of Standardized General Markup Language (SGML) which provides a standard format for electronic documents. This format can be easily customized for web sites, vector graphics, object serialization and voice-mail systems. Programs which control data in XML documents can be written by users. So, the availability of libraries in different languages that can write and read XML, allows users to concentrate on the unique needs of their program. Moreover, XML documents can be modified using text editors and web browsers. Data of XML is included as strings of text in this type of documents. XML and HTML documents look similar. However; there are some important differences. First of all, XML is a matemarkup language. That means XML provides sets of elements and tags that can work for everybody in different areas of interest. For example, Chemists can use molecules, atoms and reactions by using appropriate elements. Musicians can use elements notes, lyrics and much more that concerns their job. XML is a language that can be adapted to meet different requirements. Basic unit of data of XML is called an element. XML identify how elements surrounded by tags, the specification of tags and the names which appropriate for elements. The documents which satisfy these requirements are successfully formed; Otherwise documents containing errors will be rejected by XML. Documents in XML are compared with specific scheme. If a document matches scheme then this document considered valid. Invalid documents are not equivalent to scheme, but it is not important for all documents to be valid. There are various XML schemes. Document type definition (DTD) is the mostly supported scheme which is the only scheme that supported by XML 1.0. DTD contains the entire legal markup and identifies places where these markups can be inserted in the document. -SGML Worldwide standard for the explanation of device-independent, system-independent ways if representing texts in electronic form called Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML). SGML documents are not limited by size and can form an independent unit that transported either electronically or in printed form. SGML documents contain interconnected elements that hold data serving for specific purpose. Document Type Definition (DTD) characterizes documents structure according to the elements it contains and the order of these elements. DTD is linked with a SGML. Within the DTD each element in the document named in order to recognize the role of this element. The recognized elements can form the tags that identify the start and the end of elements, when they placed within markup delimiters. SGML parses must authorize files that positioned into the repository. SGML system can be constructed from interrelated software components. Data repository is a central part of SGML system. Before the documents are dispatched from the repository another validation needed in order to guarantee that referenced data has not been neglected from the transmitted data set. SGML documents can be formatted according to features required by the author. There is a standard for defining: the structure of documents classes; characters for markup, and in the text of document; common text that will be written; special marking up techniques like tag minimization or identification of various versions of document; Attributes qualify some SGML markup tags. These attributes can help to identify specific tags, recall data that is externally stored and indicate the role of elements. Moreover attributes can control the way of presenting text to readers. SGML not only make easy to associate feature to text by short form of tags, but also named character references can be used to demand characters that are not included in character set of word processor. In order to modify SGML-coded document, it needed to be converted into form that word processors can understand. It is a complex process for generalized SGML document and there one application which is specifically designed for converting word -processed text into and out of SGML. This application is called HyperText Markup Language (HTML) that is used on the World Wide Web. -HTML and XHTML HyperText Markup Language (HTML) is the computer program that allows user to create own web page by formatting text and present it to the Internet public. First of all, hypertext and universality are the main qualities of HTML. Hypertext means that it possible to insert a link in a webpage that leads to another webpage. So, it is possible to access information on the internet from various places. Secondly, HTML is universal language, because these types of documents can be accessed from any computer such as Macintosh, UNIX and Microsoft. Special programs were designed in order to read HTML pages. These programs called browsers and the popular ones are Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Netscape operator and Opera. XML looks like HTML language; However , XML is a language that not only helps to create web pages, but also the program by which author can create his custom markup language to format documents. By using XML It is possible to use written data as custom information and used it further in the text. Nevertheless, XML is not as merciful as HTML. XML need careful coding, since XML is sensitive to upper and lowercase letters, quotations and tags. There is a huge number of HTML pages that can be read by any browser. So, World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) decided to write HTML in XML. This new invention that called XHTML had all features of HTML as well as XMLs power and flexibility. -TEX There are two different categories of text processors: WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) system. User can see exactly what his document will look like while typing text. Markup system, Authors type text scattered with formatting commands, but they are unable to see appearance of their document while working on text. In order to see final result user must run the program. Since the final product can be seen by author, WYSIWYG systems have the obvious advantage; however, person can easily be distracted by the appearance of the document and will be unable to write the paper effectively. Because of these reasons, people who want academic paper prefer markup systems. TEX is an example of the markup system that was built in early eighteens, before WYSIWYG systems were widespread. Advantages of TEX TEX documents formed by the help of macros, that define format of each component. By the help of macros users dont have to write unnecessary formatting commands. For example, in order to write a footnote it is enough to write footnote command, instead of moving text to the bottom of page. Macros make TEX flexible. By changing definition of certain macro, the appearance of a document can be changed. TEX is easily adaptable, since new commands can be created. In order to print document which is written in TEX, user needs to give the output to a driver program which will convert descriptions into commands that understood by printers. Tex is doesnt rely on technology of printers; you just write a new driver when technology changes. TEX is freely available over the internet. TEX is an ideal program to create academic papers and even books. Disadvantages of TEX First of all, beginners have difficulty at getting used to TEX programming. It is easy to write primary macros, but writing complex macros is not a beginners work. Moreover, memory and design of TEX is limited, it doesnt grow dynamically and it uses only its own fonts. The most spread problem is interactivity of TEX. However, there is a solution to this problem. Many programs that give additional features to TEX are available. For example, Macintosh users can access the program named TEXtures that helps user to: Edit multiple texts at the same time with a multi-window editor; View the output of the program on the screen by the help of previewer; A printer driver; TEX proper. PC clone users can only edit one text at a time. User, should first of all edit a file, then run this document by the help of TEX, afterwards use previewer in order to see the output on the screen. If there are mistakes in the text user must write all of them down then edit file again. Nowadays, most common used systems are WYSIWYG programs that use a TEX engine. User can easily change appearance by few mouse clicks without having any knowledge about TEX.

