Eleanor Roosevelt

Discuss in detail how one of the First Ladies (since 1933) has made an impact on a social issue in the United States First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt experienced tremendous pain throughout her childhood and believed she would find happiness in helping others. Her sense of social responsibility started in early adulthood advocating for the disadvantaged. After entering the White House in March, 1933 her eyes opened to the depth of racial discrimination and the suffering of African Americans. She made it known that the United States government had a moral duty to ensure racial equality.Her critics viewed her standpoint as radical. Mrs. Roosevelt did not waiver in her fight against discrimination despite the political constraints, failures and public outrage. This was evident in â€Å"Arthurdale†, a small community in West Virginia created to help destitute citizens become economically self-sufficient during the Great Depression. She pushed the Homestead Administration to admit Afri can Americans but they refused. She fought and succeeded in getting other low cost housing for African American families. Mrs.Roosevelt urged President Roosevelt as well as the entire nation to confront the discrimination that faced African Americans. She viewed racial discrimination as undemocratic and immoral. She showed her opposition publicly against the heinous crime of lynching perpetrated on African Americans by Caucasian supremacist. When the Costigan-Wagner anti-lynching bill was introduced in 1934, civil rights leader, Walter White needed Mrs. Roosevelt’s assistance to secure the president’s support. Her support infuriated the President’s administration and southerners. This led many including FBI Director J.Edgar Hoover to conclude she had African American blood in her veins. Despite her best effort the bill failed. The President did not support it for various political reasons. Later in 1939, Present Roosevelt created the Civil Rights Section of the Justice Department making lynching a crime, but failed to win any convictions until 1946. In 1939 Mrs. Roosevelt resigned from the Daughters of the American Revolution after they refused to let African American Marian Anderson sing in their Constitution Hall. Mrs. Roosevelt’s action put racism in the national spotlight.The First Lady was instrumental in arranging for Ms. Anderson to perform at the Lincoln Memorial instead. Her biggest accomplishment in the struggle for racial justice was the Fair Employment Practices Commission established through Executive order by President Roosevelt in June 1941. It read â€Å"there shall be no discrimination in the employment of workers in defense industries or government because of race, creed, color, or national origin. † She played a pivotal role in the ending of military segregation, and in the training of the Tuskegee Airmen’s becoming active fighter pilots in World War II.Their success proved that African Americans wer e just as capable as their Caucasian counterpart. After President Roosevelt’s death in April of 1945, she joined the NAACP becoming the first Caucasian D. C. resident to be a board member. Up until her death in 1962, she continued her fearless work against racism. Her relentless support significantly impacted the future of African Americans. In a condolence letter to her family, Dr. Martin Luther King wrote â€Å"Her life was one of the bright interludes in the troubled history of mankind. †

Discrimination and Children Essay

This Act was put in place to protect individuals so they will not be discriminated against age, gender, disability, race, religion, sex, civil partnership, sexual orientation. We must give a child an equal chance to participate and make appropriate resources available to reach their full potential. Children are unique individuals and have the right to be treated fairly with equal respect. Disability Discrimination Act 1995-2005 When children with disabilities are discriminated against this causes them to loose confidence and are made to feel isolated. This policy was put in place to protect them for being disadvantaged. They should not be treated less favourably that non-disabled student without justification. They are entitled to have adjustment made for the purpose of education and association. 2.3 Evaluate how own attitudes, values and behaviour could impact on work with children and people. In my setting, at Al-Ameen primary school every one has their own values and opinions but share the same belief and this is vital in making personalities. However as professionals working with children we must have a diverse approach. I never make sudden judgement on people or children. I am placid natured so I give children time to shine through and understand the objective. I present myself as a positive role model. As a professional working with children it is important that our attitude reflect our opinion and belief.eg. Children pray after lunchtime and I as a TA I supervise the children when they pray. However I don’t pray at that time so I never discourage them, they choose to for themselves to participate. That is their opinion and belief as an individual. It is also important I do not let my own personal opinion have an impact on the child’s judgment. 2.4 Explain how to promote anti discriminatory practice in work with children and young people. At my setting we have children from different backgrounds and cultures. In every day practice and to avoid anti discrimination we must show interest in learning about other cultures, lifestyles and work on building positive relationships. We also have a student from France who has a language barrier so I would recognise this and make provisions so that he/she is not discriminated in any way such as helping the children to write or draw in their books. Speak slowly, or use French words. When I started in year three I noticed some children were struggling with thick pencil so I made the teacher aware of this and changed to thin pencil and now we notice children enjoy writing. Moving the tables around to give children easy access. Moving the children closer to the board or reading out the questions. I would give some children extra time to complete the set task. This would ensure all children hav e the same opportunity to learn and be included in all aspects of school life. 2.5 Explain how to challenge discrimination The discrimination must always be challenged, according to the school policies, this is done through the behaviour policy, equal opportunity or Anti-bulling policy. Staff must follow the policies and procedures in place for discrimination. It has to be dealt with immediately. This may need to be recorded in a incident book. The discriminatory behaviour and comments may also need to be recorded. Sometimes children may say something without understanding the implication of their comments in such cases they must be made aware that such comments would be reported. They should be reminded that everyone in the school should be treated fairly and respectfully. If I heard a white girl making comments to a black girl such as† you can’t be queen you are black†. I would explain to that child that her remarks are hurtful and that every one has the right to be treated fairly so you should not judge people by the colour of their skin. Three boys tell a girl â€Å"you can’t help build the wall it’s men’s work†. As a TA I would go and talk to the three boys by asking why they think that and where they heard it . I would tell them that every one should be treated equally weather they are a boy or girl because we can all do the same job. Eg. Your mum cooks and she is a women but when you go to restaurants why are there men who are chefs. When you go to hospital there are men who are nurses. 2.1 Explain ways in which children and young people can experience prejudice and discrimination There are many different ways in which children and young people can experience prejudice and discrimination at school. One way might be trying to fit in with the expected appearances and behaviour. They may face discrimination or even be bullied. If a child is deprived of basic necessities like not having the enough food, looking untidy, not correct school uniform then this could lead to the child being discriminated against by other children. Some children may face sexism because boys may not include girls in certain activities eg. When a boy’s play with ball they think girls do not play with a ball. Children from other cultural backgrounds may not play with other children because they should only play with children from same background. Children with disabilities may not be involved in an activity with other children that could mean they have been discriminated against.

Aspects Of Relationship Marketing Marketing Essay

Aspects Of Relationship Marketing Marketing Essay The objective of the research is to find critical differences between two aspects of relationship marketing namely-B2B and CRM. Any successful B2B strategy has to help the customer to be loyal and supportive to the firm and its products.   The   customer do   not   just get   a   need,   the   B2B marketer   have   to   help   the customer though getting him to feel a need and then buy the product and finally become loyal. The industries also need to take the marketing tool of customer relationship management seriously and provide proper focus to it. The CRM helps the organization to focus on the needs and the requirements of the customers. The CRM must ensure that the products and the services offered by the organization are proper response to the changes in the aggregate customer behavior pattern. (CRM News)The automobile industry also need to provide proper maintenance and after sales service to ensure good CRM. In today’s competitive world it is im perative that the offers to the customer are according to the needs and the requirement of the customer. The organization may even have to customize the products according to the needs of the customer.   In order to provide better services which is a part of the promotional strategy companies are appointing customer relationship officer to make the customers aware about the new offers and also to solve all their problems in order to create a strong brand image in the minds of the consumers. The aim in relationship marketing is to build and maintain relationships with all the organisation’s publics. The list given is not comprehensive, and some publics will obviously have more influence over a particular firm’s activities than others. The task is to identify those groups which are the main influencers and to design marketing programmes and strategies which take the influencers into account. Research is important to establish why customers defect, as studies have shown that a large proportion of dissatisfied customers never complain – they simply stop using the service. By the same token, customer complaints handling procedures should be properly carried out to ensure that the complaint is rectified and the customer is satisfied the necessary action is taken to prevent that (CRM News).problem occurring again but the starting point is usually to examine the external environment and the changes taking place within it. The audit then gradually narrows its focus from the general aspects of the organization’s marketing activity to the more specific, until, finally, specific problem areas or difficulties can be probed more closely if required. It is useful to understand the components identified above, and the main questions which should be addressed in the audit. A number of tools can assist in the process. An example of this is database marketing where customer-buying histories and other information can be listed on a database, and then referenced and cross-referenced in the future to target new products or promotions accurately. (China B2B Market)Another important aspect of the task of analyzing how to retain customers is to carry out market research amongst customers who have defected. Why did they go to a competitor? Why have they stopped using your service? The answers to these questions can hold vital information for services marketing managers.

Research Manuscript Critique Part 2 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Research Manuscript Critique Part 2 - Assignment Example The have also clearly identified the population, the demographic variables, the recruitment and the location of the study. For instance, the study takes place in the northeastern city and the surroundings. The women involved are Caucasian and are different in terms of age and other related demographics. On the recruitment, the researchers explain that fliers were used in order to assist them in the recruitment process. Given the nature of the research study, the researchers had no choice but to discuss the appropriateness of the sample size, which is quite small. For example, one of the important explanations of the sample size includes the need to detailed explanation of the sessions with the psychiatrists. Other important requirements of a research study such as research ethics, which includes consent and confidentiality, have also been catered for in this research. The researcher has also used clear articulate language that helps the reader through the research study. Although this is the case, the researcher has not clearly labeled the research questions and the hypothesis. All these have been left for the reader to figure out. The article Brinn-Pike et al., 1998 looks into the process of counseling pregnant adolescents. To achieve this purpose, the researchers used a mixed research method. The research has clear research questions and a specific question. There are also clear hypotheses and a sample size of 20 respondents and an explanation of the demographic variables that pertains to the sample. The study also identifies the population and clearly discusses the recruitment. For example, the researchers explain that the recruitment process and the data collecting process took 6 months whereby the participants involved were required to keep records. The sample, size and the results have also been discussed appropriately. Other

Streetcar Named Desire as a Play and as a Film Essay

Streetcar Named Desire as a Play and as a Film - Essay Example Society was still immersed in a political climate not conducive to equal rights without regard to race or gender let alone sexual orientation. In the original version of the piece, seen as a play, the audience finds out that Blanche’s husband killed himself shortly after she found him in bed with another man. The version which the audience is given in the film is much more suggestive with an expectation for its audience to read between the lines rather than a forward approach to the information which is given in the play. With regard to the issue of Blanche’s rape by Stanley, the play is sure to embrace this incident as it is crucial to the ‘take-home message’ intended originally by Williams. The movie seems to understand this ironically moral inclusion but not without a tradeoff which came in the form of the punishment of Stanley for his actions which is really not part of the ambiance of the play. The issue of Blanche’s rape and her husband’s homosexuality and suicide are the heavier topics demanding a presentation appropriate for their display during that time period, but are not the only morals to the story, so to speak. There are other themes which exist both in the play and in the movie version of Williams’ work. In looking at the movie first, the beginning is the first of many small deviations. The movie’s audience finds Blanche who seemingly emerges from the steam of the train, in an almost ethereal or heavenly manner. This is a contrast because though Blanche is introduced to the audience in this light, she is taken from a place of presumed innocence through the film, only to be displayed as anything but that. The play does not make the same attempt at disillusioning the audience that the film makes at the piece’s beginning, but beyond this point, the play and the movie are overall quite similar with little variations.

