Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Changes in Intercollegiate Athletic Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Changes in Intercollegiate Athletic - Assignment Example The participation of gaming at colleges has to lead to the formation of national teams taking part in Olympics, tournaments, and creation of professional leagues. The paper dwells on the discussion on changes that have taken place in the intercollegiate athletic. Introduction of athletic scholarship among universities has seen many students discover and nurture their talents besides seeking education. The opportunity has improved sports activities among students, encouraging more female scholars to take up athletic practices. Arianne & Zullo estimates that 78 percent of athletics in universities enroll on scholarship from research done in Penn State. School sports help in achieving education mission as the team such as basketball, hockey development innovative programs that aid in instilling discipline and hard work among scholars. Provision of incentives to athletics and distribution of funds to institutions belonging to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has resulted in the commercialization of sporting activities. Lavish spending is among the main problems facing college sports because many universities pour a large amount of money on types of equipment and facilities in order to produce excellent players in soccer, basket ball forgetting to adhere to the institution’s budget. Failure to plan sports’ events has seen colleges run in sports deficit because funds are to cater for scholarship as well as support sporting, forcing the state and donor to offset the debts even worse use fee levied from all students. In the recent past, athletic achievement has been recognized in the job market thus creating an opportunity for the participants rather than dwell on academics performance alone. The experience both educational and athletic earned during the tenure is essential in the everyday life.
Monday, October 28, 2019
Hamlet Review Essay Example for Free
Hamlet Review Essay Primary Characters: * Hamlet- indecisive, isolates himself, plans his â€Å"antic disposition†* Claudius- murder of King Hamlet, Hamlet’s uncle and stepfather, guilty * Ophelia- Polonius’s daughter, Hamlet’s love, drowns Secondary Characters: * Horatio- Hamlet’s friend * Polonius- protective of Ophelia, believes Hamlet is affected by Ophelia’s love * Gertrude- Hamlet’s mother and the queen * Laertes- Polonius’s son and Ophelia’s brother, wants to kill Hamlet after Ophelia dies Point of view and other notable techniques: Most people believe that Hamlet was written in the 3rd person point of view. However, some literary critics argue that Shakespeare’s characters possess individuality too great to be bound under a fixed point of view. Like actual people, they act with intentions we cannot completely comprehend. This lack of fixed point of view allows the work to be up to interpretation, as it has been analyzed in a variety of ways. Shakespeare embodies various structural, literary, and stylistic techniques in his play. He often switches between the use of blank verse and prose when dealing with his different characters. He also uses iambic pentameter throughout the play. Examples of this can be most easily found in Hamlet’s â€Å"To be or not to be†monologue in Act III. Favorite stylistic techniques of Shakespeare include soliloquy, particularly those uttered by Hamlet throughout the play (the â€Å"To be or not to be†¦Ã¢â‚¬ soliloquy remains one of the most famous in English literature). He also uses various allusions to both biblical and mythological references throughout Hamlet, including a reference to the Garden of Eden in the Ghost of Hamlet’s father’s graphic description of his murder. Imagery is another favorite technique of Shakespeare, as he uses his words to paint images of violence, chaos, beauty, and darkness. The language of Shakespeare is in a class of its own, as the old English text he employs throughout the play reflect his own unique manner of writing. Major conflicts and resolutions: * Hamlet vs. His inner self- Hamlet struggles between action and inaction throughout the entire play. Is inability to act out what he feels and kill Claudius ultimately leads to his death. * Hamlet vs. Claudius, Polonius, Ophelia Laertes: Hamlet has many external conflicts with the other characters that stem from his internal conflict. The conflict between Claudius and Hamlet leads to both of their deaths. Hamlet kills Polonius out of a fit of insanity. Ophelia and Hamlet seem to have various problems, (as seen by the nunnery scene) and in the end Ophelia ends up going insane and drowning. After Ophelia dies, Laertes wants to seek revenge. He and Hamlet fence and because of a mix up of swords, he is poisoned by his own sword. Key Scenes: * A huge turning point in Hamlet is within rising action. The ghost tells hamlet to revenge his murder. Hamlet finds out that it is Claudius, but Hamlet does not kill Claudius because he is in prayer. * The climax of â€Å"Hamlet†is when Hamlet stabs Polonius through the curtain. (III:v). This is the climax because since he violently killed Polonius, Hamlets gets into conflicts with the king. * The resolution is when Hamlet returns from England, changed. Hamlet eventually has a fencing match with Laertes and then the royal family dies and so does Hamlet. (V.). Key Quotations: * â€Å"Though yet of Hamlet our dear brother’s death/ The memory be green†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (I.ii.1-25) * Claudius addresses his court explaining the death of the King and his marriage to Gertrude. * â€Å"This above all,â€â€to thine own self be true; And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man†(I.iii.78-80) * Polonius speaks these words to Laertes as he gives him final counsel before leaving home. * â€Å"To be or not to be†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (III.i. 58-90) * In this famous soliloquy, Hamlet ponders life and death, suicide and the afterlife, as well as action and inaction. * â€Å"Not where he eats, but where he is eaten. A certain convocation of politic worms are een at him. Your worm is your only emperor for diet. We fat all creatures else to fat us, and we fat ourselves for maggots. Your fat king and your lean beggar is but variable serviceâ€â€two dishes, but to one table. That’s the end.†(IV.iii.21) * Hamlet says this to the king. In this humorous scene, he speaks of Polonius’s death. Many think that the manner in which he speaks of the death in these lines prove his insanity. * â€Å"The rest is silence†(V.ii.356) * Hamlet’s last words spoken to Horatio before he dies Theme statements central questions: After losing a loved one unjustifiably, one may seek revenge and in doing so explore the limits of sanity. * Why does Hamlet delay in killing Claudius? * Was the ghost real or imagined? * When is murder justifiable? * Is suicide okay? * How much thought is too much thought and not enough action? Your reactions: * I found the soliloquy in Hamlet the most difficult sections of the play to comprehend, particularly due to the old English style in which they were written in. Shakespeare’s dated language and implementation of iambic pentameter often confused me, as did his various allusions and colloquialisms, among other literary devices throughout these extended monologues. I had to re-read the â€Å"To be or not to be†soliloquy until I was finally able to understand it. Shakespeare reveals of his character’s innermost demons and troubles through his soliloquy, bringing their emotional instability full circle. Realizing this made me strive even harder to understand every aspect of these speeches, every allusion and image and literary device was crucial, even though it appears to be insignificant in the scheme of things. The details truly matter in his works. * Personally, the â€Å"this above all†quote is one of my favorite quotes. Polonius may have been a fool for trying to teach Laertes this lesson at the last possible moment before his departure, but his words are wise ones. Through personal experience I have found truth behind the advice and hold it very close. I’ve discovered that if I remain true to myself and am honest with myself, it is virtually impossible to be false to others. I’ll always remember these famous words. * One aspect of Hamlet that really stood out to me was the scenes of the ghost. I personally believe that the ghost telling Hamlet to remember him and revenge his father’s death, was actually within the imagination of Hamlet himself. There is no evidence in the play that suggests that the ghost is all in Hamlet’s mind, however, there is no evidence against it, thus making it an effective claim. Notable literary devices: * Shakespeare’s use of tone creates a unique and completely entertaining style of dialogue for the play. The tone uses imagery and diction to add meaning to the text and make the play sad, funny, dark, or even violent at times. * Shakespeare uses poetry in â€Å"Hamlet†and it is written in Iambic Pentameter. â€Å"Hamlet†, having been written in poetry, is portrayed beautifully and because of the meter, is executed properly. * The use of symbols is evident in â€Å"Hamlet†. The skull and the ghost are obvious symbols of death. However, other symbols can be analyzed like Ophelia and flowers, or Ophelia and innocence. Hamlet can be looked at as the â€Å"tragic hero†, and many characters have symbolism behind them. Good for the following prompts: This text would be best implemented in either an analysis or an argument prompt. For the analysis prompt, the student would be presented with a short excerpt from Hamlet and be required to discuss different techniques the author uses throughout the passage, connecting back to the overall meaning of the work as a whole. Any selection from Hamlet highlights Shakespeare’s use of iambic pentameter, as well as his mastery of imagery and allusions. An argument prompt requires the student to analyze a given position in said argument, and either defend, challenge, or qualify the position using their own knowledge of the work. Anything goes with this prompt, so a total understanding of the various interpretations of Hamlet is necessary to succeed. Students must develop their own interpretation of the work and pinpoint elements in the work that contribute to their understanding of it. Hamlet would be an excellent choice when faced with any prompt dealing with revenge, avenging the death of a loved one, insanity, or family values, a few of the central themes of Shakespeare’s work.
Saturday, October 26, 2019
Cause and Effect Essay - Impact of Stereotypes and Stereotyping
Cause and Effect Essay - The Impact of Stereotypes In today's society, our natural reaction is to put people into a specific class that we feel they fit into upon our first impression. When we were in high school, they were called clicks. There were your jocks and your cheerleaders, who were usually the most popular students. Along with stoners, nerds, and then the people who really didn't fit into any crowd, they were just there. When we were in high school, all of us wanted to be in the "cool crowd". As described in When I was growing Up by Nellie Wong, "I discovered the rich white girls...imported cotton dresses...and thought that I too should have what these lucky girls had..." In stereotyping people, we perhaps have ruined some great minds. However, when high school was over and the real world came true, high school jocks and cheerleaders didn't have much of a lead on the rest of us. Their popularity became nothing after high school. Our stereotyping of each other could have been very harmful. Some students were intelligent but never given a chance to prove it because of the way they dressed or because they smoked. We could see it in our teachers eyes, and our own, when a student walked in with glasses and a pocket protector we assumed that he was smart and way above the intellect of the class. Same as when we saw a person dressed in all black leather with chains walking in; we think that they will never make anything out of themselves. Now as adults, we work with all types of people. Most of us probably don't realize that all the people we used to make fun of in high school for studying hard or getting good grades are now the potential leaders of our nation. That jokes on us. However, wha... ...ave ruined some great authors, engineers, doctors or even presidents because of our cruel stereotypes. It's hard for society to realize that their simple classification of a person without knowing them directly could have such an effect. If we were to understand that just because we choose to where certain clothes or play sports, that it doesn't mean this is the only thing we know. Society itself is full of plenty of intelligent people, however, most of them will never get a chance to prove this because, either we won't give them a chance anymore, or they have just given up. Why should anyone try to prove their importance to us if we aren't willing to believe them? We've never cared about them, so why should they care about us? As a stereotyping society from as early as childhood, we have set ourselves up for problems, which might never be resolved.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
The Poetry Lesson by Don Maclennan Essay -- essays research papers fc
In the poem â€Å"The Poetry Lesson†by Don Maclennan an ironic mood emerges. The poem is about an English poetry lecturer. He expresses his views and feelings on his lessons, how he might have impacted on the lives, altered the views and the challenges he has given his students. He states what he expects from his students. It is interesting to note that Don Maclennan is in fact a South African English poetry lecturer. I thus assume that this poem is a reflection on how he views himself and his students. I intend to give a detailed analysis of the poem, by defining the type of irony that occurs in the poem and commenting on the use of irony and the nature of the poems commentary on itself. I will give my interpretation of each stanza of the poem and indicate where the irony of a given situation is. Irony as The New International Webster’s Pocket Dictionary describes it is: A paradox between what happens and what does or might be expected to happen; a literary style often used to mock or satirize convention.                                    (NIWPD 2002: 247) The predominant form of irony in the poem is situational irony, which John Dury defined as: A discrepancy between appearance or likelihood and an actual reality.                                        (Dury 1995: 140) M.H. Abrams terms this type as structural irony, which is defined as: The author, instead of using occasional verbal irony, introduces a structural feature that serves to sustain a duplex meaning and evaluation throughout the work.               (Abrams 2005: 135) Both these definitions are accurate in describing the type of irony that is present in the poem. This will be discussed in the subsequent paragraphs. Upon completion of reading the poem The Poetry Lesson, it can be said the title of the poem can be construed to be ironic. As this is a poem about a poetry lesson, I assume the poet will talk about a poetry lesson where he is analysing a... ...essage across. He does this by drawing on his own life experiences. It would seem that this is what Maclennan wanted the readers of his poem to do.                               Word Count: 1 301 Bibliography: Macclenan, Don. 1995. â€Å"The Poetry Lesson†. In: Clarkson, C. Mkhize, J.      MacKenzie, C. Mnqadi, S. 2005. Anthology of Poetry and Short      Stories. University of Johannesburg: Content Solutions. pp. 51-53. Abrams, M.H. 1999. Irony â€Å"A Glossary of Literary Terms/Seventh†Boston:      MacPeek, Earl. Dury, John. 1995. â€Å"The Poetry Dictionary.†United States of America: Story      Press. 2002: The New International Webster’s Pocket Dictionary: Quebecor World      Peru. Trident Press International. Van Heerden, J-M. 2005. â€Å"How to Write a Critical Examination of a Literary      Work: English 1A†. Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg,      February.
