Saturday, August 31, 2019

Office Depot Potter Analysis Essay

We strive to ensure that our customers’ needs are satisfied through various channel offerings. Our direct business is tailored to serve small- to medium-sized customers. * sales representatives contribute to customer loyalty by building relationships with customers and providing information, business tools and problem-solving solutions to them. * offering a broad selection of nationally branded office products, as well as private brand products and services. Our selection of private brand products has increased in breadth and level of sophistication over time. We currently offer general office supplies, computer supplies, business machines and related supplies, and office furniture under various labels, including Office Depot ®, Viking Office Products ®, Foray ®, Ativa ®, Break Escapesâ„ ¢, Nicedayâ„ ¢ and Worklifeâ„ ¢ * office supplies specialty stores faced heightened competition from discount department stores, warehouse clubs, supercenters and e-commerce websites, which have undercut demand and eroded the industry’s sales. Threat of new entrants: Most office supplies are commoditized products, which have little brand loyalty. This, along with low end user switching costs, little government regulation, and easy access to suppliers and distribution channels, is conducive to the entry of new players into the market. Larger players benefit from scale economies that allow them to compete with high-volume office supply providers that lead the market. Larger players with greater financial muscle would be able to negotiate better contracts with suppliers and therefore achieve better profit margins. Entry can be achieved on a smaller scale by focusing on a specific product range (e. g. n ink cartridge specialty store) or by developing an online retail shop. Poor growth in recent years, with stagnant growth forecast for the 2010-2015 period, decreases the threat of new entrants into the market somewhat. Overall, the threat of new entrants is strong. * Staples, Office Depot and Office Max make up nearly $41 Billion of that total and Staples claiming one third of the market share. Thus, barriers to entry are high as these few firms dominate market share. * along with low brand loyalty and easy access to suppliers and distribution, also contribute to the high likelihood of new entrants Power of Buyer: The office supply sector has customers including corporate, government, small business, and individual households. While individual households hold relatively little buying power, corporate and government business partners can have significant impact on the market environment. * abundance and diversity of buyers weakens buyer power. However, it is strengths due to low-cost switching, low product differentiation, and high price sensitivity strengthen it. Suppliers: * Suppliers to this industry hold less power. Since retailers offer similar costing products and services, few manufacturers can differentiate themselves. There are at least ten major competitors in the paper industry alone, for example, and on top of this the individual office suppliers themselves often carry their own line of generic product. * there are a number of substitutes available to consumers. Discount furniture outlets such as Ikea offer desks and chairs for the home office. For businesses, companies like Steelcase can furnish entire buildings all under one contract, whereas an office supply outlet cannot. Major corporations often enter into purchasing agreements with the computer manufacturers themselves to order in bulk. Retail outlets such as Best Buy offer the same technology as the office suppliers, often at a very competitive price. Finally, Wal-Mart is a major†¦ * Suppliers range from multinational high-office providers to local stationeries. * Suppliers are numerous, and low differentiation, along with some backwards integration by players who sell their own branded goods, weakens supplier power. Rivarly among firms: * Players range in size and product diversity; they include high-volume office supply providers (e. g. Staples), warehouse clubs (e. g. Costco), copy and print businesses (e. g. FedEx Office), online retailers (e. g. Amazon. com), ink cartridge specialty stores, discount retailers, as well as several local and regional contract stationers. The large number of players, along with low-cost switching for buyers, low product differentiation, easy expansion by utilizing the internet, and poor market growth in recent years, intensifies rivalry amongst incumbents. This is ameliorated somewhat by the diversity displayed in the product portfolio of some players, such as online retailers and discount retailers, who operate in other markets and are therefore not solely reliant on the revenues generated from the office services and supplies market. Relatively low storage costs and the non-specificity of players’ assets lowers barriers to exit and eases rivalry. Overall, rivalry is strong. * * The large number of players, along with low-cost switching for buyers, low product differentiation, easy expansion by utilizing the internet, and poor market growth in recent years, intensifies rivalry amongst incumbents. http://360. datamonitor. com. ezproxy. fau. edu/Product? pid=4CA55D31-18F9-44E1-BB86-D1E5E5306887 http://www. wikinvest. com/stock/Office_Depot_%28ODP%29/Filing/10-K/2010/F46736398#toc38397_1 COMPETITION: We operate in a highly competitive environment in all three of our segments. We believe that we compete favorably on the basis of price, service, relationships and selection. We compete with office supply stores, wholesale clubs, discount stores, mass merchandisers, food and drug stores, computer and electronics superstores, internet-based companies and direct marketing companies. These companies, in varying degrees, compete with us in substantially all of our current markets. Other office supply retail companies market similarly to us in terms of store format, pricing strategy, product selection and product availability in the markets where we operate, primarily those in the U. S. and Canada. We anticipate that in the future we will face increased competition from these chains. Internationally, we compete on a similar basis to North America. Outside of the U. S. and Canada, we sell through contract and catalog channels in 17 countries and operate retail stores in four countries through wholly-owned or majority-owned entities. Additionally, our International Division provides office products and services in 34 countries through joint ventures, licensing and franchise agreements, cross-border transactions, alliances and other arrangements. Competition — We compete with a variety of retailers, dealers, distributors, contract stationers, direct marketers and internet operators throughout our worldwide operations. This is a highly competitive marketplace that includes such retail competitors as office supply stores, warehouse clubs, computer and electronics stores, mass merchant retailers, local merchants, grocery and drug-store chains as well as other competitors including direct mail and internet merchants, contract stationers, and direct manufacturers. Our competitors may be local, regional, national or international. Further, competition may come from highly-specialized low-cost merchants, including ink refill stores and kiosks, original equipment manufacturers, concentrated direct marketing channels including well-funded and broad-based enterprises. There is a possibility that any or all of these competitors could become more aggressive in the future, thereby increasing the number and breadth of our competitors. In recent years, new and well-funded competitors have begun competing in certain aspects of our business. For example, two major common carriers of goods have retail outlets that allow them to compete directly for copy, printing, packaging and shipping business, and offer products and services similar to those we offer. While they do not yet have the breadth of products that we offer, they are extremely competitive in the areas of package shipping and copy and print centers. Recently, the so-called warehouse clubs have expanded upon their â€Å"in-store† offerings by adding catalog and internet sales channels, offering a broad assortment of office products for sale on a direct delivery basis. In order to achieve and maintain expected profitability levels in our three operating divisions, we must continue to grow by adding new customers and taking market share from competitors and using pricing necessary to retain existing customers. If we fail to adequately address and respond to these pressures in both North America and internationally, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. HIGH EXIT COSTS: The company has been adversely affected by the downturn in the global economy in recent years and has taken actions to adapt to the changing and increasingly competitive conditions including closing stores and distribution centers (â€Å"DCs†), consolidating functional activities and disposing of businesses and assets. Exit costs related to these activities recognized during the year-to-date 2011 totaled approximately $25 million. Of this amount, approximately $17 million is included in Store and warehouse operating and selling expenses and approximately $8 million is included in General and administrative expenses on the Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations. http://www. sec. gov/Archives/edgar/data/800240/000119312511279497/d241553d10q. htm BUYERS: Government Contracts — One of our largest U. S. ustomer groups consists of various state and local governments, government agencies and non-profit organizations. Our relationship with this customer group is subject to uncertain future funding levels and federal and state procurement laws and requires restrictive contract terms; any of these factors could curtail current or future business. Contracting with state and local governments is highly competitive and can be expensive and time-consuming, often requiring that we incur significant upfront time and expense without any assurance that we will win a contract. Our ability to compete successfully for and retain business with the federal and various state and local governments is highly dependent on cost-effective performance. Our government business is also sensitive to changes in national and international priorities and U. S. , state and local government budgets. SUPPLIERS: Product Availability; Potential Cost Increases — In addition to selling our private brand merchandise, we are a reseller of manufacturers’ branded items and are thereby dependent on the availability and pricing of key products, including ink, toner, paper and technology products, to name a few. As a reseller, we cannot control the supply, design, function or cost of many of the products we offer for sale. Disruptions in the availability of raw materials used in production of these products may adversely affect our sales and result in customer dissatisfaction. Further, we cannot control the cost of manufacturers’ products and cost increases must either be passed along to our customers or result in an erosion of our earnings. Failure to identify desirable products and make them available to our customers when desired and at attractive prices could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. PRODUCT IDENTITY: THREat of NEW ENTRANTS Global Sourcing of Products/Private Brand — In recent years, we have substantially increased the number and types of products that we sell under our private brands including Office Depot ® and other proprietary brands. Sources of supply may prove to be unreliable, or the quality of the globally sourced products may vary from our expectations. Economic and civil unrest in areas of the world where we source such products, as well as shipping and dockage issues could adversely impact the availability or cost of such products, or both. Moreover, as we seek indemnities from the manufacturers of these products, the uncertainty of realization of any such indemnity and the lack of understanding of U. S. roduct liability laws in certain parts of Asia make it more likely that we may have to respond to claims or complaints from our customers. Most of our imported goods to the United States arrive from Asia, and the ports through which these goods are imported are located primarily on the U. S. West Coast. Therefore, we are subject to potential disruption of our supplies of goods for resale due to labor unrest, security issues or natural disasters affecting any or all of these ports. Finally, as a significant importer of manufactured goods from foreign countries, we are vulnerable to security concerns, labor unrest and other factors that may affect the availability and reliability of ports of entry for the products that we source. Any of these circumstances could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. STAKEHOLDERS: Unionization — While our management believes that our employee relations are good, we cannot be assured that we will not experience pressure from labor unions or become the target of campaigns similar to those faced by our competitors. The potential for unionization could increase if the United States Congress passes federal legislation that would facilitate labor organization. The unionization of a significant portion of our workforce could increase our overall costs at the affected locations and adversely affect our flexibility to run our business in the most efficient manner to remain competitive or acquire new business. In addition, significant union representation would require us to negotiate wages, salaries, benefits and ther terms with many of our employees collectively and could adversely affect our results of operations by increasing our labor costs or otherwise restricting our ability to maximize the efficiency of our operations. Regulatory Environment — While businesses are subject to regulatory matters relating to the conduct of their businesses, including consumer protection laws, advertising regulations, wage and hour regulations and the like, certain jurisdictions have taken a particularly ag gressive stance with respect to such matters and have stepped up enforcement, including fines and other sanctions. We transact substantial amounts of business in certain such jurisdictions, and to the extent that our business locations are exposed to what might be termed a challenging enforcement environment or legal or regulatory systems that authorize or encourage private parties to pursue relief under so-called private attorney general laws and similar authorizations for private parties to pursue enforcement of governmental laws and regulations, the resulting fines and exposure to third party liability (such as monetary recoveries and recoveries of attorneys fees) could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations, including the added cost of increased preventative measures that we may determine to be necessary to conduct business in such locales. Product differentiation: Office Depot has made efforts to increase its profitability by offering copy and print services, company has integrated copy and print services into retail and commercial businesses. Staples provid es those services as well= intense competition among rivals. Threats: Low confidence among the small and medium scale businesses and high office vacancy rates indicates sluggish spending The economic trends in the US indicate sluggish spending on office products and supplies. The optimism index (the index determining the spending inclination of the businesses) of a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, representing small and independent businesses in the US, dropped to 89. 9 in July 2011 from 97. 6 in July 2007. The drop in July 2011 was the fifth monthly decrease in a row. With low levels of optimism, the small businesses are expected to cut costs. Additionally, in the Office Depot Small Business Index released in August 2011, 66% of the small and medium scale businesses (SMBs) said that the economic downturn has affected their business. Nearly 79% of businesses surveyed indicated no plans to hire or add to their staff in the near future. Another negative trend is witnessed in the office vacancy rates in the US. According to industry estimates, the office vacancy rate was 17. 6% in the last quarter of 2010, and decreased slightly to 17. 5% in the first quarter of 2011. Office Depot has high correlation to macro economic trends which was reflected in the sales decline of its business segments, North American retail, and North American business solutions during FY2008–10. During this period, the revenues from North American retail segment decreased by 18. 8%, and revenues from the North American business solutions segment decreased by 20. 6%. With the declining optimism and spending by the SMBs, the demand for Office Depot’s merchandise Opportunities: Portfolio of environment friendly products In the recent times, sustainability and energy efficiency have gained in popularity owing to the increase in energy costs. More and more organizations have been adopting sustainable ways of doing business to reduce costs and remain competitive. In order to cater to the growing demand for sustainable and energy efficient products, Office Depot offers a range of environment friendly products. The company offers a Green catalog, which features products that are recyclable, energy efficient, or have a reduced impact on the environment. The company also operates a separate section on its website, officedepot. com, to sell its green products online. In 2010, Office Depot, in partnership with EarthEra, introduced Greener Shipping solution. The solution allows business customers to earn rewards and product discounts for reducing the carbon footprint associated with their office supply orders. In February 2011, Office Depot launched new assortment of energy efficient lamps under the Realspace brand. Furthermore, in August 2011, Office Depot started offering its customers the option to receive their supplies in a paper bag instead of a cardboard box. Office Depot’s increased focus on providing environment friendly products amidst growing demand for eco-friendly and energy efficient products would increase the company’s revenues from the product line. Broadening computer assortment by offering tablets Tablets are similar to PC’s and were previously used in only niche professional areas as they were bulky and had poor processing power and suffered from battery life problems. However, with technological advancements, tablets have increasingly become more sophisticated and are finding applications in many industries. According to the industry estimates, the global market of tablet computers such as Apple iPad, Galaxy Tab Samsung and BlackBerry Playbook is expected to increase from $16 billion in 2010 to $46 billion in 2014, registering a CAGR of 30%. In 2010, North America was the leading market for tablet computers. To tap the growing market for tablets, Office Depot too has been taking various initiatives to increase the assortment of tablets offered at its stores. In April 2011, the company started offering BlackBerry PlayBook tablets at its stores. In the following month, Office Depot started offering the Acer Iconia Office Depot, Inc. Page 25  © Datamonitor Office Depot, Inc. SWOT Analysis Tab A500 at its stores. Further in June 2011, Office Depot announced the pre-sale availability of the Toshiba Thrive tablets on its website. The latest tablet to be added to the company’s assortment of tablets was the Lenovo IdeaPad in August 2011. Besides these, the company also offers tablets from various brands such as HP TouchPad, ASUS Transformer, ViewSonic G-Tablet, and Velocity Micro Cruz. Office Depot also offers various accessories needed for these tablets. By increasing its assortment in the tablets category, Office Depot can drive incremental comparative store sales and facilitate top line growth. Improving store efficiency The company has taken up several initiatives to improve its store efficiency in the recent times. Office Depot plans to remodel nearly 50 of its traditional stores with the M2 format in 2011. There are two versions of this format, M2M and M2S. A typical M2M store is spread across an area of approximately 20,000 square feet, and a M2S store across an area of 15,000 square feet. These two formats will help the company to improve product display with updated signage and lighting. It will also lower overall operating costs for the company. Additionally, Office Depot has been testing a new smaller concept store. These stores are spread across an area of 5,000 square feet. These smaller stores would offer only half the items found at a regular Office Depot store, but that would encompass more than 90% of the product categories regularly sold. Smaller stores would not only reduce Office Depot’s operating costs but also facilitate its quick penetration in urban areas where it is difficult to find appropriate space. http://360. datamonitor. com. ezproxy. fau. edu/Product? pid=DBCM6748;amp;view=d0e340 http://www. sec. gov/Archives/edgar/data/800240/000119312511041599/d10k. htm

