Short Story - 1010 Words

The sun glimmered through the treeline, and set slowly, casting a deep orange and pink shadow over the mountains. A soft breeze made the strands of pine dance on their branches ever so slightly. The world was quiet. There were no voices, no distractions. Just the light trickling of a stream not far from the cabin. Just the quiet rustle of the trees in the wind. Sage relished in the silence, clinging to it like a new born cub to its mother. Sage was sitting on her bed looking out the window, observing a mama blue bird feed her babies in their nest. She heard her mother downstairs, quietly humming to herself while preparing dinner, a hearty beef stew. Mother always prepared Isaiah’s favorite meal when he was set to return from his time in†¦show more content†¦Everything in their cabin is old and withered. The Thalman family had been poor for generations, ever since their ancestors vicious feud with the royal family. The generations before them didn’t get along well, and lots of blood was shed., innocent lives lost. The royals destroyed their family, dragging all of their money and reputation in the mud. Ever since, it has been extremely difficult for the Thalman family to survive, and especially hard attempting to find work. Sage shares a bedroom with her eight year old sister, Rosemary, and the two are inseparable. Their bedroom is the entirety of the upstairs, the attic. A thin, cotton string hangs down from the ceiling that releases a wooden ladder if you pull on it. Drops of rain snuck their way through the cracks of the roof, creating small puddles in Sage’s room. Clumps of dirt are wedged into the cracks of the floor of the entryway, brought in from father’s boots, and pushed in deeper by mother’s aggressive sweeping. A gorgeous painting of the Valley is hung on the wall over the grand fireplace, the paint peeling just barely at the edges. A thick, red rug blankets the floor, and a worn in couch is set by the fireplace. Sage slowly descended the creaky ladder of the attic down into the first floor. All that is down there besides bedrooms is a small kitchen, living space, and bathroom.. Mother was on the couch sitting nextShow MoreRelatedshort story1018 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Short Stories:  Ã‚  Characteristics †¢Short  - Can usually be read in one sitting. †¢Concise:  Ã‚  Information offered in the story is relevant to the tale being told.  Ã‚  This is unlike a novel, where the story can diverge from the main plot †¢Usually tries to leave behind a  single impression  or effect.  Ã‚  Usually, though not always built around one character, place, idea, or act. †¢Because they are concise, writers depend on the reader bringing  personal experiences  and  prior knowledge  to the story. Four MajorRead MoreThe Short Stories Ideas For Writing A Short Story Essay1097 Words   |  5 Pageswriting a short story. Many a time, writers run out of these short story ideas upon exhausting their sources of short story ideas. If you are one of these writers, who have run out of short story ideas, and the deadline you have for coming up with a short story is running out, the short story writing prompts below will surely help you. Additionally, if you are being tormented by the blank Microsoft Word document staring at you because you are not able to come up with the best short story idea, youRead MoreShort Story1804 Words   |  8 PagesShort story: Definition and History. A  short story  like any other term does not have only one definition, it has many definitions, but all of them are similar in a general idea. According to The World Book Encyclopedia (1994, Vol. 12, L-354), â€Å"the short story is a short work of fiction that usually centers around a single incident. Because of its shorter length, the characters and situations are fewer and less complicated than those of a novel.† In the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s DictionaryRead MoreShort Stories648 Words   |  3 Pageswhat the title to the short story is. The short story theme I am going conduct on is â€Å"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ by James Thurber (1973). In this short story the literary elements being used is plot and symbols and the theme being full of distractions and disruption. The narrator is giving a third person point of view in sharing the thoughts of the characters. Walter Mitty the daydreamer is very humorous in the different plots of his dr ifting off. In the start of the story the plot, symbols,Read MoreShort Stories1125 Words   |  5 PagesThe themes of short stories are often relevant to real life? To what extent do you agree with this view? In the short stories â€Å"Miss Brill† and â€Å"Frau Brechenmacher attends a wedding† written by Katherine Mansfield, the themes which are relevant to real life in Miss Brill are isolation and appearance versus reality. Likewise Frau Brechenmacher suffers through isolation throughout the story and also male dominance is one of the major themes that are highlighted in the story. These themes areRead MoreShort Story and People1473 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Title: Story Of An Hour Author: Kate Chopin I. On The Elements / Literary Concepts The short story Story Of An Hour is all about the series of emotions that the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard showed to the readers. With the kind of plot of this short story, it actually refers to the moments that Mrs. Mallard knew that all this time, her husband was alive. For the symbol, I like the title of this short story because it actually symbolizes the time where Mrs. Mallard died with joy. And with thatRead MoreShort Story Essay1294 Words   |  6 PagesA short story concentrates on creating a single dynamic effect and is limited in character and situation. It is a language of maximum yet economical effect. Every word must do a job, sometimes several jobs. Short stories are filled with numerous language and sound devices. These language and sound devices create a stronger image of the scenario or the characters within the text, which contribute to the overall pre-designed effect.As it is shown in the metaphor lipstick bleeding gently in CinnamonRead MoreRacism in the Short Stor ies1837 Words   |  7 PagesOften we read stories that tell stories of mixing the grouping may not always be what is legal or what people consider moral at the time. The things that you can learn from someone who is not like you is amazing if people took the time to consider this before judging someone the world as we know it would be a completely different place. The notion to overlook someone because they are not the same race, gender, creed, religion seems to be the way of the world for a long time. Racism is so prevalentRead MoreThe Idol Short Story1728 Words   |  7 PagesThe short stories â€Å"The Idol† by Adolfo Bioy Casares and â€Å"Axolotl† by Julio Cortà ¡zar address the notion of obsession, and the resulting harm that can come from it. Like all addictions, obsession makes one feel overwhelmed, as a single thought comes to continuously intruding our mind, causing the individual to not be able to ignore these thoughts. In â€Å"Axolotl†, the narr ator is drawn upon the axolotls at the Jardin des Plantes aquarium and his fascination towards the axolotls becomes an obsession. InRead MoreGothic Short Story1447 Words   |  6 Pages The End. In the short story, â€Å"Emma Barrett,† the reader follows a search party group searching for a missing girl named Emma deep in a forest in Oregon. The story follows through first person narration by a group member named Holden. This story would be considered a gothic short story because of its use of setting, theme, symbolism, and literary devices used to portray the horror of a missing six-year-old girl. Plot is the literal chronological development of the story, the sequence of events

Intrusion Is Defined As A Pushing, Thrusting, Or Forcing

Intrusion is defined as â€Å"a pushing, thrusting, or forcing in.† Every play in existence has an intrusion in it. Intrusions are what help the play along and can start conflict or end it. Oedipus for example has tons of intrusions! One of the first one’s being Oedipus himself! At the beginning of the play all the Chorus is at the foot of the palace, near the memorial for Apollo. They are all seated there, but the scene does not tell the audience why at first. Oedipus intrudes by coming out of the palace and says â€Å"My children, new-sprung race of old Cadmus, why do you sit at my shrines?† Then the Priest stands up and approaches Oedipus, and explains to him why the Chorus is all there. This sparks the conflict of the plague, Chorus sits by the Apollo shrine, Oedipus asks why, and he is told it is because they all want a cure or a sign of how to cure the plague torturing Cadmus. It is the first and one of the most important intrusions in the play. The most pe rfectly written tragedy of all time is Oedipus Rex according to Aristotle and his six requirements. Those six requirements are as followed: Story, Characters, Theme/Thought, Spectacle, Music, and Dialogue. Oedipus Rex has a compelling story, a plot! It is interesting, it brings the audience and reader in. The plot being in basic terms: A plague has fallen upon Cadmus, when Creon returns with a prophecy Oedipus is determined to find out the truth of the message and put an end to the plague. Within that all the details are

