Manfold Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Manfold Case Study - Essay Example The plastic airbeds were a huge success and formed about 12.3 % of the company’s sales (Van den 1). However, in 2007, Joseph, who was the founder wanted to retire from business and in connection to this, he wanted to sell his shares that were about 68 % to Mitchell & Meyer, which is an American equipment manufacturer. It is at this point that the conflict of interest arose between the key players in the Manfold Toy Company. Conflict of interest occurs in work environment when a person is in a place where they can be influenced. The influence can be because of personal interest that an individual has on something. A conflict of interest can be because someone is avoiding personal disadvantage, or it can be because someone wants to take advantage of a particular situation. There are three different types of conflict of interest. The first one is the actual conflict of interest; this is where an employee is in a position to be influenced by their own personal interest when carrying out their responsibilities. The second one is perceived conflict of interest, in this case the employee appears to be influenced by their private interest when doing their job. Finally, is the potential conflict of interest, in this case the employee is in a place where they may influenced in the future by their private desires when carrying out their work. In the case of study there are various conflict of interests, for example, Fred who was an independent non-executive director (INED). He was also the chairman of the audit committee is in a position where his job seems to put him in a conflicting of interest with his boss; Joseph, who is also the founder of the company. Given that Joseph have told him about his intention of selling the business to Mitchell and Meyer Company. However, he knows that Yee Exports that are the sole distributor of Manfold Toy Company in New Zealand and Australia is almost becoming bankrupt. However, he is not sure about

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Phrenology Essay Example for Free

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Phrenology Essay After fMRI was first introduced, it has been under criticism that it is not hard science. The most common technique, the BOLD (blood oxygen level-dependent) fMRI, measures the increase in regional cerebral blood flow in response to increased metabolism, which is to be caused from heightened activity of neuron firing (Menon Kim, 1999). Some neurologists believe that this is an indirect way of measuring brain activity, and is not sufficient to support any idea. By many scientists fMRI is often compared to phrenology, a study that once gained popularity in the 19th century. Phrenology is based on the concept that the brain is the organ of the mind, and that certain brain areas have localized, specific functions or modules (Fodor, 1983). This is similar to fMRI practitioners’ attempts to localize brain structure, matching the divided parts of the brain with certain functions. Judging whether fMRI is a new form of phrenology concerns two points: fMRI’s similarities to phrenology, and fMRI’s significance to be admitted as the ‘new form’. This will also lead to the question of whether fMRI scan is meaningful to be presented as evidence in court. The logic of fMRI is straight-forward. Brain parts that light up to a certain stimulus, is related to the function provoked by the stimulus. The fMRI machine measures increase in blood flow in brain regions. The regions with increased blood flow appear in brighter colors, in red or yellow (Dobbs, 2005). fMRI’s logic of relating higher blood flow and function is similar to that of phrenology, which relates size of lump to function. From this analogy we can say that fMRI can be considered some form of ‘phrenology. ’ Another reason that fMRI is compared to phrenology is for its limitations (Menon Kim, 1999). MRI’s problem rise from the fact that it does not show interactions between parts. It takes a univariate approach to the brain, implying that only one factor is considered as variable. The current fMRI shows voxels’ activity as one sum, meaning that it cannot collect relational or sequential information of brain parts (Dobbs, 2005). Many neurologists believe that brain parts’ interaction is an important aspect, and fMRI’s lack of capacity to do so results in criticism. Compared with the old phrenology, fMRI shares the same view that brains have localized functions. However, fMRI takes a more scientific approach than the old phrenology. Although it has its limitation in presenting spatial information, it does contribute in relating brains structure and the mind’s function. Although the ‘old’ phrenology is labeled ‘pseudoscience’ and no longer acknowledged in the field of science anymore, it has had its contributions. It sparked the idea that mind can be localized, such as language and memory. In the same context fMRI can contribute, only much more than the ‘old’ phrenology. Although fMRI’s blood flow measurement and the actual neural activity do not perfectly correspond with each other (Dobbs, 2005), significant correlation can be drawn from the fMRI scanning. As for the usage as court evidence, I see fMRI scan valuable as evidence, for fMRI does show some level of correlation of parts of brains and certain activity. fMRI should not be criticized and banned from court just because of its possibility of erroneous conclusion (Hughes, 2010). Even witnesses’ testimonies are bound to be wrong, but their testimonies are accepted as evidence. Thus fMRI should be allowed to be presented as evidence in court. However, the juries should be made aware that fMRI scan is an arbitrarily interpreted output, and contain risks of erroneous conclusions. I believe fMRI will gain stronger grounds in the court later in the future though, with the advance of technology as mentioned above. Some compare neurologists with fMRI to molecular biologists with light microscopes (Jaffe, 2004), for the reason that the capacity of fMRI is not sufficient for neurological study. It must be taken into account that later light microscopes evolved to electron microscopes, meaning that also fMRI will offer improved spatial and temporal information in the future. Its potential must be acknowledged, and in the meantime there should be efforts to find complementary analysis methods (Hubbard, 2003).

The Life And Great Works Of John Updike :: essays research papers

The Life and Great works of John Updike   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  An American novelist, short story writer and a poet, John Updike was a country boy with a great talent that needed to be unleashed. He wrote many novels and won many awards; his best works did involve the novels that told the story of a man’s life. The best-known and most widely analyzed work, John Updike wrote a great series of novels depicting a reoccurring theme of the life of a man, and his dream to have his high school wonders once again.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Updike was born on March 18, 1932 in Pennsylvania, outside of the big city and into the countryside. His parents were Wesley Russell Updike, his father, and Linda Grace (Hoyer) Updike, his mother. They raised John with great care and with great ambition to succeed in the harsh world. During his young life many things were taking place that would bring the American Society to a great fall; it was hard for a young American writer in the 1940’s and 50’s. Updike’s schooling was like any typical family, not any kind of high-class private school, just a normal kid. He attended public schools in Shillington in 1936, and he graduates all his schooling, of the public school system, in 1950. Updike was class president, and graduated as co-valedictorian. After grade school he attended one of the greatest colleges in the United States, Harvard University. His   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Plemons 2 writing was weak during grade school, but his great pieces came his senior year at Harvard. He became editor for the Harvard Lampoon, which is the school’s newspaper. With this under his belt for experience, Updike graduates from Harvard as the â€Å"Summa Cum Laude,† that which is a great honor for him. Now entering the working world, Updike starts a new job in New York; he is employed at The New Yorker, as an article writer/reporter in 1955. During his time at the news-printing place, he writes many short stories and some novels. Soon after, two years later to be exact, he starts to become a full-time writer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Updike and his wife, Mary E. Pennington daughter of Rev. Leslie T. Pennington and Elizabeth Daniels Pennington, decide to have a family. Their first child came in the year of 1955, it was a girl and Mary named her after her late mother, Elizabeth. Updike, being a man wanted a boy to carry the father’s name so, two years later, January 19, 1957, they have a baby boy; they named him, David.

