Subsidized in the city Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Subsidized in the city - Essay Example Parents have pampered their children beyond imagination, they give their children credit cards which spoils them, they have the liberty to spend money on anything and everything that they like, entering adulthood in the real sense is no walk in the park, it comes with a lot of responsibilities which one must understand and fulfill, earning a substantial amount is extremely important, without that it is very difficult to survive in today’s world. The accommodation has become so expensive; the standard of living has gone up by manifolds and there are several other expenditures which one must take care of to be able to live a happy life. Above all there one should have self-respect, parents will always come to rescue their children but one must start drawing a line, becoming financially independent is extremely important these days, children should not only become financially independent but they should also help and support their parents in any which way plausible. Adults these days are not interested in changing their lifestyle, they are aware of the fact that they cannot refrain from going to posh places, shopping, watching movies so on and so forth, they should change their lifestyle and seek no help from their parents, an adult who is financially dependent has no respect and to earn respect one must refrain from spending excessively, parents who pay for their children after they become adults should completely stop helping them, they should try their best to make their children financially independent and they should also ensure that no money should be spent on their vices, adults have several vices these days, several adults are hooked on to drugs, alcohol and what not, parents must keep a strict check on all these vices which are more than capable of ruining one’s life. â€Å"There is something to be said for writing that rent check each month and knowing you've managed to live comfortably on your own terms. Racking up $500 shopping sprees on Mommy and Daddy's credit card may have its momentary allure, but the adult part of me believes that working for what you have is much more rewarding than being handed it on a silver platter. And I have my own mom and dad to thank for that.† (Subsidized in the City) Overspending is a major concern, adults should completely stop blowing up the hard-earned money of their parents on useless activities, they must keep a check on their spending only then will they become adults in the real sense otherwise they are just a bunch of over aged children who fail to understand what is expected of them. It is also important to understand the feelings of parents’, though they hardly say anything, deep down they know that they are spoiling the future of their children and making them overly dependent which is not good at all. Conclusion There is no counter argument possible on this topic, adults must manage their own expenses, they must also understand that their parents will not be around forever to keep helping them out, they must earn well and spend smartly, spending on useless things is hardly going to help them. It is high time for adults to realize their responsibility, they should be making their parents proud, and instead they are busy spending their hard-earned money. Spending money is perhaps the easiest job but earning it requires a lot of hard-work and dedication. The article is a well written; it comprehensively presents how

Positive Effects of Media on Our Society Essay Example for Free

Positive Effects of Media on Our Society Essay Today i am going to aware you about the positive effects of media on our society. Media has served as a boon to mankind. It has provided us with an exposure to the world outside our cozy homes. It has resulted in an exchange of views on a variety of subjects of a wide variety of people from all around the world, thereby leading to a global exchange of information and knowledge. Mass media has given each of us a platform to voice our opinions on all sorts of social and political issues and share information with one another. It has brought out easy ways of communication and provided us with easily accessible means to reach out to people in various parts of the world. Thanks to technological development, we have been able to obtain a platform that enables us to present ourselves to the rest of the world. The negative influences of media that are a result of an overexposure to it, are most often talked about. It is true to a certain extent that media has affected the society in a negative manner. But, undoubtedly, media has proved being a bliss. The media like television, radio and the Internet increase an overall awareness of the masses. They enhance the general knowledge by providing us with information from all over the world. News broadcast through different media helps us know about the day-to-day events in the world. News, tele-films and documentaries revolving around social issues increase a social awareness in children and develop their concern towards society. Newspapers, apart from updating us with the latest news and new information, also contribute to the enhancement of our vocabulary. Newspapers are the best beginners in developing reading habits in children. Through the print media, they provide the general public with a platform to give updates about their parts of the city, exchange their views over different issues that the society faces and share their thoughts on a larger scale. Media serve as the best means for a speedy spread of news about important incidents or events taking place. What has happened in the remotest corner of the world can reach us within minutes, thanks to media. The speed that technology has achieved is helpful in times of crisis when media is to be used for reporting news needing immediate attention. Research has revealed that media is responsible for influencing a major part of our daily life. Media contribute to a transformation in the cultural and social values of the masses. Media can bring about a change in the attitudes and  beliefs of the common man. The persuasive nature of the content presented over media influences the thoughts and behavior of the general public. Media has a direct impact over the lifestyle of society.

Personality Theories in Successful Leaders

Personality Theories in Successful Leaders Abstract One question that all good employee thinks is what makes a good leader and how do I become one. It is important to understand what makes a leader and are there certain personality characteristics that make leaders successful. Using the big five personality dimensions which are extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience it will be explored what characteristic’s fit with successful leaders today. This study aims to quantify what of the big five personality dimensions are most present in successful and effective leaders today. It will take 4 teams from 100 organizations from fortune 500 companies to non-profit organization. Hypothesis This study intends to demonstrate with evidence that effective leaders have similar personalities traits based on the big five personalities dimensions. Leadership Was Steve Jobs a good leader or George Washington a good leader? What makes a good leader? Before that is answered, it must be understood what defines leadership and what qualifies as a good leader. Many scientific papers and books try to define leadership some define it as â€Å" leadership involves persuading other people to set aside for a period of time their individual concern and to purse a common goal that is important for the responsibilities and welfare of a group (Hogan, G, Hogan, 1994)â€Å" while others believe it stands it for â€Å"†¦inspiring followers to identify with a vision that reaches beyond immediate self-interest (Benoliel Somech, 2014).† Between the two definitions it is clear a leader must inspire a group of people to go above and beyond and do what is beyond what they will want to do. Not everyone can be a leader there are certain traits we expect out of them. In our everyday life we work for, learn from, and follow leaders. These leaders can be CEO’s, managers, teachers, or even the President of the United States. They should be intelligent, likeable, have strong technical skills to relate to their roles. There are many people in the world with these traits but not every one of them makes a good leader. Based on these assumptions there must some additional traits that separate good leaders from average leaders. A leaders personality must have an effect on how the lead and inspire people to go above and beyond. Looking at a leader from the aspect of the big five personality dimensions might shed some light on what makes a strong leader. Big Five Personality Dimensions For centuries people have classified personalities, even Aristotle have established several categories of classification. The current established theory has been created by Tupes and Christal (1961). This taxonomic structure has five personality dimensions which are extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience. The first factor of the personality dimensions is extraversion. Leaders who possesses high level of extraversion are described of â€Å"sociable, optimistic, expressive, active, and assertive (Benoliel Somech, 2014).† Salespersons often are high-extraversion employees because they enjoy person interaction and thrive in an environment that involves. These employees seek a positive environment to work in because it gives them a sense of security, The second factor of the personality dimensions is agreeableness. Agreeableness can be described as cooperative, trusting and flexible. Employees with a high level of agreeableness tend to be successful in roles that work in groups and require joint efforts between teams. Project managers are a great example of a role someone with agreeableness might hold. Similar to extraversion, agreeableness enjoys the interactions between people but focuses more in the intimacy of relationships between people. The third factor of the personality dimensions is conscientiousness. â€Å"High- conscientiousness individuals tend to be responsible, dependable, hardworking, persistent, and achievement oriented; low-conscientiousness individuals tend to be irresponsible, undependable, and lacking self-discipline (Benoliel Somech, 2014).† High- conscientiousness employees believe they are capable of doing the job and set high achieving goals for themselves. These will employees tent to dive in when the workload gets intensive and will work with others to relief the stress. The fourth factor of the personality dimensions is neuroticism. Neuroticism is a personality dimensions that unlike the other having a high level of is not necessary a good thing. People who have a high level of neuroticism are often described as a worry-ward and insecure. Those with low levels are neuroticism are calm individuals who can handle high amounts of pressure. This is important in a high stakes environment some occupations where one would expect to see people with low levels of neuroticism would be in the medical field such as doctors and nurses or traders on the New York Stock Exchanges floor. The final factor of the personality dimensions is openness to experience. These individuals are creative and the out of the box thinkers. They adjust to change fairly easily and are willing to adjust their behaviors to meet the environment they are in. Method This study aims analysis what big five personality dimensions are most common with effective leaders. An effective leader will add value to any organization and therefore it is important to understand what makes up an effective leader. Additionally it is vital to understand the employees think of this leader. Why is it important to understand an effective leader from one that is not so effective? If we go back throughout history and look at the effect a good leader on the outcome of a situation there is plenty of evidence that shows an effective leader will have a positive impact. To give some examples the explosive growth Steve Jobs had on Apple to in 1997 or George Washington entering the revolutionary war and become the first President. These leaders took a situation that was losing situations and thorough their leadership turns the situation around and makes it extremely successful through hard work and dedication. The first step of this study is to analysis what an effective leader is. To do this the study would work with 100 organizations from fortune 500 companies to non-profit organizations such as universities, charities, and military. From each of the organizations select they study will review 4 teams, within these teams there will be effective leaders and teams and those who are not as effective. By understanding those who have successful leadership compared to those who are not the goal would be see what personality dimensions are prominent. To do these the leaders will take a big five personality test that will quantify how their personality matrix is built. In addition the employees of those leaders will take the test for their leader. This will aim to quantify what dimension of the big five personalities to followers look to the most. This will also help give an unbiased look because leaders might try to skew the results. Once the tests have been completed the study will focus on the effectiveness of those leaders. The study will analysis each team within their organizations to understand their effectiveness. The effectiveness of the team will look at the team’s productivity. The more productive the team the expectation would be the more the effective the leader. Besides the level of productivity the study will also look at the morale of the team. Expected Outcomes Once the data has been collected the results will be analysis to see if there is any positive or negative correlation between the big five personalities dimensions. Among these correlations it would be expect to see that effective leaders will have specific traits in their personalities that make them effective leaders. In the contrary the study will also show the dimensions are negatively affect leadership. Based on expectations I would expect to see the big five dimensions show up in leadership in the following ways. The first personality to analysis would be the extraversion. It would be expected that a leader should have a medium to high level of extraversion. Extraversion involves the socialness of the individual. A leader should be social with the team and keep the optimistic view that will drive the team going forward. The next attribute that is vital to a leader is agreeableness. The expected outcome would be all leaders would have a high level of agreeableness. They will work well with the team and keep everyone on track. There will also make the teams function more effective because leaders do not always have the correct answers and a good interaction between leader and the employees can create a good dialogue that will lead to the best solution. Conscientiousness is one trait that all company want out of their employees have and therefore would be a high expectation of any effective leader. Employee with high levels of conscientiousness are often described as dependable and organized. â€Å"Individuals who are conscientious also tend to preserve, work hard, and enjoy achieving and accomplishing things (BOOK).† Since all conscientious enjoy achieving their goals it is important that leads hold these values. Additionally all leaders should be able to keep their followers organized and focused on the goals ahead. Since cons Neuroticism is the one trait that would be advantageous to have in the lower spectrum. People in the high spectrum are often emotionally unstable. Leaders need to have their emotions in check all the times. The final personality dimensions is openness to experiences which like most of the other dimensions the expectation would be a leader would be on the higher side. Leaders should be open to change and also be a leader of change within an organization. A leader who cannot handle moving parts of everyday business will not be effective. Benefits of research There will be a lot of benefits from the research into what makes an effective leader. If an employee was interesting into taking a leadership role they can take a personality test and see if what areas they are strong in and where they are weak. This can then help them work on improving their skills. For example say an employee is lacking in extraversion assuming it is a primary measure of leadership skills. The employee can be put into situation to help then become more expressive or go to particular training classes to make then more expressive. This will help the organization put in leaders that will lead to change making the teams and organization more effective. Understanding the trains of an effective leader will help human resources as well. Understanding the personalities of employees coming in will help them understand the person potential. Another example is there is an opening for a senior vice president of operation. This department has been suffering for years under the lack of leadership. It will be helpful to know what traits to look for in the new leader. Supporting References The following studies have support this hypothesis and will help provide guidance. Study 1 –Five-Factor mode of personality and transformational leader In this study the authors explore the personality factors of transformational leaders. References Hogan, R., Curphy, G. J., Hogan, J. (1994). What we know about leadership: Effectiveness and personality. American Psychologist, 49(6), 493-504. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.49.6.493 Benoliel Pascale, Somech Anit (2014) The health and performance effects of participative leadership: Exploring the moderating role of the Big Five personality dimensions, European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 23:2, 277-294, DOI: 10.1080/1359432X.2012.717689