Anney as a Mother A Role Dismally Played Free Essays

Bastard out of Carolina is a novel written by Dorothy Allison; it is a poignant story which speaks about love, family, pain, suffering—and the ultimate price of happiness. In this story, it is seen that the pursuit of happiness sometimes may result in the pain of other individuals: particularly the protagonist’s pain—which is indirectly inflicted by her own mother. The story is told by a girl named Bone (whose real name is Ruth Anne), and she tells the reader about her life, and the suffering which she had to endure at as very young and tender age. We will write a custom essay sample on Anney as a Mother: A Role Dismally Played or any similar topic only for you Order Now The story opens with a description of Bone’s birth, her mother’s coma, and the fact that Bone is an illegitimate child (Millard 155). Bone’s life, of course, was interrelated with the lives of her mother, Anney, and her mother’s lover, Glen. Bone would have never been who she was if it were not for her mother and mother’s lover. However, given the viewpoints of her own mother, Bone’s experiences were inevitable. One of the relevant passages in the story which tells the reader an important fact that pertains to the recurring theme of the story is the following: â€Å"There was only one way to fight off the pity and hatefulness. Mama learned to laugh with them, before they could laugh at her, and to do it so well no one could be sure what she really thought or felt. She got a reputation for an easy smile and a sharp tongue, and using one to balance the other, she seemed friendly but distant† (Allison 10). Analysis of the Passage Relevance of Passage to the Story Although the story indeed, seems to be about the life of the narrator, if one does a careful analysis, it could be seen that the story primarily focuses on the narrator’s relationship with her mother. Bone’s life, in a sense, is largely affected by her relationship to her mother. As seen in the previous passage, Anney was not exactly a woman who has found happiness. She longs for happiness, yes, and this passage shows that Anney’s search for happiness amidst the â€Å"pity and hatefulness† (Allison 10) has cost her more than she would ever bargain for. This passage is particularly relevant in understanding the story, since this passage shows how Anney’s search for happiness as an individual has ultimately led to the misery of her own daughter, Bone. The story is a heart-wrenching one, and if one would try to analyze the details of the story, the story is heart-wrenching, not merely because Bone was physically and sexually abused by her stepfather, but also because her mother was a woman who was not able to protect her from such events because of she was a woman who preferred to turn away from problems rather than face them head-on. It is also seen in the story that since Anney was not of much help to her daughter, Bone chose not to disclose to her the horrors which she experienced in the hands of her stepfather. In this particular line, Bone says that â€Å"I lived in a world of shame. I hid my bruises as if they were evidence of crimes I had committed. I didn’t tell Mama. I couldn’t tell Mama† (Allison 113). How horrible must it be, if one cannot be able to seek help from one’s own mother. Bone was not able to do so, since her mother tends to pretend that everything will turn out fine, and that they must merely laugh about their troubles before someone else laughs at them. It is, of course, necessary to state that one must not take the word laugh literally. It could mean that one must not be fazed by one’s troubles, and continue to search for happiness. However, in this case, turning a blind eye in Bone’s troubles did not help her at all; Anney merely made things worse for her own daughter by not asserting that Glen should treat her humanely. In the end of the story, much to the annoyance of the reader, Anney chose to be with Bone’s abusive stepfather, rather than be with Bone, who is her child (Linkon 275). This ending only proves that Anney was a woman who preferred to find her own happiness, rather than the happiness of her own child. It cannot be argued that the reader would feel a certain animosity towards her character, for how can she love the man who has continuously hurt her child? Style and Presentation of Text If one is to read the aforementioned passage carefully, it will be seen that the author is using symbolism to send her message to the reader. As discussed in the penultimate paragraph of the previous section, Anney’s way of dealing with troubles has an effect on Bone’s life. It is not enough to say that Anney laughed at her troubles before anyone could laugh before her—what she did was that she turned her back against these problems and refused to address them appropriately. In fact, when Bone was brought to the hospital for having broken her coccyx when Glen beat her, Anney was desperately trying to shield the fact that Bone was beaten up by anyone (Allison 113). Therefore, given this information, it could be said that when Bone stated that Anney was a woman who preferred to â€Å" learned to laugh with them, before they could laugh at her† (Allison 10), Bone actually meant something deeper. This description of Anney in the aforementioned passage is a symbolism, and must not be taken literally; it was a mere symbolism of the fact that Anney was actually a woman who preferred to convince herself that nothing was wrong, and that, perhaps by believing that nothing is wrong, then nothing would eventually be wrong. Since Anney is trying find her own happiness, she tries to escape reality, and eventually is forced to continuously hurt her child in the process. Summary The aforementioned passage is significant to the novel, for it tells the reader that the life of the narrator may have been different if only her mother chose to fight for her—instead of trying to shield the truth from prying eyes and claiming that nothing is wrong with their family. While it is relevant to state that Anney had loved Bone in the best way that she could, Anney, nevertheless, was not as willing to give up the man she supposedly loves. Anney knows how to fight back and protect her children, but she was not able to do so fully, for she refused to fully accept that some things cannot be laughed at. There are a lot of ways a mother could have shown her love for her child, but in many ways, the way she showed her loved in the novel was one of the most eccentric ways that could hurt one’s child. In the end, she eventually realized that she had to let go of one of them, and she did let go—of her own child. However, her decision was too late, for the damage was done, and Bone would forever have memories where her own mother refused to see the light for her. Overall, the chosen passage was a good symbolism and it provides the reader with thoughtful insight regarding Bone’s mother and how she has affected her life. It may not be obvious at first, but the passage is able to convey something metaphorical which is vital in understanding the life of Bone, a girl who longed for her mother to finally wake up from her trance and realize that it was time to move on instead of insisting that the family they had was real. Works Cited Allison, Dorothy. Bastard out of Carolina. New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. , 1992. Print. Linkon, Sherry Lee. Teaching Working Class. Boston: The University of Massachussetts Press, 1999. Print. Millard, Kenneth. Coming of Age in Contemporary American Fiction. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press Ltd. , 2007. Print. How to cite Anney as a Mother: A Role Dismally Played, Papers