Development Strategy of Luxury Company Essay

1. Introduction â€Å"As long as there is a society, there will always be fashion†. It was not surprised a fashion brands, especially a luxury fashion brands became a national treasure which effect the issues in business, political and social area in European countries. Since the Hermas established in 1837, a special development strategy model has formed and matured in European luxury group. Daniele de winter, the CEO of Daniele de Winter Cosmetics state that â€Å"the secret of successful fashion management is a complete blend of creative genius and business management acumen, skill and resourcefulness†. The develop strategy is the key issue for a successful luxury fashion company. With the development of economy and the increase of income, more and more luxury fashion companies expand their business into Asia- Pacific region, especially the Hong Kong and mainland China market. According to the annual report of Richemont, The Pinault-Printemps-Redoute (PPR), Hemes, Bulberry and other luxury fashion companies, the sale revenue of Asia- Pacific region accounts for more than 30% of the Group total revenue. The Change of Global Luxury Fashion Market. The word â€Å"luxury† origin from Latin word â€Å"luxuria†, which means an item that â€Å"is expensive and enjoyable but no essential (Waite, 2012)†. In 186 BCE, the victory of army of Gnaeus Manlius Vulso brought such overseas luxury as bronze couches, and costly cloth spreads into Rome. For some Roman historians, the triumph of Vulso marked as the beginning of luxury industry in Europe. With the development of centres, modern luxury fashion industry has become a cross-sectors industry which offers high price goods and service for target consumers. However, in the space of two decades, the modern luxury market has changed beyond recognition. The narrow range of need and demand of target consumers and the exclusive- distribution channels, represented by French Fashion, have been replaced by a mass industry, accompanied by expansion brands with an affordable price by a wider range of consumers. Since the beginning of 1990s, the luxury industry has been recognised and restructured by designers and the fashion designers become the creator of art. According to the statistics from France Economic and Social Council in 2008 (France Economic and Social Council, 2008), with the strategy of â€Å"physical shop/ store† and expansion brands benefit seven million euros. Depending on the diversion and internationalisation, the luxury industry becomes an industry with wider consumers. For example, Hemes, managed by Jean-Louis Dumas, diversities their goods and creates new products. The French luxury manufacture gets a successful on brand art by purchasing crystal brand Saint Louis and Silversmith Puiforcat. Similarly, Richemont Family, the main competitor of French brand, also control numbers of brands, such as Carites, Baume & Mercier and Van Cleef & Arpells. The second change of luxury industry is the transformation from the handmade custom to industrial standardisation. Taking LVMH as example, there are three cores of product, as wines and spirit, luggage and leather, and fashion and perfume industry. The famous brands in luxury world, like as Moet & Chandon, Loewe, Vuitton, Givenchy, Kenzo, Dior and Guerlain, standardise the products like other heavy industries. Along with the profit-seeking financial logic, the marketing and the product standardisation become the major notion with the concept of large-scale product. In the new centre, the concept of luxury industry and the demand of consumers are changing all the time. â€Å"Heritage and Prestige† is the landmark of lots of luxury brands and the enduring value of numbers of particular brands. Comparing with the old style luxury brand â€Å"which used to be a heritage brand† (Coste-Maniere, et al. , 2012), the new concept of luxury, developed by Louis Vuitton and Burberry, means accepted by more consumers. For the occasional customers, they just enjoy the â€Å"right of luxury† in physical store against with the traditional customer-exclusive. In the new era, increasing the number of customers buy the fashion product they could afford, rather than become the royal consumer due to the high price. Consequently, emphasis of consumer need and the competitive advantage means centralising the core value and expending brand boundary simultaneously. 2. 2 The Development Strategy Model of Luxury Fashion Brand The luxury fashion brand originate in European countries which have plentiful historical and cultural background. With the development of servial centres, the luxury fashion industry in European, American and Japanese have become mature and standarlisation. Under this circumstance, the strategy of luxury development in western countries centralize on the brand expansion, striving for the core products and development of brand reputation. 2. 2. 1 Brand Expansion: the Foundational Strategy Under the press of financial-seeking strategy and the changeable of luxury market, the old style luxury fashion brand faces the challenge of development in the mature market in traditional European, American and Japanese region. Under this circumstance, the expansion of brands has become the foundational strategy for a large number of luxury fashion corporates, which offer a new opportunity to stress the brand image, the most significant assets for a luxury fashion company. (Albrecht, et al. , 2013; Uggla & Lashgari, 2012; Hoffmann & Coste-Maniere, 2012)Many luxury companies breakthrough the traditional product boundary and expensed their business into new market segmentations. For instance, Louis Vuitton, beginning with luggage, invested in other creative spheres: ready-to-wear industry as well as jewellery market (LVMH, 2012), and Gucci, beginning with leather goods, developed all sets of fashion products including leather goods, shoes, ready-to-wear, watches, jewellery and other products. (PPR, 2012). Meanwhile, there are some companies expensed segments into non-traditional area. For example, the luxury jewellery manufacture Bulgari and Italian brand Versace started to offer hotel under their brand (LVMH, 2012) and Armani provide different products from books, furniture and chocolates to restaurants, bars and spas. The another Italian luxury brand, Roberro Cavalli, famous for its fashion apparel for young generation, offer wine and vodka as well as run coffee bar (The Cavalli Caffe) and club (The Cavalli Club). 2. 2. 2 Striving for the Core: The Product Strategy For a global corporate, it is common rules of development depend on the core production or service and then diversification. However, even as diversification, the excellence core production and the strongest sectors within the luxury brands continued to earn the majority of its profits from the traditional products. (Ahrendts, 2013; Beverland, 2005; Miller & Mills, 2012). For luxury consumer, they expect to acquire a honorable brands and product so that they emphase on the value of core heritage. The leather goods, the core of Gucci Group, earn 59% of its revenue in 2012 (PPR, 2012). The iconic luggage is the tradition from the time corporate was founded and become the brand image of the LVMH Group. (LVMH, 2011) The turning of Burberry from a ageing British brand to a global luxury brand is a successful product strategy transition. Before 2006, through in a burgeoning global market. Burberry faced a low growth at a rate of 2 percentage every year and two competitors – LVMH and PPR had more than 12 times and 16 times Burberry’s sale revenue. By surving the sectors among Burberry products all over the world, the results indicate the outerwear, as the core, only accourted of 20% of Burberry’s global brand business. Figure 1: the Facts and Financial Statistics of Burberry (Resource from: Burberry, Yahoo Finance) [pic] After brainstorming and formalizing from the administrative board, the New Jersey factore which is making polo shirts was closed and invested in the Casteford factory in Yorkshire which make the heritage trech coat included traditional rainwear and exclusive waterproof gabardine. Burberry also hire Christopher Bailey as the global designer for innovation of core products. The facts and financial statistic of Burberry from 2006 to 2012 in Figure 1 showed that the decision to focus on the heritage opened up a wealth of creativity. By the end of 2012, the sale revenues and operating income had doubled than previous 5 years, achieving $3 billion and $600 billion respectively. (Burberry, 2007; Burberry, 2012) 2. 2. 3 The Brand Reputation: The Brand Strategy The brand is the most valuable part of luxury goods and the motivity of luxury consumption. Once separating from the luxury brand, the goods is the ordinary one. Every successful company sees the brand as the most valuable fortune. they use the advanced marketing logic and marketing operation to motivate the development, explore approaches to express the value and connotation of brands to luxury consumers and attract the royality of customers. As a tool of art, a carrier of history, and a spirit of classic, building-up a high quiality reputation is brand strategy for luxury companies. Since founded in 1847, Cartier, as one of the most established name in the jewellay market, is the reference of ture and timeless luxury. Designing by Cartier, the product distinguishes itself by the unique skills and excellence in design and execution. Nearly in 30 years, the extensive art activities are not competitive without the support by the Foundation Crtier pour l’Art Contemporain (Richemont, 2013). With the development of brand reputation, Cartier is the synonym of modern art and a pioneering approach. Meanwhile, most of luxury brands come from the centre of Renaissance 2. 3 The Features of Chinese Luxury Market Chinese market places the second place in the world of luxury consumption, surpassing the United States since 2008. Along with Japan, China is the strongest market with the increasing demand of 20 percentages. The consulting report from Glob Advantage estimate there are 18 thousand billionaires, 440 thousand multimillionaires and increasing the number of middle class achieving 250 million in 2015 in today’s China (Degen, 2009), which have the strong purchase power and need of luxury fashion industry. Even with the influence of the financial crisis, the sale revenue of luxury fashion in the mainland China rose by 16 percent, reaching about 64 billion RMB. The market research about Chinese market laid a foundation for the development and expansion strategy of luxury brands. The shifting attitudes to luxury brands, the greater sophistication of Chinese consumers and the new geographic markets have become the main features of Chinese luxury market. The three characteristics drive the global strategy of development for luxury brands. Figure 2 According to the survey of McKinsey & Company (KPMG, 2013), with the rapidly increase of income, more and more Chinese consumers shifts the attitude to luxury and feel comfortable to purchasing luxury products. The rich consumers which income over 300,000 RMB continued occupy the majority of the luxury purchase. Meanwhile, the statistics show that, the upper middle class (between 100,000 RMB and 200,000 RMB), which account for 22% of luxury goods purchase by the end of 2015, as the Figure 2 suggested, offers the biggest new growth opportunity. 2. 3. 1 The increasing number of overseas travel In the information era, Chinese consumers have become more sophisticated than before. With the surge in the number of luxury stores, fashion magazine, the Web official site and the use of social media, Chinese consumers familiar with the luxury brands with the help of Internet, overseas travel, and the first-hand experience. For example, the research result indicated that in the last 12 months, the Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macro and Europe become the main destinations of overseas luxury purchase. Figure 3: Where did you purchase your cosmetics in the last 12 months? (Resource from: Global Reach of China Luxury of KPMG) [pic] 2. 3. 2 The increase of new market segmentation The rapidly growth of urbanisation and individual wealth emerge large quantity of geographic markets with sizable pools of luxury-goods consumptions. The luxury purchase and sale revenue of some medium and small cities, such as Qingdao in Shandong province and Wuxi in Zhejiang province, tripled than the previous 5 years. In the following years, the luxury consumption in these medium and small cities will achieve the same level with Hangzhou and Nanjing, the most developed market in mainland China, the sale of which will arrive at RMB 500 million yuan and account for 76% of whole market. 2. 3. 3 The increasing of Counterfeit goods Love for luxury, preference for counterfeit is a unique phenomenon in luxury consumption in Chinese luxury market. According to a report entitled â€Å"Transnational Organized Crime in East Asia and the Pacific† from Office on Drugs and Crime, almost 70% of global counterfeits luxury goods come from China and the value of counterfeit luxury goods imported into traditional luxury market on the order of $25 billion annually. In a confusion society , the luxury consumption of Chinese consumers become more irrationally than western consumer, which depended on the extenral need rather internal need (Zhang & Kim, 2013). For Chinese consumers, luxury brands are somethings â€Å"must to have† for them to reinforce their social status. however, the wealth gap between the rich and the poor in China is the largest all over the world, which offer the passion for consumption of luxury counterfeits. The young generation, aged 25 to 34 with limited budget for genuine luxury fashion goods, racked up nearly a quarter fo fake fanciers. 2. 4 The Passion for Luxury Consumption of Chinese consumers China is the second largest luxury market all over the world and attracting the attention of consumption of Chinese consumers. Under the influence of unique economic situation, cultural background and social factor, the behaviour of Chinese consumers in luxury fashion market have the distinctive characteristics. The bling factor influenced by economic situation, the saving face affected by the Confucianism and group orientation as the social factor drive the luxury consumption in Chinese fashion market. 2. 4. 1 The â€Å"Bling† Factor With the emerging of Internet, fashion magazines and social media, more and more Chinese consumers know the brands of luxury brands. However, the cultural concept and history of the luxury fashion brands are far away from numbers of Chinese luxury consumers. For many luxury fashion firms, there is not one typical luxury customer in China due to the different habits, different tastes and different income levels. The â€Å"bling† factor or following the whole market trend remains an important factor for the Chinese consumer in luxury fashion market. For example, according to luxury consumer report of Chinese market, almost 60 percent of the respondents in Tier 1 cities including Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai and other Tier 2 cities, stated that the key drivers for luxury consumption is the willingness to pay a product that just is popular or fashionable goods. Exclusivity or unique is an important understanding of luxury brand for Chinese consumption. There are about one fifth of customers consider that they will pay the luxury goods that are known and appreciated by the minority rather than the famous one. In terms of China’s unique cultural background, the Chinese consumers consider luxury brand value influenced by Confucianism. In the concept of Confucian, the notion of â€Å"mianzi† is defined as a reputation â€Å"achieved through getting on in through success and ostentation†. (Hu, 1944; Dong & Lee, 2007) The traditional cultural understanding and effecting about the face saving becomes the strongest and most conspicuous passion for luxury consumption, which means concerning about the impress to other and the visual display than the level of income. The Chinese consumer in luxury world trend to pay a premium product on the luxury brand rather than essential goods in daily life, due to strong desire and pressure of maintaining face. Taking the finding of KPMG as the example, comparing with the apparel, the stronger growth of market for fashion accessories is considerable. Nearly 40% of luxury consumers enjoy the luxury experiences and â€Å"the right of luxury† in a physical store/shop over purchases of luxury items. Overall, the face saving (saving mianzi) relates to the individual image of worth and reputation within a collectivism society. As the result, Chinese consumers are often careful not to lose face by standing out from the crowed when consuming luxury goods. The general strategy Although the market has its particular features, the development of luxury fashion strategy in Chinese luxury market is followed the general rules of luxury firms in global market. As the foundation strategy, the brand extension and production diversification also provide the base of the development in Chinese luxury market. The apparel, handbag, jewellery, fashion accessories and luxury servicers are offered in mainland China, especially in Tier 1 cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. Promoting the sale revenue of the core products in mainland China, as the product strategy, enhances the brand awareness in Chinese market. Expanding the influence, luxury fashion firms invest large amount of money to popularize the brand reputation as a simple of elegance and grandeur as well as the means of fashion and art. The marketing strategy: raising brand awareness. Due to the lower brand awareness and lack of knowledge of brand value, the royalty of brand in Chinese market is lower than its in traditional European market. The special situation provides a strong externally powerful tool, which means not only expand the value of the luxury brand into a regular group of consumers, but also sway them making a purchase. In recent year, luxury fashion firm invest increasing the number of budget into Chinese market not only promote the brand awareness, but also help the consumers inform a notion about †luxury goods and luxury lifestyle† and why they should purchase luxury goods and luxury services. The brand building-up develop based not only the advertising on hard paper and television, also included the display on luxury goods exhibition and the customised publications. Nowadays, more and more luxury fashion goods exhibition held in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities, which offer a good opportunity for Chinese consumers to visit the luxury goods frequently displayed in store. Meanwhile, more and more consumers visiting the exhibition are not an onlooker. The localisation strategy. The luxury fashion brand with high brand awareness contain the European and American culture and value which is living standard of high level, the product and design of high quality. Those values accepted by and attract young generation who trend to, however, it is not accepted by all Chinese consumers who have their own value. Respecting to Chinese traditional culture and integrated it into the product value is the essential of luxury fashion business in China. For example, Louis Vuitton setting Du Juan, the one of top Chinese model all over the world, and advertising as the Chinese image step one right place on direction and help western luxury fashion companies overcome the cultural barriers. This kind of strategy could build up strong attachments among Chinese consumers and help them accepted the unique characteristic of luxury fashion brands. The pricing strategy Price is one of the most significant signals in Chinese business world. For most Chinese consumers, price represented the value of luxury fashion goods. As a result, the luxury fashion products should not go on discount, no matter what the consumer is. The pricing strategy about goods, especially about core products, could bolster a brand’s prestige. For other items, companies could adjust the price according to the market condition and the inventory in order to long-term brand building. The retailing strategy A stupendous store belongs to the luxury fashion company located in the luxury area build up a sense of important and identified by the market. The luxury fashion positioning enhanced if the boutiques are visible to a lot of consumer in major fashion cities. The landmark stores opened in Chinese Tier 1 cities, such as Beijing, Hangzhou and Guangzhou, are the best locations to building the brand image and attracting the target customer groups. The commercial centres and shopping malls in luxury area are welcomed by most of fashion lovers, luxury followers and luxury intellectuals. Meanwhile, the investment on the landmark store is the best and effective way to generate profits and build-up brand royalty. In an Internet era, shopping online has become the major shopping way, especially for the young people. Although most luxury fashion companies have shied away from online channels due to the fearing that e-commerce might reduce the value of the luxury brand. However, for a long-term return and brand building, online platform provides not only a purchase channel, but also an information exchange channel between luxury fashion brand and Chinese consumers. With the developing of GDP and individual income of consumers, the global luxury fashion market and such the emerging market as China, have become the strategic focus of luxury market researcher and the consult company. This report attempts to identify development strategy of the luxury fashion brand, especially in mainland China market through the analysis of the change of global luxury fashion brand, overview of Chinese luxury market and the passion for luxury consumption. All those factors were identified depend on a comprehensive review of luxury fashion goods related researches and market consulting reports. The findings of this study provide a new insight of global and Chinese luxury fashion market for the consumers who interests the luxury fashion brand and a clear strategy guide for market managers of the luxury fashion firms, particular in the time of the company expand their business in mainland China. In addition, the study helps reduce the risks and costs of market research and helps the company overcome the huge gap in a multicultural business environment. First, the findings about the global luxury fashion market and the general development strategy in luxury fashion market all over the world indicated that the achieving the growth while remaining exclusive positioning, and attracting more consumers without losing cachet of brand value is the core strategy for every luxury corporates. The more loyal consumers may weaken due to the popular brands launched in the market because they choose pay a premium goods that majority and identified by small group. Consequently, the balance between growth and unique, the price and quality may be tougher in China than in any other market. However, customization develops quickly as the new trend of luxury fashion industry. The customizing activities have launched in different business sectors, but which is yet adopted by the luxury industry on a board. At presents, the customization just limited on the area of fashion accessories, apparel, handbags, and jewellery, and emphasising on customizing standard products, point of delivery customization and service and producing bespoke goods. Secondly, the increasing the number of consumers, overseas traveller, new market segments and the counterfeits goods have become the main features in the Chinese luxury fashion market in recent years. The features are important of stress the benefits of investment in mainland China. Based on the research findings, International marketers should setting extension strategy that is coherent with branding, merchandising and global image by serving China’s globetrotting shoppers, striking the balance between store numbers and quality and focusing anti-counterfeit goods. For Chinese globetrotting shoppers, the customer relationship management should emphasis global view rather than on mainland China. In the view of higher management board, the corporate organisational structure of the luxury fashion company should reflect the significant of Chinese market by sorting up the processes for generating direct communication between Chinese luxury consumers and the home headquarter. Based on the new market segmentation, the luxury company should upgrade current stores and outlets in order to keep consistent with the global image and emphasis on the business in Tier 1 cities. As the market statistics indicated that the luxury counterfeit goods have become the barriers for development in China, including seizing sale revenue and weakening brand value. Luxury fashion companies should co-operate with customs officials to seize fake goods at ports. Working with international national organisation or international associations should be the third path for anti-counterfeit activities. The co-operation should ranges from such international associations as World Intellectual Property to regional groups like US-focused International Anti-Counterfeits Coalition. Thirdly, the research findings about the passions for Chinese luxury fashion consumption indicated that the â€Å"bling† customers who lack of knowledge about luxury fashion goods or just following the trend account of a part of Chinese luxury consumers. Besides that, Chinese luxury consumption deeply influenced by saving faces and group orientation, which are the part of traditional Confusion value. Targeting different drivers of luxury consumption, managers should have different strategies. For the bling customers, the global luxury firms should invest in improving the brand awareness and expanding the brand value, which could offer a global opportunity to attracting potential customers and building loyalty and repeat customer groups. For the consumers who care about saving face, International luxury fashion markers should draw the outline of visual and outward appearance of rank and status when unfolding their marketing activities. Meanwhile, the companies should emphasise the brand’s country of origin, so the Chinese consumers have the confident to identified and distinguished with other mass products. In addition, the package of luxury goods also need to be recognisable in order to fit the moderate and lifestyle associated with Chinese consumers. Furthermore, in light of the results about group orientation, the management board company should stress the profit of luxury fashion goods as a symbol of social marker and the sale assistants inspire consumer purchases because of the goods could generate a sense of group belonging and conformity of the elite. Due to the group belonging, a special attention should be given to the layout of the physical store and the luxury service of sale staff. No matter who is the consumer, friends will be involved during the decision making process and become potential consumers in the future. Proving high-quality services and creating luxury experience for non-buyers also benefit for making sure that the brand accepted by group and that the consumer does not stand out from others. Finally, about the current expansion strategy in mainland China market, most of luxury fashion companies emphasis the strategy on marking, localization, pricing and retailing coherent with the global business aims. Raising brand awareness and expressing the luxury lifestyle lay the foundation of marketing strategy. In order to respect to Chinese traditional culture, luxury brands should integrate Chinese culture and art into design, package, and store layout of products, which accepted easily by Chinese consumers in different social class. Meanwhile, the research findings indicated that the price is the most important factor which influenced Chinese luxury consumption. Luxury marketers should balance the price between Chinese market and overseas. As for the retailing strategy, the luxury brand stresses the developing of boutiques store and the setting up online distribution channels. However, there are several special attention should be given to price gap between China and overseas, and the online distribution channels. On one hand, comparing with that rarely go on discount in mainland China, the luxury fashion goods is often at a discount at overseas, especially for the non-core products and in the time of Christmas or Summer Sale. On the other hand, the high rate of tax and fees raise up the price of luxury fashion goods in mainland China. According to the law and regulations in China, a luxury fashion goods, such as the eye cream of Estee Lauder native to the UK, is imported into Chinese market with 10% import tariff, 30% consumption tax, 5% sales tax and 17% value-add tax. Including the managing fees, advertising costs and other issues, the price of the eye cream is double in the UK. In the respect of the luxury company, the appreciate discount in Chinese market could promote the desire of consumption and boost the sale revenue; in the respect of tax policy makers in mainland China, reducing the rate of import tariff and consumption tax of international luxury fashion goods could Finally, luxury fashion goods, as a subject of nature, play different or scenarios, different income level, education background, and social – economic factors, as well as exam the type of relationship that seek from luxury fashion brands. On the view of passions for luxury consumption, there are many other drivers, such as collection, appreciation, should take the consideration into further research.