The Relationship of Freedom to the Acquisition, Possession, and Exercise of Virtue :: Philosophy Philosophical Essays

ABSTRACT: There are three common objections that any broadly Aristotelian virtue theorist must face, insofar as he or she holds that acts must be performed from a firm and stable disposition in order to express virtue, and that virtue is in some way a praiseworthy fulfillment of human potential. Each of these objections accuses the virtuous person of not fully exercising his or her rationality and freedom, and thus of being somehow less than fully human. There are three common objections that any broadly Aristotelian virtue theorist must face, insofar as he or she holds that acts must be performed from a firm and stable disposition in order to be called acts expressing virtue, and that virtue is in some way a praiseworthy fulfillment of human potential. Each of these objections accuse the virtuous person of not fully exercising his or her rationality and freedom, and thus of being somehow less than fully human. The first objection is that acts flowing from the firm and stable disposition of virtue need not be expressions of rationality and freedom, since they may be performed by rote. The second objection, related to the first, has to do with the voluntariness of the possession of virtue. Those who hold that the virtues must be firm and stable dispositions generally hold that a good upbringing from childhood is of utmost importance in the acquisition of such dispositions. The second objection is thus as follows: if a person’s virtue depends upon her upbringing, then she is not responsible for her virtue; it was not up to her and she deserves no praise. The first objection, then, is that particular acts from a firm disposition of virtue are not fully rational or free; the second objection is that the acquisition of the dispositions themselves is not fully rational or free, since it depends upon upbringing. If neither the possession nor the exercise of virtue need be rational and free, then it seems that the activity of virtue is less than fully human, and thus cannot be the praiseworthy fulfillment of our human potential. The third objection, like the second, also has to do with the importance of one’s upbringing to the virtuous life, but is a bit more pointed. Those who present the third objection argue that the acquisition of virtue, inasmuch as it requires such a directive upbringing, itself constitutes a limitation of one’s freedom.

