Consumer Behavior of Czech Republican Market †MyAssignmenthelp

Question: Examine aout the Consumer Behavior of Czech Republican Market. Answer: Presentation The change in the working of the organization helps in deciding the various parts of the upgrades. The organizations present new items dependent on the comprehension of the adjustment in the necessities of the purchasers to which the item is being advertised. The assurance of the requirements of the individuals helps the association in delivering enhancements. The report centers around the comprehension of the circumstance of the association Metro AG in the Czech Republic. The report will assist with understanding the client portions of the association for presenting another item. The primary reason for the report is to comprehend the possibilities of the organization, Metro AG to attempt ventures for presenting another item in Czech Republic. It depends on the comprehension of the market sections and the qualities and the shortcomings of presenting the item, which helps in deciding the interest of the clients in the market. Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe, which is circumscribed by Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Poland. The country is considered as a part of the created economies, which has thrived because of the foundations in the modern areas. It has helped in empowering the occupants to be productive according to the prerequisites of the economy (Annualreports.com. 2018). Then again, the district is portrayed by the development of organizations, which has achieved changes dependent on the advancement and the maintainability of the undertakings. As indicated by the enumeration 2016 the GDP (Purchasing Power Parity) of the country is gauge to be some $368.659billion. It has helped in the development of the associations in the Czech market (Annualreports.com. 2018). Be that as it may, the associations face issues identifying with the assessment installments and the expense of setting up the associations in the market. The general social insurance choices and the educational cost free advanced degree have helped in deciding the development of the individuals through the effect on the pay of the individuals living in the country. Foundation of Metro AG Metro AG is a German based all inclusive expanded retail and discount selling association found inDsseldorf. Ernst Schmidt and Wilhelm Schmidt-Ruthenbeck set up the organization in the year 1964 (Annualreports.com. 2018). Since its initiation, the association has confronted its nonstop development in the markets.As per a few reports, it is one of the four biggest retailers on the planet dependent on its income structure and the total compensation of the association. The association offers a scope of items and administrations at the most ideal cost for holding fast to the necessities of the center pay families. The significant parts of the food of the association is because of its cautious determination of wares and selling the equivalent dependent on the examination of the necessities of the purchasers and the objective market division (Annualreports.com. 2018). In the year 2016, the organization chose to part its working into global distributer food authority and shopper gadgets. It has helped the association in understanding the requirements of the individuals and sticking to their necessities so as to predefine the targets of development and manageability of the association in the worldwide markets (Annualreports.com. 2018). Cost 16.05 EUR Income per share 1.15 EUR Value per share 8.39 EUR Net Profit (mn) 414 EUR All out Equity (mn) 3,020 EUR ROE 13.70% The table depicts the arrival on the value of the association, which is described by the fall in their cost by - 3.60%. It has influenced the development of the association in the market (Annualreports.com. 2018). Then again, the association offered a yearly return of 0.00%, which was lower than other retailing organizations in the market that have offered an arrival of 7.45% (AG 2018). SWOT of the organization while working in Czech Republic Qualities Biggest retail chain on the planet Differed number of stores dependent on the prerequisites of the clients Alternative of retail activities through the working of the money and convey stores Brand value of the association in the market coming about to expanded brand devotion among the clients Shortcomings Increment in the operational expenses because of the expanded need of confinement of its stores in the market Lower ventures made by the association for improving the IT offices in the retail locations (Annualreports.com. 2018) Openings Development and extension in the worldwide markets (Annualreports.com. 2018) Wide scale notices and advancement exercises so as to make the individuals mindful of the circumstance of the association in the market Dangers Rising work costs in the universal markets (Annualreports.com. 2018) Dubious monetary condition in the worldwide markets Parts of the SWOT The SWOT examination of the association will help the advancement of the methodologies so as to help the development of the association while working in the business sectors of the Czech Republic. The identification of the shortcomings and the dangers will assist the association with building on to the parts of the change that must be engaged by the association so as to make enhancements in the market of its tasks (Businessculture.org 2018). The best possible comprehension of the necessities of the clients helps in deciding the adjustment in the structure and the working of the association. Then again, the organization must find a way to build up the IT administrations for encouraging the necessities of the clients (Annualreports.com. 2018). The expanding operational expenses of an association influence the development of the equivalent in the market. In this way, the organization must present another scope of items so as to do the trick to the necessities of the buyers and along the se lines helps in adapting up to the operational costs that are brought about by the association in the market. Then again, the chances of the association to develop in the business sectors is encouraged through the endeavor of the special exercises that helps in making the clients and the objective gatherings mindful of the presence and the circumstance of the association. It likewise helps in keeping the shoppers mindful of the item contributions of the association, which will help the association in boosting its deals in the universal markets and especially in the Czech Republican markets. STP examination of the market Division Geographic-the association must make arrangements to help the requirements of both the urban and the country clients of the Czech Republican markets Segment Age-18-25 years old Sexual orientation female clients Pay the total compensation toward the year's end begins from the 2000 CZK Family size-the organization must arrangement to help gigantic family estimates in order to grow their extents of business in the business sectors Training the higher instructive capability of the occupants of the district will be useful for the association while advancing their items. It influences the individual decisions of the clients in the economy. Psychographic Way of life the assurance of the high way of life of the individuals will support the association while planning their items according to the requirements of the clients. The assurance of the necessities of the clients will help the association in delivering enhancements in the working of the business in the Czech markets. Character the character of the female clients will decide the kind of items that are being favored by the clients in the market. Conduct Client conduct the assurance of the market patterns will help the association in understanding the client conduct towards purchasing the items. The interest for the product depends on the need of the clients. Thusly, the organization must embrace steps so as to distinguish the requirement for encouraging the interest of the female clients. Focusing on The clients that may be focused by the association are the female clients dependent on their inclinations of the styling choices. The correct distinguishing proof of the way of life and the inclinations of the female clients have helped n deciding the various parts of the adjustment in the alterations in the structure and the working of the business. Situating The situating of the items will be founded on the openness of the items in the market. The significant parts of the situating depends on the assurance of the focuses and the retails which achieves the majority of the female clients. The organization must embrace steps so as to get to the channels as that will help the association in connecting their item offering to the female clients in the market. TOWS network Interior variables Outside components Qualities Biggest retail chain on the planet Differed number of stores dependent on the necessities of the clients Alternative of retail tasks through the working of the money and convey stores Brand value of the association in the market coming about to expanded brand devotion among the clients Shortcomings Increment in the operational expenses because of the expanded need of confinement of its stores in the market Lower ventures made by the association for improving the IT offices in the retail locations (Annualreports.com. 2018) Openings Development and extension in the worldwide markets (Annualreports.com. 2018) Wide scale ads and advancement exercises so as to make the individuals mindful of the circumstance of the association in the market (SO) Wide scale showcasing of the items to advance deals of the association in the Czech markets (WO) To make a decline in the number one spot time t

Financial Management assignment 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Budgetary Management task 2 - Essay Example The organization doesn't appear to be money rich as it right now has an overdraft office. In spite of the fact that the organization has been working effectively, taking on the undertaking will place the organization in a horrible income position. The Internal Rate of Return where the Net Present Value is zero is vague as there is no markdown rate that is sufficiently little to make the Net Present Value zero. The organization has just brought about an extensive aggregate of GBP 750,000 on innovative work of this new range. Maybe, the organization can think about elective methods of assembling this item, for example, redistributing or haggling for better material expenses without settling on its quality. The underlying exploration cost of the undertaking has just been acquired by the organization and is considered as sunk expense. This is on the grounds that whether Paddle Your Own Canoe Plc takes up the task, or not, the underlying exploration cost will at present be considered as being spent. In investigating the income that will be produced from the venture, sunk costs must be disregarded. Accordingly, the treatment of the underlying examination cost is to bar from the income count. In like manner, deterioration of the plant and hardware is excluded from the computation of the income since this is a non income thing, while the venture examination centers around incomes. Deterioration is a bookkeeping technique for perceiving the decrease of the organization's fixed resources in its salary articulation after some time and doesn't influence money by any stretch of the imagination. Hence, this thing has additionally been prohibited. The extra working capital that the organization needs to put resources into is intended for different purposes toward the finish of the venture. Actually, this may be discharged for use toward the finish of the task. Despite the fact that the organization needs to focus on this a lot prior, the thing has additionally been barred in the estimations. This is on the grounds that the working capital isn't identified with the undertaking and won't influence the venture by any means. In any case, if the working capital is looked for with the end goal of the undertaking, at that point this should be considered in deciding the attainability of the task. Question 1c The recompense time frame count takes a gander at the briefest number of years to recoup the expense of the task. In spite of the fact that the estimation is straightforward and basic, it despite everything has its constraints. It disregards the advantages that happen after the compensation time frame and all the more critically, the strategy overlooks the time estimation of cash. The Net Present Value is a pointer of how much worth a venture or undertaking adds to the organization. The Net Present Value is an increasingly dependable strategy for ascertaining the profits anticipated from speculations as the technique considers the time estimation of cash. The Net Present Value looks at the estimation of a dollar today to the estimation of that equivalent dollar later on, considering both expansion and returns. A positive Net Present Value created from an imminent venture is a decent sign and ought to be acknowledged unexpectedly, a negative Net Present Value coming about because of tasks ought to be dismissed in light of the fact that the incomes will likewise be negative. The Internal Rate of Return is the rebate rate that conveys a Net