Friday, August 30, 2019

Will Biofuels Solve Global Warming

Will Biofuels solve global warming? Global warming is caused by greenhouse gasses; these trap heat in the earth’s atmosphere that should escape from the earth. Global warming is causing sea levels to rise and ice caps to melt this could lead to coastal cities flooding, droughts in area’s which usually get rain and less crops to list only a few affects. The cause of global warming is â€Å"greenhouse gasses† these gasses include nitrous oxide carbon dioxide and water vapour.Cars produce CO2, H20 and trace amounts of nitrogen oxide all greenhouse gases, with the amount of cars on the road surpassing the 1 billion mark in 2010 according to Ward’s Auto with the average car realising 7 tons of CO2 each year it is easy to see why cars are one of the biggest contributors to global warming, producing energy for factories to work also produces harmful gases one solution to this problem is Biofuels. Biofuels is the term given to living or recently living biological material which can be used to fuel cars and other forms of transport they can be derived from any Biomass include animal waste products. Also read: What Unique Challenges Do Aquatic Plants Face That Terrestrial Plants Do NotOne of the main advantages of Biofuels is that they are almost carbon neutral; when a crop is growing it performs photosynthesis to create sugars and other organic compounds that provide energy during this process plants take in CO2 when these crops are turned into Biofuels and burned this CO2 is realised back into the atmosphere as no more CO2 has been added it is carbon neutral however some CO2 is produced in transporting these crops and turning them into Biofuels so they are not completely carbon neutral.Unlike fossil fuels such as petrol Biofuels are a renewable energy source this means they will not run out as crops can be grown back relatively quickly. Biofuels can be created anywhere in the world meaning it is accessible to many people. Biofuels are also cheaper to run than petrol or diesel with the price of petrol rising due to it depleting amount Biofuels are cheaper to attain. Other benef it of Biofuels is that they provide jobs and industry for many farmers all over the world.One popular type of Biofuel is Biodiesel which has many advantages * Simpler to make than other Biofuels such as Ethanol * Burn up to 75% cleaner * Provide new source of income for farmers However Biofuels also have their disadvantages one of the main problems is the land needed to produce the crops. In the UK in 2010 71. 61 % of the UK land was used in agriculture this left around 28. 39 % of land for other uses, coming of the lack of land environmentalist worry that the habitat of any animals and wild plants creating the room to grow Biofuels.At this moment in time Biofuels are not sustainable without affecting the price of food and production. Though Biofuels will give farmers more income however it will give farmer more income than growing crops does this leads to the danger of farmers stopping the growing of crops to grow Biofuels this could lead to less food production and ultimately star vation. Biodiesel also has disadvantages *   sustainability issues * Making biodiesel is not very efficient Biodiesel cannot meet the demand of diesel.Biofuels are not the only alternative fuels Hydrogen fuel cells could also be used in cars to power them they are cleaner than most fuels. Electrical cars are also become increasingly popular however unless the electricity is produced using Biofuels they can still be damaging on the environment. There is no definitive answer to â€Å"Will Biofuels solve global warming† as the issue we are in is far too complex for just one solution, Biofuels along with other renewable energy sources e. g. wind turbines and hydroelectric power would provide a more viable solution to global warming.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Ludwig Van Beethoven and Mozart