Basic Problems of Demand and Supply

Question: Discuss about the Basic Problems of Demand and Supply. Answer: Introduction: Economics deals with the basic problems of demand and supply. Any country has always been concerned with the total production and the consumption of the economy and the way in which minute changes in the economy has a huge impact on the total demand and supply system (Rios, McConnell and Brue 2013). This report deals with business economics and market research of the firms. There are several factors that a company takes into consideration while deciding upon the firms demand, supply, elasticity and effect of external shock and governments policy on supply-demand chain of the economy (Mankiw 2016). This report consists of three parts that needs to be analyzed. The first part deals with Ex Hoon Pty Ltd Company. The second part deals with Fords close down of two centers and the third part highlights the effect of government action in the auto mobile industry in Australia. Ex Hoon Pty Ltd is the company dealing with the production of parts of automobiles. Recently it has got a patent in a high tech system that is expected to create a radical impact in the automation industry. This implies that using this new technology ensures a car to give better performance (Rios, McConnell and Brue 2013). Under this condition the economic impact of the firm has been highlighted below: Factors influencing Market Demand: Cost: It is the most imperative factor. If implementing the new technology results in havoc escalation of production cost of cars, then the producers will be reluctant in using the parts of Ex Hoon Pty Ltd. Financing option: The demand is always generated from buyers side. If the buyers get an easy loan, then it may induce them to buy a current model of car that uses the advanced technology, thereby increasing the demand of the product of the given company (Mankiw 2016). Advertisement and Marketing: People should be motivated by making them aware of the safety that the new technology can provide and henceforth generate the demand from peoples side only. Factors influencing Market Supply: Financing option: Easy access to loan with low interest rate will help the foresaid company to invest on their production thereby increasing the supply (Canto, Joines and Laffer 2014). Alternatives available: The supply of Ex Hoon Pty Ltd is also influenced by the available alternatives in the market. The greater the number manufacturer, the lesser the scope of unhindered supply in the market (Commission 2014). End market: The supply of the company also depends on the end market that is the automobile industry in this case. A downfall in the automobile industry will force the producer to constrict the supply of the parts. Concept of Elasticity: Price elasticity shows sensitive response of the demand due to a variation in the price. Car is a luxurious good and its demand increases in greater proportion with respect to the increase in price. In the short run due to unavailability of equivalent alternatives at cheaper rate, the production of the new technology is expected to increase as a result of inelastic demand (Canto, Joines and Laffer 2014). In long run, there can be several impacts on the production depending on the available alternatives, changes in price of raw materials and other changes and this leads to the demand to become elastic in nature. Ford announces to close the plants at Geelong and Broadmeadows. Ex Hoon Pty Ltd has been the major supplier of raw materials to Ford (Hawthorne 2015).The diagram below tries to highlight the effect of the shut-down of Ford on the Ex Hoon Pty Ltd. Comparative-Static Analysis: This analysis highlights the existing scenario of an economy and the changes that occurs after any economic distortion. Here, the closure of the Fords outlet is the economic distortion which has been analyzed to understand the impact on Ex Hoons production level (Brown 2015). Initial demand and supply has been shown by the line D1 and S1 and its intersection gave the equilibrium outcome. Equilibrium output was Q1 and price was P1. Ex-Post Fords closure: The demand for goods of Ex Hoon Pty Ltd decreased as shown by the backward shift of the curve to D2. At the immediate level the supply cannot change (Reugg and Marshall 2013). After sometime, the supply decreases too, shown by the upward shift of the curve to S2. The new equilibrium price is P2 and the quantity available in the market is Q2. Here it can be seen that price of the automobile parts will increase and the supply will get reduce as an effect of closure of the Ford at two different places. This section tries to highlight the effect that may occur if the government imposes strict policies. If the government puts a baseline for safety measures that the companies needs to follow, then the effect of such policy on the market of products of Ex Hoon Pty Ltd has been discussed below with the diagram: As government has announced that the automobile industry should adopt high quality safety measures, there has been some impact of this announcement. The company with the expectation of having increase in their products demand starts producing more goods. As a result the supply curve S1 expands outward to S2. As the Ford has already produced the cars for this period hence there is no change in the demand for automobile parts in the immediate scenario (Davison 2013). The scenario is expected to change in the next period. Hence, it can be seen from the graph that price decreases to P2 and quantity supplied increases to Q2. Conclusion: The effects of demand and supply of the parts of automobiles as a result of change in the supply of automobile cars has been highlighted here. Also the impact of government intervention to influence and ensure high level of safety measures has been discussed in the simplest way (Davison 2013).. However the whole report has been constructed with the concept of ceteris parebus. In reality existence of ceteris parebus is a Eutopian situation and hence the impacts are far more complicated are beyond the purview of this report. References: Rios, M.C., McConnell, C.R. and Brue, S.L., 2013.Economics: Principles, problems, and policies. McGraw-Hill. Mankiw, N.G., 2016. Economics-Microeconomics-Principles of Microeconomics. Hawthorne, J. (2015). Australia's car industry one year from closing its doors. [online] The Sydney Morning Herald. Available at: https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/australias-car-industry-one-year-from-closing-its-doors-20151012-gk7ip0.html [Accessed 9 Dec. 2016]. Productivity Commission, 2014. Australias automotive manufacturing industry. Canto, V.A., Joines, D.H. and Laffer, A.B., 2014.Foundations of supply-side economics: Theory and evidence. Academic Press. Brown, R., 2015. Reviewing the effectiveness of electronic vehicle immobilisation: evidence from four countries.Security Journal,28(4), pp.329-351. Ruegg, R. and Marshall, H., 2013.Building economics: theory and practice. Springer Science Business Media. Davison, R. (2013). Why Ford's exit spells end for manufacturing in Australia. [online] Mackay Daily Mercury. Available at: https://www.dailymercury.com.au/news/why-fords-exit-spells-end-manufacturing-australia/1881073/#/0 [Accessed 9 Dec. 2016].

