Sunday, August 23, 2020

s Use In Smoking Cessation

3 Steps to Acing Your Upcoming Group Interview You’ve been approached in for a board meet. Perhaps you’re threatened. Perhaps frightened. Possibly you’re not even sure you comprehend what that really involves. Whatever your degree of fear, here are three simple strides to traversing your board meet tranquilly and in one piece. Stage 1: BEFOREYou reserve the privilege to ask who will be on your board. Do this. At that point inquire about each board part as well as could be expected. You’ll have the option to make sense of a considerable amount and get ready better for what each may be generally quick to ask you. What does this specific gathering of individuals educate you regarding what the organization is attempting to assess?You can likewise ask to what extent (generally) the meeting should last. This will give you a nice sentiment for what amount to and fro conversation will be conceivable, how much space you’ll be given to pose inquiries, to what extent your answers can be, etc.Step 2: DURING Treat every individual on the board like an individual not simply one more anonymous face. This isn't an indifferent divider asking you inquiries. Every questioner on your board is another chance to make a human association and persuade that a lot more individuals in the organization what an extraordinary fit you would be.Be sure to observe everybody’s name as they are presented. Record every one if that causes you recall. When responding to questions, talk straightforwardly to the person who asked, yet then attempt to widen your answer out to cause the remainder of the board to feel remembered for the discussion.Step 3: AFTERYou’ve took in their names and put forth an attempt to interface with each board part presently thank every single one of them earnestly withâ solid eye to eye connection and a quality handshake. From that point forward, it’s the typical post-meet follow-up methodology. Be that as it may, recall that you have to keep in touch with one card to say thanks for each board part. It appears to be a torment, however it’s these little contacts that will help set you apart.The board talk with: 6 hints for previously, during, and after

Friday, August 21, 2020

Child Rearing in the Us and Colombia Essay

Early consideration giving is a central point for a youngster to have a sense of safety to investigate their general surroundings (Carbonell, Alzate, Bustamente and Quiceno , 2002). How unique is this early consideration giving between two societies, for example, the United States and Colombia? This is a gander at the distinctions and similiaries of raising young ladies, both conceived in 1988, in Colombia and the United States. The two young ladies were brought up in family units, with one more established kin, close enough in age to be a significant piece of each girl’s every day life. One was brought up in Colombia, in spite of the fact that she moved to the United States at eleven years old, while the other was brought totally up in the United States. The two guardians of every young lady were met just as the young lady herself. The fundamental venturing stones, the occasions that guardians love to tape, the â€Å"baby’s first† minutes all appear to happen generally likewise in the two young ladies. Self-announced by Paulina, was that she strolled around the age of ten months. Additionally, Jane strolled at ten years old months. Both were fairly postponed in discourse, enough so to be taken to specialists. For each situation, the guardians were informed that the youngster would talk if the family quit following the non-verbal headings from the kid. Paulina’s first words were â€Å"eso,† Spanish for â€Å"that,† and â€Å"Ma. † Jane’s first word was â€Å"Ah-yah† which was intended to be â€Å"Alex,† her brother’s name. Paulina remained solitary at eight years old months (individual correspondence with subject), as did Jane (individual correspondence with subject). Discipline is something all guardians must make sense of. Hispanics will in general pacify youngsters and be progressively merciful (Figueroa-Moseley, Ramey, Keltner and Lanzi, 2006). Hispanic guardians will in general attempt to quiet their youngster as opposed to move in the direction of formative objectives, which will in general be increasingly esteemed in the United States. Neither one of the girls was rebuffed as â€Å"grounding,† however both were cautioned with straightforward looks from their folks, for example, glaring and the two young ladies were hollered at also. Beating was utilized for every young lady also. Paulina was â€Å"smacked,† and Jane was every so often hit. Jane would be sent to her room or made to sit in a seat as in a â€Å"Time Out,† anyway Paulina never encountered a â€Å"Time Out† and remembers that something like this was not regular in Colombia. The two young ladies were raised to express their real thoughts, and not hold on to be addressed, as long as information disclosed was deferential. Questions were invited by the two families, however the young ladies were relied upon to know the time and spot where to pose inquiries. Every young lady was likewise permitted to choose her own garments, which has been demonstrated to be useful for kids, as kids see it is significant for them to settle on their very own portion choices, and relate to the decisions (Ardila-Rey, Killen, 2001). Paulina’s mother attempted to train her what coordinated, yet in the end quit any pretense of attempting when it, albeit Colombian moms will in general stress over the outward appearance of their kids (Carbonell et al, 2002). When asked what Jane would decide to wear, Jane’s mother answered, â€Å"Anything that didn’t match,† in spite of the fact that she, as well, attempted to instruct her little girl coordinating. No significant limitations were set upon either young lady, but to be aware. Regard was underlined in the two circumstances. As regard was underlined from kid to grown-up, so was it appeared from grown-up to kid. The two kids were kept educated regarding what was going on in the family. Youngsters were required to be a piece of supper discussion and were permitted to partake in the adults’ lives. Likewise, the two youngsters were given thinking behind choices and had things clarified? â€Å"because I said so† was utilized just when the circumstance would be later clarified, and the outcomes of an activity were portrayed as opposed to an insignificant â€Å"don’t do it. † Chores were a piece of each girl’s life too. Both were required to do what was asked of them to help around the house†cleaning, vacuuming, gathering the dishes, and so on. Jane was required to help with supper, which included getting food from the fridge, conveying things to the table, stacking the dishwasher, preparing the table, and once in a while mixing. Jane was given a recompense of roughly five dollars every week, except this was never in return for doing her tasks. Paulina, as well, was not paid for doing her errands. She states, â€Å"I was a piece of the family and hence I was required to work in the house with no kind of remuneration (individual correspondence, April 10, 2007). † Colombia will in general be an aggregate society that looks to the advantage of the gathering, instead of the individual (Pilgrim, Reuda-Riedle, 2002), which applies to this circumstance in that Paulina was required to help maintain the house in control, without ? payment’ in light of the fact that it was for more noteworthy's benefit of the family, being a piece of the gathering is a significant parts of an aggregate culture. Family connections and relationship? a typical bond between relatives, cooperating to assist the family? will in general be substantially more accentuated in Hispanic societies (Carbonell et al, 2002). A significant piece of any culture is food and feasting, and kids are a piece of that. Youngsters frequently lose a portion of their hunger between ages two and six, and in light of the fact that guardians stress, awful food propensities are instituted. Sweet nourishments are offered if a kid completes a supper, and numerous food sources have nutrients and supplements included. Anyway iron, zinc, and calcium are believed to be inadequate in light of the fact that juices and soft drinks are supplanting milk, and grains and prepared nourishments supplant new foods grown from the ground (Berger, 2006). It is likewise difficult to keep up great dietary patterns during this age, since youngsters frequently need dinners to be â€Å"just right. † Children have exceptionally decided thoughts for what ought to be eaten, how it ought to be eaten, and the whole circumstance encompassing the supper. As a rule the food â€Å"required† isn't solid food, yet rather sweet or like inexpensive food, similar to chicken strips or French fries. Paulina had supper along with her family consistently, by and large at eight o’clock, as is standard in Colombia. Her mom did the vast majority of the cooking, and after supper, either her mother would not tidy up, or her mom would, however with the assistance of her girls, while her dad did other family things. On ends of the week, most dinners were eaten together. Breakfast was by and large around ten o’clock toward the beginning of the day and lunch was around three o’clock toward the evening. Not very many occasions, her dad would cook, in spite of the fact that he cooks all the more since they live in the United States. Food was as sound and new as could reasonably be expected. Tidbits were new organic products, and there were never bundled nourishments in the house. Jane would dine with her family also, regularly around seven o’clock at night, when her dad returned home. She would have breakfast and lunch with her sibling until this was not, at this point conceivable in view of school. Jane’s mother did a large portion of the cooking, and the youngsters were relied upon to help. Tidbits were frequently dry grain like Cheerios, apples, saltines, or cheddar. Paulina began learning numbers and how to peruse and compose at four years old, when she went to preschool. The discussion of how kids ought to be instructed to peruse can be broken into different sides; phonetics and entire language (Berger, 2006). Phonetics takes a gander at each stable of each letter, while entire language, supported by Piaget, says that focusing on the objective of familiarity and correspondence is a higher priority than singular words (Berger, 2006). Jane additionally went to a preschool at four years old, however it was not as much organized, formal tutoring. Both were taken to a section day-care or nursery school for the chance to associate with other kids. While at nursery school, Paulina was for the most part made to play with toys. Jane went to a Co-operation nursery school at a Unitarian Universalist church. In a Co-operation nursery school guardians alternate coming into the school to help regulate stations and take an interest in the nursery school understanding. Stations were set up, for example, a Reading Corner, Snacks, and an every day highlight, for example, following bodies on enormous pieces of paper or specialties. Center nursery schools are not run of the mill in the United States, yet Jane’s guardians thought it was essential to be engaged with their youngsters whenever the situation allows and for their kids to have the socialization experience. Both were perused to ordinary. Jane was perused to an a few times each day, for around fifteen minutes each time, yet additionally had marks, signs, and anything printed read to her during regular day to day existence. Jane was once in a while, yet not frequently addressed in â€Å"Baby Talk,† while Paulina was never addressed in â€Å"Baby Talk,† as her folks suspected addressing her normally would assist her with figuring out how to comprehend. The two guardians recognize that their youngsters were not brought up in a manner that is ordinary to their individual societies, and that is apparent taking a gander at the two young ladies in pre-adulthood and early adulthood. The two young ladies understand that on the grounds that their folks were stricter when they were youthful, that as the young ladies became more seasoned; their folks didn’t should be as severe. Every young lady recognized what was anticipated from her and was hence given more opportunity as she developed. Commonly this appeared to companions just as the young lady could do what she satisfied, despite the fact that this was not the situation. The young ladies knew the constraints of what they could manage without being told. The two arrangements of guardians depended more on their trust in their girl than obtrusively mentioning to her what she could or couldn't do. Clearly, there are a few contrasts and a few likenesses between bringing youngsters up in Colombia versus the United States. Formatively, the youngsters appear to be comparable, and the vast majority of the child rearing is more indistinguishable than various. References Ardila-Rey, A.