The Power of Music Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Power of Music - Term Paper Example Beyond any doubt, music has a power that goes far beyond the spoken word and enables a person to grasp a feeling that can only be experienced through music. In my own life, there are times where music will make me experience a feeling just by the sound or rhythm of the notes that is unlike anything else. For instance, classical music has always had that effect. Most classical music does not have words or lyrics with it; however, the notes and composition of music impacts the soul in such a way that it can change your mood or force a person’s memory to recall a specific period of time, event or feeling. Whenever I listed to classical music, it calms me down and makes me think more clearly. I always use classical music as a tool for me whenever I am experiencing a lot of stress. However, it does not always have to be classical music. There are times when I exercise that I use rock music to get me excited to work out and push myself harder. I get mad and energized all at the same time. Music has always had the power to alter my mood at any time.

Quality Reliability and Maintenance Research Paper

Quality Reliability and Maintenance - Research Paper Example 2. QUESTION 4: Describe and then critically assess how your company designs, develops and produces a new product or service. Suggest practical ways in which current methods could be improved and explain the likely benefits to be gained from application of your suggestions. Table of Contents 1. Table of Contents 3 1.QUESTION 2 4 1.1 INTRODUCTION 4 1.2 SIX SIGMA DEFINITION AND EXPLANATION OF SIX SIGMA 4 1.3 DEFINITION OF EFQM AND A BRIEF DESCRIPTION 7 1.4 THE MANNER IN WHICH SIX SIGMA ADDRESSES EFQM MODEL 8 1.5 ACTIONS OF EFQM THAT SIX SIGMA DOESN’T COVER 9 1.6 CONCLUSION 10 2.0 Question 4 10 2.1 INTRODUCTION 10 2.1.1 THE DESIGN PHASE 11 2.1.2 THE DEVELOPMENT PHASE 12 2.1.3 THE PRODUCTION PHASE 13 2.2 WHAT DMADV IS IN DESIGN OF SIX SIGMA 13 2.2.1 DEFINE 14 2.2.2 MEASURE 14 2.2.3 ANALYSE 15 2.2.4 DESIGN 16 2.2.5 VERIFY 16 2.3 A DETAILED EXPLANATION OF DMADV APPROACH. 17 2.4 IMPROVING THIS APPROACH. 18 2.5 CONCLUSION 19 BIBILIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES 20 Graham Cartwright and John Oakla nd (2007) Lean Six Sigma – Making it ‘Business as Usual’. ... AINING DURATION OF BELTS IN SIX SIGMA 18 1.QUESTION 2 1.1 INTRODUCTION Most organisation in the world have concerns over process improvements in order to operate in the competitive market. Many CEO’s have been forced on implementing tools that will help them work smarter. This requires deep understanding of the business processes of the enterprise or the holistic overview of the organisation, as well as the ability to execute change on these processes. Tools focus generally in ensuring the organisation find a way to survive in the competitive All tools are Important but depending on certain situations one tool may be ideal to the other. Managers should be able to know when to use a tool depending on the advantages and disadvantages of the tools. Changing of tools enables the organisation run smoothly in the market gaining advantages that can’t be seen by its competitors, 1.2 SIX SIGMA DEFINITION AND EXPLANATION OF SIX SIGMA It is defined as a management approachwhich ai ms at improving the quality of processes by minimizing and eventually removing the errors and defects. This concept is developed to ensure that the customer’s satisfactions and requirements are meet and put in place.Tomkins (1997) defines that Six Sigma is aprogramme aimed at the near-elimination of defects from every product, process and transaction.Six sigma implies 3 main features statistical management, management strategy and quality culture.In fact, any process which does not lead to customer satisfaction is referred to as a defect and has to be eliminated from the system to ensure superior quality of products and services.The goal of the statistical quality control as a feature within the Six Sigma Methodology is to determine whether something has gone wrong with the manufacturing system. By

Corporate governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Corporate governance - Essay Example 12). This paper seeks to compare and contrast the theoretical framework of corporate governance, and explain how agency theory can be used to explain corporate governance arrangements in modern companies. The agency theory emanates from the separation of control from ownership such that professional managers manage the firm on behalf of the original owners. The theory draws strength in the rise of conflicts when the owner of a firm perceives that professional managers do not follow the best interests of the owners (Wong and Mwanzia, 2011, p., 2011, p. 16). The theory focuses on analyzing and resolving relationship between owners and shareholders of a firm and the agents or top management, this is based on the basic assumption that the role of a firm is to maximize the wealth and investment of its owners and shareholders. The agency theory works based on a form operating with limited information and uncertainty in its operations. As a result, the firm remains exposed to possibilities of agency issues such as adverse selection and moral hazard. Adverse selection in this case occurs when principals fail to determine, with certainty, whether an agent accurately portrays his or her ability to execute the duties with which they are charged. On the other hand, moral hazard refers to a condition under which a principal cannot ascertain the probability of an agent putting or giving their best towards the wellbeing of a firm (Wong and Mwanzia, 2011, p. 16). The theory also purports that availing superior information on a firm to professional managers gives an edge to agents over the owners. This is because the top managers of a firm may bear more interest in individual welfare than that of the firm or its shareholders and owners. This way, managers fail to act maximally towards the returns of a firm unless proper governance structures are out in place as a means to safeguard the interest of shareholders (Wong and Mwanzia, 2011, p. 16). As a result, the agency theory call s for curtailing the potential of managers to behave in ways that contradict the best interests of shareholders and owners of any given firm. In addition, the theory brings to light the strength of top management in having the stock of a firm held in a wide manner by many shareholders, and the composition of the board of directors being that of people with little knowledge on the firm. According to this theory, the management should be in a position to own stocks of the firm they manage in order to create a positive relationship between corporate governance and the amount of stock owned by the top management (Wong and Mwanzia, 2011, p. 16). This way, the agency managing the form can put the interests of the firm ahead of their own, and the conflict between ownership and agency can end. Thus, because of having a substantial amount of stock in their name, top management becomes more willing to take responsibility for the decisions it makes concerning the firm. In addition of concern, is the issue of generating rules and incentives

Financial Statement Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Financial Statement - Research Paper Example 2. Damaged Goods: if the organization has damaged goods, these goods will be evaluated and scrap should be sold to recover some amount and contacted to the insurance company for insurance recovery and write off the loss from the damages. 3. Stolen Inventory: if the organization faces loss from stolen inventory it should be reported for recovery but if after a period unable to found stolen goods it should be treated as loss. Explanation Losses may be normal or abnormal faced by the organization and there is different accounting treatment for each type of loss. If a company is having normal cost then it will have no special treatment it will only increase the production cost and normal loss is unavoidable and inherent which is valued with the closing stock. If the inventory is decreased by sales it will be treated as an expense in the form of a reduction in inventory (Smith and Butters, 1949). But if abnormal loss is faced by the company it will be valued and Debit to the abnormal loss account and credit to process account. These kinds of losses may arise from accidents and carelessness. For recording of this loss another account will be created in the chart of accounts and it will be debited and after that it will be write-off as an expense in the income statement.

The Controversy Over Censorship In Huckleberry Finn Essay Example for Free

The Controversy Over Censorship In Huckleberry Finn Essay Throughout the years, conflict with race has set the tone for the flowering and evolution of Americas history. In present day America, racial slurs are uncommon. They are used as a sign of discrimination in a way that is unfamiliar to the ear. Published in 1884, Mark Twain wrote one of the most powerful stories of all time, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which exhibits the intimate dynamic of racism in the time of great agony, injustice, and inequity for African Americans. The word ‘nigger’ appears 219 times throughout the story. (Hudson, 2011) This has provoked a great amount of conflict, and has escalated to the extent in which many schools are forbidding the book; erasing it from grade-school curricula due to the illiberality in context. Years have passed, and racism is now not accepted in many societies, as it was in the 19th century. We forget that Twain used his language to instrument the behavior of society. Language serves as a link to historical culture. Removing the word would remove the significance of why it was ever placed there. (Bouie 2011) For years now, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been ceasing rapidly from school curricula because of the use of the word ‘nigger’. Instead of banning the book, the idea of changing the word from â€Å"nigger† to â€Å"slave† has been issued. Alan Gribben, an english professor at Auburn University, proposed this idea to the publisher in hopes that more schools could persist in using Mark Twain’s writing as an educational source and in trust that this addition would manage the growth of the roots of the book once again. Gribben once wrote, â€Å"even at the level of college and graduate school, students are capable of resenting textual encounters with this racial appellative.† (Gribben, 2011) Substituting the word does nothing essential to the aspect of understanding our failures. Avoiding the fruitless actions of the past does not gain justice, awareness, and will not yield an era in which discrimination occurred. (Chabon, 2011) Although the language in Huckleberry Finn is discriminatory towards African Americans, the actions of banning and substitution should not be made. America was not always the same way it is today, and that is something we, as Americans, have to respect and understand. There is no better way to connect to the story than without the tone and word choice while reading the unrevised edition of Huck Finn. This was a culture that was ugly and cruel. Pretending it never happened, by substituting the word ‘nigger’ for ‘slave’, cannot provide the full amount of wisdom and accurate knowledge of this generation. Earl Ofari Huchinson from The Grio states, â€Å"Critics are calling it censorship, a slap at freedom of speech, and a gross distortion of Twain’s intent Twain’s goal was to show the ugliness an evilness of slavery and to do that he had to use the rawest racist language of his day.† (Huchinson, 2011) Twain was aware of the discerning words a nd selected them finely to portray this era of life. The era of this story was based on a time that racial slurs were more acceptable and habitual. Slavery was a large part of society. Time was different. Language was raw. Twain used his words to show the immortality of society linked to slavery and to do this, he used the most vulgar language of this time. (Huchinson, 2011) He chose words that were essential to the intimacy of the story, and should not have been blamed for such language that was used more than a century ago. Jennifer Crane explains for The Corner Observer, that Huckleberry Finn shows an accurate understanding of how far our society has come since the 1800’s. â€Å"Besides getting a history lesson, Huck teaches us life lessons. It shows how an innocent boy can break free from societys wrongful thinking and finally think for himself. This act of individualism by Huck affects how people viewed race,† (Crane, 2011) she comments. Yet the decision to keep the book from the original is still up in the air. (Crane, 2011) People may argue that the substitution is the best method to keep these books in grade school curriculum. (Kakutani, 2011) Starting on page six, the ‘n’ word begins to escalate and continue to be seen till the last chapter. This word is one that most people do not find comfortable saying, let alone reading. Changing the authors original work, even in the slightest, alters the intentions that were engaged. A new, restored edition of Huckleberry Finn will be released in mid-february by SouthNew books. Words will be eliminated that appear displeasing. Their main task is to develop a new impression of Huckleberry Finn that may gather a new group of individuals. At a disparaging standpoint, altering a book’s motives, by removing or substituting a word, would completely diminish the motif Twain possessed. Alexandra Petri from The Atlantic wrote, â€Å"This is like changing War and Peace to Peace, because war is unpleasant to remember.† (Petri, 2011) Their mission, in my eyes, confuses me, because I do not comprehend the idea and reasoning around altering a story’s cultural presence to gather a larger crowd, when they do not get to experience the absolute, powerful experience that they otherwise would. Exchanging ‘nigger’ for ‘slave’ is unreasonable and holds a weight of culture and historical importance. Removing this curriculum in schools deprives children of famous, classic literature that has such great history and mark on society. (La Rosa, 2011) (restate thesis, intro) References: Bouie, J. (2011). Taking the History out of ‘Huck Finn.’ The Atlantic. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/01/taking-the-history-out-of-huck-finn/68870/ Chabon, M. (2011). The Unspeakable, in Its Jammies. The Atlantic. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/01/the-unspeakable-in-its-jammies/69369/ Crane, J. (2011 February 8). There shouldn’t be a controversy over Huck. The Corning Observer. Retrieved from http://www.corning-observer.com/articles/book-9139-huck-schools.html Huchinson, E. (2011 January 5). Why the N-word should stay in ‘Huck Finn’. The Grio. Retrieved from http://thegrio.com/2011/01/05/why-the-n-word-should-stay-in-huck-finn/ Kakutani, M. (2011, January 6). Light Out, Huck, They Still Want to Sivilize You. The New York Times. Retrieved from