Unit 9 Exercise 1 free essay sample

11/21/13 Unit 9 Exercise 1 Light Sources and Components NT1310 Physical Networking 1. Forward Biased LED – A positive voltage is applied to the p and a negative voltage to the n region 2. Incoherent Light- photons emitted from the junction where the p and an region meet 3. Laser- a coherent source of light with a narrow beam and a narrow spectral bandwidth. 4. Output Pattern- Of a laser is very low and narrow, allowing majority of the light energy to be coupled into the core of a single-mode or multimode fiber 5. Output Power-The amount of power able to be transmitted 6. Modulation Speed- 7. Core Diameter Mismatch- Occurs when the cores aren’t physically identical, and core hits cladding. 8. Current- Flow of electricity, or data. A flow of something. 9. PIN Photodiode- A PIN diode is a diode with a wide, lightly doped near intrinsic semiconductor region between a p-type semiconductor and an n-type semiconductor region 10. Avalanche Photodiode- an avalanche photodiode is a highly sensitive semiconductor electronic device that exploits the photoelectric effect to convert light to electricity 11. Responsivity- measures the input–output gain of a detector system 12. Optical Subassembly- guides the light energy from the optical fiber to the photodiode. 13. Dynamic Range- the range of acceptable or possible volumes of sound occurring in the course of a piece of music or a performance. 14. Operating Wavelength- 15. Fiber-optic coupler- is a device used in optical fiber systems with one or more input fibers and one or several output fibers16 Optomechanical Switch this type of switch redirects an optical signal by moving fiber or bulk optic elements by means of mechanical devices 16. Optomechanical Switch- redirects optical signal by moving a fiber or bulk optic by means of mechanical devices 17. Optical Attenuation- 18. Optical Isolator reduces the effects of interference 19. Wavelength Division Multiplexing- is the combining of different optical wavelengths from two or more optical fibers into just one optical fiber 20. Passive Optical Network- A network that does not used electrically powered equipment or components to get the signal from one place to another. 21. FTTH- a type of PON that uses optical fiber from the central office to the home. With now active electronics helping the transmission 22. FTTB- a type of PON that is similar to FTTH but it is run to building from the central office. 23. FTTC- a type of PON that runs from the central office but it stops at the curb. It needs a converter to add an electric charge. Cooper wire normally replaces the fiber into the building or home. 24. FTTN- to the node is sometimes called fiber to the neighborhood. It is a type of PON that serves the whole community section. Like FTTC, it is converted to an electrical signal carried over a wire to deliver the signal to the home. 25. Feeder Cable- this runs from the central switching point to the local convergence point. 26. Distribution Cable- These cables runs from the local convergence point to the network access point. Unlike feeder cables they dont carry as many optical fibers 27. Drop Point- This is the location where the cable meet and are broken out to the multiple distribution cables. Typically used for single optical fiber cable. 28. Local Convergence Point- is the access point where feeder cables are broken out into multiple distribution cables. 29. Network Access Point- the NAP is a point located close to homes or buildings it services. Within this point there is a distribution cable and it is broken into multiple drop cables. 30. Network Interface Device- a device that serves as a connecting point between you and isp

Free Essays on True Equality

In my opinion, total equality would diminish people’s own individual uniqueness. Causing the world to be at a standing point till the end of time; there would be no way to make any advances in any particular subject. With everyone being the same no one person could be classified with talent, extreme intellects, or great physical appearance. Which in turn could make the world predictable so there will be no excitement for anyone. When you turn on the TV you always hear about the musicians of that time and what is their latest hit. If you enjoy the music you will be happy and eager to hear the new hit and if you are that musician you are excited to inspire so many to follow his or her own dreams. Now imagine that excitement, happiness, and inspiration gone just so we could be ‘equal’. Is it all worth it? So many in this world have immense talent to share with others who enjoy music greatly. If we were all equal, what would be our entertainment? Or is that a sacrifice we have to make just to be ‘equal’? So if a person would be interested in going to the music business, would they be wrong? I, myself, love music and entertainment and look forward to indulging in this art to make me happy. Why would that not be good? A child is sick with a terrible flu but he cannot be cured. There are no doctors or scientist anywhere because then the world would not be ‘equal’. So this child has to suffer just so the world can be something that, so far, doesn’t seem too glorious. And while this child is dying from a virus that can be cured, the world is also stuck in one degree. There can be no advances in technology because who would do it? The world is equal, no one is smarter than anyone else and no one has creative ideas enough to even contemplate this matter of thinking. So here we are with this virus spreading with no cure and no advances in technology, only if we were all equal. As a model walks down the runway, instead of ... Free Essays on True Equality Free Essays on True Equality In my opinion, total equality would diminish people’s own individual uniqueness. Causing the world to be at a standing point till the end of time; there would be no way to make any advances in any particular subject. With everyone being the same no one person could be classified with talent, extreme intellects, or great physical appearance. Which in turn could make the world predictable so there will be no excitement for anyone. When you turn on the TV you always hear about the musicians of that time and what is their latest hit. If you enjoy the music you will be happy and eager to hear the new hit and if you are that musician you are excited to inspire so many to follow his or her own dreams. Now imagine that excitement, happiness, and inspiration gone just so we could be ‘equal’. Is it all worth it? So many in this world have immense talent to share with others who enjoy music greatly. If we were all equal, what would be our entertainment? Or is that a sacrifice we have to make just to be ‘equal’? So if a person would be interested in going to the music business, would they be wrong? I, myself, love music and entertainment and look forward to indulging in this art to make me happy. Why would that not be good? A child is sick with a terrible flu but he cannot be cured. There are no doctors or scientist anywhere because then the world would not be ‘equal’. So this child has to suffer just so the world can be something that, so far, doesn’t seem too glorious. And while this child is dying from a virus that can be cured, the world is also stuck in one degree. There can be no advances in technology because who would do it? The world is equal, no one is smarter than anyone else and no one has creative ideas enough to even contemplate this matter of thinking. So here we are with this virus spreading with no cure and no advances in technology, only if we were all equal. As a model walks down the runway, instead of ...

Accountings for manager Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Accountings for manager - Essay Example Financial statements are prepared with the intention of providing information that can be used by investors for taking decisions relating to investments. At the end of every financial year business concerns prepare Profit and Loss a/c and Balance Sheet.The P & L a/c reflects the result of the business operations for a period of time and balance sheet gives a summary of the assets and liabilities of a business undertaking on a particular date. However, these two statements fail to explain certain major transactions that take place during the year. Balance sheet is a statutory statement. It does not sharply focus on those major transactions that took place behind the balance sheet change. One can draw inferences from the balance sheet about major financial transactions, only after comparing the balance sheet of two accounting periods. Thus, it has to prepare a statement explaining the reason for change in financial position from one accounting period with another.A cash flow statement is a financial statement, which shows inflows and outflows of cash of a firm. It is a description of the sources and applications of funds in business activities during an accounting period. It gives explanations to changes in the balance sheet figures between two accounting periods. Thus, managers can easily understand the changes in cash position between two accounting periods. It is also known as statement of changes in financial position.... A cash equivalent is that investment which has the maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition. From the equity investments are normally excluded, unless they are in substance a cash equivalent (e.g. preferred shares acquired within three months of their specified redemption date). Bank overdrafts which are repayable on demand and which form an integral part of an enterprise's cash management are also included as a component of cash and cash equivalents. (Summary of International Financial Reporting Standards 2008). The main principles specified by IAS 7 for the preparation of cash flow statement are as follows: 1. Operating activities are the main revenue-producing activities of the enterprise. So operating cash flows include cash received from customers and cash paid to suppliers and employees [IAS 7.14]. 2. Investing activities are the acquisition and disposal of long-term assets and other investments that are not considered to be cash equivalents [IAS 7.6]. 3. Financing activities are activities that alter the equity capital and borrowing structure of the enterprise [IAS 7.6]. 4. Interest and dividends received and paid may be classified as operating, investing, or financing cash flows, provided that they are classified consistently from period to period [IAS 7.31]. 5. Cash flows arising from taxes on income are normally classified as operating, unless they can be specifically identified with financing or investing activities [IAS 7.35]. For operating cash flows, the direct method of presentation is encouraged, but the indirect method is acceptable [IAS 7.18]. (Summary of International Financial Reporting

Improving Communication - The China Context Essay

Improving Communication - The China Context - Essay Example As the report declares in today’s fast paced environment and the age of electronic communication, messages sent, take on a whole new meaning by the time they reach the recipient. This gets aggravated even further when messages are relayed between differing cultures and social settings. Globalization after all, has had a profound impact on the business world of the 21st century. It is no longer possible for countries to conduct their businesses in isolation. This paper stresses that a global code of general ethics and basic business communication is increasingly being accepted by all countries, regardless of the diversity of their cultures. In this way, the principles of democracy in business have become applicable to all countries from the West to the East of the world. Communication theories like the conduit metaphor and the narrative paradigm, provide a useful insight into what goes on in an ineffective communication and how one can make it more transparent. The theory assumes that successful communication has occurred when the receiver objectively interprets the sender’s intention and meaning behind the information sent. This implies that information that is put into the right words will be easily communicable. Any extraneous information that follows the correct message can thus be eliminated as unwanted â€Å"noise†. The idea of objective interpretation does not hold ground. Discussed below are some situations that thw art the idea of objective interpretation.

