Compensation and benifets Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Compensation and benifets - Research Paper Example The human resource system of the organization is decentralized and is trying to serve its employees as much as possible in a variety of locations. Service delivery ascribed to the human resource is highly dismantled, and is driven by a small team in charge of human resource operations. In spite of the hard work and effort put in by team members to afford the company support, they lack the requisite training, tools of human resource needed for success, as well as critical mass. The key challenge that the benefits and compensations program experiences is significant errors in data and inconsistencies in the responses of inquiries by employees. The decentralized human resource system used by the company allocates most of the human resource very little time to support their business associates. The high score of mistakes in data entry makes it difficult for the firm to provide accurate and timely information to key stakeholders. A Review of a Firm Experiencing a Similar Challenge Quite g ood example of a firm that faced a challenge similar to that of Boehringer Ingelheim is Hong Kong Polytechnic University, specifically its Department of Management. The university chose to implement information systems of managing the human resource with an aim of lowering the number of errors linked to data entry. Human Resource Information Systems refer to software applications that play the serve the specific purpose of aggregating and synthesizing information about employees. The information systems can serve purposes that range from populating breakdowns of payroll and benefits, to illustrating present positions held by employees, through the applications that run the system. The university discovered that the executives within the human resource were more comfortable carrying out the critical and creative projects because data about the employees were arranged neatly within the databases of human resource information systems. It was emergent that data automation minimized the probability of data entry errors. Moreover, more complex and integrated analyses were possible through the implementation of an extensive and unified pool of information about employees. In general, Hong Kong University together with many other manufacturing firms based in Hong Kong discovered the effectiveness of human resource information systems in improving the performance of business operations dovetailing a variety of human resource processes, and transforming thee management process of an organization with regard to compensations and benefits. Research and Analysis Contemporarily, human resource information systems connote fully automated systems that comprise of payroll processing, a system of human resource information and the management of recruitment (Pynes, 2008). Because there is a need to integrate data across the various departments of an organization, it is important to incorporate transparency and integrity in order to augment productivity and consequently meet the specific requirements of compensation and benefits legislation. Updating or entering of data win the human resource information system is conducted in within a single database. Consequently, all departments make use of these data. As such, this reduces errors, eliminating the presence of different records and saving both time and money. Errors in data

The effect on Taiwanese youths caused by mobile and computer games Essay

The effect on Taiwanese youths caused by mobile and computer games - Essay Example t times will be more interested in Television than in their parents, some preferring the sitting to watch TV rather than interact with other family members. The institution of family dinner has been responsible for strengthening the family, and research has proven that youths who frequently sat through one are less likely to be inclined towards decadent behavior such as violence and drug abuse. Today, these times have been relegated in of importance and family diners are hurried affairs with members in a rush to go back to their digital world. The bonds uniting family have been considerably weekend since people seem to prefer to spend times online than with their families (Small). Technology poses a myriad of ill effects for children; the list is extensive from childhood obesity, computer addiction to stunted social skills. Many parents use the TV to baby sit young children, while others buy their teens, pre-teen children laptops, and smart phones, with virtually unlimited access to the worldwide web, failing to consider the risks. Spending too much time watching TV can and has turned many children into couch potatoes, as a result, they hardly leave the house to play ergo get no exercise. Inevitably, obesity and other complications and this may scar the child for life not to mention making them venerable to conditions like diabetes; this is in addition to poor academic performance (Jussof 152). Teens engage in social networking and some of them become fully addicted to their mobile phones, and laptops this is often detrimental to their social skill and ability to interact face to face. Having computers in their rooms allows them easy access to normally restricted material such as extreme violence or pornographic content, this motivates children to attempt what they... The effect on Taiwanese youths caused by mobile and computer games This essay if focused on the effects of technology on the human brain with the view of proving that too much dependence on technology denies the brain a the benefits it gets from a social interaction especially with family. Millions have been laid off to make room for machines, Social skills have deteriorated thanks to addiction to social network especially among the youths and parents cannot be sure their children are safe from cyber stalkers. New crimes have emerged, given way by technology, and old ones have improved as criminals use technology to commit them and avoid detention. This paper will contest that technology despite the many advantages poses a host of problems both overt and covert to an individual, society family and even children who are too young to manage its vast capabilities. There is no denying that technology through communication and mass media information can move around the world in real time, and one learns the news in a different country at the same time as the residents. Cooking has never been easier with microwaves and electric cookers and travelling never aster more effect or comfortable because of developments in the transport. The internet has revolutionized and enhanced nearly every aspect of communication, which is vital in shaping human destiny (McFarlane 2). In this article, the writer discusses the negative impacts of global warming from a retrospective and futuristic perspective. He also mentions the various action attempted by world leader to mitigate it.