Hr Project on Motivation

ELIJAH INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES Thrissur CERTIFICATE FROM THE COLLEGE This is to certify that the project report entitled â€Å"A STUDY ON EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION†Ã¢â‚¬â€œwith special to reference hyderbad industries limited, Thrissur, submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of degree of Master of Business Administration of University of Calicut was carried out by Mr. SHAHID KV. Dr. C. T. PAUL Principal CERTIFICATE FROM THE GUIDEThis is to certify that the project report entitled â€Å"A STUDY ON EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION†Ã¢â‚¬â€œwith special to reference hyderbad industries limited, submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of degree of Master of Business Administration of University of Calicut was carried out by Mr. SHAHID KV under my guidance. This has not been submitted to any other university or institution for award of any degree/diploma/certificate. Miss. ANITHA. A (Faculty Guide) DECLARATIONI, Shahid kv declare that the project entitled â€Å"A Study on employee motivation of Hyderabad Industries Ltd† submitted to Calicut University in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of the degree of master of business administration is a record of original project work done by me during my period of study in Elijah Institute of Management Studies under the able guidance of Miss. ANITHA. A (MBA). I further declare that this project report has not been submitted to any other university/institution/board for award of any degree/diplomaPlace: TrichurSHAHID KV Date: ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost let me sincerely thank ALMIGHTY for the great opportunity and blessings that he has showered up on me for the successful and timely completion of my project work. I extent my sincere gratitude to Dr. C. T. Paul, Principal, Elijah Institute of studies and Dr. Sandhya. G. nair, Head of the department of management studies, for their kind support and guidance for making my project great succes s. I very great fully wish to forward due respect and thanks to my internal faculty guide Miss. Anitha.A, able guide for the project, for the continuous, creative, valuable and informative support extended to me, without which the project would not have been efficiently completed. I am also thankful to Mrs. Jyothis Rachel and Mr. Vinod A. S [faculty of ELIMS]. I render my whole hearted thanks to all the other respected faculties of the management department, librarian, lab technician and all other office staff for their assistance and co-operation given to me in regard to this work. I am extremely indebted to the management of Hyderabad Industries Limited, Thrissur and Mr.Pradeep kumar, General Manager (works), who gave me the privilege to carry out my project in their distinguished institution. Let me take this opportunity to thank all the Hyderabad Industries Ltd’s staff for their help and co-operation. I thank my parents and all other family members for their valuable and inseparable support in completion of this project. Once again I take this opportunity to convey my sincere thanks to each and every person who helped me directly and indirectly in the successful completion of this project.SHAHID KV TABLE OF CONTENTS |CHAPTERS |CONTENTS . |PAGE NO | |CHAPTER 1 | | | | |(1. 1) INTRODUCTION |1 | | |(1. ) RESEARCH PROBLEM |2 | | |(1. 3) SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY |2 | | |(1. 4) RESEARCH OBJECTIVES |3 | | |(1. 5) RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS |4 | | |(1. ) RESEARCH METHODOLOGY |4 | | | | | |CHAPTER 2 |LITERATURE REVIEW |8 | | | | | | |(3. ) INDUSTRY PROFILE |17 | |CHAPTER 3 |(3. 2) COMPANY PROFILE |22 | | |(3. 3) DEPATMENT PROFILE |26 | | | | | |CHAPTER 4 |(4. ) DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS |32 | | |(4. 2) INFERENTIAL STATISTICS |49 | | | | | |CHAPTER 5 | | | | |(5. ) SUMMARY |53 | | |(5. 2) FINDINGS |54 | | |(5. 3) SUGGESTIONS |55 | | |(5. 4) LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY |56 | | |(5. ) CONCLUSION |57 | | |(5. 6) SCOPE FOR FURTHER RESEARCH |58 | | | | | | |BIBLI OGRAPHY |Ix |LIST OF TABLES |SL: NO: |PARTICULARS |PAGE NO: | | | | | |4. 1. |Response about the support from the HR department |32 | | | | | |4. 1. 2 |Management is interested in motivating the employees | | | | |33 | |4. 1. |The type of incentives motivates more | | | | |34 | |4. 1. 4 |Satisfaction with the present incentives provided by the organization | | | |The company’s attitude in recognizing and acknowledging your work. | |4. 1. 5 | |35 | | |Periodical increase in salary | | | | | | |4. 1. |Job Security existing in the company |36 | | | | | |4. 1. 7 |Relationship with the Co-worker |37 | | | | | |4. 1. |Effective performance appraisal system |38 | | | | | |4. 1. 9 |Effective promotional opportunities in present job | | | | |39 | |4. 0 |Good safety measures existing in the organization | | | | |40 | |4. 11 |Performance appraisal activities are helpful to get motivated. | | | |Support from the co-worker is helpful to get motivated |41 | |4. 2 | | | | |Career develo pment opportunities are helpful to get motivated | | |4. 13 |Opinion about the important factor which motivate the employees |42 | | | | | |4. 14 |The effect of incentives and other benefits in employee performance 43 | | |Involvement of employees in decision making | | |4. 15 | |44 | | | | | | | |45 | |4. 6 | | | | | | | |4. 7 | |46 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |47 | | | |48 |LIST OF CHARTS |SL: NO: |PARTICULARS |PAGE NO: | | | | | |4. 1. |Response about the support from the HR department | | | | |32 | |4. 1. 2 |Management is interested in motivating the employees | | | | | | |4. 1. |The type of incentives motivates more |33 | | | | | |4. 1. 4 |Satisfaction with the present incentives provided by the organization |34 | | |The company’s attitude in recognizing and acknowledging your work. | |4. 1. 5 | | | | |Periodical increase in salary |35 | | | | | |4. 1. |Job Security existing in the company | | | | |36 | |4. 1. 7 |Relationship with the Co-worker | | | | |37 | |4. 1. |Effective performance appraisal system | | | | |38 | |4. 1. 9 |Effective promotional opportunities in present job | | | | | | |4. 0 |Good safety measures existing in the organization |39 | | | | | |4. 11 |Performance appraisal activities are helpful to get motivated. 40 | | |Support from the co-worker is helpful to get motivated | | |4. 12 | |41 | | |Career development opportunities are helpful to get motivated | | |4. 13 Opinion about the important factor which motivate the employees | | | | |42 | |4. 14 |The effect of incentives and other benefits in employee performance | | | |Involvement of employees in decision making |43 | |4. 5 | | | | | |44 | | | | | |4. 6 | |45 | | | | | |4. 7 | | | | | |46 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |47 | | | |48 | LIST OF FIGURES |FIGURE . NO. |INDEX |PAGE NO. | |2. |Maslow’s pyramid |12 | | 3. 2. 1 |ORGANIZATION CHARTs |26-29 | LIST OF APPENDICISES |SL. NO. |INDEX |PAGE NO. | |1. |QUESTIONNAIRE |X | Bibliography BOOKS. 1. Chabra T N â€Å"H uman Resource Management† (2005) revised edition Gangan Kapur, Delhi. 2. Venugopal & Aziz Abdul â€Å"Human Resource Management† (2004) revised edition, 3. Prasad L. M, â€Å"Human Resource Management,† second edition (2005), Sultan Chand & Sons- New Delhi. 4. Kothari C.R â€Å"Research Methodology- Methods and Techniques† 2nd revised edition (2007) New Age International Publishers- New Delhi. Journals 1. HRM Review, July 2008, The ICFI University press, Page No 55-59 2. Management Research, October 2007, ICFAI University press, Page No 37-40 WEBSITE †¢ http://www. allbusiness. com/human-resources/employee-development-employee-productivity/601547-1. html †¢ www. Hil. in †¢ http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Asbestos †¢ http://www. petech. ac. za/robert/reshypoth. htm Questionnaire A STUDY ON EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION Respected madam/sir, As a part of my project I would like to gather some information from you which will help me in an in depth stu dy of project. I would be obliged if you co-operate with me in filling the questionnaire.Since the questionnaire is being used for academic purpose, the information gathered will be strictly confidential. Shahid kv Kindly fill the following: (Please put a tick mark in the appropriate box) 1. Are you satisfied with the support from the HR department? Highly satisfied Satisfied Neutral DissatisfiedHighly Dissatisfied 2. Management is really interested in motivating the employees? Strongly agree Agree Neutral DisagreeStrongly disagree 3. Which type of incentives motivates you more? Financial incentives Non-financial incentives Both 4. How far you are satisfied with the incentives provided by the organization? Highly satisfied Satisfied NeutralDissatisfiedHighly Dissatisfied 5. Please provide the following rates. (5- Strongly agree, 4- Agree, 3-Neutral, 2-Disagree, 1-Strongly disagree) | No |Factors |Rates | | |Reasonable periodical increase in salary | | | |Job security exist in the co mpany | | | |Good relationship with co-workers | | |Effective performance appraisal system | | | |Effective promotional opportunities in the organization | | | |Good safety measures adopted in the organization. | | | |Performance appraisal activities are helpful to get motivated | | | |Support from the co-worker is helpful to get motivated | | | |Company recognize and acknowledge your work | | 6. Rank the following factors which motivates you the most? (Rank 1, 2, 3, 4†¦. respectively) No |Factors |Rank | | |Salary increase | | | |Promotion | | | |Leave | | | |Motivational talks | | | |Recognition | | 7. Do you think that the incentives and other benefits will influence your performance? Influence Does not influence No opinion 8. Does the management involve you in decision making which are connected to your department? Yes NoOccasionally 9. What changes can be made to improve the work place environment? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚ ¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Thank you for your kind co-operation

The Short Run and the Long Run in Economics

The Short Run and the Long Run in Economics In economics, its extremely important to understand the distinction between the short run and the long run. As it turns out, the definition of these terms depends on whether they are being used in a microeconomic or macroeconomic context. There are even different ways of thinking about the microeconomic distinction between the short run and the long run. Production Decisions The long run is defined as the time horizon needed for a producer to have flexibility over all relevant production decisions. Most businesses make decisions not only about how many workers to employ at any given point in time (i.e. the amount of labor)  but also about what scale of an operation (i.e. size of factory, office, etc.) to put together and what production processes to use. Therefore, the long run is defined as the time horizon necessary not only to change the number of workers but also to scale the size of the factory up or down and alter production processes as desired. In contrast, economists often  define the short run as the time horizon over which the scale of an operation is fixed and the only available business decision is the number of workers to employ. (Technically, the short run could also represent a situation where the amount of labor is fixed and the amount of capital is variable, but this is fairly uncommon.)  The logic is that even taking various labor laws as a given, its usually easier to hire and fire workers than it is to significantly change a major production process or move to a new factory or office. (One reason for this likely has to do with long-term leases and such.) As such, the short run and the long run with respect to production decisions can be summarized as follows:   Short run: Quantity of labor is variable but the quantity of capital and production processes are fixed (i.e. taken as a given).Long run: Quantity of labor, the quantity of capital, and production processes are all variable (i.e. changeable). Measuring Costs The long run is sometimes defined as the time horizon over which there are no sunk fixed costs. In general, fixed costs are those that dont change as production quantity changes. In addition, sunk costs are those that cant be recovered after they are paid. A lease on a corporate headquarters, for example, would be a sunk cost if the business has to sign a lease for the office space. Furthermore, it would be a fixed cost because, after the scale of the operation is decided on, its not as though the company will need some incremental additional unit of headquarters for each additional unit of output it produces. Obviously the company would need a larger headquarters if it decided to make a significant expansion, but this scenario refers to the long-run decision of choosing a scale of production. There are no truly fixed costs in the long run since the firm is free to choose the scale of operation that determines the level at which the costs are fixed. In addition, there are no sunk costs in the long run, since the company has the option of not doing business at all and incurring a cost of zero. In summary, the short run and the long run in terms of cost can be summarized as follows:   Short run: Fixed costs are already paid and are unrecoverable (i.e. sunk).Long run: Fixed costs have yet to be decided on and paid, and thus are not truly fixed. The two definitions of the short run and the long run are really just two ways of saying the same thing since a firm doesnt incur any fixed costs until it chooses a quantity of capital (i.e. scale of production) and a production process. Market Entry and Exit Economists differentiate between the short run and the long run with regard to market dynamics as follows: Short run: The number of firms in an industry is fixed (even though firms can shut down and produce a quantity of zero).Long run: The number of firms in an industry is variable since firms can enter and exit the marketplace. Microeconomic Implications The distinction between the short run and the long run has a number of implications for differences in market behavior, which can be summarized as follows: The Short Run: Firms will produce if the market price at least covers variable costs, since fixed costs have already been paid and, as such, dont enter the decision-making process.Firms profits can be positive, negative, or zero. The Long Run: Firms will enter a market if the market price is high enough to result in positive profit.Firms will exit a market if the market price is low enough to result in negative profit.If all firms have the same costs, firm profits will be zero in the long run in a competitive market. (Those firms that have lower costs can maintain positive profit even in the long run.) Macroeconomic Implications In macroeconomics, the short run is generally defined as the time horizon over which the wages and prices of other inputs to production are sticky, or inflexible, and the long run is defined as the period of time over which these input prices have time to adjust. The reasoning is that output prices (i.e. prices of products sold to consumers) are more flexible than input prices (i.e. prices of materials used to make more products) because the latter is more constrained by long-term contracts and social factors and such. In particular, wages are thought to be especially sticky in a downward direction since workers tend to get upset when an employer tries to reduce compensation, even when the economy overall is experiencing a downturn. The distinction between the short run and the long run in macroeconomics is important because many macroeconomic models conclude that the tools of monetary and fiscal policy have real effects on the economy (i.e. affect production and employment) only in the short run and, in the long run, only affect nominal variables such as prices and nominal interest rates and have no effect on real economic quantities.