Nicole Caillaux April 7, 2011 Music Appreciation Prof. Caballero One of the most musically talented, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart began at a very young age and passed at a young age. Mozart was incredibly talented; his music is still heard and played around the world today. Amadeus a movie portrayed on Mozart’s life through the eyes of a jealous rival Antonio Salieri has some facts as well as fiction to it. Amadeus was a very commendable movie portraying Mozart’s life. Though it had many facts there are some fiction moments in the movie.Amadeus depicted the relationship between Mozart and Salieri as a jealous rivalry, when actually they were quite friendly and both appreciated the others work. In the movie Salieri is much older than Mozart when actually Mozart was older than Salieri. The movie begins with Salieri accusing himself of murdering Mozart and is taken to a mental institution. The actual cause of Mozart’s death was an illness not that he was poisoned by Sali eri. Mozart had six children, but only two made it into adulthood.In the movie Amadeus Mozart only had one child. When Mozart passed away his wife Constanze was not present at his funeral because she too was ill, although in the movie she was present with their son. Peter Shaffer the writer of Amadeus did an excellent job in illustrating Mozart’s life; the movie was full of drama and envy. Mozart was an extraordinary musician who will never be forgotten. Mozart wrote many admirable pieces, I have chosen Symphony No. 25 and Piano Concerto No. 21. Symphony No. 5 the first movement has a light tempo, while still at times sounding dark. The piece as a whole gives off a very stormy and full feeling. The dynamics range throughout from loud to soft and back to loud. Overall the piece is allegro with only the second movement being andante. As for the Piano Concerto No. 21 it begins quietly with a march then the tempo begins to brighten and a lyrical melody commences after, the solois t begins to play briefly, at that moment the orchestra joins again.The piece as a whole is allegro, with the second movement being andante like symphony No. 25. Symphony No. 25 and Piano Concerto No. 21 are very different, while one sounds dark and stormy the other is brighter and cheery. Although both are very famous pieces, Symphony No. 25 was featured in the opening of Amadeus; both pieces show Mozart’s talent and flamboyant attitude. He is a true genius.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Business Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 5

Business Ethics - Essay Example Besides financial losses for the business, other problems such as lawsuits and market share decrease may be witnessed (Baumhart, R. 1968). Ethical Problems Worldwide Corporate ethical issues have not been confined to the United States. 80% of companies worldwide suffered business fraud in the years between 2004 and 2007. Parmalat, a dairy company in Italy filed for bankruptcy in 2003 because of fraudulent accounting issues. Founder Calisto Tanzi was found guilty of fraud in 2010 and sentenced to prison for eighteen years. The company reported earnings every year but never earned any earnings. Conrad Black, a former chairman of Hollinger International, was found guilty in the 2007 of embezzling funds of the media company’s shareholders by back-dating stock options (Baumhart, R. 1968). Millions of dollars was stolen through falsified documents. In Sweden top management of the insurance business Skandia engaged in corruption awarding themselves large bonuses in excess of $350 mil lion, some of which were never disclosed. This action made Shareholders to be extremely unhappy with the losses and executive corruption. The prices of shares in the company dropped drastically (Helin and Sandstrom2007). The fines levied against investment banks and brokerage firms in 2003 did not stop investment banks such as Lehman Brothers from closure five years later over undervalued mortgage-backed securities. Banks got into a new part of finance that escaped banking rules through bundling bad mortgages into securities (Lewis2010). The United States experienced the largest financial disaster since the great depression was felt around the world. Even though Lehman Brothers assets exceeded $600 billion, it collapsed due to their deep connection with derivatives, this enabled investment banks to shift money from one company to another. The Ethics of U.S. Bankers The ethics of banks have been measured frequently by the Gallup Polls. Though in 1988 polls that was conducted during t he savings and loan crisis, there was a drop in number of people rating the banker’s ethics as high or very high by 12%. There was a further drop from 23 % in the poll taken in 2008 to 19 % in the following year. This was the lowest record for the profession in the banking industry. In 2009 polls, 33 % of respondents rated the ethics of bankers as ‘low or very low’. This indicated a level of distrust and also poor ethics in the US banking industry. From the figures, it is a clear indication that the blame was pointed to the bankers for the financial crises. The public felt that the financial problems were due to bad ethics in the banking sector. Bankers have been criticized for issuing risky loans but according to (Lewis 2010), he argues that it is too crude to blame the financial crisis on ethics of bankers. According to Graafland and van deVen (2011) the three areas where of U.S. government has failed include encouraging the credit extension in the real estate market, failure by the government to keep a strong financial policy, and finally failure to regulate and monitor the markets. According to Graafland and van deVen there should be an improved sense of professionalism and duty to the public is needed. When an organization or industry loses its authenticity, the benefit of doubt is also lost. This is according to Kopeck Berenbeim, R. (1987). The Corruption Perception Index The corruption perception index (CPI) can also be used to

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Political Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Political Ethics - Essay Example Many political initiatives include national health care, public education reform, the so-called digital information superhighway, affirmative action, disposal of toxic and nuclear wastes, abortion, and immigration. In each instance, the breadth of membership in a particular "we" is at issue. In some of those instances, belonging to a "we" in the first place is at issue (Bernstein, 2002). The duty and responsibility of a political leader is to change life of ordinary people and improve social institutions. In each instance, significant changes loom in the lives of those who belong to a "we." In each instance, competing proposals for transforming an institution-such as health care in the United States-are central features of the debate. n each of these contemporary cases, members of a particular "we" seek ways to protect what is important to them, and they frame the prospects for particular kinds of institutional change in such terms. Even if political leaders drop out their promises it should not considered as ethical behavior. The opportunity to retain the services in any new national system is a case in point about a politics of inclusion tied up in a politics of institutional change (Nader and Krimsky 2004). Members of the political media expose and shame the politics by singing the praises of political persons who make social contributions of their own choosing.

Monday, August 26, 2019

Medic Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Medic Law - Essay Example The Mental Capacity Act 2005 does not provide adequate safeguards for incapacitated patients when determining what is their best interest. The act states that; `` decision made or an act done under this act for or on behalf of a person who lacks capacity must be done, or made, in his best interest, ( Section 1 (5) MCA). ’’ Despite, section 4 of the mental capacity act that sets out the checklist that enumerates elements which should be considered when determining the best interests of a patient does not bring the clear meaning of this concept at all. Also, the statutory checklist does not bring forth the clarification on how the various elements will be well-adjusted throughout the progress and assessment of best interest. In the view of making the decision, best interest is frequently contrasted to the surrogate judgment standards; although the previous is believed to set objectives’ benchmarks for making decisions on behalf others. The factors that are in the checklist are not extensive in most cases and so extra elements should be well-thought-out. This is because the checklist considers has five main elements that should be considered in deciding the best interest of a patient. Finally, the mental capacity act does not provide the meaning of best interest and also the term is not included in the mental health act yet this two acts activities go in hand. The purpose of legal regulation of assisted conception and embryology within the United Kingdom is broadly perceived, it assists a social goal. First, regulation is supposed to guarantee the end users that are both the health care providers and the patient that the service will fully suit their needs and it will not lead to moral and cost concerns. In essence, the regulation is all almost dealing with control. Embryology and assisted conception in the UK are regulated by Human Fertilization and Embryology Act 1990. It regulates the profession of medicine, it also controls the collected information as a result of assisted conception, administering techniques, and lastly manages the relation which follows when their children who are born through assisted conception. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 has laid down the regulations which will govern the operation in treatment and research though in this sector of medicine all ethical

CASE STUDY SUMMARIES Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

CASE STUDY SUMMARIES - Essay Example To guard against this, concrete bored piles were installed at the cliff-facing side of the road. This is then tied to anchor blocks with pullout being prevented by tension piles. A developed unprotected coastline is subjected to coastal retreat and landslide instability. The combined action of cliff erosion and collapse together with the flow of groundwater from high levels to the sea is triggering landslide reactivation. Coastal protection is limited by environmental sensitivity of the site. There are two requirements for the project: to arrest recession of the cliffs and reactivation of the landslide system and to improve the stability of the coastal through an intensive drainage system. For the first requirement, a rock armor revetment was chosen. For the second problem, a deep pumped well solution using siphon and electro-pneumatic systems. The project involves a developed coastal town threatened by existing coastal defense, landslide reactivation and coastal recession. Coastal erosion by wave action, earth slippage due to rainfall & groundwater, inappropriate excavation and construction and climate change have ultimately resulted to the reactivation of landslide complexes. Due to the severe consequences if the problem was left unchecked, an extensive program of land stabilization and foreshore works was undertaken. Different strategies were used including reinforced slope buttresses, soil nails, pile grids, slope regarding, drains, seawall improvements and beach replenishment. A developed coastal town is experiencing deterioration of coastal defenses with previously installed stabilization measures such as cut-off drain have all but failed. Nevertheless, the cliff top assets are not foreseen to be affected for several years making coastal protection measures not warranted for the time being. Only monitoring and investigations of the ground and rainfall are the actions being undertaken. Aside from

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Faculty of Business Environment and Society Assignment

Faculty of Business Environment and Society - Assignment Example In any sector, with the increasing competitiveness of the market and changing nature of customers’ demand, change has become crucial up to a larger extent (Kramar & Syed, 2012). It will also be crucial to mention that a change in any business sector is initiated with the assistance of a systematic process that is planned and executed in an efficient manner altogether. However, it is often seen that changes are welcomed in organsaitions in a collective manner, which further affects the potential effectiveness of the proposed change. There might be various reasons that develop reluctance in employees with regard to the initiation of change within the organisations (Briscoe, Schuler & Tarique, 2012). To get a conceptual understanding in this context, this particular discussion will mainly focus on analysing some recent changes in the workplace of Tesco along with comprehending the causes for their reluctance to change. The discussion will also emphasise depicting a set of recommendations to the company so that it can mitigate the resistant factors amid the employees that results in the reluctance to change. Tesco Plc is recognised as one of the leading players in the international retail sector in terms of its operational experiences as well as scale of operations worldwide. One of the major driving factors that have ensured unparalleled operational success for the company over the years is its effective approach towards dealing with the external environment (Tesco, 2014). Notably, change, as depicted above, is one of the most important aspects associated with the operations of any particular business. It is quite a stable approach in business and it rarely changes over the period. Contextually, Tesco is also aware of the constant changing nature of the external environment, which further encourages it to change its business functions accordingly