An evaluation of impact on financial and operations consequence

An evaluation of impact on financial and operations consequence INTRODUCTION Choosing the Topic After completion of all my fundamental papers in August 2010, I waited till the next session to decide to submit a research and analysis project for the Oxford Brooke University. The reason for such delay was the pressure to complete three professional papers in December session. This report is also important to me because I believe by having combination of both Profession qualification and a degree will uplift my career. To base my project on ACCA provided me with a list of 20 recommended topics to choose from. After reading through the list, the topic that immediately attracted my attention was topic 19 which was â€Å"The financial and operational consequences of a merger between two organisations or of the acquisition of one organisation by another†. What attracted me the most about this topic was that, it was all very relevant to my studies as I am thinking to pursue financial management after ACCA. I knew this topic will allow me to try out and learn the all important, analytical skills. Other reason to choose this topic was the much talked about acquisition of KRAFT and Cadbury therefore it encouraged me to choose this topic. Another reason was availability of the vast amount of information through the internet and press release because of recent release of Krafts recent fourth quarter in the month on February 2011. Choosing the organisation Once I chose my topic, I had to choose an organisation to base my research on.   I chose Kraft and Cadbury for my analysis; it was an obvious choice as this was the acquisition that impelled me to select this topic. This was one of the most controversial and largest takeovers in the year of 2010. I believed the takeover by the 2nd Largest Food Giants in its industry would accomplish the objective I had in mind for the project. Aims Objectives The main objective of this report is to evaluate the consequences of the acquisition on the finance and operations aspect of KRAFT FOODS. The financial statements by themselves only provide the quantitative data which need to be analysed by drawn graphs. The main focus of this report, therefore, is as follows: * To analyse the reasons for Kraft to make a strategic choice of acquiring Cadbury and whether it satisfy the strategic fit as claimed by the CEO of KRAFT FOODS in terms of financial and business operations. * The second part of the research aims to analyse whether Kraft is on the track to achieve its targets it promised its stakeholders at the time of acquisition. * Since financial information wasnt sufficient for my research, I need to review the strategic decisions made by Kraft for its subsidiary Cadbury after the acquisition along with the friction identified while integrating both business. The anticipated future of Cadbury under Kraft Group. In order to achieve the aims mentioned above, I have done qualitative analysis using SFE (Suitability, Feasibility Acceptability) and Ashridge model along with quantitative analysis using financial ratios and linking both to get an overall picture. THE ORGANISTAION Company Profile Kraft Kraft Foods is the worlds second largest food company headquartered in North Field, Illinois manufactures and market packaged food products, including biscuits, confectionery, beverages, cheese, convenient meals and various packaged and grocery products.( KRAFT FOODS INC, 2009)The business was formed by James L. Kraft and his four brothers who began by wholesaling door to door cheese business in Chicago. Kraft then achieved growth by merging with other companies and increases the size of the business by expanding more product lines.( Wikimedia Foundation,2011) Being listed on NYSE, Kraft now has approximately 127,000 employees worldwide. Kraft sells products to consumer in approximately 170 countries. At 31 December 2010, Kraft had operations in more than 75 countries and made products at 223 manufacturing and processing facilities worldwide. Kraft portfolio included eleven brands with annual revenues exceeding $1 billion each: Oreo, Nabisco and LU biscuits; Milka and Cadbury chocolates; Trident gum; Jacobs and Maxwell House coffees; Philadelphia cream cheeses; Kraft cheeses, dinners and dressings; and Oscar Mayer meats. Kraft portfolio included approximately 70 brands which each generate annual revenues of more than $100 million. (KRAFT FOODS INC, 2010) Cadbury Cadbury was a leading global independent business in the exciting world of confectionery, a large, growing, brand-led industry. With an outstanding portfolio of chocolate, gum and candy brands, the largest emerging markets business and a focused and experienced team, Cadbury is committed to its long-term vision to be the worlds biggest and best confectionery company. Cadbury operated in more than 60 countries with a workforce of 46000. (Cadbury, 2008) Cadbury made its beginning by opening one single shop by John Cadbury. As time progressed John Cadbury moved into the manufacturing of drinking chocolate and cocoa. Cadbury grew bigger through some organic growth and some mergers. During the first world war Cadbury started to achieve great success, its products were regarded as necessities and Cadbury were at their peak. Cadbury kept investing in technology, new factories and in new products to remain ahead of competition. With factories all over the world and a host of well known brand names it has become a household name in many countries. (Birminghamuk, (n.d.)) INFORMATION GATHERING Sources of Data Data can be collected for any research by the following ways: * Primary Research: Under primary research new information is collected via interviews, survey or questionnaire etc; hence information is collected first hand. * Secondary Research: Also known as Desk Research is gathered from information which has already been provided but may not be for the same purpose. Such information are easy to access and are my cheaper than carrying out primary research. Such information gathered should be analysed and screened properly so that it fits for the purpose. Kraft and Cadbury both being listed companies although listed in different countries were required to issue annual accounts for its stakeholders by Sarbanes Oxley and Companies House respective. These companies especially Kraft issued Interim Reports as per the stock list requirement. Therefore much of the quantitative and qualitative date was readily available for analysis. Hence I chose to use secondary data over primary. The only complication I faced apart from time pressure was obtaining latest financial information for Cadbury (2009 accounts). Fortunately Kraft public relation team co-operated and emailed me 2008 and 2009 Cadbury annual accounts on my request. The following are the sources of secondary information I used for my project: Annual and Interim Financial Accounts and Reports This is the main source I used for financial aspect of my business and to draw graphs. I had to use interim reports even to demonstrate impact of Cadbury acquisition on Kraft at each and every quarter due to complexity of the business. Krafts annual accounts were available to view and download on Krafts Investors Website. However Cadbury financial statement isnt easily available. Internet This is the source of limitless information; hence it took me a lot of time to extract information which was relative to the point. Firstly it provided me the qualitative information which was missing or less in the financial statement of both entities. Secondly it also provided me information from a third party or neutral point of view. Letters and Reports Under this source, I analyzed the documents sent by Kraft to Cadbury management or reports addressed to Kraft shareholder explaining them the strategic fit of Cadbury acquisition. These documents were available over the internet. Library I used study text published by Kaplan for ACCA to brush my skills and be of aid when I got confused during an analysis phase. Apart from my course books I visited local library for reference books. As I mentioned earlier I didnt had an opportunity to visit British Library for the access of database such as Datamonitor and Mintel. However I was able to get access to Euromonitor through internet and used it as a tool to aid understanding of the application of analytical tools regarding acquisition and both the entities. Data Collection Methods Its easy to collect data, but skills are required to make sense of data and using it for the purpose. It was a fiddly job to collect reliable authentic information to base my reports on. Any negligence on my behalf may cause me a failure in achieving the report objectives. I was cautious and took my time to read through all the information once before starting with my project. As this acquisition was of the biggest acquisition in the year 2010, too much was written by the newspapers and media about it. Reading about the merger in 2011 gave me this idea to do a project on Kraft and Cadbury, as Kraft were about to issue its fourth quarter results. I started my data collection by reading articles from local newspapers as well as papers or journal published in other counties. I viewed them retrospectively. The most prominent newspaper I viewed was Financial Times, Guardian, Reuters, Wall Street Journal and Economists. After I got a general idea behind the acquisition and critics claiming the acquisition as a failure. I downloaded the fourth quarter as well as annual report. I need to know what did CEO responded on the acquisition as it had been a year. Then I looked at financial data provided to support any statement by the CEO. Internet provided me great deal of help in my project. I type in the keywords such as Cadbury Kraft in etc at www.google.com . Find the relevant articles and making notes as well as bookmarks of the WebPages if I needed to read it again for qualitative part of my research. I even visited many libraries in my local areas; the librarian helped me by giving me advice on referencing as I had no idea on references. Unfortunately I couldnt make a trip to British Library to access database which could help me in my project. But I was pretty content with the amount of information I already collected to carry out my analysis. Referencing I have used the HARVARD REFERENCING SYSTEM for the referencing in my research and to aid readability, I have cited the source below the paragraph if the whole paragraphs were written based on the same single source. Acquisition for Kraft PreAcquisition To systematic analyse the strategic choice by Kraft to acquire Cadbury, I will be using Johnson and Scholes framework (Suitability, Feasibility and Acceptability Model). (Wu, 2010) Suitability Kraft Foods Inc. being the second largest food company still looks for opportunities to grow and try to remain one of the market leaders in the industry and and to spread risk by a diversified portfolio. Kraft believes in rapid expansion by acquiring other businesses. Kraft adopted new strategy implemented by new CEO who believed low growth segment should be disposed of and adopt those strategies that will achieve rapid growth even by means of acquisition .Kraft will look for businesses that will build on its strengths and guide against its threats. Kraft has a successful track record of acquiring iconic brands and businesses and effectively using it for its expansion.   We will be using one of the criteria of Ashridge model under suitability. Under Ashridge model we will be examining two criteria; whether Kraft has sufficient skills, resources and understanding of the Cadbury business and whether there are opportunities for helping to achieve critical success factors. (Steiner, 20 09) * One key reason for Kraft to acquire Cadbury was to penetrate in those growing markets where Cadbury has good base such as China, India and Mexico. Brands such as Cadbury Dairy Milk dominated such markets by a vast length compared to its rivals. Cadbury did receive 40% of its revenue from fast growing emerging market.   Cadburys acquisition of Adams played a vital role to increase their market share in Latin America.   Cadbury has experienced 12% growth in revenue in emerging market over five years (EUROMONITOR, 2008) this can be beneficial for Kraft as it intends to use Cadbury s distribution network to sell its brands. (Cadbury, 2008) (Cadbury, 2009a) Kraft being aware of Cadbury s heritage and its strong confectionery business ranking and its iconic brands makes Cadbury globally number one in chocolate, gum and candy. By attaining all these eponymous brands Kraft will become a global powerhouse in snacks, confectionery and quick meals with exceptional portfolio of leading brands in the world. Hence will be one step closer in achieving organic growth objective. Feasibility Under feasibility we would evaluate Krafts position before acquisition in terms of internal resources of the organization this can even be connected to Ashridge s model criteria of possessing sufficient resource by Predator Company. Kraft being second largest business in its industry has huge cash reserve which reflects in its Cash flow Statements of 2008 and 2009 ($1.24 billion and 2.10 billion respectively). Buts its worth mentioning   the disposal of Krafts North American Pizza to Nestle for total consideration of $3.7 billion contributed majorly to its high cash reserve. High cash reserve helps them to with acquisition cost and integration cost and any other abnormal cost. Apart from cash reserve Kraft does have reasonable current ratio of 1.04 reflecting its above average liquidity position then its peers. Although Cadbury has a strong hold on overall emerging markets Kraft have a greater position in some markets such as Brazil and Russia. As Kraft being a huge conglomerate bu siness it has vast amount of resources in terms of specialist staff, a highly invested research and development teams and finance etc to back up Cadbury to face competition from other rivals such as Hershey and Mars. Kraft can eve use its power over major supermarket chains such Wal-Mart to increase shelf value of Cadbury as majority of its sales come from small convenient store. Kraft is even able to promote Cadbury heritage brand more rigorously due to available of immense resources. It would be worth mentioning the fact that billion dollar Kraft empire has been experiencing an average growth of impressive 5 % over period of four years to 2008 (where it achieved 13% growth than previous year).