Paper 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Paper 2 - Essay Example Madison talks about unity, a united country with united people, common interests, decisions, thinking and arguments. He states up to the extent. The main advantage of having a country under one body is the representatives selected are refined through a lot of people (and a lot of people deciding to cast a vote for the same person cannot be wrong). Such a medium of chosen bodies are the best in wisdom and may best discern and distinguish the true interest of the country. It would be more consonant and publically good to hire people who could translate their thinking and mind-set on a broader scale. The number of the elected representatives should not be increased as selection of a lot of people brings about trouble and selection of a few results in a disaster. You get and elect trained and practiced people who decide for your future thus taking the country to a new direction the best part about such a structure is that no one can dawn upon the other, that means no bullying can be done and no tyrant can be sustainable. Also they cannot just do wrong as they are the centre of attention of a lot of people and their every movement is being recorded. 2. Anti- Federalist paper: Brutus Brutus in the article Anti- Federalist paper states that there should be thirteen different states with an individual executive and judiciary. There shouldn’t be a single state platform forming a set of rules being enforced on the citizens irrespective of what they want and how they want. One body should not have the power to decide the future of a million people without having consent with the people would be facing the outcomes. The constitution is not a good thing in an individuals’ interest as it is aimed for a lot of people and does not cater at an individual level. A constitution for a country does not focus and target an individuals’ interest and rights. The government is a subversion of liberty by applying principles, rules and regulations, and tyrannical atr ocities; they forget who voted for them for what reason. They do not care about the people who elected them and made them the representatives of the country and apply restrictions and more rules and principles and enforce them throughout the country. It’s all about their own interests, nothing about the human nature, it’s about them when they are elected and they are chosen to be the representatives. A free republic cannot exceed to such an immense extent. They need to have subordinates who could cater every other individual and could have the info and thee details about a certain person, his problems and should be formulating or devising a solution. They have large fortunes and less moderation towards people and their interests. No time for individual district, it’s all about the country and the bodies organizing, maintaining and showing interests about them; people come in the end. They gratify their own interests and ambitions and forget that they have been e lected by these people who are (in that scenario), being betrayed. He further states that the country have independent states deciding their own future and knowing and caring about each n every group. 3. Comparison: The comparison here is of the