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Enthalpy of Neutralisation Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Enthalpy of Neutralisation - Lab Report Example As a matter of fact, this variation is attributed to the fact that when a strong acid is used, full ionization takes place while with a weak acid; ionization is incomplete (Jarvis, 2011). In this experiment, NaOH is mixed with HCL and later with CH3COOH. Place 500 mL of water into the calorimeter and add 150 mL of 1.0 M sodium hydroxide. Measure 160 mL (an excess) of 1.0 M hydrochloric acid into a 400 mL beaker. Start the stopwatch and stir the two solutions with separate stirring rods and measure their temperatures (use separate thermometers) at 30 s intervals as above. (DO NOT stir the solutions with the thermometers.) After 5 min (do not reset timer to zero) rapidly, but quantitatively, pour the HCl into the calorimeter. Replace the stopper. Continue stirring and record the temperature of the reaction mixture at 30 s intervals for the next 5 min. After the experiment is completed, test the solution with two drops of phenolphthalein. If the reaction mixture is alkaline, insufficient acid has been added and the results are worthless † start again. The first part of the experiment is about reactions between fully ionized strong acids and strong bases and the sole real chemical change is formation of water molecule from hydrogen ions and hydroxide ions. This is given as follows, Evidently, the reaction between NaOH and HCL yields a higher enthalpy of neutralization as compared to the reaction between NaOH and CH3COOH. This is attributed to the fact that the enthalpy of neutralization of a NaOH with a HCL involves complete ionization of the dilute aqueous solutions and hence the reaction involves higher energy. In the case of CH3COOH, while NaOH undergoes complete ionization, CH3COOH only partly ionizes and as a result the enthalpy of neutralization is lower. There are various methods used in measurement of such heat. Initially measurements were premised on simple thermometric

Friday, August 23, 2019

Financial Ratios Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Financial Ratios Analysis - Essay Example d. Cost of beverage sold percentage: Cost of beverage sold as percentage of total beverage sales. This works out to be 22.9%, which is within the range of industry average of 20-25%. Interestingly, the actual is very close to budgeted average of 22.5%. This shows that while management has made efforts to achieve what was budgeted, the efforts are certainly within the industry average. e. Average daily rate: This is taken as Room revenue to paid room nights. The paid room night is taken as 7555 and the average daily rate works out to be $62.7. As the value for previous year is not available, it is not possible to compare. f. Profit margin: This is income to revenue. The margin works out to be 56.4% of revenue. Profit margin has been worked out separately for room services and F&B. Profit margin for room service stands at 78.2%, which is marginally higher than the industry average of 70-75%. At the same time, F&B division has profit margin of 22% as against the industry average of 15-25%. g. Total revenue change from budget for rooms and F&B: This is actual revenue to budgeted revenue. This is almost one for F&B; but 0.88 for rooms. This is further corroborated by poorer occupancy rate. Marketing of room service is essential in this context. h. Housekeeping cost per occupied room: This is ratio of total housekeeping costs to total room sold. The actual is 6.5 which are substantially lower than budgeted 7.6. Thus, it appears that housekeeping costs has been controlled considerably. i. Room sales to total sales: This is a good indicator to gauge revenue generation by rooms. On the whole, room sales contributed 61.1% of total revenue. But this is found to be lower than budgeted 64.3%. This calls for some strategic intervention to boost up revenue collection from room service. Based on the above analysis, it can be concluded that F&B division has performed well in comparison

Thursday, August 22, 2019

The needs of society Essay Example for Free

The needs of society Essay Sensitivity and awareness to the needs of society helps authorities of educational institutions guide students toward success not only for themselves but for their country as well. Reading about the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and the connections of Human Resource Development with vocational training reinforces my belief that teaching is merely transferring knowledge. Understanding the needs of society helps administrators of educational institutions form our own programs that would lead towards the success of education as a tool for America’s economic supremacy. However, upon reading news such as the one by USATODAY. com’s Richard Benedetto (2003), my own negative belief in the NCLB has been reinforced. My experience showed me that children have their own strengths and weaknesses that do not always involve academics. NCLB seems to be an ideal political move but it has ineffective because of its wrong principles. The real causes of student academic failure most of the time is rooted on family issues. What NCLB and those who are interested in creating a good work force for the USA must consider is that success has to deal with more than just academic and skills training. How important are academics and skills training compared to the inculcation of moral values? If No Child must be Left Behind, then what kind of standards can we practically create when children are individuals who have their own weaknesses and strengths that are not always academic based? Gary Becker (1992), Nobel Prize Winner, believes that employees can only be true assets of a company if they are not only trained with skills but also if they learn how to deal with their colleagues†¦a topic not mentioned in the articles that keep focusing on the needs of the future labor force. With families disinterested in academic success for children and companies ignoring the idea that workers succeed if they have better relationships, does the problem really lie on the institutions built or the priorities our country has really learned to place importance on? References Becker, G. (1992). The Economic Way of Looking At Life. Economic Sciences. 44. Benedetto, R. (2003). Suit against No Child Left Behind about education, politics. Retrieved May 30, 2008, from http://www. usatoday. com/news/opinion/columnist/benedetto/2005- 04-23-benedetto_x. htm

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The Inspiration of Country Singers and Country Music Essay Example for Free

The Inspiration of Country Singers and Country Music Essay Jason Aldean, Country singer and Guitarist, has released four Albums and 14 songs to the radio in only six years. It would be unfair for us to say he is a superstar in the making, the reason being he has had concert sold-out amphitheater shows. Jason Aldean has been nominated and won many awards for his magificent music. Aldeans music talks about familys, life, relationships, to losing a family member,and everything else you can think of, all of his music will inspire you in different ways even if it puts a smile on your face, or even if it makes you cry. Jason Aldean grew up in Macon, Georgia. His parents seperated when he was three years old, and spent his life growing up with his mother in Macon. The times he got to see his father was the summer time. His father taught him how to play the guitar while he was there with him. Aldeans father lived in Homestead, Florida. The Georgia native was listening to country music before he could talk. He was going to country concerts by the time he was in grade school. He was playing guitar before he reached his teens and was performing country music professionally while he was a junior-high student. Aldean fell under the spell of Country music, and inspired him to do what he loved to do the most. Aldean made his first public appearance as a singer at a VFW hall in Macon when he was 14 years old. After all he has done he became a regular at talent contests, then continued on pursuing a music career on a full-time basis. He graduated from High School, also continued on to College. Aldean privately financed an eight-song CD to sell at shows recording it in Nashville in 1996. Jason Aldean is a major country star. He also had won the ACM award for the top Male Vocalist. He will continue to inspire many people all across the world with his compassionate music and the effort and love he puts forth into his singing he will always be an inspiration to many across the United States. Aldean is always wearing his cowboy hat anyone would rarely see him without one on, once in awhile he would change up to wear a baseball cap, its pretty much his signature style to wear his cowboy hat. Jason Aldean has a beautiful wife Jessica, he married his high school sweetheart, and now they have two loving daughters, who look up to their father. Aldeans daughters honestly have their dad wrapped around their fingers. Jason Aldean also fell into several flaws with starting to moving on with his passion of country music, to write, to sing and be a guitarist of the music he loves. Jason also thensigned into another record deal but then soon after it was dropped in 2000 because he kept postponing recording sessions one after another. His manager at the time; Lawrence Mathis, who had said to him that Aldean has six more months to get a record deal, or Aldean was moving back to Georgia. Jason Aldeans debut album is a country-music triumph, and maybe thats because hes been working toward it, quite literally, all his life. In my opinion, his move to Nashville was a great move for him and recording was his destiny. Like the old saying goes, the darkest hour is just before dawn. In the summer of 2003, Jason was ready to throw in the towel. Hed been dropped from a record companys roster. His songwriting contract was expiring. He had a new baby, a mortgage and two car payments to make, and nothing looked promising on his musical horizon. For five years hed been trying every way he could think of to make it in Nashville, and all he had to show for his efforts was a broken dream. Jason signed with Broken Bow Records. This just shows how committed Jason is to his career, to never just give up, or forget about it, but to keep on pushing forward with it. This shows his fans and family that he will never quit or give up, just to stay strong and keep their heads held high.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Berhad Proton

Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Berhad Proton The company that is discussed in this essay is Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Berhad (Proton) which is an automotive company that was founded in Malaysia on 1983. The company experienced increase in revenue from the year 2007 to 2011 and the sales of its cars is a major factor affecting revenue. Motivation level can affect sales performance, but it would not be the only factor. The goal of this essay is to explore the motivation level of Protons sales department in comparison with other factors affecting sales. Hence, the research question that arises is To what extent does the motivation level of Proton Berhads sales department affects its sales revenue? The methodology revolves around the use of survey among the Protons sales department staff and followed with an interview with one of the head of the sales department. Using the data obtained, motivation level of the staff is assessed using Herzberg Two-Factor Theory while the other factors affecting sales are assessed using PEST analysis. The conclusion was that Proton had implemented measures that help to motivate its employees, but there is a limit to how effective can motivation level affects sales as there are other factors involved such as quality and brand perception. The unresolved issue would be regarding the need of Proton to improve its quality and increase its employees motivation at the same time. 1.0 Introduction Issues regarding employees motivation had been one of the main focus of an organization as motivation can affect a certain company in many ways. Based on the book An Integrated Approach to Business Studies by Bruce R. Jewell, motivation can be defined as a factor or an influence that can drive people to behave in a certain way  [1]  . For a company, they would need a motivated workforce if they want their employees to sell well. The company in question here is Perusahaan Otomobil National Berhad(Proton) which is an automotive company that was founded on the year 1983  [2]  . Its product mix includes various categories of cars ranging from sedan, compact cars, hatchback, multi-purpose vehicle, and microvan  [3]  . Along its years of operations, Proton had been the target of scrutiny from the general public especially regarding its sales as there are criticisms to its sales  [4]  and after sales service  [5]  . One factor that can affect quality of sales service is motivation. Thus, the intention of this essay is to explore whether the motivation level of the Protons sales department had been a crucial factor affecting the companys sales revenue? Besides that, this essay would also discuss on how other factors could also affect sales revenue for Proton and how other factors could compare with motivation level in terms of its effects to sales revenue. From the questions that arise, the research question was formulated as follow:- To what extent does the motivation level of Proton Berhads sales department affects its sales revenue? 2.0 Methodology 2.1Data collection The main purpose of data collection for this particular essay is to measure the motivation level of Protons sales department. Thus, primary research had been carried for the sole purpose of measuring the motivation level of the employees. The two chosen methods were surveys and interviews. As stated before, with the data obtained, a qualitative deductive will be made to see how high or low the motivation of Protons employee. To deduce, the content theories regarding motivation used is Herzbergs Two-factor theory. 2.1.1*Details of Survey* A survey was designed in order to uncover information regarding the motivation of Protons sales department and the number of respondents was 15 people from the Enterprise Sales Team and R3 Sales Team which are a part of the sales department of Proton. The surveys question and its respective data are shown in Appendix 1. 2.1.2*Details of Interview* The interview was done with Mr. Hj. Roslan Hj. Mohamed which is currently the head of Eneterprise Sales Department of Proton. The interview question and its answers are shown in Appendix 2. 2.2 Analysis The analysis in this essay mainly revolves around the correlation between the motivations levels of Protons employees with its sales revenue. The findings will be discussed so that the extent to which the motivation level affects the sales revenue can be seen clearly. The next step is to see other factors that may be involved which can affect sales. To do this, Political Economy Social Technology (PEST) analysis will be carried out so that we can see the external factors that surround Proton. Further discussion will be carried out in order to see how big do the factors affect Protons sales revenue, and compare it with the internal factor which is the motivation level of employees. The end result would be a conclusion that will include suggestions and an unresolved issue. A simple 4 step flow can be seen below:- 3.0Main findings and analysis Determining the motivation level:- 3.1 Application of Herzberg Two-Factor Theory Based on Herzberg Two-Factor Theory, there are two aspects that define motivation which are the hygiene needs and motivators  [6]  . Fulfilling hygiene needs prevents employees from being dissatisfied while having motivators will ensure satisfaction of employees. This theory is chosen to determine the motivation level of Protons employees because of the two aspects mentioned that is evident in their working environment. Above is a table outlining the hygiene needs and motivators as outlined by Herzberg  [7]  . To determine the motivation level of the employees in Protons sales department, most of the points in the table will be discussed based on the findings. 3.1.1 HYGIENE NEEDS Relationship with supervisor Protons sales department employees feel that their supervisor listen to them and most felt that they are involved in the decision making process. They also feel that their supervisor give moderate attention to their work and most feel that their supervisor expectation of them is good in which it corresponds to their actual potential. Yet, some felt that their supervisors are bias in their work with some claiming that there is presence of so-called bosss pets and also gender biasness. Working conditions The employees of Protons sales department felt that the working condition is normal at best rather than good. Most felt that it is normal in their working condition to get positive feedback and constructive criticism. Still, some felt that office politics is present thus it could be a source of unhappiness regarding the working conditions. Salary It was found that the salary is high. This is due to the presence of many types of commission that helps to increase the payments received by employees such as finance commission, model-based commission, accessory commission, and insurance commission. 3.1.2MOTIVATORS Achievement Proton promotes the desire to achieve for their sales department by having seasonal monthly campaign. Employees will be given an incentive for achieving the target for a specific sales campaign. Recognition In Proton, the form of recognition comes in the form of a club membership that celebrates sales personnel who had sold 100 cars. Advancement Opportunities for advancement exist for Proton since it was found that an employee can advance into a sales manager in just 5 years. Growth Most of the employees agree that growing their knowledge and having opportunities for self-development is highly important for them but it can be seen that most of them thinks that the opportunities for self-development is not high but still present in the company. The presence of growth opportunities will lead to higher satisfaction for the employee. ANALYSIS OF MOTIVATION LEVEL Based on Herzberg Two-Factor Theory, to ensure employees are motivated, it is better to address the hygiene needs and then focus on the motivators. For Proton, the company had in a way provided a moderate working condition and the supervisors are having good relationship with their subordinates. These two factors fulfill the hygiene needs and reduce dissatisfaction in the sales department. Aside from that, the salary structure which is high also contributes to lower dissatisfaction for the employees. Although we cant say for sure that the dissatisfaction is completely addressed by Proton, but we can deduce that Proton had fulfilled some of the hygiene needs thus lowering the dissatisfaction among employees. For the motivators, Proton had also provided ample motivators for the sales department. We can see that Proton had provided its employees with adequate opportunities for them to receive proper achievement, recognition, advancement and growth. The presence of the motivators mention ed helps to promote satisfaction for the employees in the sales department. As a result, Proton had fulfilled the hygiene needs and provided motivators for its employees. It is hard to see whether the employees are highly motivated or not but from the discussion, it would be better if we deduce that the employees in Protons sales department is coined as motivated due to the low dissatisfaction and adequate satisfaction. 3.2 Establishing the relationship between motivation level and sales revenue Graph of growth of Protons revenue from 2007 until 2011 (Appendix 3) Judging from the graph, Protons revenue had improved for 5 years straight. As company that make cars, most of Protons revenue would come from the sales of their cars thus that is why the sales department plays a crucial role to ensure better sales. We had found before that the employees in the sales department are motivated because of the way Proton had addressed the hygiene needs and motivators. Due to the fact that the employees are motivated, it can be seen that their motivation level correlates with the increase in revenue. A motivated employee would definitely perform better when at work thus there would be higher sales compared to an unmotivated employee. As a conclusion, we could see that the motivation level had contributed to the increase to revenue. Yet, the underlying question here would be the need to establish the limit in which motivation level plays a role to the increase in revenue. Thus, the following questions could come into play:- 1. Are there any other significant factors that contribute to sales? 2. How about the state of the country Proton is in? Does it affect the sales? 3. Are there any outside factors, which are out of Protons control that contributes to greater motivation among employees? Thus, in order to uncover the extent to which motivation level plays a role, the next step would be to find the factors that affect Proton sales and determine its significance in comparison to the motivation level of Protons sales department. Determining the extent to which motivation level affects the revenue of Proton 3.3 Application PEST Analysis The use of PEST analysis is crucial in order to see the environment Proton is situated in. The findings would be analyzed regarding their significance to Protons revenue. Political Government discards protectionist policy  [8]   High excise duty for imported cars  [9]   Economy Low loan approval rate by Bank Negara Malaysia  [10]   Social Low average wage per individual  [11]   Technology Appearance of hybrid cars in Malaysia  [12]   POLITICAL Government discards protectionism with Proton thus removing Protons exclusivity in the automotive industry If a company is backed by the government, the cost of operation can be considerably lessened as there would be injection of funds by the government. This would ensure that the company can sell its products cheaper, thus garnering an increase in revenue. But what would happen if a company was stripped off from being protected by the government? For Proton, when there is no more protectionism by the government, the company would need to stand by its own thus it needs to channel its cost to their products. This will make the price of its cars higher. Still, if we look at the revenue, Protons revenue still increases despite the hike in prices. This shows that the removal of protectionism doesnt really affect Protons sales and the possible reason for this is either Proton had improved its quality or there are other factors that promote sales. High excise duty for imported cars Excise duty is one of the major factors that affect a cars price. In Malaysia, the excise duty for imported cars is imported as high thus increasing the prices of imported cars. National carmakers such as Proton and Perodua are at an advantage in terms of pricing because they can provide lower priced cars as compared to their foreign competitors. For Proton, its cars which are considered cheaper than imported cars would prompt price-sensitive consumer to buy their cars thus increasing their cars considerably. ECONOMY Low hire-purchase approval rate by Bank Negara Malaysia Bank Negara Malaysia is the national bank of Malaysia and it regulates the hire-purchase approval rate in Malaysia. Recently, the approval rate for hire-purchase differs from a carmaker to another, and for Proton it is rated as low. Not every customer can pay the full price of cars in the early stage of buying thus they would resort to hire-purchase. When the hire-purchase approval rate is low for Proton, customers cannot buy Proton cars thus they would proceed to other carmakers which has higher hire-purchase approval rate. Thus, this would reduce Proton sales. SOCIAL Low average wage per individual The worlds average wage is approximately RM 4440 ($1480) which is a stark difference compared to Malaysias average wage which is RM 1500 ($500). Due to the low wages, Malaysians wouldnt have enough purchasing power thus they would gravitate towards buying low priced products in order to save cost and sustain their living. Protons cars which are cheaper than imported cars would be a fine choice for most Malaysians thus this would contribute to more sales for Proton hence contributing to an increase in revenue. Yet, with the Economic Transformation Initiative carried out by the government, Proton would be threatened because the program was intended to increase the nationals average wage from RM 1500 ($500) to RM 4000 ($ 1333) which is closer to the worlds average wage. If the government initiative reached its goals, the purchasing powers of Malaysian would increase thus they would have a wide range of cars that is feasible for them to purchase. TECHNOLOGY Appearance of hybrid cars As the world is moving