EasyJet strategy: SWOT and PESTEL analysis

EasyJet strategy: SWOT and PESTEL analysis This report will provide a detailed analysis of EasyJet’s current corporate appraisal or SWOT analysis. This will identify its strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This will help the companies decision makers understand where the organisation is now. A PESTEL analysis of the industry will examine the local, national and global influences of political, economic, social and technological factors to understand opportunities and threats well. This will provide an evaluation of the external business environment in which the company operates. This analysis will highlight the fundamental changes that the airline industry is undergoing, especially; in defence to the turbulent environment it faces from exogenous forces (terrorism, oil prices, SARS etc) and endogenous forces. Next we will use Porter’s Five Forces analysis of the industry and the increasing threat of other low-cost carriers (Ryanair, bmi baby etc) and also threats from the flag carriers (British Airways, Air France, KLM, Lufthansa etc). This will show how its critically important for EasyJet that strategic alliance, size and technological innovation have on its profitability. Overall the analysis will highlight the inherent threats and weaknesses suffered throughout the industry, and also the importance of innovation to maintain low cost advantage, alliances and size to success. Finally the report will examine the extent to which EasyJet’s current ‘no frills’ strategy is the appropriate strategic fit to its organisation both in terms of resource capability and business environment. An Internal and corporate analysis in terms of strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) will assist in gaining an understanding of where EasyJet is currently in terms of strengths and where improvement is required within the business and what outside environmental threats it may face as well as what new opportunities are available to the company in the short and medium term. We will start by looking at strengths: EasyJet serves diverse ranges of European routes with principle activities in both Leisure and business markets, offering 60 key European routes. Its current cash flow position is also strong, with cash flow from operating activities increased by 61 percent between the six months ended 31st March 2003 to six months ended 31 March 2004. The business has also enjoyed an increase turnover and trading profits resulting in continuous substantial growth in underlying profitability over the last 7 years (see table 1). This has resulted in a strong Balance Sheet – the companies’ net assets reaching the record level of  £724 million (aided by retained profit mainly). EasyJet is also Europe’s leading low-cost airline having completed a merger deal with Go to create Europe’s number one low-cost airline. Brand Awareness is another strength that is attributable to the company – In November 1999, selected as a business super brand by the Super Brand Council, recognising EasyJet as an outstanding brand name. The company’s Online booking facility in October 1999 aided Internet sales to pass the one million mark. This has lead to EasyJet customers enjoying ‘ Ticketless travel’ – this reduces the cost of issuing, distribution, processing and reconciling tickets. EasyJet also enjoys internal strengths in its operations in terms of efficient use of airports – by reducing turnarounds to 30 minutes and below, EasyJet can achieve extra rotations on the high frequency routes. EasyJet appears to have internal strengths in terms of brand awareness, cash flows, and operational efficiencies. But what are the internal weaknesses suffered by EasyJet? The primary weakness is the perception of low quality – low cost can also be seen as low quality service than that offered by the established national airline i.e. British Airways. Also, suffers weakness in the area of hospitality in terms of on board offer of ‘Free Lunch’, the eliminating of free catering on board may result in loss of potential customers. The existing competition also have strong brand image globally, EasyJet is recognised nationally and within the European markets, however, national airlines like British Airways is recognised worldwide and has stronger brand awareness. EasyJet also operates a flat management structure, which may lack a formal discipline that is needed as the organisation grows. The idea of remote working can also result in co-ordination and control weaknesses. It is difficult to co-ordinate the individual employee because in principle they operate independently of each other. It’s also hard to monitor the performance of each individual. So having considered the internal strengths and opportunities above, what are the potential opportunities available to EasyJet and what are the threats faced by EasyJet both from within the Airline industry and as a result of the world economy itself. Weaknesses identified earlier could also offer potential opportunities in terms of development of brand awareness globally. The EasyJet brand is established in the European market, but brand awareness is required outside the continent. There are potential opportunities in terms of new routes and expansion of services offered, EasyJet has already launched a number of new European routes, how about expansion into the Asian Pacific? Undertaking market shift to globalisation expanding outside the European market will be key to continuous enhancement of business performance. Follow on from market expansion will also create opportunities for new facilities or services ‘Free Lunch’ – offer on board catering facilities to compete with mainstream airlines. The increase growth of world tourism will offer opportunities in terms of undertaking joint venture with local/foreign travel companies; hence, Going places and Thomas Cooke are already providing such services to growing number of holidaymakers each year. Finally, opportunities may also exist in the area of innovation and alliances, how about a joint venture scheme with Ryanair to maintain and enforce the low cost competitive advantage. Figure1: EasyJet SWOT Analysis Having considered the possible future opportunities what are the potential threats that EasyJet needs to bear in mind? Firstly, threats in terms of new existing competition. Ryanair continues to lower costs, which enables it to persist lowering fares aggressively. Also, mainstream airlines are now lowering fares to engage in price competition. Another major industry wide threat is the volatility in price of fuel Oil price record high of $53 a barrel. this was the headline in the business pages of all the newspapers last November. EasyJet also faces potential threats in terms of unprecedented tragic events like September 11th. Potential threats in terms of changing social trends like holidays outside Europe (many now want to experience the eastern cultures and travel to holiday destinations like China and Japan) and also travelling via the EuroStar to Paris etc. Potential threats of economic recession, since air travel is effectively a commodity product, it is recession prawn. And, finally threats of any takeover bids from national airlines. Figure 2: Five Forces Model ACCA Paper 3.5 (2001) Porter explains that there are five forces inherent in a market, which will jointly determine the intensity of competition and profitability of EasyJet and the airline industry. The first is the threat posed by new entrants, as with the European deregulation of commercial aviation and the emergent of low cost carriers. The second is the threats from substitutes, rail travel v air travel, the growing demand in Eurostar and cruses. The third force is the threats from the bargaining power of buyers, is this strong for both EasyJet and the entire airline industry with a large number of alternative suppliers, hence, the aggressive pricing strategy. This results in a very strong competitive rivalry in the industry. This is intensified as a result of little or no differentiation in the service offered. Finally the threats from the suppliers bargaining power, this is very strong in the airline industry for two reasons, one is highly skilled labour can command a very favourable terms and seco nd is the price of oil. All of those (political, economic, social, technical, legal and environmental) factors will to some extent apply to the airline industry. POLITICAL – Following the European deregulation of commercial aviation, a fleet of low cost carriers are reshaping the local airline landscape. Ryanair uncompromisingly fought its way into the market with an aggressive pricing strategy. ECONOMIC the travel industry is vary recession prawn and also very sensitive to changes in oil prices. Since the events of September 11th the airline industry suffered heavily, stocks plummeted and ticket prices are at all time lows. The world economy is however, now on the up post September 11th. Consumers are optimistic and the travel and tourism industry are now booming again. SOCIAL – changes in consumer taste and lifestyle represent both opportunities and threats for the industry. Opportunities in terms of worldwide destinations are now popular with holidaymakers and also the growing trend in international business ventures, e.g. major banks and insurance companies’ relocation call centres in Asia. The threats are in terms of alternative holidays Disneyland Paris via Eurostar (Euro tunnel) and PO cruise. TECHNICAL – Changes in retailing methods as such ticket sales via the Internet is now a common place in air travel, passengers receive an email containing their travel details and booking reference when they book online. Paperless operation, the management and administration of the company are undertaken on IT systems, which are accessed through secure servers; provide flexibility in the running of the airline. The development of the next generation aircraft will also lead to technological opportunities in term of fuel efficiencies. LEGAL – The European deregulation of the commercial aviation provided both major strategic threats and opportunities, the national mainstream airlines faced severe price competition from discount carriers. Threats are also in terms of legislative environmental laws regarding pollution and use of more environmentally friendly fuel, which are at premium prices. ENVIRONMENTAL – The energy sources used, namely oil has vast ecological/environmental implications. The threats are in terms of fines and rise in cost of raw materials. A ‘no frills’ strategy is often associated with low cost airline companies like EasyJet. This form of strategy combines a low price, low perceived service benefits (no free lunch) and a focus on a price-sensitive highly competitive market segment. This strategy is focused on keeping costs down and EasyJet’s policy of ‘no free lunch’ and efficient use of airports by limiting turnaround to 30 minutes. Back in 1995 when EasyJet was lunched it was tipped by most to fail with its ‘no frills’ strategy. However, by year 2000 it has not only managed to survive but also increased its market shares and assets of aircrafts to 74 and servicing 105 routes and carrying over 20 million passengers a year. So the strategy has been very successful for EasyJet and appears to have been the correct strategic decision. Beneath the surface of EasyJet’s cosmetic cost savings of not offering free in-flight refreshments or different first, business and economy classes, was a philosophy of cost saving that permeated through the entire organisation. The 2002/03 annual report reconfirmed this business model of the airline: Dense point-to-point network to allow linking of major airports with large catchments areas with high level of frequency, as this will be attractive to business and leisure travellers. A strong and visible brand to create a high level of awareness with consumers. Supported by innovative and effective advertising. Dynamic fares with a simple structure and also ensuring that it are the cheapest fare on the route. Therefore, demand led with proprietary yield management system. 100 per cent direct selling of fares; over 90 per cent of sales are online. This eliminates the need to any commissions to external sales agency. Highly utilised fleet of aircrafts that are large, modern, efficient and relatively environmentally friendly. This results in high levels of asset utilisation and reduced unit costs. Finally, the key to sustaining high levels of growth is the scalability of the operations. This also reduces the marginal cost of incremental growth; increasing scale brings valuable economies (Johnson, G., Scholes, K., Whittington, R., (2005). Another price-based strategy is the hybrid strategy this seeks to achieve an element of differentiation and a price lower than that of competitors. Implementing this strategy successfully depends on EasyJet’s ability to deliver enhanced benefits to customers over its competitors together with low prices. However, if EasyJet could significantly differentiate its service over its competitors then it could obtain higher prices. Therefore, the low cost strategy is the ideal strategic fit to its environment. Combining perceived low price with perceived added value can be a highly successful strategy but one that requires innovative thinking. EasyJet’s competitive advantages via low prices are sustained in a number of ways. EasyJet in its pursuing of low-price strategies may be prepared to accept the reduced margin either because it can sell more fares than competitors. EasyJet may be prepared and has to a large extend engaged in price war with competitors via its lower cost structure (economies of scales due to its larger operations) and also has the financial resource capability to fund short to medium-term losses with the aim of driving out competitors in the longer terms. A prime example of this was the subsequent takeover of Go by EasyJet. Price wars are becoming more prevalent as traveller use the Internet to compare prices and ‘shop around’. EasyJet has cost advantages through company specific capabilities, which drive down costs throughout the value chain. Porter comments on cost leadership as ‘the low-cost producer in its industry†¦ must find and exploit all sources of cost advantage’ (Porter M.E (1980)). We will consider the value chain for EasyJet in more detail later in our discussion. Cost advantages might be achieved because of EasyJet’s efficient use of airports. This will require a mindset where innovation (in cost reduction) is regarded as essential to survival. EasyJet is an international example, The introduction of Airbus A319 aircraft, combined with the retirement of ‘old generation’ Boeing 737 aircraft, will result in a two-type ‘new technology’ fleet, which will commonality and lessen complexity and deliver high level of asset utilisation and reduce unit costs. Finally, EasyJet has sustained its price-based advantage by focusing on market segments where low fares are critical and valued by customers. EasyJet’s first generic strategy is to achieve an overall cost leadership in the low cost airline industry. Therefore, it is vital for EasyJet to have a thorough comprehension of their costs and cost drivers. EasyJet is forever trying to attain a cost level that is low relative to its competitors. EasyJet cost efficiency is achieved in a variety of way as shown in the following diagram: The success of low-fare (cost) strategy is primarily dependent on the maintenance of a low cost base. This is critical for EasyJet having analysed the competitive rivalry position in the industry. With Ryanair maintaining high margins despite reducing yields through strict cost management. Lower costs are the only competitive advantage in the short-haul economy sector as air travel is effectively a commodity product. It is also anticipated that Ryanair will continue to lower costs, which will allow it to continue to engage in a price war, by lowering fares aggressively. Managing for value involves managing both value activities and cost drivers. This involves EasyJet retaining funds from operations; hence, a healthy Balance sheet in terms of retained profits. Significant investment in assets and managing financing costs. Funding strategies developments is clearly important in that the nature of funding must be appropriate and compliments the low cost strategy of EasyJet, by ensuring that interest costs are low. Strategies are largely determined by the extent to which they deliver best value to both customers in terms of being competitiveness in the marketplace (leading low cost airline) and also to provide value to shareholders. EasyJet’s no frills strategy does not only mean a cut in Cabin crew and â€Å"denial of food†, but also allows for a faster pre-flight preparation, thereby reducing the time grounded as well maintaining fare. As funding from operations are clearly a major contributor to value creation. In the long term, this is concerned with the extent to which the organisation is operating profitably. Table below provides an analysis of EasyJet’s sales revenue and profitability ratio since 1998. Investments in assets are also key consideration in value creation in that consideration of the extent to which assets and working capital are being utilised. EasyJet appears to have developed competences in supporting much higher levels of business from the same asset base than other rival airlines. This affects value creation as follows: The cost of capital investment The management of the element of working capital Table 1: Sales and Trading Profit of EasyJet Most theories argue that strategic success and improved wealth generation stem from two strategies. The first is to reduce the ‘bottom line’ costs of operation (low cost strategy) and the second is to increase the value of the organisation and its reputation to customers, so that they will demand more or pay more for what they receive (differentiation strategy) (ACCA Paper 3.5 (2001)). Porter through the use of the value chain illustrates how resources should be utilised to enhance least-cost production or differentiation strategies (the generic strategies suggested by Porter). The value chain analysis will show the total value added by the airline industry and EasyJet. All airline companies within the industry will have similar value chain, which will include activities such as obtaining fuel, designing fare structures, airport facilities, developing co-operative agreements, and providing customer service. Value chain analysis can provide important insights into what ma nagement need to focus on strategically. In terms of analysis, EasyJet’s distribution activities are important in terms of e-commerce, as EasyJet like to consider itself as the ‘webs favourite airline’. Standardisation in its activities as an airline leads to both economies of scale and a simpler product, which is cheaper and easier to distribute. The price of EasyJet’s tickets various as a function of the number of seats remaining, the time until the flight, and historical trends. This is done in order to maximise the yield from a flight, as many of the costs associated with running a flight are fixed relative to the number of passenger on board. Yield management is a form of risk management and therefore, adds value. The sales process is efficient, as EasyJet sells directly to customers, instead of using external sales teams. It has been streamlines by using e-commerce, firstly