How to Write an A+ Aviation Research Paper

How to Write an A+ Aviation Research Paper Aviation is an exciting subject, and the chances are that if you are to write a research paper on a topic in aviation, you will come to enjoy the process. There are lots of sources, topics you can write about, examples you can provide, and the list goes on. Aviation is wide and vast, and if you have faced an aviation research paper, you will have to do preliminary research the issue you think is impressive enough. You will likely not encounter research on defining aviation. For example, the professor asking you, what aviation is and or what it is not. Earlier generations did such, and your professor would consider that too unchallenging for students of today. A lot of knowledge has been exchanged ever since the Wright Brothers made their first flight and so defining aviation is more or less not even an academic question. Before we go even further, research is a big word to a student. It means tedious literature searches, reading, sampling, testing, interviewing, observing, and so forth. So mind that no matter what you are walking into, it will require serious attention. You may probably ask yourself, why an aviation research paper? Could there have been another research topic after all? As a student who is preparing to take up some essential duties and responsibilities in a future career that may be aviation, you have to enter the job market when ready. The professor is bound by duty to make you the best professional there can be. In that case, an easy academic task will not help you get there. Challenging ones tend to stretch your mental capabilities which employers need out here. The first step is settling on a topic. Choose the Topic to Hit the Audience You have to understand that your professor is keeping an eye on a few critical items when it comes to a research paper which is why you have to exercise care and wittiness when choosing one. Not every topic is a winning topic. And even if so, there are topics that just automatically align you with good grades; those deal with current issues that have raised controversy in the academia. How about some examples of such problems? Discuss some transformative events in the aviation industry that led to milestone innovations towards safety. How has terrorism impacted the aviation industry? Discuss passenger’s perception change as well as the changes made by the federal government and their impact on the aviation industry. Does the loss of Malaysian Airlines MH370 signal a new threat to the aviation industry? What could be some potential solutions to such a problem? In the age of global warming, the aviation industry has come under ridicule for releasing greenhouse gases in the upper atmosphere. How accurate is such a statement? Innovations in the aircraft have recently opted for carbon fiber fuselage. To what extent do you think the material is safe enough? Is it a better option compared to aluminum or even titanium? How far has jet fuel innovation gone? Is there a reason to continue improving the quality of jet fuel? How will technology impact the future aviation industry? Do incidences of hacking threaten the industry or are they incidental events? Now we all know quite well that we cannot enter the professor’s mind and understand his/her topic appraisal criteria. But remember, this as a rule of thumb for many academicians. How well has the student tackled the topic? Does the student seem to understand what they are writing? Is there sufficient evidence supporting the claims made? Does each new point hang on relevant and verifiable evidence? To what extent do the arguments reflect trends, events, and incidents of relevance to the academia? Does the paper merely seek to complete an assignment or does it demonstrate an analytical thinker beyond the restrictions of academics? How â€Å"independent† does the language in the article sound? Did the writer incorporate own thoughts or did they lift off experiences from other material? Every rubric sent to you by the professor is more likely to elucidate on the areas you need to address. It will be easy to know what topic would fulfill the rubric and what ways of developing the paper will earn you more marks. If there is no rubric provided, then the above criteria need to be taken to heart. The rubric is in that case implied and not explicitly stated. Sometimes, your professor would just like to know how well you can develop the paper without being too â€Å"spoon-fed† in the process. However, here are a few keynotes on how to choose a winning topic. Ensure you are comfortable with the topic: Research is not an easy endeavor as it may seem. The first thing you want to make sure is that you are very comfortable with the topic you chose. Let it not be too challenging to the point that will eventually be fumbling while developing the paper. And do not settle on such an easy topic just for the sake of it. Ensure sufficient literature and examples is surrounding the topic: Research papers are typically detailed papers with a distinct direction and purpose. One of the defining features of any research paper is the ability to draw from other literature and relevant examples that feed into the authority and authenticity of your article. So only settle on a topic that fulfills such criteria. Ensure the topic is compelling and worth inquiry: Researches have been conducted for decades, and you might think that a good aviation research topic has already been done somewhere else. To stand from the crowd and make the professor give attention to your paper, make sure the topic is compelling and screaming attention. Something to do with a current issue, a critical matter, or along the lines of an ongoing debate could attract more attention. If you noticed, the given topics stretch your reasoning to think what is beyond the ordinary. That is what your professor wants to get from you. But before you begin the writing process, here are some pre-writing tips that will help with the research. Start the Writing Properly Conduct preliminary research: Before you begin wiring, you need to have a broader perspective on your research topic. Search relevant literature and read lots of them to find out what knowledge loophole your research can fill. Your professor will want to understand how you flesh out your ideas, and that is where preliminary investigation comes in. Thesis: Theses denominate every research paper. The thesis is your main argument. It is the main argument about aviation that pushed you to write the aviation research paper. All your discussions will revolve around the thesis. Make sure your thesis is straightforward, defensible, and has to be a standalone sentence preferable appearing as the last within the introduction. Outline: If you do not like outlines, then this is unfortunate because there is just no way you can develop a quality aviation research paper without one. Your professor will likely want to see your outline. He/she can use it as a fair assessment of the quality of your work. But even then, you need an outline as a guide to flesh out your paper. Mind the Set Paper Structure of Your Research Paper We have come far off. Just as a reminder, we introduced aviation research, then talked about how to choose a winning topic. We provided examples of worthy topics, then talked about three basic pre-writing tips. Let us talk about how an aviation research paper needs to be structured. Introduction It is standard that every research paper has an introduction. You cannot express yourself unless you let your readers understand what you have in mind or what you decided to undertake before presenting or writing. The introduction is your entry point. It is where the reader your professor begins to understand what your paper is all about. Your introduction should invoke your professor’s interest and entice him/her to read along. Justify why you had to conduct the research and what you will be writing about in brief. The last sentence of your introduction should be your thesis. Do not overwhelm the reader with too many explanations in the introduction. Make it short, intriguing, and up-to-the-point. Body After the introduction, here comes the body. Consider the body of your aviation research paper as the bulk of everything you will be writing. The body of your aviation research paper flows according to the way your arguments flow, and you must ensure that ideas are successive. When you present an idea and develop it in a paragraph, the next one should succeed seamlessly. Do your best to make the reading of your work coherent. The body must contain the following: Headings: Your headings must capture a compelling theme you would like to put across. Make your headings short, on-point; use them only when necessary. In other words, use headings sparingly. Paragraphing: Use paragraphs to develop the body. The body of your aviation research paper is built on paragraphs. Make sure that each paragraph discusses or details an idea. Succession: Each paragraph should end in such a way that it leads to the next. As we mentioned before, each paragraph builds from the previous one into the next. It creates the much-needed coherence for your professor to understand your arguments. Conclusion After exhaustively writing the body, the research paper needs a formal conclusion to cap it all. A conclusion serves at least three purposes. Reiterating the main points: After reading through the long body, a reader may lose track of the ideas that you have presented. To remind them again, you need to mention them while concluding. Confirming or disconfirming the thesis statement: Do you remember that the thesis guided your aviation research paper from the beginning. You sort out to confirm or disconfirm the hypothesis. The midsection of the conclusion should be dedicated to making a logical explanation why the outcome of the study turned out so. Elucidating gaps and paving the way for new research: While developing your research paper, you must have come across some grey areas that were not directly related to your thesis. If not, then your findings could have suggested that more may need to be done to confirm a claim you made. Take the last part of your conclusion to tell the reader about an area that may require further study in the future. The Outline Do you remember that an outline is crucial for your aviation research paper? Any competent research paper will need an outline that guides its development. Think of an outline as the items that will appear in your article from top to bottom. The outline primarily deals with the arrangement of the ideas (i.e., topics) and sub-ideas (i.e., subheadings) as you can see in the example below. Introduction Entry point _____________ Justification _______________ Thesis statement ______________ Body Heading #1 ____________ Point #1 ____________ Point #2 _____________ Point #3 ______________ Heading #2 _____________ Point #1 ___________ Point #2 ____________ Point #3 ____________ Conclusion Reiteration __________ Thesis confirmation/disconfirmation ___________ Future research ___________ Remember to keep your outline as brief as possible without explaining more than is necessary. Your outline gives the reader a sneak peek into your research paper and should, therefore, keep words to a minimum. Your professor is looking for the arrangement of the paper, and the ideas you present and not necessarily the content of your paper. He/she will look for that in the paper itself and not the outline. The Must-Do Polishing Activities Our Writers Advice Assuming you have developed your paper according to this aviation research paper guide from top to bottom from the introduction to the conclusion, what do you do next? Well, the very last phase is perfecting your paper. As a student writing a research paper, language proficiency is not taken lightly by the professor assessing your work. Not at all. Therefore you must perfect your paper in such a way that it is flawless by the time you are submitting it to your professor. The following are some of the tips that could help you perfect the aviation research paper you have tirelessly developed. Walk off the table: Writing is a tedious mental process, and most likely by the time you are done writing your aviation research paper, you will be exhausted. Such a state is not ideal for perfecting your paper. You need a vibrant mind, and the only way to do that is by giving yourself some rest, preferably for about 24 hours, and returning to your work after. With a sharp and refreshed mind, you will be able to identify even small mistakes. Perfect the paper: It is virtually impossible to write without errors. For example, you may confuse ‘their’ and ‘there’ so many times in your paper. The word editor may not identify such syntactical errors, and you will have only one option: going through your paper word for word. Identify all mistakes, check the use of language, spelling, tenses, and so forth. One more reading: Professors are keen when it comes to paper perfection. The rubrics they provide always mention language mechanics as one of the fundamental criteria that will be assessed. So to avoid losing marks, read through your paper one more time. References: One more important part of your paper is the list of references. As you go through your paper one more time, make sure that all in-text citations are placed correctly, and that they feature in the reference list. The citation technique must be consistent throughout your paper. Following these aviation research paper writing tips, you have all chances to produce a worthy research paper that will definitely bring you an appropriate mark. Good luck!