Productivity vs Efficiency and How to Balance Both

Productivity vs Efficiency and How to Balance Both What if I told you that you could strike a balance for your business that enables you to optimize your business to produce large volumes of high quality products from your current resources? Imagine how that would change the columns on your income statement. The good news is that you can achieve that with minimal struggle. The secret lies in two simple words: productivity, and efficiency.Many people are under the impression that productivity is the same thing as efficiency. This is understandable, especially considering the fact that they are two things that every business owner would want to achieve in business.Today, we are going to look at these two words and how you can revolutionize your business using both concepts. However, before we can go too deep into how you can balance these two for maximum effect, let’s take a step back and try to understand what each of these concepts mean. Let’s start with productivity.WHAT IS PRODUCTIVITY?In most industries, productivity is measured by the output in a specific period. For example, if you produce 500 units in a week, and 700 in the next week, you were more productive in the second week than you were in the first one. It’s all about how much you are able to produce.Of course, this depends on your industry. If you are a salesman, your productivity will be measured by the sales volume you are able to generate. For a service provider, productivitywill be measured by the number of clients they are able to serve and so on. You get the picture.We have all had one of those days when we felt totally useless. No matter how much you try, you just can’t seem to get yourself to do any meaningful work. Even if you force yourself to work, the creative juices are just not flowing. You go back home feeling down and worthless.Have you ever had one of those days?Imagine a journalist who spends hours on a story she knows will do wel l, only to have it thrown to the trash by the boss. She would most likely start questioning her competence as a journalist. The result is that she won’t feel the motivation to work on more stories because she is not even sure if she is cut out for the job. A part of her feels that she might spend a lot of time on a piece and still not have it published.What this journalist lacks, is productivity. She’s not able to produce what is expected of her as a journalist.Let’s flip the coin.You wake up early feeling energetic and alive. You have enough time to make your bed, take a nice warm shower and have a healthy breakfast. You get to work 15 minutes early and have time some to get things in order before you start your workday.Everything just seems to work for you and when you are required to do some creative work, ideas seem to flow to you naturally. You end up producing impeccable results that you are proud to be associated with. Somehow, it doesn’t even feel like you struggled to get these good results so you leave the office feeling happy and in control. When you look back at your day, you can see tangible results.On this day, you were productive and with it came many good emotions. More productivity means getting more output.We all want to be productive in our day to day activities. When we are productive, our superiors are happy and we leave with a good sense of achievement. We are therefore happier and more confident in ourselves.Now that we understand what productivity is, let’s take a look at efficiency.WHAT IS EFFICIENCY?While productivity is about the quantity of the results that we are able to produce, efficiency is about the quality. It looks at the production process, how resources were utilized in the production and the quality of the end products of the production process. Simply put, efficiency is about achieving maximum productivity with minimum waste.So if your job involves processing of raw materials, your efficiency will be determined by your output, but also by the resources that you use in the production process.Let’s look at an example. Two salesmen, Dan and Victor work for an insurance company. They both sell life insurance packages but each salesman has a different approach to selling. In April, Victor brought business worth $10,000 but spent $3,000 on travelling. Dan on the other hand, did all his selling on the phone and was able to sell $9,000. His phone bill was $50. When we consider the two salesmen, we find that Victor is less efficient than Dan because although the total volume of sales is higher, he uses more resources thus creating a smaller profit for the company.Victor is more productive because he was able to bring in more, but Dan is more efficient because he used fewer resources.There are several ways that you can increase your efficiencyand still achieve positive results. The first one is seen in the above example. You can decide to reduce your resource utilization. If your method of getting the job done involves large expenses, you can choose to look for a way to get the same work done without having to incur the expense like what Dan did.The other method of increasing efficiency is reducing wastage. For example, if Victor analyzed his method and found that he visited an average of three clients per day, he can plan the visits in a way that allows him to talk to more people every day. For example, he can schedule appointments with all the clients in a specific area, say, a five block radius,on one day to minimize the time wasted getting from one client to the other.This way, although his travel expenses will not go down, he will be able to meet more clients and as a result, he will stand a chance of increasing the volume of business he brings in a month.If you work in a factory where your primary objective is to process raw materials, you can do this by reducing any wastage of raw materials or time during the processing. For example, measures can be taken to reduce sp illages during transport. Another measure that can help is sending operators to another station when their machine breaks down.Let’s now take a look at how you can improve each of these in your business by looking at the factors affecting productivity and efficiency.FACTORS AFFECTING PRODUCTIVITYManagement: It’s a well-known fact that management plays a big role in determining productivity. Good management often leads to good performance. Studies have shown that the training, development and encouragement managers give their employees will determine to a great extent how productive the employees become. Managers should keep their promises to employees and they should focus on encouraging the workforce.Office Design: Studies have shown that there is a direct link between productivity and the design of the office. One study showed that improving the physical environment in the office could improve productivity by up to 22%. In the same study, 89% of respondents blamed the office e nvironment for their dissatisfaction with their job. Some of the important things to consider about the office environment include the furniture, lighting, temperature and noise.Breaks: If you are the kind of person who sits at your desk in the morning and work non-stop until evening, you are not getting the most out of your time at work. There are numerous studies that show a positive effect on your productivity from taking breaks. So take a break. You will not lose momentum. If anything, that break will help you stay focused for longer hence your performance on the task will be improved.Man Power: To be able to get the best results, then you need to make the best selection. You need to give the job to the right man. Don’t ask a doctor to do an engineer’s work or vice versa. The other important thing is training. You need to ensure that your workforce is properly trained for the job. Finally, you need to ensure that there are enough people to do the work.Technology:  Although t echnology is often seen as a distraction, when properly it will significantly enhance office productivity. However, you need to also make sure that you pick the right tool for the job. You need to check to make sure that the new technology you are buying will integrate with your existing systems.Input Materials: This comes into play where there are raw materials used in the process. As the popular saying goes, garbage in, garbage out. When you don’t monitor the quality of materials going in, you can easily find yourself with too many defects. As a result, you will have fewer usable products from your raw materials.Vision and Strategy: Employees are generally more productive when they are in an environment where they are motivated to succeed. Having a clear vision for the company and a strategy for getting there makes employees feel involved in helping the company succeed and with that they are also inspired to achieve their personal goals. Involving employees in setting company go als will not only motivate them to be more productive, but it will also encourage innovation that will help the company adapt to changes in the markets.Incentives:  When employees feel that the company has made a commitment to making them achieve their goals, they will work harder towards achieving these goals. Think about it. Where are you likely to perform better between a company that offers bonuses when you hit your targets and another one where there are no rewards for good performance? Incentives can be in form of bonuses, promotions or direct involvement in decision making.Employee Evaluations: Regular evaluation of performance is beneficial to both the employees and management. Evaluations should be interactive where the manager gives feedback â€" both positive and negative â€" on the employee’s performance and the employee gets a chance to talk about the lessons learned since the last evaluation and also to suggest improvements that they would like to see moving forward. Taking suggestions alone is not enough. Where possible, you should incorporate these suggestions in the decisions you make as a manager. This will make them feel happy, needed and as a result, they will be more productive.Stress: Stress also affects productivity but on the other side of the scale. If robs you of your concentration hence you are not able to focus on the tasks that you are supposed to be focusing on. When you are distracted, you are not able to make appropriate decisions at the right time and that will be seen in your output.Job Security: This is a very common cause of uncertainty in workers. This uncertainty is a big reason behind the lack of productivity in employees. Put yourself in an employee’s boots. How would you work if you feel that you can be sent home any minute? Chances are that you will not work to your full potential. Most of your time will be spent worrying because you are not sure when you will be sent packing. You will also second guess every decisi on that you make because who knows? It could be the one that causes your boss to send you home. Managers should avoid firings and layoffs unless they are absolutely necessary. If something like a layoff does occur, managers need to meet with the remaining employees and explain the circumstances and also to give them an assurance that no further layoffs are anticipated in the future.Heavy Workloads: Have you ever found yourself with so much to do that you end up doing nothing? If you are like most people, it becomes very difficult to focus and most of the time you find yourself worrying about the work on your to-do list. That is the same thing that will happen to your employees. In addition to reducing their productivity, it will leave them stressed out, demoralized, and also take a toll on their health.Inadequate Resources: When assigning a task to someone, you should ensure that you provide sufficient time and material resources for the task. This will encourage them to perform to the best of their ability and as a result, they will be proud of their achievements.Poor Health Conditions: An employee with deteriorating health condition will not be productive in the workplace. Every time this employee misses work, someone else will have to carry the workload and the end result is worse for everyone. To counteract this, invest in your employees’ health by providing health coverage for them. Investing in gym memberships and other holistic clubs for employees will promote your employees health and that will have positive results on the company’s performance in the long run.Let’s now look at how you can improve efficiency.FACTORS AFFECTING EFFICIENCYWorking Hours: Long working hours with no breaks will quickly wear you down. After a few hours of continuous work, you will find yourself tired and mentally drained and as a result it will be hard to concentrate on your work. That’s where the problems start coming in. Your attention to detail will not be as sharp as it should be and as a result, you will miss details that will cause the quality of the output to drop.Compensation: Highly paid workers who receive their dues in full and on time will usually do a better job than their counterparts who are poorly paid. Workers who are poorly paid won’t feel appreciated by the company and in return, they will not put their hearts into the tasks they are assigned. They will always be grumbling since they will be trying to do only what they have to do. Anything that’s not their responsibility is none of their business so you can’t rely on them.Incentives: Just like it is with productivity, incentives can also encourage employees to work efficiently. This time, instead of rewarding high productivity, you focus more on efficiency. For example, rewarding the department with minimum wastes will encourage everyone to try and make the best use of the available resources. You just need to make sure that the method used to determine the department to award is fair and clear enough for everyone to understand.Relationship between employer and employees: There are cases where employers oppress their employees simply because they are in power and nothing can be done to them. In such cases, employees will usually feel that they are too weak to confront the employer. For that reason, the employees might resort to fighting back using other methods that don’t leave them exposed. Most of these methods affect the quality of output hence resources are wasted. For example, a machine operator can loosen a fastener deliberately so that the machine breaks down so that he can be allowed to rest as the machine is being fixed.Competence: Picking the right worker for the job is more beneficial to the employer. This is because the quality will be top-notch and they will usually not need to work under strict supervision. Defective outputs will also be at a minimum. So invest in training your employees and they will thank you with higher efficienc y.Health: Healthy individuals are always more efficient than their counterparts with health problems. If the job environment exposes your employees to hazardous materials, make sure you invest in sufficient protective equipment to show that you are concerned about their well-being. There is nothing scarier than being sent to work on a station where the previous colleague left due to work related illnesses.Technology: Modern technology enables us to achieve much more than what we would have been able to achieve when working using conventional methods. Machines are able to produce a higher quality of output faster when compared to men working using their bare hands. Invest in new technology to save on labor and also to improve the quality of your outputs.Distractions: Every time you are distracted from your work, it can take you up to 15 minutes before your brain can go back to full concentration on the task. This back and forth switching between several tasks overloads your brain and as a result, you will get tired faster. Multitasking can reduce your efficiency by up to 40% so it’s important that you avoid distractions at all costs if your goal is to maximize efficiency.Work floor Layout: Sometimes we lose a lot of time moving back and forth around the work floor. This is time that can be put to good use and help increase out output. With this in mind, it is important to design the work floor in an organized and efficient manner. If it is a factory, the floor should be designed in the systematic flow of processes so that there will be no need to move materials long distances from one machine to the next one.Goals and Targets: Picture this: Employee A goes to work at 9 in the morning and knowing that she will be there until 5 in the evening. She knows her duties, but she doesn’t have specific goals or targets for the day. Employee B on the other hand knows that before the end of the day, she will need to have finished and handed in the report about last wee k’s activity. Which of the two employees will be more efficient? More likely than not, Employee B will achieve more. This is because she is well motivated towards achieving her goal for the day.Encourage employees to ask questions: Somebody once said that prevention is better than cure. It certainly is more efficient to prevent than to cure a problem. In most cases, employees are very reluctant to ask for guidance. Some of them don’t want to appear like they lack specific knowledge and others are just scared. Make sure you hammer the point home that it is okay to ask questions whenever someone is stuck. This will help you avoid costs associated with employees failing after trying to do something they are not conversant with.HOW TO MAXIMIZE BOTH EFFICIENCY AND PRODUCTIVITYSince both these things are beneficial to the business, the million dollar question is whether it is possible to maximize both in the same business. Maximizing efficiency requires deliberate focus on every singl e detail of your work and that will usually eat up more time. As a result, you will not be able to produce as much hence your productivity can be reduced.With this in mind, it is important to strike a balance between the two that works best for your company. Here are some things that you can do strike this balance:Regularly assess your process to make sure that you are using the most effective methods for achieving the various tasks. Where possible, make improvements that will either improve product quality or reduce the turnaround time.Listen to your employees and identify any common obstacles that they encounter as they go about their duties. These common obstacles will be your starting point when looking for a way to improve your process. Instead of only tracking changes in output, you can also track improvements such as time saved on tasks like searching for documents.Identify the most profitable balance between productivity and efficiency and communicate the same to your employ ees. For example, having a quality check after each processing station in the manufacturing process will help identify defects early so no resources are going to be spent processing defective products that will eventually end up in the recycle bin. However, doing this will also cost you valuable time and valuable man hours. You therefore need to make a compromise and pick a few critical stations â€" depending on the length of your manufacturing process â€" where you will do the quality check. This way, you will still identify defects reasonably early without having to pay the full price of doing a quality check per station.Understand your market and build products for them. If your target market is looking for high end products and they are willing to pay a premium for it, then you’ll need to focus more on efficiency and quality. If on the other hand they are looking for the cheapest product, you can cut some corners and focus more on getting more output without incurring a high p roduction cost. An example would be the luxury car market where a lot of attention is paid on the details sometimes to the extent of hand-making most of the components of the car vis-à-vis the other mass produced cars.No matter the line of business that you are in, there will always be a benefit of working more efficiently and striving to improve your productivity. With the current trend, the business that will survive will be the one that makes the most out of the resources that are available to it. So make sure that you carefully analyze your processes and identify ways that you can improve the efficiency of your processes.