by telesales and now through the Internet. Marketing and sales will involve making customers aware of EasyJet’s services are price information and also selling. This will involve retention of best salespeople supported by HR management, engineering support in terms of maintenance of the web page supported by technology development to ensure that web site has the latest prices and route and flight information. This needs to be updated constantly as this will be a live system. EasyJet manages its sales process extremely efficiently, its sells its tickets directly. Previously it used telesales and now sales are through e-commerce web site. As Internet transactions have a lower cost associated with it EasyJet encourages its customers to book on-line by offering them a discount for on-line ticket reservations. Savings made from e-commerce is another source of value creation. In terms of competitive advantage, the internet offers overall cost leaders new abilities to reduce costs in primary activities such as marketing (i.e. e-commerce) and support activities such as fir infrastructure (e.g. quick order processing). EasyJet through its use of an overall cost leadership strategy can use internet-based technologies to reduce value chain costs in a variety of ways: On-line bidding and order processing to eliminate the need for sales calls and decrease sales force expense. Another benefit of Internet technology is lower transaction costs at multiple levels in value chain activities. Such lower costs benefit EasyJet initially as innovation is rewarded. However the sustainability of competitive advantages may be problematic: as rivals copy successful strategies, EasyJet will loose its initial advantages. And finally, service, activities that ensure that customers enjoy their flight by providing friendly on board service and assisting traveller with any special needs requirements. In terms of support activities, EasyJet takes advantage of technological developments in order to reduce costs. EasyJet also have a reputation for paying low wages in line with its low cost strategy. Procurement and firm infrastructure as a support activity does not add much extra value. In terms of strategy, many factors are outside the control of the company, such as use of high quality components and low defect rates for its aircrafts. This analysis outlines for EasyJet’s management how individual activities may be altered to reduce costs of operation or improve the value offered to customers. Those changes will ensure that EasyJet sustains its current market share and position and also increase margin. EasyJet may be especially good at outbound logistics lined to its marketing and sales operations and supported by its technology development. It is possibly not as good in terms of operations and its inbound logistics. This will assist management to decide as to what EasyJet should be concentrating on and what requires de-emphasising or even outsourcing. EasyJet’s overall cost leadership strategy uses low costs at each point in the value chain to lower costs. The customers of EasyJet have been using the Internet for making bookings. In addition to that, EasyJet has been offering no in-flight meals, no in flight movies. Also, only one type of aircraft is used, in order to minimise maintenance costs. The concept of the value chain is particularly useful in understanding an organisation’s strategic capability since its concentrates on value activities and the linkages between activities rather ran just resources. Therefore, capability is strongly related to the way that resources are used and controlled. The linkages with the value chains of channels and customers which are the essence of EasyJet’s capability and which can protect its market leadership and maintain cost leadership competitive advantage from competitors. This section we will investigate EasyJet’s resources as a means of assessing the organisation’s strategic capability. Analysis of financial resources in order to understand the strategic capability of EasyJet will need examination of financial capability and performance. Table 1 shows that EasyJet’s sales has increase year on year since 1998, with profit and gross margins also experiencing a positive trends. The company has also grown in terms of its acquisitions of GO and also increase in purchases of its own aircrafts. EasyJet also has a strong cash flow position primarily from its policy to retain profits and reinvest it back to the business. A Balanced scorecard approach is need to effectively conclude a balanced perspective on EasyJet’s resource capability in order to ensure that the low cost strategy is supported and is Cohabitation: The end of Marriage Cohabitation: The end of Marriage Introduction The following essay is aimed at discovering whether cohabitation has literally displaced marriage. It will focus on the processes of cohabiting as well as marriage, briefly touching on their historical backgrounds as well as the trends for each of the processes in different countries. Immediately after the war, marriage became practically universal phenomena but apparently, its popularity has declined towards the end of the twentieth century. Bumpass and Lu (2000) and Teachman, Tedrow and Crowder (2000) explain that patterns of family formation and also dissolution are changing in the United States. She clearly cites an increase in divorce, cohabitation and non marital children which clearly shows a shift from traditional marriage. According to Murphy and Young, (1999), marriage has been in steady decline since the early 70s in the United Kingdom. A McRae (1999) point out that marriage in 1995, which was 322,000, is thought to be the lowest on record since 1926. As the marriage rate dropped, so did the remarriage rate resulting in a steady rise of cohabiting. (Morgan 2000) Cohabiting according to Marshall (1998) refers to an arrangement whereby couples who are not legally married live together as husband and wife. In view of the above definition, the term, not legally married brings in another dimension as to the authenticity of cohabitation. This leads to the idea of common law marriage. There seems to be a huge misconception of the idea of common law marriage, with some authorities and according to Fairbain, (2009) there is no specific legal status for what many refer to as common law marriage. She also points out that many cohabiting couples are unaware of this fact. On the other hand, marriage, as defined by Horton and Hunt defined marriage as the approved social pattern whereby two or more persons establish a family. Majumdar takes it further by defining marriage as a socially sanctioned union of male and female or as a secondary institution devised by society to sanction the union and mating of male and female for purposesof establishing a househ old, entering into sex relations, procreating and providing care for the offspring There appears to be a clear distinction between marriage and cohabiting, judging from the definitions above which helps me conclude that they are not one and the same thing. The question which I will attempt to answer is whether on is displacing or replacing the other. Shaw and Haskey, (1999) seem to concur with the idea of a clear dichotomy as they point out that there has been a major trend towards a decline in marriage and a rise in cohabitation. Hasky, (1999) also points out that marriages popularity rose throughout the 1950s and the 1960s but notes that towards the end of the century, it fell, giving rise to cohabitation. It appears there was a shift in family formation from the traditional marriage to cohabitation. To further support the prevalence of cohabitation, Bramlett and Mosher, (2002) confirm that the increase of cohabitation is well documented showing that the majority of newly weds have cohabited before their first marriage. Levidon (1990) also argued that consensual unions, (cohabitation) appeared to constitute a new type of union. However, he mentions that the process was transitory, which points to the fact that marriage still was seen to be the end goal. A major development however was that there was more recognition of informal unions and as a social institution. (Haskey 1999)Kiernan, and Estaugh (1993), came up with the idea of nubile cohabitation which involved young people living together either as a prel ude to or as an alternative to marriage. This was further elaborated on by Bumpass, Sweet and Cherlin (2001); Smock, Huang, Bergstrom and Manning (2005) who cited one of the key reasons why cohabitation was on the rise, as a way of testing out a relationship and determine compatibility. Research however found out that there is a positive correlation between cohabitation and marital dissolution. (DeMaris and Rao 1992, Teachman and Polonko 1990 and Schoen 1992 cited in Smock (2000). They also found out that the link between cohabitation and marriage failure is complex, with other factors like, race, sexual history and ethnicity playing a significant influence. (Phillips and Sweeney 2005). According to Casper and Sayer (2000) and Brown and Booth (1996), cohabiters, are distinguished by factors like plans to marry It is noted that most of the cohabiters eventually plan to marry but not all cohabiters enter into cohabitation with marriage plans. (Manning and Smock 2005). In this way, cohabiters treated their cohabiting as an initial stage of the marriage process which clarifies that they did not see it as an alternative to marriage and likewise, those without marriage plans also viewed cohabitation as part of courtship or single hood. According to Brown (2004), cohabiters with marriage plans view cohabitation as a semi marriage and as a matter of fact, they share the same relationship quality as the married couples. Another factor that needs to be looked at is the individuals cohabitation history which researchers say in very significant. It was proven that women who cohabited only once with the same partner, being intimate, had the same relationship stability as those w ho never cohabited, (Teachman 2003). On the contrary, young adults who had multiple cohabiting partners are likely to encounter marital instability, (Teachman and Polonko 1990), (DeMaris and McDonald 1993). It is worth pointing out though that they concede that individuals who had multiple cohabitation before marriage could possibly have enough experience to enable them to make better marriage choices. Duncan et al (2005) states that cohabitation is often equated with do it yourselfand is no longer restricted to particular social groups. In line with this notion, Manning, Smock and Majumdar (2004) and Phillips and Sweeney (2005) maintain that race, and ethnic differences in cohabitation are likely to have an impact on cohabitation. It was noted that cohabitation had a negative effect on Whites marital stability but none on Blacks. This is likely so because of the view each ethnic group has on cohabiting. It was further observed that amongst cohabiting couples, Blacks had weaker marriage plans than Whites. (Manning and Smock 2002) Brown (2000) also argued that Blacks were less likely to go through to the actual marriage even with marriage plans. Between 1986 and 1990, there was a dramatic rise in cohabitation in Britain. 29% of unmarried females under 60 were cohabiting in 2001 and 2002. This was a three fold increase. As cohabitation rose, children being born to cohabiting couples were estimated to be over 25% by the beginning of the twenty first century. The fall decline of and delay in marriages, have all given rise to the phenomenon of cohabitation. Marriage does not stand out as the only means of commitment for life since some couples choose to cohabit, citing reasons like less commitment and the ease of opting out if things do not work well. (Kieman 2004). According to Duncan et al (2005) the shift from marriage to cohabitation suggests that individuals have found an option which meets their personal needs and has less or no hassles in terminating. Having looked at the history and trends of the two processes, marriage and cohabitation, this paper will focus on the individualisation theory. According to Beck, (1992) and Giddens (1992), we have entered a late modern era of de-traditionalisation and individualisation. Financial stability, education and provision through the welfare state tend to give individuals the latitude to move away from traditional customs. According to Lewis (2001), the pursuit of self fulfilment and individual happiness and freedom has brought up changes on the view of family. While the traditional institutions are still valued, there is less emphasis on marriage vows or private commitments and more emphasis on self projects. The project of self, places an emphasis on individual self-fulfilment and personal development, comes to replace relational, social aims. (Duncan and Smith 2006) The prevalence, historically, of economic and legal inequality, and the belief of there being accepted patterns of behaviou r is now getting weaker. (Lewis, 2001, p3) According to Lewis (2001), individualisation is thought to be a formulation of freedom of choice and personal preferences which competes with social structural traditions. However, in the eyes of the traditionalists, this may be viewed as a counter cultural revolution Beck (1992( suggests that social structures of gender, class, family and religion are gradually weakening due to individuals becoming more reflexive in making own choices, resulting in the creation of their own biographies. As a result, relationships now focus on individual fulfilment and consensual love, with sexual and emotional equality, substituting formal unions which have been historically prescribed within set gender roles. (Bauman, 2003, Duncan and Smith 2006). With reference to Majumdars definition of marriage, there is particular mention of it being a union of male and female or as a secondary institution devised by society to sanction the union and mating of male and female for purposesof establishing a household, entering into sex relations, procreating and providing care for the offspring. However, with reference to individualisation, the prescript nature of the marriage institution is challenged resulting in sexuality being largely freed from institutional, normative and patriarchal control as well as from reproduction. (Duncan and Smith 2006). This notion has led to the acceptance and rise of same sex relationships as confirmed by The Civil Partnership Act 2004 which was passed and came into effect in December 2005 created civil partnerships which gave same-sex couples who entered into them the same rights and responsibilities of marriage. From a feminist perspective, Lewis (2001) would argue that historically, marriage has reinforced the limiting of the self development of women. Marriage was seen as a restrictive union and could dictate emotions, feelings and behaviour. Cohabitation, from a different perspective could then be argued to be a form of liberation for women. (Morgan 2000). Marriage was viewed as being restrictive and confining, thereby limiting independence and autonomy. Morgan argues that marriage is an unencumbered life without binding commitments. This then presents the idea of cohabitation as a viable alternative which affords people choice to determine their own conditions for the establishment and dissolution of a relationship, Morgan (2000). The emergence of this contemporary family has been viewed positively and negatively. According to Giddens, (1992) and Weeks, (2001), the greater diversity of lifestyles and the opening up of choice leads to democracy in personal relations, and liberation from oppressive institutions. On the contrary, the work of Zygmunt Bauman (2003) and Francis Fukuyama (1999), stresses that the breakdown of traditional ties leads to a disintegration of families and the moralities once maintained by them; this demoralisation leads to individual alienation and social breakdown. Maslow (1954) maintains that people who engage in self actualisation were concurrently individualistic and altruistic. In order to meet their needs, individuals moving towards self actualisation, became higher selves and according to Maslow, this is healthy selfishness (p.156). In this process, the healthy self focuses more on the self Kilpatrick (1975) According to the pioneers of the individualisation theory, Becks and Gersheim (2002), society has shifted away from traditional structures where, people no longer have pre-given life worlds and life trajectories. (Heath, et al 2007). Generally, individuals are no longer expected by society to follow a set family pattern. According to Beck, (1992) this notion has altered the previous accepted family structures resulting in the dissolution of the social foundations of the nuclear family as more emphasis is placed on the family of choice Fukuyama (1999) argues that the institution of marriage has previously been viewed as the bedrock of society but due to the emergence of the family change and freedom of choice, traditional ties have weakened and as a result, there has been family degeneration. Gender roles have also shifted since from the categorization of men as breadwinners and women as house makers. The major change appears to be women emancipation advocated for by the womens moveme nts and this has altered societal and demographic values. Active participation by women on the labour market has significantly changed the notion of a family unit by bringing in more choice and autonomy women did not have in the past. The Legal Position of Cohabitation in Britain Heterosexual cohabitation has been socially and universally accepted as an alternative to marriage in the UK for over two decades but very little has been finalised as regards legal rights of the cohabitants is debatable. (Duncan et al 2001) The issue with cohabiting is that while it can be registered as a Civil marriage, it does not attract the same legal rights and privileges of a marriage. Traditionally, marriage has been regarded as Bauman, Z (2003) Liquid Love: on the Frailty of Human Bonds. Oxford, Polity. Beck, U. (1992) Risk Society: Towards a New Modernity, London, Sage. Bumpass, L., Lu, H. (2000). Trends in cohabitation and implications for childrens family contexts in the United States. Population Studies, 54, 29-41. Duncan, S. and Smith, D. (2002) Geographies of family formations: spatial differences and gender cultures in Britain Transactions Institute of British Geographers, 27, 4, 471-493. Fukuyama, F. (1999) The Great Disruption: Human nature and the Reconstitution of Social Order, New York, Free Press. Giddens, A. (1992) The Transformation of Intimacy: Sexuality, Love and Eroticism in Modern Societies. Cambridge, Polity Press. Horton, P. B. and Hunt, C.L. (1984) Sociology. 6th ed. Singapore: McGraw Hill Book Companies Kiernan, K. and Estaugh, V. (1993) Cohabitation Extra-marital Childbearing and Social Policy,Joseph Rowntree Foundation/Family Policy Studies Centre. Lewis, J. (2001) The End of Marriage? Individualism and Intimate Relationships, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Marshall, G, (1998) A Dictionary of Sociology cited on http://www.encyclopedia.com Accessed 20/11/2009. Weeks, J. (2001) Same Sex Intimacies: Families of Choice and Other Life Experiments. London, Routledge. Teachman, J. Tedrow, L and Crowder. K. 2000. The Changing Demography of Americas Families. Journal of Marriage and the Family 62:1234-1246.