Agias, from the Doachos Monument

Agias, from the Doachos Monument Agias, from the Doachos MonumentThroughout the history of Greek art, the fourth century classical, or late classical, includes very careful attention to the anatomy of the human body. This is especially true in the sculptures created. There were even formulas for calculating the "ideal" proportions of the human body that sculptors would follow. A proficient example of a sculpture from this period is the Agias, from the Doachos Monument. The sculptor is believed to be Lysippos. The monument was a gift from King Doachos of Thessaly dedicated to Delphi, and was built in 344-343 B.C.E. A marble copy survives today and is at the museum in Delphi, but the original bronze was probably melted down. A cast of the sculpture can be seen today in the Metropolitan Museum of Art Cast Collection in Fairfield University's Loyola Hall.The sculpture of Agias has very well toned and formed body muscle.Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA : Carrol...Being that he was a Greek wrestler or boxer, his muscles are very well developed, and the sculptor accented this by deep grooves to exhibit definition. The sculpture stands in a contrapposto pose, halfway between stillness and motion. The sculpture is in more of a naturalistic state, and not as idealized as previous sculptures. The body definition is not as emphasized and not as well defined in comparison to other sculptures, such as the kouros we have seen in the Met. The sculpture's legs and torso are elongated, and the head seems to be smaller in proportion. Agias stands about 2 meters tall. When looking at the sculpture from the doorway, you can see a slight "S" curve in the body, which was a trademark of Praxitles. The shift in the weight of the body, and its balance is very realistic. When looking from closer, one can...

Marketing Report for Teejay's Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Marketing Report for Teejay's - Assignment Example Proposed Market Teejays is a growing organization with a strong presence in the UK market. Therefore, the company requires a market that is equally growing and promising in the future. As such, the best market for Teejays would be China. Presently, China is one of the fastest growing market for customer care and other related outsourcing services. Also the country is set to be a new economic super power within few years. What makes China the potential market for Teejays is the country’s shift in the market focus. â€Å"Till today, the domestic market is still the principal part of China’s call center market, accounting for about 80 per cent, while Japan and South Korea have been China’s major offshoring markets, where China is in absolute dominance.† (Chunyan, 2010) But now the country has realized the importance of expanding the market to the western countries. This necessitates vigorous training of the potential employees as unlike the competitors India or Philippines, China has low proficiency in English language. The Chinese government has begun huge investment in English which throws out huge market opportunities for companies like Teejays. (Graddol, 2008) â€Å"Chinese people are bad at expressing themselves orally in a foreign language, however, they are good at reading and writing in it.† (Hongbing, 2010) The huge focus by the Chinese government on call centres as an economic power plant makes the Chinese market one of the most promising among the world. The Chinese government has even coined the term ‘Call Economy’ in order to represent the massive size of call centres to the Chinese Economy. (CCC, 2010) The Chinese economy was so far being dominated by manufacturing sector. But now the service sector is experiencing massive growth to emerge as the backbone of the economy. The annual growth rate in the Chinese call centre jobs is 15%. In 2009 itself more than 5 billion Euros were invested in the call cent re market. Way back in 2006, Chinese government has launched a project which designated 10 Chinese cities mainly for developing call centres and related service companies. Apart from that the country’s investment in the education sector is massive in order to equip the employable people to take up offshore business. As Teejays is primarily a call centre training consultant, it has huge potential market in China. Prospective call centre employees require improvement in their language proficiency. Government is also providing various supportive measures in order to foster the development of such training institutes. China has witnessed well known call centre companies entering the market in the recent years. â€Å"Growth in the number of Call Centers and number of agent positions seats in China is steadily increasing, and the revenue growth for technology vendors selling enterprise Call Center solutions has been in the double digits.† (APRG, 2011) With the boom in the ca ll centre industry, there is a huge growth in the revenue of technology vendors. Call centre training institutes have similar opportunity for increasing the market share and revenue. The increased presence of multinational companies in China has necessitated the need for better customer relationship management. Companies have

Fuel cells Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Fuel cells - Research Paper Example The fuel cell also comprises of an electrolyte which functions to transfer the electrically charged components across electrodes. According to the University of Stathclyde Engineering (2015), fuel cells convert the energy from convectional fuels directly into direct current electrical energy. This results in added advantages in the use of fuel cells during the production of electricity. The major advantages associated with the use of fuel cells in the production of electricity include high efficiency, reliability and responsivity levels, low production of emissions, flexible use of fuels, flexibility in the size and application of the fuel cells, a longer life and the quiet mode of operation. In regard to high efficiency levels, fuel cells have been established to be better efficient due to lack of thermodynamic laws known to limit Carnot Cycle efficiencies. Theoretically, fuel cells can attain efficiency levels of 83% which is however lower in practice and stands at 50%. The operation mechanism of fuel cells operation ensures increased efficacy due to the lack of an intermediate conversion into heat that is the case with conventional power schemes. Fuel cells have also been established to attain full power of operation with half an hour and their high responsivity (Fuel Cells, 2015). With the use of fuel cells in the production of electricity, only a quester of th e maintenance procedures currently used in convectional power production techniques is required. Apart from the preferred fuel for use in fuel cells which is hydrogen, several other alternatives are present including biogas, coal, propane, methanol, ethanol, petroleum among others. This presents an increased flexibility in fuel requirements and its lack of pollution and noise disturbance increases its suitability as a power production method. Following the flexibility in fuel requirements for use in the production of power using a fuel

UPA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

UPA - Essay Example As the essay declares a theoretical framework guides research and clarifies what exactly is the purpose of the research. Even though the research question tends to be misleading as the article progresses the purpose of research becomes clear. This research was based on a preconceived notion that the triage is higher when UAPs handle the emergency department. This can produce unbiased results. This also implies that the theoretical framework on the nursing theory constantly guided the author in her research. Not knowing what the real framework can be a problem. The author has used a developmental framework. This paper stresses that while the introduction of the subject tends to be slightly confusing in the beginning the problem has been properly highlighted in the text later. The flow of the subject is efficiently handled. Current and proper references used and cited wherever necessary. The author is not trying to prove that her preconceived notions were correct. The actual results are quoted which revealed that contrary to belief the triage time taken by licensed nurses or by the UAPs did not differ. It convinces the reader to remove this myth from the mind that triage is faster when nurses handle it. Issues have been well argued and presented. References have been cited from various books on this subject. The author still suggests another ‘study to compare the educational level of the triage nurse†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ implying that this has not been covered so far. At times the author tends to contradict her own statements.

Noise Pollution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Noise Pollution - Essay Example The management also should let their employees wear protection from noise to avoid hearing defect. Next is, they should have a specific noise peaks hours. Just like in the City of Bloomington, they imposed rules about noise control to take care the health and welfare of citizenry around its city. From parties to all amplified music are going to undergo with the noise control policy. If ever one breaks the policy will be subject to a 50 dollar fine or a charge of disorderly conduct. SITUATION B: Radon gas emits Alpha particles which may cause lung cancer if inhaled by an individual. Several friends of yours are purchasing a new home in an area where you understand that radon gas may be common. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas produced by the radioactive decay of the element radium. It usually enters a house or building through openings in the ground, and its presence increases the risk of lung cancer. I'll advice my friend to conduct a radon test in the place where they will purchase a new home. This procedure will enable them to be much informed the level of abundance of radon in the place. B... If the house tests below 4 pCi/L most experts agree that there is a relatively low probability of significant health risk at this low level of exposure. However, we recommend retesting the radon levels once you move in, to verify this low reading.

Emirates Airlines Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Emirates Airlines - Essay Example Emirates is one of the fastest growing airlines in the world and it has consistently posted an average of 20% growth in annual profit since 1985 (Plunkett, 2007). This research studies some key components of Emirates Airlines and how it relates to tourism and management. It examines the operational characteristics of the airline and how it aims at expanding its scope. The second section of the paper examines the financial performance of the airline and its implications. Finally, the paper examines the competitive situation of the airline and concludes on the findings. From the webpage of Emirates Airlines (Emirates Story, 2012), it started operating in October 1985. It aimed at providing high quality flight services to and from Dubai. The airline is mainly owned by the government of Dubai but it operates as an independent entity. Emirates has over 160 aircrafts and flies to over 100 destinations in 66 countries. A total of 40% of the flights are to or from Dubai. The growth in traffic for Emirates Airlines is characterized by the cumulative expansion of the airlines fleet. In 2001, there were just about 9 million passengers who flew on Emirates but by 2006, it had increased to 17.5 million (Graham et al, 2010). This is done through the offer of different classes of services that ensures that different people from different backgrounds are serviced by the airliner. Emirates flies to 111 cities and operates in five different global regions around the world (Emirates Routes, 2012). In each of these regions, Emirates Airlines provides various services that aim at meeting certain targets that are unique to the continent. In Africa, Emirates flies to 21 cities on the continent. Emirates flights to Africa was hinged on the expansion of business activities with Dubai. Since Dubai was set to become an international destination that links the developing world to Europe and North America. Due to the