Introduction to Santería :: Santeria

Introduction to Santerà ­a Santerà ­a, sometimes referred to as La Regla Lucunmi, originated in West Africa in what are now Nigeria and Benin. Santerà ­a is, however, not purely a West African religion; it has many ties to European Catholicism. Because of this correlation, there is no exact year for the formation of this religion. The closest date available for the founding of Santerà ­a is between the 1700's to about 1870 – the period of the slave trade. The slave trade brought many people that practiced this particular religion to the shores of Cuba, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Trinidad as well as many other Caribbean countries. Not only were the slaves' bodies brought over. Their souls, culture, and religion were brought to the Americas as well. In the early years, when the slaves had just begun arriving, there was a great deal of pressure placed on them, by the European plantation owners and missionaries, to convert to Catholicism. Despite these attempts by the plantation owners, Santerà ­a was still openly practiced, and the number of practitioners was increasing. Since in performing openly their religion many harsh beatings and punishments were administered, the religious followers tended to incorporate many Catholic elements into their religion. One factor that helped to make the two religions look similar to the plantation owners was that many of the orishas, the primary gods, shared many of the same physical characteristics that the Catholic saints possessed. This made the slaves appear to be practicing Catholicism although they were practicing their native, African religions. Believers of Santerà ­a place their faith in the orishas. The orishas are not as powerful or as omnipotent as their predominant God, Olodumare, or Olorun. Olorun is the source of ashe, the spiritual energy that makes up the entire universe, all life and all things material. The orishas are the spirits or gods that interact with humans by controlling nature and attending to the daily needs of the religion's followers. They are approachable and can be counted on to come to the aid of followers by guiding them to a better life, materially as well as spiritually. In other words, they are emissaries of God. Furthermore, each orisha possesses a distinct personality. Communication between orishas and humankind is accomplished through ritual, prayer, divination and offerings (ebo). Depending on the particular orisha that they wish to please, santeros use certain colors and certain animals and play particular drumbeats during their rituals. The music is of great importance because it helps to coax the orisha into "mounting" or possessing the priest.