Essay on Games in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight -- Sir Gawain Green

Games in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight   Ã‚  Ã‚   Many games are involved in the plot of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The Green Knight, Bercilak de Hautdesert, plays a "Christmas game" with Arthur's court at Camelot (line 283); Gawain's host's wife plays games with Gawain throughout the third section of the poem; Gawain's sees his arrangement of mutual trade with his host as a game (line 1380); and all of the events of the story are revealed as a game of Arthur's sister, Morgan Le Fay (lines 2456-2466). Throughout the telling of the story, the author plays a mental game with the reader or listener, as well.    The "Christmas game" that the Green Knight comes to play with Arthur's court at the instigation of Morgan Le Fay provides the structure with which the plot of the entire story is held together. At first, the court believes that the knight has come for "contest bare" (line 277); when he reveals his intent to exchange one blow for another, it seems that it would be an easy contest for an opponent to win, since no one expects the knight to survive having his head removed with his own axe. However, the knight picks up his severed head and leaves, revealing the seriousness of Gawain's promise to accept a return blow, Arthur downplays the importance of this promise, saying, "Now, sir, hang up your axe," and returning to the feast. (line 477) Arthur also downplays the importance of the contest before Gawain deals his blow to the knight, prophesying Gawain's eventual success:    Keep, cousin, said the king, what you cut with this day And if you rule it aright, then readily, I know, You shall stand the stroke it will strike after. (lines 371-374)    Although neither the reader nor Gawain is aware o... ...h century or today, is human and subject to failings, as well. Gawain learned his lesson from the Green Knight and communicated it to Arthur's court. I believe that the author hopes that his audience will take the message to heart, as well.    Works Cited: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Sixth Edition, Volume One. General Ed. M.H. Abrams. New York: Norton, 1993.    Works Consulted: Bennett, Michael J.   "The Historical Background" in A Companion to the Gawain-Poet, pp. 71-90.   Derek Brewer and Jonathan Gibson, editors.   Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1997. Putter, Ad.   An Introduction to the Gawain-poet.   New York: Addison Wesley Longman, 1996. Riddy, Felicity.   "Jewels in Pearl" in A Companion to the Gawain-Poet, pp. 142-55.   Derek Brewer and Jonathan Gibson, editors.   Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1997.