Friday, July 10, 2020

Two Reasons Why You Should Learn How to Write About Yourself in an Essay

Two Reasons Why You Should Learn How to Write About Yourself in an EssayIf you're a college student looking for a way to earn some extra cash, then how to write about yourself in an essay could be your best option. Writing about yourself can help you in two ways.First of all, you'll be able to make a positive emotion out of the words that you've written. Maybe you think that there is no reason why you should write about yourself in an essay and you'll be forced to do so in the end of the semester. But you'll be surprised that this essay topic has numerous benefits.A study of success stories shows that the easiest way to make money is to write about yourself. When people who've excelled in their field of choice have written essays about themselves, they've gained some business tips that they can use in the future. It's easier for you to write about yourself in an essay when you find out about the few success stories in your field. This is because many employers have their own writing tips and guidelines that they will follow when hiring you.If you write about yourself in an essay that's not impressive, it will come off as a boring topic that lacks humor and interest, and this might not appeal to your audience. You can only attract people who want to see you succeed in your chosen field by using your writings.Another benefit of writing about yourself in an essay is that it makes you realize that you are capable of writing in the first place. With this in mind, it won't be so hard for you to practice what you've written if you continue to read from your essay. So, whenever you find yourself ready to submit your piece, just skip your last paragraph and start writing the next one, which will be a lot more impressive.To sum up, you have two great reasons why you should learn how to write about yourself in an essay. First, it can help you with business and career planning. By writing about yourself, you will be able to gain some insight about what you're good at and w hat you need to work on.Lastly, there are a lot of students who opt to write about themselves in an essay for the same reason as the first reason I mentioned above. For them, writing about themselves in an essay can help them in finding employment or boost their self-confidence.

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Female Characters Of The Middle Ages - 3293 Words

The lives of women in the Middle Ages were quite different from today. They were totally dominated by the male members of their family. Women were expected to obey their husband, father, brothers, and any other male members of the family. At a young age, noble women were sent away to study a range of subjects and skills, such as manners and etiquette. Marriage for love was a rare occurrence because they were frequently arranged so that both families would benefit (The Middle Ages Website). However, literature paints a different portrait of women in this time period. Medieval literature and poetry depict women as powerful figures, ultimately powering over men in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and killing the enemy in the Book of Judith. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Morgan le Fay and Lady Bertilak are the most important female characters. King Arthur s sister, Morgan le Fay, played an important role in arranging the entire game between Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Sir Gawa in is mesmerized with Morgan le Fay s beauty- the fair hues of her flesh, her face and her hair and her body and her bearing were beyond praise (David and Simpson, p.182, 943-944). Although he is a noble knight, he completely surrenders to her beauty and asks to be received as her servant as she so desires. Morgan le Fay played the role of God and had Sir Gawain at her fingertips. As the match between the two men approaches, Sir Gawain sets off to find the Green Chapel to fight with theShow MoreRelatedGender is a Fundamental Element of the Broadway Musical677 Words   |  3 PagesStarting in the golden age of 1950, a Broadway musicals critical judgement depended on how well the show’s elements were formally integrated. Meaning the outlook of the plot in relation to the music, lyrics and characterization of gender roles. Gender is a fundamental element of Broadway musical theatre, constitutional to the musical’s architecture. It is essential as a building block for ch aracters, music/lyrics, and stage settings. Broadway musical is a popular art, in which conveys social issuesRead MoreCanterbury Tales; Professions1185 Words   |  5 PagesDuring the Middle Ages there were many professions, some of them were honorable others were not. In Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, there are profiles of some the professions that were present during the Middle Ages. Among the professions there were a few that seemed unappealing. Personally, I do not like the professions that accept bribes; in this case the Friar represented characteristics of that profession. Other professions provoke suffering of another human being. For example, the Summoner’s jobRead More Sociology Observation of Two Advertisements Essay1097 Words   |  5 PagesTheres another male on seated on a horse, next to a younger female wearing a Mardi Gras mask. At the bottom is a young girl wearing the kind of wig that Thomas Jefferson wore. Most of the characters seem to be younger midd le-age characters, and they would seem to be rather wealthy. I cant really make a guess at the occupations, but the guy pouring tea looks like a lawyer of some sort. They seem to have placed the one child character to the bottom of the page, perhaps indicative of the importanceRead MoreAnalysis Of The Magdalene s Legacy 1117 Words   |  5 PagesAllie Willison Jill Stevenson Medieval Performance November 11, 2016 The Magdalene’s Legacy INTRO WHOOP (Jill said do it last and she’s always right) The legend’s surrounding Mary Magdalene changed drastically throughout the Middle Ages. In the sixth century Pope Gregory the Great concluded that three women mentioned in the Bible were in fact the same â€Å"Mary,† the sister of Lazarus, the woman who was cleansed of seven demons, and the harlot who washed the feet of Christ. This was accepted as factRead MoreThe Fight For Gender Equality Essay1357 Words   |  6 PagesShakespeare s literary work while keeping the historical, Middle Ages and Renaissance, time periods in mind. More Specifically, â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Prologue,† by Chaucer and â€Å"As You Like It,† by William Shakespeare will be examined. In doing so, the essay will uncover, not only the role of women within the poems, but the feminist aspects Chaucer and Shakespeare contain within both of their poems, and the progressive views certain characters had within â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Prologue,† and â€Å"As You Li keRead MoreGender Roles From An Early Age899 Words   |  4 Pagesbehave, and look. Children learn gender roles from an early age, from their parents and family, their religion, and their culture, as well as the outside world, including television, magazines, and other media. A popular TV show called The Middle, tells the story of a working-class family in the U.S, following the daily life of a mother named Frankie who, alongside her husband, Hank, raise their three kids, Axl, Sue, and Brick. While The Middle is a modern family show, the gender norms and family dynamicsRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath s Prologue And Tale990 Words   |  4 Pagesof Bath s Prologue and Tale is about female empowerment it shows strong protagonists. I believe Geoffrey Chaucer used The Wife of Bath’s Tale to advocate for feminism. Chaucer used a strong female character to expose female stereotypes. It was an oppressive time for women in male-dominated society. During the Middle Ages, Chaucer wrote fro m a woman’s point of view something that was not normal at that time. He set his feminist ideals through the characters of the Wife of Bath and the old womanRead MoreCritical Analysis Of The Wife Of Bath1521 Words   |  7 Pagesther water may nat dwelle†¦Thou seyest, right as wormes shende a tree, right so a wyf destroyeth hire housbonde (371-377). In the Middle Ages, women were not given much slack or authority regarding their morality, spirituality, and economic and social positioning. Biblical symbols caused a misrepresentation of women and were highly regarded in the suppressing of the female voice and their value outside of being a wife and mother. â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Tale† provides one of the most intriguing medievalRead MoreThe Woman In White Was Authored In 1859 By Wilkie Collins,1513 Words   |  7 Pageswhich is regarded as one of the most sensational and finest mysterious novels. The book outlines the role of women in the society. The fem ale gender is perceived and portrayed as inferior to their male counterparts. Women are expected to look after children and their husbands, as well as do housework. They are not allowed to access higher education. Also, the middle-class experience is more embraced than the senior level, as the latter is characterized with riches, extravagance, and laziness, unlikeRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1332 Words   |  6 PagesScott Fitzgerald has prevailed more than half century. From this novel, we can see various characters’ performance in 1920s in United States. Obviously, what the writer expressed has a sustainable influence for successors. In my thesis, I will show my opinion about Different female values in the Great Gatsby. In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald exquisitely and accurately depicts the â€Å"jazz age†. The three important female images are particularly impressive: Gatsby s dream lover, Daisy Buchanan from a noble