Disciplan Plan for Kindergarten Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Disciplan Plan for Kindergarten - Coursework Example No matter how much planning goes into the curriculum, relationship building, and student assessment, it all stands useless if the classroom is inefficiently managed. However, rewards and punishment policy is focused upon the development of a child’s extrinsic motivation but his or her intrinsic motivation is negatively affected especially at the kindergarten level of education. Rewards and punishment power base used by a teacher might help in implementing discipline in the classroom for the short term but since intrinsic motivation is not developing, a seemingly well-behaved child would tend to deviate from his conduct in the absence of the opportunity of rewards. Although this strategy is most effective amongst the primary level of kindergarten level education, the child’s self-development and inherent nature are hampered. Hence one needs to combine this with some other strategies in order to formulate a discipline plan ideally suited for the inherent development of th e child studying in the kindergarten. For instance referent power base demanding the complete involvement of the teacher might be well suited to this level of education system. Hence one or more of such approaches or power system might be implemented. A collaborative strategy might be put into effect where the control lies partly in the hands of the teacher and partly with the students. This is a collaboration of student-directed as well as teacher-directed approach. There are four power bases and three management theories, which need to be selectively chosen from in order to implement a discipline plan for a classroom. The four power bases are referent power, legitimate power, expert power and reward/punishment. The theories are student directed or non-interventionist, teacher-directed or interventionist and collaborative.  Ã‚  

Noise Pollution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Noise Pollution - Essay Example The management also should let their employees wear protection from noise to avoid hearing defect. Next is, they should have a specific noise peaks hours. Just like in the City of Bloomington, they imposed rules about noise control to take care the health and welfare of citizenry around its city. From parties to all amplified music are going to undergo with the noise control policy. If ever one breaks the policy will be subject to a 50 dollar fine or a charge of disorderly conduct. SITUATION B: Radon gas emits Alpha particles which may cause lung cancer if inhaled by an individual. Several friends of yours are purchasing a new home in an area where you understand that radon gas may be common. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas produced by the radioactive decay of the element radium. It usually enters a house or building through openings in the ground, and its presence increases the risk of lung cancer. I'll advice my friend to conduct a radon test in the place where they will purchase a new home. This procedure will enable them to be much informed the level of abundance of radon in the place. B... If the house tests below 4 pCi/L most experts agree that there is a relatively low probability of significant health risk at this low level of exposure. However, we recommend retesting the radon levels once you move in, to verify this low reading.

Disciplan Plan for Kindergarten Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Disciplan Plan for Kindergarten - Coursework Example No matter how much planning goes into the curriculum, relationship building, and student assessment, it all stands useless if the classroom is inefficiently managed. However, rewards and punishment policy is focused upon the development of a child’s extrinsic motivation but his or her intrinsic motivation is negatively affected especially at the kindergarten level of education. Rewards and punishment power base used by a teacher might help in implementing discipline in the classroom for the short term but since intrinsic motivation is not developing, a seemingly well-behaved child would tend to deviate from his conduct in the absence of the opportunity of rewards. Although this strategy is most effective amongst the primary level of kindergarten level education, the child’s self-development and inherent nature are hampered. Hence one needs to combine this with some other strategies in order to formulate a discipline plan ideally suited for the inherent development of th e child studying in the kindergarten. For instance referent power base demanding the complete involvement of the teacher might be well suited to this level of education system. Hence one or more of such approaches or power system might be implemented. A collaborative strategy might be put into effect where the control lies partly in the hands of the teacher and partly with the students. This is a collaboration of student-directed as well as teacher-directed approach. There are four power bases and three management theories, which need to be selectively chosen from in order to implement a discipline plan for a classroom. The four power bases are referent power, legitimate power, expert power and reward/punishment. The theories are student directed or non-interventionist, teacher-directed or interventionist and collaborative.  Ã‚  