towards less use of fossil fuels in everyday lives due to pollution, hybrid cars is invented to cater for the environmentally conscious consumers. Aside from that, hybrid cars would save consumers a hefty sum of money because consumers would need to depend less and less on petroleum which is infamous for its constant rice of price. The appearance of hybrid cars in Malaysia and the governments incentive for Malaysians to buy hybrid cars is a probable factor that can affect Protons sales. Still, hybrid cars is still not many in Malaysia thus it would not be a major factor affecting Protons car sales yet. Other factors that affects Protons sales but outside the scope of PEST analysis PEST analysis is limited in the way it restricts the analysis of environment surrounding Proton towards political, economy, social, and technology. In reality, there are other factors affecting sales for Proton that should be considered. The factors could be internal or external and some of them have an effect to employees motivation. Before we discuss even further, look at the list of the factors below:- Quality of Protons cars Banks interest rate*  [13]   Pricing of used car market* Marketing methods Relationship between sales and after-sales Discussing the factors Quality of Proton cars Quality of products is undeniably one of the greatest factors affecting the sales of a product. With high quality, some product can even exist without the need of extensive marketing because there will be word of mouth, which is a great marketing method. Regarding Proton, the quality of its cars is questionable.. Aside from that, Protons car is also perceived as inferior and low quality as compared to its competitors especially carmakers from Europe, Japan and Korea. Thus, the quality of Protons cars is a huge factor affecting sales and it should be taken into great consideration when discussing about Protons sales. In term of employees motivation, the quality of Protons cars can affect its employees motivation level. It is a common knowledge that if you want to sell something, it would be best to sell the best to consumers. Why? This is because when we sell something that is high in quality; we would feel confident selling it because we know that our customers would love it once they use it. This is also true for the case of Proton. If the employees in the sales department of Proton know that the car they are selling is perceived as inferior and low quality, they would feel less motivated because they arent confident that their customer is receiving a good car. This is a good example of Expectancy Theory in which if sales personnel of Proton perceive that no matter how much effort they put into selling, they would know that the rewards will be far from their grasp. This is because even if their selling effort is great, they would not be rewarded with a successful sale of a car because they woul d feel that customers would probably not buy a low quality car no matter how good they are in trying to sell it. This shows how employees performance is also affected by the quality of products they are selling. Banks interest rate Banks interest rate for each car brand is different and will continuously change. If the interest rate for Proton is high, car prices will be high and customers will be more reluctant to buy, thus causing low sales. The opposite would happen if interest rate is low. The changes to interest will also affect the sales department employees. For example, a high interest rate would make car prices high and they would feel less motivated or confident selling the car. Pricing of used car market Pricing of used car market for a particular car brand also changes over time. If a particular car has high price in the used car market, the user of that car would be inclined to sell his car especially if the car is outdated. The opposite would happen if the price of a car is low in the used car market. For Protons employees, it was reported that they would feel more motivated selling a car to a customer who is seeking to replace their car which had been sold off as used car. This group of customers is called as the replacement buyers. Employees would feel motivated because it is easier for them to make the sale because cars are essential in everyday life and replacement buyers would feel greater need to buy a car as compared to buyers who already own a car. Motivation will convert to performance thus there would be higher sales. Marketing methods Proton marketing method revolves mostly on having direct contact with the public which is their prospect such as having activities in the showroom and shopping complex that involves the participation of the public. It is reported that the sales department employees like the direct marketing method because they like the contact with the public. Direct method of marketing is unquestionably a good way for marketing and can boost sales but for the case of Proton, the most evident benefits would be the increase to the sales department employees morale, thus there would be an increase in sales due to increased performance. Relationship between the sales team and the after-sales team The after-sales team of Proton is reported of providing low quality service to its customers and it could affect customers perception towards the brand. Still, the most important aspect about the after sales team is the relationship between the after-sales team and the sales team which is really crucial especially with regards to the sales team motivation. Sales personnel would be motivated especially during the act of selling if they know that whenever there is a problem after the customers bought the product; they can be confident that the after-sales team can handle it. For the case of Proton which has low quality after-sales service, we can probably deduce that the sales team motivation level will be affected because of low confidence towards the competency of the after-sales team. Conclusion We had started by acknowledging that the sales department of Proton is motivated based on the use of Herzberg Two-Factor Theory and the fact that the revenue increases from 2007 2011 shows that motivation did indeed prove to be a contributor to the revenue of Proton. The question that we need to really discuss is the extent to which motivation really plays a role to contribute to revenue, thus other factors that affect sales must be discovered. It was finally found that there are many factors that affected the sales of Proton and some such as the high excise duties and quality of Proton cars seemed to be a really major factor that affects sales. Thus, it can be concluded that motivation level of Protons sales department is a factor that affects sales but it is not the greatest factor. If Proton were to employ measures that can continuously improve its employees motivation, sales would increase but until a certain point when an increase of motivation wont increase the sales. This is because of the mentioned major factors such as Protons car qualities that hinder sales growth significantly. To really improve its sales revenue, there are some issues that Proton must address. External Factors Internal Factors 4.1 Issues and suggestion on how to handle it From the above diagram, we can see how the factors affecting Protons sales are sorted into internal factors and external factors. Proton should consider focusing on the internal factors because it is the factors that Proton can really control and directly improve. Thus, there are three issues that is internal for Proton and suggestions are given on how Proton can address the issues below:- 1. Product quality The quality of Protons cars is an issue that Proton should focus on addressing because customers decision to buy are mostly affected by quality. In order to improve its quality, one of the measures Proton could employ is improving its quality control method so that no inferior cars are produced. Aside from that, Proton should also maximise the benefits of owning Lotus by ensuring better technology transfer with Lotus and also devise more training that is catered to help Protons engineers to learn more from Lotus. 2. After-sales team quality The quality of after-sales is important in order to retain customers loyalty. If Proton doesnt improve its after-sales quality, customers will think lowly of the brand thus it would affect sales. It was found that Proton had made a fine decision by giving out proper training to its after-sales team recently but another factor that might affect the after-sales team quality is the salary of the after-sales team which is below industrys average. To counter the issue, Proton should either negotiate with its after-sales team or consider giving better wages or perks. 3. Employees motivation Although it was found that the employees of the sales department are motivated, yet there is still so much more Proton could do to really increase employees motivation. In Proton, there are issues that Proton should tackle such as biasness and lack of guidance in order to make the working environment a better place. Proton should also consider reviewing the Herzberg Two-Factor Theory so that the company can how it can reduce dissatisfaction even further aside from increasing satisfaction in the long run. A final note Although suggestions are given, only Proton knows best how it can improve itself because its internal issues can be tackled best from within their company. The unresolved issue here would be the issue regarding how Proton can really improve its products quality and at the same time increase its employees motivation so that more sales can be gained. If Proton were to devise a way to tackle the issue, then sales would definitely increase as a result. Word count : 3852 Bibliography 1. Chedet.cc 2. CLARKE, P. (2009). IB business and management course companion. Oxford, Oxford University Press. 3. Corporate.proton.com 4. En.wikipedia.org 5. Freemalaysiatoday.com 6. HAGEMANN, G. (1992). The motivation manual. Aldershot, Gower. 7. JEWELL, B. R. (1993). An integrated approach to business studies. London, Pitman. 8. KREITNER, R. (1983). Management. Boston, Houghton Mifflin. 9. Malaysia-chronicle.com 10. Paultan.org 11. Reganrajan.com 12. Thestar.com.my Appendix 2 Hj Roslan Hj Mohamed Head, direct and government sales operation Enterprise Sales Department ([emailprotected])Interview What is the reward package provided by Proton for its sales department employees? Generally, our reward package is similar with most companies. But, the main focus of employees when joining Proton would be the salary and commission structure of the company. Can you give a more detailed explanation about the salary and commission that you previously mentioned? I will be glad to. There are two basic positions the sales department non-executive (sales advisor) and executive (management). The non-executive or the sales advisor starts with a basic salary of RM300++. Sales advisor is similar to sales personnel and their remuneration lies within their commission is plentiful. There are 5 types of commission which are model-based commission, used car commission, financing commission, accessory commission, and insurance commission. There are also monthly and quarterly volume commissions. The executive or the management also has their own commission but the commission depends on the group they are managing. Essentially if his group succeeds, the executive will succeed too. What is the average payment that the sales advisor would receive each month? The amount is quite hefty. The average payment for sales advisors is usually RM7000 which is quite high. Is there any form of recognition sales advisors would receive after selling many cars? Yes, there is. It is called Club 100, which is an achievement club for sales advisor who achieved 100 sales. There are many benefits for the sales advisor who is a member of Club 100 such as having their own parking space. Is there any sales campaign held by Proton? Yes, there is and you could say that the sales campaign is one of the events that really motivate a sales advisor. A typical seasonal sales campaign would involve selling unpopular models. Any sales advisor who sold an unpopular model would be given a monthly incentive and that is the reason why they are eager to achieve success when a seasonal sales campaign comes. What do you think are some factors affecting motivation of a sales advisor? Well, there is a lot. One of them would be having many model ranges because sales advisor enjoy their work when they have many selection of cars that they can advise their customer to buy. Other than that, sales advisors love to sell zero problem cars which are top-notch and high quality. This is because they will feel excited selling it aside from not having to deal with customers complaints afterwards. They feel that it is hard to manage complaints about qualities because it is not they who design it. Lastly, sales advisor love selling new models too. How about the economy? Does it affect sales? Banks interest rate plays a big role here. When interest for car is high, people would definitely exercise caution before buying thus sales would be low and vice versa. You can see that when interest is low, sales advisors would be motivated because more people are inclined to buy thus increasing their chances of increasing their income. Talking about car prices, aside from interest, the pricing in the used car market also affects sales. For the public, when the price for used cars is high for their model, they would be inclined to sell it at that time so that they can buy new models. This group of people is called the replacement buyers which are the customers who buy a product in order to replace their previous items which had been sold off. You could say that when a specific model has high trade-in value in the used car market, people would be inclined to sell their cars and buy a new one to replace their own. A sales advisor would be motivated to sell cars when they know that the customers they are serving are replacement buyers. How about the leadership in the sales department of Proton? We apply autocratic way of leading as a way to manage employees in the staff department. This is what we call as the best practice approach because other leadership style is not suitable. Being autocratic doesnt mean that we need to compromise relationship between manager and the sales advisor. In Proton, sales advisors performance is closely monitored and they must sell a minimum of 6 units or they will be deeming as under perf