Overview Of Walmart Cost Leadership

Overview Of Walmart Cost Leadership The low cost strategy emphasizes having the lowest costs, not necessarily the lowest price, in a market. A firm attempting to realize a low cost strategy should stress resources that facilitate efficiency. A firm that has successfully achieved a low cost position will have the lowest costs relative to competitors. A firm can use such a position to either lower its prices and gain market share and sales from rivals or keep its prices at the present market level and make relatively more profit per unit sold. The key idea is that cost and price are independent choices, and this strategy is focused on cost. The differentiation strategy focuses on developing a unique product or (equally useful) a perception of a unique product that customers are willing to pay a premium for. If a firm is not receiving a premium price for its goods or services it is NOT a differentiator. A firm seeking to follow a differentiation strategy should attempt to develop and enhance its resources that promote customer responsiveness, quality, and/or innovation. Note that costs are still important to a differentiator because it is possible that the costs of making the product unique will be greater than the premium consumers are willing to pay for it. The firm can choose to compete in the mass market with a broad scope, or in a defined, focused market segment with a narrow scope. In either case, the basis of competition will still be either cost leadership or differentiation. In adopting a narrow focus, the company ideally focuses on a few target markets (segmentation strategy or niche strategy). The choice of offering low prices or differentiated products/services should depend on the needs of the selected segment and the resources and capabilities of the firm. It is hoped that by focusing your marketing efforts on one or two narrow market segments and tailoring your marketing mix to these specialized markets, you can better meet the needs of that target market. The firm typically looks to gain a competitive advantage through product innovation and/or brand marketing rather than efficiency. Competitive Advantage Cost Uniqueness Broad Competitive Scope Narrow Our focus in this report is to showcase implementation of these strategies by picking examples of companies that have successfully used these strategies to gain competitive advantages. Walmart: Cost Leadership Founded by Sam Walton, the first Wal-Mart store opened in Rogers, Arkansas, in 1962. Seventeen years later, annual sales topped $1 billion. By the end of January 2002, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (Wal-Mart), was the worlds largest retailer, with $218 billion in sales. Wal-Marts winning strategy in the U.S. was based on selling branded products at low cost. Each week, about 100 million customers visited a Wal-Mart store somewhere in the world. The company employed more than 1.3 million associates (Wal-Marts term for employees) worldwide through more than 3,200 stores in the United States and more than 1,100 units in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, China, Korea, Germany, and the United Kingdom. In 2001, Fortune magazine named Wal-Mart the third most admired company in America, and the Financial Times and PricewaterhouseCoopers ranked it as the eighth most admired company in the world. The following year, Wal-Mart was named number one on the Fortune 500 list and was presented with the Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership, a presidential award that recognized companies for outstanding achievement in employee and community relations. Wal-Mart enjoyed a 50 percent market share position in the discount retail industry. Procter Gamble, Clorox, and Johnson Johnson were among its nearly 3,000 suppliers. Though Wal-Mart may have been the top customer for consumer product manufacturers, it deliberately ensured it did not become too dependent on any one supplier; no single vendor constituted more than 4 percent of its overall purchase volume. About 85 percent of all the merchandise sold by Wal-Mart was shipped through its distribution system to its stores. (Competitors supplied to their retail outlets on average less than 50 percent of the merchandise through their own distribution centers.) The company owned a fleet of more than 3,000 trucks and 12,000 trailers. (Most competitors outsourced trucking.) Wal-Mart had implemented a satellite network system that allowed information to be shared between the companys wide network of stores, distribution centers, and suppliers. The system consolidated orders for goods, enabling the company to buy full truckload quantities without incurring the inventory costs. Wal-Marts Value Proposition Wal-Marts value proposition can be summed up as everyday low prices for a broad range of goods that are always in stock in convenient geographic locations. It is those aspects of the customer experience that the company overdelivers relative to competitors. Underperformance on other dimensions, such as ambience and sales help, is a strategic choice that generates cost savings, which fuel the companys price advantage. If the local mom-and-pop hardware store has survived, it also has a value proposition: convenience, proprietors who have known you for years, free coffee and doughnuts on Saturday mornings, and so on. Sears falls in the middle on many criteria. As a result, customers lack a lot of compelling reasons to shop there, which goes a long way toward explaining why the company is struggling to remain pro ¬Ã‚ table. Walmart in 2010 Growth opportunities continue. Price leadership continues to be the cornerstone of how it goes to market. Growth in the United States will come from additional penetration into more metropolitan markets, as well as from new formats and stronger integration with the online business. Walmart.com traffic exceeded one billion visits this past year, growing more than 15 percent over the previous year through Site-to-Storeà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ and home delivery. Leverage scale and reduce costs. Innovation, process improvements and strong management teams drove significant improvements in our business. Walmart repositioned the business to leverage operating expenses on a slower rate of sales growth this past year. Improved productivity through enhanced scheduling systems better matched associate staffing levels in stores to customer traffic. Stronger supply chain processes also improved inventory flow. Merchandising and planning systems contributed to lower inventory levels, which were also benefited by increased sell-through. Global sourcing initiatives now under way strengthen efforts to drive down the cost of goods and pass those savings on to customers. Improved returns. Walmart significantly increased its cash flow and return on invested capital in fiscal 2010. Gross margin improvements, tight expense control, strong inventory management and efficient capital allocation contributed to this improved performance. It reduced year-end inventory by $1.8 billion, or 7.6 percent, and increased inventory turns as well. Apples differentiation approach enhances the companys competitive advantage in the market. It favors Apple to continue down a path that not only maintains premium positioning but also enhances it. It is clearly doing this at the research and development (RD) level. The introduction of a new portable manufacturing process (the unibody MacBook and MacBook Pro) and a relatively fast-paced operating system release cycle are clearly a function of Apples ever-evolving differentiated positioning. The upcoming Mac OS X Snow Leopard (successor to Mac OS X Leopard) and iPhone OS 3.0 will continue to push the envelope and set the groundwork for continued innovation in the years to come. Apple has never shied away from starting over. It did this with the transition to Mac OS X, the transition to Intel processors, and the re-design of their portable Macs. Each enhancement widens the differentiation gap that competitors must narrow or copy in order to compete with Apple. The Company participates in several highly competitive markets. While it is widely recognized as a leading innovator in the markets where it competes, these markets are highly competitive and subject to aggressive pricing. To remain competitive, Apple believes that increased investment in research and development and marketing and advertising is necessary to maintain or expand its position in the markets where it competes. Digging deeper into the strategy, the trade-off protects Apples unique position. Competitors have two main ways to imitate an incumbent. A competitor can (1) reposition itself or (2) straddle, an approach that attempts to match the incumbents position while maintaining its existing position. By maintaining its price premium at the expense of unit volume, Apple has created an imitation barrier that competitors cannot easily cross. PC competitors cannot realistically enter Apples space by transforming themselves into a premium brand without alienating or pricing out existing customers. If a competitor decided to reposition or straddle it would have to compete with Apples decades long premium brand equity. Thus, PC vendors have two transformational issues working against them, time and cost. Apples competitors will not be able to transform their brand image overnight. Any such effort will take considerable amount of time on numerous dimensions ranging from product design to marketing. T his leads to the second issue, cost. Any transformation undertaken by a competitor will cost tens or perhaps hundreds of millions of dollars in a sustained re-branding and advertising campaign. In todays marketplace, a cost of this magnitude is not feasible. From a trade-off perspective, Apple has systematically analyzed what not to do; attempt to compete at lower price points. Apples entry into retailing, for example, is designed to provide better point-of-sales service to customers wishing to purchase an Apple product than can be had from independent stores. By helping to raise the overall level of differentiation associated with Apples offering, the strategy is designed to strengthen Apples competitive position. Zara: Focused Differentiation Zara is a phenomenon in the textile industry; it was a start-up in Spain and gradually has evolved to be today a very successful leader quoted company in its industry. Zara, the most profitable brand of Inditex SA, the Spanish clothing retail group, opened its first store in 1975 in La Coruà ±a, Spain, they have expanded operations into 45 countries with 531 stores located in the most important shopping districts of more than 400 cities in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa. Throughout this expansion Zara has remained focused on its core fashion philosophy that creativity and quality design together with a rapid response to market demands will yield profitable results. In order to realized these results Zara developed a business model that incorporated the following three goals for operations: develop a system the requires short lead times, decrease quantities produced to decrease inventory risk, and increase the number of available styles and/or choice. These goals helped to formulate a unique value proposition: to combine moderate prices with the ability to offer new clothing styles faster than its competitors. These three goals helped to sha pe Zaras current business model. Capabilities of Zara, or the required resources needed to exploit the opportunities and execute this conceptual strategy, are numerous for Zara. Zara maintains tight control over their production processes keeping design and manufacturing in-house or with some strategic partnerships located nearby Headquarters. Value drivers for Zara are both tangible and intangible in the benefits that are returned to all stakeholders. Tangibly, Inditex, the parent company of Zara, has 11.02% net margin on operations and their market capitalization (Equity market value) is à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬13, 981 (in thousands) in 2002. Their net working capital (current assets current liabilities) is à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬133 (in thousands) . Additionally, the success of Zara can be demonstrated through their outstanding financial performance. From 1996 to 2000, Inditex SA tripled their corporate profits and in 2001, a year of overall economic downturn in the retail industry, Inditex SA saw a 31% increase in profits. Int angibly, customer loyalty and brand recognition have provided significant value to Zara. The number of consumers they attract continues to rise and their brand is synonymous with the cutting edge of fashion at affordable prices. The successful implementation of Zaras business model provides great value to stakeholders and differentiates their business from their peers. Vertical integration: a distinctive feature of Zaras business model, has allowed the company to successfully develop a strong merchandising strategy. This strategy has led Zara to create a climate of scarcity and opportunity as well as a fast-fashion system. Zara manufactures 60% of its own products. By owning its in-house production, Zara is able to be flexible in the variety, amount, and frequency of the new styles they produce. Also, 85% of this production is done through the season, which allows the chain to constantly provide its costumer with very updated products. Traditional retailers lack this flexibility. Traditional retailers are obligated to place production orders to manufacturers overseas at least 6 months in advance of the season. Zara purchases its fabric in advance , much of it in grienge form this gives flexibility to colour print , to desired effect. Low current inventory: Regular customers know that new products are introduced every two weeks and most likely would not be available tomorrow. Therefore, Zaras scarcity climate allows the company to sell more items at full price. This strategy minimizes Zaras total cost because it reduces 15-20% of markdown merchandise compare to a traditional retailer. Zaras centralized distribution facility gives the chain a competitive advantage by minimizing the lead-time of their goods, distribution center is a place where merchandise is moved rather than stored. The current ratio shows that for every euro in short-term debt, Inditex has 1.02 million euros in current assets. HM however, has 3.40 million euros in current assets for every euro in short-term debt. The company designs and cuts its fabric in-house and it acquires fabrics in only four colors to keep costs low. Zara postpones dyeing and printing designs until close to manufacture, thereby reducing waste and minimizing the need to clear unsold inventories. Technology: Whether measured by IT workers as a percentage of total employees or total spending as a percentage of sales, ZaraÊ ¼s IT expenditure is less than one-fourth the fashion industry average. Zara excels by targeting technology investment at the points in its value chain where it will have the most significant impact, making sure that every dollar spend on tech has a payoff. It still uses the DOS system without much networking capability, whereas its competitors like Prada use RFID technology, Benneton uses SAP. Marketing Advertising: Zara also has an advantage over its competitors due to its low advertising costs. Zaras advertising investment is 0-.3% as compared to traditional retailers who expends 3 4%. Zara relies mainly on its stores to project their image. For that reason, Zara has a department, which exclusively works in acquiring global prime