A Comparison of Hamlet and The Turn of the Screw :: comparison compare contrast essays

Hamlet vs. The Turn of the Screw    Although Hamlet and The Turn of the Screw are very different works, both William Shakespeare and Henry James use the themes of love and ghosts to complicate their work. By having these themes, both authors make the readers question and wonder if the accounts the characters are having really exist. Are these two main characters, Hamlet and the governess , mentally ill or does the stories explain their actions?    The most obvious commonality, between Hamlet and The Turn of the Screw, is the use of ghosts. On one hand, Hamlet speaks with the ghost of his father, Hamlet. When Hamlet firsts sees the ghost he asks, "Be thou a spirit of health or goblin damned,/ Bring with thee airs from heaven or blasts from Hell,/ Be thy intents wicked or charitable," (I. 4. 40-42). When Hamlet finally meets the ghost and converses with him, the ghost creates a problem that lasts throughout the whole play. On the other hand, the governess sees the two deceased workers, Peter Quint and Miss Jessel. These ghosts also create a problem. Speaking with Mrs. Grose, the governess tells her there was a ghost. After Mrs. Grose asks what the ghost wants, the governess says, "Heaven forbid! The man. He [Quint] wants to appear to them [the children]." Are the ghost real? Do the children see the ghosts and lie?    In both works, love also plays a role. Hamlet's love, Ophelia, sees Hamlet at his worse. To make the people around him think he's crazy, Hamlet visits Ophelia and acts mad. When speaking with her father, Ophelia says, "Lord Hamlet, with his doublet all unbraced,/ No hat upon his head, his stockings fouled,/ Unaltered , and down-gyvà ¨d to his ankles," (II. 1. 77-79). Soon, his mother and the king think Hamlet is insane. Is Hamlet really crazy? In The Turn of the Screw, the ghosts appear to the governess while she is thinking about the master, her infatuation, or his heir, Miles. The governess states, "...the only way to be sure he knew would be to see it, and the kind light of it, in his [the master`s] handsome face" (James 23). Suddenly Peter Quint appears in a high window. A Comparison of Hamlet and The Turn of the Screw :: comparison compare contrast essays Hamlet vs. The Turn of the Screw    Although Hamlet and The Turn of the Screw are very different works, both William Shakespeare and Henry James use the themes of love and ghosts to complicate their work. By having these themes, both authors make the readers question and wonder if the accounts the characters are having really exist. Are these two main characters, Hamlet and the governess , mentally ill or does the stories explain their actions?    The most obvious commonality, between Hamlet and The Turn of the Screw, is the use of ghosts. On one hand, Hamlet speaks with the ghost of his father, Hamlet. When Hamlet firsts sees the ghost he asks, "Be thou a spirit of health or goblin damned,/ Bring with thee airs from heaven or blasts from Hell,/ Be thy intents wicked or charitable," (I. 4. 40-42). When Hamlet finally meets the ghost and converses with him, the ghost creates a problem that lasts throughout the whole play. On the other hand, the governess sees the two deceased workers, Peter Quint and Miss Jessel. These ghosts also create a problem. Speaking with Mrs. Grose, the governess tells her there was a ghost. After Mrs. Grose asks what the ghost wants, the governess says, "Heaven forbid! The man. He [Quint] wants to appear to them [the children]." Are the ghost real? Do the children see the ghosts and lie?    In both works, love also plays a role. Hamlet's love, Ophelia, sees Hamlet at his worse. To make the people around him think he's crazy, Hamlet visits Ophelia and acts mad. When speaking with her father, Ophelia says, "Lord Hamlet, with his doublet all unbraced,/ No hat upon his head, his stockings fouled,/ Unaltered , and down-gyvà ¨d to his ankles," (II. 1. 77-79). Soon, his mother and the king think Hamlet is insane. Is Hamlet really crazy? In The Turn of the Screw, the ghosts appear to the governess while she is thinking about the master, her infatuation, or his heir, Miles. The governess states, "...the only way to be sure he knew would be to see it, and the kind light of it, in his [the master`s] handsome face" (James 23). Suddenly Peter Quint appears in a high window.

Three Approaches to Coping with School Violence Essay -- Exploratory E

We humans have always sought to increaseour personal energy in the only manner wehave known: by seeking to psychologically steal it from others—an unconscious competition that underlies all human conflict in the world. (James Redfield, 1993, The Celestine Prophecy, New York: Warner Books,65–66) Some school critics and statisticians have observed that drug-dealing, vandalism, robbery, and murder have replaced gum-chewing, â€Å"talking out of turn,† tardiness, and rudeness as the most chronic problems afflicting today’s schools. If the intent of this observation is to shock and rattle the public’s sensibilities, it’s working. Of course, some of us may interpret such suggestions as merely dark, stoic, and cynical—â€Å"scare† tactics quite in keeping with the current national mood about many social issues these days. Yet, as a profession (and a society) maybe a little shock treatment now and then is good for us, especially if we ourselves work in relatively â€Å"safe† schools and communities. Maybe it’s time to remind ourselves that one school’s problem can become every school’s problem if the profession at large is not watchful and careful. No school is immune to the potential of extreme violence, as many of us, without meaning to, have learned. If you’re a long-time, veteran English teacher, you may never have thought you’d see the day when an issue of English Journal would be devoted to school violence. The idea never occurred to me, either. But here we are, and here that issue is. And, what’s more, it’s high time. While none of us needs convincing that the violence problem is serious in a great many places, some of the statistics are sobering. The National Education Association (March 1994) reports that the number of children... ... suffice. Works Cited Anderson, Elijah. 1994. â€Å"The Code of the Streets.† TheAtlantic Monthly (May): 81–94. Elam, Stanley M. 1993. â€Å"The 25th Annual Phi Delta Kappan/Gallup Poll.† Phi Delta Kappan (Oct.): 137–152. â€Å"Guns Among Young People in the U.S.† 1993. Youth Record. Washington, D.C.: Youth Policy Institute. (Aug. 3): 10. Jones, Clarisse. 1994. â€Å"Report Shows Violence Rising in Schools.† The New York Times (Aug. 13): 27. Merina, Anita. 1994. â€Å"Fighting School Violence Means Taking on Guns.† NEA Today (Mar. 12): 4. Survey of the American Teacher 1993: Violence in America’s Public Schools. New York: MetLife. Zimmer, Judith. 1993. We Can Work It Out. Culver City, CA: Social Studies School Service. Denny Wolfe is professor of English Education andDirector of the Tidewater Virginia Writing Project atOld Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia.

Indirect vs. Direct Presentation Essay

â€Å"The Destructors,† by Graham Greene, both indirect and direct presentation is implemented to provide a multidimensional portrayal of the characters in the story. This device is effective because each type of presentation provides the reader with a different perspective into each character. The author presents the characters directly by telling the reader details about the characters and presents the characters indirectly by showing the reader. Direct presentation allows for more of a complete understanding of the characters while indirect presentation forces the reader to make inferences based on dialogue and occurrences throughout the story. Direct presentation is effective especially in the beginning of a short story because the reader gets a primary and absolute insight into each character’s emotions, which will in turn allow them to interpret actions and developments later on in the story. Mike’s young age, and childish naà ¯vetà © is immediately exposed when Greene directly presents him as â€Å"nine [and] surprised by everything† (111). Mike’s character is clearly defined with little left for the reader to interpret. The author can best express his purpose through this type of presentation. Greene uses direct presentation when he introduces major members of the gang such as Blackie, Trevor, and Mike. Greene reveals Blackie’s acceptance of his class standing as he describes Blackie’s reservations with Trevor’s plan. â€Å"He was just, he had no jealousy, he was anxious to retain T. in the gang if he could. It was the word ‘beautiful’ that worried him – that belonged to a class world that you could still see parodied at the Wormsley Common Empire by a man wearing a top hat and a monocle, with a haw-haw accent† (114). In this instance, direct presentation is quite effective because Greene reveals that Blackie is not a resentful character; this is a truth that would be very difficult for a reader to infer. Old Misery is also presented directly. Greene provides direct insight into Old Misery as he describes his background early in the story. â€Å"Old Misery-whose real name was Thomas-had once been a builder and decorator. He lived alone in the crippled house, doing for himself† (112). This saves the  author from having to digress from the plot in order to indirectly characterize Old Misery, which would in essence detract from the true purpose of the story. Indirect presentation is used throughout the story to reveal subtleties and more importantly, to accentuate the story’s many paradoxes. Greene’s usage of indirect presentation in exposing these truths adds to the profundity of the story. Greene cleverly shows Blackie’s insecurity when Blackie attempts to avoid Trevor’s plan of destroying Old Misery’s house as he feebly states, â€Å"there wouldn’t be time, I’ve seen housebreakers at work. None of us know how† (115). When Trevor taunts him and his leadership position seems compromised Blackie â€Å"uneasily [says], it’s proposed that tomorrow and Monday we destroy Old Misery’s house† (115). Greene uses the word â€Å"uneasily† to indirectly present Blackie’s insecurity and to distinguish him from his malevolent foil, Trevor. Blackie’s foil, Trevor, also known by the gang as â€Å"T.,† is a very bitter character. Greene uses direct presentation to illustrate the many paradoxes surrounding him. T.’s attitude towards Old Misery is quite paradoxical. On the one hand, he sets about destroying his house, treating him disrespectfully, and regarding him with suspicion. At the same time, however, T. expresses that he does not hate Old Misery when he says, â€Å"of course I don’t hate him. There’d be no fun if I hated him† (118). Although his destructive behavior is not personal, the consequences are tremendous for Old Misery, but T. is unable to consider such consequences. Another instance of indirect presentation is when T. takes Mr. Thomas’s seventy one-pound notes, but not for personal gain. Instead, he and Blackie take each pound note and â€Å"[light] the top corner, so that the flame burn[s] slowly towards their fingers† (118). Essentially, T. takes items that are inherently valuable, but he has no interest in making use of that value. T.’s attitude toward Old Misery’s house is paradoxical as well. T. said, â€Å"It’s a beautiful house,† as he â€Å"still [watched] the ground meeting no one’s eyes† (114). Green shows T.’s distaste for wealth and for the upper class  when he notes T’s lack of eye contact with the gang. He knows the house is beautiful, but his feelings about beauty, especially as they relate to social classes makes it easy for him to destroy it anyway. The Wormsley Common Gang is presented indirectly as a whole. Greene presents the gang indirectly rather than directly for the sole reason that the gang often thinks as a whole but is ultimately made up of many different members. This is shown when Mr. Thomas attempts to reach out to the boys and give them chocolates. Many members chime in their opinions on Mr. Thomas’ motives however, Blackie, their leader at the time, picks the reasoning that most suits him. â€Å"We’ll show him we don’t take bribes† (113). â€Å"They sacrificed the whole morning to the game of bouncing that only Mike was young enough to enjoy† (113). Even though none of the gang enjoyed the activity except for Mike they participated anyways. This instance indirectly reveals the insecurity of each individual gang member. Though the gang stands by the decision, none of its members even get enjoyment out of it. The gang’s judgmental tendencies and fickly characteristics are shown through the power struggle for leadership between Blackie and T. â€Å"For the first time since T. had strolled into the carpark on the first day of the holidays his position was in dancer. It only need a single use of his real name and the gang would be at his heels† (114). The fact that Trevor feels the need to go by T. when he is with the gang reveals his own insecurity as well as the judgmental qualities of the gang. Just a few days prior Blackie had been the leader of the gang however now they â€Å"[paid] no more attention to him than to a stranger† (115). â€Å"Blackie was dimly aware of the fickleness of favor† (115). Especially in short stories, presentation is essential. Greene does an excellent job as he masterfully uses both direct and indirect presentation to convey his message in â€Å"The Destructors.† He immediately develops the main characters through direct presentation. This way, the readers have a predisposition about each character therefore making the eventual character shift more dramatic. He uses indirect presentation to describe the gang and to reveal the subtleties and paradoxes within the story. â€Å"The Destructors†Ã‚  is an effective literary work because of its multidimensional qualities enabled by Green’s brilliant control of presentation. Work Cited: â€Å"The Destructors† by Graham Greene