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Flexible work options Essay
With our personal lives busier than ever, offering flexible work options to your employees could be the best way to keep the good ones around. By offering flexible work options, such as flextime, it will allow employees more family time, go back to school, if desired, to further education, as well as decrease absenteeism at work. Now, who wouldn’t want a job that offered the time allowed to do those kind of things? I know I would. Flexible work hours allow employees more time with their family. It allows more time to spend with their children, and to attend all school programs and plays. It allows a parent the opportunity to be able to take their child to school, and go back to pick them up from school. This makes for happy children which makes for happy parents, which in turn, makes for a happy employee. Happy parents working flexible schedules, are more productive at work and produce better quality of care. Not only does it allow for family time, but employees working flexible work hours are able to return to school on their own, and pursue that college degree they have always wanted. Not only does it allow to obtain a college degree, it allows one to go back to school to further the degree they already obtain. Working flextime allows the time to go back to school without interrupting the work schedule at work. This allows a person to work full time and attend school. Flextime allows the ability for employers to retain key, dedicated employees whose personal needs conflict with traditional work hours. By offering flextime, you’ll gain increased productivity and worker satisfaction, along with decreased absenteeism and turnover; all great money-savers for the company. Flextime helps create a happier, more satisfying workplace, too. Because employees are often so glad that their employers are willing to allow for a work-life time adjustment, they tend to work harder and in a more dedicated fashion to hold on to their now-perfect schedule and re-balance their lives, and actually enjoy coming to work. This is why no one calls-in to work. They love it. To keep happy employees, employers, fathers, mothers, or the entire family, offering flextime is the way to go. It allows for so many benefits, neither one can go wrong with working flexible work hours. It will produce happy parents, happy children, and happy employers. Work progress will improve so much as well as the quality of work provided. With the busy lives of people and everything that is required of some of them, flextime is the best way to go. Going with flextime makes everyone happy. Yay for flextime.
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Organisational Development in the Nursing Field
Organisational Development in the Nursing Field Free Online Research Papers Organisational development (OD) is widely documented in a plethora of literature many theorists suggest that OD is science based and its topics are rooted in behavioural sciences. OD emerged in the 1960s in order to support organisations with incremental changes which appeared very topical at the time. Paton et al (2005) suggests the prevailing emphasis of OD is on incremental change however OD originated in developing gradual or first order change within existing and established frameworks. In more recent times OD is required to respond to transformational change (Burns 1978, Bennis Nanus 1985, Marriner-Torney 1993). This form of change involves changing existing frameworks including attitudes, beliefs and cultural values. A commonality of both these types of change is that they require top down support towards strategy. However from reading a plethora of literature on OD an evident weakness is that not all change is instigated top down, ideas for change can and do come from any level within an organisation and sometimes pressures for change can be bottom up. Bottom up change lacks power and consequencely this could have a negative effect on the OD process. OD focuses on the process of change rather than the task and is linked to â€Å"soft data†(Peters Waterman 1982). There are numerous topics associated with OD including organisational climate, conflict, culture, management development, employee commitment all according to Mullins (1994) improve organisational performance. Mullins (1994) suggests all topics have to be interlinked or interdependable of each other to gain improved organisational performance. However it could be argued how the accuracy of outcomes are measured or quantified. As changing the interlinked topics may or may not increase outcomes, profits/performance could be increased by external changes and may not always be related to topics involved. Many Authors have tried to define/suggest a purpose of OD including (Beckhard Pritchard 1992, Schein 1985, Boddy Buchanan 1992). The literature suggests OD lacks a commonly agreed definition that is accepted as capturing its nature, principle and extent (Paton et al 2005). The emerging themes from the literature suggests OD applies behavioural science to achieve planned change. Goals include improved organisational effectiveness through using systems theory to analyse organisational issues (Ludwig Van Bertalanffy 1968.) OD appears to be a management discipline of significance to the settings approach in the workplace it creates an enabling workplace where people work effectively towards strategic goals aligning leadership, structure, relationships and learning towards goal attainment. A key theme of OD is improving organisational efficiency in conjunction with improving the quality of employees working lives (Brauche 2001, Saunders Barker 2001). This relates to the art and practice of linking people with purpose to reach and achieve strategic goal and is very much people focused. For the purpose of this paper I shall be critically evaluating OD processes and frameworks in line with current literature and applying these processes to current OD practices within the National Health Service (NHS) and more specifically to the Primary Care Trust (PCT) in which I work. I shall be producing the following OD strategy â€Å"Developing skill mix into the Evening District Nursing Team to provide service delivery in a more efficient and effective manner†. (See Appendix A outlining strategy). I will discuss the OD process used to formulate the strategy and plan the change and critically analyse this process. I will focus on the formulation of the change situation within the PCT and discuss common elements of change and how these elements proactively bring about change within the organisation. I shall evaluate the potential effectiveness of the strategy and the potential impact it may have on the organisation. In order to provide the contextual setting for this project it is important to briefly outline my role within the NHS and examine the changes in the NHS during the recent years. The NHS is a large organisation employing people with a wide range of talents, one of the smaller parts being the Primary Care Trust (PCT) for who I work. My role within the PCT is a clinical/operational management role integrated into a senior nursing role. I manage six District Nursing teams including the evening nursing service and work half time as a District Nurse. I report directly to a Performance/Service Development Manager who in turn reports to the Associate Director. The PCT employees approximately 1150 staff the majority are clinical staff providing community services. The past structure of the NHS has been embedded in a hierarchical â€Å"top down†controlling system styles, yet with the â€Å"Modern NHS†this culture is changing (Lucus 2005, Zimmerman et al 1998). The Government White Papers and National Health Service (NHS) Policy documents (DoH 1997, 1998a 1999, 2001, 2002) reflects plans for a modern NHS and outlines the Government plans for 2000 – 2010; These White Papers build a tangible base on which change for the NHS is based, providing anchoring points for the change on an incremental basis. Smith (2005) discusses how incremental change increases employees readiness to change this is very much evident in the aims and objectives of the PCT. The evening nursing service consists of 34 staff which equates to 6.79 whole time equivalent staff (see Appendix C) the staff all work part time and the majority have more than 10 years service. A service review reported some team members were not working to their grade and there was a need for skill mix within the team to meet the complex care needs of patients on their caseload. This review highlighted highly trained staff undertake clerical duties and simple tasks due too lack of appropriate grade of staff within the team. Community nursing has had to respond to changes from the Government and to the additional pressures including an increase in workload both on day time Community Nursing services but also on the ENS. These pressures are influenced by increasing numbers in the client group District Nurses visit, and the frailty/dependency of these clients. Demographic changes identify that the number of the elderly will increase with a dramatic rise amongst those aged 85 and over adding to District Nursing caseloads in the future. As more people are nursed in primary care the demand for out of hours community based nursing services such as the ENS has steadily risen. The care these clients receive has increased in complexity with the influx of continuing care clients and Active Case Management clients into the service. However despite all of the above the skill mix within the team has remained stagnant. OD INTERVENTIONS LITERATURE REVIEW Many authors discuss approaches to OD what it is and how it is used within organisations, however in practice OD never neatly fits into one approach as change can be chaotic with unexpected combinations and outcomes (Iles Sutherland 2001). Themes/Approaches to OD The OD processes for developing plans for change are based on an ideology of planned participation and democracy (Stacey 1996). These processes rely on change agents facilitating change rather than imposing change. Action Research is one intervention which helps to define a problem and participants then have ownership of that problem (Darwin et al 2002). Action Research The concept of Action Research is traced back to Lewin in the 1940s (Darwin et al 2002). Lewin argued in order to understand change and certain social practices social scientists must include practitioners from the real work in all phases of the inquiry (McKernan 1991). Lewin drew on theories of progressive education of the educational philosopher John Dewey. Carr Kemmis (1986) were critical of Lewins work around Action Research suggesting that democracy and group decision making were viewed as a technique to again the cooperation of workers rather than a fundamental principle for social action and in practice I feel this sometimes happens. Action Research is often referred to as a management tool for the introduction of change and the strength of Action Research lies in the coupling of participants and research to action and change. This type of change process reflects change in practice as a change agent in this process you need to be part of the change process to understand and empathise with the journey of the change and the people involved. As we know from practice change never runs smoothly, and at times unless you are personally involved in the change you can struggle with the emotions from staff affected from the change. Action Research creates spiral steps composing of planning, action and evaluation – the evaluation element being the results of the action (Kemmis McTaggert 1990). Action Research is a rigorous and systemic approach toward OD which uses scientific methods to initiate the change it uses research to enhance practice at a practical level. This type of OD is used in the NHS where care is evidence and researched based. It does require expertise and discipline to use it efficiently and effectively. The change agent requires knowledge and understanding of the Action Research process and knowledge of the validity of research, and the ability to think analytically around evidence and research before putting it into practice. There are 3 types of Action Research: Technical, Practical, and Emancipatory (Darwin et al 2002). The type more commonly used is practical where the researcher and practitioner comes together to identify a potential problem, it gives joint ownership of the problem associated with the change. The practical type gives more flexibility than the technical approach as it allows participants to problem solve as they move through the change which in turn can give multiple perspectives of the problem. This type of Action Research fits well into the ethos of the NHS and the principles that problem solving complex health and social problems lies beyond the ability of any one professional/team and large group intervention is required supported by a change agent to constantly monitor evidence and research to ensure practitioners constantly deliver evidence based. However a criticism of Action Research is that in a hierarchical organisation the empowering element of Action Research is often difficult to achieve due too the power structure involved within the organisation. The cultures in the NHS have changed people now constantly question practice and engage in new enquiry. Staff are actively encouraged to problem solve at shop floor level and Action Research would help staff to perform this. Specifically the methodology used in Action Research has the potential to be useful in areas such as developing innovations, improving healthcare and developing knowledge. Whitehead (2005) discusses how Action Research is gaining acceptance in healthcare management however examples of this in the literature are limited (Waterson 2000, Harrison 2000). Unfortunately Action Research has yet to gain widespread acceptance in the Health Service despite the fact clinicians in the NHS use evidence and research on daily basis. Action Learning Action Learning is an approach to OD which involves the development of people in organisations which takes the task as the vehicle for learning (Pedler 1991). Action Learning is learning from what is happening in the workplace opposed to acquiring new knowledge, although programme knowledge can be introduced into an Action Learning programme as it can give a conceptualised framework to the programme. Many Authors suggest that OD cannot be undertaken on an individual basis as it requires a group to formulate the process and Action Learning brings about changes in people via group work because individuals within the group influence each other and this can be an excellent way to change culture within organisations. Action Learning is a way of learning from Actions and there are 2 important elements to Action Learning:  · Group work: people who work together on their â€Å"doing†and their â€Å"Learning† · Regular meetings: to allow time for questioning, understanding and reflecting (Weinstein 1999). The involvement of groups in Action Learning makes it effective for introducing change into an organisation and most importantly culture change (Weinstein 1999). Culture change can be difficult to change within organisations as attitudes are not born in us they are formed in groups for example family or work groups and these groups are instrumental in changing our attitudes and beliefs. Group work enables attitudes to change over a period of time and Action Learning enable this process. Changes in people comes about in groups because individuals influence each other and Action Learning sets out principles to challenge people in a group setting, which in the long term will help staff to address change in the workplace. Action Learning is embedded in the theories of Reg Revans (1983, 1982, 1998) but uses the Kolb Revans learning cycles which involves learning from our actions and suggests there can be no learning without action. Action Learning promotes the creative integration of thinking and doing to form learning. The theory of Action Learning consists of a number of elements:  · Programmed Knowledge  · Questioning  · Action  · Reflection Learning should also be greater than the change, thus programmed knowledge and questioning must be learnt faster than change to avoid becoming dated. Action Learning helps to conceptualise a problem