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

What is the Importance of Friendships to Personal Health

Friendship is very important for mental and personal health, the people who you celebrate happy and not so happy times with. The friend who can cheer you up and brighten up your day, the list goes on. Friendship is important, its been researched that it can boost your self-confidence, help you cope with difficult situations and even encourage you to change, habit for example. This relationship as you can see is very important to anyone, physically and mentally strengthening you, without friends people can become depressed and feel that they dont belong on the earth causing mental health. There are many different kind of friendships, such as best friends, close friends and friends, all impact a person in many different ways. Its not about how many friends you have because it only takes one to change you and be there for you. As research shows you could have many friends but have only one youll turn to for advice and help. If we look at a person that has no friendships, we see that their confidence, social skills and personal heath is effected because they dont gain the skills that can only be obtained through friendships. Friendships are really powerful even though we might not think it, many children and adults have committed subside because they had no friends, this shows it impacted their personal health so much, that they felt worthless to the world. Its proven that you may have stopped someone from committing suicide from just smiling at a stranger in theShow MoreRelatedThe Magic Of A Family Meal By Ellen Goodman1260 Words   |  6 Pagesauthors conclude the im portance of personal relationships. Though varied in their theses, tones, and styles, each article stresses that individuals quality of life can be positively affected by taking time for companions and relatives. Nancy Gibbs, writer of â€Å"The Magic of a Family Meal,† beautifully illustrates the benefits of eating with loved ones often, while â€Å"The Company Man† by Ellen Goodman demonstrates the negative effects of making one’s profession a priority over one’s personal life and relationshipsRead MoreImportance of Friendships1027 Words   |  5 PagesKatie Holland November 9, 2011 Psychology The Importance of Friendships Katie Holland Psychology Importance of Friendships Picture this, a young boy sitting alone at a playground admiring his peers from across the school yard enjoying a game of hide and seek, that he was not invited to. Now shift your attention to the other set of children who are engaging in a rigorous game of hide and seek, all laughing and playing with one another. Which side would you want to be on? How do you get toRead MoreFriendship1379 Words   |  6 Pages Friendship A friend is defined as a person whom one knows, likes, and trusts, therefore this is a friendship. In every society in the world people have and follow this relationship and support it. In some societies this relationship is given more importance than others. In our society friends are given almost the same attention as ones family member. Family is the closest relationship a person has, and if that is disturbed a friend can be very helpful. During the development of a friendship inRead More`` The Bright Stuff `` By President Woodrow Wilson : The Only Cement That Will Ever Hold The World979 Words   |  4 Pagesdeclared that â€Å"friendship [was] the only cement that will ever hold the world together†. Human beings form massive networks, tied together by fine threads, like a web. Those relationships revolving around us are expanded by pollination, as meeting friends of friends rapidly increases one’s social network. The importance of understanding human interactions r ises in accordance with the continuous changes in our environment. Nowadays, scientific researches interested in the friendship process exploreRead MoreThe Importance Of Interpersonal Relationship972 Words   |  4 Pagesneed to feel love and acceptance from social groups such as families and peer groups. In fact, the need to belong is so innately ingrained that it may be strong enough to overcome physiological and safety needs. (Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, 2017) What this implies that it’s a given human nature to want to feel a sense of belonging to a group. This group is expected to support and connectedness with an individual. This provides the opportunity for interpersonal relationship amongst any group of personsRead MoreRelationship Between Friendship Quality And The Amount Of Time1420 Words   |  6 PagesFriendship quality in connection to time spent with romantic partner Humans are naturally a social species (Furman, 1999). People engage in different types of relationships throughout their entire lives. Certain relationships are lifelong, others maybe just a day or even a few seconds. Among those longer lasting relationships, are friendships and romantic relationships. Nearly all people can relate to both at some point in life, however, do the two ever intermix? Based upon personal experience,Read MoreThe Importance of Friendship and Healthy Relationships in a Childs Development976 Words   |  4 PagesFriendships are so important. They have always been important; but it seems to be the most important in my opinion. We see how friendships play important roles throughout our life span. Friendships are defined and formed in each stage of life from infancy. These include early childhood, middle childhood, adolescence, early adulthood, middle adulthood and late adulthood. Friendships grow from one stage to another. During this time friends become close r. Relationships start out as acquaintances andRead MoreIdeal Community to Me Essay examples1061 Words   |  5 Pagesrace, culture, ethnicity and other dogma that prevail within them. Construction Of an Ideal Community: To construct such a community we need individuals with specific traits and qualities who work for the task assigned to them beyond their personal beliefs. Such individuals work solely for the purpose and cause of constructing an ideal community with its underlying principles focused primarily on service of humanity. An ideal community has to be perfect in many ways that it shouldn’t beRead MoreThe Purpose Of Friendship1304 Words   |  6 PagesProfessor Baker Intro to Philosophy 13 April 2015 The Purpose of Friendship We all have friends that we enjoy spending time with, but we do not seem to think heavily as to why we have these friends. These relationships are not necessary to survival; all that is needed for our physical body to survive is food and water, yet people want to create long-lasting friendships with people they cherish. In his work, Lysis, Plato says that that friendship is the least of natural loves, ones which we do not needRead MoreDescription And Main Objectives Of The Act851 Words   |  4 Pagesas identified by Nocon and Qureshi, was to enable and provide those of ill health normality, independence and a voice in daily living and services that they received. This policy also defined the difference between the more community responsible care by the community as opposed to the older version of care in the community, when individuals were cared for in a home type setting. One of the traits of community and personal relationships is that individuals normally share same or similar background

Revolution in France free essay sample

A review of the book Reflections on the Revolution in France by Edmund Burke and how it relates to egalitarianism. This paper presents a detailed examination about egalitarian ideas and how they can be applied. Using Edmund Burkes book called Reflections on the Revolution in France the writer of this paper explores how Burkes ideas can be applied to the Egalitarian point of view. The paper focuses primarily on Burkes defense of tradition and prejudice. As globalization continues to knock down previously erected political walls, different societies and cultures are learning to accept each other. Diversity and differences are part of what keeps the world progressing and keeps people communicating. One of the things that the process of globalization has promoted is the acceptance of the beliefs of others that are different . In addition many cultures and systems are learning that they can adopt components of other systems and improve their original foundational basis . We will write a custom essay sample on Revolution in France or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page One very solid and serious style of belief is the egalitarian method of viewing the world. When Edmund Burke wrote the book, Reflections on the Revolution in France, he did not promote it as an egalitarian viewpoint, but if one reads beyond the initial impression and examines the underpinnings of the premise he discusses it is easy to understand how an egalitarian could embrace the ideas that Burke promotes . His ideas regarding tradition and prejudice are especially applicable to the egalitarian foundational structure . An egalitarian could easily accept the beliefs of Burke in the areas of tradition and prejudice to a very big extent.

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Recession, Advertising, and Opportunity Food for Thought - The Writers For Hire

RECESSION, ADVERTISING, AND OPPORTUNITY: FOOD FOR THOUGHT Seems like when the going gets tough, the marketing budget is the first thing to get the axe. And, at first glance, the logic makes sense – after all, when money’s tight, isn’t it more important to keep the business you already have instead of dropping buckets of cash chasing new clients? Well, yes and no. According to a recent article in The New Yorker, there’s a lot to be said for boosting your advertising and marketing budgets during a recession. Financial writer James Surowiecki (one of my hands-down, favorite financial writers) points to companies like Kellogg’s, Kraft, Hyundai who have used previous economic downturns to gain an edge over the competition. It seems like while the other guys were playing it safe by cutting marketing dollars, these former underdogs took a gamble and launched big marketing campaigns and new products instead. And, according to Surowiecki, it worked. Sure, it may seem â€Å"safe† to slash your advertising dollars, but companies who keep reaching out to consumers during a recession may just come out on top when the economy gets back on track. Good news for people in marketing and advertising, to be sure. But, whatever business you’re in, it’s an interesting look at how to gain an edge over the competition. It’s definitely worth checking out. Read the full article here and let me know what you think – we love to hear from our readers.

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Free Essays on Report On Case Study

This research article chosen is entitled, Individual Differences in Children’s Emotion Understanding: Effects of Age and Language. It came from the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology; September 2003, Volume 44 Issue 4, p 347, 7 p. It’s logical to assume that as individuals get older, they tend to mature in additional areas of life. In the extent of the last two decades, it has been proven that emotion understanding can alter with age. Recent studies have begun to focus on children’s individual emotion understanding. Researchers in this study also hypothesized that as children mature, their emotion understanding will increase. The researchers’ first goal of this study was to examine the development of individual differences in children by assessing a test containing nine different components of emotion understanding. Their second goal was to observe the relation between language ability and individual differences in emotion understanding. Eighty children ranging in age from four to eleven years were tested. As expected, there was an increase in emotion understanding and language ability with age. In each age group, it was clear that there were individual differences in language ability an d emotion understanding. Age and language ability collectively explained 72% of emotion understanding conflict; 20% of this variance was explained by age single-handedly and 27% by language ability. The research conducted was a correlational study. As the children increased in age, their language ability and emotion understanding also increased. In this case, there was a positive correlation. After the exposure to an original research report, I realize that even the most practical situations could be a product of a psychological study. I expected the research article to contain more scientific information resulting in confusion. As for the results of the actual study, I’m not surprised. It’s logical to assume that when aging occurs, it wi... Free Essays on Report On Case Study Free Essays on Report On Case Study This research article chosen is entitled, Individual Differences in Children’s Emotion Understanding: Effects of Age and Language. It came from the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology; September 2003, Volume 44 Issue 4, p 347, 7 p. It’s logical to assume that as individuals get older, they tend to mature in additional areas of life. In the extent of the last two decades, it has been proven that emotion understanding can alter with age. Recent studies have begun to focus on children’s individual emotion understanding. Researchers in this study also hypothesized that as children mature, their emotion understanding will increase. The researchers’ first goal of this study was to examine the development of individual differences in children by assessing a test containing nine different components of emotion understanding. Their second goal was to observe the relation between language ability and individual differences in emotion understanding. Eighty children ranging in age from four to eleven years were tested. As expected, there was an increase in emotion understanding and language ability with age. In each age group, it was clear that there were individual differences in language ability an d emotion understanding. Age and language ability collectively explained 72% of emotion understanding conflict; 20% of this variance was explained by age single-handedly and 27% by language ability. The research conducted was a correlational study. As the children increased in age, their language ability and emotion understanding also increased. In this case, there was a positive correlation. After the exposure to an original research report, I realize that even the most practical situations could be a product of a psychological study. I expected the research article to contain more scientific information resulting in confusion. As for the results of the actual study, I’m not surprised. It’s logical to assume that when aging occurs, it wi...