real estate locations. In addition, this department is responsible for the frequent refurbishing of store layouts, as well as the creation of a common window display for Zaras global stores. Controlling notorious bottlenecks along the supply chain is key to speed. For example dyeing and fit are critical processes within the supply chain. Zara is a large investor in a dye and finishing plant-a notorious bottleneck. Its control allows them to oversee the dyeing process. A further trouble spot is sewing. Even though Zara uses sub-contractors some subcontractors, it carries out the bulk of all cutting itself-a crucial process that determines fit. 60% of the manufacturing processes are outsourced in countries close to the Zara headquarters in Spain to help achieve a quick turnaround. Zara maintains a strong relationship with their contractors and suppliers-viewing them as part of the company. To successfully react to consumers demands, design decisions are delayed as long as possible. Typically, Zara pre-commits to 50%-60% of its production in advance of the season, whereas other clothing retailers commit to 80%-90%. Thus Zara reserves mill capacities to ensure production fac ilities are available when needed. Value Chain In todays competitive environment, Zara has shown that fine tuning the supply chain is no longer a strategic tool, but a necessity. It has shown that supply chain management can be managed provide sustainable competitive differentiation and positioning on the one hand and increase throughput, reduce inventories and operating expenses on the other. Zaras Product Offering Zaras unique capabilites allow it to cater to a focussed set of customers yet at a cost leadership position. Zara has a competitive advantage in logistics, with production just in time with better performance that its competitors, it also has the ability to renew all what is in their stores in few weeks. It also counts with storage in Europe, in Zaragoza that is close to the distribution centres. Product Offer Supply process High customisation Low volume High Margin High quality High volume High standardisation Low unit margin Low quality Flexible process High fashion: out of price Rigid Process ZARA MS :Out of fashion According to Porter, the reason so many firms suffer aggressive, margin eroding competition, is because theyve defined themselves according to operational effectiveness rather than strategic positioning. Operational effectiveness refers to performing the same tasks better than rivals perform them. Everyone wants to be better, but the danger in operational effectiveness is in sameness. At its heart Zara is building on a vertically integrated demand and supply chain, while most other textile chains rely on outsourcing and cheap labour in China. It enables company to short turnaround times and achieves greater flexibility, reducing stock to a minimum and diminishing fashion risk to the greatest possible extent. Ikea: Focused Cost Leadership Ikea is one of the known global home furniture and household goods retailer which is a privately owned company. It was established by Ingvar Kamarad Sweden and in year 2008 the company owned 244 Ikea stores in 24 nations and the management is still planning to open 23 new stores. The company has also 32 stores on 16 nations and these stores were still managed and owned by franchisees outside the Ikea Group which extends the global reach of Ikea to 35 territories overseas. The Ikea Group has also been able to diversify their products beyond furnishings and furniture into food products and prefabricated housing. The company has been able to ensure that they have franchise agreements among most of the overseas operations to ensure capitalization of local marketing expertise and practices of the franchisees. The concept and trademark of Ike is owned by Ikea Systems BV and the operations of the company are basically controlled by Ingka Holding. Primarily, the company is based on providing broad range of well-designed, functional home furnishing goods at an affordable cost to attract more customers. This concept of the Ikea is the foundation of their business operations which includes product designing, manufacturing, transportation, retailing, and assembling. The company sees to it that they work hard in attaining their business goals and providing quality products and services among their target market. Strategy Analysis In order to analyse the capabilities of IKEA, different marketing tools will be considered. This includes the SWOT Analysis, Porters Five Forces Model, and Core Competencies analysis. Capabilities Analysis According to Kim and Weaver (2000), the administration and management of a particular business organization entails full utilization of the resources of the company in order to lead, direct, and control operations to meet the set objectives. It can be said that IKEA has been able to use strategic approach to sustain their competitive advantage. One of the capabilities IKEA is how the leaders of the company do their business. Guided by their vision and mission, the leader and management of the industry clearly illustrate integrity in all their actions. The management has also strong commitment in promoting the company values and the value of diversity among the employees and staffs. In addition, the management of the company has been able to understand the priorities of the business and make every decision in line with the strategic direction by giving consideration to the effect on all aspects of the business and on other stakeholders. Another sustainable capability of the company is its continuous focus on the importance of both internal and external customers to ensure that these customers remain loyal to them. The company also makes it sure that they motivate, inspire, coach, guide, and support their staffs to realise the mission of the IKEA. Furthermore, the companys ability to identify and recognise contributors is another factor that sustains the companys competitive advantages. The ability of the management to diversify and differentiate their business strategy to dominate the global market can also be considered as the major capabilities of the IKEA. Swot Analysis In this report, the analysis of the current situation of Ikea will be done using different marketing tools. Herein, IKEA will be analysed through the use of SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) Analysis. The purpose of this internal and external analysis is to see what the organization has to work with as it begins to position itself to deal with the opportunities and threats identified through the analysis of the external environments. Specifically, it helps identify what existing strengths and weaknesses might impact the organizations value creation capabilities. Strengths As mentioned, IKEA has been one of the leading brands in household furnitures in its global operations. One of its strength is its being a very profitable company, in both its domestic and international branches. In addition, IKEA is a global brand established upon a reputation of quality products and services with almost 10,000 product range and 244 stores in different regions. Furthermore, one of the strengths of IKEA is its strong ethical values integrated with its business strategy which include cost leadership and product differentiation. The strength of the company can also be attributed to their ability to distribute their product effectively in the global market. One of their strengths is their ability to diversify when the company has been able to launch their private label food items in 2005. The offerings of the company include Swedish dishes which include meatballs, smoked elk sausage, roll-mop herring, and crisp breads. Weaknesses Although IKEA encompass much strength, the company has also its weaknesses. One of the weaknesses of the companies is the notion that IKEA remain vulnerable to the plausibility that the creativity and product development may falter over time. In addition the company has also lacking the ability to look for a business portfolio for various regions, like in the case of IKEA so as to spread business risk. Opportunities With the management system and the marketing strategies implemented within IKEA as well as with the strengths that the company, it can be said that IKEA has bigger opportunities to still dominate the global market in terms of providing quality household furniture as well as food products and services to its residents, commercial and industrial clients or even have an opportunity to be the most competitive brands in the global market. With the continuous innovation of the company and the support that it shows to different needs of the region, the company can gain loyalty from their customers to make them more competitive in the marketplace. The continuous initiatives of the company in diversification of its revenue resources also open new opportunities to make the business become stronger to outgrow all its rival companies. Such opportunities will include the development of new products, leveraging the companys investment in the low cost leadership and differentiation, and other business opportunities in both non-core and core areas. In line with IKEA, the household furniture as well as food products and services have the opportunity to expand their market in the global level, and it can be said that IKEA is on its way ahead of its competitors in terms of international expanding. Threats One of the threats of that IKEA may face is the emergence of a new and stronger company which offered a more diversified household furniture as well as food products which is cheaper than the existing companies. If these companies will not be able to provide the latest trends in this kind of business industries, the company may experience some industrial threats. In order for the company to maximise its strengths and minimise or totally eliminate its weaknesses, the company must be able to use or impose a strategic management system that will help them enhance their business operations. Porters Five Forces Model It can be noted that an industry is a group of firms which market its products and services closely substituted from one another. According to Porter (1980), some firms tend to become more profitable and gain competitive advantage than their rivals companies. With this, a company like Ikea should always bear in mind that the industry will only survive in the global market by using a strategy that will sustain their competitive advantage and position. Through the use Porters Five Forces Model, the analysis of the industry aspects of the IKEA will be analysed. New Market Entrants The first element of Porters Five Forces Model includes threat of entrance of new industries. Apparently, the objective of IKEA is to build a position in the household furniture as well as food shops service industry and to be recognised as company which would always be competitive in the global market. IKEA is said to be a world-class companies in providing household furniture as well as food products and services in market environment. With this, it can be said that because of the existence of IKEA, having another household furniture as well as food shops is unnecessary unless, the new company which will emerge will have the appropriate and efficient marketing strategy to outgrow both leading companies. Hence, it can be said that the household furniture as well as food shop belongs to a higher entry obstruction because of the existence of competitive companies like the companies and their other rival industries. Supplier Power It can be noted that the conditions and the present system in the household furniture as well as food shop industries largely determines the extent in which effective competition can be achieved. The bargaining power of a supplier could be a threat for the profit of the company, and both IKEA is very much aware of it. In this manner, IKEA is trying to have a good contract with its supplier, herein; IKEA makes it sure that they are also benefited in the said contract while the suppliers enjoy the agreement with them. In this kind of business, there is a high level of competition in the household furniture as well as food brand supply market. Competitive Rivalry IKEA still enjoy their competitive position in the global market. In this analysis, it shows that the company still dominate the household furniture as well as food market by providing those quality and innovative services. This means that IKEA is still on top of the competition among other household furniture as well as food retail companies in world. The company enjoys its competitive position in the region and still trying to sustain its competitive advantage among its rivals. Buyer Power Porters also include in his model the concept of the bargaining power of Buyers. Hence, the management of IKEA makes sure of it that their clients and customers in all aspects will be satisfied for the quality service they provide. Specifically, the company has focused their marketing approach on the demands and needs of the buyer for a household furniture as well as food service source that satisfy them and heavily positioned their products in this segment. The company also uses their corporate responsibility as a good public image to make the company more appealing to their customers. The competitive aim of each company is to do significantly a better job of providing what buyers are looking for and, thereby enabling the firm to gain competitive advantage and out compete rivals within the marketplace (Thompson, Strickland Gamble, 2003). Threats of substitutes In terms of threats and substitutes, although the company is aware that there were threats for substitute products or retail household furniture as well as food shops because of its high demand in the global market, specifically now that companies offered household furniture as well as food alternative products and flavours which suit the needs of the household furniture as well as food market. The company has been able to continue to grow and expand their business in various parts of the world. It can be said that IKEA has been able to use various strategies which enable them to sustain their competitive position in the global market. Ikea Strategy IKEA follows the focused cost leadership strategy. Young buyers in search of stylish and fashionable furniture and household accessories at a low cost are IKEAs targeted market segment. For these customers, the firm offers home furnishings that combine good design, functionality and acceptable quality at low prices. According to the firm, low cost is always a priority. This applies to every phase of their activities. IKEA emphasises several activities to keep its costs low. For example, instead of relying primarily on third party manufacturers, the firms engineers design low-cost, modular furniture ready for assembly by customers. IKEA also positions its products in domestic settings. Typically, competitors furniture stores display multiple varieties of a single item in separate rooms, meaning that their customers examine living room sofas in one room, tables in another room, chairs in yet another location, and accessories somewhere else entirely. In contrast, IKEAs customers can view different furniture combinations (complete with sofas, chairs, tables, and so forth) in a single setting, which eliminates the need for sales associates or decorators to help the customer imagine how a furniture arrangement would look when placed in the customers home. This approach requires fewer sales personnel, allowing IKEA to keep its costs low. A third practice that helps keep IKEAs costs low is expect