the Action Learning set works through the symptoms of the problem narrowing the symptoms down to fine detail in order to get to the exact root of the problem this in itself can be challenging. Action Learning is used as a diagnostic at the implementation stage of a change to diagnosis a problem and it uses tactic knowledge for problem identification (Weinstein 1991). Several Authors suggest Action Learning produces slow results and can take time for people to develop their skills in order to gain full benefits from the set. People can struggle with the balance between accomplishing their task and learning from it and embracing the challenge of the group dynamics. For organisations that prefer quick results Action Learning may not be the appropriate approach to use. Action Learning requires commitment from employers through time and personal development. Sets can work on a task for a period of 6 – 12 months before producing results within an organisation. Employers need to understand this prior to committing their staff to the set. Long term outcomes from Action Learning can be measured in the form of professional development and organisational outcomes but it takes time to measure. Not all employers are able to commit this time and expense. Another common psychological barrier to Action Learning is the perception by the employees that they neither have the time or inclination to learn (Peters Smith 1996). However a counter argument to this is that Action Learning can develop an inclination for employees to become lifelong learners not only developing a learning organisation but a learning society (Koo 1999). Deloo Verstegen (2001) suggest that Action Learning may lead to personal growth but lacks results in organisational growth. Zuber-Skerritt (2002) challenges this suggestion by stating the Authors have not conducted successful Action Learning programmes themselves and show poor understanding of the theoretical concepts that is a pre-condition for successful Action Learning programmes. Whilst there are clearly benefits gained from Action Learning programmes both at a personal and professional level the financial benefits of such programme have never been quantified. One could argue that some organisations may not want employees developed so they constantly question and challenge and equally some employees would not want this either. However these organisations and employees would be left behind in a rapidly changing environment where people and organisations are facing uncertainties and challenges on a daily basis. Action Learning is a powerful tool in enabling managers to recognise and deal with ambiguity and anxiety and develop strategies for group learning. This learning group can be a microcosm of the organisation. The Action Learning model is an example of a powerful organisational intervention and can appeal to managers who may be unwilling to engage in a more traditional intervention, but yet Action Learning fits well in with today’s transformational management style. Action Learning sets in practice appears to contribute to and support transformational change in practice (McNamara 2006). OD STRATEGY FOR THE CHANGE WITHIN MY OWN ORGANISATION. Clinical performance indicators are powerful tools by which the quality and effectiveness of Health Care can be monitored and measured (Harvey 2004). Information gained from these indicators can assist in the restructuring and the redesign of care delivery. Community Nursing Services uses clinical performance indicators in the form of caseload profiling and caseload analysis to monitor the effectiveness of District Nursing Services. These clinical performance indicators are not deemed to be exact standards rather they are designed to be flags which alert the organisation to possible problems and or opportunities for improvement. A recent performance indicator highlighted that the Evening Nursing Service (ENS) lacked skill mix within the team resulting in highly trained staff performing task orientated skills and clerical work. DOH (2001) The NHS Plan documents strategies to ensure the right mix and numbers of professionals employed are in the right place at the right time. These documents supported the performance indicator by highlighting the need to analysis and optimize the ENS service. The skill mix within the team is highlighted in Appendix C and the staff work in pairs in the evening. I as the manager of the ENS was assigned the task of working with the team to plan a strategy for change to restructure the skill mix within the ENS service using the must appropriate OD intervention. The ENS team is a well established team and the skill mix within the team was stagnant, staff had been in post for many years, therefore the ENS has developed its own culture over the years and I was aware this culture would be hard to challenge and change. Culture can be an important enabler or inhibitor of change and understanding the role of organisational and professional culture is important (Davies et al 2001). Culture is often strong which means it can have a powerful impact on an organisation but it is not always positive and I felt this reflected the ENS team. The NHS echoes the words of culture â€Å"The way we do things around here†(Lundy Cauling 1996). This type of culture is classed at level three of Scheins1988 model of culture defined as the truest level of culture within an organisation – the taken for granted or invisible culture and this is was reflected in the ENS team. This strong culture can inhibit change especially when new strategies are implemented that go against the entrenched culture and basic norms as the change agent you can then become face to face with the power of culture. I was very aware that the power of the culture within the ENS was going to be difficult to change therefore I deci ded to use an approach by Gagliardi (1986) â€Å"Cultural incrementailism†which incorporates new cultures alongside old ones until the new cultures overtake and become embedded. This type of culture change does take more time to happen but I felt if I was going to change the skill mix in the team I could not change it overnight, new staff would have to work alongside old staff hopefully binging in modern views helping to change the culture in a gradual manner. I was aware from Waldersee Griffiths (2003) that the weakness of many change interventions is often attributed to failures in the implementation process rather than the strategy itself. Participative approach toward change appears to be a more conducive approach to use as its methods include support for the change from the work force. Spreitzer (1996) relates participative approaches to empowerment were employees believe they are important assets in the organisation and whilst this may true theoretically it is worth noting that there will always be employees who will resist change and clearly allowing them to participate in the change programme can increase the resisting factors of the change (Lewin model 1951). The clinical performance indicators which initiated this change were higher management led, which is indicative of OD. Therefore this change strategy involved using a three way approach: Ø Rational – Empirical approach Chinn Benn (1996), Nickols (2003) Ø Participatory approach See Appendix Ø Action Research using the Practical Interest model incorporating Kurt Lewin (1951) model of change. The aim of this approach was to allow the ENS team to perceive and understand the need for the change and then assist them as the change agent to develop responses through team participation (Stacey 2000). The Action Research element of the strategy would allow the team to have ownership of the change by building on the past but using research and evidence to move forward. Whitehead (2005) suggests post modern Action Research represents a much better fit for today’s modern NHS in line with current reforms in the Health Service Agendas, as the Action Research approach focuses on inclusion and participation as a means to transform and restructure organisations. From the literature I feel Action Research represents â€Å"best practice†for achieving organisational change and this underpins my choice of OD intervention (Zuber-Skerritt 1996). The Practical model of Action Learning would allow myself as an internal change agent and the team to work together to improve practice through the application of personal experience of the group (Grundy 1982). The Rational – Empirical approach (Chinn Benne 1996) fits into a top down approach of change which makes explicit which changes are necessary and targets the organisational elements assuming that staff will change to accommodate the change that people are rational beings and will follow their self interest. But a negative aspect of this approach is that note everyone is rational in a change situation either overtly or covertly and therefore this approach should be used with caution. The Participatory Approach would encourage all team members to get involved in the change and make democratic team decisions, employees who are involved in change develop an ownership for the change which can translate into commitment and motivation (Emery Emery 1993). A key mechanism of attitude change in a participatory approach is the generation of support for change among the workforce, without this support the change can be viewed as unlikely to succeed (Waldersee Griffiths 2003). Whitehead (2005) echoes my thoughts about using a participatory approach as it makes change easier to achieve when those affected by the change are involved in each cycle and therefore own the change. THE OD STRATEGY IN ACTION The first meeting with the ENS team was to â€Å"Diagnosis†the need for the change (Whitehead et al 2003). I was the â€Å"internal†change agent due too my detailed knowledge of the service this knowledge included actual work on the service, and felt this would give me credibility from the team members. As a team we looked at and analysed the caseload profiling and workload review of the ENS team, alongside reviewing associated literature on up-to-date evidence based on caseload profiling of an ENS service in a neighbouring PCT and then compared and contrasted the results. This relates to the Action Research element of the strategy. I also asked all team members to forward think prior to the first meeting and bring ideas with them of how they would like the service structured with rationales for their decisions. I felt this would encourage a participatory approach towards the strategy and forge constructive relationships with all team members (Whitehead et al 2003 ). My intension was to give the team members ownership of the change and in return for them to give commitment to any choices which may be made (Arygris Schon 1978). My hope was these interventions working jointly would lead to a cultural change within the team. By the end of the first meeting the majority of staff did agree that the skill mix within the team was inappropriate and therefore the problem was â€Å"Diagnosed†. Everyone went away to think about their â€Å"Ideal†team and bring their ideas to the next meeting. The second meeting fostered a field force analysis (Lewin 1958) (see Appendix C). This became the unfreezing process (Lewin 1958). One of the aims of the meeting was to create the conditions necessary for a successful change (Burnes 1992). We focused on problems and opportunities which were identified and I as the change agent tried to increase the driving forces to make the meeting positive and productive. As a group we also undertook a SWOT analysis to highlight strengths and weaknesses which allowed us to devised a plan of â€Å"where we are now and where we go from here†with a time frame. Again this group work was creating the spiral steps of Action Research (Kemmis McTaggert 1991). I was aware at this meeting of the criticisms made by Carr Kemmis (1986) as previously discussed and my aim was for the group to have a social action opposed to me as the internal change agent gaining cooperation of the workers, therefore I undertook a more facilitator role within the group to remove any power status the staff viewed of me. I also wanted the individuals within the group not only to learn the task (what the group is working on) but also I wanted the group members to equally focus on the process (how the group is going about the change) to enable them to conceptualise the whole process. This conceptualising would allow the group to use a deeper level of OD intervention where activities involved in the change process are geared to helping individuals discover hidden aspects of their personalities and relationships within the group, which could help to change the culture within the group. One of the key issues identified from this meeting was the need to bring into the team a lower grade of untrained staff to address clerical issues within the team, a task presently undertaken by anyone in the team including highly trained staff, and also to lower the grade of the present team leader post of the team (which was vacant) in order to give the post more hours. This relates to Arnold et al (1998) when he talks about job redesign, where a job is re configured to give greater variety in the workplace in order to motivate people and to give more autonomy to empower people. This was the aim of the team discussion around the introduction of new grades within the team. This new design would ultimately improve the teams quality of working and the main drivers for this redesign were the present inappropriate use of skills. The meeting concluded by staff being asked to scan the literature around job redesign and skill mix, and to bring their findings to the next meeting. Individuals within the team volunteered themselves to write the lower grade job description for discussion at the next meeting. This meeting had an overall positive feel and ownership of the change did emerge from everyone present. This reflected the â€Å"practical†approach of Action Research – problem solving. This meeting concluded with change targets and outcomes agreed and formal systems appertaining the change were formalised. As the internal change agent working with the team it was interesting to note the type of players within the team shapers, finishers and plants (Belbin 1981). I was aware had all the players in the team been the same type of players then dynamics of the group could have been very different, giving different results to the change process. Schein (1992) suggests the concept of culture has its roots in theories of group dynamics and growth understanding, the dynamics can help develops strategies for change and organisational culture relating to team work or indeed can inhibit the change process. The third meeting was a brief meeting to discuss the job redesign and complete the new job descriptions. At this meeting senior staff were asked to be on the interview panel for the new posts alongside myself. This inspired the team as they had never been invited to sit on an interview panel before. I felt this learning opportunity really gave the team empowerment and ownership of the change in action. Although this change process was initiated†top down†this really gave the change a â€Å"bottom up†feel. My transformation leadership style (Patton 1990, Burns 1978) allowed me to see and share my knowledge around recruitment with the team, this systems approach to learning allowed me to combine formal training with on the job coaching to the team around the recruitment process. My aim was to develop the team to use double loop learning while they are in the change mode, encouraging them to question taken for granted beliefs (Argyis Schon 1978). However for double loop learning to occur the team needed to continue to develop a culture that supported change and risk taking and this included having an openness that encourages dialogue and expression of conflicting points of view. The refreezing process was when the new lower grade staff were in post. These were Band 2 and Band 6 staff. As a team we reviewed the whole change process four months after the new staff were in post. This evaluation monitored and established the effectiveness of the action taken during the Action Research process. We measured the effectives of the change by previously agreed outcomes and targets. These outcomes included:  · Less Bank nurse useage  · More staff on duty each evening – allowing appropriate