Saturday, February 29, 2020

A Social Partnerships in the New Millenium

There is also a huge amount being written about the issue, some Industrial Relations commentators have even hailed this as the most exciting thing to happen to UK industry in years. However, not every group completely agrees with this. For example, some groups believe that Social Partnership has had a very negative effect on British Trade Unions. At www.labournet.org.uk a group have named a bulletin board ‘Solidarity’. It is a page dedicated to ‘challenging social partnership’ and it’s apparent corrosive effects on union power. It is very typical of the types of arguments put forward by groups that are oh so against social partnerships. Stakeholders like the authors of solidarity believe that social partnerships tie unions to the coat tails of employers. What they want is a ‘new unionism’ which opposes subordination to the ‘global market’ and builds on the experience of the Liverpool Dockers. This group is completely opposed to any kind of privatisation and really wants more from unions than just a concern for working conditions. They want a break â€Å"..with the narrow work place concerns of ‘non-political’ trade unionism† and believe that unions should fight † for the interests of the working class and oppressed as a whole†. They also see a need for a repeal of all â€Å"anti-union† legislation and an end to state interference into unions, such as social partnership agreements. Taken from ‘Solidarity’, the journal that openly states it’s purpose is to challenge social partnerships in trade unions, here are some ‘facts’ that display how social partnerships have had a harmful effect on British trade unions: In Rover and the car industry, where the unions have identified the interests of workers with commercial success in the ‘global market’, they have been gravely weakened and meekly accepted massive job cuts. USDAW has reached a ‘Partnership Agreement’ with Tesco which takes away the right of the union members as a whole to vote on pay deals. The TUC has collaborated with a privatised utility in the Energy Industry and set up a company with them – Union Energy – thus effectively abandoning the fight for re-nationalisation. They are collaborating with a privatised utility which has decimated trade union members’ jobs. The unions have swallowed ‘Investors in People’ which identifies the interests of union members with the ‘business aims’ of private companies. The TUC and most unions have accepted that the increased competition of the ‘global market’ means unity with ‘our employers’ and competing with workers in other countries. Stakeholders like these aim to challenge social partnership by campaigning for complete independence of the unions from the employer. They reject globalisation and counterpoise to it a working class internationalism which recognises that workers have more in common with those in other countries than they do with ‘our own’ bosses. It is a very Marxist standpoint . They feel that for those in the unions who support their independence from the employers and the state, a systematic struggle against ‘social partnership’ in all its manifestations is a central task if they are to break the unions from the employers’ coat tails. They are insistent that this outlook has only been adopted by union leaders. It has though percolated down to many workplaces, reinforced by the fear of unemployment. This far left view contrasts greatly with those unions that actually see social partnership in a very positive, if slightly unclear light. Unions like FIET, The International Federation of commercial, clerical, professional, and technical employees see social partnership as a â€Å"new and challenging area of work for the union.† For unions that see the millennium as a time to accept social partnership, it will mean unions and companies learning to do things differently, rather than trying to campaign against this change. Some unions like FIET have accepted that we now have a government committed to promoting the partnership approach, and to ensuring that it becomes a permanent feature in the workplace. Unions like this have therefore accepted that social partnership is going to be around for a long time. I think that left wing reactions to social partnerships, like that of ‘Solidarity’ is very much a reactive one rather than considered. I think that those stakeholders set so strongly against this issue need to understand that the government’s political commitment to partnership goes far beyond the UK. We now have a new and positive approach to Europe and this social partnership model is at the heart of the EU’s approach to all Industrial Relations. Indeed Social Partnership does mean long term changes to the Industrial Relations scene in Europe and in Britain, all that unions need to work on is understanding what these changes will mean for their members and the companies that they work in. Looked at from this more positive, optimistic standpoint then social partnership has the potential to deliver some very real benefits: Potentially it means that employers will be working with the trade unions to bring about improvements in the quality of work. It means that employees, through their trade union, will be given a much greater say in how their company is run. Social partnership should give unions the opportunity to be consulted earlier, more often and on a wider range of issues than has happened before. Surely the growth in partnership at work can only be a welcome one, if not somewhat overdue? However, these encouraging and upbeat pointers can only be achieved if the unions get themselves involved in equal terms right from the beginning, otherwise employers could try to do things without the unions. As stakeholders like ‘Solidarity’ state I think that there is indeed a risk that social partnership may be used to try and undermine trade union organisation in the work place. Employers could potentially claim that they can have a partnership directly with their staff and do not require the union’s participation. If the unions are excluded in this way then not only could there be disastrous consequences for union members but social partnership will not work for employers either. Partnership can only be successful when employees as partners are properly supported and resourced through a dependable trade union. To illustrate this point further, let us consider what may happen if the retail sector tried to introduce partnership without trade union involvement : Most employees in this sector work part-time. There are increasingly complex and unsociable working hours in retailing which in turn means that most employees may have very little contact with anyone beyond their shift. In these circumstances employees have less of an opportunity to form a collective view. Simply meeting together can be extremely difficult in such organisations, let alone having the resources and confidence to develop their own ideas and concerns. Therefore it is clear that in most cases employees are unlikely to become equal and effective partners when they do not have the time or the means to generate their own agenda. A dependable and experienced trade union means that employees can enter into partnership properly supported and resourced. To achieve this, a real commitment is required from employers to supporting trade union membership, as the best way for their staff to be given a voice and more importantly the confidence to use it. Basically partnership needs partners. But how will social partnership actually change things in real terms for employees and the unions? By answering this question I will hopefully be able to assess if social partnership is a viable way forward in the new millennium. Firstly, unions need to take a positive approach, for them social partnerships should be about: Co-operation, not confrontation. Improving the quality of working life. Employers listening to and respecting unions and vice versa. Employees developing their own agenda through their trade union. If they agree on the above terms then hopefully it will mean: Moving away from the common practice of the union only talking to companies once a year. At the moment, even with companies with whom there exists a good relationship, unions often only talk to the organisation at the time of the annual wage negotiations. Many unions feel that the annual wage round sometimes becomes a little tired and predictable, with companies offering the lowest increase that they feel they can get away with. However, partnership is different. For the unions, it means talking to companies throughout the year. It means having a constant dialogue with employers about what is happening at all levels of the company. It should also mean that the union is consulted on a wider range of issues. Companies are used to contacting unions when they are implementing redundancies or sell offs. Mainly because there is a legal obligation on them to do this, but unions have not in the past been consulted on the overall direction of a company or about strategic decisions that may affect employees. A Social Partnership means that the union should be consulted on a far wider range of issues than they have been used to. It means earlier and better consultation sessions, theoretically no more being told about something when it has already been implemented. A Social Partnerships in the New Millenium There is also a huge amount being written about the issue, some Industrial Relations commentators have even hailed this as the most exciting thing to happen to UK industry in years. However, not every group completely agrees with this. For example, some groups believe that Social Partnership has had a very negative effect on British Trade Unions. At www.labournet.org.uk a group have named a bulletin board ‘Solidarity’. It is a page dedicated to ‘challenging social partnership’ and it’s apparent corrosive effects on union power. It is very typical of the types of arguments put forward by groups that are oh so against social partnerships. Stakeholders like the authors of solidarity believe that social partnerships tie unions to the coat tails of employers. What they want is a ‘new unionism’ which opposes subordination to the ‘global market’ and builds on the experience of the Liverpool Dockers. This group is completely opposed to any kind of privatisation and really wants more from unions than just a concern for working conditions. They want a break â€Å"..with the narrow work place concerns of ‘non-political’ trade unionism† and believe that unions should fight † for the interests of the working class and oppressed as a whole†. They also see a need for a repeal of all â€Å"anti-union† legislation and an end to state interference into unions, such as social partnership agreements. Taken from ‘Solidarity’, the journal that openly states it’s purpose is to challenge social partnerships in trade unions, here are some ‘facts’ that display how social partnerships have had a harmful effect on British trade unions: In Rover and the car industry, where the unions have identified the interests of workers with commercial success in the ‘global market’, they have been gravely weakened and meekly accepted massive job cuts. USDAW has reached a ‘Partnership Agreement’ with Tesco which takes away the right of the union members as a whole to vote on pay deals. The TUC has collaborated with a privatised utility in the Energy Industry and set up a company with them – Union Energy – thus effectively abandoning the fight for re-nationalisation. They are collaborating with a privatised utility which has decimated trade union members’ jobs. The unions have swallowed ‘Investors in People’ which identifies the interests of union members with the ‘business aims’ of private companies. The TUC and most unions have accepted that the increased competition of the ‘global market’ means unity with ‘our employers’ and competing with workers in other countries. Stakeholders like these aim to challenge social partnership by campaigning for complete independence of the unions from the employer. They reject globalisation and counterpoise to it a working class internationalism which recognises that workers have more in common with those in other countries than they do with ‘our own’ bosses. It is a very Marxist standpoint . They feel that for those in the unions who support their independence from the employers and the state, a systematic struggle against ‘social partnership’ in all its manifestations is a central task if they are to break the unions from the employers’ coat tails. They are insistent that this outlook has only been adopted by union leaders. It has though percolated down to many workplaces, reinforced by the fear of unemployment. This far left view contrasts greatly with those unions that actually see social partnership in a very positive, if slightly unclear light. Unions like FIET, The International Federation of commercial, clerical, professional, and technical employees see social partnership as a â€Å"new and challenging area of work for the union.† For unions that see the millennium as a time to accept social partnership, it will mean unions and companies learning to do things differently, rather than trying to campaign against this change. Some unions like FIET have accepted that we now have a government committed to promoting the partnership approach, and to ensuring that it becomes a permanent feature in the workplace. Unions like this have therefore accepted that social partnership is going to be around for a long time. I think that left wing reactions to social partnerships, like that of ‘Solidarity’ is very much a reactive one rather than considered. I think that those stakeholders set so strongly against this issue need to understand that the government’s political commitment to partnership goes far beyond the UK. We now have a new and positive approach to Europe and this social partnership model is at the heart of the EU’s approach to all Industrial Relations. Indeed Social Partnership does mean long term changes to the Industrial Relations scene in Europe and in Britain, all that unions need to work on is understanding what these changes will mean for their members and the companies that they work in. Looked at from this more positive, optimistic standpoint then social partnership has the potential to deliver some very real benefits: Potentially it means that employers will be working with the trade unions to bring about improvements in the quality of work. It means that employees, through their trade union, will be given a much greater say in how their company is run. Social partnership should give unions the opportunity to be consulted earlier, more often and on a wider range of issues than has happened before. Surely the growth in partnership at work can only be a welcome one, if not somewhat overdue? However, these encouraging and upbeat pointers can only be achieved if the unions get themselves involved in equal terms right from the beginning, otherwise employers could try to do things without the unions. As stakeholders like ‘Solidarity’ state I think that there is indeed a risk that social partnership may be used to try and undermine trade union organisation in the work place. Employers could potentially claim that they can have a partnership directly with their staff and do not require the union’s participation. If the unions are excluded in this way then not only could there be disastrous consequences for union members but social partnership will not work for employers either. Partnership can only be successful when employees as partners are properly supported and resourced through a dependable trade union. To illustrate this point further, let us consider what may happen if the retail sector tried to introduce partnership without trade union involvement : Most employees in this sector work part-time. There are increasingly complex and unsociable working hours in retailing which in turn means that most employees may have very little contact with anyone beyond their shift. In these circumstances employees have less of an opportunity to form a collective view. Simply meeting together can be extremely difficult in such organisations, let alone having the resources and confidence to develop their own ideas and concerns. Therefore it is clear that in most cases employees are unlikely to become equal and effective partners when they do not have the time or the means to generate their own agenda. A dependable and experienced trade union means that employees can enter into partnership properly supported and resourced. To achieve this, a real commitment is required from employers to supporting trade union membership, as the best way for their staff to be given a voice and more importantly the confidence to use it. Basically partnership needs partners. But how will social partnership actually change things in real terms for employees and the unions? By answering this question I will hopefully be able to assess if social partnership is a viable way forward in the new millennium. Firstly, unions need to take a positive approach, for them social partnerships should be about: Co-operation, not confrontation. Improving the quality of working life. Employers listening to and respecting unions and vice versa. Employees developing their own agenda through their trade union. If they agree on the above terms then hopefully it will mean: Moving away from the common practice of the union only talking to companies once a year. At the moment, even with companies with whom there exists a good relationship, unions often only talk to the organisation at the time of the annual wage negotiations. Many unions feel that the annual wage round sometimes becomes a little tired and predictable, with companies offering the lowest increase that they feel they can get away with. However, partnership is different. For the unions, it means talking to companies throughout the year. It means having a constant dialogue with employers about what is happening at all levels of the company. It should also mean that the union is consulted on a wider range of issues. Companies are used to contacting unions when they are implementing redundancies or sell offs. Mainly because there is a legal obligation on them to do this, but unions have not in the past been consulted on the overall direction of a company or about strategic decisions that may affect employees. A Social Partnership means that the union should be consulted on a far wider range of issues than they have been used to. It means earlier and better consultation sessions, theoretically no more being told about something when it has already been implemented.