Strategic management Essay Example for Free

Strategic management Essay Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis In most strategic management courses, cases are used extensively as a teaching tool. 1 A key reason is that cases provide active learners with opportunities to use the strategic management process to identify and solve organisational problems. Thus, by analysing situations that are described in cases and presenting the results, active learners (that is, students) become skilled at effectively using the tools, techniques and concepts that combine to form the strategic management process. The cases that follow are concerned with actual companies. Presented within the cases are problems and situations that managers and those with whom they work must analyse and resolve. As you will see, a strategic management case can focus on an entire industry, a single organisation or a business unit of a large, diversified firm. The strategic management issues facing not-for-profit organisations also can be examined using the case analysis method. Basically, the case analysis method calls for a careful diagnosis of an organization’s current conditions (as manifested by its external and internal environments) so that appropriate strategic actions can be recommended in light of the firm’s strategic intent and strategic mission. Strategic actions are taken to develop and then use a firm’s core competencies to select and implement different strategies, including business-level, corporatelevel, acquisition and restructuring, international and cooperative strategies. Thus, appropriate strategic actions help the firm to survive in the long run as it creates and uses competitive advantages as the foundation for achieving strategic competitiveness and earning above-average returns. The case method that we are recommending to you has a rich heritage as a pedagogical approach to the study and understanding of managerial effectiveness. 2 As an active learner, your preparation is critical to successful use of the case analysis method. Without careful study and analysis, active learners lack the insights required to participate fully in the discussion of a firm’s situation and the strategic actions that are appropriate. Instructors adopt different approaches in their application of the case analysis method. Some require active learners/students to use a specific analytical procedure to examine an organisation; others provide less structure, expecting students to learn by developing their own unique analytical method. Still other instructors believe that a moderately structured framework should be used to analyse a firm’s situation and make appropriate recommendations. Your lecturer or tutor will determine the specific approach you take. The approach we are presenting to you is a moderately structured framework. We divide our discussion of a moderately structured case analysis method framework into four sections. First, we describe the importance of understanding the skills active learners can acquire through effective use of the case analysis method. In the second section, we provide you with a process-oriented framework. This framework can be of value in your efforts to analyse cases and then present the results of your work. Using this framework in a classroom setting yields valuable experiences that can, in turn, help you to successfully complete assignments that you will receive from your employer. The third section is where we describe briefly what you can expect to occur during in-class case discussions. As this description shows, the relationship and interactions between instructors and active learners/students during case discussions are different than they are during lectures. In the final section, we Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis present a moderately structured framework that we believe can help you to prepare effective oral and written presentations. Written and oral communication skills also are valued highly in many organisational settings; hence, their development today can serve you well in the future. Skills gained through use of the case analysis method. The case analysis method is based on a philosophy that combines knowledge acquisition with significant involvement from students as active learners. In the words of Alfred North Whitehead, this philosophy ‘rejects the doctrine that students had first learned passively, and then, having learned should apply knowledge’. 3 In contrast to this philosophy, the case analysis method is based on principles that were elaborated upon by John Dewey: Only by wrestling with the conditions of this problem at hand, seeking and finding his own way out, does [the student] think If he cannot devise his own solution (not, of course, in isolation, but in correspondence with the teacher and other pupils) and find his own way out he will not learn, not even if he can recite some correct answer with a hundred percent accuracy. 4 The case analysis method brings reality into the classroom. When developed and presented effectively, with rich and interesting detail, cases keep conceptual discussions grounded in reality. Experience shows that simple fictional accounts of situations and collections of actual organisational data and articles from public sources are not as effective for learning as fully developed cases. A comprehensive case presents you with a partial clinical study of a real-life situation that faced managers as well as other stakeholders, including employees. A case presented in narrative form provides motivation for involvement with and analysis of a specific situation. By framing alternative strategic actions and by confronting the complexity and ambiguity of the practical world, case analysis provides extraordinary power for your involvement with a personal learning experience. Some of the potential consequences of using the case method are summarised in Exhibit 1. As Exhibit 1 suggests, the case analysis method can assist active learners in the development of their analytical and judgement skills. Case analysis also helps you learn how to ask the right questions. By this we mean questions that focus on the core strategic issues that are included in a case. Active learners/students with managerial aspirations can improve their ability to identify underlying problems rather than focusing on superficial symptoms as they develop skills at asking probing yet appropriate questions. The collection of cases your instructor chooses to assign can expose you to a wide variety of organisations and decision situations. This approach vicariously broadens your experience base and provides insights into many types of managerial situations, tasks and responsibilities. Such indirect experience can help you to make a more informed career decision about the industry and managerial situation you believe will prove to be challenging and satisfying. Finally, experience in analysing cases definitely enhances your problemsolving skills, and research indicates that the case method for this class is better than the lecture method. 5 Furthermore, when your instructor requires oral and written presentations, your communication skills will be honed through use of the case method. Of course, these added skills depend on your preparation as C-4 Exhibit 1 | Consequences of student involvement with the case method 1 Case analysis requires students to practise important managerial skills—diagnosing, making decisions, observing, listening and persuading—while preparing for a case discussion. 2 Cases require students to relate analysis and action, to develop realistic and concrete actions despite the complexity and partial knowledge characterising the situation being studied. 3 Students must confront the intractability of reality—complete with absence of needed information, an imbalance between needs and available resources, and conflicts among competing objectives. 4 Students develop a general managerial point of view—where responsibility is sensitive to action in a diverse environmental context. Source: C. C. Lundberg and C. Enz, 1993, ‘A framework for student case preparation’, Case Research Journal, 13 (Summer), p. 134. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis well as your instructor’s facilitation of learning. However, the primary responsibility for learning is yours. The quality of case discussion is generally acknowledged to require, at a minimum, a thorough mastery of case facts and some independent analysis of them. The case method therefore first requires that you read and think carefully about each case. Additional comments about the preparation you should complete to successfully discuss a case appear in the next section. Student preparation for case discussion If you are inexperienced with the case method, you may need to alter your study habits. A lecture-oriented course may not require you to do intensive preparation for each class period. In such a course, you have the latitude to work through assigned readings and review lecture notes according to your own schedule. However, an assigned case requires significant and conscientious preparation before class. Without it, you will be unable to contribute meaningfully to in-class discussion. Therefore, careful reading and thinking about case facts, as well as reasoned analyses and the development of alternative solutions to case problems, are essential. Recommended alternatives should flow logically from core problems identified through study of the case. Exhibit 2 shows a set of steps that can help you to familiarise yourself with a case, identify problems and propose strategic actions that increase the probability that a firm will achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns. C-5 Exhibit 2 | An effective case analysis process Step 1: Gaining familiarity a. In general – determine who, what, how, where and when (the critical facts of the case). b. In detail – identify the places, persons, activities and contexts of the situation. c. Step 2: Recognising symptoms Recognise the degree of certainty/uncertainty of acquired information. a. List all indicators (including stated ‘problems’) that something is not as expected or as desired. b. Ensure that symptoms are not assumed to be the problem (symptoms should lead to identification of the problem). Step 3: Identifying goals a. Identify critical statements by major parties (e. g. people, groups, the work unit, etc. ). b. List all goals of the major parties that exist or can be reasonably inferred. Step 4: Conducting the analysis a. Decide which ideas, models and theories seem useful. b. Apply these conceptual tools to the situation. c. Step 5: Making the diagnosis As new information is revealed, cycle back to sub-steps (a) and (b). a. Identify predicaments (goal inconsistencies). b. Identify c. Step 6: Doing the action planning c. problems (discrepancies between goals and performance). Prioritise predicaments/problems regarding timing, importance, etc. a. Specify and prioritise the criteria used to choose action alternatives. b. Discover or invent feasible action alternatives. Examine the probable consequences of action alternatives. d. Select a course of action. e. Design an implementation plan/schedule. f. Create a plan for assessing the action to be implemented. Source: C. C. Lundberg and C. Enz, 1993, ‘A framework for student case preparation’, Case Research Journal, 13 (Summer), p. 144. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis Gaining familiarity Identifying goals The third step of effective case analysis calls for you to identify the goals of the major organisations, business units and/or individuals in a case. As appropriate, you should also identify each firm’s strategic intent and strategic mission. Typically, these direction-setting statements (goals, strategic intents and strategic missions) are derived from comments made by central characters in the organisation, business unit or top management team as described in the case and/or from public documents (for example, an annual report). Completing this step successfully can sometimes be difficult. Nonetheless, the outcomes you attain from this step are essential to an effective case analysis because identifying goals, intent and mission helps you to clarify the major problems featured in a case and to evaluate alternative solutions to those problems. Directionsetting statements are not always stated publicly or prepared in written format. When this occurs, you must infer goals from other available factual data and information. C-6 The first step of an effective case analysis process calls for you to become familiar with the facts featured in the case and the focal firm’s situation. Initially, you should become familiar with the focal firm’s general situation (for example, who, what, how, where and when). Thorough familiarisation demands appreciation of the nuances, as well as the major issues, in the case. Gaining familiarity with a situation requires you to study several situational levels, including interactions between and among individuals within groups, business units, the corporate office, the local community and the society at large. Recognising relationships within and among levels facilitates a more thorough understanding of the specific case situation. It is also important that you evaluate information on a continuum of certainty. Information that is verifiable by several sources and judged along similar dimensions can be classified as a fact. Information representing someone’s perceptual judgement of a particular situation is referred to as an inference. Information gleaned from a situation that is not verifiable is classified as speculation. Finally, information that is independent of verifiable sources and arises through individual or group discussion is an assumption. Obviously, case analysts and organisational decision makers prefer having access to facts over inferences, speculations and assumptions. Personal feelings, judgements and opinions evolve when you  are analysing a case. It is important to be aware of your own feelings about the case and to evaluate the accuracy of perceived ‘facts’ to ensure that the objectivity of your work is maximised. Conducting the analysis The fourth step of effective case analysis is concerned with acquiring a systematic understanding of a situation. Occasionally cases are analysed in a less-thanthorough manner. Such analyses may be a product of a busy schedule or of the difficulty and complexity of the issues described in a particular case. Sometimes you will face pressures on your limited amounts of time and may believe that you can understand the situation described in a case without systematic analysis of all the facts. However, experience shows that familiarity with a case’s facts is a necessary, but insufficient, step in the development of effective solutions – solutions that can enhance a firm’s strategic competitiveness. In fact, a lessthan-thorough analysis typically results in an emphasis on symptoms, rather than on problems and their causes. To analyse a case effectively, you should be sceptical of quick or easy approaches and answers. A systematic analysis helps you to understand a situation and determine what can work and probably what will not work. Key linkages and underlying causal networks based on the history of the firm become apparent. In this way, you can separate causal networks from symptoms. Also, because the quality of a case analysis depends on applying appropriate tools, it is important that you use the ideas, models and theories that seem to be useful for evaluating and solving individual and unique situations. As you consider facts and symptoms, a useful Recognising symptoms. Recognition of symptoms is the second step of an effective case analysis process. A symptom is an indication that something is not as you or someone else thinks it should be. You may be tempted to correct the symptoms instead of searching for true problems. True problems are the conditions or situations requiring solution before the performance of an organisation, business unit or individual can improve. Identifying and listing symptoms early in the case analysis process tends to reduce the temptation to label symptoms as problems. The focus of your analysis should be on the actual  causes of a problem, rather than on its symptoms. Thus, it is important to remember that symptoms are indicators of problems; subsequent work facilitates discovery of critical causes of problems that your case recommendations must address. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis theory may become apparent. Of course, having familiarity with conceptual models may be important in the effective analysis of a situation. Successful students and successful organisational strategists add to their intellectual tool kits on a continual basis. What to expect from in-class case discussions Classroom discussions of cases differ significantly from lectures. The case method calls for instructors to guide the discussion, encourage student participation and solicit alternative views. When alternative views are not forthcoming, instructors typically adopt one view so that students can be challenged to respond to it thoughtfully. Often students’ work is evaluated in terms of both the quantity and the quality of their contributions to in-class case discussions. Students benefit by having their views judged against those of their peers and by responding to challenges by other class members and/or the instructor. During case discussions, instructors listen, question and probe to extend the analysis of case issues. In the course of these actions, peers or the instructor may challenge an individual’s views and the validity of alternative perspectives that have been expressed. These challenges are offered in a constructive manner; their intent is to help students develop their analytical and communication skills. Instructors should encourage students to be innovative and original in the development and presentation of their ideas. Over the course of an individual discussion, students can develop a more complex view of the case, benefiting from the diverse inputs of their peers and instructor. Among other benefits, experience with multiple-case discussions should help students to increase their knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of group decision-making processes. Student peers as well as the instructor value comments that contribute to the discussion. To offer relevant contributions, you are  encouraged to use independent thought and, through discussions with your peers outside of class, to refine your thinking. We also encourage you to avoid using ‘I think’, ‘I believe’ and ‘I feel’ to discuss your inputs to a case analysis process. Instead, consider using a less emotion-laden phrase, such as ‘My analysis shows’. This highlights the logical nature of the approach you have taken to complete the six steps of an effective case analysis process. When preparing for an in-class case discussion, you should plan to use the case data to explain your assessment of the situation. Assume that your peers and instructor know the case facts. In addition, it is good practice to prepare notes before class discussions and use them as you explain your view. Effective notes signal to classmates and the instructor that you are prepared to engage in a thorough discussion of a case. Moreover, C-7 Making the diagnosis The fifth step of effective case analysis – diagnosis – is the process of identifying and clarifying the roots of the problems by comparing goals with facts. In this step, it is useful to search for predicaments. Predicaments are situations in which goals do not fit with known facts. When you evaluate the actual performance of an organisation, business unit or individual, you may identify over- or underachievement (relative to established goals). Of course, single-problem situations are rare. Accordingly, you should recognise that the case situations you study probably will be complex in nature. Effective diagnosis requires you to determine the problems affecting longer-term performance and those requiring immediate handling. Understanding these issues will aid your efforts to prioritise problems and predicaments, given available resources and existing constraints. Doing the action planning The final step of an effective case analysis process is called action planning. Action planning is the process of identifying appropriate alternative actions. In the action planning step, you select the criteria you will use to evaluate the identified alternatives. You may derive these criteria from the analyses; typically, they are related to key strategic situations facing the focal organisation. Furthermore, it is important that you prioritise these criteria to ensure a rational and effective evaluation of alternative courses of action. Typically, managers ‘satisfice’ when selecting courses of action; that is, they find acceptable courses of action that meet most of the chosen evaluation criteria. A rule of thumb that has proved valuable to strategic decision makers is to select an alternative that leaves other plausible alternatives available if the one selected fails. Once you have selected the best alternative, you must specify an implementation plan. Developing an implementation plan serves as a reality check on the feasibility of your alternatives. Thus, it is important that you give thoughtful consideration to all issues associated with the implementation of the selected alternatives. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis Exhibit 3 | Types of thinking in case preparation: Analysis and synthesis C-8 125 000 Sources: Income figures are approximate and based on A. Chatterjee, 1998, ‘Marketing to the superrich’, Business Today (Living Media India Ltd), 22 April; W. Berryman and J. McManus, 1998, ‘India: Turning the elephant economy’, Independent Business Weekly, 24 June. offered spicier sauces, such as McMasala and McImli (made from tamarind). Other elements of the menu, such as chicken nuggets, fillet fish sandwiches, fries, sodas and milkshakes, were in common with the rest of the McDonald’s system. In 1998, McDonald’s India set up a menu development team to collect consumer feedback. Subsequently, the team came up with its menu vision, and new products since then have been based on this vision. The adaptation of the strategy went well beyond the menu, encompassing many aspects of the restaurant management system. Two different menu boards were displayed in  each restaurant – green for vegetarian products and purple for non-vegetarian products. Behind the counter, restaurant kitchens had separate, dedicated preparation areas for the meat and non-meat products. The kitchen crew (in charge of cooking) had different uniforms to distinguish their roles and did not work at the vegetarian and non-vegetarian stations on the same day, thus ensuring clear segregation. The wrapping of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food took place separately. These extra steps were taken to assure Indian customers of the wholesomeness of both products and their preparation. To convince Indian customers that the company would not serve beef and would respect the culinary habits of its clientele, McDonald’s printed brochures explaining all these steps and took customers on kitchen tours. McDonald’s positioned itself as a family restaurant. The average price of a ‘Combo’ meal, which included burger, fries and Coke, varied from Rs 76 for a vegetarian meal to Rs 88 for a Maharaja Mac meal. This could be compared with KFC meal prices at Rs 59 (Crispy Burger, regular fries and large Pepsi) and Rs 79 (KFC Chicken, Colonel Burger and regular Pepsi). McDonald’s Happy Meal, which included a complimentary toy, was priced at Rs 46. The prices in India were lower than in Sri Lanka or Pakistan, and even the price of the Maharaja Mac was 50 per cent less than an equivalent product in the United States. To fight its premium image among the public, the company undertook selective price cutting and ran some periodic promotions. In February 1999, the company was offering ‘economeals’ for as low as Rs 29. The company reduced the price of vegetable nuggets from Rs 29 to Rs 19 and that of its soft-serve ice-cream cone from Rs 16 to Rs 7. Apparently, this still afforded McDonald’s a healthy margin (40 per cent for cones). As Vikram Bakshi, explained, ‘I will never become unaffordable, as I will not then be able to build up volumes. ’ The lower price could be attributed to two factors: the pricing strategies of MNC rivals as well as mid-range local restaurants, and the development of a local (low-cost) supply chain. McDonald’s pricing strategies, as well as special promotions, were influenced by rivals. In February 1999, several competitors were running special promotions, with KFC offering a meal inclusive of chicken, rice and gravy for Rs 39. For Rs 350, Pizza Hut was offering a whole family meal, including two medium pizzas, bread and Pepsi. Wimpy’s was offering Case 8 McDonald’s expansion strategies in India mega meals at Rs 35. A typical vegetarian ‘set meal’, or ‘thali’ (which included Indian breads, rice, vegetables and yogurt) at a mid-range restaurant cost around Rs 50, which was considerably lower than a McDonald’s meal. Some analysts believed that that by introducing loss leaders (for example, cones), McDonald’s wanted to highlight good value for all its products. Whether customers attracted by special promotions pay repeat visits to McDonald’s remains to be seen. In October 2000, the company introduced two new Indianised products to its menu – the Chicken McGrill and the Veg Pizza McPuff. At that point in time, 75 per cent of the menu in India was unique – that is, different from the rest of the McDonald’s system. The Chicken McGrill had a grilled chicken patty topped with onions and mint sauce, to give it an Indian flavour. The Veg Pizza was a takeoff on the popular Indian samosa (potato-based curry puff) with differences in shape (rectangular) and stuffing (capsicum, onions and Mozarella cheese with tomato sauce). In keeping with the low pricing strategy in India, these items were priced at Rs 25 and Rs 16, respectively. With its value pricing and localised menu, McDonald’s had attracted some loyal customers. One such customer said, ‘A normal kebab, with all the trimmings, at a regular restaurant would cost more than Rs 25 and if the new McGrill is giving us a similar satisfaction with its mint chutney (sauce), then we’d rather eat in a lively McDonald’s outlet than sitting in a cramped car on the road. ’ Some elements of the promotional strategy remained the same as in other parts of the world. One instance of this included the emphasis on attracting children. A Happy Meal film was consistently shown on the Cartoon Network and the Zee (a local channel) Disney Hour. McDonald’s also teamed up with Delhi Traffic Police and the Delhi Fire Service to highlight safety issues, again trying to create goodwill among schoolchildren. In October 1999, in conjunction with The Walt Disney Company and UNESCO, McDonald’s launched a search for Millennium Dreamers. The program would bring together 2 000 young people from around the globe who had made a positive and significant impact on their communities. Based on the number of its outlets, India was allocated two representatives. By June 2000, the company had started rolling out its first national campaign, as it was expanding beyond Mumbai and New Delhi. The campaign, budgeted at Rs 100 million, was expected to highlight (in phased order) the brand (the experience that there is something special about McDonald’s), food quality and variety. The company also ran special promotions during festivals, and ‘vegetarian’ days, and was even developing garlicfree sauces to bring in ‘hard-core’ vegetarian traffic. In terms of the selection of cities, McDonald’s followed the same strategy in India as in the rest of the world. Its initial focus on Mumbai and Delhi was driven by the following factors: they were the two largest cities in India; their citizens enjoyed relatively high income levels compared to the rest of the country; and they were exposed to foreign food and culture. After establishing a presence in the leading cities, McDonald’s then moved to smaller satellite towns near the metropolitan cities (for example, from Delhi to Gurgaon and Noida, both suburbs of Delhi, and from Mumbai to Pune). McDonald’s often found that there were positive spillover effects, in terms of its reputation, from the metropolitan cities to the satellite towns. In Jaipur, the company was hoping to attract foreign tourists. C-125 Developing the supply chain McDonald’s search for Indian suppliers started as early as 1991. Its initial challenge was to develop local suppliers who could deliver quality raw materials, regularly and on schedule. In the five-and-a-half years until start-up, McDonald’s spent as much as Rs 500 million (US$12. 8 million) to set up a supply network, distribution centres and logistics support. By mid-2000, some estimates placed the total investment in the supply chain at almost Rs 3 billion. Local suppliers, Exhibit 6 | McDonald’s supply chain in India Phillaur (sauces) Dehradun (lettuce) Nainital (lettuce) Taloja (veg. nuggets) Thane Pune (lettuce) Oo’ty (lettuce) Baramati (cheese) Hyderabad (mutton patties) Venkatapur (pickles) Cochin Supplier locations Distribution centres Case 8 McDonald’s expansion strategies in India distributors and joint venture partners and employees had to match the restaurant chain’s quality and hygiene standards before they became part of its system. McDonald’s experience in identifying and cultivating the supplier of lettuce provided an excellent illustration of the difficulties involved. In 1991, hardly any iceberg lettuce was grown in India, except for a small quantity grown around Delhi during the winter months. McDonald’s identified a lettuce supplier (Mangesh Kumar from Ootacamund in Tamilnadu, a southern state) and helped him in a broad range of activities, from seed selection to advice on farming practices. In the case of several other suppliers, such as Cremica Industries which supplied the sesame seed buns, McDonald’s helped them to gain access to foreign technology. In another instance, it encouraged Dynamix, the supplier of cheese, to establish a program for milk procurement by investing in bulk milk collection and chilling centres. This, in turn, led to higher milk yields and overall collections, as well as to an improvement in milk quality. McDonald’s ended up with a geographically diverse sourcing network, with buns coming from northern India, chicken and cheese from western India, and lettuce and pickles from southern India. There were as many as 40 suppliers in the company’s supply chain. (See Exhibit 6 for McDonald’s supply chain. ) A dedicated distribution system was established to match the suppliers’ production and delivery schedules with the restaurant’s needs. The first two centralised distribution centres were set up near Mumbai and at Cochin (in the southernmost part of India) in joint ventures with two local retailers, both of whom had to learn from international distributors of McDonald’s products how the restaurant chain handled distribution worldwide and, especially, how to enhance the quality of storage operations. The company estimated that each distribution centre could service about 25 outlets. McDonald’s strove to keep the storage volumes of products high in order to exploit all possible economies of scale. The distribution centres were also expected to maintain inventory records and to interact with suppliers and the logistics firm to ensure that their freezers were well stocked. Said Amit Jatia, ‘The most important part of our operations was the development of a cold chain [the process of procurement, warehousing, transportation and retailing of food products under controlled temperatures]. There is practically no need for a knife in any restaurant. All the chopping and food processing is done in the plants. Only the actual cooking takes place in the restaurants. ’ Even with the suppliers and distribution system in place, McDonald’s needed a distribution link to move raw materials to its restaurants. Logistics management was contracted out to AFL Logistics – itself a 50:50 joint venture between Air Freight (a Mumbai-based firm) and FX Coughlin of the United States, McDonald’s international logistics provider. AFL logistics was responsible for the temperature-controlled movement of all products (by rail, road or air, as appropriate) from individ.