grades of staff to undertake appropriate roles  · Moral of team improved  · Less sickness within the team The team agreed that all outcomes had been achieved and all team members felt more supported and happier in their role. This outcome supported the literature from Brache (2001) and Saunders Barker (2001) who both suggest the purposes of OD is to improve organisational effectiveness but also improve organisational health and quality of working lives. CONCLUSION The NHS culture has been created and sustained by its history, plurality of purpose, structures, uses and pro values and these are difficult to change in any change processes. Achieving and sustaining effective organisational change and renewal is imperative in any organisation. The people in an organisation can be either the key to achieving effective change or the biggest obstacle to success, and this can largely depend on the appropriateness of the OD intervention used. The price of failed change efforts can be high including loss of credibility on parts of leaders/managers. Leaders need to create a readiness for change at both at an individual and employee level and the NHS is no exception. However this change will depend on how leaders initiate the change and on which OD intervention they use to carry out the change. OD has been used many times in years gone by and to some degree OD is currently in a state of evolution as OD practices and techniques have become mainstream into the basics of management principles (Wooten White 1999). I felt using Action Research to initiate and facilitate my strategy for change worked positively in conjunction with my transformational leadership type. My understanding is that the best people to bring about change are those involved in it and who understand it best. Using Action Research as an OD intervention did involve all the team members in the whole change process and it brought about new learning and experiences for the team members and ultimately jelled them together as a team more cohesively. Using Action Research allowed the team to determine the conditions of their own lives at work, improving their working lives and conditions of work which in turn allows them to work more effectively. This strategy of change is a micro change within the PCT but has achieved macro results. As a manager I am aware that as a team we do not want to refreeze permanently in this new state, we need to view this as a transactional change where change occurs continuously to improve efficiency and effectiveness within the work place. Ambitious goals such as the achievement of the NHS plan will require that the NHS becomes an organisation able to embrace continuous, emergent change but will depend on the people in the NHS becoming more skilled in handling change and the use of OD interventions in a complex environment with multiple stakeholders, conflicting objectives and considerable constraints (Iles Sutherland 2001). Research Papers on Organisational Development in the Nursing FieldInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesThe Project Managment Office SystemOpen Architechture a white paperStandardized TestingIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalThree Concepts of PsychodynamicRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andDefinition of Export QuotasBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfAnalysis Of A Cosmetics Advertisement
Monday, October 21, 2019
Analyzing the role of Strategic Entrepreneurship in forming temporary Competitive Advantage that leads to Value Creation The WritePass Journal
Analyzing the role of Strategic Entrepreneurship in forming temporary Competitive Advantage that leads to Value Creation Introduction Analyzing the role of Strategic Entrepreneurship in forming temporary Competitive Advantage that leads to Value Creation ). Strategic entrepreneurship essentially involves concurrent opportunity-seeking and advantage-seeking behaviors, which result in better performance of the firm (Ireland, Hitt Sirmon, 2003). This research is interested in conducting a similar investigation and seeks to analyze the role of strategic entrepreneurship in forming temporary competitive advantage, which leads to the creation of value for the firm. Research Questions This dissertation is interested in determining whether firms, which engage in strategic entrepreneurship, are able to establish temporal competitive advantage in a dynamic environment, especially whilst competing with other firms and within the context of creating value for the firm. Below are the specific questions to be addressed in this dissertation: What benefits would a firm obtain by successfully employing strategic entrepreneurship in the current competitive market? What temporary competitive advantage results from employing strategic entrepreneurship? Does strategic entrepreneurship create value? Aims and Objectives The primary aim of this research is to analyze the role of strategic entrepreneurship in building competitive advantage and creating value for the firm. Based on the research questions given above, the objectives of this dissertation are as follows: To find out the benefits of employing strategic entrepreneurship To understand what competitive advantages are the result of utilising strategic entrepreneurship To investigate whether strategic entrepreneurship creates value for the firm Rationale This dissertation will provide insights on the significance of strategic entrepreneurship, especially within the context of forming temporary competitive advantage, in pursuit of creating value for the firm. This research seeks to address some of the gaps in literature, such as understanding the balance between the opportunity-seeking behavior associated with entrepreneurship and the advantage-seeking behavior of strategic management (Hitt et al., 2011). Moreover, a Strategic Entrepreneurship Theoretical Tree will be utilized in order to analyze the various components of strategic entrepreneurship. The theoretical tree is created based from the different studies conducted on the subject. Literature Review (Preliminary) Strategic entrepreneurship is associated with firm’s objective of achieving superior performance through the simultaneous application of both opportunity-seeking and advantage-seeking activities (Ketchen, Ireland, Snow, 2007). Various researchers have identified different components of strategic entrepreneurship, which can lead to superior performance of the firm. Ireland, Hitt Sirmon (2003) proposes four dimensions for the successful implementation of strategic entrepreneurship: (a) entrepreneurial mindset; (b) entrepreneurial culture and leadership; (c) strategic management of resources; and (d) applying creativity to develop innovations. At the business level, value creation is usually reflected in the expansion and growth of a firm. Welter Smallbone (2004) found that Institutional Economic Theory highlights the institutional embeddedness and path dependence of entrepreneurial behavior. This, in turn, influences the degree and nature of value creation for the firm. A number of authors have identified the factors that influence value creation and competitive advantage. Pongpearchan (2011, p.5) found that ‘operational innovation efficiency and business practice effectiveness have a significant positive effect on value creation excellence.’ On the other hand, Rindova Fombrun (1999) argue that competitive advantage is a systemic outcome which develops as firms engage in processes that involve the use and exchange of resources, as well as the communication that occurs in these exchanges. Therefore, the fluctuations on the interpretations and evaluations of a firm affect its resources and its competitive advantage in the marketplace. Below is the model of the Strategic Entrepreneurship Theoretical Tree which will be used as the main theoretical framework of this research. Each of the components of this model is based on different studies. These will be discussed in more detail during the full dissertation document. Methodology This research will use quantitative research methodology in addressing the objectives of the study. Quantitative survey will be used in gathering data from respondents. Quantitative methodology is chosen for this study because it will allow the researcher to utilize the opinions of respondents in explaining the phenomena being studied. The survey will be administered to employees and managers of SMEs and large commercial firms in the UK to find out their views on the subject. The survey will asks questions such as how respondents perceive the role of strategic entrepreneurship in forming creative temporary competitive advantage; what are the benefits of strategic entrepreneurship; how can firms create value; etc. The target number of respondents for the survey is 100. In anticipation of the fact that some potential respondents might refuse to participate in the survey, around 175 to 200 questionnaires will be distributed to ensure that 100 responses will be gathered. The survey will be administered face-to-face, via post, though emails, and online. This is done to allow respondents to choose how they want to answer the survey. After data gathering is completed, statistical analysis will be used in analyzing the data. SPSS and Excel will be used as the primary software for analysis. References Hitt, M, Ireland, D, Sirman, G, Trahms, C. (2011). Strategic Entrepreneurship: Creating value for individuals, organizations and society. Academy of Management Perspective. p.57-75. Ireland, D, Hitt, M, Sirmon, D. (2003). A Model of Strategic Entrepreneurship: The Construct and its Dimensions. Journal of Management. 29(6), p.963-989 Ketchen, D, Ireland, D, Snow, C. (2007). Strategic entrepreneurship, collaborative innovation, and wealth creation. Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. 1(3-4), p.371-385. Olusola, A. (2012). Strategic Entrepreneurial Skills’ Influence on Small Businesses’ Performance in Oyo and Osun Western States-Nigeria. Research Journal in Organizational Psychology and Educational Studies.1 (6), p.345-352. Pongpearchan, P. (2011). Strategic entrepreneurship management competency and firm success: a comparative study of SMEs in auto and electronic parts in Thailand. International Journal of Business Strategy. 11(2). Rindova, V Fombrun, C. (1999). Constructing competitive advantage: the role of firm-constituent interactions. Strategic Management Journal. 20(8), p.691-710.
Sunday, October 20, 2019
Australians response to the Cold War essays
Australians response to the Cold War essays Cold War is the term used to describe the tensions from about 1945 between the USSR and Eastern Europe on the one hand and the USA and Western Europe on the other. Cold War can be seen in the disagreements between the USSR and the Western allies during World War 2, especially over the future structure of Eastern Europe. As Europe was divided into East and West, the USSR creates communism in Eastern Europe, whilst the West remains Capitalist. Australia felt that the communism could be a threat and so Prime Minister Menzies sought a major US presence and manoeuvred Australia into a position of being invited to send military help during the Vietnam War. At the end of World War 2, Australia and other Western countries were concerned, as communism swept across the world. The Soviet Union controlled Eastern Europe and in 1949 China became communist. In 1950 communist North Korea attacked the non communist country of South Korea. The Cold War developed between the East and the West and the USA introduced a policy of containment to stop the spread of communism. The Australian Prime minister Robert Menzies believed that communism was a threat to Australia as several union leaders were communists and there had been a series of serious strikes in the late 1940's. He introduced a law to ban the Communist Party, however this law was challenged and dismissed in the high court. In 1951 Menzies held a referendum to legalise the banning of the Communist Party. The result was a narrow NO vote. In the years that followed, Menzies called for a Royal Commission to investigate alleged Soviet spying in Australia, after being warned by a defector named Vladimir Petrov. Soviet officials tried to force Petrov back to the Soviet Union, but he was allowed to remain in Australia and given political asylum. The Labour Party tried to use the Petrov affair to gain votes in the 1954 election. The Royal Commission found that there was no Soviet Spy Ring in Aust ...
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Sun Rise Foods Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words
Sun Rise Foods - Case Study Example The company produces snack products, pies , pastries and sandwiches. These products are then supplied by the company to leading retailers under the retailer's brand but it also sells to pubs, cafes and catering supply companies under its own brand name. It uses local suppliers for its food products where ever it is possible to do so. The main focus of the case study is on the customer service department of the company. The job of a customer service officer in the company is to answer enquires about the food products of the company, ingredients being used in the food products and the quality issues which customers might have faced regarding the food products. Recently management has been highly concerned about the quality of customer service that is being provided to customers and has shifted its focus to achieving high customer satisfaction. The manager has also brought about new performance resolution program which focuses on quality, speed, dependability, flexibility and cost as the method of ensuring that customers are satisfied with the response achieved from the customer service officers of the company. Six months have passed since the new control model was floated by the company. However there has not been sufficient increase in performance on the 5 parameters of customer service which the management wanted improved upon. However it has led to employees being dissatisfied with the management and a oppressive management style emerging in the organization. The company's CEO has grand expansion plans for the company. He wants to expand the company's reach in to the European markets; particularly Holland and Scotland. He also wants to concentrate on premier range of products which will provide him greater margin and thus increase the profits of the company. However consumers of premier products are very quality conscious and want good quality products as well as high quality customer service for the price they are paying. There is thus a gap between the strategic mission of the company's CEO and the functional aspects of the company. This case deals with the problems that are being faced by Sunrise foods and tries to provide reasonable solutions to the above problems. Literature Review Operations management was confined only to the management of processes of products till 1980s.It was primarily because of the reason that operations management has grown from the concept of factory management. It was only in 1980s when the
Friday, October 18, 2019
Developing Management Skills Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
Developing Management Skills - Article Example The two components can be integrated in numerous ways that are structures, policies, values and Training and development practices that are being followed in the organization. Phase 2 that is the DO phase is all about selecting and implementing specific training programs and their content. The method of extracting the content for a training program is done from company's strategic objectives, culture, values and their decided skill needs. The most important training and development area is leadership training that is conducted by organizations through short courses. Mostly training and development resources are derived from inside of the organization and a minor amount is extracted from the outside environment. Phase 3 is the Check phase, unfortunately this is the most ignored phase in most organizations but organizations that give importance to this phase have developed successful Training and development programs. This relates to evaluation of the training and development program that is currently running. The aspects evaluated are whether or not the desired results of the training program are being achieved.