Thursday, February 13, 2020

Compare and contrast how Marxist and foucauldian criminologist Essay

Compare and contrast how Marxist and foucauldian criminologist conceptualize power and their exercise of power in their analysis - Essay Example The modes of production in society consist of two elements: the means of production, which is constituted of technological, process and the relationship of various classes to the means of production whether they either own the means of production or work for those, who posses them. Since the ultimate economic source of surplus in society involves the amount of goods which is produced in excess of what the workers consume, there is a need to understand the difference between those who hold the means of production and those who work for them so as to be able to comprehensively understand who owns the surpluses in society. McLaughlin states that means of production in society can either be privately owned or not. In some societies, means of production are owned by state, for example in former soviet Union, in others they are controlled by small groups of workers for instance in Yugoslavia or collectively owned by units of workers, farmers, peasants and other classes in society for examp le in china This forms of production definitely produces different types of social relations and also lead to various forms of crimes an criminal law. McLaughlin et al notes that in capitalistic societies particularly where means of production concentrates on private individuals and there has been a development of divisions between the class that dominates, the owners of means of production and the class that is dominated, those working for the ruling class, the level of crime is very substantial and of high degree. This is because of the contradiction that is created by the capitalist system. (McLaughlin, 2003, p 250) To begin with, the first contradiction is that the capitalist enterprise tries to crate a desire among the class of workers to consume the products generated by their system. Many of this products don’t do not necessarily contribute to the improvement of peoples wellbeing and also have no value. For their system to be viable, they develop mechanisms to make the people utilise what they produce. In order for the capitalist to produce their goods, they make labour force to work diligently and over time. This helps the ruling class to accumulate more and more capital and maintain their position in society. Also to keep the workers at bay, the capitalist specialise in keeping a considerable proportion in society poor and miserable. This means that if the currently employed group of workers down their tools, and refuse to carry their duties as required by management, they are dismissed and the reserve work force waiting for the job takes over immediately. In the long run, the capitalist structures end up creating both a desire to consume and the inability for the large population of the people to earn the money required for buying necessaries need for life. The second contradiction about capitalism is that the categorization of society in two classes: one that owns means of production and a deprived group that inevitably works for wage so as t o survive leads to conflict between the two classes. These conflicts can be seen from rebellion and riots emanating from the proletariat. Also the state passes law to protect the interest of the ruling class, applies sanction to regulate the actions of proletarian which threatens the egoistic interests of the bourgeoisie .The proletarians who are caught jeopardising the interest of the ruling class are labelled to as criminal and their actions branded as crime. As capitalism

Saturday, February 1, 2020

New Museum of Contemporary Art Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

New Museum of Contemporary Art - Research Paper Example In the article, Holland describes the new works of art under exhibition assembled by Ryan Inouye. The works of art described are a clear indication that the traditional and appealing work that was adorned in the museum were slowly being replaced by modern and young artworks which neglect most of the art principles. The assembly is mainly centered at attracting human megaphone through formal gestures, social engagements and conveys an emphatic tone. This has been associated with the global reach target that has resulted in most of the artists to come from outside the United States. Only four of the fifty artists in this exercise came from the United States. This was evident before the ‘American Whitney Biennial’ when the lobby gallery of the museum had two collections; one from the Middle East and the other from Africa. The occasion also had only one artist and was from Colombia, Gabriel Sierra. Thus ‘The Ungovernables’ article by Holland supports the argumen t that the ‘New Museum’ has been transformed and is now characterized by political commentary coming from young artists below the age of 30 years(Holland 120). On the emerging survey trends and the artists recognized by the media, the article by Vogel Carol, titled ‘Whitney Museum’s Survey of Contemporary Art’ published on February 17, 2002, featured the climax of this trend that had never been witnessed before. Vogel argues that contemporary art planet in New York had never witnessed any alignment like this and this will take some years before it is witnessed again.

Friday, January 24, 2020

The Scarlet Letter :: essays research papers

Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in Salem, Massachusetts, on July 4, 1804. His parents were Nathaniel and Elizabeth Hawthorne. When he entered Bowdoin College in 1821, he studied to be a professional writer. He was well aware of the fact that being a writer was not supported by his puritan forefathers and was even looked down upon as a wasted life. In 1842 Nathaniel married Sophia Peabody and they lived in Concord, which was known in that time as the center of transcendentalism, the idealistic philosophy that opposed puritanical and materialistic values. They also lived in the house of Ralph Waldo Emerson, a very famous transcendentalist had lived and written Nature in1836. He later moved to Salem, where after his mothers death in 1849 he started writing The Scarlet Letter. The Scarlet Letter, which is set in colonial seventeenth-century New England, was actually written and published in the middle of the nineteenth-century. Because Hawthorne wrote about an earlier time than his book was publish, it is thought to be a historical romance written in the middle of the transcendentalist movement. Even though this was going on at the time of publication, Hawthorne did not put any of his views about this matter in the novel, instead he poked fun at his other colleges that did write about it. Abolitionism was more important in The Scarlet Letter, because Hawthorne saw this as threatening instability in America and thought he should address his concerns through his book. This entire novel takes place in and around the colonial town of Boston, Massachusetts, somewhere around the seventeenth century. At this point in history he describes Boston as being the frontier between the settled sea and the untamed wilderness of the west. He describes what is on the outside of the town as a " Black Forest", which is a symbol of evil. Pearl is the daughter of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale. She first appears in the novel as an infant, again at three years old, and finally at seven. She grows up as an intimate of nature, but like most of the characters in The Scarlet Letter, Pearl is very complex and contradictory. At one point in the book she hates the Puritan elders for what they did to her mother (the game she imagined about the weeds in the garden). Then when her mother tries to throw away the scarlet letter it is her daughter Pearl who insists she wear it again.