Ethanol as a Fuel Source

Year 12 Chemistry Assessment Task 1| Ethanol as an alternative fuel| | | | Melissa Weber| 22/11/2010| | Overview The commercial production of ethanol fuel in Australia is the use of sugar cane and wheat using yeast in the fermentation process. Yeast is a fungus which can multiply in the absence of oxygen by using enzymes (e. g. zymase) to catalyse the decomposition of sugars. Those sugars are sucrose or maltose. Suitable conditions The conditions that promote the fermentation of sugar are: * A suitable micro-organism such as yeast * Water * A suitable temperature for the fermenting yeast Low oxygen concentrations favouring the fermenting yeast * A small amount of yeast nutrients such as phosphate salt. * Once the ethanol concentration reaches 14-15% by volume, the yeast cannot survive, and the fermentation process stops. Costs Biomass fuels such as rice straw and sugar cane bagasse are being investigated as raw materials for ethanol production but the transportation costs are very hi gh and do not justify their use. Genetically modified crops are being analysed and this could provide a cheap source of biomass fuels for the production of ethanol.Production from Sugar Cane Sucrose extracted from sugarcane accounts for little more than 30% of the chemical energy stored in the mature plant; 35% is in the leaves and stem tips, which are left in the fields during harvest, and 35% are in the fibrous material (bagasse) left over from pressing. Most of the industrial processing of sugarcane in Brazil is done through a very integrated production chain, allowing sugar production, industrial ethanol processing, and electricity generation from by-products.The typical steps for large scale production of sugar and ethanol include milling, electricity generation, fermentation, distillation of ethanol, and dehydration. Replacement for distillation With increasing attention being paid to saving energy, many methods have been proposed that avoid distillation altogether for dehydra tion. Of these methods, a third method has emerged and has been adopted by the majority of modern ethanol plants. This new process uses molecular sieves to remove water from fuel ethanol.In this process, ethanol vapour under pressure passes through a bed of molecular sieve beads. The bead's pores are sized to allow absorption of water while excluding ethanol. After a period of time, the bed is regenerated under vacuum or in the flow of inert atmosphere to remove the absorbed water. Two beds are used so that one is available to absorb water while the other is being regenerated. This dehydration technology can account for energy saving of 3,000 btus/gallon (840 kJ/l) compared to earlier azeotropic distillation. .Diagrams DISTILLATION| | STRUCTURE| FORMULAC6H12O6 ;gt; 2CO2 + 2C2H5OH (ethanol) 180. 00g ;gt; 88. 00g + 92. 00g| Ethanol vs. Fuel Arguments for ethanol as a fuel| Arguments against ethanol as a fuel| It is a clean and efficient use of energy. It is much safer then petrol (Eth anol is biodegradable without harmful effects on the environment) and will greatly reduce the spread of pollution. Seeing that it is not a fossil-fuel, manufacturing it and burning it does not increase the greenhouse effect. Ethanol can reduce net carbon dioxide emissions by up to 100% on a full life-cycle basis. High-level ethanol blends can reduce emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) by 30% or more (VOCs are major sources of ground-level ozone formation) * High-level ethanol blends reduce nitrogen oxide emissions| Ethanol is clean but it only produces two-thirds the energy of octane, hence more is needed| It is a much healthier alternative for people: * Sulphur dioxide and Particulate Matter (PM) emissions are significantly decreased with ethanol. As an octane enhancer, ethanol can cut emissions of cancer-causing benzene and butadiene by more than 50% * It provides high octane at low cost as an alternative to harmful fuel additives. * Ethanol can be used as an additive i nstead of lead which is a toxic pollutant in major cities. It will significantly reduces harmful exhaust emissions meaning more healthy in urban areas| The increased need for land clearing for crops (sugar cane) has led to huge problems of soil erosion, salination and the over use of water resources e. . Brazil| It is renewable and relatively cheap to produce, whereas oil supplies are limited to perhaps 50-60 years| Oil reserves are depleting but new reserves are being found with sophisticated techniques| Addition of ethanol to petrol reduces the amount of oxygen in combustion and reduces the emission of carbon. Ethanol blends can be used in all petrol engines without modifications| The cost of producing ethanol in 2008 was twice the cost of petrol.Australia has a 10% blend which is competitive at the moment| Ethanol can be produced anywhere in the world (Brazil, Tanzania, Australia) and will reduce the monopoly of Arab nations. As it is easily accessible for each country the diffic ulty and hazards in transporting will be reduced| 80% of the world's transport is dependent on fossil fuels. Changing to an ethanol base will be an economic nightmare| Current use of ethanol Continent| % of energy needs supplied by biomass| Continent| % of energy needs supplied by biomass| Australia| 5%| Oceania| 35%|Africa| 55%| North America| 4%| South America| 26%| Europe| 2-3%| Asia| 38%| former USSR| 3%| Sydney buses have trialled the use of Diesohol. Diesohol is a mixture of 10-15% ethanol in diesel fuel – it has been made possible by the development of a process which emulsifies the ethanol in the diesel. Using Diesohol reduces smoke, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides in the vehicles exhaust. Up to about 10% ethanol can be added to petrol without requiring any alteration in car engines. Cars can run on 100% ethanol, but this requires engine modification.Ethanol does not release as much energy per gram as hydrocarbons do on burning. However, ethanol does reduce pollut ants in vehicle exhaust. This is particularly advantageous when using Diesohol in trucks and buses in large polluted cities. The use of ethanol as a fuel is neutral as far as releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. When ethanol is burned, it produces carbon dioxide, however, this carbon dioxide is taken out of the atmosphere by growing plants to produce more ethanol.If crops are grown specifically to produce ethanol by fermentation, very large areas of land would be required. It has been estimated that if Australia used all its cereal and sugar crops to produce ethanol, this would still only provide enough fuel to replace about 10% of its current petroleum use. Obviously, this amount of land could not be devoted to the production of transport fuel rather than food. However, it may be that in the future, with improvements in fermentation technology, plant waste material could be used to produce ethanol.It may be that there are better ways to harness energy from the sun than by growing plants which are then fermented to produce ethanol. Combustion of ethanol only releases about one third of the energy from sunlight which was originally trapped by, for example, sugar cane plants. Ethanol is still much more expensive to produce than petrol. The expenses involved in the production of ethanol include the effort put into growing the plant material, transporting plant material to processing plants and the energy required to separate the ethanol from the fermentation mixture by distillation.Ethanol consumption in an engine is approximately 51% higher than for gasoline since the energy per unit volume of ethanol is 34% lower than for gasoline. However, the higher compression ratios in an ethanol-only engine allow for increased power output and better fuel economy than could be obtained with lower compression ratios Cost of ethanol in Australia Taxation * Domestically produced fuel ethanol is currently effectively exempt from excise tax until July 1, 2011 (an excis e of 38. 43 cents per litre is payable on petrol). From this date, excise will be increased at 2. 5 cents per litre annually until it reaches 12. 5 cents per litre in 2015 Government Support * Federal Government support for fuel ethanol includes a voluntary industry biofuels target (encompassing ethanol, biodiesel, and other biofuels) of 350 million litres per annum by 2010, capital grants to current and prospective producers, fuel excise relief, and an effective tariff on imported ethanol until July 1, 2011. In 2006, the Premiers of both New South Wales and Queensland proposed mandating the blending of ethanol into petrol. Marketing * E10 is available through service stations operating under the BP, Caltex, Shell and United brands as well as those of a number of smaller independents. E10 is most widely available closer to the sources of production in Queensland and New South Wales. E10 is most commonly blended with 91 RON â€Å"regular unleaded† fuel.BibliographyBiofuel in A ustralia. (2010, 11 20). Retrieved 11 22, 2010, from Wikipedia: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel_in_Australia Catalyst Teaching Resouces. (2001).Investigating ethanol as a fuel , 1-5. Ethanol from glucose (2010, http://hsconline. nsw. edu. au/). [Motion Picture]. Ethanol from sugar (2010, http://hsconline. nsw. edu. au/). [Motion Picture]. Ethanol Fuel. (n. d. ). Retrieved 11 21, 2010, from Journey to forever: http://journeytoforever. org/ethanol. htmlEthanol Fuel. (2010, 11 10). Retrieved 11 22, 2010, from Wikipedia: http://en. wikipedia. rg/wiki/Ethanol_fuel_in Ethanol fuel in Brazil. (2010, 10 31). Retrieved 11 18, 2010, from Wikipedia: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel_in_Brazil MONCEAUX, P. M. (2008, 08 28).Fuel ethanol production. Retrieved 11 17, 2010, from bioethanol: http://www. bioethanol. ru/images/bioethanol/Fuel%20ethanol%20production%20-%20Katzen. pdf