Project management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words - 1
Project management - Assignment Example I would define the scope of this project by aligning all the products of the project, their features and requirements that is the totality to the entire project work. This involves a proper structure and framework of the breakdown of the products or task involves in the projects along with the description of each task and steps involved in it (Fleming & Koppelman, 2000). In order to determine the scope of this project, I would first consider the objectives of the project, the goals of the project, the phases and sub phase involved in it, the tasks, resources, time, budget and scheduling of the project. The critical path of a project helps in planning, organizing and managing the entire project. It steps down each important step involved in the project. This listing helps in determining what need to be done before and what is required to be done later. The cost, time and resources required to perform these activities are attached in the critical path. If Penny Black would formulated the critical path she would have got a clear picture reflecting the entire journey of the project along with critical points. She would be able to get the idea which task needed to be done before and comes after the initial task. For instance if she would work on the size of the pumps and compressors earlier she would not end up with the wrong orders (Schwalbe, 2013). With the help of Gantt chart, Penny would be able to allocate the project activities in accordance with the time. The Gantt chart also helps her in keeping the track of project’s progress along with the running of costs. Gantt chart are flexible management tool, hence for any changes that occurred during the project she would be able to maintain a proper flow of the tasks and the progress. This tool is very beneficial for the planning process and once utilize properly it reduces the chance of errors (Pich et al., 2002). With that there are some specific techniques that
Thursday, October 17, 2019
Positive relationship between the current best practices of nonprofits Dissertation
Positive relationship between the current best practices of nonprofits and the Eclectic Paradigm - Dissertation Example The research questionnaire therefore contained questions that asked the respondents to give their opinion on the importance of OLI factors and to elaborate if their organization used these factors for developing a sustainable business model of non-profit. 4.2.1 Ownership (O): Brand Awareness, Proprietary Relationships and Exclusive Relationships The ownership factors include the capacity of the organization to develop a powerful brand, and its ability to replicate its best practices intra-organizationally across different departments or business units. The replication of the best practices is studied through proprietary and exclusive relationships. Table 1a: Regression Statistics Ownership (O) SUMMARY OUTPUT Regression Statistics Multiple R 1 R Square 1 Adjusted R Square 65535 Standard Error 0 Observations 3 Table 1b: ANOVA Ownership Attributes  df SS MS Significance F Regression 4 16.7086 4.17715 3.3 Residual 0 0 65535 Total 4 16.7086    Coefficients Standard Error t Stat Lower 95% Upper 95% Lower 95.0% Upper 95.0% Intercept 0 X Variable 1 0.2375 0 65535 0.2375 0.2375 0.2375 0.2375 X Variable 2 0.3825 0 65535 0.3825 0.3825 0.3825 0.3825 X Variable 3 0.5225 0 65535 0.5225 0.5225 0.5225 0.5225 X Variable 4 0 0 65535 0 0 0 0 Figure 1a: Importance of Brand Awareness, Proprietary Relationship and Exclusive Relationships The above presented regression analysis and the scatter plot in the figure highlight the fact that to become a successful organization, Brand Awareness & Proprietary Relationship must be higher as attribute of the company. The results being from 70 respondents from the sample of 25 non-profit organizations indicate that there is a consensus on building non-profit organization on the basis of sound marketing strategies that involve developing a brand name that is recognizable and has credibility. As was seen in the literature review, there is an enhanced competition between non-profit and charitable organizations to obtain both corpor ate and governmental funding and to attract human resources (Buckley and Casson, 200). Having a brand image and recall among the community as well as having a reputation of excellence lead the non-profit organizations creating a distinct identity and recall for the people (Madhok and Phene, 2001). The need to have a powerful brand is found to have increased in the past few years especially post the global financial crisis. The global crisis led to budgetary cuts for corporates and adversely impacted on their funding of non-profit organizations cut back their initiatives related to corporate social responsibility (Cole, Lee and McCullough, 2007). On the other hand, the tightening of public spending also led to a general attitude of saving and insecurity, making less funds available from individual or private donations (De Rosa, 2009). Under these conditions it became even more challenging for non-profit organizations to remain sustainable and viable and to keep their operations intac t. An eclectic paradigm was therefore the most viable option which including building brand awareness and developing exclusive long term relationships that can sustain the non-profit organizations over similar periods of economic slowdown (Franklin, 2011). The research questionnaire also requested the respondents to elaborate on their answers regarding why they think that brand awareness, proprietary relationships and exclusive relationships is or is not important for their non-profit organizations. However, as seen by the following chart, a very small number of the respondents took the initiative to give detailed information regarding
Is independence consistent with Scotland keeping the pound Essay
Is independence consistent with Scotland keeping the pound - Essay Example de â€Å"The Euro†, â€Å"A new Scottish currency†and â€Å"keeping Pound as a part of a formal sterling currency union.†The UK government argued in this regard that after independence, the economies of Scotland and rest of the UK might start to vary due to certain imperative factors encompassing the formulation along with the execution of the above-discussed policies, fluctuating interest rates and incessantly transforming financial conditions among others (Webb 2-15). It would be vital to mention that the aforementioned factors eventually erupts the question concerning whether independence is consistent with Scotland keeping the Pound. Scottish independence is not simply a subject matter of constitutional sovereignty. It can be apparently observed in this similar concern that there are certain states, particularly in Europe, which are legally sovereign but possess minimal scope towards administering themselves. In this regard, the social arrangement of Scotland represents that the political behaviour of the state has become quite converged in recent days, as compared to the earlier years. Notably, Scotland, among other European states, experienced massive deindustrialisation, owing to which the economy of the state became excessively reliant on consumer spending and on an exaggerated housing market as well. Thus, the sovereignty of Scotland emphasised augmenting public finances and endeavouring towards enhancing the ability of affording a liberal welfare state and most vitally, enriching the public services. It has been argued by the nationalists in this similar concern that Scotland, with its sovereign power, wou ld be able to manage as well as utilise the accessible resources efficiently with the incorporation of various activities that may comprise balancing revenues with international trade, coping with the fluctuations concerning interest rates and contributing extensively towards raising wealth funds (Keating 1-16). It has often been argued that Scotland is
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Positive relationship between the current best practices of nonprofits Dissertation
Positive relationship between the current best practices of nonprofits and the Eclectic Paradigm - Dissertation Example The research questionnaire therefore contained questions that asked the respondents to give their opinion on the importance of OLI factors and to elaborate if their organization used these factors for developing a sustainable business model of non-profit. 4.2.1 Ownership (O): Brand Awareness, Proprietary Relationships and Exclusive Relationships The ownership factors include the capacity of the organization to develop a powerful brand, and its ability to replicate its best practices intra-organizationally across different departments or business units. The replication of the best practices is studied through proprietary and exclusive relationships. Table 1a: Regression Statistics Ownership (O) SUMMARY OUTPUT Regression Statistics Multiple R 1 R Square 1 Adjusted R Square 65535 Standard Error 0 Observations 3 Table 1b: ANOVA Ownership Attributes  df SS MS Significance F Regression 4 16.7086 4.17715 3.3 Residual 0 0 65535 Total 4 16.7086    Coefficients Standard Error t Stat Lower 95% Upper 95% Lower 95.0% Upper 95.0% Intercept 0 X Variable 1 0.2375 0 65535 0.2375 0.2375 0.2375 0.2375 X Variable 2 0.3825 0 65535 0.3825 0.3825 0.3825 0.3825 X Variable 3 0.5225 0 65535 0.5225 0.5225 0.5225 0.5225 X Variable 4 0 0 65535 0 0 0 0 Figure 1a: Importance of Brand Awareness, Proprietary Relationship and Exclusive Relationships The above presented regression analysis and the scatter plot in the figure highlight the fact that to become a successful organization, Brand Awareness & Proprietary Relationship must be higher as attribute of the company. The results being from 70 respondents from the sample of 25 non-profit organizations indicate that there is a consensus on building non-profit organization on the basis of sound marketing strategies that involve developing a brand name that is recognizable and has credibility. As was seen in the literature review, there is an enhanced competition between non-profit and charitable organizations to obtain both corpor ate and governmental funding and to attract human resources (Buckley and Casson, 200). Having a brand image and recall among the community as well as having a reputation of excellence lead the non-profit organizations creating a distinct identity and recall for the people (Madhok and Phene, 2001). The need to have a powerful brand is found to have increased in the past few years especially post the global financial crisis. The global crisis led to budgetary cuts for corporates and adversely impacted on their funding of non-profit organizations cut back their initiatives related to corporate social responsibility (Cole, Lee and McCullough, 2007). On the other hand, the tightening of public spending also led to a general attitude of saving and insecurity, making less funds available from individual or private donations (De Rosa, 2009). Under these conditions it became even more challenging for non-profit organizations to remain sustainable and viable and to keep their operations intac t. An eclectic paradigm was therefore the most viable option which including building brand awareness and developing exclusive long term relationships that can sustain the non-profit organizations over similar periods of economic slowdown (Franklin, 2011). The research questionnaire also requested the respondents to elaborate on their answers regarding why they think that brand awareness, proprietary relationships and exclusive relationships is or is not important for their non-profit organizations. However, as seen by the following chart, a very small number of the respondents took the initiative to give detailed information regarding
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Comparison of Oil and Alternative Energy Sources Research Paper
Comparison of Oil and Alternative Energy Sources - Research Paper Example This makes it an abundant resource that can sustain various energy requirements around the world. Also, when the appropriate technology is put in place in a given area, it is fairly easy for oil to be explored in perpetuity with little additional costs. Although oil machinery and infrastructure is expensive, when they are set up, they can extract crude oil at costs at as low as $2 per barrel. With a high market rate of between $30 and $100, the profit margins are always high for these petroleum companies and they recover their costs in a short time. It must also be pointed that there are two inherent weaknesses in the use of oil. First of all, oil is a non-renewable energy source. This means that once it is extracted from the earth, it cannot be replaced. As such, it is prone to exhaustion. This implies that there will be a time where oil will no more be available to people in the world. Nagle and Guinness (2011 p364) indicate that the International Agency has identified that peak oi will occur in the period between 2013 and 2037. In other words, within this timeframe, oil production will be at the highest levels. And due to declining levels of oil reserves around the world, oil production will begin to fall after this time. This means that the levels of oil will fall in the near future after oil reserves are used up. It is speculated that based on current production levels, known oil reserves will run out between 15 and 80 years (Nagle and Guinness, 2011 p364). Although these figures might be generated through pessimistic estimates, there is a genuine cause for alarm, because if production continues, it is a known fact that oil reserves are going to run out. This therefore presents a strong case for the identification and exploitation of alternative sources of energy. Also, oil leads to high carbon emissions which lead to global warming and climate change (May and Caron, 2009). This is because the oil taken from the earth directly, known as crude oil needs to be refined. In refining crude oil, it needs to be burnt at high temperatures in the process of fractional distillation. This leads to high degrees of emissions into the atmosphere. Also, the usage of oil in cars and other machines leads to combustion which causes the emission of high degrees of pollutants into the atmosphere. These pollutants get into the atmosphere and modify the character of the ozone layer. This leads to a situation where the ozone layer traps the reflection and release of heat from the earth into space. Due to this, the temperature in the world becomes high and this affects the balance in the natural environment. These two inherent weaknesses present compelling case for the introduction of a new and more efficient method of satisfying the energy needs. Research Framework This paper explores the research question: Are alternative energy sources the answer to ending human dependence on oil? In answering this research question, the writer will address the following objectives: 1. A critical analysis of alternative energy sources. 2. A comparison of the alternative energy sources to oil. 3. An evaluation of how appropriately the alternative energy sources could be used in lieu of oil. Alternative Energy Sources Turk and Bensel (2011 p252) identify a paradox relating to the dangers of using fossil fuels and oil. They state that: â€Å"Can the global society make the massive shift to using windmills, solar panels and other renewable
Twilight Saga-Summary Essay Example for Free