(Daltorio, 2009) Acceptability To carry on with a strategic choice it also need to be acceptable by the stake holders. As shareholders are key stakeholders their consent is highly important. Although Kraft assured them the acquisition would result in increase in shareholders wealth as it fits in into its business culture, some shareholders have different opinion. One of the reasons for such conflict of interests is the fear of increase in companys gearing. By 2008 Kraft had a high gearing of 1.34 (ratio) compare to its rival Nestle of (0.36). They fear by acquiring Cadbury, Kraft would issue more long-term debt that may adversely affect the gearing ratio and hence increasing the financial risk of the business and affecting the capability of paying out dividends, hence damaging shareholders interest. The other reason for conflict of interest was the reaction from one of the biggest shareholders Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway who regarded the acquisition as â€Å"bad deal â€Å".He believed Kraft has overval ued Cadbury for purchase consideration and the disposal of pizza business to Nestle for $3.7 billion   was a mistake. He firmly believed Kraft is paying high premium for the acquisition. One shareholders view didnt affected Krafts strategic choice and Kraft went ahead with the acquisition despite got rejected first time. (Barr, 2010) Ballast Businesses *CADBURY* Heartland Businesses Alien Business Value trap Business According to my analysis I think Kraft values Cadbury as Heartland Business as Kraft has the skills to exploit opportunities from Cadbury. (UNDER ASHRIDGE MODEL) ACQUISITION for Kraft The long clashing 5 month battle between Cadbury and Kraft was finally over on 2nd February 2010 as Kraft clinches control over Cadbury by 72% holding. Kraft then took total control of Cadbury on June 2010. Cadbury shareholders had a deadline of 2nd February to accept Kraft offer of 500 pence in cash for each Cadbury share and 0.1874 new Kraft shares for each Cadbury share which altogether values each Cadbury share at 840 pence including a special 10 pence dividend. This sums up the total valuation of Cadbury business to approximate of  £11.9 Billion ($19.4 Billion). Kraft offered this purchase price on 19th of January after a long negotiation with Cadbury management. Kraft tried to make hostile takeover on 7th September by a bid worth 300 pence in cash and 0.2589 new Kraft shares for each Cadbury share (valuing it 745 pence a share). However Cadbury rejected the bid immediately and regarded it â€Å"derisory†. Kraft sweetened the bid by raising the original offer and increa sing the cash component from 40% to 60% to make it more appealing for Cadbury shareholders. (Cimlluca et al, 2010) I have extracted this graph from Thomson Reuters to illustrate the impact on the share price for both involved parties after the announcement of take-over. We notice an increase of almost 40% in the market value of Cadbury. The increase in Cadburys share price was triggered by the initial announcement by Kraft of its intention to take over Cadbury in early September of 2009. The announcement was received well by Cadbury Shareholders causing an increase in demand and thereby price of the stock. However we see a fall in the share price of Kraft food at the time announcement (graph below), some analysts believe this was due to Warren Buffet dissatisfaction of Kraft Acquisition. He regarded the acquisition as ‘bad deal, which caused chaos amongst other shareholder hence a price falls. This price fall deteriorated the purchase price offered by Kraft which was immediately rejected by Roger Carr, Chairmen of Cadbury. KEY POINTS FOR FINANCIAL ANALYSIS Kraft foods acquired Cadbury plc in February2 2010. Hence Cadbury results are restricted to 10 months rather than full 12 years and its subject to fluctuate with moving exchange rates. Cadbury data was adjusted from IFRS (previously applied by Independent Cadbury) to U.S GAAP followed by its new Parent Kraft Foods Inc. Cadbury previous years figures couldnt be compared with unless comparison is made in percentile due to the size difference of both businesses. Kraft even revised its Net Revenue retrospectively 2009 onwards. Post Acquisition Financial Perspective The above graph represents s the growth and decline in sales over a period of 4 years by means of percentage. The 2010 information contains data post acquisition, specifically contribution from Cadbury of $9143 that has been converted using the exchange rate of $1.595 per  £1.00 for the aid of analysis. It can clearly be noted the reason why Cadbury was so desirable by Kraft. Cadbury attained significant growth from 2007. In June 2007 Cadbury introduced their Vision into Action plan which insisted in strengthening their position in emerging market. This strategy was immediately effective and can be reflected in the graph. As stated earlier in this research report one of the key reasons for Kraft to acquire Cadbury was their better position in emerging market as compared to Kraft. Although Cadbury has just been acquired for 11 months under Kraft we see a marginal fall of 4% in Cadbury sales than its preceding years. This maybe because Kraft maybe getting acquainted to Cadburys opera tion and network hence not utilizing Cadburys full potential. (Cadbury, 2009a) This graph explains what did Krafts CEO meant by â€Å"GLOBAL POWER HOUSE†. If we examine the two graphs we see a change in the revenue from developing and North American markets. The main reason for Kraft to takeover Cadbury was to derive maximum benefit of Cadburys strong hold in emerging market. Although Kraft is one of the largest companies in food industry it drives more than 57% of its revenue from its Home Market US. As US market is experiencing economic recession Kraft needed to adopt an effective strategy to broaden its operations globally. Hence Cadbury looked more attractive from Krafts perspective. Its worth mentioning that Cadbury earns more than 40% from the fast emerging markets portraying its position being better than Kraft.. It should be taken into consideration that fact that Kraft hasnt launched any new aggressive marketing scheme or any strategic step via Cadbury in emerging markets. In 2010 Kraft has continued to run Cadbury operation without making any m ajor changes. Talking quantitatively Cadbury boosted Krafts net revenue in emerging markets by $3382 million which can be seen clearly in the graph at the bottom. Krafts strengths in Russia, Brazil and China along with Cadbury great position in United Kingdom, India and Mexico has spread its revenue source which has reduce the risk of a recession affecting Krafts sales .By acquiring Cadbury Kraft enhanced its distribution channel which became effective in the first year of acquisition and clearly be seen in the 2010 net revenue segments. In 2010 revenue from US market contributed less than 50% to Total Net Revenue minimizing the business risk driven by recession. (Farrell et al, 2010) The above illustrated graphs represent the change in Krafts revenue source after the acquisition of Cadbury. Krafts adopt a rational approach and pursue the strategy of selling off less profitable brands and achieving quick growth by acquisition. Kraft faced fierce competition from private label companies in the cheese and packaged meat market. Therefore Kraft acquired Cadbury to diverse its revenue source as there were dangers of fall in revenue from its main segments. There is an increase of 16% in the contribution made by confectionery segment. This segment is a high potential growth segment and Kraft would like diverse its business risk by investing more in promotion of this segment. (Trefis, 2011) The Gross margin shows the amount of gross profit generated by the company as a percentage of the sales revenue. Kraft Gross Profit Margin has been plotted against each quarter from 2009. It can be analyzed by the graph that Kraft tried to maintain its Gross Profit Margin in mid 30s percentile despite economic downturn in US market and increase in raw materials Kraft is able to maintain its objective, the main grounds for such level gross profit margin was the acquisition. By acquiring Cadbury Kraft has widen its distribution network as Cadburys main selling networks are convenient stores open on High Street therefore reach of every individual. Talking in respect on cost of sales (100 Gross Profit Margin) Kraft will benefit from economies of scale especially regarding purchases as Kraft will be bulk buying and using Cadbury suppliers rationally to minimise cost of sales as possible. (Szalai, 2011) Net Profit Margin is an indicator of profitability, calculated as net income or net profit divided by net revenue. As shown by the graph, we see a downward trend in the net profit margin against each quarter in 2010.Despite the fact that there has been a 27% increase in Net Revenue in 2010 as compared to its preceding year, we notice a fall of 23% in net profit especially in the fourth quarters of 2009 and 2010 ($711m and $547 respectively. However in aggregate there has been an increase in the net profit from 2009. The major reason for such deteriorates result for the fourth quarter was the cost associated with integration between Kraft and Cadbury. The pizza business of Kraft did contributed to the net profit in 2009 , by the sale of its pizza business to Nestle ,Kraft has deprived itself from the positive contribution of its disposal component.(BBC, 2011) The Prime objective of making investment in any business is to obtain satisfactory return on capital invested. Hence, the return on capital employed is used as a measure of success of a business in realizing this objective. Return on capital employed establishes the relationship between the profit and the capital employed. It is used to show the overall profitability and efficiency of the business. By analysing we see a fall in return on capital employed although the sales and net profit overall has increased however it hasnt increased by the proportion of investment made by KRAFT FOOD. As Mr. Warren Buffet feared that Kraft did overpay for the acquisition this can be reflected in diminish of return on capital employed. I have also included a graph showing fall in earning per share that illustrate the point of less return for the investors this maybe due to issue of new share to Cadbury shareholders. (Wilson , 2010) I have included this graph in my research report especially to breakdown the positive and negative contribution made by Cadbury to Kraft operating income in 2010 as compared to Kraft in 2009. As announced by CEO of Kraft Foods, Kraft is highly likely to expect $1 billion in incremental revenue synergies apart from $750 million in cost saving by 2013. In order to achieve the synergies Kraft has budgeted to spend $1.5 billion in the first three years following the acquisition to combine and integrate the two businesses and already incurred $657 million in 2010. As stated in Kraft Annual Account 2010, Kraft incurred and expensed transaction related fees of $218 millions in 2010 and $40 million in 2009.Kraft has recorded the mentioned costs under selling, general and administrative expenses in Profit and Loss Statement (Statement of Comprehensive income). However in the above graphs include figures which has been given in the Kraft 2010 annual accounts analysis of operating profit rather than actual incurred cost as some cost have been taken under finance cost which hasnt been included in arriving at operating profit for 2010. This seems a draw back in the acquisition object ive and maybe criticizes by its stakeholders as integration cost has reduced Krafts earning by 33%. (BBC, 2011) Liquidity ratio expresses a companys ability to repay short-term creditors out of its total cash. The liquidity ratio is the result of dividing the total cash by short-term borrowings. This Graph represents the two liquidity ratio one normal current ratio and another quick test ratio. Unlike Current ratio, quick ratio focus on the most liquid assets hence it exempt inventory from current asset while calculating ratio. Some of the key points that need to be addressed before analysis of the graph are the disposal of the pizza business and all the working capital relating to it. We should also account for the current assets and current liabilities acquired by Kraft such as Net Receivable of $ 1333 m and Accounts Payable of $ 1605 m etc. Another point to be mentioned is that while calculating Quick ratio I havent excluded the deferred tax asset, while some analyst exclude deferred tax asset as they dont regard it liquid. We see a significant difference between both ratios as inventory has occupied much of the working capital. Comparing it to the last year it is almost consistent with the growing sales. We notice a slight deterioration in both the ratio of 2010. The $3.7 billion cash raised by disposal of the pizza business was used to pay cash component of the acquisition. The rise in the actually figure is in line with the growing and diverse sales (Kraft Foods Inc, 2010) Gearing Ratio is a measure of financial leverage, demonstrating the degree to which a firms activities are funded by owners funds versus creditors funds (investopedia).The above   graph represents   how much company has borrowed compare to equity raised by KRAFT FOODS. Kraft had issued a long term debt of $9.379 billion (net proceeds) to support the cash component of Cadbury of acquisition along with proceeds from Pizza Business. Kraft even made a repayment $2.1 billion of long term debt during the year. This has increased the total debt of the business from $18990 million to $28724 Million. Kraft has also issued 262 million shares to existing Cadbury shareholder as part of purchase consideration. This has enlarged Krafts share capital affecting the gearing ratio. By taking into consideration the above mentioned circumstances, we see an increase in the gearing ratio of 7%. This may cause some concerns amongst shareholders and lenders of Kraft as the financial risk of the business has increased as more interest will be paid from the profits available to pay dividends to shareholders. (Tradition Financial Concept.). This may even damage the creditability of KRAFT FOOD in lenders market as it has borrowed 80% to Equity, hence it may be charged high interest rate by the lenders in future. (Kraft Foods Inc, 2010) (Hoskins, 2010) Interest cover is a measure of the adequacy of a companys profits relative to interest payments on its debt. This ratio will help to explain the previously mentioned financial due to increase in gearing. Due to the increase in leverage we see a fall of 0.94 in interest cover which means there would be less profit available for dividends.   This maybe is one of the reasons why Warren Buffet (one of the major shareholder in Kraft) reduced its stake from 9% to 6%. The ratio is over 2 which is considered strong by analyst and reflects Krafts strong position in borrowers market. However Fitch, one of reputed credit rating agency, has downgraded the default rating on both companies to BBB-. However its rivals havent downgraded the rating as yet but our reviewing if they should follow their peers. Flitch has downgraded the rating due to anticipated increase in financial leverage of the combined Kraft/Cadbury. (Peters   et al, 2010) Operational Changes Post Acquisition The significant changes in operations along with their impact on KRAFT FOOD GROUP as a whole: Closure of Somerdale factory Days after acquisition Kraft announced the closure of Cadbury factory in Bristol. During the acquisition struggle, Kraft pledged to retain Somerdale Factory. The announcements created a chaos amongst Cadbury workforce and British Unite trade union as 400 employees were being made redundant. It would be worth mentioning; Cadbury prior to its acquisition (in year 2007) had already announced the closure of its Somerdale factory as they had invested more than  £100million in the production plant