The Price of Beauty

In today’s society it is believed that being of a certain color, a certain weight, and having specific characteristics is what makes someone beautiful. The movie â€Å"Little Miss Sunshine† directed by: Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, is about a young girl named Olive who dreams of being in beauty pageants. In the first scenes of the movie it shows Olive mimicking the winner of the Miss America pageant in ah and amazement. Olive is invited to the Little Miss Sunshine pageant in California by default, which leads her and her dysfunctional family on a great journey to California. Although the journey is filled with turmoil and loss, their main priority is to get Olive to the pageant. At first glance, Olive is not what one would think of when beauty comes to mind. She is pudgy, very tall for her age, with black rimmed coke bottle glasses, and a style only she can appreciate. By setting a specific model and certain standards The Little Miss Sunshine pageant is a symbol of commercialized American beauty. The pageant is a shallow representation of beauty in America. Children’s beauty pageants are filled with prosthetic teeth, fake and teased hair, makeup, and very risque outfits. This is what America is portraying to society and even more to its young contestants as being beautiful. Anna L. Wonderlich of the University of Minnesota did a study on twenty two women, eleven had participated in childhood beauty pageants and eleven had not. â€Å"This study evaluated the association between childhood beauty pageants and adult disordered eating, body dissatisfaction, depression, and self-esteem. Childhood pageant participants scored higher on body dissatisfaction, interpersonal distrust, and impulse deregulation than non-participants, and showed a trend toward greater ineffectiveness. (Wonderlich) Many of the young contestants are led to believe that if they fit into a specific mold rather than being themselves they will be beautiful. By being judged on their outer appearance, it begins to take an effect on their psyche, self-esteem levels, and the way they see themselves. When only being judged and criticized on what is wrong with them, they take that same mind set in their older and later years. By allowing the young girls to prance and parade on stage in their flashy costumes they are seen and represented as a young sex symbol. The young girls receive indecent and unnecessary attention from older men. The former America Little Royal Miss, JonBenet Ramsey was killed at the age of six the same age Olive is portraying in the movie. Not only was her murder gruesome it is a mystery; she was found gagged and sexually molested in her parents basement. After her death the children’s beauty pageant world was put under great scrutiny for the â€Å"novelty of putting mascara on the lashes of a 6-year-old. †(Alder) Many wondered and still do why this little girl was targeted, was it because of her participation in the beauty pageants that make her look a younger version of Marilyn Monroe? The world will never know, the reasons behind this grisly murder, but the thought of JonBenet and beauty pageants will always stick out in the public’s mind. Olive represents an unconventional ideal of beauty. When Olive registers for the beauty pageant all the attention of the other contestants parents, and the girls is placed on her. They stare and make rude comments and gestures, because Olive does not look like the other beauty contestants that all remind one of a miniature Barbie, while in this scene Olive is still in her jeans and converses she most definitely stands out. Olive is soon approached by a set of twin girls. â€Å"Are you on a diet?†¦ What?†¦.. Are you on a diet?†¦ No!†¦ I didn’t think so! † It is believed that one must be skinny to be perceived as beautiful or even attractive to many. Although Olive is faced with criticism she remains confident, optimistic and strong. This is shown in one of the end scenes when she is getting ready for the pageant. Olive’s dad- â€Å"I don’t want Olive to go on. † Sheryl- â€Å"Are you kidding? † Dad- â€Å"We’re not in Maryland anymore, all right! She’s out of her league here. † Sheryl- â€Å"So? † Dad- â€Å"Sheryl! She’s not gonna win. There’s no fucking way†¦.. Dwayne, the brother- â€Å"Where’s Olive? I don’t want Olive doing this†¦. Mom, look around! This place is fucked! I don’t want these people judging Olive! Fuck them!†¦.. She’s not a beauty queen mom. † Sheryl- â€Å"Olive is who she is. This is what she’s chosen to do. † Olive is off stage and is able to hear everything that is being said. The assistant comes on stage and notes it is time for Olive to go on but she does not move. Sheryl to Olive- â€Å"You don’t have to do this if you don’t want. If you want to sit this one out, that’s fine, we’re proud of you anyway, oka y. † Olive says to the assistant- â€Å"Okay let’s go. † Her brother and her father rush backstage to stop her from humiliating herself because she does not look like the other blonde beauties that are competing. They are afraid that she will be embarrassed and are trying to protect her, but sometimes trying to protect one only hurts them even more. Olive knows she does not look like the rest of the girls, but having her family support is what’s important to her and that they see her as beautiful for who she is. Although she does not have the expensive outfits, big hair, and the tiny physique she is who she is and that she doesn’t have to conform to those standards to be beautiful. Beauty is not a specific characteristic; it is a combination of attributes, personality, and self-esteem. One does not have to have a specific look to beautiful, being beautiful starts in the soul if one has an ugly soul then what is on the inside portrays the outside. Although Olive may not look like the average beauty contestant, everything about her screams beauty; she is sweet, kind, caring, and has a beautiful soul; she knows who she is, and believes in herself even when others do not. By not conforming to the commercialized standards of American beauty, Olive is the definition of what beauty should be.