H&M Analysis Essay

1. Question 1 Evaluate the external environment in which H & M operates in. 1.1. PESTEL Analysis 1.1.1. Political As companies begin to expand globally, it needs to understand the laws of each country. Since each country regulations are different, its needs to take special consideration before entering and investing into a new market in order to prevent violating any of them. This is especially true when regulations involving imports and exports are affected. While the restrictions of goods shipments may not be a major concern, selection and switching of suppliers relating to manufacturing and outsourcing can greatly affect profit margins, production costs as well as other incentives in different areas. Moreover, laws governing corporate social responsibility like minimum wages, child labour and other environmental issues affect organisational growth. 1.1.2. Economic Due to inflation, the rising costs of raw materials like cotton are felt globally. This in turn forces manufacturers to increase their production cost and future affecting potential profits globally. As international trade liberalises, the demand for suppliers and manufacturers in low-wage countries increases and completion between fashion retailers intensifies. In-addition, the recent economic crisis has affected consumer spending patterns, forcing organisations to push their retail prices low to meet consumers’ lower spending power. 1.1.3. Social/Cultural Different cultures have different fashion senses, likewise while consumers in Europe like Sweden embraces ‘fast Fashion’, Customers in Asia for example Singapore adopts fashion at a slow pace. To understand ‘local fashion’, most companies depend on home grown designers or in-house sales employees to pick up the latest treads to redesign their products. Moreover consumers globally are growing more conscious about the environment, which encourages the production of environmental friendly/sustainable products. 1.1.4. Technological As technology develops, consumers are getting more informed of their purchase  choices. Today most every individual are able to access the web to gather information, meet friends as well as purchase online. Hence it is not surprising that companies are upgrading their websites to gain attraction. To stay ahead, some companies are employing the latest IT systems to improve operation effectiveness and efficiency. For example, advance logistics capabilities allows organisations to control inventories better and reduce wastage, due to effective information sharing as well as proper empolyee training. 1.1.5. Environmental With the growing need to embrace green culture, consumers are more self-aware about their needs and would prefer to purchase from companies that are environmentally friendly and socially responsible. 1.2. Porter’s 5 Forces Analysis 1.2.1. Threat of entrants (Low) Viewing from a Global perspective, it will be difficult for new entrants to gain huge economies of scales without investing huge initial investments, which includes inventories, start up fund and cost for advertising, research and development expenses, etc. Large international incumbents like Zara, Gaps and H&M had already established strong footholds in multiple countries and with many years of experience to deter new comers. Moreover new entrants will expect retaliations from financially strong incumbents in events like price wars. Being in the fashion industry also makes it difficult for new organisations to differentiate their products. Although access to distribution channels have eased due to information technology advancement, most of the good ones would already have been contracted by bigger competitors. Therefore, I would conclude that threat of entrants is low for H&M. 1.2.2. Power of buyers (High) The bargaining power of buyers considered high because there are multiple alternatives like Zara, Gap, UNIQLO, etc. Moreover there is little or no switching cost involved when selecting fashion needs, thus resulting in little or no customer loyalty to the brands. Finally, H&M is required to monitor their needs as they are the end consumers of their products and is its main source of revenue. 1.2.3. Power of Suppliers (Low) The bargaining power of suppliers is low because suppliers/manufacturers for the fashion industry are numerous. As international trade liberalises, H&M have more options to source and even backward integrate by buying or merging with suppliers to meet organisation’s requirements. In addition, with the opening of cheap labour markets like China and India, the switching cost between suppliers to ensure low cost and better quality is consider low. 1.2.4. Competitive Rivalry (High) Rivalry is high because there are multiple players both large and small in the same business category as H&M. Moreover the recent recession experienced in recent years, have affected consumers’ spending and reduce demand thus intensifying competition. With more funds invested into research and design, firms are constantly renewing their products to capture market share, hence H&M have to be always vigilant to combat market changes. 1.2.5. Threat of Substitutes (Low) Threats of substitute products are low, since apparels are irreplaceable. Although online competitors may erode sales from H&M physical stores, the firm is currently developing its online sales strategy in USA to increase recognition. Rivalry is high because there are multiple players both large and small in the same business category as H&M. Moreover the recent recession experienced in recent years, have affected consumers’ spending and reduce demand thus intensifying competition. With more funds invested into research and design, firms are constantly renewing their products to capture market share, hence H&M have to be always vigilant to combat market changes. 2.1.1. Physical Utilizing the latest IT system allows H&M’s logistics to receive and transmit effective communication to not only make better decisions as well as to provide information based on customer’s needs and placement of products. In addition, renting of retail spaces in good locations can help reduce investment risk, attract more walk-in customers as well as to enable better flexibility and adaptability to the ever-changing environment. 2.1.2. Financial Firstly from the financial data, H&M has a high profit margin of 19.04% compared to its rivals, Zara, Gap and Uniqlo at 18.53%, 13.52% and 16.52% respectively, which proves that the firm have superior cost control. It also has a healthy solvency ratio of 73.28%, which meant that H&M is able to meet all its obligations namely short n long term liabilities. In addition, with a high liquidity ratio of 1.77, H&M will be able to settle its short term debt with ease, therefore proving that the firm is stable and will be able to withstand unexpected issues. 2.1.3. Marketing To further expand its reputation and fashion designs, H&M collaborated with famous designers like Stella McCartney and Versace. The firm have also successfully contracted high-profile celebrities for long-term advertising campaigns. In addition to its strong social media presence through Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc, the firm has achieved high level of consumer awareness and was ranked 21st out of 100 most valuable global brands with a  brand value of $16.5 billion in 2011 by Interbrand. 2.1.4. Human Resource Management H&M has a policy of hiring locals whenever new stories are established; this allows the firm to easily tap into local culture and understanding of the based country. In-addition to align them to the corporate culture, formal training is being provided to adopt the core values of the firm. The strong participative corporate culture also allows employees make their own decisions during their work for the store’s sales and image, if successful would be adopted by other store to generate more profits. 2.1.5. Processes Unlike most competitors, H&M centralises its Design Department consisting for 200 designers and 100 pattern makers to achieve minimum time-to-market as well as effective information sharing between production offices globally. This way design could not only be created rapidly due to shared skills, rapid-response production can be immediately capitalised on the latest design trends. Having constantly redefining the firm’s production and distribution processes to combat the ever-changing business environment, H&M has managed to create a complex integrated logistics and production system that support cost-cutting measures and generates economies of scale. This system has enabled the firm to achieve quick turnaround timing of about 20days as well as reduction of production lead times of 15-20%. (b) Analyse the strategic capabilities providing competitive advantages for H & M Focusing on the distinctive competencies of H&M, can we understand the competitive advantages of the firm? 3. Question 3 Apply the value chain model to analyse the strongest and weakest links in H & M’s global value chain by examining its primary and secondary activities. 3.1. Value Chain To analysis a company, it is important to first understand its structure. Hence through Micheal Porter’s Value Chain which consisted of both Support and Primary Activities, then will we be able to understand H&M’s strongest and weakest links 3.1.1. Support Activities 3.1.1.1. Firm Infrastructure Currently H&M group have over 2,205 stores in 43 countries and employed about 94,000 employees worldwide. Its headquarters is base in Stockholm, Sweden,  where most of the firm’s central activities like buying, logistics, etc are centralised. With 50 production offices which handle about 1,652 factories globally, information is rapidly exchanged to achieve latest trends as well as timely Design to Production to Delivery process. With 70% majority voting rights held by the Persson Family, most corporate decisions are handled by them. 3.1.1.2. Human Resource Management H&M embraces participative corporate culture, which focuses on employees’ involvement that encourages experimentation, trial and error learning, quick decision making, and willingness to take initiative to try new ideas. Mistakes are usually forgiven as long as it is not repeated. The firm also believes strongly in teamwork and expect great results. With little attention to titles and work descriptions, employees are encourage to challenge themselves to learn new skill or even have different job functions. To be social responsible, H&M also employs local staff for its new outlets and ensure fair treatment of global employees by signing agreements with suppliers to practice ethical business prescribed by law. 3.1.1.3. Technological Development H&M a cloth’s retailer organisation, has utilized the latest IT systems to help improve organisation’s logistics and production capabilities as well as reduce significant costs. Having multiple stores globally, H&M is also investing in its online sales capabilities to attract global consumers. 3.1.1.4. Procurement Without owning any production factories or supply farms, H&M is greatly dependent on its suppliers’ capabilities. Small chances in raw material prices can great affect the profit margins of the firm, for example a slight increase in cottons prices will increase the cost of making H&M clothing. However without factories, H&M can easily switch suppliers to achieve better costing and quality. In addition to the firm’s huge purchases, it can easily control supplier to provide huge discount upon delivery of finished goods. 3.1.2. Primary Activities 3.1.2.1. Inbound Logistics H&M do not own any manufacturing plants and has outsourced its production needs globally. Hence it relays on various suppliers to deliver the necessary inputs on its behalf. 3.1.2.2. Operations  H&M utilizes a centralized in-house designing model, its design operation located in its headquarters in Stockholm. With 200 design and 100 pattern makers, the firm is able to quickly churn out multiple fashion designs decided by various well-know designers and markets analysis to meet the latest trends. Having direct connection with the production office also allows immediate production which enhances cost-efficiencies. Training is provided from workers to adopt company’s values and provide better customer services. 3.1.2.3. Outbound Logistics Outsourcing of H&M’s goods transportation needs allows the firm to cut cost by reduction in labour chargers. Utilizing the integrated direct distribution channel that connects distribution centres, warehouses and stores, has ensured that individual store’s needs are communicated resulting in timely delivery of goods daily. 3.1.2.4. Marketing and Sales H&M philosophy is to provide affordable quality fashion to consumers. Benefiting from economies of Scales due to bulk purchases, the firm can negotiate with suppliers to provide huge discounts. Utilizing its philosophy, H&M has successfully communicated its position to the world through advertising means by working with famous designers, being long term advertising contract with famous celebrities, as well as its strong presence in social media. To further achieve its goals, the firm constantly revamp or renovate its stores every 2-3years to embrace the latest cultural trends, thus attracting its target customers. 3.1.2.5. Services H&M views services as a very important aspect of their business, formal training is provided for new employees to adopt its firm’s value. Moreover, employees are highly encouraged to adopt initiatives and new ideas to only improve the working environment as well as customers’ satisfaction. To maintain employees high moral which in turn lead to better services, H&M has introduced many employee welfare initiatives and was consider one of the best work environments. Hence from the above analysis, it can be seen that  marketing and sales is H&M strongest link, due to its links to famous designers and celebrities, which attracted consumers to get knowledge of the brand. Moreover, utilising social media also attracts the tech savvy users to share and expand the brand name at low cost. However, I would say that the firm’s weakest links is in its family business management, since most decisions is made internally and new management ideas from external means may be difficult to flow through. In addition, there is also a risk of business succession where the heir of the company is not as capable as its predecessor resulting in the firm’s failure. 4. Question 4 (a) Based on the preceding analyses, conduct a SWOT analysis on H & M. 4.1. Strengths H&M is a well-known clothing retail firm that specializes in fast fashion and cheap apparels for men, women and kids. Its strong marketing arm has managed to raise brand awareness among consumers globally. In addition to the firm’s commitment to procure sustainable materials for product design has future enhanced brand image. H&M differentiated itself by ensure their designs are unique and not copies from other competitors. 4.2. Weakness H&M is totally dependent on its suppliers for manufactured products, caused the firm to have limited control over manufacturers, which could lead to low quality products and negatively affect branding. With H&M core operation is highly centralized in Europe, leveraging of risk is weak. In addition, being a family own business, most corporate decisions are made internally, which may prevent external ideas to flow through preventing further growth, 4.3. Opportunity Having huge experience in running world-wide business, H&M may expand further new penetrating new markets like Ukraine or Israel. The firm may also want to backward integrate its business process by absorbing various suppliers to better control its product quality. 4.4. Threads Inflations and Currency changes can greatly affect the cost of raw material as well as production cost. Moreover with China’s aggressive product piracy, H&M design could easily be copied and cost globally eating market share.  Europe’s unstable economic nature due to crisis may force governments to raise corporate taxes to keep the economic afloat, which further affect profits. (b) Identify the key issues, challenges and opportunities facing H & M. As H&M centralized design processes, its products are not tailored to individual markets, thus allowing competitors who can better differentiate their products to target different consumer groups eating into the firm’s market share. Focusing on cost leadership strategy, H&M have to ensure production cost is low to achieve profits. Hence to reduce cost of materials companies tend to order huge quantities of raw materials, which may result in overstock and incur unwanted inventory costs. Outsourcing of manufacturing reduces H&M direct control over the production process, thus making it vulnerable to quality issues resulting in bad reputation among consumers. In order to expand its presence globally, H&M may need to penetrate to new markets. It could also improve cost savings through backward integration by buying over various suppliers for its own requirements. 5. Question 5 Based on the preceding analysis, formulate and discuss appropriate strategies that you would recommend to H & M in order for it to achieve above-average returns in the future. After analysing the above information, I understood that H&M is adopting the cost leadership strategy to advance it goals. Since the firm focused on â€Å"Economies of Scales† by purchasing huge qualities of goods in order receive better discounts, have long term â€Å"experience† to monitor its cost savings as well as constantly â€Å"redefining production and distribution† to achieve cost efficiencies (Johnson, G. 2014). However the most important factor that H&M lacks is the control of â€Å"input cost† since the firm had totally depended on suppliers for its productions needs. Hence, it is strongly recommended that the firm adopts backward integration by buying over or controlling various supplier/manufacturers in order to reduce its reliance as well as to be able to handle its â€Å"input cost† well. Even if that is not achievable, H&M could also hire service engineers to better train and monitor the suppliers’ progress through direct collaboration by planting its employees in manufacturing sites. This way, management will be more able to understand the quality and direct cost involved through the manufacturer plant’s production process, thus find ways to reduce cost and  improve efficiencies. Finally to improve total sales, H&M should also seek to venture into new markets so as to increase income and create new opportunities. References Johnson, G. (2014). Exploring Strategy. 10th ed. Harlow [u.a.]: Pearson.