Emily Character Analysis of A Rose for Emily Essay -- A Rose For Emily,

Miss Emily Up Close In the short story of A Rose for Emily, the main character illustrates a disturbed individual that doesn't want to separate herself from a deceased loved one. Everyone knows what its like to loose a loved one, but the town of Jefferson had no idea how hard Emily had taken death until they unraveled her deep, dark secret. People knew what it must have been like to be Emily. They knew the type of life she had lived and felt bad for the way her father had kept her all cooped up and sheltered away from any man. They also knew her father had felt that no man was good enough for her. The people of Jefferson felt that the family thought they were better then everyone else and showed no sort of insanity. When her father died, people realized the toll it had taken on Emily. They were somewhat relieved to know he was gone, and she too would discover what it was like to be a ?pauper.? They also knew they could pity her and the woman even came to her house to console her. They found it interesting when they saw no sense of grief amongst her face, and that she acted like she had no idea of the death of her father. People of Jefferson still didn?t think she was crazy, they had just figured it was all she had to do. She wasn?t very tidy and she had left an African American to clean up her house and be her butler . They women knew that a man surely didn?t know how to clean a house so they knew he was the reason for the horrible smells. The scent of her house was gruesome, and left people nauseous. Unfortunately, no one had the guts to let her know that she had basically had an odor, which surrounded her property. So the townspeople had squeezed lemon juice around her yard to relieve the horrid smell. When Miss Emil... ...dering emotions which might have driven Emily to her insanity. Although it is hard, I have not even thought of the perverted things that she had done to Mr. Barron, nor have I thought that an individual was capable of telling themselves that someone isn?t dead and argue with people and say I wouldn?t give up their body. Emily did go through a lot in her lifetime. It is hard to loose someone close to you, and especially if that is all you truly have. I feel that all Emily wanted was to feel loved, and to have someone in her life that made her feel special and feel like she was somebody. She was lonely, and she needed someone to love her and someone for her to love. She sought attention which she rarely received as a child. She demonstrates a quite luminous type of psychosis that was affected and hindered from her father?s death and corrupt and shelter childhood.

Comparing the Major Theoretical Perspectives in Social Psychology Essay

Because human-beings are such complex, psychologists had been trying to discover, understand and explain human behavior throughout the years by using different perspectives. Each of these processes address these matters somewhat at a different level although sometimes can be put onto the same context and by using making careful scientific observations. Some of the major theoretical perspectives of psychology were developed and shaped during the course of history by some of the great psychologists known and can cited as followed: 1.Motivational or Psychodynamic perspective is one of the most popular of psychology approach that was developed by Sigmund Freud. According to this theory, human motivation is the result of conflicts between instinctual but mostly unconscious psychological forces that Freud called the â€Å"id, ego and superego.† This approach had contributed to the first developmental theory of human personality by tying to bring these conflicts to consciousness using intrapsychic structures. 2.Cognitive perspective on the other hand explained human behavior by using different approach saying that these behaviors are mostly thoughtful and are able to be controlled through a vast array of mental processes like memory and attention, belief systems, problem solving and reasoning, attitude and language. 3.Learning or Humanistic perspective is based on the idea that human being has the potential to self-actualized or in other words to self-develop and move forward in reaction of their social and environmental conditions. Psychologists like Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow developed this form of psychological perspective to try to solve human problems and emphasized on their ability and potential to grow in a positive manner. 4.Sociocultural perspective is emphasizing on social interactions and cultural determinants of behavior to explain the mental process of human being. This perspective explains that mental processes are influenced by factors such as ethnic, occupation and socioeconomic context and cultural influences. 5.Evolutionary perspective explained human behavior based on the biological evolution of his species to survive through natural selection and adaptation. References Institute of Physics (2008, March 5). Stop-And-Go Traffic: An Accident? Construction work? No, Just Too Much Traffic. ScienceDaily Siri Carpenter, Karen Huffman, (2007-2008) .Visualizing Psychology, Second edition, Introduction and Research Methods, 1, 4-27.