Fitness Essay Essays

Fitness Essay Essays Fitness Essay Essay Fitness Essay Essay Why do people exercise? This may be a simple question, but it can generate multiple and varying responses. Assumptions such as pure weight loss, arise. Although this may be true, weight loss is not the only reason that drives people to engage in such activities. If curious minds dig a little deeper within this topic, different perceptions are brought up or given a better understanding of the situation. People exercise for many reasons. These reasons can be categorized to physical, psychological, and emotional dimension. In the physical sense, people exercise to better their appearance by losing or maintaining weight and overall health. One of the most noticeable effects of exercise is the physical changes that occur to the loss of body fat in a person. A person who may be overweight see exercise as a tool to help him achieve his desired body composition. With continuous exercise, the body burns calories. Excess fat that are stored within the body are utilized and burned for energy, leading to weight loss. Aside from weight loss, exercising provides beneficial heart effects to a person. It strengthens the heart muscle by allowing it to pump blood more effectively which results in the reduction of pressure on the walls of the blood vessel, which lowers blood pressure. (Sherwood, 2010). Other heart benefits include good HDL cholesterol levels, reducing bad LDL cholesterol levels, and reducing inflammation of arteries, as suggested by the University of Maryland Medical Center, or UMMC (as cited by Sherwood, par. 4). According to the website WebMD, regular exercise can help prevent diseases and ailments such as heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, back pain, and osteoporosis. Beyond the physical effects of exercise come psychological effects. Running, after a long and stressful day at school or work can help a person feel better afterwards. The link between exercise and mood is pretty strong, Michael Otto, PhD, a professor of psychology at Boston University says. Usually within five minutes after moderate exercise you get a mood-enhancement effect. (as cited by Weir, 2011). Aerobic exercises help the body produce chemicals called endorphins. Endorphins are polypeptides that that bind the neuron-receptors in the brain which provides relief from pain (ciarac, 2006). : Also, a ere important issue is knowing how many calories youre supposed to consume each day and shooting to never overeat. Overeating is one of the worst things a person can do if theyre trying to get to a healthier weight because unless you have a daily workout routine, you wont burn those extra calories off. Exercise comes in all forms. Some people enjoy spending hours at the gym, while others do better Just taking a hike through the woods. As long as youre up and moving, youre doing your part. Swimming, yoga, and Samba classes are Just a few of the fun ways to get your work out in or one could do a more vigorous workout at home, doing POX or Insanity. Exercise is the best way to burn calories and melt away that unwanted body fat. For exercise to do its Job, you must fuel your body with the correct food, so it can perform its best. A good diet plays the largest role in having excellent physical fitness because no matter how well your workout routine is, you can never out work a bad diet. Developing these good eating habits is a struggle at first but once you get into the swing of things it becomes easier. Portion control is one of the major problems because peoples eyes tend to be bigger than their stomach and they also dont realize that shivering themselves full of food is not only bad for you, but it slows down your metabolism. We have always been taught to eat three meals a day but in reality what our bodies need are five to six small, healthy meals.

Obdurodon - Facts and Figures

Obdurodon - Facts and Figures Name: Obdurodon (Greek for tough tooth); pronounced ob-DOOR-oh-don Habitat: Swamps of Australia and South America Historical Epoch: Miocene (23-5 million years ago) Size and Weight: About one foot long and a few pounds Diet: Insects and crustaceans Distinguishing Features: Broad, flat bill studded with teeth About Obdurodon The prehistoric platypus Obdurodon used to count as one of the exceptions to the rule that every modern creature had a plus-sized ancestor lurking millions of years back in its family tree: this monotreme (mammalian egg layer) was about the same size as its modern playtpus relatives, but its bill was comparably broad and flat and (heres the main difference) studded with teeth, which adult platypuses lack. Judging by this dental equipment, paleontologists believe Obdurodon made its living by digging with its bill into the soft silt near lakes and rivers and eating whatever crawly things lay exposed (such as insects, crustaceans and the occasional small fish). As ancient as it was, Obdurodon wasnt the first platypus ancestor to appear on the prehistoric scene; there were also the early Cretaceous Teinolophos and Steropodon. We say used to in the paragraph above because a new discovery has placed Obdurodon squarely in the megafauna mammal category: a three-foot-long species (diagnosed on the basis of a single tooth) that was recently discovered Down Under, in sediments dating from 15 million years ago. Besides its size, Obdurodon tharalkooschild was distinguished by its highly developed teeth, which it used to crush crawfish, crustaceans, small vertebrates including birds and lizards, and possibly even the occasional turtle!

Amino Acids Characteristics and Structures

Amino Acids Characteristics and Structures Amino acids are a type of organic acid that contains both a carboxyl group (COOH) and an amino group (NH2). The general formula for an amino acid is given below. Although the neutrally-charged structure is commonly written, it is inaccurate because the acidic COOH and basic NH2 groups react with one another to form an internal salt called a zwitterion. The zwitterion has no net charge; there is one negative (COO-) and one positive (NH3) charge. There are 20 amino acids derived from proteins. While there are several methods of categorizing them, one of the most common is to group them according to the nature of their side chains. Nonpolar Side Chains There are eight amino acids with nonpolar side chains. Glycine, alanine, and proline have small, nonpolar side chains and are all weakly hydrophobic. Phenylalanine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, and methionine have larger side chains and are more strongly hydrophobic. Polar, Uncharged Side Chains There are also eight amino acids with polar, uncharged side chains. Serine and threonine have hydroxyl groups. Asparagine and glutamine have amide groups. Histidine and tryptophan have heterocyclic aromatic amine side chains. Cysteine has a sulfhydryl group. Tyrosine has a phenolic side chain. The sulfhydryl group of cysteine, phenolic hydroxyl group of tyrosine, and imidazole group of histidine all show some degree of pH-dependent ionization. Charged Side Chains There are four amino acids with charged side chains. Aspartic acid and glutamic acid have carboxyl groups on their side chains. Each acid is fully ionized at pH 7.4. Arginine and lysine have side chains with amino groups. Their side chains are fully protonated at pH 7.4.

Individual reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Individual reflection - Essay Example d three members and every member focused on their own part; I thought group presentations involved teamwork, where all the members discussed the whole assignment together. My part involved the critical analysis of the key economic, political, socio-cultural, and environmental factors influencing the destination of choice. Moreover, I tackled the background of the destination and the identification of the involvement of stakeholders in the planning process. Our group chose North Devon as the destination and analyzed the management plan. I felt enlightened to discover various aspects about North Devon. To begin with, we planned on how we were to meet for every discussion with the group members. At the first meeting, we read the guidance of the presentation requirements. Every member of the group was given their own role to research on. Every member of the group was required to make an outline of what they needed to do. The outline enabled me to be organized on my research from the initial to final stages of presenting the findings. All the members of the group tabled their outline for approval by the rest of the group members. The discussion groups helped me to keep on track with my research findings. We helped each other through sharing of information and the research process. The internet was a good source for me in the research and I shared this with all the group members. In addition, we also found the library books a good source of information, which provided concrete information regarding destination planning in tourism. However, I felt that it was so involving looking for p hysical books, while we could find the information and some of the books online. Moreover, we helped each other with any difficulty that we met in the investigation process. It was a challenge for us to determine the actual design of our PowerPoint presentation, but we had to compromise and assist each other in the determination and drafting of the actual work. This helped us to synthesize

Training Series Part 6 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Training Series Part 6 - Assignment Example â€Å"a criminal offense on the Web, a criminal offense regarding the Internet, a violation of law on the Internet, an illegality committed with regard to the Internet, breach of law on the Internet, computer crime, contravention through the Web, corruption regarding Internet, criminal activity on the Internet, disrupting operations through malevolent programs on the Internet, electric crime, Internet crime, sale of contraband on the Internet, stalking victims on the Internet, theft of identify on the Internet† Cybercrimes have now become extremely important to be dealt with. These are growing phenomenon in the current age. A hacker is a person who is able to deflect the online security system of a particular online database and then explore the limits of this database. Once a hacker is able to hack into someone’s account, then that particular act in itself amounts to hacking. Tom is a business developer with Apple Inc. He has been associated with this company for a long time. He has the relevant information which is confidential in nature. Don is a hacker who is into major form of hacking into different accounts. He indulges magnificently into this form of stealing and is a master of snatching confidential information. One day, Tom had installed all the financial and banking details of Apple Inc. onto his own laptop for a convenient way of working and signing deals with other companies. Don hacks into Tom’s laptop using the wifi and goes through all the details of Apple Inc. in detail. He then comes to know that he can sue this information for his own benefit. He steals the secretive information and online documents from Tom’s laptop and sells it to other rival companies such as Samsung Inc. which is a huge rival of Apple Inc. Samsung Inc. uses this information for its own benefit and trades this information for a financial gain for Don. Don becomes extremely rich and has bought a new house which is questioned by the

Strategy, analysis, & Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Strategy, analysis, & - Assignment Example The RBV view would encompass the VRIN analysis. Value Chain Analysis The value chain of the company is segregated into primary and supporting activities. Primary Activity The primary activities of the King’s College Hospital are to provide specialist and general health care services to the patients. The value chain analysis is important to lay down the business level strategies. The core activities of the hospital are providing medical treatment and emergency services to the admitted and regular patients. Inbound and Outbound Logistics The hospital works closely with various reputed companies for the supply of medical devices, supplements, medicines, injections, gloves and various other medical requirements (King’s College Hospital, 2013a). iSoft is responsible for the supply and delivery of advanced computer systems. Pregnacare is responsible for supplying medical requirements to the maternity department and Teleflex, Macmillan Cancer support is accountable for the tim ely supply of the medical devices and requirements to the various departments of the hospital (King’s College Hospital, 2013a). Operations The operational activities in King’s College Hospital include the hiring of the appropriate medical staff, establishing health guidelines within the hospital and maintenance of the staff along with patient records (King’s College Hospital, 2013b). Marketing and Sales King’s College Hospital is one of the most reputed and oldest hospitals in North and East London (King’s College Hospital, 2013c). The hospital hardly believes in aggressive promotion. However, print and social media service is used in promoting the latest technology or latest health service offering. Services Apart from providing regular and specialist health care services, the hospital also offers blood collection services, training to medical students, awareness program about various disease and several other health related services. Supporting A ctivity Support activities involve support assistance that is required for the primary activities. Procurement The hospital works closely with other organizations of repute like, Venture, BT, Cerner, 3M and other miscellaneous companies for the procurement of the medical devices and other requirements (King’s College Hospital, 2013d). It procures information technology and other communications services from BT, hardware and software services from Cerner and resorts to Liftec for acquiring elevator devices. Technology development The hospital is highly dependent on technology for performing its medical operations and surgery. Technology like, neurological image scaling and scanning system are highly used for the liver transplantation and cancer units (King’s College Hospital, 2013c). Human Resource Management King’s College Hospital has a qualified medical staff which comprises of educated doctors and nurses. The efficiency and the repute of the hospital are tota lly dependent on the skills of the medical staff and