China And Africa Term Paper

Africa is a continent with vast untapped and unexploited natural resources, and China due to its growing economy; has a demand for these resources. China has therefore helped Africa to re-establish it self as source of valuable commodities for the Global market and also assisted to put a focus on Africa’s politics and why it remains poor (Snow 1998, 64). China’s interest in Africa is empirical and obvious; it needs to secure oil for its fast growing economy and Africa is open to the idea, in inference to the opportunity of foreign investment. Chinese industries rely heavily on imported raw materials, for example, Zambia abundantly supplies copper and the Democratic Republic of Congo supplies cobalt and precious metals like diamonds. For China, Africa is a safety value for its growing population. In the past India merchants have prospered for long in Africa and today Chinese migrant traders are increasingly concerning the markets. There are Chinatowns increasingly popping up in various parts of the African continent, where cheap commodities like shoes, house-hold wares and cloths are being dumped (Dan 2009, 121). The Chinese investor has targeted oil rich countries, constructing infrastructure for them, with the fallacy of dishing out big loans, while the labor and equipments are been imported from China. China presents it self as a poor nation so as to gain alliances with the 50 plus African nations in the global summits- what a personal contradiction. These alliances ensure that China gets votes in the UN General assembly, consistently making Africa very useful both economically and politically. Because the votes could help China in the future, if ever there would arise a row over Taiwan and many other sanctions. In return Africa gets booming trade with China, export of raw materials and this helps the African economies to grow. The intellectual autonomy China has over Africa is that, Africa continues to export unprocessed goods and its industries continue to diminish, leaving a lot of locals unemployed. For example the collapse of various textile industries, factories and local manufactures, while China’s industries flourish because they have both supply of raw material and market for their goods in Africa (Alden 2007, 56). But in comparison to the western companies, that have been known for their corrupt practices and undermining the Africans, the Chinese companies have been well received even though it is based on a fallacy that is not automatically visible to them. The Pros China has increasingly become a role model for Africa, because of its phenomenal economic growth. It has given inspiration to small African economies that they too can become important economic players in the global scene. The key lessons China offers Africa are as follows: China has a large domestic market which has served as a major stimulus for its innovations and economic growth. With that kind of inference, African countries are now focused on promoting regional integration, for example The East Africa Corporation, so as to expand their internal markets. Africa is also learning from China that to experience economic growth, it must invest heavily in infrastructure as a foundation for economic renewal. And the positive attribute to this is that China is providing resources, in form of infrastructure, to support Africa. There has been increased investment in Science and Technology that has vastly assisted China experience an economic transformation. China has therefore given it self the mandate to strengthen the scientific infrastructure of the African continent, as well as increasing the admission of African students to its universities. For example, recently there was a launch of a postdoctoral program for African students and the study entails a package of $22000 worth of scientific equipments after the completion of the study. Africa is also learning from China that good governance can lead to consistency on economic growth. Africa took up multi-party democracy, because the world views western style of democracy as a prerequisite for economic growth. But it is empirical to state that it is inconclusive making it a fallacy. It takes concerted collective effort to foster any kind of growth. Western industrialized countries have therefore been offered new opportunities to engage with Africa on terms that are without prejudice, as they did before. Countries like the United Kingdom are responding with intuition to the challenge by seeking renewed relations, through regional integration bodies. The issues involved go beyond interest in natural resources and market for commodity, because the centre of global stability and security is fast emerging to be the African continent (Taylor 1998, 23). The Cons In another perspective, China’s involvement in Africa is being viewed as predatory, odious and brutish. Some African leaders like the former president of South Africa, Thambo Mbeki, have warned against China’s persistence in pushing for raw materials, they feel it is a new form of neo-colonialist adventure. That in exchange for its raw materials, Africa gets low quality imports and little attention to developing an impoverished continent. Human right groups in the 1980 had lobbied for certain ethical standards for western companies who were doing business in Africa. There was also a foreign corrupt practices Act which prohibited the United States companies from paying bribes to corrupt African government officials. Contrary to that effect, Chinese enterprises operate in Africa with no morals and ethical constraints. Based on the inferences like the relationship between Sudan and China, it is empirical to state that, China can deal with any rogue regime in Africa so long as its quest for raw materials is met and there is market for its commodities. This is because a state like Sudan has been in war and many of its Southerners displaced because of the civil war that has been in the country for several decades. Yet China supplies military arms to them so that it can have access to the oil that is available in Sudan. It also supplies arms to Zimbabwe, Ethiopia and other repressive governments, while using its veto power i n the UN, to block sanctions against the same tyrannical regimes (â€Å"The Economist† 2011). China secures its contracts through outright bribery. They offer to build presidential palaces (as was the case in Zimbabwe, Angola and Sudan) and sport stadiums in exchange for a major contract. To say that China’s deals are transparent is nothing but a theory which can be discounted by the facts against it: The deals are based on barter terms that are dictated by them. In such a case, there arise contradictions to the Sino- African agreement of 2006, where they stated a win-win situation for both parties. A good inference, is the exploration of oil in Nigeria, and in exchange China rebuilds its dilapidated railway system, while supplying all the necessary equipment and importing personnel from China at a price that they will determine. In such a case, there arise a great opportunity for exploitation and plunder of African rich resources. This is an outright contradiction to the agreement. Further more, the influx of Chinese products in to the African market has evidently led to the devastation of local industries, consequently leading to loss of employment for the African locals as factories closedown throughout the continent. One of the most affected areas is the textile industry, where Chinese synthetic fabrics flood the market replacing cotton that is readily available in Africa. These being the case, anti-Chinese sentiment are arising in different parts of Africa, a good example, in South Africa traders threatened not to sell Chinese manufactured goods, else where some Chinese workers in Africa have been attacked and even killed by local Africans. This is definitely a valid reason to question on the positive implications of the relationship between Africa and China. Intellectual autonomy is a matter of great concern in the increased engagement of China and Africa as it halts steps towards democratic accountability and better governance. The West may have extreme prejudice when dealing with nations that do not progress on these fronts, but China see’s that as an opportunity to strike a deal. In 2003, the IMF suspended a pledge of aid to Angola amounting to $ 2 billion, because of rampant corruption. China saw it as great opportunity to strike an oil deal with the Angola’s government, and as an incentive, they also offered the $ 2 billion for the aid that Angola required. The world views China’s intentions in Africa as noble, but its real intentions are known; to elbow out Western companies, to get access to resources at a cheaper price, seek untapped markets for the Chinese manufactured goods and dump its surplus population in Africa. The sheer acceptance of the Chinese workers and experts as part of the development package for the African nations is causing a spring up of Chinese communes across Africa. In Zambia the expatriates from China have reached a disturbing number of 100000, with Nigeria having a total of about 120000 and Namibia 40000, not forgetting that these numbers are increasing by the day. But the apparent thing is that the Chinese government has a secret plan called Chongqing Experiment, and it aim is to resettle over 12 million Chinese farmers on African soil; whether this is a mere theory is yet to be proven but the facts are overwhelming that such an experiment may exist. China has surely experienced rapid economic growth, but this has come with an immeasurable cost on the environment. So if Africa does not adopt low-carbon growth strategies, the economic transformation will not be realized. This is because development that impacts negatively on the environment is short lived as within no time the natural resources will be depleted leaving industries with no raw materials (Freeman 1975, 104). It is evident that China has assisted in propelling Africa’s economic growth rate, being the second largest trading partner, after United States. It is importing 1/3 of Africans crude oil and Africa needs the infrastructure being provided by China to rebuild its dilapidated infrastructure to increaser its economic productivity. But as China deepens its forays into Africa, the continent should be careful not to come from neo-colonialism, into a new form of neo-colonialism being offered by China.