Myths and Misconceptions about Viruses and Security Essay

Computer viruses, as they are commonly known today, are malicious malware design to destroy and distort the normal working of a computer. The first known origin of computer viruses is estimated to be in the 1960’s CITATION Nat14 l 1033 (Devotta, 2014). The virus was in form of a game called Core Wars, and would self-replicate every time it was run. The group of programmers who developed it also made the first known anti-virus called Reeper. It was not until 1983, that one of these programmers announced the existence of Core Wars CITATION Ant l 1033 (AntivirusWorld, n.d.). In the same era, an influx of personal computers flooded the market and games became very popular. As a result, malicious viruses like Trojan horse were developed and innocent consumers downloaded them thinking that they were nice games only to feel the repercussions later. Since then, many viruses have been developed and continue to cause havoc to our computer experience. A computer virus is a malicious code that is written with instructions to replicate itself in a host computer and attaches itself to files and programs in the machine CITATION All l 1033 (AllAboutCookies, n.d.). Often, this happens without the consent of the user, and once the machine is booted or the infected program is launched, the virus attacks and damages data. In the case where an infected file is saved on a storage device, transfer of that file to another computer repeats the cycle and the virus re-infects the new host computer CITATION Sym10 l 1033 (Symantec, 2010). Viruses are designed to be spread via several media, where they piggyback on emails, programs, or network systems. The same way myths and misconceptions arise after a deadly disease pandemic, the computer world is full of myths about viruses. Some of the most common unfounded myths include; Mac users are virus proof, firewalls block off viruses, formatting and re-installing the operating system of an infected computer and then backing up one’s data gets rid of viruses, using antivirus programs protects one fully from viruses, signs of error messages popping up on one’s computer indicate that the computer is infected, corrupted files and blue screen displays on computers indicate a virus attack CITATION Rak11 l 1033 (Tembhurne, 2011). While some of these misconception hold water, they are not absolutely true all the time. A common scenario for internet users is the appearance of irritating pop-up messages, especially when browsing. While some of these messages are strategies for internet marketing by companies, and are indeed inevitable, it is possible for one to block pop-up messages- without purchasing software. First and foremost, there are free downloadable pop-up blockers that are effective on general browser pop-up ads. Examples include, Google Toolbar, Yahoo Companion Toolbar, Pop-up Stopper, PopUp Blocker, WorldIQ Toolbar and CleanMyPC, just to name but a few CITATION Kio15 l 1033 (Kioskea, 2015). Peer-to-peer file sharing programs are another source of disturbing pop-ups, especially once you install a program downloaded from these sites. To get rid of search, uninstall any unfamiliar programs from the Control Panel. Most browsers today also come with in-built software that block pop-ups, and can be adjusted to block the ads under the Settings tab. A good example is Internet Explorer CITATION Uni04 l 1033 (Iowa, 2004). Using Windows XP Service Pack 2 is also another viable option since the latest version includes a built-in Pop-up blocker CITATION Ram07 l 1033 (Srinivasan, 2007). References AllAboutCookies. (n.d.). Retrieved from All About Cookies.org: http://www.allaboutcookies.org/security/computer-viruses.html AntivirusWorld. (n.d.). History of Computer Viruses. Retrieved from http://www.antivirusworld.com/articles/history.php Devotta, N. (2014, Septemner 4). A short History of Computer Viruses. Retrieved from COMODO Antivirus: https://antivirus.comodo.com/blog/computer-safety/short-history-computer-viruses/ Iowa, U. o. (2004, June). Pop-up blocking. Retrieved from Information Technology Services @ The University of Iowa: https://helpdesk.its.uiowa.edu/articles/june2004/popupblocking.htm Kioskea. (2015, March). How to get rid of Pop-Up ads. Retrieved from http://en.kioskea.net/faq/104-how-to-get-rid-of-pop-up-ads Srinivasan, R. (2007, October 27). How to block Pop-ups? Retrieved from Ramesh’s Site: http://windowsxp.mvps.org/Popups.htm Symantec. (2010). pc tools. Retrieved from http://www.pctools.com/security-news/what-do-computer-viruses-do/ Tembhurne, R. (2011, May 10). 15 Myths and Misconceptions about Viruses and Security Applications. Retrieved from http://rakesh.tembhurne.com/15-myths-and-misconceptions-about-viruses-and-security-applications/ Source document

Essay on Potential Apple Investors

Essay on Potential Apple Investors Essay on Potential Apple Investors December 1, 2012 My invertors Investing corp. 3074 Chesterton Drive 43621 Illinois, Chicago Hello investors We all know why we are here: we love money. Now, you are here to potentially invest six hundred thousand dollars with me. I have been looking at two franchises to invest money in. I was looking at technology franchises because there's such a desire for electronic devices in today’s culture. My choices for looking at were between Apple and Best Buy. While Apple has been a growing market, Best Buy does have a variety of high quality products because they carry every line of gadgets. Unlike Best Buy, Apple is a market that focuses primarily on it’s own products. By doing this it actually has shown to be an advantage due to the fact that Apple primarily devoted to selling their product line. Though most BestBuy’s carry Apple products, Best Buy is merely a retailer for other companies. From looking at this I’ve determined that with your money invested with me, I will put it towards Apple. They have always been a successful and profitable corporation, and the te chnological advances since Apple’s release the original iPod has been remarkable. To reinforce my argument, I will also show you the comparisons between the Apple and Best Buy. Background/History Before I discuss my plans, I would like to inform you a brief history of these companies. Apple Inc. is an American corporation that designs and manufactures computer hardware, software and other consumer electronics. Apple was established on April 1st, 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne to sell the Apple I personal computer kit. Which at the time could not do what some calculators could do today. Company headquarters is in Cupertino, California, and CEO and co-founder was the late Steve Jobs. The company is best known for their Macintosh computer line, iPhone, iPad, iTunes, and the iPod. The company now boasts 321 retail locations that span fourteen different countries. Steve Jobs was said to own 45% of the company, Steve Wozniak with 45% and Wayne with the remaining 10%. While Jobs and Wozniak were young with little to no assets, Ronald Wayne was older with personal assets and was scared to put these at risk. This resulted in Wayne selling his share of the company b ack to Jobs and Wozniak for a reported $800. This is important to know because it shows what kind of a company it is, and how quickly it has turned around and grown exponentially. Today Wayne’s share of the company would be worth over $3 billion dollars. It is apparent the money that can be gained by investing with Apple Inc. Now onto Best Buy’s History. Richard Schulze, who specialized in electronics, founded the company. In 1966 he opened an audio specialty store called Sound of Music. Best Buy’s equipment was originally targeted toward college students who desired higher end electronics. However, due to increasing competition in the consumer electronics industry during the 1970s, Schulze realized his stores would have to adapt more to compete with his competitors. Over the forty years in business, Best Buy has grown to becoming one of the leading electronic stores. In 2009, Best Buy had revenues of more than $45 billion, and currently employs about 155,000 people. Plan Now here is what do I plan to do with your investment. Apple is the most successful company in the world who was led by a man who had one goal: Create a technology unlike anything that has ever been done. Steven Jobs’ first product was a simple processor for a computer, and before he died he brought his company from bankruptcy to the most successful company in the world. As my potential investors, I want to share the possibilities that Apple offers. My plans are to take your investment and discuss with Apple about a partnership and opening an Apple store. It would be a shared ownership. Number process for this is very simple. To break down further my presentation, first we have to buy the land with