Henry Ford the founder of the Ford Motor Company Essay

Henry Ford the founder of the Ford Motor Company - Essay Example In his youth, Henry knew how to help his parents with the farm chores. However, instead of establishing himself in the agriculture, Henry became more inclined into mechanics, machinery, understanding how things worked and what new possibilities lay in store. As a young boy, he took apart everything he got his hands on. He quickly became known around the neighborhood for fixing people's watches ("Henry Ford"). Although he was deprived of formal education, Henry knows a lot about machinery and he knows how to make small machineries work. At fifteen, he was able to build his own steam engine and at sixteen years old, young Henry left Dearborn and went to the town's nearby city. In Detroit, he worked as an apprentice machinist. For three years, he remained in the same company working as an apprentice although there are times when he goes back to his hometown and helps his parents with the farm. Being responsible both to his job as well as to his family, he makes time to go home and repairing and overhauling his father's farm equipments at the same time working in Detroit. When Henry became an engineer at Edison Illuminating Company in Detroit in 1891, he strongly dedicated himself to the industrial business and production. His pursuits were geared towards the further development of the industry that would benefit not only the rich but those who belonged to the middle class. His promotion to Chief Engineer in 1893 gave him enough time and money to devote attention to his personal experiments on internal combustion engines ("The Life"). He had several experiments involving combustion engines, yet it had concluded when he was able to make his own self-propelled vehicle in 1896 - the Quadricycle ("The Life"). It was the first "horseless carriage" that he actually built. It had four wire wheels that looked like heavy bicycle wheels, was steered with a tiller like a boat, and had only two forward speeds with no reverse. It may have been way too far from the vehicles that the modern society now has as well as from the cars that he himself had produced later, yet it was the most significant and the most meaningful accomplishment that Henry had had in the past. It was with this vehicle when the Ford business came to reality. It was only with the creation of the Quadricycle when Henry's experiments became real. With the Quadricycle, his theories no longer remained as is - like the gas engine he built on his kitchen table in the 1890's, which was just an engine with nothing to power. The Quadricycle showed enough popularity and potential that it launched the beginning of Ford's business ventures ("Henry Ford"). Although Ford was not the first to build a self-propelled vehicle with a gasoline engine, he was, however, one of several automotive pioneers who helped this country become a nation of motorists ("The Life"). In 1899 Ford left Edison to help run the Detroit Automobile Company. Cars were still built essentially one at a time. On the other hand, Henry hoped to incorporate the ideas from other industries in order to create a more efficient vehicle. He wanted to mix together the various characteristics from other industries such as the standardized parts as Eli Whitney had used with gun manufacturing or assembly line methods George Eastman tried in photo processing. Yet, instead of encouragement, Henry was left with many criticisms about how absurd and foolish his ideas may be. As such, he quit Detroit

Critical Thinking Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Critical Thinking - Assignment Example The effectiveness of sight can be limited by; colour blindness, night blindness, and when an eye is damaged such as looking directly at the sun, presbyopia which is aging. The sense of hearing is also limited by high pitch, loudness, and sound waves which are of high rates. (Schopenhauer, 1851) There are some reasons for believing in the accuracy or inaccuracy of sensory information. Though the sensory organs may be active, environmental influences may tamper with our interpretation of the data the organ is sending to us. For example you can look into a forest and hear the silence and think that you can walk freely and safely but when walking an animal come down from a tree. Sensory organs are not always correct when interpreting some Sensory data that’s why we should not always rely on them. The sense of sight provides accurate information about the surrounding. For example if you see a tree swaying you know there is wind. When one touches a hot substance, a person’s sense of feeling will send a message to the brain and you are able to know that you can get burned. There are factors that contribute to the accuracy of sensory data and they are; oral sensory sensitivity, repeatability, use of mathematical tools to assess accuracy and reliability. By oral sensitivity, what a person says is stored in the brain since one can remember very well what one said and the responses given by others and the reactions from others. There are short and long term memories. Both rely on the sensory information storage (SIS) which holds images. Repeatability is reminding one thing at a time to avoid loosing some information which might be needed for reference. It improves the accuracy of information since the information cannot get lost. Also with the use of mathematical tools, accuracy is very high since the measurements are taken with a lot of care because one doesn’t want to make mistakes. Nature is the environment that we are living in and it’s the one that

Henry Ford the founder of the Ford Motor Company Essay

Henry Ford the founder of the Ford Motor Company - Essay Example In his youth, Henry knew how to help his parents with the farm chores. However, instead of establishing himself in the agriculture, Henry became more inclined into mechanics, machinery, understanding how things worked and what new possibilities lay in store. As a young boy, he took apart everything he got his hands on. He quickly became known around the neighborhood for fixing people's watches ("Henry Ford"). Although he was deprived of formal education, Henry knows a lot about machinery and he knows how to make small machineries work. At fifteen, he was able to build his own steam engine and at sixteen years old, young Henry left Dearborn and went to the town's nearby city. In Detroit, he worked as an apprentice machinist. For three years, he remained in the same company working as an apprentice although there are times when he goes back to his hometown and helps his parents with the farm. Being responsible both to his job as well as to his family, he makes time to go home and repairing and overhauling his father's farm equipments at the same time working in Detroit. When Henry became an engineer at Edison Illuminating Company in Detroit in 1891, he strongly dedicated himself to the industrial business and production. His pursuits were geared towards the further development of the industry that would benefit not only the rich but those who belonged to the middle class. His promotion to Chief Engineer in 1893 gave him enough time and money to devote attention to his personal experiments on internal combustion engines ("The Life"). He had several experiments involving combustion engines, yet it had concluded when he was able to make his own self-propelled vehicle in 1896 - the Quadricycle ("The Life"). It was the first "horseless carriage" that he actually built. It had four wire wheels that looked like heavy bicycle wheels, was steered with a tiller like a boat, and had only two forward speeds with no reverse. It may have been way too far from the vehicles that the modern society now has as well as from the cars that he himself had produced later, yet it was the most significant and the most meaningful accomplishment that Henry had had in the past. It was with this vehicle when the Ford business came to reality. It was only with the creation of the Quadricycle when Henry's experiments became real. With the Quadricycle, his theories no longer remained as is - like the gas engine he built on his kitchen table in the 1890's, which was just an engine with nothing to power. The Quadricycle showed enough popularity and potential that it launched the beginning of Ford's business ventures ("Henry Ford"). Although Ford was not the first to build a self-propelled vehicle with a gasoline engine, he was, however, one of several automotive pioneers who helped this country become a nation of motorists ("The Life"). In 1899 Ford left Edison to help run the Detroit Automobile Company. Cars were still built essentially one at a time. On the other hand, Henry hoped to incorporate the ideas from other industries in order to create a more efficient vehicle. He wanted to mix together the various characteristics from other industries such as the standardized parts as Eli Whitney had used with gun manufacturing or assembly line methods George Eastman tried in photo processing. Yet, instead of encouragement, Henry was left with many criticisms about how absurd and foolish his ideas may be. As such, he quit Detroit

Server Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Server - Essay Example The computer network should also be secured from damages that may result from physical factors and dangers caused by computer virus. Thus, network security is extremely essential in any company; the chief information officer should be aware of how to ensure network security. There are several ways in which unauthorized users can gain access to the peer-to-peer networks in a company. First, they can access the peer networks by using any of the networked computers to type a unique username as well as password. This can be prevented by making sure that the networked computers cannot be accessed physically. To achieve this, the BIOS security should be enabled; this makes sure that the user sets an access name and password for the computers (Maiwald, 2003). Maiwald (2003) asserts that hackers and other unauthorized users can gain access to a company’s sever-based network by using the name and password of another person. In such a case, passwords should be changed on a regular basis, and they should not also be written down. This way, it will be extremely difficult for unauthorized users to access the company’s network. Data encryption can also be used to ensure that the network is secure and not accessible to unauthorized persons. Data should be encrypted before sending it onto the network. This way, the data will become unreadable even by a person who may attempt to tap the cable and read the data when it passes over the network. Upon arrival at the proper computer, the code designed to decipher encrypted data divides it into bits. The code then translates the bits into information that can be understood (Gollmann, 2011). According to Brown (2000), the network infrastructure of a company should also be protected from computer viruses which may infect the operating systems and files. Viruses can be transmitted through direct cable connection, floppy disks or CDs. Other means in which viruses can be transmitted include electronic ways such as through

Employment trends affect Gail Hunter and Selsdon Park hotels Essay Example for Free