Thursday, January 16, 2020

Operation Strategy(Dell, Amazon.Com & Ibm) Essay

Question: Discuss operations strategies of three companies. Answer: Operational Strategy: Amazon.com Introduction: Amazon.com has become the largest customer friendly online retailer and provides one click purchase facility to its wide range of products including books, music, toys, gifts, electronics etc. For 2011 Amazon’s net sales documented the value of $48077 million to earn net income of $631 million (Annual Report, 2011). Currently, Amazon is serving more than 137 million of its customers with its 56200 employees all over the world. Moreover, International traffic also ranks Amazon at 16th position. However, Amazon achieved this milestone through deploying its three fold strategy of limitless inventory, customer convenience and low price. The purpose of current study is also to explore that how Amazon achieved its objective by using its digital channel. 1. Mass Customization: Primary difference between a physical retailer and Amazon is its online operations that allow Amazon to adopt mass customization. Amazon.com provides an opportunity to offer huge collection of books, music or other products without keeping them physically on shelf. Millions of books are available at Amazon for purchase while a large brick and mortar store is required to keep such huge inventory. In 1999 Amazon consistently added new product line or capabilities after every six weeks to increase its sale revenue. Currently, its product range can be divided into 34 broad categories. Such product customization differentiates Amazon with its competitors. It is argued that product customization is a critical source of competitive advantage even as compared to price competitiveness as it allows customers to select products according to their needs and wants at one place. So, one can attribute such mass customization to the success of Amazon.com. 1.1 Amazon Operating Models: However, to provide such mass customization Amazon follows its three  operating models. First, it sells its own inventories and manages customer relation and supply chain on its own through Amazon.com. Second, Amazon also act as third person and allow other companies to place their products at Amazon.com for sale. However, Amazon only manages front end customer relations while logistic issues are controlled by sellers. In 1999 Amazon offered Z shop facility that allows small companies to sell their product through Amazon.com. His strategy was to compete with e-bay who was also providing similar services of auction. At last Amazon has also introduced its e-commerce solutions and design web sites and offer hosting services to its customers. In other words these three operating models provide huge collection of products that is consistent to its business strategy limitless inventor y. 2. Integrated Business Operations: Success of Amazon strategies lay within its integrated business operations. Figure 1 illustrates that how Amazon fulfill its customers order through integrating its operations. Amazon.com server uses the supply chain optimization software to predict demand and also optimize its supply chain. In first step customers’ data for credit card is processed to finalize their orders. Amazon warehouse is also information about customer order in this respect for coordination. This is done to find out stock information at Amazon warehouse. However, in case of shortage at Amazon warehouse appropriate suppliers are selected. This information is transferred to publishers, music companies and electronic OEM for further process. After receiving order information publishers, music companies and electronic OEM dispatch required products physically to the nearest Amazon warehouse. At Amazon warehouse these items are packed and also send to customer place through UPS or US postal services. In this way Amazon develop integrated business operations that share information over its network for effectiveness. Figure 1: Amazon Network of Fulfillment Amazon integrated system speeds up the process and customers can receive their product at same or next day. This will positively contribute to customer’s loyalty. Moreover, Amazon also made required changes to its fulfillment system when needed especially for huge order fulfillments. For instance Amazon received record advance order of 275000 for single volume of Harry Porter. This challenged information staff at Amazon. During such event  Amazon mailed to its customers for confirmation of delivery information. Moreover, before shipment data regarding each package was updated. For Shipment purpose Amazon contracted with FedEx for shipping 250000 orders at released date that scheduled 100 flights to fulfill orders. In this way, Amazon successfully met such huge order fulfillment on released date. 2. Low Cost Strategies: Porter (1980) argued that firms can gain sustainable competitive advantages through adopting differentiation, cost leadership or focus strategies. While on the other hand Loudon & Loudon, (2006) argued that firms can gain cost leadership through online operations as it reduces ordering and inventory cost. Mass customization at Amazon also augmented its profitability through high activity with low variable cost. Fixed cost per unit decreases with the increase in activity as compared to variable cost per unit (Drury, 2006). While in case of Amazon fixed cost of system dominates as comp ared to nominal variable cost. Cost of technology, many parts of fulfillment cost and advertisement costs are fixed in nature. On the other hand Amazon is bearing nominal variable cost. This indicates that high activity will lead to low fixed cost per unit cost that Amazon can use to settle for low prices. So, this mass customization will also lead to high productivity that ultimately will optimize profits through decreased fixed cost per unit. Moreover, Amazon also reduces its costs through cross docking shipments. For instance Amazon place its different items like books, toys, electronic etc simultaneously in single order to the closest warehouse located near to customers. To do so, Amazon uses its â€Å"12 technologies† to optimize solutions and to predict demand. 3. Customer Fulfillment Network (CFN) Strategy: On the other hand Amazon has also adopted the customer fulfillment networking (CFN) strategy that emphasize to augment gross profit margins through purchasing books directly from publishers rather than involving distributors who add their profits. CFN strategy was developed to integrate customer relationship management and order fulfills management applications. CFN system compares customers’ demand with their capabilities to recognize that whether Amazon can fulfill their orders with reasonable profits or not. It also allows predicting dynamic demand that ultimately reduces the carrying cost and transportation cost at Amazon warehouse. Moreover, it also allows improving their cash flow as less cash is tired up in inventory and increase inventory turnover that ultimately augments firm’s  profits. 4. Customer Centric Strategies: One can also explain Amazon’s success in respect of its ability to extract and use of customer information. Amazon keeps a complete record of all of its customers. Amazon main a data base that knows that when and what a customer orders. If a customer has not been placing order for some time then Amazon sends him an e-mail coupon containing information regarding entirely different or related product line to stimulate customers for reordering. For instance it is possible that you will receive an e-mail regarding computer equipments products if you last purchased a notebook. 4.1 personalized Options: Similarly, Amazon.com also provides convenience in selecting products over its website through customization. Web pages are customized according to the liking of their customers. One can easily personalize his selection when he login as a customer at Amazon.com. All the Amazon products are divided into 34 broad categories. A person can select and search within these 34 broad categories easily. It is consistent with their strategy of providing convenience to customers. 4.2 Customer Review: It is argued that digital means of information can be used to communication product quality and also creates a bond between buyers and sellers especially within online markets (Chevalier and Mayzlin, 2006). Amazon also stimulates its customers to write editorial and review of book they purchased. This option of book review communicates positive information to other potential customers and increases the like-hood of purchase. It is also consistent with Chevalier and Mayzlin, (2006) who also argued that improvement in scores obtained by a book through book review contributes to purchase intentions and lead to high sales revenue. 4.3 Quick Shipment: Providing hassle-free fulfillment of customers’ order is also viewed as one of the key success areas of Amazon. For most of the product Amazon offers same or next day fulfillment. This is what makes different Amazon with other online retailers. However, Amazon does this through its integrated order fulfillment process as demonstrated in figure 1. Operation Strategy: Dell Introduction Dell is a technological sales company which performs their business in the whole world as is possible to see in the following diagram. With net revenue of $61,133,000,000 is the second largest computer manufacturer company in the word and the number one in United States. Dell focuses on Business to Business (B2B) and Business to Consumer (B2C) commerce to satisfy their business and individual customers. Dell differentiates between classes of customers because the needs of their business customers, who buy large quantities of computers, are different than the individuals who want to configure a single unit. The present document is oriented to analyze Dell just since the point of view of operations management starting with a review of the company, after a look over Product design process, the internal process and the technology associated, how Dell forecast the coming productions rates, how Dell manages their inventory, which is the quality model followed by the company, which is the human resource strategy to finalize with conclusions and reflections. 1. Operations Strategy Identify the operations strategy of Dell is go almost in all the main activities of the company where operations is relevant. Under this perspective, the list of strategies is related to some areas of operations inside of the company: * Be the greenest technology company on the planet and the first computer company to achieve carbon-neutral operations by the end of 2008. * Continue leadership with the climate strategy and global recycling programs. * Partner with customers in energy-efficiency and climate-protection initiatives. * Broaden the Global Citizenship commitment. * Recommit efforts to improve sustainability governance. 2. Product design process For Dell, Globalization has impacted directly in the management of the product life cycle involving more stakeholders during the process of product development; thereby the complexity of this process has become more complex  as well. The most important factor introduced in the product life cycle is the environmental issue. For Dell, the design products have to be energy efficient, to avoid unnecessary materials and to be easy to use, which is supported by rigorous business controls and supplier audits that consider (Dell, 2008): * Energy Efficiency: Dell delivers optimized performance per watt, and help customers deploy systems efficiently. In this way, IT is an important avenue to decreasing cost of ownership and enhancing productivity while reducing a customer’s carbon footprint. * Precautionary Chemicals and Materials Use: Dell design to eliminate the use of unregulated substances if we believe they possess hazard characteristics similar to other, regulated substances. If alternatives are not yet viable, Dell works to develop reliable, environmentally sound and commercially scalable solutions. * Supply Chain Sustainability: We expect suppliers to uphold the same commitment to environmental responsibility as we do, as a condition of doing business with them. Dell design activities are compliant with this internationally recognized standard for environmental management system criteria (ISO 14001 certification program) Other main stream of definition of what Dell is doing in terms of product design rely on the participation of their own customers. The website â€Å"Dell Idea Storm† (http://www.ideastorm.com) where customers participate directly in the conceptualization of products giving their own ideas of develops, voting for another ideas already posted or simply criticizing products from the company. This website is a very comprehensive platform to cover an appropriate SWOT analysis of products design due to the huge variety of post and group discussion on it. 3. Processes and Technology 3.1 Production process The well known operation model of Dell called ‘Dell Direct’ base its value added in just work on demand eliminating intermediaries in procurement, manufacturing and distribution processes. The technology used by the company in the manufacturing process is the base of success and therefore play a very important role in its operations. Dell’s technology allow to the company to combine its resources, its relationship with suppliers and its consumer communication capabilities, developing one big advantage over its