Twilight Saga-Summary Essay Twilight is a series of novels which starts out in the perspective of a seventeen year-old girl, Isabella Swan. But she goes by Bella. This story is actually set in the fictional vampire stories. Bella, the main character of the novel, unwillingly decides to live with her dad, Charlie, in Forks, Washington since her mother, Renà ©e, and her husband, Phil, who happens to be Bella’s step-father, move in to another city on business. Phil is a minor league baseball player, and he gets transferred to another team in another city. The main reason that makes Bella move in with her dad, is that she thinks she is keeping her mom from going places with Phil. Before moving to Forks, she almost lived the whole 17 years of her life, in sunny Phoenix, Arizona beside her mom. Bella is a simple, clumsy, skinny, ivory-skinned girl. Although she didn’t relate well to people, she had a friend in Forks, named Jacob Black. They have known each other since they were little . Before arriving at Forks, her dad bought her an old Chevy truck from Billy Black, and had already registered her to a high school there in Forks. She doesnt expect anything to change because what could happen in a small town where it never stops raining? But in fact, she was totally wrong. On her first day of school she meets a few people. Later on she meets Mike Newton, Erik Yorkey, Jessica, Angela Weber, and Tyler. She was actually befriended by several students. She asked Jessica a heck of questions about everything in order to find out more about the school and people living in Forks, soon after they got friends. After a few days, when she was sitting in the cafeteria with her classmates, she noticed a bunch of unusually gorgeous people sitting at the corner of the cafeteria. They were Alice, Emmet, Jasper, Rosalie, and Edward Cullen ( the most beautiful of all ). The children of Dr. Cullen. They were all vampires. she couldnt help staring at them. As soon as she laid her eyes on Edward Cullen, her life changed completely. She fell in love with Edward. At first she tries to avoid Edward, and acts as if he is annoying, but really she is burning inside to get to know him. In biology she was told to sit alongside Edward, since there were no free seats left. Because the Cullens are vampires, and so is Edward, he tries to avoid her every single time they face each other, mostly in a rude manner. After a week of being absent from the school, Edward comes to biology class, and apologize Bella for his rude and cruel behavior. Then they become friends with each other. One day when Bella was standing beside her truck, trying to get in it, she noticed Edward standing near his Volvo, staring at her. All of a sudden, she discerns that having lost its control, a car is heading towards her, and is about to hit her. Despite Edward’s distance from the accident, he instantaneously puts his body in front of Bella, trying to save her. To her intense surprise, Edward stopped the car by his hand, without even having a little scratch or scar on his body. Tyler, the kid who almost crashed into Bella, apologized her. This specific event was more than enough to make Bella much more curious about the Cullens. Specially about Edward. Thanks to Edward, they both survived. Bella went to hospital with minor injuries. When Edward came to see her in the hospital, he tried to convince her that she was just imagining his supernatural speed and strength. But she wasn’t convinced and began to wonder who or what he is. Bella becomes determined to find out how Edward saved her life, and constantly pesters him with questions. That was the very first night that Bella dreamed of Edward. Later on, every time she asked him about that day, he refused to talk more about it. Bella’s science class is doing blood typing, which requires all the kids to draw blood. Edward skips class. Bella feels faint and has to go to see the school nurse. Mike is helping her but then Edward turns up and takes over. Bella starts quizzing Edward about his background and tries to guess what he is but she’s still a long way off. Jacob tells her the local tribal legends, when they were in a beach in La Push with a few of her friends. According to the legend, werewolves are the one true enemy of vampires and the Cullens are a family of vampires who, unlike most of their kind, abstain from drinking human blood. Thats the only reason why the werewolves of La Push have allowed them to live in Forks. She looks up vampires on the Internet. Bella concludes that Edward and his family are vampires who drink animal blood rather than human. Even though Edward tells her to stay away, she still tries to talk to him in school, and finds any excuse she can to be near him. Edward confesses that he initially avoided Bella because the scent of her blood was too desirable to him. Edward and Bella fight the attraction they feel for each other before finally giving into their feelings and falling deeply in love in the exact meaning of the word. As far as the school prom was just a few weeks later, Mike and Tyler both asked Bella to the school dance, much to her embarrassment. She decided to go to Seattle the weekend of the dance s o this way, she had an excuse to turn them both down. Edward was actually bemused by all the attention Bella was getting. When he heard her plans, he asked if he could go to Seattle with her, despite his earlier recommendation that they should keep a distance from each other. Bella accepted his offer with great excitement. She makes plans to go to Port Angeles with two of her friends to help them look for dresses to wear at the school dance. In Port Angeles, Bella goes shopping with her friends and then decides to go for a walk. A group of men chase her and are about to attack her when Edward pulls around the corner in his Volvo and drives her away. The two of them go for dinner together. Edward confirms to Bella that he is a vampire and reveals that he can hear people’s thoughts. Bella and Edward continue their conversation, with Bella asking more questions about Edward’s vampire state. She tells him it doesn’t matter to her if he’s a vampire and finally admits to herself that she is in love with him Their love and relationship strengthens, but not everyone is happy about th e relationship between Edward and Bella. Edward’s family is against this relationship. The Blacks don’t seem happy either. On the other hand, Bella’s classmates seem awestruck by their relationship as the two of them become inseparable. Edward tries to convince Bella how much he cares about her. He finds it frustrating not to be able to hear her thoughts, while he can hear everybody else’s, and thinks she’s taking the whole vampire thing way too calmly. He suggests a mystery trip in place of the planned visit to Seattle so he can show her, what happens when he goes in the sun, just to threaten her and make her keep away from him, since he may be a threat for Bella’s life. This time it’s Edward’s turn to ask Bella question after question, though she can’t understand how he can find her human life interesting. He is still not sure if he can be alone with her without hurting her. Hes afraid of being overwhelmed by his desire for her blood. But Bella’s determined to take the risk, as long as, she is besotted with him. He admits to Bella that when he first saw – or rather smelt – her, he had to fight the urge to drink her blood because it’s so alluring to him. Then He carries her from the meadow to her truck on his back, running so fast that it makes her feel queasy, and they kiss for the first time. When Edward realizes Bella’s feelings about him, his feeling of love toward her expands. Edward tells Bella again, that his family is having trouble accepting their relationship because shes not one of them (vampires). As long as Bella is curious about him, she asks more about his past and childhood so as to get to know him more. Edward tells her that he was turned into vampire by his father, when he was about 17, back in 1918 and continues to tell more about his past The Cullens have different supernatural powers, each more ex traordinary than the other. His sister Alice, foe example, has the gift of premonition. Jasper, can manipulate the emotions of those around him. One day, Edward sneaks into Bella’s bedroom without Bella and her father knowing about it. They spend the whole night together talking to each other. He tells her that he finds her very attractive, but he can’t be so close to her, he might crush her by accident. He confirms that, it is not because he doesn’t love her anymore. He tells her that it’s his instinctive vampire habits, that makes him that much worried about being close to her. Despite the fact that, his family is a little upset about his decision, Edward decides to introduce Bella to his family, since he is really serious about her. They spend the whole day at the Cullen house so she can get to know the family, one day she may be living with. Carlisle and Esme, and Edward’s sister Alice are very nice to her. But Edward says his sister Rosalie, is jealous of her because she’s human. Later that day, Edward plays the piano for Bella, and shows her around the house. To her surprise, he tells her the story of Carlisle, who was a minister’s son until he discovered a coven of vampires. One of the vampires bit him, which made him transform into a vampire. Carlisle tried several ways to kill himself but failed, as it’s very difficult to kill a vampire, he suffered a lot. He has never wanted to harm any human being . Once Carlisle discovered that he could survive on animal blood alone, he went to Italy to study medicine so he could do some good in the world. It was while working as a doctor that Carlisle discovered Edward and transformed him into a vampire. Edward stayed with Carlisle for a while but went his own way for about ten years. In that period, he hunted human but only those intent on committing a violent crime, which Edward used his mind-reading skills to decipher. As far as the Blacks are wolves, according to the legend, they are number one enemies of vampires and vice versa, Billy tells Bella to stay away from the Cullens. But Bella replies that she knows exactly what he is, and that he hasn’t harmed anyone. Days after, Bella introduces Edward to her father as her boyfriend. One day Edward suggests her to come over and see their baseball match, which is played among their family. During the game Bella joins them and finds it really hard to keep up with their pace, since vampires are all very fast in an extraordinary way. The game is actually much faster than a human version of it. All of a sudden, Alice foresees the imminent arrival of a pack of vampires that are passing through the area. The sad part is, that they are not the good kind. They drink human blood. The clock is ticking and they hardly have enough time to take Bella away from them, so they all decide to act like she’s one of them, with the hope of surviving. The visiting vampires are Laurent, James and Victoria. Laurent seems to be the leader of the pack. At first they seem like, they are interested in visiting the home of the Cullens and promise not to hunt in their territory. The direction of the wind changes, they smell Bella’s scent and find out that she is a human. On the spur of the moment, James seems eager to attack her, but Edward jumps in front of her in a protective stance. Laurent, though surprised by the presence of a human, assures the Cullens that none of them will harm her. However, that night Edward reveals to Bella that he knows, from listening to Jamess thoughts, that James is an expert tracker and is intent on hunting Bella. He agrees to take Bella home so she can tell her dad she’s going to Phoenix, where her mother lives. Bella pretends to break up with Edward in front of Charlie and storms out of the house, telling him she hates Forks and is moving back to Phoenix. Edward takes Bella to their house while Laurent is still in their house. He confesses that James is the real leader of the pack and one of the most dangerous vampires he’s ever known in his life. They know that he’ll kill Bella at all costs and in anyway possible. The first thing the Cullens have to do is to kill James first. Edward, Carlisle and Emmet plan to hunt him while Bella hides out in a hotel room in Phoenix with Alice and Jasper. This, somehow shows their good tenor. Bella wakes up in a hotel room in Phoenix with Alice and Jasper watching her every move. They assure her that the other members of the Cullen family are safe but she can’t stop worrying about them, especially about Edward. In the hotel room, Alice explains that vampires can turn humans into vampires by injecting them with their venom. She points out that the transformation is excruciating and usually takes a few days. Edward has lost track of James. Alice has a vision of James sitting alone in a mirrored room, which Bella realizes is similar to the dance studio she used to go to when she was younger. This, is around the corner from her mother’s house. Alice has another premonition and this time sees James at the house of Bella’s mum. Bella is distraught. She is getting ready to go to the airport to meet Edward when she gets a phone call from James. He tells her that he has her mother and will kill her if she doesn’t get away from the Cullens and come to her mother’s house alone. Bella writes a letter to Edward telling him that she loves him and asking him not to go after James for killing her. Bella gets a cab to her mother’s house. James tells her on the phone to go to the dance studio. When she arrives there, she finds out that he’s taken a video from her house and used it to trick her into believing he had her mother. Knowing that her mother is safe, she is relieved. He promises her a slow and agonizing death. He attacks her, slashing her face and breaking her leg, until she finally passes out. Bella puts her mother’s safety before her own and almost dies at the hands of a vicious vampire. After returning to consciousness, she tells Edward that she feels strange. They realize that James has bitten her and she is about to transform into a vampire. Edward sucks the dirty venom out in order to prevent her from having to spend the rest of her life, being a vampire. Bella opens her eyes in a hospital, and sees Edward. Even though he understands her decision of going to James alone, he gets mad at her first. He punishes her by saying to her that they have to go their own ways, and should end their relationship. Edward tries to accept her, the fact that she would be much safer without him. He tells her that the more they are together, the more her life will be at stake. He actually blames himself for all that had happened to Bella, since he loves her more than anything, and wants what’s best for her. Hearing all these from Edward, Bella tries to make him promise that he will never leave her. As long as Bella wants to clear any obstacles that are put in the way of their relationship, asks Edward why he didn’t allow her to transform into a vampire when he discovered that James had bitten her. Edward blew his top, when he heard it from her. He has always believed that being a human is a great blessing in itself. He confirms that says he will never allow her to become a vampire. On the contrary, Alice has already foreseen her transformation. Bella strongly believes that she will one day become a vampire in the future. Days pass, and it’s time for Edward to take Bella to prom. Jacob tells Bella that she has to stay away from Edward. Bella insists that he is perfectly safe. Edward tells Bella he took her to the prom because he didn’t want her to miss out on any aspect of being human. She says she wants to be with him forever and would see her transformation into a vampire as a beginning rather than an end. At the end, he promises to never leave her, and puts his lips on her throat, in an attempt to change her into a vampire.