Employment trends affect Gail Hunter and Selsdon Park hotels Essay Identify and describe external and internal influences that affect human resources planning. In your discussion relate how each factor might affect human resources within your chosen organisation. Selsdon Park Hotel Introduction: The role of a HR manager is to recruit and train new employees into a business. The business that I am looking at is Selsdon Park Hotel. One of the main roles of the hr management is to employ people into the company. This is called induction training. External influences: external influences are things that affect the human resource manager every day but things that are out of the human resource managers control. So all this external influences affect the human resource manager which affects the hr planning Economic Climate: At Selsdon Park Hotel the economic climate will change due to many external factors that may affect the company. This may include government laws coming into play, weather and many other natural factors. Also within many businesses there is a changing money climate will also affect the running of the businesses, the changing money climate would affect the job of Selsdon Park Hotel Resource manager. The changing money climate would affect the HR managers job because of many factors, this include interest rates and training new staff. This could lead to the hotel not having the correct staffing and then the slower running of the business. The stock market could play a part in this. For example in a poor economy many customers would have less disposable income. Selsdon Park Hotel with the lost of many of its customer would be making less profit which would lead to reducing non-essential staff. High and low interest rates would also have an effect on the economic climate which would infl uence the human resource planning. With higher interest rates people would have less disposable income and vice versa. Consumer Trends: Money within any business would depend on the selling of rooms at Selsdon Park Hotel. There are many factors which affect the consumer trends. This includes the amount of leisure time they customers have. Often in many the companies the higher your role in that organisation the less leisure time you have. Many companies do tend to aim a lot of there higher priced holidays at people with larger disable incomes which include senior managers etc. Also with the introduction of the internet the selling of holidays has increased greatly. Instead of people waiting around for hours in travel agencies, it is easier and less hassle to log onto the internet and choose your holidays online. Also you get the best deals on the internet. With the travel agents, they do tend to try and sell you the most expensive holidays but online you can get some great flight deals with Ryan air. This affects the job of the human resource manager because the manager must adjust and adapt to the trends of the consumer. And to adapt to the liking of the consumer the Human Resource manager must make sure that the employees within the business are up to date with new procedures implimented by HR. Employment trends Employment trends affect Gail Hunter and Selsdon Park hotels HR department greatly. Many people go for jobs which are seen as popular at the time. For example many students other the summer holidays like to have holiday rep jobs in Europe or would try to find jobs in hotels doing the summer also. This could affect the staff planning of Hail Hunter because there is a lot of competition in the area for hotel staff. These include Croydon Park hotel, Jurys Inn and the Hilton hotel .Selsdon Park Hotel would have to make sure that there positions at waiters look more desirable through there advertisement and job description through the recruitment department. State of the industry: The state of the travel and tourism industry affects the job of the Human Resource Manager a lot. This is because if a new resort or destination becomes available for customers to visit the HR manager would have to train thier staff to so they can market the destination to the customers. Also with new technologies the HR manager would have a larger budget and then would be able to employ a larger work force or give out incentives to current employees Skill shortages: As in many companies there may be a shortage in the skills needed to do a specific job. This may be because the company may not be able to find a suitable applicant and may have to put someone else with similar or not the desired skills in there place. Taking this action may lead to slow running of the company and stress being put on the staff below and on the level of these staff members. At Selsdon Park you have to get through specific process to become an employee in the business. Gail Hunter who is Selsdon Park hotels Personnel Manager or Human Resource Manager would have to select applicants and short list them down to the top 50. There are many skills needed. For example to become a Selsdon Park Hotel waiter you must have obtained the following skills first: Ideally you would need to have at least two years experience within this role, preferably within the hotel environment or quality restaurants. You must be a team player with good supervisory skills to enable you to assist in the day to day running of the kitchen and to ensure that a first class service is provided to our guests. You will be required to cook to a minimum AA one rosette standard. The hotel has a busy restaurant, extensive banqueting and a successful pub operation . There are a number of requirement that u need to become a member of Selsdon Park hotels staff. These are as follows * Experienced in a customer services environment comfortable in a selling role * Physically fit with a good attendance record in your current position * Hard working, flexible willing to operate on a shift roster * Over 18 years of age * Of normal vision (contact lenses acceptable) * Able to swim well * In possession of a valid EU passport * Fluent in English (both written and spoken) * Ideally possessing knowledge of a second European language * Prepared to work unsociable hours, any day of the year, at any time including weekends * Ready to meet the challenge of dealing with people and demanding situations * Friendly and outgoing with a lively personality As you can see from the skills required Selsdon Park hotel ask a lot from people who want to join there team. As the Human resource manager, you would have to go applications and cvs to try and find the best persons for the job who fit the criteria needed. With many applicants who do not have the skills required but who are accept on the job through a interviewing basis may need extra training, and may have to go on training courses. This would take a slice out of Gail hunters Selsdon Park hotels Human Resource managers budget. Location issue: The locations of Selsdon Park hotel may be a problem for the human resource planning for the hotel. This is because of the accessibility of the skilled staff the company needs to the airports are poor. This is when the human resource manager would have to decide carefully the most skilled staff they need for the hotel and how much out of the budget they would have to get. Also with people who live an extremely long way from the hotel there are living quarters on site which they could use. Competition for employees: When looking for specific employees needed to do a job in Selsdon Park hotel there may be external competition from other companies to employ this person also. For examples if there is a shortage of waiters companies within Croydon may all try to compete for the same person. These hotels include Croydon Park hotel and juries inn. Each of these hotels will advertise them selves in such away and would try to make them seem better to work at then the other one. They would try and sell there business to the potential employee. They would mainly do this through advertisement. Selsdon Park also has a website http://www.principal-hotels.com/hotels.asp?hotelid=2pageid=12 which explains jobs available and the pros and benefits of the job. Weather: Natural factors like the weather can also play a big part in the decisions of a HR manager. If the weathers get very serve and spoils the activates they have planned for the day outside it is up to the HR manager Laws: Also there are many laws which affect the role of the Human resource manager. These include laws and regulations that the manager has to go by. When selecting and employing people into the business the HR manager at Selsdon park hotel has to look go by the following laws. This are: 1 Equal opportunities law 2 Race relation act 3 Sex Discrimination act 4 Equal pay act Each of these acts must be follow by law and if these acts are not followed it could lead to an industrial tribunal. This laws and acts are in place to help the HR manager at Selsdon Park hotel not hinder them. If all this laws are followed correctly the HR manager would select the best person for the position applied regardless of race or sex. Internal Factors: Staff Turn Over: Within an organisation there is a number of staff they employ. In many companies like Selsdon Park Hotel they try to limit the amount of staff turn over. This is because of the costs that the company would be paying out in redundancies to the employed affected if Selsdon Park hotel does not have a valid reason. Staff turn over is a term used by a business to describe the coming and leaving of people within the company. The higher the staff turn over the more the business would suffer because the coming and leaving of people would use up resources needed by the HR manager and would also affect the businesses productivity Responding to consumer trends in terms of products and services: It is also the job of the human resource manager to respond and cater to the consumer trends in the products and services of a company. In Ryan air they would analysis the best selling product and also see why the other flight packages are not selling. They would look at there flight prices and compare them against other short haul flight providers in Europe. Staff Turner Over, Career Moves: Staff turn over is to do with the number of staff leaving and joining a company. It is the job of Selsdon park hotels human resource manager Gail Hunter to make sure they have the lowest amounts of staff turner over. This affects the human resource manager because it is his job to employ people to work in the company who have the right skills needed to perform the job correctly. Any human resource manager with a large amount of staff leaving and coming into the business would have a lot of work on there hands. This would be because they would have to go through job interviews and selection processes. Doing all this would take up a lot of the managers time so it is the human resources mangers job to make sure everyone in the company is well catered too, and are also satisfied with there job. Sickness rates and Absenteeism: Human resource managers have to monitor the sickness and absenteeism in the company to make sure no one is taking to much time off and also whether to give out sickness pay which if a lot of people are off at one time would take a large slice out of the HR budget. Organisational structures, staff roles and responsibilities: It is the job of Gail Hunter to monitor the organisational structures and staff roles in Selsdon Park hotel. The organisational structure is the structure that controls a company and dictates who you report to and who reports to you. A group of people for example cabin crew are control and overseen by a team leader which in turn reports to customer relations manager. This hierarchy is critical in the business so that all the employees know there jobs and rolls. Laws: There are lot of laws which Selsdon Park Hotel must follow to make sure of the smooth running of the business. Because Selsdon Park hotel is also a restaurant and serves food they must follow the food safety Act 1990. This act requires that owners and operators of food businesses take all reasonable precautions and exercise due diligence to ensure that they comply in every respect with current food legislation. Another thing which is tied to the food laws is personnel hygiene which when handling food must be very good with long hair tied back and also hats worn when preparing food. Source: Principal Hotels employee handbook Age of Employees: Also the age is a main factor which companies have to be aware of. They cant employ anyone under the age of 16 by law or the company could be prosecuted. Also many companies try not to employ women of a certain age. This is usually 20-30. Companies should not do this but they do because women at these ages are more likely to have children. So if a company employs a large amount of women at this age they would have to pay out maternity leave if they have children within this time. Training Organisation: It is the responsibility of Gail Hunter the Director of Human Resources at Selsdon Park Hotel to make sure all her staffs are trained well. The organisation must make sure the new employee in training noses about hazards and risks within the workplace. It would be the job of the training person to tell the trainee the hazards and risks within the workplace and also to deal with them. These hazards may include: 1 Torn or ripped carpets 2 Broken furniture 3 Overloaded sockets 4 Loose flexes 5 Trailing cables 6 Overloaded tables/shelving 7 Spillages 8 Broken Glass 9 Rubbish accumulating Most of these hazards seem simple and straight forward but when entering a new workplace the simple list of tasks may seem daunting .Another thing they will teach the new employee would be risk assessments. Risk assessments are where hazards are identified and the risk is identified from this hazards. The new employee is also told where the first aid boxes are so that if an accident does happen they can quickly deal with it. In Selsdon Park Hotel the first add boxes are situated: 1 Housekeeping department 2 Kitchen 3 Reception 4 Room Service 5 HR 6 Greens department 7 The Restaurant 8 Conference and Banqueting Vale try Source: Principal Hotels employee handbook The HR and staff are very important to the business. This is because the HR department manage the staff to make sure they are proforming well and that their needs are catered to. It is also the job of the HR department to make sure that all the employees are up to date with all the new legislation and laws implemented to company. Also HR has to make sure that all the employees are trained well. This is so important because when in the eye of the customer the employee has to know what they are doing when taking down bookings and other such things. The lack of training could lead to the company loseing large amounts of money and also customers who would look for other organisations. If all staff are trained well and know what they are doing the performance of company is going to be better, and also the employees will feel more confident when dealing with customer service and company situations.

Factors Affecting Participation with Sustainability

Factors Affecting Participation with Sustainability Participation is an essential component of development and the degree of participation in development programs is a key determinant of success or failure. According to Bagherian et al. (2009) the activites and factors which contribute with success of particiption still unkown and remind a mystery. But some researchers and scholars studied peoples participation and affecting factors in development projects they found some key factors which affect people’s participation. There are a variety of factors affecting local participation in development programmes and projects such as economic, political, legislative, administrative, socio-cultural, and geographical factors. Furthermore, isolation and scattered habitat of the poor people; work load, especially for women, weak health condition, low level of education and exposure to non local information, weak leaders and lack of know-how to move in this direction in order to promote their interests. (Heck, 2003;Cohen Uphoff, 1980; UNDP , 2007; Oakley, 1991). Heck (2003) added some factors and constraints of implementing and support agencies: centralized planning, decision making and implementation, lack of skilled staff to promote participation and pressure from the side of implementing institution and supporting organizations to produce visible results quickly. Economic factors: Mohammad (2010) asserts that economic factors extremely affects peoples participation, which they are bound to live and adjusted. He added that socially poor, minorities and underprivileged communities rarely asked for participation in government lead programs and projects. For the best result, it could be crucial to consider and engage individuals and minorities from different levels in the leadership structure of the community. As Wall et al. (2005) cited that â€Å"Leaders must make every effort to recruit and involve people of both racial and ethnic diversity and with lower socioeconomic status as their interests and concerns should not be ignored† (155). Political factors: Political factors affect peoples participation in different ways. One of the main causes of apathetic situation of people participation in developing countries is political obstacle. Samad (2002) explained that beside of the socioeconomic stance, political background of stakeholders has been an influential factor in the form of participation consequence. He added that those stakeholders, who are politically, socially and economically dominate, for their own interest may frustrate the participation of others (cited in Mohammad, 2010). Heck (2003) stated that in number of countries the rural and urban elites influence the political and administrative structures to turn the policies in their favor. Socio-cultural factors: In some communities, culture directly affects people participation in development projects. Afghan community is one of them, which culture is a big challenge for minorities especially women’ participation. Likewise, Cohen and Uphoff (1980) hinted in their compressive model of people’s participation in rural development that culture is one of three big challenges which affect people’s participation in development initiatives. Beyond all these factors in some cases, people do not want to participate in development projects. For more effective participation some practical steps are very important which include: demanded-led idea for project or program, ensuring that the design is thought of as an investment in a successful outcome and thus given adequate time and other resources, the design incorporates specific activities and resources needed to implement participatory strategies, distinctly specifying the target group who and which groups to be participated and who will benefit, defining the type and level of participation to be achieved and selecting skilled team in participatory approaches (AusAID, 2010). Brahmi and Thakur (2011) undertook a study to find socio-economicfactors which affecting peoples participation in the Hariyali project in Himachal Pardesh, India. For study data were collected from 71 people who were involved in the project and 428 farmers through survey. The study findings showed total 22 factors noticed by respondents which affects people’s participation from these 22 factors 18 were socio-economic factors. The key factors were: lack of awareness about programmes, poor economic conditions, illiteracy, lack of faith in government programmes, village politics, subsidy culture, lack of exposure visits, low interest in money contribution, lack of demonstration and transparency. About 90 percent of the respondents perceived that lack of awareness (i.e. Knowledge of project concepts, objectives and their benefits, guidelines and responsibilities of the user group) were the most challenging factors. The study also revealed some program related factors such as lack of entry point activities, lack of flexibility in expenditure according to field conditions, variation in wage payments and lack of provision of advance payments. Similarly, Nxumalo and Oladele (2013) examined factors affecting farmers’ participation in agricultural program in Zululand district, South Africa. Three municipalities and 90 people were randomly selected. Data were collected through structured questionnaire, frequency count, percentages and the probit regression model were used for analysis. The study showed that farmers were inclined to participation, but luck of fund, unavailability of land, limited resources were major factors for participation. Bagherian et al. (2009) conducted a study to trace the factors which influencing local people’s participation in Watershed Management Programs (WMP) in Iran. Two hundred respondents were questioned through personal interview, correlation and multiple regression were employed for data analyses. The finding demonstrated that the level of people participation was moderate. Regression findings showed five factors had impact on the level of participation of people in this program. These factors were: level of people’s satisfaction of prior programs, people’s attitude toward WMP, people’s knowledge of WMP, their monthly income from alternative occupation and their expectations of WMP. Despite of many problems in Afghanistan two main obstacles have been encountered by National Solidarity Program (NSP) which highly effects people’s participation. First, security problems, due to ongoing conflict in some parts of the country, it has been difficult to contract facilitating people’s participation in such areas has been in danger. This has resulted in a slow pace of programme implementation. Second, local governments and elite of communities, in some regions have interfered in development projects which have brought obstacles for people’s participation (NSP, 2010). Dufour and Antezar (2003) carried out a research to analyze participation and consultation of affected populationin Nahrin district, Baghlan, Afghanistan. Data were collected from the local population, Afghan aid workers, international aid workers and the Afghan interim authorities. For data collection different tools were used such as interview with formal and informal focus groups, visits, participation in meetings, and review of secondary sources. The study showed some contextual factors, for instance security, geography, social characteristics, cultural factors and interference of local power holders. The key factors which affect sustainability have been grouped under nine main headings, namely: partner government and donor policies, local participation and ownership, management and organization, finance, awareness and training, technology, socio-culture, environment and external political and economical factors (AusAID, 2000). Sahee foundation[1](2008) conducted a study to find sustainability of rural development projects in Swaziland. Fifty six rural development projects were surveyed correlation had been tested, used the Kruskal-Wallis test and the Kendall Rank correlation. The findings revealed that the project is not an effortless way to earn wealth with little effort and input. People awareness about their responsibilities, working of knowledgeable persons hand to hand with other members of the project for achieving the common aim likely lead projects to sustainability. Furthermore, the study showed that cooperation between implementing NGOs, beneficiaries and local authorities were mostly satisfactory or even good. Despite of these positive points achieving stable membership was one of the big difficulties in most of the projects. In most cases the membership shrank until a small core group remained. Some projects ended because NGOs had stopped visiting projects after completion due to lack of fund a nd the beneficiaries had no possibility to improve their skills and develop their project. [1] Sahee: Sustainability for Agriculture, Health, Education and Environment (2008)