competitors. Dell is in â€Å"Mass Production† process category due to mainly the stable demand of products, the assembly work as a main line of production and with a good level of efficiency. To consider Dell as a manufacturing or assembly company is a constant discussion even for the employees of the company. Due to the nature of the products (mainly computers) they build new products that do not exists in the market, in this sense they are manufactures. But in another sense they just assemble component which production is on suppliers, in this sense could be considerate that dell â€Å"buy to sell†. In this document the company will be considered as a manufacturer company. The generation of innovative ideas for the production line is pulled due to the necessity of new kind of products defined basically due to the interaction with suppliers and customers. All the Dell manufacturing centers use the same processes enable by the same systems and are measured in the same way. This insurance consistency award quality across the global network and also allows identifying and implementing best practices. The standardized process of manufacturing is divided as is illustrated in the following diagram. Final Test and labeling Order accumulation area Software Installation and Testing Customer Order Pull Kiting Boxing Build These processes are described as follow: * Customer order pull: receive the electronics orders closer to the ship destination. In this point the order is transferred from Dell order management systems to the Manufacturing scheduling system. The servers of the facility keep the track of order process associating serialized parts with unique codes. * Kitting: the build to order process of Dell generate request for materials which is delivered to the factory. Since there are no warehouses the inventory system is very important and every part is serialized and labeled since this is received from suppliers (which are basically important for Dell quality system). The scanning of these tags associated to the order indicates to the personnel which components should be part of a specific order, and at the end of the kidding line, all the parts of a single unique order are ready for the next step. * Build: the scan of the code associated to the single order gives to the personnel specific instructions to builders based in the customer requirements. In this step, Dell associates every single component using bar codes to the order allowing a better quality control for the company. * Software Installation and Testing: Directed by the main brain, the central gives specific instruction to ensure all the components are presents and operating properly before to install any software in machines. * Boxing: This process ensures all the components required by the user are properly stored and ready for the ship. Once finished the boxing, the order goes straight for shipping or the order accumulation area. * Order accumulation area: When the client creates and order, all the required products start at the same time but not all of them finish at the same time due to process variability. Once all of them are finished the shipping process starts. * Depending form the order, there is an external synchronization with others manufactures as monitors or printers manufacturers for example, which allow to Dell to reduce inventory with extern products to the production line. 3.2 E-business E-business is central to Dell’s entire operations and Dell uses e-business extensively across its entire value chain to deliver high levels of service to its customers and suppliers. Dell basically does trades with two of the four main kind of e-business (B2B, B2C, C2B and C2C) and both of them based in the internet architecture * B2C: the main stream is represented by direct communication between Dell and their customers. Internet allows this direct communication avoiding intermediaries. This guarantees a good quality service for the customers, efficient processes, decision makers in real time, higher customer expectations and globalization. * B2B: this stream of communication connects Dell with their suppliers allowing and efficient process of communication with the same benefits described in B2C. Also, the when big corporations and governments are clients, the definition of relation is established in a very particular way treating them as a special customers that need a special attention. 3.3 Technology In terms of technology, Dell in all its experience in all the manufacturing centers has implemented a large number of solutions in order to accomplish a constant improvement in the value chain. Basically, the main source of constant improvement has been Internet, helping Dell to establish good relations with both their suppliers and their customers. The high level of integration that this technology has allowed is on simple evidence through the corporate website (www.dell.com) where for example suppliers are allowed to follow their material as it used throughout Dell’s operations. They can log-on, drop off invoices, check engineering change orders; review negotiated and forecasted cost reports, and track their overall performances and progress. The â€Å"Dell i2 Supply Chain Management (i2SCM)† is the name of the solution implemented to cover communications necessities with suppliers. This implementation enabled to Dell to reduce costs providing component suppliers and Dell planners with global views of product demand and material requirements. In partnership with IBM, both have managed to maintain high employee productivity. The join in between companies to design the productions lines provide near unlimited availability to their IT infrastructure. Another outcome of this partnership is the use of electronic catalog with appropriate search functionality. As an example time ago, Altiris Recovery Solution was selected by Dell for integrated delivery of backup and disaster recovery. Altiris along with Dell Open Manage Client Administrator (OMCA) will provide â€Å"Direct integration of Altiris backup and recovery technology with Dell OMCA which helps ensure business continuity and helps provide additional cost savings for Dell customers through proactive IT management†. These factors implemented into a concrete disaster recovery plan provide Dell and IBM with the confidence to scale and complex IT network. 3.4 Production Layout Dell is by definition an assembly manufacturer company, where basically the process is only one and the assembly line as well. Dell does not build any part or piece of the computers, lodging basically in their own suppliers which have the necessary expertise and commitment with dell’s production line. If we consider Dell and their suppliers as a unique company it will be represented as typical â€Å"Process Layout†, and Dell will be of course in this exercise the assembly department. The main advantages of the â€Å"Product layout† (or assembly line production layout) are: * The amount of time for a product to be ready is faster in general if it is compared with other kind of process layout. * The set up cost of the product layout is low due to the facilities does not vary in position and functionality. * Due to the tasks of every stage are very specific, the efficiency of this kind of distribution (production layout) is higher than others types of layouts. This very related with the high continuity of the assembly line. * The necessary planning in order to be concern about matters like synchronization is very low if it is compared with other layouts, this because is just one continue line. * The required level of expertise is not so important as well considering that the main task is to assemble. There is no much hard production processes to take care about. * For Dell the level of inventory is very low, maybe too much low considering the average industry in â€Å"Products Layout† companies. This is because the technological advantage of Dell using Internet. As negative point in Dell layout oriented to product, it is possible to say that the required infrastructure is more expensive than other layouts because the high degree of cohesion that should exist in the assembly line which it demands a high technology and dedicated machinery. 4. Supply Chain As is possible to appreciate, Dell Company is in the middle of all the operations since suppliers till the final customer. The simplicity of this model put on evidence the absence of intermediaries in the supply chain, which is synonymous of low cost, fast answer to client’s orders. The communication between Dell and suppliers is by Internet, and in real time which it means that the suppliers are constantly monitoring the status of components in order to prepare new orders and negotiate the prices on demand. Usually suppliers have warehouse building nearby Dell’s Manufacturing Centers in order to reduce the risk of lack of components in the main assembly line of Dell and assuming at the same time the inventory costs that Dell is avoiding. The suppliers usually feed the starting point of the Dell’s assembly line, but as the illustration show, it is possible to have some suppliers after the production line of Dell (even out of Dell facilities). Partnership with screen or printer manufacturers, allow to the final user to order for products that are absolutely out of Dell’s production lines, and it is just necessary to complete the order in their warehouses to finally ship the order to the client. Is important to recognize that the use of Internet is the blood of this system, without this technology would be impossible to coordinate such value system. In order to make the service easier for customers within this supply chain, Dell has divided their home page into a number of major customer groups: * Home & Home Office, * Small Business * Medium and Large Business and * Government, Education & Healthcare 5 Forecasting, Planning and Scheduling 5.1 Forecasting As a forecasting method Dell, as many other big companies, base their analysis on the records stored on the internal Customer Relationship Manager system (CRM). This system stores every registry made by customers in order to analyze the tendency of the actual behavior and predict demand for certain products in the future. Now considering daily operations on Dell, there is a â€Å"Short Range Forecast† process that operates constantly. Dell uses state of the art production planning programs that forecast the quantities of components needed to build  the computers. After those forecasts are made, supply chain systems pass those forecasts to suppliers, who respond with cost estimates and plan their production as a result. As the CRM, the mentioned i2SCM (technology section) is another provider of forecast information as well, providing real-time factory scheduling and inventory management. These methods used by Dell are considerate â€Å"Quantitative Forecast Methods†, leaving for decisions makers, the forecast that comes from â€Å"Qualitative Forecast Methods†. 5.2 Scheduling Dell bases its scheduling process in the system i2SCM system output. One of the basic tasks of i2SCM is to streamlines the supply chain in order to keep a constant flow of component in the starting point of the assembly line, and considering this, as a consequence is in charge of provide a manufacturing schedule the whole plant. This scheduling process is refreshed every 2 hours. 6. Inventory Management Dell has implemented â€Å"Just-In-Time Inventory System† which operates on only 6 days of inventory. This simple number implies a huge benefit for Dell because this enable to the company to reduce the warehousing costs, also is not necessary to hire people to put in charge and maintain the inventories and though technology become obsolete very quickly, for Dell this is not a problem because they don’t hold obsolete technology in its small inventory. The way how Dell controls, in terms of basic definition its inventory and the costs that this means is being a â€Å"Demand Pull Company† (used as well as a Lean system method), whereas one of its top competitors (Compaq HP for example) is strictly a supply-push company and operates in a more traditional manner. 7. Quality model Since several years, Dell has been operating their manufacturer plants using the production standards ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 (Dell). Dell operations in China have been distinguished by Ministry of Information Industry (MII) and China Quality Management Association for Electronics Industry (CQAE) receiving wards such as â€Å"Excellent Quality Management Corporation†, â€Å"Excellent Quality Management Team’s and â€Å"Excellent Quality Management Individual†. It demonstrates Dell’s commitment to providing high-quality products and superior customer experience (Dell). The main support behind this award is the constant focus in the customer-centric strategy, and the will for a constant improving in the quality management system. In Dell, the quality control process starts from engineering design and the early testing stages during which design for reliability is the priority. Been conscious of quality standards in early analysis of failure mode, the product design is based on typical customer profile and operation requirement. It is important to consider that reliability test and improvement are also keys factors to ensuring the best quality. In addition, Dell has extended the â€Å"quality chain† putting great emphasis on suppliers’ quality management, as the company always regards the quality of the components as crucial factors for product quality. According to this, Dell has established a set of scientific and complete management process, which ensures final product quality through rigid selection and process control of industry-leading suppliers. Considering the whole process, the Quality Management during manufacturing process is the strongest guarantee of Dell products’ quality. Engineering pilot and employee training are conducted before any new product launch. Through Statistic Process Control Quality Analysis, Dell is able to detect and improve incoming material and process issues, which guarantee the best manufacturing quality. 