Modern Man In Search Of A Soul by C.G. Jung Essay examples

Modern Man In Search Of A Soul by C.G. Jung In his book, Modern Man In Search Of A Soul, C.G. Jung gives a layperson insight into his ideas on dream analysis. Jungs primary objective in this book is to educate the reader as to what a psychoanalyst does when analyzing a patients dreams. The principal message in the section of the book centered on dream analysis is that dreams should never stand alone. Dreams are meaningless in a vacuum, but on the other hand when put against a strict set of rules, they are oftentimes misunderstood. The unconscious is a fluid entity and cannot be handled either in isolation or with a static set of guidelines. Dreams are reflections of the unconscious and can represent many different things inside of†¦show more content†¦Her dreams would be more and more open with different therapists until she reached Jung and her initial dreams embraced him and they subsequently had a productive analysis. The cause of this patients neurosis came to light later, but was in no way present in her initial dreams. Dreams can often be anticipatory and are misleading if looked at in merely causalistic ways. When a doctor understands a patient completely and the patient seems to have no understanding of himself, an analyst will frequently accuse the patient of resistance. It is recommended that if an analyst holds all of the understanding, then he should stress where he lacks understanding of the patient. Even if an analyst comes to a sound conclusion of the meaning of a dream, but the patient is reluctant to agree, the therapist should not push this understanding on the patient. In this case the analyst should work with the patient to come to a mutually gratifying conclusion. This will result in an understanding not only in the brain, as in the first case, but also in the heart which will eventually help cure the patient of his neurosis. Analysts who derive their interpretations of dreams on preconceived notions or a one-sided theory and then proceed to push these interpretations onto their patients have to do so by suggestion. Suggestion is a valuable tool for short-term small fixes. When an analyst uses suggestion as the basis of the analysis itShow MoreRelatedModern Man In Search Of A Soul Essay1695 Words   |  7 Pages In his book, Modern Man In Search Of A Soul, C.G. Jung gives a layman knowledge into his thoughts on dream investigation. Jung s essential goal in this book is to instruct the peruser in the matter of what a psychoanalyst does while breaking down a patient s fantasies. The vital message in the book focused on dream investigation is that fantasies ought to never remain solitary. Dreams are inane in a vacuum, however then again when set against a strict arrangement of guidelines, they are generallyRead MoreEssay on Bram Stokers Dracula as a Romantic Myth4296 Words   |  18 PagesChristianity. Christ dies for the sins of humanity and rises from his own death so that humanity may achieve life after death. Dracula dies for the sin of his brides (Elisabetas) suicide and rises from his own death so that their souls may again be linked in soul-love one day. In the Catholic mass, worshippers continually feast upon the blood and body of Christ in order to maintain their mortal link with the immortal life of the divine. Dracula feasts upon the blood and body of mortal lifeRead MoreEssay on Jungian Psychology and Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness6193 Words   |  25 Pagesentangling metaphoric realities of the serpentine Congo. Conrad’s novella descends into the unknowable darkness at the heart of Africa, taking its narrator, Marlow, on an underworld journey of individuation, a modern odyssey toward the center of the Self and the center of the Earth. Ego dissolves into soul as, in the interior, Marlow encounters his double in the powerful image of ivory-obsessed Kurtz, the dark shadow of European imperialism. The dark meditation is graced by personifications of anima in Kurtz’Read MoreThe Origins of Dream Interpretation4085 Words   |  16 Pagesdream interpretation began or how long dream analysis has been carried o ut. It is probably a good bet that the interpretation and analysis of peoples dreams has been part of society in one form or another as long as we have been having dreams. Early man must have found dreams to be both frightening and fascinating and must have been confused by this bizarre manner of consciousness. It is clear that many ancient civilizations placed great significance on the events occurring in dreams as well as the

Milton’s Satan in Paradise Lost Free Essays

Critics abroad have argued about who the hero is of John Milton’s â€Å"Paradise Lost:† Satan, Adam or Christ, the Son? Since Milton’s overall theme stated in the opening lines of Book I is to relate ‘Man’s first disobedience’ and to ‘justify the ways of God to men’, Adam must be regarded as the main hero. John M. Steadman supports this view in an essay on â€Å"Paradise Lost:† â€Å"It is Adam’s action which constitutes the argument of the epic. We will write a custom essay sample on Milton’s Satan in Paradise Lost or any similar topic only for you Order Now Steadman continues: The Son and Satan embody heroic archetypes and that, through the interplay of the infernal and celestial strategies, Milton represents Satan’s plot against man and Christ’s resolution to save him as heroic enterprises. Christ and Satan are therefore epic machines. (268-272) Although Satan may be an epic machine, he is best portrayed as the tragic anti-hero of â€Å"Paradise Lost† or, at the very least, a main character who possesses the stature and attributes which enable him to achieve tragic status. In the Greek tradition, the essential components of tragedy are admiration, fear and pity for the ‘hero’, who has to display a tragic weakness or flaw in his character, which will lead to his downfall. It might be argued that the flaws in Satan’s character are such that we should feel no admiration, fear or pity for him, yet he can be seen to inspire these emotions. Satan’s tragic flaws are pointed out in Book I. They are envy, pride, and ambition towards self-glorification. Satan’s pride, in particular, is stressed throughout Paradise Lost. In accordance with epic convention, Satan is frequently qualified by Milton’s use of the word ‘proud’. Virgil used the same device in his epic the Aeneid, in which the name of Aeneas rarely appears without being preceded by ‘pious’. The most striking visual example of Satan’s main weaknesses appears in Book IV (89-90) during Raphael’s narrative to Adam regarding the battles in Heaven, Raphael refers to Satan as ‘the proud/Aspirer’. Proud’ at the end of one line and ‘Aspirer’ at the beginning of the next gives equal emphasis and impact to Satan’s pride and ambition and it is implied that, in Satan, the two characters are inseparable and of equal importance. Milton, in fact, defended his use of blank verse as a suitable vehicle for epic poetry, as opposed to the frequently favored heroic couplet. How then, does Satan inspire t he feelings of admiration, fear and pity necessary to a tragic figure? Milton was, undoubtedly, conscious that he was in danger of portraying Satan as too much of a heroic figure and made efforts to belittle im through the use of unflattering imagery, and by highlighting his less complimentary characteristics. Nonetheless, our emotions are still fired. Our first encounter with Satan and his rebel hosts occurs in Book I when they are recovering from the shock of having been expelled from heaven by the Son after three days of fighting the angels of God. Despite the defeat he has suffered, Satan gains our admiration by displaying resilience in quickly coming to terms with the change in his circumstances, in remustering his forces and organizing the building of his palace, Pandemonium. At the same time he demonstrates his determination not to be defeated and shows true qualities of leadership, persuasively arguing that there is still hope for battle and victory. Satan is convincing in his first speech to Beelzebub, his chief partner in crime, as he declares: What though the field be lost? All is not lost; the unconquerable will, And study of revenge, immortal hate, And courage never to submit or yield: And what is else not to be overcome? That glory never shall his wrath or might Extort from me. (I. 105-111) The language here is particularly powerful and the lines are extremely weighted, underlining Satan’s resolution. He similarly instills renewed resolve in his followers to challenge God and hope of regaining their former state, claiming that they are now better placed to contend because there is not fear of division in their own ranks (II. 11-42). He then gives his supporters the opportunity to speak their minds as to whether to engage in open warfare or in guile to achieve their end; although ultimately they agree the course of action he has pre-planned – that is, to introduce evil on Earth. Through Satan’s speech at the beginning of Book I, Milton emphasizes Satan’s self-glorification. Satan has no dread of being challenged in hell because he sees himself in the most dangerous position and the one to be most severely reprimanded by God. Satan is daring, which is best demonstrated when the resolve to send someone to investigate Earth has been taken and Satan offers to undertake the task. Milton diminishes Satan’s courage by points out that Satan stands forward with bravado and purely to gain personal glory for any success he might win. Yet, Satan does not volunteer immediately but is only undertaking what his followers are afraid to attempt. Milton’s suggestion is, however, supported by Satan’s speech itself, in which he states that he will go to Earth alone and defies any of his followers to accompany him in case they detract any of the hoped for acclaim from him. Satan’s courage is restored during Milton’s description of Satan’s journey through Chaos to Earth – in fact, the poet dedicates over 400 lines to such – (II. 629-1055) – and Satan’s exaggerated claims to his peers of the danger and difficulty of his enterprise when he returns to Hell in Book X after the seduction of Adam and Eve are not without some justification (X. 460-80). In Book IV (917-23) when the angels guarding Paradise confront Satan, Gabriel also belittles Satan by accusing him of being less valiant than his peers and less able to endure the pain of hell. There appears to be some inconsistency during this confrontation between Satan and the angels towards the end of Book IV. Having become even more steadfast in his determination to seduce Adam and Eve against God’s will and now directing his hatred against man also as a result of his envy of their happy state (IV. 502-35), it seems inconsistent that the next time he speaks, he is so sensitive to the taunts uttered by Zephon, Ithuriel and Gabriel. Although Satan’s scorn for the angels is still apparent, he stands ‘abashed’ and provides Gabriel with the means by which to insult him (IV. 888-90): â€Å"Lives there who loves his pain? Who would not, finding way, break loose from hell, Though thither doomed? † It is important that we believe in the Satan as portrayed in Books I and II: Milton’s argument depends upon that belief. Satan must be seen as being of sufficient stature to attempt God’s overthrow. If Satan is considered too weak, he can pose no threat to God or to Man and there would be no reason for Milton to ‘justify the ways of God to men’. Therefore, while making allowances for Satan’s arrogance in the opening Books of Paradise Lost, he does give the impression that he is ruling hell and it is not expedient to deliberate to what extent it is possible for Satan to succeed in his quest to corrupt God’s good works with evil. The very structure of Paradise Lost assists in creating the illusion of Satan’s power, since we first learn of the expulsion of Satan and his followers through the rebels themselves and it is not until much later when Raphael tells Adam of the wars in heaven in Books V and VI that we hear the ‘official’ version in which Satan emerges in a less favorable light. Stanley Fish in his essay, ‘The Harassed Reader in Paradise Lost,† argues that Satan possesses a form of heroism which is easy to admire because it is visible and flamboyant and that, on that basis, Satan’s attractiveness is only initial (Fish 189-190). B Rajan, on the other hand, writes: The heroic qualities which Satan brings to his mission, the fortitude, the steadfast hate, the implacable resolution, which is founded on despair, are qualities not to be imitated or admired. They are defiled by the evil to which they are consecrated’ (Rajan 190). Nonetheless, it is often Satan’s despair, which comes through more potently than his evil intentions. Satan’s bravado is most clearly evident in Books I and II when he is able to flaunt before his followers; by Book IV, his feeling of confidence and resolution shows signs of cracking, with Satan talking to himself he is revealing much about his inner torment and self-doubts. As his steadfastness wavers, some of his initial charisma also diminishes, as we become more aware of his ability to fall. This argument is reinforced by Milton’s physical description of Satan. In Books I and II, Satan appears an impressive figure, â€Å"In bulk as huge/As whom the fables name of monstrous size† (I. 196-7). He is conspicuous amongst his followers because of his size and his lustre, which, although faded, outshines that of his peers (I. 589-604). On closer examination, however, it emerges that, even in Book I, Milton has been careful to downgrade Satan. Milton states that Satan â€Å"stood like a tow’r’ and that his lustre was like the sun’s through mist. The first simile is bare and unqualified and, in essence, tells us nothing about Satan’s dimensions or his stance. A tower may be any size and of too wide a variety of constructions for the simile to be of any significance. The reference to Satan’s reduced brightness is a symbol of his fall from glory and failing strength; and is mentioned by Ithuriel and Zephon in Book IV when while maki ng fun of they suggest to Satan that his lack of lustre has made him almost unrecognizable. Our fear and pity for Satan can be considered together since they stem from the same cause. On one level, Satan can be regarded as pitiful as much as pitiable. Although it is undoubtedly not Milton’s intention, it is almost possible to view Satan throughout in the light of sympathetic pity, especially if we accept that Satan cannot be something other than what he is no matter how much he wrestles with hons constantly shifting and mounting in intensity, the dramatic individual grows, expands, developes to the point where, at the end of the drama, he looms upon the mind as a titanic personality infinitely richer that at the beginning. This dramatic personality in its manifold stages of actuation in as artistic creation. In essence Macbeth, like all other men, is inevitably bound to his humanity; the reason of order, as we have seen, determines his inescapable relationship to the natural and eternal law, compels inclination toward his proper act and end but provides him with a will capable of free choice, and obliges his discernment of good and evil. How to cite Milton’s Satan in Paradise Lost, Papers