Different Teaching Styles in Physical Education Essay -- Physical Educ

How would the quality of teaching for a physical education class be judged? In a math class, you might judge the quality by how fast the students can comprehend the material being taught. In a writing class you may judge the quality by the way the students construct their sentences. But in a physical education class the best way to judge the quality of teaching is translated into the amount of fun the class is having. Certain teaching styles will work best in this environment. From the book The Spectrum of teaching styles, From Command to Discovery, written by Muska Mosston, he explains that there are a variety of teaching styles. These styles are all a part of the Spectrum of Learning. The spectrum of learning is defined as â€Å"the framework for teaching where the term teaching style was selected to differentiate the descriptions of specific teaching behavior.†(Mosston, 1986) Mosston explains that through the process of decision-making, we are left with eleven styles of teaching on the spectrum. â€Å"Mosston’s analyses showed that for any style a teacher might choose, certain aspects or possibilities of the teaching-learning situation were facilitated while other as4pects were diminished.† (Thomson, 2009) meaning there are both strengths and weaknesses of each teaching style. The styles are, The Command style, The Practice Style, The Reciprocal Style, The Self-check Style, The Inclusion Style, The Guided Discovery Style, The Diver gent Style, The Convergent Discovery style, The Divergent Production Style, Learner Designed Individual Program Style, The Learner Initiated Style, and The Self Teaching Style. Each style is unique in its own way and each is practiced in teaching. (Mosston, 1986) Although, it is apparent that there are seve... ... styles in physical education are successful only when the students are having fun. Based on research the teaching style that is most successful is the command style of teaching. Although, there are several that can be used to also enhance the amount of fun that is had. Works Cited Mosston, M., & Ashworth, S. (1986). The Spectrum of Teaching Styles From Command to Discovery (Third Edition ed. , pp. 1-20). Columbus Ohio: Merrill Publishing Company. Winnick, J. P. (2005). Adapted Physical Education and Sport (Vol. 1, 4th ed., pp. 107-108) Cai, S. (1998). Student enjoyment of physical education class in three.. Education, 118(3), 412. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database. Thomson, W. (2009). Mosston's Styles of Teaching: A Review of Command Style. Virginia Journal, 30(2), 20-22. Retrieved from SPORTDiscus with Full Text database.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Memory :: essays research papers fc

I. Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   II. Dementia   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Senility is a misused term for the loss of ability to think, reason, and remember in older persons. Senility is not a medical condition; it is not normal, natural, or inevitable with aging; it is not limited to older people either. The term senility is replaced in most of my pertinent research by the medical term dementia, which seems to describe a group of symptoms that represent a change or deterioration from an individual's previous level of functioning (Tueth, 1995). Dementia has specific causes, which impair long-term memory and quite relevantly;: language, judgment, spatial perception, behavior, and often personality, interfering with normal social and occupational functioning. Most dementias are evidently both progressive and irreversible. According to Cummings (1995) after the age of 60, the frequency of dementia in the population statistically doubles every 5 years: that is to say it affects only 1% of 60-64-year-olds but 30-40% of those over age 85 (Cummings, 1995).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The most common causes of dementia are Alzheimer's Disease (Tueth, 1995), and vascular problems or problems related to a stroke (Yoshitake et al., 1995) . Depression, believed to cause some symptoms of dementia, may be as common in early dementia as it is by itself and may improve with prompt treatment even in people with dementia. The risk of dementia increases with age. Although statistics concerning those who have dementias worldwide are not known, it is known that most dementias are not reversible but that people with dementia can function better with treatment of other medical or sensory problems , and optimal social and environmental support. From what I have learned, stimulation and activity can also help people with dementia. It is very important to note that minor memory problems in older people previously attributed to senility may have other causes, such as distraction, fatigue, grief, stress, alcohol, sensory loss, difficulty with concentration or inability to remember many details at once, illness, or medications (Cummings, 1995). Confusion and disorientation caused by these problems may apparently be reversible though. III. Examining Alzheimer's Disease By definition, Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an incurable degenerative disease of the brain. AD is a progressive dementing illness in which the core symptom is long-term memory loss (Tueth, 1995). Other associated symptoms include impairments in language, abstract reasoning, and visual spatial abilities as previously described in dementia. Personality changes are common and range from apathy to restless agitation. These are said to be directly related to memory difficulties (inferred from Elias, 1992). Psychiatric symptoms, including depression, delusions, and hallucinations, may also occur during the course of AD resulting somewhat from the severe loss of memory.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Photovoltaic Rural Electrification Possibilities in Indonesia and the Philippines :: Persuasive Argumentative Papers

Photovoltaic Rural Electrification Possibilities in Indonesia and the Philippines With energy demands outpacing the growth in energy supply in rural areas of the developing world such as Indonesia and the Philippines, traditional electricity sources and structures will not be able to address many problems with current systems of rural electrification. Both Indonesia and the Philippines have large rural populations which are scattered over huge geographic distances that contribute in large part to the growing problem with conventional rural electrification. Indonesia is an archipelago whose 17,000 islands spread over 1.83 million km2, and 65% of the 194 million inhabitants live in rural areas (IEA2 165). Likewise the Philippines' archipelago includes more than 7100 islands scattered over 1,295,000 km2 of ocean, and 59% of the population live in rural areas (IEA2 203). At the growing rates of population, income, and energy demands in both countries, the current system and sources for rural electrification are likely to be extremely costly-economically, socially, and environmentally. Implementing photovoltaic electricity systems as pre-electrification in rural areas where satisfactory grid supplies are not likely to be available within the next 10-15 years and where it is technically suitable, affordable and the least-cost solution for the applications needed, can help alleviate burdens on the electricity sectors and allow for improvements in supplies while accomplishing energy objectives more effectively than the current system. In addition to the apparent gap between energy supplies and demands, the structure of the electricity sector, rural and urban consumption and supply disparities, below cost pricing, and environmental issues underscore the problems with burdensome conventional rural electrification programs. All of these factors indicate the need for alternative electricity sources in Indonesia and the Philippines. In these areas where income is also rising, photovoltaic systems may be ideal ways to address that need. I. The energy problem: demand and supply Energy consumption has been growing far more rapidly in developing countries in the past decade than in developed countries. The International Energy Agency estimates that by 2010 the current level of demand for energy in developing countries will more than double and will account for almost 40% of world energy demand, due to both population growth and economic growth (IEA1 3). The East Asian region of the world is particularly important in the evolution of world energy demand because of its rapid economic growth and since there has been a clear positive correlation between economic growth and energy demand growth.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Waste Management Practices Of Mcdonalds Environmental Sciences Essay