Sustaining Australias rate of economic growth

Sustaining Australias rate of economic growth Introduction The resources boom in Australia has come to an end and has affected the investment in the resources sector. Since April 2012, A$ 150 billion of the intended ventures are either held up or called off as per the government data.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Sustaining Australias rate of economic growth specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The withdrawing commodity markets and feeble investment interest have forced mining companies to shift to lower margins (End of Australia’s resources boom hits investment in sector, 2013). The recent ABS survey of firms’ capital expenditure plans declares that the investment in mining sector in 2012-13 was modified from 40% to 20%. Figure 1: Source: Kent, 2013, Para 14 Mining industry has the most influential economic and environmental impacts in Australia’s economy. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) declared that in the year 2005-06 to 2009-1 0 witnessed the increase of 21% in the GVA of mining industry in Australia. The value of mining industry exports doubled in the year 2006-07 and 2010-11(Pimpa, 2013).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More â€Å"The contribution of an industry to the overall production of goods and services in an economy, gross domestic product (GDP) is measured by gross value added (GVA)† (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2013, para. 9). Economic growth in Australia since 2000 Australia has been standing out among OECD countries due to its sound economic policies. However, the slow growth of Australia’s economy is because of the financial crisis of 2008-2009. Australia is making efforts for the adjustment in the structural changes that is due to the commodity bang (OECD Economic Surveys Australia, 2012). The recent mining boom initiated in the year 2000 that led to the esca lating cost of commodities linked with mining. The following figure illustrates the rise in the non-rural commodity prices: Fig-4: Non-rural commodity prices: Source: Index of Commodity Prices, Reserve Bank of Australia as cited in Pham et.al, 2013, p.2 The mining boom has affected the Australian economy in some way or the other.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Sustaining Australias rate of economic growth specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The export companies as well as the struggling import businesses have made the Australian dollar to trim down the price competitiveness in the international market. â€Å"The Reserve Bank of Australia declared that the mining- related commodity prices peaked in August 2011, and are now down by around 23 percent from this peak. There have been sharp falls in Australia’s key mining export commodities, coal and iron ore, but despite this, mining prices still remain at high le vels† (Pham et. al, 2013,p.2). However, the Australian dollar is maintaining its value with respect to mining commodity prices (Pham et. al, 2013). Fig2: The following chart shows the growth in Gross Value Added industry by industry Sources: ABS Cat. No. 5206.0, Australian National Accounts ABS Cat. No. 5249.0, Australian National Accounts, Tourism Satellite Accounts 2010–11 as cited in Pham et.al, 2013, p. 3Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More There can be seen significant variation in the economic performance in the different Australian states and regions due to the mining boom (Pham et. al, 2013). Figure 4: The following chart shows Australia’s Gross Domestic product growth Source: ABS Cat. No. 5206.0, Australian National Accounts as cited in Pham et.al, 2013, p. 3 Sustaining economic growth in future The constant uninterrupted economic growth of Australia for past two decades will sustain in two conditions in near future: 1) the potency and span of the resources boom; and 2) productivity growth. Australia’s income growth in near future will depend upon maintaining a scenario that involves returning productivity growth to its historical standards, maintaining the terms of trade bringing all the advanced ventures and three-quarters of the partially developed projects to the stream. However, that too would ensure only 3.7 percent income growth as compared to the standard growth of 4.1 in the past. But the w orst-case scenario is draws attention that suggests that the terms of trade is leaning toward their long term average there is likely to be only two-thirds of advanced capital projects and one-third of the less advanced projects coming to realization and suggests no development in the current productivity growth. This sobering scenario may be threatening to the Australian income growth of 0.5 percent till 2017. Figure 5: Source: Taylor et.al, 2013, p.4 Mining and non-mining Sectors Conventionally, the economy of Australia can be divided into two-speed economy. One is a flourishing resources segment and the other comprises of all other gradually developing segments. However, it is wise to see Australia’s economy divided into four parts. The following figure illustrates the four sectors with respect to their link with the resources. Figure 6: Source: Taylor, et.al,2013,p.5 Resources sectors: Enforce capital productivity for successful investment According to Shann (2012), the speedy growth yet decreasing capital productivity in the resource sector has been evident in Australia’s economy. The lowest ridge in the scenarios for future income escalation is suggestive that future investment in the resource sector will surpass the previvious levels of income growth. There is an urgent need to get the capital productivity right that may lead to the prospective income growth (as cited in Taylor et. al, 2013). To capture the gains, it is necessary that the individual companies and the policy makers work together. Government is required to provide support through providing environmental approvals, development of the infrastructure, and enhancing industrial relations so that there can be balance maintained between growth and other social good. Resource rider sectors: Need to improve efficiency The other sectors like transport and professional services have also been affected by the mining energy boom; however, these have witnessed decrease in productivity. â€Å"These sectors attracted the vast majority of the overall economy’s increase in labor from 2005 to 201, but the contribution of labour productivity to sector output fell to zero during this period† (Taylor et.al 2012,p.6). It is important that new ways and more integrated cross-sector approach in resource productivity should be incorporated to make the infrastructure development more cost efficient. Local services: committing again to microeconomic reform Local services like retail trade and telecommunications do not exhibit any major impact of the resources boom. These sectors have shown solid productivity growth of A$49 billion to the overall income growth in 2005-2011. It is important that efforts from the individual companies in the form of innovative operating representation and government’s endeavor to rationalize regulation, promote improvement and encourage competitive markets can boost productivity. For this purpose, Australia needs to adopt the mi croeconomic reform as it did in 1990s. Manufacturing: Creating the base for long-term competitiveness Australia has seen continuing erosion in manufacturing productivity and employment. There has been a significant decrease in the capital productivity in the past six years except for the limited counterbalance created by the labor productivity. Improvement in the manufacturing sector can be derived through further cost efficiencies in the subsectors that contend mainly on price, enhancing labour mobility in the manufacturing sector along with a strong and facilitating ecosystem for bringing novelty in manufacturing. These measures can bring extra national income of about A$ 90 billion a year and sustain the historic scenario by 2017(Taylor et.al, 2013). Outlook It is difficult to state with surety when the climax will come about and the speed at which the mining investment will descend as a share of GDP. The decisive factors will be the actions taken on the uncommitted ventures and the speed of development in the existing projects along with the degree and features of the added overruns. However, there is a possibility of increased mining investment for quite some time as a huge bulk of work is still in progress. With the mining investment becoming weaker, it will enter upon the set phase of mining boom. The exports will rise as a reaction to the investment that has been taken on. The manifested growth in the resources like iron ore, coal and LNG exports for some time is suggestive of the further growth in these resources from 2015. Figure 7: Source: Kent, 2013, Para 14 Conclusion The trend in the mining investment reflects that the economic growth will be a little less around and will pick up later in 2014.As the growth rate of sectors other than the resources sector is gradual, it is better to observe the signs for some more time (Kent, 2013). References Australian Bureau of Statistics 2013, Mining Industry, Australia, cat. no. 301.0, ABS, Canberra, from Au sStats database End of Australia’s resources boom hits investment in sector 2013, livemint.com/Politics/LdMPCrTJ3fWbnBCgqSNCkM/End-of-Australias-resources-boom-hits-investment-in-sector.html Kent, C, 2013, Reflections on China and Mining Investment in Australia , Reserve Bank of Australia, rba.gov.au/speeches/2013/sp-ag-150213.html OECD Economic Surveys AUSTRALIA 2012, oecd.org/eco/surveys/Australia%20overview%20Eng.pdf Pham, T D, Bailey, G Marshall, J, 2013, The economic impact of the current mining boom on the Australian tourism industry, ret.gov.au/tourism/Documents/tra/publications/2013/Economic_Impact_of_the_Current_Mining_Boom.pdf Pimpa, N, 2013, Australian mining industry: development or detriment?, Online Opinion, onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=14645 Taylor, C, Bradley, C, Dobbs, R, Thompson, F Clifton, D, 2013, Beyond the boom: Australia’s productivity imperative, https://www.google.co.in/url?sa=trct=jq=esrc=ssource=webcd=2ved=0CDcQFjABurl=http%3A%2F %2Fwww.mckinsey.com%2F~%2Fmedia%2FMcKinsey%2Fdotcom%2FInsights%2520and%2520pubs%2FMGI%2FResearch%2FProductivity%2520Competitiveness%2520and%2520Growth%2FAustralia%2520productivity%2520imperative%2FMGI_August_2012_Australia_Full_report.ashxei=mNGdUYbnJsjPrQfYnoD4DAusg=AFQjCNF5twtF-e6uX3AhOctN_olMhQHVbAsig2=cCERmMz1A53qLU43lFInJg

Take Care with Connotation

Take Care with Connotation Take Care with Connotation Take Care with Connotation By Mark Nichol The English language is notable for the abundance of synonyms for many words, which enriches prose by offering opportunities for elegant variation, the use of synonyms to avoid repetitive use of one word. Another benefit is that the writer can select a particular synonym to express connotation, the implication of a sense or value for a word. For example, eager and anxious are often used interchangeably to indicate someone’s anticipation of an impending event. However, eager implies that the person looks forward to the occurrence, while the connotation of anxious is that they dread it. (Unfortunately, this distinction is weakening in modern English usage.) The careful writer takes note not only of a word’s meaning but also its connotation, because failure to do so can obscure the writer’s intent. Various synonyms for thin used to describe a person, for example, have a wide variety of connotations. A slender person is one with a pleasing economy of form, and svelte adds a sense of fashionable presentation. A skinny person, meanwhile, is excessively thin, and gaunt emphasizes an unhealthful state. Wiry, meanwhile, connotes a tough, lean build acquired through hard work, while lithe suggests a graceful quality. By the same token, it’s one thing to say someone is confident, but cocksure is a negative appraisal. A stubborn person, meanwhile, could be described by a proponent as resolute and by a foe as obstinate. Novice is (or is intended to be) a neutral term, but many synonyms for the word, such as greenhorn, newbie, rookie, and tenderfoot, are uncomplimentary or at least often used to poke fun. (Apprentice, neophyte, recruit, and tyro are gentler terms.) Synonyms can differ in formality, as in the difference between car and automobile, but the difference is often one of value instead (or in addition). Keep in mind, too, that a single word can have more than one connotation. For example, a person descried as earthy might be simple and practical, or might be unsophisticated or coarse. (Earthy is also a synonym for crude.) Use of precise terms in fiction and nonfiction alike is encouraged, but be sure the sense you intend is the one conveyed: Consult dictionaries and usage guides, and when you employ a thesaurus or a synonym finder to find a more interesting or more precise alternative to pedestrian prose, make sure you select the appropriate word based on your meaning. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:16 Substitutes for â€Å"Because† or â€Å"Because Of†Telling a Good Poem from a Bad OneTypes of Ignorance

Student motivation or engagement in high school urban students Research Paper - 1

Student motivation or engagement in high school urban students - Research Paper Example In this paper, I have research the problem of student motivation. I wanted to know what additional instructional strategies engage students as well as any incentive system that would influence their participation. In this study, I included different rewards both intrinsic and extrinsic in trying to improve participation in preparation for an upcoming professional certification exam. Keeping the students engaged with their learning would bring success and value to their education. Subsequently, this could be behavior modification for the classroom. In a school’s computer lab, students are posting on their Facebook pages and listening to music. No this is not a study or the library, but a computer lab in an urban setting during classroom instruction. How do we enhance student’s motivation toward learning? With so many obstacles present in the urban school districts such as poverty, lack of parental involvement, high drop rates, substance abuse and gang involvement, it is a struggle to get students to recognize the need for education. The level of student engagement is directly connecting to teaching practices (Adkins-Coleman, 2010). As a teacher, you are responsible for classroom management and the instruction that you provide to your students. If you can engage your students in the classroom and motivate them to learn; this will assist in behavior management and move the students toward academic success. With behavior being an obstacle in a classroom, how are new teachers prepared to work in an urban environment? To prepare future teachers more adequately for urban schools, teacher educators need to provide the opportunity for them to learn from teachers who successfully facilitate engagement (Adkins-Coleman, 2010). Schools need to find appropriate mentors for new teachers as well as provide professional development to educational staff with new instructional strategies for the classroom. The level of student engagement is

Amplifier Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Amplifier - Coursework Example Therefore, practical amplifiers will have finite distortion and minimal noise with which they will invariably add to the said signal (Bishop 98). An exception is given to the cases where the amplifier is a transducer, which means that the amplifier shifts the types of signals from one point to another. Types of Amplifiers The mainstay of any electronic circuit will certainly be the amplifier (Bishop 18). Classification of amplifiers is broad, but the best way in which amplifiers can be classified is in relation to the input and output of each amplifier. In order for the amplifier to have some gain, it means that the scale of the input and output signal to the amplifier will have some degree of variation. The definition of it can be summarized as the quotient of three aspects, i.e., the power, the current and also the voltage. Furthermore, the gain will also be in terms of the output or the input signals of either the voltage or the power in any amplifier (Satyam and Ramkumar 32). In cases where the gain is undefined, it implies that the input and the output signals in an amplifier are almost the same in terms of unit signals; thus, in most cases a good example will be the decibel which has the same format described. This is not the case on a usual basis as there are other cases of amplifiers that do not follow this procedure like the transconductance amplifier. For the gain to occur in an amplifier, many dynamics will have to be given special attention. These dynamics that will have to be put into consideration as an amplifier will include aspects such as the power source for the amplifier, the impedance on load in relation to the said amplifier and also the amount of the voltage going through the amplifier (Bishop 33). Some other amplifiers that cover all these aspects will have the impedance meant specifically for the transfer of power within the amplifier. Driven by the desire to have a high quality result, amplifiers will have their impedance used together as output and input signals in the amplifier. Most researches indicate that the best way to effectively use an amplifier will be having the input and output circuits placed in a linear manner. This will enable the amplifier to have a constant gain while it is being in use. York asserts that the inconsistency of the gain in an amplifier will imply that the resultant signal is always altered, thus meaning that the resultant effect will be very poor quality (56). This sometimes is not the case in other amplifiers that find the variation and the inconsistency of the signals very useful. The most common types of amplifiers are the electronic ones, and with electronic amplifiers there are different and unique types underlying the common electronic amplifiers. Case in point are the electrical amplifiers that can be found in the household appliances such as the vacuum cleaner, and also in other home appliances such as stereo and television systems. In order to get different types of amplifi ers that use the electronic circuit, below are a few examples. Power Amplifier When it comes to power amplifiers, there have been different descriptions with each of the description having relevance to the way that a power amplifier can be used, or the purpose of the usage. In one instance, the amount of energy is the most crucial aspect in the power amplifier as it will be the determining factor when it comes to the