Wealth and Greed - Do You Suffer from Affluenza? :: Argumentative Persuasive Essay Examples

Affluenza: A Human Created Disease With Profound Consequences Chances are that you haven't come across the disease known as affluenza, even if you have been an avid reader of newspapers and listener of news broadcasts. It is possibly the least discussed of the more debilitating diseases of our time. Strangeness characterizes this disease in many other ways too. Almost every one of us actively carries it. Its effects impact not only the immediate carrier but also society at large. Its symptoms are so commonplace that few people make a connection between the disease and the discomfort that it breeds. It infects rich and poor alike, and is beginning to imbed itself in younger and younger carriers. Oddly, those that do recognize the scourge that it sometimes brings are disparagingly referred to as hypocrites, elitists, party-poopers, or catastrophists. And most confusing, it is a disease that is socially acceptable among many of us. Wow, what a bizarre disease, huh? Yet, fortunately, known cures exist for this disorder but they require our dedicati on and perseverance to eradicate this pernicious malady. Defined by authors of a book with the same title, Affluenza is "a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety, and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more" (de Graaf et al.). In simple terms, affluenza is a disease that many of us suffer because we are too fixated on buying and consuming more and more. Do you think you or others you know might have it? But how would you know if you have it? What are the signs of this disease? According to some, affluenza is so encompassing in its effects on our psyches and our bodies that many symptoms of it do not appear different other more common disorders. Other symptoms are more easily distinguishable. Rather than spell out each symptom one by one, let's determine the extent to which you might have this disease through a series of questions. Answer the following questions with yes or no answers: 1. When you find yourself in a depressed mood, do you often get an impulse to buy something to soothe yourself?; 2. Do you often pay close to the minimum payment on your credit cards because of lack of available funds? 3. Do you work a job (either a 2nd job or an additional job to your spouse's) in order to afford the "luxuries" in life?; 4. Do you spend holidays with family members in facilities designated for consuming products-e.

Positivism And The Real :: essays research papers

Positivism is a trend in bourgeois philosophy, which acknowledges the orthodoxy towards empirical knowledge of natural phenomena where metaphysics and theology are regarded as inadequate and imperfect systems of knowledge. Positivism, began to rise as the main intellectual movement during the second half of the 19th century in response to the inability of speculative philosophy, witch was indeed Romanticism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   During the first half of 19th century, the Romanticism brought new views that helped the civilization of that time reach a higher level but it also brought the negative side effects. It brought the chaotic effect that people started in a extremely liberal way to threat the social order in the increasing dispute of 1847 to 1848 which was posed not just by revolutions but by the eruption of an insidious, continually growing, struggle of class against class. The imperceptive economic thoughts, as those in France of Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, eloquent if inconsistent writer, denounced the property classifying it as theft. The revolutions of 1848 lead the way for European thinkers to develop new visions for the way of thinking that brought to the idea of Positivism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Claude Henri de Saint-Simon, French socialist/philosopher, conceived the idea of a new science of society that would result in the economic and intellectual emancipation of man. Saint-Simon thought that the new idea must be a positive philosophy based on experience and science. Another Frenchman Auguste Comte, who is considered the founder of Positivism, was the first to introduce the term â€Å"positivism.† According to Comte, the new natural sciences indicated that a new social science should be built on observation and experience. Comte also described the human history as a three-staged chronology of progress, with each stage having a different social organization based on the social environment of the time, with action based on different principles at each stage. Those were the theological stage, metaphysical stage and at last the positive era.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After its birth in France, positivism continued to spread to England where it obtained a new and better form. In fact, it was in England that the biggest positivist arose. James Stuart Mill, a writer on economy, was one of the main figures in English positivism. In his largely influential System of Logic (1843) Mill introduced the logical positivism that declared: all discoveries of truth not self-evident consist of inductions and the interpretation of inductions. Mill’s theory of logic is based on the laws association.