Lee Harvey Oswald :: essays research papers

Outline Thesis Statement: Because of extensive evidence, I believe that Lee Harvey Oswald did not act alone on the day of November 22, 1963 in the assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. The additional gunman was strategically placed in the grassy knoll area, in order to shoot at Kennedy from a frontal view (Rubinstein 4). A. Opening Paragraph   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Since November 23, 1963, the day after President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated, there have been speculations as to the happenings of November 22, 1963. Along with the Warren Commission, there are hundreds of conspiracies and theories attempting to explain the assassination of Kennedy. Many people agree with the Warren Commission in that Lee Harvey Oswald acted as the lone gunman, while others maintain that another gunman was involved. Because of extensive evidence, I believe that Oswald did not act alone on November 22, 1963 in the assassination of Kennedy. The additional gunman was strategically placed in the grassy knoll area, in order to shoot at Kennedy from a frontal view (Rubinstein 4).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   B. Warren Commission (Refutation) 1. The Warren Commission was a team of people chosen to examine the assassination of John F. Kennedy (Rubinstein 2).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  a. Give a brief summary of the Warren Commission’s account. 2. Many people agree with the Warren Commission in that Lee Harvey Oswald is the lone gunman.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  a. Give evidence as to why they agree.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  b. Tell why this evidence is wrong. C. The Grassy Knoll (Reason) 1. The grassy knoll was an area on the left side of Elm Street, where President Kennedy was shot (Hurt insert page).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  a. Give more general information on the grassy knoll area. 2. The grassy knoll, when the shooting began, was positioned in front of Kennedy’s limousine (Rubinstein 4).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  a. Describe the â€Å"head snap† of John F. Kennedy. D. More Than One Gunman (Reason) 1. Often, it is concluded that a lone gunman couldn’t have made the shots in the short seconds of the shooting (Rubinstein 4). a. It appears that President Kennedy and Governor Connally were injured by two different shots (Hurt 63).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   b. Describe the abilities of Oswald’s gun (Hurt 63). E. Witnesses on the Grassy Knoll (Reason) 1. Several eyewitnesses to President Kennedy’s assassination, which were present in the grassy knoll area, testify to the fact that a shot was made from the grassy knoll area. a. Gordon Arnold was standing in the grassy knoll area when he was asked to move over a little. Just as he stepped away he felt a bullet nearly hit his left ear (Hurt 111).