I don't have a topic picked Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

I don't have a topic picked - Thesis Example ces between cyber bullying and the traditional form of bullying and the main reasons behind the idea that it is worse than traditional bullying include low levels of supervision, reduced space and time limits, the potential of being anonymous, and reduced levels of direct feedback (Bonanno and Shelley 686). Psychological and emotional effects of cyber bullying are similar to those of real life or face to face bullying but the magnitude is much stronger. According to statistical data, approximately 43% of kids have been bullied on the Internet at least once in their lives. The most common medium for cyber bullying is the cell phone because it is the most used and the most easily available medium as at least 80% of teens have and use phones regularly (11 Facts About Cyber Bullying). However, although cyber bullying may seem to have no effect on the victims because it does not involve physical contact, in reality, it can hurt as much as physical bullying because it can drive people to d epression and even suicide as it affects peoples feelings negatively. Cyber bullying can take many forms that may include spreading rumors and gossip online, posting threatening messages on the Internet mostly on social media websites and emails, and taking uncomplimentary photos of someone and spreading them on the Internet. Cyber bullying is much worse than physical bullying because an instance such as posting of one’s provocative photos on the Internet can be on the view of any one and stay online forever. According to statistical data, 81% of teens feel that online bullying is easier because they can get away with it easily than it would be while bullying in person. In addition, an approximated 90% teens have seen bullying but ignored it (11 Facts about Cyber Bullying). There are specific characteristic of the individuals who would fall victims of cyber bullying that include individuals who may be seen as different from others in ways such as being overweight, wearing glasses,

Responding to argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Responding to argument - Essay Example While a group of people consider homosexuality as part of what God has intended for some people in the time of creation, some others consider all kinds of sexual orientation and its practical aspects as part of human freedom and susceptibility to sin. Naturally, the former group tries to justify homosexual tendencies as normal and not something to be cured, while the latter seek religious and other sorts of help to cure themselves of this ‘disease’. Fr.Hopko tries to substantiate the orthodox position with the help of scriptures. He chooses to make use of three references from the Bible – Leviticus 20:13, Romans 1: 26-27 and I Corinthians 6:9-11 – to display how the Bible considers homosexuality an abomination that deserves due penalty and how those who practice it will fail to inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. However, the arguments are not totally intolerant towards people who happen to be homosexuals by choice or circumstances. Hopko asserts the concept that Christians are redeemed sinners and reveals the extent to which sinful acts are forgiven in the Christian ideology if the people acknowledge their sins and repent for them. There could even be cases where people are led against their will to commit sins, where their passions overpower their conscience. Even as such sins remain a serious affront towards Christian faith, Hopko points out how such sinners could seek the religious and community help to come back t o a true Christian life. He tries to strike a balance in his arguments by criticizing the mindless, truly demonic hatred of anti-homosexuals and also the mindless, equally demonic homosexual activity by its misguided advocates and enablers. He brings in the analogy of the burden of a cross to define homosexuality and affirms that there is redemption for people with homosexual affinities if they are willing to struggle against it. Though the entire article sounds sensible and balanced at first reading, anyone who is aware

US v Patel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

US v Patel - Essay Example One of the main purposes of judicial system is to provide the root cause of social problems. As it appears, the court was much concerned with administering punishment rather than finding out why the defendant was engaging in the medical frauds. There is a possibility for instance that Dr. Patel was not the only one engaging in this unscrupulous activities. Secondly, it has not been included in the case what the defendant wanted to achieve though his actions. It is therefore not possible for the court to prevent such acts from occurring in future. In conclusion, the case study concerned a cardiologist by the name of Dr. Panel who was engaging in unscrupulous and unethical activities. He performed operations on his patients without letting them know what he was actually doing. It is through the intervention of the court that this problem was discovered. While the intervention was important, the court failed in establishing the motivation behind the acts. Punishment alone should not be used to address crimes within the

Need an Integrated Marketing Communications Approach by UPS & Case Study

Need an Integrated Marketing Communications Approach by UPS & Promotional Objective - Case Study Example The researcher states that UPS was finding it tough to convince customers of its capabilities in this synchronized commerce market space. Hence, it felt the need for taking an integrated marketing communications approach to convey its new positioning. The promotional objective of this new repositioning strategy was to build a sort of bridge between its old perception by the customers and its desired positioning. This led UPS to change its logo, adopt the color brown in its logo and marketing campaigns and hiring a new advertising agency. The idea was to make consumers aware of the new business lines, invite calls from them and then convert those calls into business. UPS wanted different marketing strategies for different sets of audiences or stakeholders. Therefore, it segregated them into 4 different categories from the business point of view and consumers formed the fifth category. These categories exhibited characteristics which were distinct from each other. There were shipping d ecision makers in manufacturing firms while the people were widely distributed in service firms. There were small independent business owners on one side and senior business decision makers on the other. The needs of these 4 categories were unique and hence required to be dealt separately. It was not appropriate to use a single marketing campaign for these 4 different types of audiences. Hence, it made sense for UPS to take four different approaches to marketing. Brand recall rate is the degree to which a brand name is remembered by the consumers as belonging to a brand, product, service or company. Brand recall significantly increases the probability of a brand being preferred or bought by the customer. Before the marketing campaign with the use of Brown color, UPS faced a big issue of brand recall in categories other than package shipping and delivery. Hence, the main purpose of its marketing campaign was to make consumers aware of its product lines so that they can recall the bra nd name of UPS whenever that product line is talked about.

US v Patel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

US v Patel - Essay Example One of the main purposes of judicial system is to provide the root cause of social problems. As it appears, the court was much concerned with administering punishment rather than finding out why the defendant was engaging in the medical frauds. There is a possibility for instance that Dr. Patel was not the only one engaging in this unscrupulous activities. Secondly, it has not been included in the case what the defendant wanted to achieve though his actions. It is therefore not possible for the court to prevent such acts from occurring in future. In conclusion, the case study concerned a cardiologist by the name of Dr. Panel who was engaging in unscrupulous and unethical activities. He performed operations on his patients without letting them know what he was actually doing. It is through the intervention of the court that this problem was discovered. While the intervention was important, the court failed in establishing the motivation behind the acts. Punishment alone should not be used to address crimes within the

Nepal Essay Essay Example for Free

Nepal Essay Essay Introduction I am doing my report on a country by the name of Nepal. The formal name is The Kingdom of Nepal. The term for citizens is Nepalese. The capital of Nepal is Katmandu. Nepal became independent in 1768 when a number of independent hill states were unified by Prithri Narayan Shah as the Kingdom of Gorkha. The area of Nepal is 56,827 square miles. Its population according to the 1991 census was 18,462, 081. Nepal is located between China and India. Population The most recent information about Nepals population is in the year of 1994. It was an estimate of about 20,000,000. At this time the average family was made up of 5.9 persons, and the life expectancy was about 50 years. About 70 percent of the total population was of working age, or between the ages of fifteen and fifty-nine years of age. Nearly 44 percent of the population is in the Terai Region, 48 percent in the Mountain Region. In 1981 the capital, Katmandu , had a population of 235,160. Government Nepal has a constitutional monarchy government. The multiparty democracy established along with the November 1990 constitution which replaced the panchayat system. Education The education system has expanded rapidly since 1951. Right now there are elementary and high schools found in most areas of the country. Tribharan University was established in 1961 to serve as the hub of a higher education system. The literacy rate is still only an estimated fifteen percent, with most of the literate population concentrated in Katmandu Valley and in the Terai. Language In Nepal there are numerous languages spoken which is a problem because they do not belong to the same family group. The most common and national language , Nepali, stems form the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo European family. Nepali is spoken by 60 percent of the population. A second category of languages in Nepal is the Tibeto- Burman languages, of which the most common are Newer, Magarkura, Gurangkura, Karin and Limbuani. Religion and Society Religion occupies an integral position in Nepalese life and society. The main religion in Nepal is Hinduism , but much of the population follows an unorthodox Buddhism strongly affected by mixtures of Hinduism. The fact that Hindus worship in Buddhist temples and Buddhists worship in Hindus temples has been one of the main reasons followers of the two dominate groups in Nepal have never engaged in any conflicts. Because of such dual faith practices the differences between Hindus and Buddhists have been generally in nature. In 1991 about 89.5 percent of the Nepalese people indenified themselves as Hindus. Buddhists and Muslims occupied only 5.3 and 2.7 percent. The remainder religion is Christianity. At least 87 percent of the population in every region is made of Hindus. Buddhists are mostly found in the Eastern Hills, the Katmandu Valley, and the Central Terai, in each area about 10 percent of the people were Buddhist. Terai The Terai region of Nepal is a low, fertile alluvial plain, in effect the northern extrusion of the Ganges plain. It is 20 miles wide at its broadest point and extends over most of the southern edge. North of this, bordering the forests of the Bhabar and Chria Hills, the Terai is marshy and malaria is endemic. A green belt of excellent timber parallels or dense elephant grass growing to a height of 15 feet. Climate The climate is moderate only in the mountain valleys, about 5,000 feet above sea level. The rest of Nepal is either extremely hot, as in the Terai, climate changes sharply with elevation. In the Himalayas, exposure to the sun and to rain-bearing winds produce complex patterns of local climates. Average temperatures in the Katmandu Valley range form 50 degrees in January to 78 degrees in July. Rainfall mainly  occurs between June and September. The dry season is November to January. Agriculture About 90 percent of Nepals working force is directly engaged in agricultural pursuits. Arable land is at 30 percent of the total land area, of which 60 percent is classified as suitable for wet cultivation and 30 percent for dry cultivation. The main crops are rice, corn, millet, wheat, sugarcane, tobacco, fruits, and vegetables. Rice is grown in the Teria, Katmandu Valley , and the lower hill area. Corn and millet are the main crops at higher altitudes , which is about 6,000 feet above sea level. Annual Rainfall Fire climate zones based on altitude range from subtropical in the South, to cool summers and severe winters in the North. The annual rainfall depends on a monsoon cycle which provides 60 to 80 percent of the total rainfall. The Eastern part of the country get the most with 2,500 millimeters. The Katmandu averages around 1,420 millimeters. And Western Nepal gets around 1,000 millimeters. Himalayans The Himalayans are what Nepal is known for. The Himalayans were formed about 60 million years ago, When the earths continents were still forming, a part of east Africa broke loose and began to driff slowly northward. When it rammed into Asia , the force of the collision caused the land to crumple up into a vast mountain range. More than 1,000 miles long and hundreds of miles wide. This system contains some of the highest mountains in the world. The most famous of these is Mount Everest. Bibliography Norton, Peter B., and Joseph J. Esposito. Nepal.  Encyclopedia Britanica. 1995. Boehm, Richard G. World Geography. Westerville: The McGraw-Hill. 1997.