Kant & ontological proof

The basic principles of ontology are argument for existence of God as a predicate and argument for God’s existence as a necessary existence. The first leg of the argument states: God is the greatest and most perfect being that can be conceived. Existence in imagination and reality is greater than existence in imagination only. Therefore, God really exists. The second leg of the argument is that: God is the entity than which nothing greater can be conceived. It is greater to be necessary than not. God must be necessary. God necessarily exists.Kant’s objection to conceived God as proof of his actual existence is premised on the ability of everything that is said to exist to have some features or characteristics attributable to them. He argued that existence is not a property or the constituent of a thing. Anything that has the property of being non-existent cannot possibly have any other property.  David Hume’s objection is that nothing can be proved a priori. Pr oving a priori is through an opposite contradiction. The resultant contradiction makes something inconceivable. Nothing can be proven a priori, since it is impossible to comprehend anything not existing.Norman Malcolm, in defending the idea of God, maintains that while it may be true that existence of God as a predicate for his reality may be unsustainable, he calls attention to another twist of the argument, which is necessary existence. He argues that where the idea of God, greater than which nothing can be conceived, is possible, it is therefore logically consistent that He necessarily exists. I agree with Malcolm. God must necessarily exist so that the existence of other beings can be traced to Him, who in himself is self existent.REFERENCE.1. Malcolm Norman (Prentice Hall, 1963), Knowledge and Certainty: Essays and Lectures (Englewood Cliffs, N.).

Comparison and Contrast Between Love

First love can happen at any age or not happened at all, but must people have fallen in love for the first time as a teenager or an adult. First love is an exciting new experience that most people remember very well as something naive, impulsive and unforgettable love. However, forever love is one of the strongest emotions that a human being can feel. It can arise ever so intensely, spreading a feeling of warm happiness through every inch of a person body like a wild fire spreading through a tree.As the feelings become more intense, the flame of passion can turn into a blazing fire that burns strongly through every ventricle of a person’s heart. This love makes one committed to stay in the relationship for the long haul. When it comes to first love and forever love, these two loves are different in regard to communication, unconditional support and emotional support. Forever love requires romantic partners to communicate even when it is hard to come to an agreement. Instead of walking out of the house without talking or going to bed angry, partners stay up late until the differences and problems are reconciled.For instance, on the Cosby show, Clare and Bill would have disagreements when difference arose. The differences would be how to discipline the children, Bill not eating healthy meals or not listening to one another. Instead of Bill and Clare yelling and pointing the finger at one another, they would communicate without playing the blame game and apologize to one another regardless of who is right. I know one might say they are playing characters on a television show, but one cannot disagree that forever love lays out the foundation of how to compromise and respect one’s life partner.Forever love also shows unconditional love and support by showing devotion and understanding of one another. For example, Diane Reeves showed her husband Christopher Reeves unconditional love and support when he was paralyzed. She never viewed him as a patient bu t as the love of her life. She always supported him through grueling physical therapy sessions and surgery. By her being so extremely devoted, she never deserted him when he was paralyzed or stayed with him out of pity. She truly, madly and deeply loved him regardless of his disability.My husband, James, is my forever love because he supports me in my goal of pursuing an associate degree in Health Service Management. My forever love does this by telling me how well I am accomplishing my goals by getting good grades in school. Whenever I am feeling overwhelmed and frustrated after a long day of classes and working, he gives me words of encouragement. He tells me that he has faith in me because he knows I will succeed. By doing this, he gives me the support I need to achieve my educational goals. On the other hand, first love relationship disagreements are inevitable.But how are they handled? Instead of reconciling their difference, conversation are battlegrounds where viewpoints are defended with grim determination and words are weapons instead of tools of communication. In the heat of anger, complaints are expressed in a destructive fashion which causes romantic partners to say, â€Å"See you later,† because one is not fully committed to the relationship. For example, my first love, Ernest, and I would argue all the time and never reconciled our differences because we each wanted to be right.We tried to make the relationship work but we were so naive about love that we ended the relationship because neither one of us was committed enough to make it work. Another difference between first and true love is unconditional love and support. With first love, this type of love is not strong because one is not fully committed to the relationship. For instance, Judy, my friend, and her first love, Jim, were inseparable. Judy and Jim were dating for six months. They would go to the movies, parties, and sports games for fun until a tragedy happened.Jim was involved in an automobile accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Instead of showing unconditional love and support for her romantic partner, she left him because she could not handle his disability. She was not committed enough to him or their love to support Jim in his time of need. First love is not as strong as forever love because this is a new experience and the partner is not concerned with a long, strong commitment. In conclusion, Love does not long for power; it does not want to be hurt or be punished for mistakes.It is self-sacrificing because it is ready to forgive partners over and over again. It is wrong to think that love is always suffering; it only means that one takes a person as he or she is and does not expect a romantic partner to be perfect. Forever love is more invested in keeping the relationship intact because one is willing to reconcile his or her differences, and show unconditional love and support but most of all communication. This love makes partne rs stand by each other side through tragedies and difficulties, whereas first love has little willingness to commit to the relationship.