Monday, October 14, 2019
Business Essays Marketing Strategies HSBC
Business Essays Marketing Strategies HSBC HSBC Marketing Strategies One of the largest banking and financial services organisation in the world is known as the HSBC Group. It has established businesses in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa. In 1991, HSBC holdings were incorporated in England, with its head office based in London. In 1999, the company established its international brand name, which ensured that the Groups corporate symbol became a familiar sight all across the world. HSBC differentiates its brand name from those of its competitors by describing the unique characteristics which distinguish HSBC, namely being, The worlds local bank. As at 31st December 2004, its total asset was valued at  £660 billion. It has over 9,800 offices worldwide. It employs over 253, 000 people, across different countries and territories. Its shares are held by around 200,000 people in some 100 countries and territories. The companys shares are also traded on most of the worlds renowned stock exchanges, namely, London, P aris, New York, and Bermuda stock exchanges respectively. One of the major tools it uses for functionality on a worldwide scale is the companys use of information technology. Its e-business channels include the internet, PC banking, interactive TV, and telephone banking. It maintains its own private network (intranet and extranet), in which HSBCs websites attracted 900 million visits in 2004. The HSBC group provides a comprehensive range of financial services namely: Personal Financial Services: It has over 100 million personal consumers worldwide (including Consumer Finance customers). It provides a full range of personal finance services, including current and savings accounts, mortgages, insurance, loans, credit cards, pensions, and investment services. It is one of the worlds top ten issuers of credit cards. Consumer Finance: The Companys Finance Corporations consumer finance business ensures point of sale credit to consumers, and lends money and provides related services to meet the financial needs of everyday people. In 2004, it completed the integration of its former household businesses. Commercial Banking: HSBC is a leading provider of financial services to small, medium-sized and middle market enterprises. The group has over two million such customers, including sole proprietors, partnerships, clubs, and associations, incorporated businesses and publicly quoted companies. In the UK, 209 Commercial Centre were launched to provide improved relationship management for higher value small-medium-sized enterprise customers, while in Hong Kong, Business Banking Centres, were expanded to provide a one-stop service. Corporate Investment Banking and Markets: Tailored financial services are provided to corporate and financial clients. Business lines include Global Markets, Corporate and Institutional Banking, Global Transaction Banking, and Global Investment Banking. Global Markets includes foreign exchange, fixed income, derivatives, equities, metals trade, and other trading businesses. Corporate and Institutional Banking covers relationship management and lending activities. Global Transaction Banking includes payment and cash management, trade services, supply chain, securities services, and wholesale banknotes businesses. Global Investment Banking involves investment banking advisory, and investment banking financing activities. Private Banking: HSBC is one of the worlds top private banking businesses, providing financial services to high net worth individual and families in 70 different locations. HISTORY OF THE HONGKONG AND SHANGHAI BANKING CORPORATION The HSBC group evolved from The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, which was founded in 1865 in Hong Kong with offices in Shanghai, London, and an agency in San Francisco, USA. The company expanded primarily through already established offices in the banks name until the mid 1950s when it began to create or acquire subsidiaries. The following are some of the key transitions in the Groups growth and history since 1959. In 1959, HSBC acquired the British Bank of the Middle East formerly known as the Imperial Bank of Persia. In 1965, it acquired a majority shareholding of the Hang Seng Bank Limited. In 1971, the British Bank of the Middle East acquired a minority stake of 20% in the Cyprus Popular Bank Limited, which currently trades as the Laiki Group. In 1972, Midland Bank acquired a shareholding in UBAF Bank Limited (now known as British Arab Commercial Bank Limited). In 1978, the Saudi British Bank is established under local control to take over the British Bank of the Middle Easts branches in Saudi Arabia. In 1980, it acquired 51% of New York States Marine Midland Bank (now known as HSBC Bank USA). At the same time Midland acquired a controlling interest leading German private bank, Trinkaus and Burkhardt (now known as HSBC Trinkaus Burkhardt KGaA). In 1981, HSBC established a branch in Vancouver, Canada. In the same year the Group acquired a controlling interest in Equator Holdings Limited, wh ich was a merchant bank engaged in trade finance in sub-Saharan Africa. In 1982, Egyptian British Bank S.A.E. is formed, with the HSBC group holding a 40% stake. In 1983, Marine Midland Bank acquired Carroll McEntee and McGinley (now HSBC securities (USA) inc.), a New York based primary dealer in US government securities. In 1986, HSBC Australia was established. In 1987, it acquired the remaining shares of Marine Midland and a 14.9% equity interest in Midland Bank (now HSBC Bank Plc). In 1991, HSBC Holdings was established (as mentioned previously); its shares were traded for the first time in London and Hong Kong stock exchanges. In 1992, it purchased the remaining equity stake in Midland Bank. In 1993, it moved its head office to London. In 1994, HSBC Malaysia was established. In 1997, the group established a subsidiary in Brazil, Banco HSBC Bamerindus S.A., and acquired Roberts S.A. de Inversiones in Argentina, HSBC Brazil, and HSBC Argentina, respectively. In 1999, shares of HSBC began trading on a third stock exchange, New York. In the same year it acquired, Republic New York Corporation, which was then integrated into HSBC USA Inc and its sister company Safra Republic holdings S.A. (now known as HSBC Republic Holdings Luxembourg). At the same time Midland acquired a 70.03% stake in Mid-Med Bank Plc (now HSBC Bank Malta Plc.), the biggest commercial bank in Malta. In 2000, HSBC acquired CCF, one of the largest Banks in France. Its shares were also traded on a fourth stock exchange, Paris. The group also increased its shareholding in the Egyptian British Bank to over 90% and then later renames it HSBC Bank Egypt S.A.E. It went on to acquire Demirbank TAS, now HSBC Bank A.S., Turkeys fifth largest private Bank in 2001. Additionally, it signed an agreement to purchase 8% stake in the Bank of Shanghai. In 2002, it acquired Grupo Financiero Bital, S.A., de C.V., one of Mexicos largest financial services groups; and a 10% interest in Ping An Insurance Company of China Limited, the second largest life insurance operation in China. In 2003, it acquired Household International (now HSBC Finance Corporation), a leading US consumer finance company; and Lloyds TSBs Brazilian assets including Losango Promotora de Vendas Ltda, a major consume credit institution. Four French private banking subsidiaries combine to form HSBC Private Bank France. The companys insurance brokers at the same time formed a joint venture Beijing HSBC Insurance Brokers Ltd, in which it has a 24.9% stake. Hang Seng Bank also acquired about 16% of Industrial Bank Co. Ltd, a mainland Chinese Commercial Bank, and HSBC agrees to purchase 505 of Fujian Asia Bank Limited (now known as Ping An Bank Limited). In 2004, it acquired the Bank of Bermuda Ltd, a leading provider of fund administration, trust, custody, asset management, and private banking services. It also opened in a fifth stock exchange, the Bermuda stock exchange. In the same year it acquired about 20% of the Bank of Communications Limited, Chinas fifth largest bank. EXISTING LITERATURE REVIEW Around the world corporations are increasingly becoming aware of the enhanced value that corporate branding strategies can provide for an organization. According to Weitz and Wensley (1988), they define marketing strategy as an indicator that is specific towards which activities are to be targeted and the types of competitive advantages that are to be developed and exploited. Implicitly, the strategy requires clear objectives and a focus in line with an organisations corporate goals; the right customers must be targeted more effectively than they are by its competitors, and associated marketing mixes should be developed into marketing programmes that successfully implement the marketing strategy, Varadarajan (1999). A strategic market plan is an outline of the methods and resources required to achieve an organisations goals within a specific target market. It takes into account not only marketing but also all the functional aspects of a business unit that must be co-ordinated. These functional aspects include production, finance and personnel. Environmental issues are an important consideration as well. The concept of the strategic business unit is used to define areas for consideration in a specific strategic market plan. Each strategic business unit (SBU) is a division, product line or other profit centre within a parent company. Each sells a distinct set of products to an identifiable group of customers, and each competes with a well defined set of competitors, Dibb et al. (2001). Each SBUs revenues, costs, investments and strategic plans can be separated and evaluated apart from those of the parent company. SBUs operate in a variety of markets, which have differing growth rates, opportunitie s, degrees of competition and profit making potential. HSBCs business units includes, personal financial services, consumer finance, commercial banking, corporate investment banking and markets, and finally, private banking. Strategic planners within the group therefore must recognise the different performance capabilities of each business unit and carefully allocate resources or strategically implement its business objectives in order to meet the companys long term goals. They must also ensure that the business units complement each other for the greater good of the overall business. The process of strategic market planning yields a marketing strategy that is the framework for a marketing plan. A marketing plan includes the framework and entire set of activities to be performed; it is the written document or blueprint for implementing and controlling an organisations marketing activities. Thus a strategic market plan is not the same as a marketing plan; it is a plan of all aspects of an organisations strategy in the marketplace, Dibb et al. (1996). A marketing plan, in contrast, deals primarily with implementing the marketing strategy as it relates to target markets and the marketing mix, Abell and Hammond (1979). To achieve its marketing objectives, an organisation must develop a marketing strategy, or a set of marketing strategies. The set of marketing strategies that are implemented and used at the same time is referred to as the organisations marketing programme. Most marketing programmes centre on a detailed marketing mix specification and include internal controls and procedures to ensure that they are implemented effectively. Through the process of strategic market planning, an organisation can develop marketing strategies that, when properly implemented and controlled, will contribute to the achievement of its marketing objectives and its overall goals. However, Harris (2002) argues that companies operating in the financial services market, particularly the big four retail banks (HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds TSB, and the Royal Bank of Scotland (with its acquisition of Natwest), primarily rely on generic marketing strategies. To formulate a marketing strategy, the marketer identifies and anal yses the target market and develops a marketing mix to satisfy individuals in that market. Marketing strategy is best formulated when it reflects the overall direction of the organisation and is co-ordinated with all the companys functional areas. The strategic market planning process is based on an analysis of the broader marketing environment, by which it is very much affected. Marketing environment forces such as legal forces, political forces, technological forces, economic and competitive forces, societal/green forces, and regulatory forces, can place constraints on an organisation and possibly influence its overall goals; they also affect the amount and type of resources that a business can acquire, Dibb et al (2001). They also do create favourable opportunities as well, such as internet banking in which HSBC and Merrill Lynch created an online banking and investment facility, which has proved profitable for both companys as a whole, Eppendorfer et al. (2002). Marketing enviro nment variables play a part in the creation of a marketing strategy. When environment variables affect an organisations overall goals, resources, opportunities or marketing objectives, they also affect its marketing strategies, which are based on the factors mentioned previously. They impact consumers needs, desires and they affect competitors plans. Now, according to Polito (2005), branding in the classic sense is all about creating unique identities and positions for products and services, hence distinguishing the offerings from competitors. Corporate branding employs the same methodology and toolbox used in product branding, but it also elevates the approach a step further into the board room, where additional issues around stakeholder relations (shareholders, media, competitors, governments and many others) can help the corporation benefit from a strong and well-managed corporate branding strategy. Not surprisingly, a strong and comprehensive corporate branding strategy requires a high level of personal attention and commitment from the CEO and the senior management to become fully effective and meet the objectives. Corporate branding is a serious undertaking that entails more skills and activities than just an updated glossy marketing facade with empty jargon. A strong corporate branding strategy can add significant value in terms of helping the entire corporation and the management team to implement the long-term vision, create unique positions in the market place of the company and its brands, and not the least to unlock the leadership potential within the organization. Hence a corporate branding strategy can enable the corporation to further leverage on its tangible and non-tangible assets leading to branding excellence throughout the corporation, Polito (2005). HSBC as stated in the latter has in recent years acquired a vast number of companies across the globe and adopted them fully under its international corporate brand with great success and within a surprising short timeframe. A strong brand is about building and maintaining strong perceptions in the minds of customers. This takes time to establish and many resources to keep, but eventually no one remembers what the local banks used to be called, and HSBC has managed to transfer the brand equities from the acquired brands into its own corporate brand equity. There are several benefits for employing a branding strategy that a corporation can exploit. First of all, a strong corporate brand is no less or more than the face of the business strategy, portraying what the corporation aims at doing and what it wants to be known for in the market place. The corporate brand is the overall umbrella for the corporations activities and encapsulates its vision, values, personality, positioning and image among many other dimensions. Think