British Heart Foundation Organisational Analysis

British Heart Foundation Organisational Analysis The British Heart Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation. We are the UKs largest heart charity (the fifth largest charity in the UK), fighting heart and circulatory disease. Largest funder of research into heart disease in UK. Founded in 1961 Our head office is based in London and there are six regional offices. Employ 1807 staff. Heart and circulatory disease the UKs biggest killer 2.6 million people in UK living with heart disease. Income year ending March 2008 was nearly  £117 million Fund research, education/campaigns raising awareness, life-saving cardiac equipment and through BHF heart nurses, they help support patients suffering from heart disease. BHF has B2B customers, working in partnership with organisations such as Colgate, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, Weight Watchers and Scottish and Southern Energy. However, this study will focus on BHFs B2C customers. Number of SBUs trading, Events, VFR, Legacies, Prevention and Care therefore serving multiple customer segments. BHFs target audiences include Heart patients, at-risk groups, health professionals, and children and parents. As with most charities, those donating money, time and support to the BHF are typically 45 plus, ABC12s. 1.2 BHFs Philosophy The philosophy of an organisation refers to its business approach, it is the principles that underlie its whole operation; the philosophy is what guides the organisation. Organisations may operate under one of three philosophies; they may be product, sales or market oriented (Lancaster and Reynolds, 2005). A product oriented organisation focuses on their existing products, their goal being to produce them as efficiently as possible. There is little, if any, consideration of the needs and wants of their customers or the market. A sales-oriented organisation, although recognising their competition, still devotes little in the way of considering the needs and wants of their customers. The sales-persons role is key and their goals are typically short-term with success being measured in terms of sales (Lancaster and Reynolds, 2005). A market-oriented organisation holds the customer at the centre of all its activities. In contrast to the sales orientation, where marketing is likely to be restricted to a marketing department, the marketing-oriented philosophy is one that permeates the whole organisation; every department recognises the central importance of the customer. There is an emphasis on understanding their target audiences; identifying their needs and satisfying them. (Lancaster and Reynolds, 2005). Products and services are developed with the target audience in mind, in fact extensive research into the customer needs and market conditions is conducted to inform the development. Andreasen and Kotler (p38, 2007) Marketing orientation means marketing planning must begin with the target audience, not with the organization The BHF follows a market oriented philosophy, Target audiences are a central focus of the organisation; the organisation only exists as a result of their audience. The focus on their customers is demonstrated not only by their current strategy to make the organisation more relevant to target audiences, but also by their corporate objectives (see appendix 1), which are customer focused; based on fulfilling their needs and attaining a high standard service. The organisation is dedicated to instilling the market-approach organisation-wide, for example internal marketing workshops are frequently held, aimed at the non-marketing departments. Lancaster and Reynolds (2007) claim that to achieve their corporate objectives, the market oriented company must recognise that they do not exist in a vacuum; rather, the external environment is dynamic and constantly changing. Whilst it is essential to identify and anticipate the needs and wants of their target markets, and know how best to respond to these with the most efficient use of the resources available to them, it is important that this is done within the context of their ever-changing external environment and the opportunities and threats it poses. Therefore, for a market-oriented organisation such as the BHF, the role the marketing plan plays is a crucial one. It operationalises the organisations philosophy and ensures the organisation actually is market-oriented and provides a route the organisation can follow to ensure this. As mentioned in 1.1 the marketing plan requires a great deal of research scanning the environment and aiming to meet the customer needs and wants (Beamish and Ashford, 2008). The role of marketing information and research in conducting and analysing the marketing audit The Role of Marketing Information and Research In order for an organisation to operate a market orientation and remain customer-focused, information and research is essential. When undertaken properly it can provide a thorough understanding of target audiences and the micro and macro markets. The findings guide the direction of the marketing plan and with the right information and research subsequent decisions will be informed ones and it will be possible to make more realistic future predictions. Failing to gather data and research poses serious risks; without it an organisation is effectively operating in a vacuum, future decisions are uniformed and there is no customer focus. (Beamish and Ashford, 2008). Collecting Marketing Information There are two ways of collecting marketing information; secondary and primary. Secondary data is information collected for a purpose other than for the current research. External sources of secondary data include third party databases such as keynote and mintel, government statistics, national and trade press and the internet. In addition, there are also a number of internal sources of secondary data, for example a Customer Relations Management (CRM) database providing demographic (age, gender, address, occupation) and lifestyle data (where, what, when and how they buy, how much they spend, religion). Other internal sources include customer complaints, sales reports, personnel, information on their products and services, prices, retailers, internal training of staff, marketing budget/spend, communications spend and results of previous market research studies. Much of this data may be held on a central database The Marketing Information System (MkIS), this can provide substantial inf ormation, fulfilling some research needs, however to obtain bespoke, targeted information to fulfil all research needs primary data is necessary (Taghian and Shaw, 1998) Primary data is data bespoke to the research project. It allows for a more detailed analysis specific to the organization. External sources of primary data interviews, focus groups and surveys. Internal data can be gathered through interviews with staff. Conducting Research within BHF Secondary: OneCRM Third party databases Subscribes to specialist magazines such as ThirdSector, Marketing Week and PR Week Information on external environment. Primary: Recognises importance of bespoke research uses external agencies (FIND NAME RESEARCH NOTES!!). Important to note that there are only 2 other chest and heart charities in CAF top 500, third party data therefore often only relates to charity or health charity sector, not very specific. Use surveys and focus groups. 2.4 Conducting and Analysing the Marketing Audit Environmental scanning is necessary to conduct a detailed marketing audit; it requires both primary and secondary information on both the internal and external environment. To analyse the internal environment we need to consider: Product, Price, Place, Promotion, People, Process and Physical Evidence (7Ps) and Staff, Style, Shared Values, Systems, Structure, Strategy and Skills (7Ss). This data is specific to the organisation and therefore internal sources such as sales reports, CRM databases, staff interviews, internal observations and staff intranet are used. To analyse the external environment we need to consider factors such as political, economical, social, technological, environmental and legal (PESTEL) as well as suppliers, publics, intermediaries, customers and competitors (SPICC). This requires information sources such as third party reports, newspapers, trade magazines such as ThirdSector, focus groups, surveys and interviews of existing and potential volunteers/beneficiaries/supporters. Marketing audit and their key issues and their implications for the plan 3.1 The Marketing Audit The Internal Environment This refers to those factors the organisation has full control over. To identify the strengths and weaknesses of BHFs internal environment the 7Ps marketing mix and McKinseys 7Ss framework were used (appendix 2). These consider 14 elements such as product, price, place, promotion, strategy, structure staff and skills. In addition there are also models that can be used to help analyse certain elements, for example the BCG matrix (appendix 2) and value chain analysis. The Micro Environment To help identify the opportunities and threats that exist within BHFs micro environment the SPICC model was used (appendix 3), which considers 5 factors an organisation has partial control over; suppliers, publics, intermediaries, customers and competitors. To help analyse these factors the Product Life Cycle, Porters Five Forces model (appendix 3) and the Value Systems Analysis can be used. The Macro Environment An organisation has no control over influences within the external environment, however it is important to scan the environment in order to identify the opportunities and threats that may exist and to make informed decisions to prepare for them. When scanning BHFs external environment the PESTEL model was used (appendix 3), this categorises the forces into political, economical, social, technological, ecological and legal. Having analysed the internal and external environment a SWOT analysis can be conducted (figure 2), whereby the key strengths and weakness of the BHF and the opportunities and threats facing them are identified. Bringing together the strengths and weaknesses enables the identification of BHFs core strengths; their distinctive competencies (DCs), and from the opportunities and threats their critical success factors (CSFs) can be identified. CSFs Little direct competition. Many customers with a link to the cause. Media attention surrounding issues BHF tackle. Large prospect market. THREATS The credit crunch: decreased disposable income, corporate donations, legacies (accounts for 40% BHFs income). Direct Marketing not as effective as it used to be for charities (not seeing a return on investment). Hard to obtain the details of new people. More health and medicine charities than any other type, therefore a lot of competition especially as many tackle similar issues e.g. smoking, obesity. Many people find it embarrassing and give socially desirable answers when discussing issues such as obesity and exercise, i.e. issues the BHF deal with research unreliable. Governments Digital Britain Initiative could leave the BHF looking out-of-date. OPPORTUNITIES Many customers have a link with the cause potential to engage with our audiences more directly and build long-term relationships. There is a large prospect youth market opportunity to increase revenue and market share. Little direct competition, one of just 3 heart charities in top 500 opportunity to maximise differentiation. Companies are placing more importance on Corporate Social Responsibility provides more B2B opportunities. More media attention surrounding the issues BHF tackles such as food labelling and obesity raises profile. Governments Change4Life campaign has given BHF exposure. WEAKNESSES Lack of perceived relevance to the target audience hard for them to engage with BHF. Many generic products that arent customer friendly. Website is hard to navigate much information available, but buried under links. Low staff turnover lack of fresh ideas and perspectives in the organisation. Staff close to or highly driven by the cause find it hard to see general public perception. Regional offices developing their own structure, meaning BHF messages may appear inconsistent on a national level. STRENGTHS Strong and trusted brand. Market leader (number 1 heart charity in UK) Large integrated CRM large pool of customer data Highly motivated -dedicated and driven by cause. Recently launched large multi media campaign Connections increased awareness. Strong demand/need heart disease is the biggest UK killer. A number of large corporate sponsors give access to large audiences. Many professionals working for BHF high calibre and solid knowledge base. DCs A strong, trusted brand. Large CRM database. Strong demand. Large corporate sponsors. 3.2 Key issues faced by the BHF and their implications for the plan The SWOT analysis highlights the key issues now faced by the BHF, these are shown below: Key issues the BHF faces and their implications to the marketing plan. Key Issue Implications to the Marketing Plan Credit Crunch reduction in disposable income, therefore less donations slump in the housing market, therefore reduction in legacies reduction in corporate donations Income reduced therefore a tighter budget need to generate alternative, cost-efficient ways of raising funds go for low risk options such as building on existing relationships rather than investing a lot of resources trying to make new contacts. Increasing competition from other health charities. BHF needs to maximise their advantage of having little direct competition and emphasise their differentiation by highlighting unique aspects of the BHFs work rather than those that are similar to other charities and make it relevant to target audiences. Direct Marketing no longer an effective communication media for charities. Need to use alternative communication media that are equally accountable yet more effective possibly making more use of new media. Large prospect market. Targeting this market will require a great deal of resources, however in the short term; given the economic climate it is perhaps not the best time to try to enter this market. It is a great opportunity that should be should be considered in the long-term. Very high priority given to cost savings and operational efficiency, even more so due to the recession often results in generic products (Bruce, 2007). Need to optimise the use of the OneCRM database and increase product customisation. The Digital Britain Initiative is set to secure the UKs place at the forefront of innovationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦and quality in the digital communications industries rapid development could leave the BHF behind. Plan needs to make better use of new media, possibly going out of the BHFs comfort zone. Having conducted the SWOT analysis and considered the key issues, the BHF is now in a better position to set their objectives and determine their strategy. Referring back to figure 2, the DCs are well supported by the CSFs; there is a good match. Therefore we can afford to set higher level marketing objectives (discussed in section 4.1). This creates a gap, identified through gap analysis, between the initial forecast (where we will be if we continue to do nothing) and the new objectives. Taking the SWOT analysis into consideration I believe this gap can be bridged through establishing a product development growth strategy, this is a moderate risk strategy, which the match of the DCs and CSFs supports. The BHF will also operate a differentiation competitive strategy (appendix 4); we need to emphasise our unique selling point amongst all the other health charities. Although, other product lines may also contribute in closing the planning gap, the remainder of this plan will focus on the BHFs new product. Task 02 Red for heart campaign London to Brighton Bike Ride New Product B2B Corporate Partnerships World Events Regional Events Sponsored School Events SBU Marketing Marketing Objectives for the BHFs New Product The BHFs New Product The BHF will launch a B2C membership service that will allow them to engage directly with a large audience and encourage the development of long term relationships. Members will receive information on how to improve their heart health. Upon registering the member will receive a welcome pack containing a heart risk tape measure, a guide to heart health, a 5-a-day food diary, a heart matters fact card and a membership card. They will also receive access to the heart matters helpline, receive email alerts tailored to their needs (healthy eating, getting active, quitting smoking and well being) and will have an online account with a homepage that is regularly updated according to their stated interests upon sign up. Their membership will also provide them with special commercial offers. This is a free service because it is a belief of the BHF that heart health information should be available to all. 4.2 Marketing objectives for the BHFs Heart Matters membership service There is a hierarchy of objectives with three levels; corporate, functional and operational. At the corporate level they start off more general and are long-term and get more specific the closer the planning activity gets to the tactical implementation stage (p23 Robert et al, 2005). Corporate objectives are often expressed in financial terms, for example referring to return on investment (ROI) and return on capital employed (ROCE) (Beamish and Ashford, 2008). However, for many not-for-profit organisations, including BHF, although still long-term, they can be much harder to measure. They are typically based on the needs of the beneficiaries, now and for the future. [They] set out the direction of the organisation; they are a statement of its prioritiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Everything the organisation does should be related back to a [corporate] goal (accessed on 10/04/09 10.30 at http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/index.asp?id=488) Functional objectives are more specific than corporate objectives, often medium term referring to percentage increase in sales or market share. These then feed down to the operational objectives that are short-term and much more specific based on the 7Ps marketing mix, for example to offer a 10% discount for 2 weeks. Therefore when setting the marketing objectives for Heart Matters, they should support the corporate objectives as well as reflecting the close match between the DCs and CSFs. With regards to Heart Matters, the BHF have three options. The first is to take the view that the BHF is doing a lot of work directly related to their corporate objectives, therefore Heart Matters should be all about raising funds to help finance this work. The second is that Heart Matters should primarily focus on the need of the beneficiaries, the third is a middle-of-the-road option, whereby the need is addressed to a certain extent, but the service must be self-financing. We believe Heart Matters should initially be about addressing the need of the beneficiaries as this would provide the best opportunity to reach and engage with a wider audience. Keeping in mind the objectives should be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time bound) the marketing objectives for Heart Matters are as follows: Marketing objectives for Heart Matters Membership Service Objectives To recruit over 300,000 members, with less than 7% annual attrition by 2012. This helps support the BHFs objective to provide vital information to help people reduce their own heart health risk once recruited, members will have access to heart health information to help improve their heart health. Hitting this target would indicate increased engagement with supporters. For 20% of donors to make a donation by 2012. 30% of the general population donate to charity; however, this may be skewed (as heart conditions are more prevalent in low income areas). This supports all objectives, as funds raised are invested in helping achieve BHFs objectives. For example, to achieve objective 1 (appendix 1) the BHF will provide funding, equipment and facilities to achieve the best results. Therefore, funds raised will support this. For 40% of members recruited to have engaged with another BHF product/service by 2012 e.g. to have participated in an event, donated, made a purchase from the online shop or catalogue. This serves to increase public involvement in heart health, to help achieve objective 2 (appendix 1). Achieving this target would indicate an increased understanding of the work BHF does and an increased involvement of BHF supporters. 5. Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning of Heart Matters. 5.1 Segmentation Customers are very diverse; therefore the same product and tactics will not appeal to all of them. We need to use segmentation; the process of dividing the market into specific groups of consumers/buyers who share common needs and who might require separate products and/or marketing mixes (Kotler, 1998 as cited in Ashford and Beamish, 2008). B2B and B2C markets each require different techniques to do this, as Heart Matters is a B2C product consumer segmentation will be used. Consumer markets can be segmented based on the following criteria: Geographic segmentation is based on variables such as region, population density and size of the area. Demographic segmentation uses variables such as age, gender, income, occupation, ethnicity and social class. Geo-demographic segmentation is a combination of the above, assumes that people either socialise according to class and occupation, or their lifestyles and geographic factors (Ashford and Beamish, 2008). ACORN (A Classification of Residential Neighbourhoods) is a system commonly used to segment the population according to geo-demographics. Psychographic segmentation groups according to lifestyle using variables such as social activities, interests, opinions and values. Behaviouristic segmentation refers to customer behaviour, segmenting based on variables such as benefits sought, purchasing rate and usage rate. Segmentation for the BHF differs depending upon whether the market to be segmented is donor or beneficiary. When segmenting the donor market, all of the above criteria are important, however when segmenting the beneficiary market, behaviourist segmentation will typically be given priority (Bruce, 2007). There will be 2 main phases to Heart Matters; the first will target beneficiaries. Upon recruitment of the target beneficiary groups the product will move into its second phase, to raise donations, therefore the target beneficiary groups will be further segmented and new target groups identified (for example this will determine those members receiving a  £5 donation ask and those receiving a  £15 one) . This report will focus on phase 1, therefore segmentation will be specific to the BHFs beneficiary market (for further information on phase 2, please refer to appendix 5. As previously mentioned, the BHF gives priority to behaviourist segmentation when segmenting their beneficiary markets. Potential segments Heart Matters could target include: Seeking help recovering from a heart condition Seeking help living with a heart condition Seeking information on caring for someone with a heat condition Desire to improve their lifestyle Desire to improve their diet Frequent user of BHF products/services Infrequent user of BHF product/services Use products and services from a variety of health charities Loyal to an alternative health charity Although behaviourist variables form the basis of segmentation, further segmentation is necessary as within these groups there are still huge differences from one customer to the next. Further, given limited resources it may not be possible to serve everyone within a particular needs group. The BHF also use the other criteria to identify additional segments: Geography: The BHF is a nation-wide organisation, however they segment according to Densely populated areas Large metropolitan areas Areas of low income Demographics: Parents educate about keeping their childrens hearts healthy 65+ higher risk of heart disease, inform on how to reduce risk 30-45 leading busy lives, but still have a chance to make a change 7-16 to educate about the importance of keeping their heart healthy Sedentary occupation High stress occupation Geo-demographic: Segment into different ACORN groups all of which are within the BHFs beneficiary market as heart health information should be made available to everyone. The market is segmented according to ACORN group as solutions and recommendations may differ depending on income and social class, for example EF14 category affordable healthy recipes, gym-free ways of keeping fit. Psychographics: Internet-savvy Dependents Families Older couples (no children or left home) Gym Members 5.2 Target audience for Heart Matters The marketing of Heart Matters will follow a differentiated strategy, that is Heart Matters will only be targeted at certain segments of the total market and the marketing mix (section 6) will be tailored towards these target segments of the market. Figure 4 below shows the target groups chosen for Heart Matters Membership. Recovering/living with heart conditionhigh risk Glasgow and London Age 50+ Behaviour Geographic Demographic Target groups for Heart Matters Target Group Reason for Choice Recovering/living with a heart condition and high risk groups. This is a large market; heart and circulatory disease is the UKs biggest killer, almost 2.6 million people are living with heart disease. It is a current strategy of the BHF to make the organisation more relevant to target audiences; this is a large audience where the need is currently greatest and it is important to ensure the BHF is made relevant to them. These are issues that are unique to the BHF, no other large charity tackles them targeting this group provides an opportunity to highlight the BHFs differentiation. Glasgow and London As this is a new product, and one which is free it will initially be launched into just 2 cities, this is to reduce the risk involved. Densely populated cities give a wider market reach. Glasgow has been chosen as there is a high concentration of heart disease, London has been chosen as people living here tend to have a faster pace of life, encouraging them to be unhealthy. Initial rates of membership registration of the two cities may give an indication of where to roll the membership out to. Age 50+ Heart disease is more common and risk is greater in older people. Further, a survey under-taken by one of our corporate sponsors Fitness-First revealed that of all age groups the over 50s showed the greatest percentage eating healthily, this indicates a large market that would be receptive to health-related information. In addition, this is the baby-boomer generation, a large percentage of which are wealthy home owners may provide significant fundraising opportunities in phase 2. 5.3 Positioning Heart Matters Having selected the target segments, it is important the service is then positioned with their needs and requirements in mind. Positioning is the act of designing an offer so that it occupies a distinct and valued place in the minds of target customers (Kotler et al, 1998). The target segments are likely to have concerns, it is therefore important the service is positioned as reassuring. However, we do not want to be patronising and compromise our brand, the service tackles serious issues so needs to be positioned as a provider of expert advice. Each customer treated as an individual, we wish the service to be viewed as providing customised, not generic information. Figure 4 below shows how we would like our target audiences to perceive our service. Customised Reassuring Expert, trusted advice Generic Inaccessible Amateur advice Depressing Accessible Perceptual Map for Heart Matters Marketing mix for the BHFs Heart Matters Membership Service Strategy Justification Product USP (Unique Selling Point) Core product: USP no other charity provides information and advice specific to living with and recovering from a heart condition. Supports our competitive differentiation strategy. Secondary and tertiary product: Carbon Copy many other charities provide free membership services offering newsletters, free calendars, membership cards etc (appendix 4) Price Intermediate strategy, in terms of the value the customer will place on the product. This supports our quality of information positioning and selective marketing strategy. Heart Matters core product has a USP; however we want it to be available to everyone within our target market, not just a specialist group, so therefore skimming is not applicable. Price penetration is also not applicable as this is a strategy typically used for lower quality, carbon copies therefore does not support our quality of information positioning strategy. In addition we do not want to target everyone within the beneficiary market; this is a new product, do not want to appear low quality and generic, the intermediary price strategy supports this. Place Dual distribution use both direct and indirect (via intermediaries) distribution to the customer. Selective Distribution Interdependence BHF retains full control. Dual distribution: the core product will only be distributed directly, this is essential to support the expert positioning and give the BHF full control over the service. Indirect distribution of the core product may confuse customers and fail to relate it to the BHF. Indirect distribution of Heart Matters registration and materials. This will give a greater access to the market and provide customers with the option to register in person or online. Selective distribution will give access to the right customers i.e. our target groups. This also supports our quality positioning strategy and intermediate price strategy, as we can choose intermediary locations that support our brand such as pharmacies. Intermediaries will be interdependent the BHF will retain full control. This is because the BHF has a strong brand and a greater understanding of the customer needs, particularly as this is a service aimed at beneficiaries. Giving independence to intermediaries may risk bad PR for the BHF. Promotion Objective Differentiate and Inform Str