Value Chain

Value Chain Analysis ******** Diagram ********* The above model demonstrates the principal element of Value Chain Analysis for an organization such as Easyjet. The integration of the above elements ultimately delivers great margin potential and thus the ideal high profitability status. I will provide a detailed analysis of this model to highlight the core capabilities of Easyjet: Infrastructure Main headquarters based in Luton. Provides excellent communication with motorways, railway lines and bus access Low overheads Paperless office No ticketing system with posted ticket Simple distribution channel management (through the Internet or call centers) Low airport costs (minimal time of aircraft on the ground), thus achieving economies of scale Financial resource investment initially supported by Haji-loannou HR Management Haji-loannou, high profile entrepreneur (shipping tycoon background), Hands-on-approach from Haji-loannou – looking for opportunities to diversify and expand, Innovative marketing terms for marketing communications to date. Technology Development Booking through the Internet (higher margins, with a more manageable, simplistic system) Strong reputation for being an airline where bookings are made via the phone or Internet. Procurement Easy purchase system in place for flight bookings Negotiated low cost airport fees Simple staff uniforms No tedious ticketing system in place Below you will find a commentary on how these key elements are also integrated into the Easyjet business and further, how the strengths can be used to develop and extend the Easyjet brand. Inbound Logistics Excellent communication system in place at airports and easy flight booking policy/payment methods convey an image of convenience – a key benefit to consumers Operations and Outbound Logistics Good marketing strategy – ‘we have the best’ approach Partnerships and promotional tie-ins with the mass media High profile PR strategy (for example: the PR stunt against Robert Ayling, Chief Executive of British Airways and its budget airline â€Å"GO† – gains cheap PR coverage) Fine targeting of attractive segments emerging e. . utilization of casual uniforms. However, safety is always a critical concern and is up to par with the standards of other airlines. Service Convenience and simplicity are of integral importance Affordable, frequent, reliable, safe slots are offered to an increasing number of new destinations No frills and/or complications are associated with the travel experience. Conclusion Clearly Easyjet has some at tractive core capabilities that have been established in the marketplace and are perceived as ultimately beneficial to the consumer. The Value Chain Analysis highlights those elements of the business that can be integrated or fine-tuned (through for example ‘just in time’ systems, quality standards and relationship marketing) in order to achieve the overall objectives of high margins, profitability and market share. Perceived superior services or products, market knowledge, industry contacts, legal advantages (patents, copyrights) perceived high value brands, low overheads, economies of scale and an offensive marketing approach are some of the key factors / elements for sustaining a competitive advantage and indeed promoting the Easyjet family of companies.