Mcdonald’s Essay Example

Mcdonald’s Essay McDonald’s, based in California, USA, has become the most famous and successful fast-food restaurants all over the world. Since the first McDonald’s opened in 1955, till now, McDonald’s has established more than 32,000 chain stores over 100 countries, serving more than 60 million people each day, and gaining around 15 billions incomes per year. In addition, McDonald’s keeps enhancing its brand imagine through different social activities and the sponsorship of special events and sports. (www. McDonalds. com. au) Why McDonald’s is so successful? How can it achieve this? The reason why McDonald’s is so successful is it well implements several business strategies. This essay is going to analyze the recipe of success of McDonal’s and argues that how business strategy influence the staffing strategy. The business strategy of McDonald’s is to deliver outstanding service to its customers, that is to provide its customers quality, cleanliness, quick service and value. Poter’s specialization strategy can help better understand McDonal’s business strategy. Poter (as cited in Phillips and Gully,2011, pp. 31) stated that firms using specialization strategy can be either cost leaders or differentiators. Such a strategy â€Å"focus on a narrow market segment or niche-a single product, a particular end use, or buyers with special needs†. Companies pursue specialization strategy can focus on a particular buyer group, either through a low price or differentiated products or services that other competitors cannot imitate. The nature of McDonalds product is food which everybody needs this makes the idea of a narrow focus strategy a little less likely for McDonalds. The specialization strategy is a combine of cost-leadership strategy or differentiation strategy. We will write a custom essay sample on Mcdonald’s specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Mcdonald’s specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Mcdonald’s specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Businesses adopt such a strategy often try to develop a competitive advantage through customer intimacy and try to gain and increase customers’ loyalty through meeting their customers’ needs by delivering unique products or services. When hiring empolyees, it is very important that employers should focus on employees’ good people skills. McDonal’s competitive advantage is to provide its customers quality, cleanliness, quick service and value. In such a situation, hiring people with experience and good interpersonal skills can help Mcdonal’s to implement its business strategy However, many of its restaurant employees re teenagers without any work experience. Why is that? As Bechet( 2002, p. 167)stated, business strategy can influence staffing strategy. McDonal’s specialization strategy can be either cost leadership strategy or differentiation strategy. The main focus of cost leadership strategy is to keep costs and prices low. Organizations th at adopt such a business strategy are try to build up a competitive advantage based on operational excellence that is to maximize the efficiency of the product development to minimize costs(Phillips and Gully 2011, pp. 0). Such an operational excellence requires companies to employ employees trainable and flexible, and have the ability to fulfill short-term production objectives by avoiding waste and lowering the company’s production coasts. Consequentially, it is not desirable to hire people who have experience and have high salary expectation because by adopting this strategy, employees require to work as team with a tight margin. It is not effectively for teamwork considering that employees pay disparity(Phillips and Gully 2011, pp. 31). In addition, McDonal’s is chain restaurants and views its employees as most important asset, which means that when hiring employess, it is necessary and significant to manage costs and control the asset, like managing other asset such as equipment or steel. As a result, the acquisition and deployment of the cheaper and the quicker the labor the better. By knowing this, McDonal’s turns to working hard at hiring employees without experience, but want to excel in delivering its outstanding service rather than their experienced counterparts. When business strategy formulate, it is important to find the right people to execute it. So staff is very important in that it is employees’ willingness and ability to implement the organizational business strategy (Bechet 2002, p. 168). Whether a company hiring long-term careers or short-term workers, or hiring people with related experience or people without experience, these are relate to staffing strategy. Staffing strategy according to Phillips and (Gully 2011, pp. 33), can reflect its business strategy, human resource strategy and talent philosophy. In the field of strategic human resource, Arthur found that Poretr’s generic strategies have association with human resource activities. In well managed companies, human resource activities have both long and short-term focus(Becker amp; Gerhart 1996, p. 783). On the short-term side, immediate staffing including recruiting and development are defined annually, often as integral part of the budgeting process. On the long-term part, directional plans of action, such as training and development programs, are supporting business strategies. What’s more, organizations should meet their staff’s needs. Thus, how to retain employees is the organizations’ top agenda (Becker amp; Gerhart 1996, p. 788). McDonald’s has refocused its efforts and realized the importance of providing customers with quality food in a clean and organized environment with quick service at an affordable price. In order to sustain its competitive advantage, from short-term perspective, McDonal’s need employees to deliver its service. Such work does not need highly skills and knowledge. From budget perspective, it is less costly to employ teenagers instead of experienced employees. However, from long-term perspective, McDonal’s try to retain its employees by providing them ongoing training and then promote from within to fill its managerial positions. Besides, for McDonal’s, the best way to hire quality people is to advertise inside the restaurant and aim at attract local people or through employee referral. Ullman (as cited in Shinnar, Youngamp; Meana 2004, P. 273) stated that applicants referred by current employees should prescreened these applicants and then decide to recommend. As screeners, current employees can know both the job and the individual. They know who has the ability to do this job. Moreover, current employees connect referral with their reputation. Therefore, they will only refer quality applicants. In the service industry, especially service of food, few managers would deny that employee turnover is not a problem. A major reason why employee turnover in food servers is such high is that the service work itself has the negative image: people have a bad impression when speak to jobs of such type, thinking it is a physical job with long hours, low pay, lack of benefits and hard work (DiPietro amp; Merwyn 2006, p. 73). The foodservice industry now is the number one private sector employer in the world and still presents a continuing growth. Due to this growth, how to recruit and retain hourly employees remain primary challenges to restaurant managers (National Restaurant Association as cited in DiPietro amp; Merwyn 2006, p. 178 ). The demographics of the world have changed so much that aging problems become businesses main challenge. There is a shortage of younger workers because of decades of low birth rates, who are traditionally main workforce in service restaurant industry. With the increasing shortage of available younger workers, it is recommended that companies such as McDonl’s turn to use older workers. Past attitudes towards older workers by employers are hard to train, lack creativity, have physically problems and be inflexible (Sargeant 2001, p. 146). However, they are not the whole truth. In fact, because of rapid development of medical knowledge and technology, along with healthy diets and lifestyles, there are increased physically older people (Barth amp; McNaught 1991, p. 423). Studies(DiPietro amp; Milman 2004, p. 5 ) showed that most older workers are more dependable, have less accidents, fewer absences, lower turnover than the younger counterparts. In addition, older workers have the ability to help to mentor the younger workers in problem solving. Furthermore, it is turned out to be that older workers can build a better rapport with customers by using their interpersonal skills. In conclusion, the recipe of success of McDonalâ€⠄¢s is to well implement business strategy it choose, However, how to manage and retain its employees is very important, because it is employees who have the motivation and ability to execute the business strategy. By knowing this, McDonal’s works hard to hire the right people and retain then by providing them ongoing training and promote from within for its managerial positions. Reference list Arthur, JB 1992, ‘ The link between business strategy and industrial relations systems in American steel minimills. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, vol45, pp. 488-506. Barth, MC amp; McNaught, W 1991, ‘The impact of future demographic shifts on the employment of older workers’. Human Resource Management, vol. 30, no. 1, pp. 420-434. Bechet, TP 2002, ‘Staffing strategy: A practical toolkit for workforce planning. Amacom, USA. Becker, B amp; Gerhart, B 1996, ‘The impact of human resource management on organizational performance: progress and prospects’ . Academy of Management Journal, vol. 39, pp. 779-801. DiPietro, RB amp; Merwyn LS 2006, ‘Management Perceptions of older employees in the U. S. quick service restaurant industry’, Human Resources in the Foodservice Industry, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 169-185. DiPietro, RB amp; Milman, A 2004 ‘Hourly employee retention factors in the quick service restaurant industry’, International Journal of Hospitaity amp; Tourism Administration, vol. 5, no. 4, pp. 31-51. Glasgow, KM 2001, A strategic model of temporary staffing, Routledge, New York. Olian, JD amp; Rynes, SL 1984, ‘Organizational staffing: integrating practice with strategy’, Industrial relations, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 170-183. Phillips, J and Gully, S 2011, Strategic Staffing, Pearson Education limited, London. Sargeant, M 2001 ‘Lifelong learning and age discrimination in employment’, Educa- tion and the Law, vol13, no. 2, pp. 141-155. Shinnar, RS, Young, CA amp; Meana, M 2004, ‘The motivations for and outcomes of employee rederrals’, Journal of Business and Psychology, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 271-283. Mcdonald’s Essay Example Mcdonald’s Essay McDonald’s, based in California, USA, has become the most famous and successful fast-food restaurants all over the world. Since the first McDonald’s opened in 1955, till now, McDonald’s has established more than 32,000 chain stores over 100 countries, serving more than 60 million people each day, and gaining around 15 billions incomes per year. In addition, McDonald’s keeps enhancing its brand imagine through different social activities and the sponsorship of special events and sports. (www. McDonalds. com. au) Why McDonald’s is so successful? How can it achieve this?The reason why McDonald’s is so successful is it well implements several business strategies. This essay is going to analyze the recipe of success of McDonal’s and argues that how business strategy influence the staffing strategy. The business strategy of McDonald’s is to deliver outstanding service to its customers, that is to provide its customers quality, cleanliness, quick service and value. Poter’s specialization strategy can help better understand McDonal’s business strategy. Poter (as cited in Phillips and Gully,2011, pp. 31) stated that firms using specialization strategy can be either cost leaders or differentiators.Such a strategy focus on a narrow market segment or niche-a single product, a particular end use, or buyers with special needs. We will write a custom essay sample on Mcdonald’s specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Mcdonald’s specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Mcdonald’s specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Companies pursue specialization strategy can focus on a particular buyer group, either through a low price or differentiated products or services that other competitors cannot imitate. The nature of McDonalds product is food which everybody needs this makes the idea of a narrow focus strategy a little less likely for McDonalds. The specialization strategy is a combine of cost-leadership strategy or differentiation strategy.Businesses adopt such a strategy often try to develop a competitive advantage through customer intimacy and try to gain and increase customers’ loyalty through meeting their customers’ needs by delivering unique products or services. When hiring empolyees, it is very important that employers should focus on employees’ good people skills. McDonal’s competitive advantage is to provide its customers quality, cleanliness, quick service and value. In such a situation, hiring people with experience and good interpersonal skills can help Mcdonal’s to implement its business strategy However, many of its restaurant employees re teenagers without any work experience. Why is that? As Bechet( 2002, p. 167)stated, business strategy can influence staffing strategy. McDonal’s specialization strategy can be either cost leadership strategy or differentiation strategy. The main focus of cost leadership strategy is to keep costs and prices low. Organizations that adopt such a business strategy are try to build up a competitive advantage based on operational excellence that is to maximize the efficiency of the product development to minimize costs(Phillips and Gully 2011, pp. 0). Such an operational excellence requires companies to employ employees trainable and flexible, and have the ability to fulfill short-term production objectives by avoiding waste and lowering the company’s production coasts. Consequentially, it is not desirable to hire people who have experience and have high salary expectation because by adopting this strategy, employees require to work as team with a tight margin. It is not effectively for teamwork considering that employees pay disparity(Phillips and Gully 2011, pp. 31).In addition, McDonal’s is chain restaurants and views its employees as most important asset, which means that when hiring employess, it is necessary and significant to manage costs and control the asset, like managing other asset such as equipment or steel. As a result, the acquisition and deployment of the cheaper and the quicker the labor the better. By knowing this, McDonal’s turns to working hard at hiring employees without experience, but want to excel in delivering its outstanding service rather than their experienced counterparts.When business strategy formulate, it is important to find the right people to execute it. So staff is very important in that it is employees’ willingness and ability to implement the organizational business strategy (Bechet 2002, p. 168). Whether a company hiring long-term careers or short-term workers, or hiring people with related experience or people without experience, these are relate to staffing strategy. Staffing strategy according to Phillips and (Gully 2011, pp. 33), can reflect its business strategy, human resource strategy and talent philosophy.In the field of strategic human resource, Arthur found that Poretr’s generic strategies have association with human resource activities. In well managed companies, human resource activities have both long and short-term focus(Becker amp; Gerhart 1996, p. 783). On the short-term side, immediate staffing including recruiting and development are defined annually, often as integral part of the budgeting process. On the long-term part, directional plans of action, such as training and development programs, are supporting business strategies. What’s more, organizations should meet their staff’s needs.Thus, how to retain employees is the organizations’ top agenda (Becker amp; Gerhart 1996, p. 788). McDonald’s has refocused its efforts and realized the importance of providing customers with quality food in a clean and organized environment with quick service at an affordable price. In order to sustain its competitive advantage, from short-term perspective, McDonal’s need employees to deliver its service. Such work does not need highly skills and knowledge. From budget perspective, it is less costly to employ teenagers instead of experienced employees.However, from long-term perspective, McDonal’s try to retain its employees by providing them ongoing training and then promote from within to fill its managerial positions. Besides, for McDonal’s, the best way to hire quality people is to advertise inside the restaurant and aim at attract local people or through employee referral. Ullman (as cited in Shinnar, Youngamp; Meana 2004, P. 273) stated that applicants referred by current employees should prescreened these applicants and then decide to recommend. As screeners, current employees can know both the job and the individual.They know who has the ability to do this job. Moreover, current employees connect referral with their reputation. Therefore, they will only refer quality applicants. In the service industry, especially service of food, few managers would deny that employee turnover is not a problem. A major reason why employee turnover in food servers is such high is that the service work itself has the negative image: people have a bad impression when speak to jobs of such type, thinking it is a physical job with long hours, low pay, lack of benefits and hard work (DiPietro amp; Merwyn 200 6, p. 73). The foodservice industry now is the number one private sector employer in the world and still presents a continuing growth. Due to this growth, how to recruit and retain hourly employees remain primary challenges to restaurant managers (National Restaurant Association as cited in DiPietro amp; Merwyn 2006, p. 178 ). The demographics of the world have changed so much that aging problems become businesses main challenge. There is a shortage of younger workers because of decades of low birth rates, who are traditionally main workforce in service restaurant industry.With the increasing shortage of available younger workers, it is recommended that companies such as McDonl’s turn to use older workers. Past attitudes towards older workers by employers are hard to train, lack creativity, have physically problems and be inflexible (Sargeant 2001, p. 146). However, they are not the whole truth. In fact, because of rapid development of medical knowledge and technology, along with healthy diets and lifestyles, there are increased physically older people (Barth amp; McNaught 1991, p. 423). Studies(DiPietro amp; Milman 2004, p. 5 ) showed that most older workers are more dependable, have less accidents, fewer absences, lower turnover than the younger counterparts. In addition, older workers have the ability to help to mentor the younger workers in problem solving. Furthermore, it is turned out to be that older workers can build a better rapport with customers by using their interpersonal skills. In conclusion, the recipe of success of McDonal’s is to well implement business strategy it choose, However, how to manage and retain its employees is very important, because it is employees who have the motivation and ability to execute the business strategy.By knowing this, McDonal’s works hard to hire the right people and retain then by providing them ongoing training and promote from within for its managerial positions. Reference list Arthur, JB 1 992, The link between business strategy and industrial relations systems in American steel minimills. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, vol45, pp. 488-506. Barth, MC amp; McNaught, W 1991, The impact of future demographic shifts on the employment of older workers’. Human Resource Management, vol. 30, no. 1, pp. 420-434. Bechet, TP 2002, Staffing strategy: A practical toolkit for workforce planning.Amacom, USA. Becker, B amp; Gerhart, B 1996, The impact of human resource management on organizational performance: progress and prospects’ . Academy of Management Journal, vol. 39, pp. 779-801. DiPietro, RB amp; Merwyn LS 2006, Management Perceptions of older employees in the U. S. quick service restaurant industry’, Human Resources in the Foodservice Industry, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 169-185. DiPietro, RB amp; Milman, A 2004 Hourly employee retention factors in the quick service restaurant industry’, International Journal of Hospitaity amp; Tourism Administra tion, vol. 5, no. 4, pp. 31-51.Glasgow, KM 2001, A strategic model of temporary staffing, Routledge, New York. Olian, JD amp; Rynes, SL 1984, Organizational staffing: integrating practice with strategy’, Industrial relations, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 170-183. Phillips, J and Gully, S 2011, Strategic Staffing, Pearson Education limited, London. Sargeant, M 2001 Lifelong learning and age discrimination in employment’, Educa- tion and the Law, vol13, no. 2, pp. 141-155. Shinnar, RS, Young, CA amp; Meana, M 2004, The motivations for and outcomes of employee rederrals’, Journal of Business and Psychology, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 271-283.