Response To Intervention Essay -- Educational Issues, NCLB, teaching

RTI, is an acronym that has become commonly used in education after No Child Left Behind was implemented, but what does that acronym mean? Brown-Chidsey and Steege quoted Dave Tilly, a school psychologist, as saying that RTI actually means â€Å"really terrific instruction!† RTI is defined differently in different states. Some would argue it is Response to Intervention, while others say that it means Response to Instruction. Brown-Chidsey and Steege state that whether you say intervention or instruction, it does not matter; the importance is that teachers use scientific based teaching that responds to students’ learning. There are several benefits of RTI. First, according to the Nebraska RTI website, research states that struggling readers have a higher risk of academic failure and school dropout. With RTI, readers who are at risk of reading difficulties can be identified early and when provided intervention can catch up with grade level classmates. Second, teachers no longer have to wait for students to fail before interventions can begin. RTI provides a consistent model and procedures to make data driven team based educational decisions for all students. Starting the general education classroom, the first indication that a student is not performing at grade level in an academic area, a research based intervention is provided. With data from progress monitoring, and based on IDEA 2004, data from RTI may be used as part of the comprehensive evaluation for special education eligibility. Third, RTI can be set up by district. The district can determine appropriate assessments, curriculum and interventions that meet their needs, as long as they follow the model. According to the RTI Nebraska website, even though some... ...e of students. Works Cited Brown-Chidsey, R., & Steege, M. W. (2010). Response to Intervention: Principles and Strategies for Effective Practice (2nd edition ed.). New York: The Guilford Press. National Center on Response to Intervention. (n.d.). National Center on Response to Intervention Retrieved November 11, 2011 from http://www.rti4success.org Nebraska RtI Implementation & Support Team. (n.d.). Nebraska RtI Implementation & Support Team. Retrieved November 11, 2011, from http://rtinebraska.unl.edu Response to Intervention - Educational Service Unit 10. (n.d.). Welcome - Educational Service Unit 10. Retrieved November 11, 2011, from http://www.esu10.org/programs-services/teaching-learning/rti Response to Intervention. (n.d.). Nebraska Department of Education | NDE. Retrieved November 11, 2011, from http://www.education.ne.gov/RTI/index.html