Brand Personality Assessment of Royal Enfield Essay

Introduction Manufactured in Redditch, UK, the Bullet was the culmination of designs that date back to 1933. The classic 350 cc model made its debut at the Earl’s Court motor show in 1948 and was an immediate success. Its big brother, the 500 cc came along later, in 1953. In 1955, a satellite factory was established in Madras, India, to meet demands from the Indian Army. When the UK factory closed in 1970, the Madras plant continued production. In 1994, Enfield India was acquired by the large engineering group, Eicher, which has since made a number of improvements to the bike. However, despite these, its distinctive appearance remains unchanged and provides an opportunity to enjoy the privilege of riding a â€Å"classic† reproduction bike. First World War (1911–1920) Inter-war years (1921–1939) Second World War (1939–1945) 1913 Enfield 425cc 1923 Royal Enfield 225cc 1941 Royal Enfield 250cc Royal Enfield in Nepal All the Royal Enfield motorcycle in Nepal is imported from India by Dugar Brothers and Sons. It is manufactured in Chennai, India and by 2013 its Pune branch will also start manufacturing and the facility will be of same capacity. Currently 70,000 to 75,000 units of motorcycle are manufactured in a year. Dugar Brothers and Sons is the sole distributor of Royal Enfield in Nepal. It branches are in Kathmandu, Narayanghat, Birgunj, Nepalgunj and Biratnagar. Among these branches Narayanghat and Biratnagar branch has the highest number of sales. It has many distributors spread around the nation. Among all the branches and distributor the most number of Royal Enfield motorcycle is sold by the dealer in Pokhara and dealer in Butwal’s sales volume is the second highest. The highest number of sales is usually during festival season. Royal Enfield Bullet Electra/classic 350 cc are the two most selling brand here in Nepal and the same product of 500 cc is the second highest selling Royal Enfield bike. Royal Enfield’s most popular brand of today is Bullet and it is often taken as synonymous to Royal Enfield. And this is the only bike in the 350 cc and 500 cc segment of bike here in Nepal. And thunderbird segment is least popular and not sold currently. Royal Enfield was first manufactured in England more than hundred years ago. It has a long legacy and a war history as this motorcycle was used in both first and second world war. It has always been perceived as a quality product and it has been able to retain the same perception even after a century and it has been able to position itself as a Luxurious, Premium and a quality product. Royal Enfield’s target customers for Nepal are upper middle and upper class segment. It faces competition from new brands like KTM Duke, VR and others sports bikes. But it has its own set of loyal customer and these competitors are of very little threat to them as the model and performance both vary largely from other bikes. It is a premi um brand and its part and maintenance cost is high as well and it even consumes more fuel as its millage is about 20-25 Km per liter of petrol and petrol in Nepal is expensive too. It is a luxurious item for Nepalese people and hardly used by a middle class commuters. There is no age limit for the product like Royal Enfield Motorcycle as people from teen to older generation of 45 and above still have the love for the bike. Customers of this bike can be adventure rider, traveler, once that have the love for classic things or admirer of a legacy it carries. Royal Enfield has become very popular among the youngsters of Nepal. They seem to prefer this brand among other. Although it does not have a proper showroom in city area where most bike showrooms are located instead it has only one show room inside the industrial state of Kathmandu but still it has been selling the same unit of bike as it used to when it had its showroom in New Baneshwor as well. Its market share is only about 1% of total market share in the two wheeler segment. People buying Bullet usually find the place to buy the bike as it is a premium product here in Nepal and people generally come prepared through research in internet visiting www.royalenfield.com of India and as same bikes are imported and sold here in Nepal adequate information can be gathered from there and they find the place to buy the bike through friends and relatives or from NTC call centre which will provide the phone number of the distribution centre on demand. The point of difference for the Royal Enfield with other two wheeler motorcycle is its physical strength, quality assurance, retro look and traditional system still incorporated and above all it is the oldest two wheeler company. The price of the motorcycle is not over charged as well for the segment of the bike it lies in. Royal Enfield has not changed with advancement of the technology. This bike is still very similar to the bike that was produces decades ago. But this is what customer mostly like about the brand and it even has even advertised its classic chrome saying â€Å"old school magic, recreated† and this brand has really done well in the market in terms of sales. Nut there is still that segment in the market that would like to own a Royal Enfield but want it with a change and new technology incorporated; keeping this in mind Royal Enfield has come up with a Thunder Bird 500 cc with led light, double disk brakes and other various changes which will soon enter the Nep ali market as well. There are various clubs like Nasa Bullet Club (managed by distributor themselves), Himalayan Enfield and Sector Summit in Nepal that unites Royal Enfield owners and organizes tours and rally. These rally and tour are also a source of promotion and it has been able to lure more customers to the showroom. People like to get associated in such events and to do so they even buy the motorcycle. When other clubs organize such events the distributors mostly participate through sponsorship. They participate in different auto show like NADA Auto Show. They publish print advertisement in popular national daily newspaper every fortnight and even influence some magazines to cover a story of the Royal Enfield. They do not do television commercials but appear in programs like Wheel Factor in news 24 where over all description of the motorcycle is given. The main reason for the company not being able to tap all the potential market is its age old technology which requires special knowledge for the maintenance of the Motorcycle. Customers have different types of problem and most number of customer complain is about the limited number of service centre which makes it very difficult for customer to have their motorcycle repaired and moreover private workshop owner are not capable to repair the bike as it has a very complex engine, and its engineering is also very different from other motorcycles of today which make it very difficult for every motorcycle mechanic to have idea to repair the motorcycle so customers had suggested them to have service centers in different location rather than having a single service centre. Keeping this in mind the Dugar Brother and Sons even had a workshop and training program for the existing workshop owner and the interested new people who want to open a motorcycle workshop. The training was for free and it had a good number of enthusiasts joining the program. Customer’s attitude towards Royal Enfield I had interviewed few Royal Enfield owners and there was mixed comments on the motorcycle. Pride, power and superiority was something that everyone pointed out. They were satisfied with the functionality aspect of the bike and loved the sound emitted by the bike. On asking what made them buy the bike I found out that it was the retro look of the bike, the sound it emits, the powerful engine and the pride that comes with the bike. they even shared their experience they had joining different tours from Royal Enfield owners club, they found such tours very interesting and exciting as they would mostly travelling in a group and in the rest point they would have various activities for entertainment and they could socialize with the likeminded people on the tour as well. Riding Royal Enfield gives them a certain level of satisfaction, joy, pride, excitement and confidence. They said it was very comfortable on a highway; bike really gets lighter as you race it and even turning will be easy. The main problem that everyone indicated was the limited number of service centers and workshops. People have faced many problem due to unavailability of service centers that could fix the Royal Enfield bike and due to the complex nature of bike every mechanic cannot repair and maintain the bike thus the owners really gets in trouble when there is problem in the bike as they have to take the bike to some limited number of service center of Royal Enfield. They said it would be better if the bike adopts some new technology like led headlights, fuel indicators, tubeless wheel etc but without changing the appearance, as it has already introduced self start on the bike and is of huge success. Another well recognized problem was the high maintenance cost and expensive parts of the Royal Enfield. Where normal bikes that run in the street of Kathmandu run on an average of 1 liter engine oil it needs 2.5 liters which makes the regular maintenance cost double the cost of normal bike. Moreover the costly part that is not readily available and takes long lead time for arrival and the labor c ost associated with it is also higher making it more expensive to keep and maintain. It is because of this reasons people despite their outmost love for the bike had to sell their beloved possession, and some don’t even buy the product when they know all these about the product. Positioning of Royal Enfield as a brand Royal Enfield has positioned itself as a premium brand in Nepal and targeted upper middle and above class of people but it is actually for middle class people in India. It is perceived as a quality product. Although it is made in India people because of the age old legacy it carries people are confident on its performance and quality. It is targeted for travel enthusiasts and adventure riders more than for daily commuters. Although its price with reference to its engine cc is not that high its spare parts and maintenance cost is definitely high which makes it more attractive to the upper middle and above class of people. It spends very less in advertisement and promotion, still people find their ways to learn about the bike and buy it even if they have to search for the vendor. People find pride in owning the bike. There are different clubs started by the authorized dealer and likeminded people who love to ride and own the bike. FINDINGS Aaker’s Brand Personality Scale A sample size of 16 responded were asked to fill the questionnaire, which included the five major factors (i.e. sincerity, excitement, competence, sophistication and ruggedness) with their underlining facets as suggested by the Aaker’s model. Respondents were asked to rate how descriptive each personality trait was for Royal Enfield on a 7 point scale (1being extremely not descriptive & 7 being extremely descriptive). The summary of the result is shown below Factors| Ratings | Sincerity| 1.0555| Excitement| 1.6420| Competence| 1.3203| Sophistication| 0.9687| Ruggedness| 1.8125| From the obtained result we can say that Royal Enfield as a brand has received high scores on all except the sophistication. The reason behind the brand to score low point in the sophistication factor might be because the customers are actually looking for the age old traditional antic bike which has very less modification to its original design thus making it less sophisticated and people like it that way. Projective Technique Here in the research I have used a comparison task to uncover the true feelings of the respondent about the brand. The respondents were asked to compare Royal Enfield with animal, activity, car, music, perfume, profession, sports, emotion and fabric and provide reason for their selection as well. Royal Enfield and animal Most of the respondent has compared the Royal Enfield with animals like Lion, Tiger, Rhinoceros, Giraffe and Dog. The highest number of respondent however has compared the brand with Lion because of its appearance, its power and king’s status in jungle and the roar which is comparable with the sound emitted by the bike. It is compared with tiger looking at its strength and toughness. Rhinoceros was mostly selected for classic and huge body of the bike. One respondent has even compared the bike with dog keeping the sound in mind he has compared it with the dogs barking. Royal Enfield and car Royal Enfield has been compared with different cars. The highest number of respondent has compared Royal Enfield with beetle because of its classic look. The respondents have a feeling that Royal Enfield is classy and are totally different from other bikes. Similarly, it has been compared with several other cars like Hummer, Ferrari, and BMW because of its sound and advanced technology. Royal Enfield and occupation All the respondents have come up with an individual occupation. Fashion Stylist as an occupation is somewhat mentioned by most of them. Royal Enfield however is compared to Fashion icon because of its classy, antique look and because of its individuality. Moreover, Royal Enfield is also compared to the job of Army, engineer, drilling mining because of the effort and power it possess. Royal Enfield and Sport The highest number of respondents has compared Royal Enfield to Football because of the enthusiasm and excitement it possesses while playing it. Moreover, Golf is the next highest sports that have been compared to Royal Enfield because of its nature. The respondents has revealed that playing golf shows your standard similarly riding Royal Enfield shows your Status and shows your living standard. Royal Enfield has been somewhat been compared to bike racing, ping pong, rugby, swimming, Marathon and Baseball. Royal Enfield and TV Show The highest respondents compared Royal Enfield to a TV show† FRIENDS† and â€Å" How I Met Your Mother†, which has revealed some different opinion towards Royal Enfield, which says that these shows makes you feel so attached to each other and so delighted everytime you watch it, likewise riding Enfield gives you the same feeling of delightness and attachment .One of the respondent has compared Enfield to a show ‘ Mind Your Language’ where the show makes you laugh loud and this laughter has been compared to the sound that Enfield emits. Similarly, Enfield has also been compared to a show like ‘Kofee with Karan’ where I see no relevance . Moreover other shows like Larry King Show, X-factor, Pimp my ride has been compared to the Royal Enfield. Royal Enfield and Perfume Most of the respondents have compared Enfield to ‘GUCCI’ because of its unique fragrance and its brand which depicts that Enfield has its own uniqueness in every other way. Moreover, Enfield has also been compared to AXE because of its strong attachment. Enfield has also been compared to other Perfumes like VERSACE, Channel, Playboy, Hugo Boss, Brut, Euphoria because of its masculinity. Royal Enfield and Fabric Some of the respondents have mentioned silk because of its softness and smoothness and some have compared Enfield with RUG which depicts its roughness meaning the bike is rough and tough. Some other respondents have mentioned that Enfield should be compared to such a fabric which shows its masculine power being very tough one. Some have compared Enfield with leather jackets and some have compared it with Wool and Raymond. Royal Enfield and Emotion The highest number of respondent has compared Enfield with happiness which reveals the fact that riding Enfield makes you feel happy and pleasant. Most of the respondent also has compared Enfield with aggression and violence as the bike itself shows the attitude and the aggression. In a nutshell, Royal Enfield is viewed as a tough bike with the class of its own having features totally different from other bikes. Many respondents seemed to like Enfield because of its classy look, because of the sound it produces, its individuality and the attitude it possess. Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET) ZMET is used to have an understanding of how brand is perceived by the customers. The study is conducted with 5 participants who were shown the collage of pictures related to the brand and asked to follow the following steps to bring out their true feelings about the brand. Step 1: The participants were asked to describe the content of the pictures. Step 2:The Participants were then asked to describe the pictures that they thought would be appropriate and asked to explain its relevance. Step 3:The Participants were then asked to sort the images into three meaningful groups and provide a label or description for each group. Step 4: The respondents were then asked to indicate the most representative picture among the 12 pictures. Step 5: The respondents were then asked to indicate the picture that signifies the opposite of the brand. Step 6: The participants were then asked to indicate what does or doesn’t describe the Royal Enfield in terms of color, emotion, sound, smell, taste, and touch. Step 7: Participants were then asked to create a mental map using constructs and relationships. Step 8: Participants were then asked to create a summary image with a final story. After collecting the responses I found out that people related these pictures do reflect the image of Royal Enfield. They found pictures to be rough and tough, cool, showed some attitude, bad boys, junky, biker, loud, stylish, masculine, strength, classy and legendary. Most of the respondents felt that had I included something related with the bike tours and antique bikes as this brand is closely related with bike tours and carries age old history with it. Most of the respondent arranged pictures like bike and its parts in one group and labeled it like cool bikes, antique pieces, old school etc. pictures of bull skull, sword, key rings etc were mostly placed in different group and labeled as bad boys toys, strength and masculine, classy and dangerous. Pictures of jacket, shoes, gloves etc were grouped in one group and labeled as harness, protection, save with speed. Most of the respondent did not find the picture of helmet and leg guard to be related as they felt it off the beat whereas they felt jacket, flag and antique bike to be most related with the bike. On asking the participant to construct a mental map they made up a story using these pictures and made a story full of actions and adventure, some were a lead character in the story and some were just a spectator. Fournier Brand Typology Fournier has indentified fifteen different types of relation a customer can have with a particular brand. Among these fifteen my relationship with Royal Enfield would be Committed Partnership. I wanted to own Royal Enfield bike since very long. I love the sound that the bike emits, its appearance and except for the complex engine structure that needs specially trained mechanic to fix it I love everything about the bike. Even though the bike makes loud sound it is not disregarded in the society and moreover the sound is high only when the bike is started and as it starts to run it gets smoother and emits lower sound. With the century long legacy and a history that beats all the two wheelers of the world trust over bike is definitely high. Its performance on both off road and black top road is very good and could be trusted to function very well even in adverse situation like low temperature. It gives a different feel when I ride it, I feel like I rule the street itself. Conclusion and Recommendation Royal Enfield as a brand has still not lost its charm among the youngsters even after a century of its operation. It has tried to position itself as a bike for a bike lover, a premium brand and a quality product. It has targeted the upper middle class and above class of people, but there is no as such age bracket of people that are targeted as people of different age from teen to old tend to like the bike. It has captured a large share of bike market in the upper middle and above class segment. It follows a differentiation strategy and focuses itself to the specific target market only. The bike is a sole player in the 350 cc and 500cc segment of bike in Nepal. Its age old legacy has been able to attract a good pool of enthusiast to its show room although its presence in the market is not that visible. People generally investigate well ahead and make contact to the showroom via various sources like from NTC call centre, asking people who own the bike etc. People also perceive it to be a premium brand. People mostly associate it with long tour, loudness, biker, bad boys, adventures and masculinity. It still has the power to stand out from the crowd of bike. People like the classic look and features that the bike offers but some small changes like led headlights, disk brakes etc are suggested by the customer, but largely it is preferred in its original state. Various programs like bike tour and different events are organized by the different clubs like Himalayan Enfield which enhances the brand value and keeps the charm for the bike alive. The engine of the bike is very complicated and cannot be fixed by all the mechanics of Nepal and it has very limited number of workshops and service centre that provide the facility, thus customer get into trouble every now and then when they find they need to fix a problem in their bike. Keeping this into mind the company has now started training the local workshop owner to make them capable of working on Royal Enfield and fix the problem. Royal Enfield as a brand is positioned very well. They have targeted the right segment of people. But they are not being able to provide good service after sales. With all the huge investment made on the bike people want it to be in condition and find a feasible location for maintenance. But there are very limited numbers of service centre that can repair and maintain the bike. Moreover the spare parts are not readily available and customer has to wait for week or more for the parts to arrive from India. This has certainly hampered the brand equity. The technology like LED headlights and disk brakes are in huge demand after it started producing the bike with self start and shifted gear in the left side. But bringing in these changes should not affect its original look as people have special love for the appearance itself. Thus the company should look into these aspects to enhance the brand image.