How to Write a Response Essay to an Article

How to Write a Response Essay to an Article How to Write a Response Essay to an Article Essays are mainly done in schools. They begin in the junior schools. Per level of education, different essays are done from the simplest to the complex ones depending on the level that one is in. Different essays are written for different reasons or are normally given under different instructions. Some of them are merely about creative writing while in others one has to do a research. This is where one does a research then after that they draft the essay depending on the research that they came up with. There are other essays that are done however. Essays that tend to respond to a certain article. The teacher gives the students an article then they are asked to answer the question asked in the article in an essay form. Such essays are response essays. The students will just read the article and they will answer according to how they feel mostly it is written in first person. Some of the students are not familiar to the essays so the teachers have to teach the students even if in college how to write a response essay to an article. The teachers mainly insist on the first part of the introduction that the students should read the article and understand it. They should read it at first for the first understanding. This is because this is where their response will be based. They will answer the question depending on how they will understand the article. The second thing that they should do is that they should now read the article thoroughly. Therefore to ensure that they understand the article and they will give the right response, they should read the article a number of times. As they read the article they should be able to make some notes that will help them in their response. They should be able to get some impressions as they tread the article and they should be able to put them in a way that they will help them in their response. Write as many points as you can depending on the impressions that you will get. Then after that, write an outline of those impressions. This will help you know whether you have the right impression or not. After writing the outlines then explain them on the basis of the article that you have. This way you will have the evidence that supports your work. After you have all this work then go ahead and draft your response essay. Whatever you will write then is the best that you could have therefore do not feel ashamed of what you have written. After the writing now you can submit the response. At writing company you can get professional response essay writing help from experts. Custom response essays written from scratch!

The Components of an Intriguing Biography

The Components of an Intriguing Biography A biography is a story of a persons life, written by another author. The writer of a biography is called a biographer while the person written about is known as the subject or biographee. Biographies usually take the form of a narrative, proceeding chronologically through the stages of a persons life. American author  Cynthia Ozick notes in her essay Justice (Again) to Edith Wharton that a good biography is like a novel, wherein it believes in the idea of a life as a triumphal or tragic story with a shape, a story that begins at birth, moves on to a middle part, and ends with the death of the protagonist. A biographical essay is a comparatively short work of nonfiction  about certain aspects of a persons life. By necessity, this  sort of essay  is much  more selective than a full-length biography, usually focusing only on key experiences and events in the subjects  life. Between History and Fiction Perhaps because of this novel-like form, biographies fit squarely between written history and fiction, wherein the author often uses personal flairs and must invent details filling in the gaps of the story of a persons life that cant be gleaned from first-hand or available documentation like home movies, photographs, and written accounts. Some critics of the form argue it does a disservice to both history and fiction, going so far as to call them unwanted offspring, which has brought a great embarrassment to them both, as Michael Holroyd puts it in his book Works on Paper: The Craft of Biography and Autobiography. Nabokov even called biographers psycho-plagiarists, meaning that they steal the psychology of a person and transcribe it to the written form. Biographies are distinct from creative non-fiction such as memoir in that biographies are specifically about one persons full life story from birth to death while creative non-fiction is allowed to focus on a variety of subjects, or in the case of memoirs certain aspects of an individuals life. Writing a Biography For writers who want to pen another persons life story, there are a few ways to spot potential weaknesses, starting with making sure proper and ample research has been conducted   pulling resources such as newspaper clippings, other academic publications, and recovered documents and found footage.    First and foremost, it is the duty of biographers to avoid misrepresenting the subject as well as acknowledging the research sources they used. Writers should, therefore, avoid presenting a personal bias for or against the subject as being objective is key to conveying the persons life story in full detail. Perhaps because of this, John F. Parker observes in his essay Writing: Process to Product that some people find writing a biographical essay easier than writing an  autobiographical  essay. Often it takes less effort to write about others than to reveal ourselves. In other words, in order to tell the full story, even the bad decisions and scandals have to make the page in order to truly be authentic.

The Lost Television Series Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Lost Television Series - Essay Example The pilot excels in the introduction of characters, addressing the genre of the show, which is mysterious to the audience, and in using exciting storyline and great visual effects in making the viewers amazed (Roberts 41). The Lost writers made no fault in naming the first episode of Lost as the pilot. The naming was not through accident. As illustrated in the show, the naming was not done for the sake of doing it. It was named purposefully. This can be illustrated by the fact that as one goes through the show, he or she will discover that every little information that the writers give to lost fans has a particular meaning connected to the storyline earlier or later on in the Lost’s mysterious plot. In this case, it is wise getting the meaning of name the Pilot. The episode is about the search for the cockpit of the oceanic 815 airliners. The pilot of the airliner is in the cockpit. Therefore, the Lost writers chose the name the Pilot intentionally to create a play on words since the pilot was in the cockpit, which was being searched. This name choice was a subtle hint given to the audience by the writers. In other words, they were revealing to the audience the sign of what to expect. It should be, however, noted that nothing has been put straightforward in the Lost show (Douglas 27). The introduction of the main character in the Pilot has been done quite nicely in the first season of the show. Consequently, it is Matthew Fox, Doctor Jack Shephard who has been introduced as the first character in the show’s first scene. A golden lab sprinting through the jungle awakes him. On waking up Jack there is a very exciting overhead shot of his eyes. Among most of the characters found throughout the season, we find many shots. The shots are meant to perhaps bring a reflection of the notion the eyes constitute the windows for accessing the soul.  Ã‚  

Ethics concepts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Ethics concepts - Essay Example "Modern fertility treatments became the focus of much media attention in 1993 after the widely publicised case in which a 59 year old woman was enabled to give birth to twins by means of in vitro fertilisation with donated eggs and her partner's sperm. Fertility treatments raise a wide range of ethical and social issues" (Koch, 1993, p.143). Such factors as the potential child's welfare and interests are critical reasons for refusing to provide a couple with fertility treatment. In spite of the fact that the issue of conception is foremost in the present discussion, I would like to exemplify the situation with the process of child adoption. Even though it differs from conception, because the child already exists, authorities have established a number of criteria for adoption: parents' welfare, their personal qualities, health status and other information should be taken into account. These criteria are partially determined by supply and demand: for instance, potential parents are forced to compete with each other, because the number of infertile families is larger that the number of orphans who are to be adopted. Similarly, in vitro fertilization, associated with conception, poses following question: (bluntly speaking) will the child benefit from being born to these parents or would it be better if he/she never existed The likelihood of the particular potential child being born to another couple simply does not exist, and conception therefore is dissimilar to adoption in this sense. Naturally, it is hard to determine when it would be more preferable if the potential child didn't exist; the fundamental worth of an individual's life cannot be either measured or quantified, least of all if this life hasn't been started yet. It is possible to say, however, that the level of parents' responsibility would be rather low for it to be more favorable not to be born. Society's unwillingness to take care of a child excepting the most traumatic circumstances of horrible parenting proves this (Koch, 1993). Using the example of the 59-year old woman who gave birth to twins, a most important obstruction is that the mother will probably die when they are still at the stage of childhood, i.e. not having brought them up. "No doubt, other things being equal, it is preferable to have a mother who survives well into one's own adulthood. But to put this forward as a sufficient reason for denying fertility treatment is tantamount to claiming that it is better never to have existed than for one's mother to have died when one is still quite young" (Brindsen, 1992,p.280). In addition, in the case of in vitro fertilization, the interests of society are masqueraded as the potential child's interests. The procedure of selecting couples for the fertilization itself looks like the other official procedures that involve difficulties in distributing resources. There are two major hazards in failing to differentiate between the interests of the certain potential child and those of the potential children who might be born if resources were used to help other prospective parents instead. The first risk is that medical specialists may wrongly withhold the fertilization of the certain couple even if refusal to help them is not likely to bring benefit to other couples. The second hazard is that society may fail to support the process of

Problems With the ACT and SAT Essay -- Standardized Testing Essays

Throughout high school and college we will go through a vast amount of testing but why? Testing is used to show a person’s amount of knowledge on a particular subject. Usually it’s for one specific subject and not a majority of them, the standardized tests include all testable subjects as in English, math, science, writing, and reading. However, before we can all begin our college careers we have to take one of two tests, the ACT or the SAT. These two tests determine the college you get into, the amount of scholarships you will receive, and even whether or not your will be accepted into any college. These standardized tests are used by schools because they find that it is an easy way to test a student’s ability. However, the issue in doing this is for example, the ACT is all multiple choice. Exams such as these do not give the option to include worded feedback to show that you at least know something about the subject. Multiple choice exams have this problem, they can’t test the information that a person fully knows, it only tests whether they chose the right answer or possibly just guessed it. With only a slew of multiple choice questions it can be easy to get a â€Å"good† score or a â€Å"bad† score. That’s why these tests are flawed, the results they show don’t prove anything or really show anything for that matter. So, using these long multiple choice exams are what college’s consider to be a reflection of a student’s grades during their first year at college. The test maker itself explains that grade point averages during high school paint a better picture than their tests ("The ACT: Biased, Inaccurate, and Misused" 1). College’s use these standardized tests as a quick measure of ability. However, a test cannot explo... ...Mar. 2014. Kohn, Alfie. N.p.. Web. 25 Mar 2014. . (Kohn) "The ACT: Biased, Inaccurate, and Misused." Fair Test. FairTest, 20 Aug 2007. Web. 25 Mar 2014. . ("The ACT: Biased, Inaccurate, and Misused") Meaghan, Diane, and Francois Casas. Bias in standardized testing and the misuse of test scores: Exposing the Achilles heel of education reform. Canadian Centre Policy Alternatives, 2004. 35-50. eBook. (Meaghan and Casas 35-50)