8. Human Resources Strategy Dell’s direct business model influenced an organizational structure that fosters direct communication and open-minded listening. As an strategy to  accomplish this objective is to listen employees, and this is done through â€Å"Tell Dell† program, a voluntary and confidential employee opinion survey. This program is developed to encourage employees to speak frankly and privately about Dell’s principles, values, strategies, policies, managerial effectiveness and employee engagement. In this way the HRM department, after taken the measurement, is able to act in direct response to surveys. Some responses to these kind surveys were for example in the past: * Implementation of an employee purchase program * Greater work-life flexibility * Streamlined decision-making processes * Increased focus on employee development * Improved customer solutions Less formal but equally important strategy to get employees feedback is Employee Storm. A tool that enables every Dell employee to bring experiences and creative solutions to Dell and our customers. With the objective to reduce mistakes and its consequences, Dell has implemented a strategy related to ethic tools. This strategy defines for example policies of communication in order to allow employees approach the company when they feel is necessary according to the defined Dell Code of Conduct. These policies are: * Open door policy * Global Ethics and Compliance Team * Ethic helpline Since Dell is committed to inclusion and diversity, their mission is to succeed in the marketplace by fostering a winning culture in which Dell employees are highly talented, committed, reflective of our global customers, and recognized as our greatest strength. For Dell â€Å"diversity† is the core of their values and winning culture. For this Dell has implemented the following activities: * Employees networking groups. A program that connect employees that share the same nationality, gender, ethnicity, etc. * Diversity Education and Training. Providing quality professional development opportunities to all employees. * Work/Life Effectiveness. Committed to balance the employees contribution to the company with their personal lives. Other areas of strategy where Dell has been working on are: * Global talent management * Employee health and wellness * Employee sustainability engagement Conclusions It is very interesting to remark that Dell, a multinational company with a big size, is successfully capable to repeat basically the same formula of manufacturing process in every manufacturing center that the company has. Dell has been able to repeat the best practices across the borders around the world which by definition represent a big challenge for any company. Never the conditions will go to be the same: restricted markets, cultural shocks for employees, different cost structure are some of the factor that usually affect multinational companies with operations in many countries around the world. Dell strategy found its success in basically the correct and optimums use of technology; Internet is practically the blood of Dell system, or the base of Dell success. Dell’s business model bases its success basically in Information technology. There is not a revolutionary change in the way how to do business, is just a perfect example of how to take advantage of technology to become the most efficient competitor in the computer sales industry. Even though Dell business model is very well know, has been a model very difficult to imitate basically because the huge investment that companies should do together with their suppliers. The supply chain structure in this case is the key of success. Is not a matter of investment coming just from Dell to have success, is a sacrifice coming from Dell, suppliers and partners that in some way are trusting in Dell way of doing business. Trust in the value chain, is definitely a very big competitive advantage for Dell. The product mix from Dell is not as broad as directs competitors are doing it, which in one way has allowed to Dell specialization, focus and expertise in the field. But is a risk at the same time because depending basically on a very limited amount of product and services it does not open many alternatives to explore new markets or develop innovative solutions amount the products and services. Even though Dell is considered a very successful business model, the company has been having problems. These problems are reflected in financial reports which indicate that Dell is not reaching the rate of growing that they were expecting. Although Internet is the base of its success, it has been a big problem for Dell as well, since the point of view that important bloggers has been complaining in the net about the pour quality of services and this has spread quickly between users a non god image of the company. Dell is working on this blog phenomenon taking care of every comment done in the net about their products and services. Another problem faced by Dell is that Dell is becoming victim of its size because they are trying to keep the rate of growing in a market where the value of their products fall significantly every year , this means that to keep the rate of growing is necessary to have a higher rate of sales. As a final weak point in the way how Dell is approaching businesses, Dell is relaying increasingly on new markets which it means that Dell is just applying best practices and knowledge in the field rather than go deep with a study of the new entrance. This could be a risk considering the diversity and cultural matters in between their customers. Operation Strategy: IBM Introduction: IBM or International Business Machines is a well known American computer manufacturer, founded by Thomas J. Watson (born 1874-02-17). IBM is also known as â€Å"Big Blue† after the color of its logo. The company has made  everything from mainframes to personal computers and has been immensely successful selling business computers. Drawing on the strength of the full strategy and change practice: Operations Strategy is one of the four competencies within IBM’s larger Strategy and Change team. The three parallel competencies are Business Strategy, Organization Change Strategy and Technology Strategy. Operations Strategy helps clients resolve a variety of critical issues from strategy and planning to day-today operational improvements. IBM practitioners specialize in identifying the capabilities that are required to execute business strategies and in defining how operational models should be configured, implemented, and continuously improved. With deep experience in operations strategy, IBM provide clients with the support needed to address the operational issues that are crucial to success. Helping clients with critical business issues: Clients look to Operations Strategy for help with these critical business issues: * Cost efficiency and performance improvement * Focus on company’s core business * Increasing shareholder value * Continuous process improvement * Maintaining competitive edge * Improving customer service quality * Migration to new technology * Product innovation management * Merger synergy realization. IBM experience in successfully formulating and implementing operations strategies lies in three main areas: * Helping clients formulate operations strategies that align corporate and business strategy with organization, technology and process strategy. * Providing process expertise for business process change, reengineering and operational improvement, cost reduction, Six Sigma, innovation management, and post-merger integration. * Assisting clients with outsourcing strategies and their execution, including make/buy/partner decision strategies, domestic and global outsourcing, and creating scalable operations. Utilizing a proven, consistent approach: All Operations Strategy engagements incorporate the following key elements: * Mobilization – Utilizes preparation and planning to help increase the odds of successful and timely project completion. * Situation assessment – Establishes a shared assessment of the current and future situation with senior client management. * Strategy development – Defines strategic options and specifies strategic initiatives which are Designed to create significant value for the client. * Implementation planning– Determines critical success factors and establishes change programs to implement the strategic initiatives. * Learning – Measures and adapts the strategic management process in real time utilizing key Performance indicators. Providing a full suite of offerings: Operations Strategy has a diverse range of capabilities, including: Rapid process change: * A solution for rapidly identifying and delivering a step change in process, organizational and systems performance. Rapid process change focuses on achieving tangible operating improvement results in an accelerated time frame. Six Sigma/Lean Sigma: * Strives to create both operational excellence and a strategic change in the culture of a corporation, division or business unit. These engagements  are designed to increase customer satisfaction and drive out costs by helping to improve processes linked to company strategy and key performance indicators. Six Sigma also helps build an enduring capability within the organization that can create and sustain competitive advantage over the long term. Design for Six Sigma: * Extends Six Sigma principles to the development of new products, services, processes, and plants that are designed to precisely meet client current and future needs. Strategic profit improvement: * A framework designed to deliver improved financial performance, including: increasing revenues and margin, reducing costs and assets, strengthening infrastructure, and positioning for future growth. Service after the sale: * Helps clients lower their customer service costs and find new sources of revenue and value-added differentiation. Product innovation management: * Supports the business decision making component of product development. These engagements are designed to reduce time-to market and product development costs and they help increase the pace of innovation. Enterprise focus: * Determines which components of a business are strategic and critical to success of the enterprise and which are not. Then identifies opportunities for improvement and transformation by comparing critical business requirements and operational capabilities. Shared services implementation: * Our team builds a business case for the transition to a shared services operational model, designs a custom shared services solution, and then works with the client to successfully implement the change. Outsourcing governance: * Helps organizations establish a program management office capable of supporting outsourcing Initiatives throughout their lifecycle, from qualification and assessment to development and Operation. Demonstrating success at numerous clients: At one client, a leading consumer electronics manufacturer, benefits of the project included: * Reduction of overhead costs due to redundant / inefficient overhead services and infrastructure in Corporate HQ and five worldwide product divisions. * Annual savings of over $400 million, including: agreements in infrastructure sharing and Governance, shared services and elimination of cost drivers and redundant resources, and establishment of a project management office for active savings tracking and reinforcement. At a large manufacturer of aluminum products, we developed and implemented a new operating model. The scope and results included: * Analyzed operations for 15 business units in 10 countries * Creation of global process models * Over $300 million in annual savings, including improved processes, continued focus on cost Controls, and adoption of best practices across business units. Finally, we developed an outsourcing strategy for a leading manufacturer of semiconductor equipment. The scope Included: * Working with client executive team to develop a vision and operating model * Implemented the model, focusing new investment in core business processes and developing and implementing the roadmap to outsource all non-core processes to save client significant cost and increase competitive advantage. IBM Clients: A small sample of IBM clients includes leaders of every industry and all levels of Government: ABB| Ford Motor Company| Motorola| Aetna| Goodrich Corporation| Novell| Alcoa| Halliburton| Panasonic| America Online| Honda Motor Co.| Raytheon| Ashland| IKON Office Solutions| Royal Philips Electronics| Atkins Nutritionals| International Truck and Engine Corporation| Selectron| Bloomberg| Lam Research| Siemens| BP| Lexmark International| Sony| Chevron Texaco| MCI| Tyco International| Circuit City Stores| McKesson| United States Department of Agriculture| Dupont| Medtronic| Verizon Communications|