of HSBC, which has successfully implemented a stringent corporate branding strategy. HSBC employs the same common expression throughout the globe with a simple advertising strategy based on the slogan The worlds local bank. This creative platform enables the corporation to bridge between many cultural differences, and to portray many faces of the same strategy. Additionally, HSBCs brand name has enabled a number of key mergers and acquisitions (mentioned previously) around the globe, which has so far strengthened its market presence in the banking world, Brand Finance (2000). The Marketing Strategies of the HSBC Group 2005 Towards the end of 2003, HSBC launched Managing for Growth, a strategic plan that provides HSBC with a blueprint for growth and development during the next five years. The strategy is evolutionary, not revolutionary. It builds on HSBCs strengths and it addresses the areas where further improvement is considered both desirable and attainable. HSBC concentrates on growing earnings over the long term at a rate which will place it favourably when compared with its peer group. Also it focuses on investing in its delivery platforms, its technology, its people and its brand to support the future value of HSBC as reflected in its comparative stock market rating and total shareholder return (TSR). HSBC remains committed to benchmarking its performance by comparison with a peer group. Its core values are integral to its strategy, and communicating them to customers, shareholders and employees is deemed as intrinsic to the plan. These values comprise an emphasis on long-term, ethical client relationships; high productivity through teamwork; a confident and ambitious sense of excellence; being international in outlook and character; prudence; creativity and customer focused marketing. Under the managing for growth scheme, eight strategic imperatives were identified as the key marketing and business strategies for 2004 2008. They are: Brand: make HSBC and its hexagon symbol one of the worlds leading brands for customer experience and corporate social responsibility Personal Financial Services: drive growth in key markets and through appropriate channels to make HSBC the strongest global player in personal financial services Consumer Finance: extend the reach of this business to existing customers through a wider product range and penetrate new markets Commercial Banking: make the most of HSBCs international customer base through effective relationship management and improved product offerings in all the Groups markets Corporate, Investment Banking and Markets: accelerate growth by enhancing capital markets and advisory capabilities focused on client service in defined sectors where HSBC has critical relevance and strength Private Banking: serve the Groups highest value personal clients around the world People: attract, develop and motivate HSBCs people, rewarding success and rejecting mediocrity; and TSR: fulfil HSBCs TSR target by achieving strong competitive performances in earnings per share growth and efficiency. RESEARCH APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY EMPLOYED Research Approach The research approach will be carried out using the positivist case research approach. According to Cavaye (1996), positivist epistemology tries to understand a social setting by identifying individual components of a phenomenon and explains the phenomenon in terms of constructs and relationships between constructs. The theoretical constructs describing the phenomenon are considered to be distinct from empirical reality. Hence, empirical observations can be used to test theory. This looks at the world as external and objective. Positivism employs four major research evaluation criteria: a good research should make controlled observations, should be able to be replicated, should be generalizable and should use formal logic. Under positivism, case research findings are not statistically generalizable to a population, as the case or cases cannot be considered representative of a population, however case research can claim theoretical generalizability. This will also include comparing, contrasting and critically evaluating past and present papers, articles, journals, and established theories that have been published on the subject matter. Methodology Employed Multiple-Case Study Design This project uses the multiple case study method in order to enable analysis of data across cases and relating it to the theoretical perspectives in the available literature of marketing strategy. This enables the researcher to verify that findings are not merely the result of idiosyncrasies of research setting (Miles and Huberman, 1984). According to Yin (2002), in such a method it is important to use: multiple sources of evidence. The appropriate number of cases depends, firstly, on how much is known about the phenomenon after studying a case and secondly, on how much new information is likely to emerge from studying further cases (Eisenhardt, 1991). This paper detailed analysis about the marketing strategies employed by HSBC, in comparison to its other major competitors, namely Barclays Bank, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Citibank. Analysis of the marketing strategy of HSBC is evaluated with regard to the organisation meeting customer needs and requirements, advertising strategies and the need to increase its customer base and market share are all addressed. One wants to see if there are any matches with regard to the theoretical literature of marketing strategy and what the empirical evidence gathered says and also any mismatches. This also relates to the literature review. Qualitative Data Cavaye (1996) states that qualitative investigation refers to distilling meaning and understanding from a phenomenon and is not primarily concerned with measuring and quantification of the phenomenon. Direct and in-depth knowledge of a research setting are necessary to achieve contextual understanding. Hence, qualitative methods are associated with face-to-face contact with persons in the research setting, with verbal data (Van Mannen 1989) being gathered. Qualitative data can be collected in a number of forms. One major form of qualitative evidence is interviews, which may be recorded and later transcribed. Qualitative data are rich, full, holistic real their face validity seems unpeachable; they preserve chronological flow where that is important (Miles 1979). In spite of the abovementioned, qualitative data have weaknesses (Miles 1979; Miles and Huberman, 1984). Collecting and analysing data is time-consuming and demanding. In addition, data analysis is not easy, as qualitative data analysis methods are not well established. Recognised rules of logic can be applied to verbal data in order to make sense of the evidence and to formally analyse the data. Rubin and Rubin (1995) state that it is most desirable to disclose the identities of both the case and the individuals interviewed because, The reader is able to recall any other previous information he or she may have learned about the same case from previous research or other sources in reading and interpreting the case report. The entire case can be reviewed more readily, so that footnotes and citations can be checked, if necessary, and appropriate criticisms can be raised about the published case. Nevertheless, there are some occasions when anonymity is necessary. The most common rationale is that when the case study has been on a controversial topic, anonymity serves to protect the real case and its real participants. The second reason is that the issuance of the final case report may affect the subsequent actions of those that were studied. Quantitative Data This is concerned with measuring aspects of a market or the population of consumers making up the market. This includes soft approaches such as consumer attitudes as well as the hard things such as market size, brand shares, purchase frequencies etc. Quantitative data on a market or consumer group can be obtained through carrying out a census, obtaining the relevant measures from every single consumer or player in the market. In practice, research through a census collection is very rare; for one thing it is usually prohibitively expensive to obtain data from every individual (the government only carries out a population census once every 10 years) and even if the money is available the timescales involved are likely to be too long to meet commercial deadlines, Meier (1991). Furthermore, a census is unnecessary since the alternative; sampling can normally produce adequate and acceptably reliable data for a fraction of the cost. Quantitative research is, therefore, nearly always based on more or less rigorous sampling methods which have in common the assumption that the data from the samples can be taken to represent, within estimated levels of accuracy, the population or universe from which they are drawn, (Hague 2002). Types of Quantitative Data The range of information which can be and is collected through quantitative research is enormous if not infinite. In relation to deciding how data should be collected, all the possibilities can be categorised into a simple threefold classification: 1.Market measures 2.Customer profiles or segmentation 3.Attitudinal data. Market measures quantify and describe a market. Common examples include: market and sector size; shares of the market held by suppliers or brands; penetration levels (what proportion of all potential consumers own or buy a product); purchase and consumption frequencies; patterns of consumption and seasonality. Data of this type is very essential for any manager developing or reviewing a marketing plan for a company, product group or brand name like HSBCs hexagon logo. Market measures taken from a sample are generally projected or grossed up to the total market or population, e.g., the proportion of households in a sample found to be without a PC can be multiplied by available estimates of the number of total households to provide an indicator of untapped potential. A vital concern in the marketing of a product or service is knowing and understanding the potential customer base; what type of people or organisation are they? What other types of products or services do they own or use? What is required to meet this need is customer profiling or segmentation data and it is quantitative in nature because reliable breakdowns are needed for the whole market or population, Buck (1990). Hague (2002) argues that profiling data can take various forms: socio-demographics (age, sex, income and occupation group, education level, home tenure etc); geo-demographics; various business classifications such as company size, industry etc. for business to business research or it can relate to consumer behaviour (ownership of various products, purchase or usage levels, media exposure etc.). Unlike market measures, consumer profiling data can be collected only from consumers (including organisations in the case of business to business research) although the distribution or manufacturing levels in the market may also need profiling. Attitudinal data is used in a quite general sense to cover concepts such as awareness, perceptions, beliefs, evaluations, preferences and propensities. In other words they are, in their various forms, subjective and reside in the minds of individuals. Much market research under this is concerned with attitudes and attitude measurement because attitudes and your marketing may mould consumer choice in your favour. Attitudes are of course very much the subject of qualitative research which is often concerned to identify relevant dimensions and categories of attitudes. In quantitative research, the focus is on establishing the degree to which specific attitudes exist among the market and population. The most important tool for data collection under quantitative research is face to face interviewing. However, in situations where over a hundred firms need to be interviewed, due to the cost attached to carrying out such a task, doing a telephone interview would seem more appropriate. The methods used to record data and data analysis here, is predominantly through questionnaires. Most questionnaires used in quantitative research involve a predominance of pre-coded or closed questions and the layout of the response points can help to minimize problems of mis-recording. More problematical, however, is the recording of open-ended questions, such as why did you buy this product, then? This usually leads to a lengthy or rambling response from the individual, in which what is said is then summarized or abbreviated and there is no way of knowing whether what is recorded reasonably reflects the response given. In the case of this paper, due to the short deadline associated with writing this paper, one was only able to get a telephone interview (primary data collection method) from a senior manager of customer relationship management at one of HSBCs flagship branches in the London area. Additionally one has also used multiple sources of evidence, i.e. secondary sources of information, articles, journals, established theories, HSBCs annual report, comments by top management within the organisation are analysed and also the companys website are all used to evaluate and address the effectiveness of its use of market strategy to increase its market share and customer base. The remainder of this paper proceeds as follows, analysis of findings, overview of the marketing strategy, criticisms, summary and conclusion. ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS Central to achieving a companys corporate vision is the need to build up a loyal customer base of satisfied customers. HSBC did not overtake its major competitors by chance in acquiring foreign financial institutions; it developed a clear marketing strategy based on a desire to fully satisfy a carefully targeted set of market segments. As the BBC (2004) gathered, a quarter of HSBCs 2003 profits were made in the UK, and it made around  £70 profit per customer. Additionally, the bulk of its profits came from acquisitions elsewhere, US personal loan firm Household International and HSBC Mexico. Although Household International operates in the UK, HSBC says its British market accounts for less than 10% of this divisions profits. Market segmentation is at the core of robust marketing strategy development. This involves identifying customer needs, expectations, perceptions, and buying behaviour so as to group together homogeneous customers who will be satisfied and marketed to in a similar manner. One segment will differ from another in terms of customer profile and buying behaviour, and also with regard to the sales and marketing activity likely to satisfy these customers. Having sufficient knowledge of these customers is fundamental. It is important to remember that the process of market segmentation involves more than simply grouping customers into segments. Shrewd targeting of certain segments and the development of a clear brand positioning are part and parcel of the market segmentation process. Now, HSBC launched a marketing strategy called Managing for growth, which is to cover and deal with its strategic outlook for the period 2004 2008. From the company website, they have stated that they will deliver this by; focusing on enhancing HSBCs revenue generation culture, develop its brand name further (hexagon logo), manage costs strategically, maintain a prudent credit/market risk stance, and invest further in its people. Addition ally, acquisitions still remains an integral part of their strategy. As stated from the companys website, they will concentrate on growing earnings over the long term at a rate which will place it favourably when compared with its peer group. It will also focus on investing in its delivery platforms, its technology, its people and its brand to support
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