Swot Analysis of Railway Transportation

1. 1 Study objective * To fulfil the requirement of this module, Introduction to Land Transportation and Railways mode * The objective of this study is concerned with identifying Analysis of Railways Transport. * To gain extra knowledge on Land transportation that will help me now and in the future. 1. 2 Scope The first step concerns of introducing Land transport and Railways mode. Second step is showing the Strength and Weakness Analysis of Railways then discuss in details on Strength and Weakness points. 1. 3 Introduction We use various products in our daily life.But do we know where are they produced? Many of them are produced at different places far away from our locality. So how do we get them? These are carried on from all those places through rail, road or air and are made available to us at our locality. You must have seen trucks, tempo, bullock carts; etc. Those would be carrying products and raw materials from a place to another. Similarly, you also must have seen people tr avelling from one place to another by buses, trains, cars, scooters, rickshaws, cycles, etc. This movement of goods and individuals is very important in business.Because of this, raw materials reach the place of manufacture, finished products reach the place of sale or consumption, individuals move around to manage the business, etc. In this lesson, let us learn how goods and passengers move from one place to another. 2. 1 Mode of Transport Basically transport is possible through land, air or water, which is called the different modes of transport. On land we use trucks, tractors, etc. , to carry goods; train, bus, cars etc. to carry passengers. In air, we find aeroplanes, helicopters to carry passengers as well as goods.Similarly in water we find ships, steamers, etc. , to carry goods and passengers. All these are known as various means of transport. Let us discuss about various modes of transport. The modes of transport can be broadly divided into three categories: Land transport, Water transport and Air transport. 2. 2 Land Transport: Land transport refers to activities of physical movement of goods and passengers on land. This movement takes place on road, rail, rope or pipe. So land transport may further be divided into Road transport, Rail transport, Ropeway transport, pipeline transport.Let us know the details about Rail Transport. 2. 3 Rail transport Transportation of goods and passengers on rail lines through trains is called rail transport. It occupies an important place in land transport system of our country and is the most dependable mode of transport to carry goods and passengers over a long distance. Besides long distance, local transport of passengers is also provided by local trains or metro-rail in some metropolitan cities. Rail transport is available throughout the country except some hilly or mountainous regions. In India two types of trains are found.One is passenger train and other is goods train. While passenger trains carry both human b eings and a limited quantity of goods, the goods trains are exclusively used for carrying goods from one place to another. These trains are driven by rail engines and they use steam, diesel or electric power to move. Let us now discuss the SWOT Analysis of Rail Transport. Figure 1: SWOT Analysis of Rail Transport 3. 1 SWOT Analysis of Rail Transport in Malaysia There is some strength, weakness, opportunities and threats have been found in the rail transport system of Malaysia.Malaysia main rail system was mange by Kereta Api Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) since the 1940’s, the railway company manage a total of 1,699km of tracks in the Peninsular Malaysia. Below are the SWOT analyses for KTMB 3. 1. 1 Strength * Cheap The fares offer by KTMB are relatively low price, therefore it is affordable by the public in Kuala Lumpur. Fares from 1 station to another are below 5 Ringgit Malaysia, example Station Tasik Selatan to Mid Valley Station only cost about RM2. 40 for an adult. * Eco-Fr iendly Since most of the train operated by Malaysian Railway was powered by overhead electric wire, no carbon emission was produce.Therefore by using the train, air pollution was minimizes. * Large Capacity Since train can be long by adding wagon or carriage and will have a huge capacity, it is possible to handle a large amount of freight transportation and also passengers to one place to another. In KTMB, trains are capable to handle large amount of cargoes and up to 300 passengers per trip. * Long Distance Trains are design for either short or long distance of travelling. From one point to another, modern train can be faster than cars to reach a destination.Since KTMB has a long track of 1699km, it is easy for traveller from the north of Perlis to travel to the south of Johor with ease. Thus without wasting time, effort and cost, traveller can relax by travelling on train. * No Road Congestion Road congestion is a major issue in every city around the world, spending time on road c ongestion are often frustrating and waste of time. Since rail transport can travel on its single track without much obstacle, it is free from road congestion. Publics in Kuala Lumpur often take KTM Commuter to work as a mode of transport to avoid the heavy traffic in pick hours of Kuala Lumpur. . 1. 2 Weakness * Crowded Although train are free from road congestion, it is impossible for people to avoid the crowded situation in the carriage during peak hour. It is worst when the air-conditioning system was failing or the people around are sweating or dirty. In Malaysia, during the morning when people are reporting to work or schools, noon during lunch hour and evening when everyone is rushing home will be the worst time to be on board on a commuter train. * Delays Rail transport can cover and reach many cities, therefore proper time management must be enforce to prevent delays or late arrivals.Unfortunately for KTMB, delays are the most common sight in their stations, sometimes it can delay up to an hour or more. This delays often packing the station and also the carriage even more crowded, KTMB users often need to wait for few train to pass by before they even can get into a crowded train. * High Maintenance Cost One of the weaknesses that can be found in every railway company will be the high maintenance cost. Railways Company has to spend a lot of cash during train overhaul, track maintenance, electric cable replacement and many more.While in the case of Malaysian Railway, cash was spend on maintenance of the track and refurbishment in most of their old carriers while importing for the new electrical train to arrive from Mitsubishi Electric and Rotem. * Low Flexibility Train are design to run only on steel tracks, therefore the train destination and pit-stop are fixed reducing the flexibility of choice of destination. With the limited choice of destination it will be hard to fulfill the demands in certain areas. Thus, it is important for the company to decide where to build a station to fulfil the demands and not building it for a waste.KTMB stations in certain area are old and sometimes too close to another station, worst the number of people getting down the station was less. While in certain areas the demand was high but the users might need to walk or take bus to reach the nearest station. * Sound Pollution Sound was produce from the engines sound (diesel power engines), the steel wheels running friction and also the horning sound. While the tracks for the train to run on were often near to the housing area, this often irritates the resident in the areas.The track for KTM some were build just few meters away from their backyard, therefore the sound of every train pass by can be loud and annoying during rest hour. 3. 1. 3 Opportunity * Development of Public Transport There’s huge area available for development in public transport in Malaysia. Public transport system in Malaysia are serving the public around an average score on ly, therefore, it is undeniable that rail transport can be prospect or to be a key saviour to improve and develop the public transport system. For KTMB, it is under discussion of building a railway line for high performance bullet train to serve the public.With this, it will be an advantage for traveller from neighbouring country’s to reach Kuala Lumpur in a matter of hours. * Advertisement (Income) Carriage or wagon often had spacing on the exterior available for paint works or advertising purposes. Therefore, by renting this spacing out to the market for business purpose will be an advantage to earn additional income for the company and reduce the time to time painting cost for the carriage or wagon. KTMB can rent out more spacing for advertising instead of just maintaining it with the yellow, blue and red colour. * Social ServicesPeople with disability often had a hard time travelling with other mode of transport such as getting on a bus or a taxi. Therefore, with rail tra nsport, Railway Company can design their station for disability friendly and prepare a special section for the disability to enter the train. KTMB can build slopes and blind guide’s floor for the local OKU (Orang Kurang Upaya) in every station. The company can also employ a instructor on the ground to guide this people into the train. * Increase Employment Rate Managing a railway company requires many workers to make it a success.Therefore, railway companies such as KTMB can employ people to manage the railway track, locomotive, power lines, scheduling of train and many more job placement. * Technology Improvement Since technology around the world are improving, it can also help to improve the technology apply on the train. Train in some countries has started to run on magnet force. Therefore, it has a huge gap of technology in Malaysia to be improved. KTMB should start to change and improve their technology not only on tracks but also their station and ticketing system. 3. 1 . 4 Threat * Losing Market ShareWith the rise of air and sea transport industry, it is getting harder and harder for rail transport to gain a place in the market. This is because other mode of transportation is providing better services than rail. Therefore in order for KTMB to survive in the market of freight transportation, the company should provide more services such as delivering to door step and at the same to time for additional revenue. * Political Interference Since rail transport is partly subsidized by the government on helm, the government will tend to interfere with the management of the firm.These delays some strategic decision of KTMB, such as what kind of train should be bought and when will it be bought. Thus, this limited the performance and improvement of KTMB. * Changing Technology Change of technology can be a huge threat for the railway transport. The rapid improvement in the world of technology might be a disaster for some railway company as they are short of capital to follow up the trend of technology. Slowing down of improvement will pay some price to the environment (pollution) and customer (uncomfortable). The technology use by KTMB is still falling behind other country railway system.Therefore, it is important for them to improve it as soon as possible before it irritates the consumer. * Competition In urban areas, there are many other mode of public transport such as taxi and busses. It is a huge competition to stay on top of the others. While in long distance travel competitors such as airlines and busses can be found too. Therefore, in order for KTMB to have a lead against others, it is important to improve their services in every aspect and also to improve their current technology. * Private Transport Since the government are promoting their local made cars.It has become a trend for most of the household to have at least 2 cars and drive to work daily. Thus, this reduced the number of people using public transport and private t ransport is more flexible and more comfortable. Therefore, KTMB should build station in strategic places, control the number of people in a train and market the good’s of using a train. 4. 1 Conclusion As we apply this ‘SWOT’Â  conception Railways we see that there is a solid strength of Railways in itself as well as weaknesses of it. It has great opportunities in its circle as well as threats from other private sector efforts.In other words we can say that Railways is a widely used term in Economy. References * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Freight_rail_transport * http://wiki. answers. com/Q/What_are_Disadvantages_of_rail_transport * http://www. publishyourarticles. org/knowledge-hub/business-studies/what-are-the-advantages-a-disadvantages-of-railway-transport. html * http://www. saudirailways. org/portal/page/portal/PRTS/root/Home/01_About_Us/02Establishment_Advantages/02AdvantagesofRailwayTransport * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Rail_transport * http://en . wikipedia. org/wiki/Rail * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Bulk_cargo