McDonalds is one of the largest and most good known planetary fast nutrient eating houses. Ray Kroc is the laminitis of the company in the twelvemonth 1955. The company has been runing for 55 old ages and has 32000 eating houses concatenation in more than 117 states. More than 75 % of McDonald ‘s world-wide mercantile establishments are operated by franchisees or affiliates ( Our Company 2010 ) . There are 1.5 million employees worldwide working to function 50 million worldwide clients each twenty-four hours ( McDonald ‘s Restaurants Ltd, 2006 ) . Over the many old ages, 1000000s of people have patronage McDonald ‘s because it is a sure name with proved service. In returning that trueness, McDonalds have an duty to give back to the community ( SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, 2010 ) . McDonalds supports Ronald McDonald House Charities ( RMHC ) , carnal public assistance, nutrient safety and environment ( SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, 2010 ) . This essay shall analyze how McDonalds has performed in the relation to the environment peculiarly waste direction patterns. The populace of the current age are concerned about the sum of packaging and nutrient waste produced by McDonald ‘s eating houses ( Better Packaging with McDonald ‘s, 2009 ) . A study conducted by Keep Britain Tidy that approximately 29 % of the litter waste on the Britain Street was come from the McDonalds eating house ( Gray, L 2009 ) . Therefore, one of the best solutions taken by McDonalds is pull off the waste through waste direction patterns, which is affecting in decrease, reuse, recycling and disposal ( Better Packaging with McDonald ‘s, 2009 ) . As one of the largest fast nutrient eating houses worldwide, McDonalds has become an environment leader. Hence, McDonalds is determined to analyse every facet of their concern on their impact on the environment and harmonizing to the analysis and seek effectual ways to heighten the environment . McDonalds is trusting to last and remain in a clean environment where the air, H2O and the Earth are clean and every bit good construct an environment sound universe to the hereafter coevals ( ) . McDonalds has done a assortment of different as compared to the past and current public presentation. In the yesteryear, McDonalds used the polystyrene froth as packaging nutrient. Many conservationists dislike polystyrene froth because the production of froth will let go of out the CFC, which can damage the ambiance. The froth besides to take long clip to interrupt down, if at all, in landfills, which is where most of it winds up because there are comparatively few recycling centres ( ) . Besides, McDonalds was required 46 gms of packaging in â€Å" mean repast † – a Big Mac, french friess and a shingle in twelvemonth 1970 ( Case A: McDonald ‘s Environmental Strategy, 1995 ) . In add-on, there was no industrial graduated table recycling before ( Rose, 2009 ) . Furthermore, McDonalds did non pattern the exercising of change overing the waste into energy. Presents, McDonalds has found many alternate ways to heighten the environment public presentation in term of the waste direction patterns. First, McDonalds has replaced the polystyrene froth by the utilizing paper based-wraps in order to cut down the waste volume in the waste direction procedure ( Better Packaging with McDonald ‘s, 2009 ) . The replacing is because of consumers demand and heeding advocate of environmental groups ( Liddle, A 1990 ) . McDonalds major markets, approximately 83 % of the packaging used for nutrient, drinks and other consumer intents is made of some signifier of paper ( McDonald ‘s Worldwide Corporate Responsibility Report, 2006 ) . Another is the decreased sum of stuff used in each point of packaging ( our environment, 2008 ) . Third, McDonalds recycles boxing waste and recycles used cooking oil in waste direction patterns ( Recycling in the eating house – Concentrating on operational chances, 2010 ) . Fourthly, proper disposal waste pl ans are been carried out to pull off the nutrient waste once the McDonalds can non cut down, reuse and recycle the waste ( our environment, 2008 ) . Recent twelvemonth, McDonald in UK has a test tested out an alternate method of disposal, which by change overing the nutrient waste to energy ( Pull offing the impacts of the leftovers, 2010 ) . DavidA Fairhurst, senior frailty president for McDonald ‘s UK & A ; Northern Europe said that the change overing waste to energy is promoting that has already reduced the environmental impact in the country by 48 % and important measure on accomplishing zero waste to landfill ( Thomas, D 2009 ) Presently, McDonalds brings a batch impact upon the society and stakeholder. McDonalds replaces the froth to paper wraps, which make up 70 % to 90 % decrease in sandwich packaging volume ( Better Packaging with McDonald ‘s, 2009 ) . Besides, McDonalds besides cut down the sum of stuff used in the packaging, which indicate less natural stuff usage and therefore less solid waste green goods ( our environment, 2008 ) . For illustration, in 2005, McDonalds redesigned the interior of North American Fry boxes, which make up more than 1,100 dozenss boxing waste saved per twelvemonth ( McDonald ‘s Worldwide Corporate Responsibility Report, 2006 ) . Furthermore, McDonalds in Unite State has recycled over 17 dozenss of corrugate composition board per twelvemonth ( Recycling in the eating house – Concentrating on operational chances 2010 ) . Corrugate unlifelike represent about 30 % of the entire eating house waste and as consequence of recycling, divert the sum of waste from landfills. McDonalds has an purpose of accomplishing to recycle 100 % of their corrugated composition board ( our environment, 2008 ) . By the manner, approximately 10 % of the entire eating house wastes come from the used cookery oil and McDonalds has converted into biodiesel ( our environment, 2008 ) . McDonalds in United State has recycled about 13,000 lbs of used cookery oil per twelvemonth. Currently, more than 80 % of the used oil in Europe has transformed into biodiesel ( Recycling in the eating house – Concentrating on operational chances 2010 ) . As a consequence, it is stopped the used cookery oil from send to landfills. ( Please conso lidate and present it in a more systematic manner. ) In add-on, the test of change overing the waste to energy has been successfully decrease 54 % per centum of C emanation as audited by the Carbon Trust ( Brass, E 2009 ) . The sum of waste save from landfill could be 65 tones if the eating houses continue implement this disposal. For the energy generate from the waste provide plenty heat and electricity to the edifice ( Pull offing the impacts of the leftovers, 2010 ) . For case, in UK the energy generate from the nutrient waste, which able to power the 22 million visible radiation bulbs to community ( Brass, E 2009 ) . Now let concentrate on the advantages and disadvantages of McDonald patterns in the waste direction. The major advantage through the waste direction patterns is reduced the nursery gas emanation. Methane particularly one of the nursery gases which largely generate by the landfills operation and convey harmful effects to the environment and human wellness. Therefore, the cardinal factor success of lower down the gases emanation is driven by the greater recycle wastes, increased sum of waste recovery and incineration combined with energy production ( Improved waste direction presenting clime benefits, 2008 ) . Another advantage of the waste direction patterns is generated a liveable environment to society ( Waste Disposal Methods Advantages and Disadvantages n.d. ) . It is because people can be and populate in a comfort environment with free of waste. . ( are at that place any scholarly cogent evidence to back up this statement? ) is to assist to cut down the sum of waste. Through the waste direction patterns, McDonalds has send less waste to landfill and finally less waste occupy the landfill However, there are some disadvantages of the waste direction patterns. The major disadvantage is contaminated the environment ( Waste Disposal Methods Advantages and Disadvantages n.d. ) . The public-service corporations of documents as packaging particularly are unfriendly to the environment in the waste direction pattern. It is because there will increase the environment impact in production of paper packaging point. An analysis conducted by the Franklin Associates, an independent environmental research house that the production between polystyrene froth and paper toward the environment impact. The consequence show that the fabrication of paper containers particularly make up 46 per centum more air pollution, 42 per centum more H2O pollution and 75 per centum more industrial waste than that of plastic. Made preponderantly of air, paper requires 30 per centum more energy to bring forth than froth ( Eckhardt, A 1998 ) . Therefore, the utilizing of paper really leads the pollution occur. Consequently, planetary heating particularly occurs one time the pollution acquiring terrible and serious. Besides, the disadvantage of the waste direction patterns is influence the people wellness. The procedure of convert the waste to energy demand go through the incineration, which may breathe the harmful gases into the environment that risky to occupants ‘ wellness, as the emanation fume is unseeable and s melly. Undoubtedly, it brings the negative impact to society ( Krishna, G 2006 ) . As decision, the waste direction patterns should be adopted to pull off the waste in order to supply the healthy and clean environment to the society. The societal public presentation of McDonalds in relation to the environment has enormously contributed. Even though the riddance of waste from the fast nutrient eating houses is impossible, some effectual and efficiency of alternate methods should besides seek in order to cut down and forestall the waste from being engulfed the Earth. If the big fast nutrient company like McDonalds does non command the waste produce from the eating house and salvage the planet, people will certainly die themselves one twenty-four hours.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Hotel Rwanda and United 93 Analysis of Film Techniques Essay

Hotel Rwanda, directed by Terry George, is a 2004 film made depicting the Rwandan genocides. The historical context of the film is in 1994 in Rwanda, when the extremist Interahamwe militias were gathering forces to kill Tutsi tribe’s people. They succeeded for the most part, killing more than 800,000 innocent people within a hundred days. The film is shown entirely from the point of view of Paul Rusesabagina, who hosted over 1200 Rwandan refugees in his Hotel Mille Collines. The camera only leaves Paul’s situation very rarely. The effect that this has on the veracity of the film is that it shows that this story is only his story. It recreates all the emotions of unpredictability, suspense and unsureness of what’s going to happen next. For example, in one of the scenes after Paul and his family enjoy a safe night together, the next morning he wakes up with a gun to his head. However, following Paul’s situation is used more than just for dramatic value. The audience is drawn in to the film, as if they are right there with Paul, and this creates a very â€Å"real† experience. United 93 uses second-skin camera placement to achieve effectively the same result. For example, during the hijacking, you would have all noticed the jerky motion of the camera and the â€Å"imperfect†, out-of-focus shots. They illustrate the confusion in the atmosphere. Again the audience feels as if they are the person watching through the lens of the camera and that they are actually involved in the situation, thus recreating reality for the viewers. In Hotel Rwanda, footage shot of the Interahamwe beating their victims is shown. It is footage that a news reporter catches on tape in the film, but is a replica of that which another man found in reality. Additionally, Paul says that after people see the footage they will intervene. The reporter replies to him that â€Å"People will watch the footage and say, ‘Oh my god that’s horrible,’ and then they’ll go back to eating their dinners.† This quote sums up the harsh and ugly reality of the Rwandan people’s situation – that it was seen as insignificant and trivial. Similarly United 93 uses a lot of broadcasted material in the film. For  example, the coverage of the trade centres being attacked enhances the genuine nature of the film and allows the audience to remember the news coverage of the day as well. In some of the scenes in Hotel Rwanda, real Rwandan soldiers are used. Their experience brings an authenticity to the film. However, in United 93, the professionals re enact their role on the day of the attacks. For example, after the second attack, in the military, the woman had to continue giving coordinates despite the emotional turmoil and shock that she was feeling. Using real people deters from the drama of the film and brings it back to the real world where they must continue their duties in spite of whatever may happen. During almost all of Hotel Rwanda, there is the diegetic sound of gunfire in the background. Sometimes, gunfire disturbs even the most beautiful and peaceful of scenes. For example, when Paul and his wife are on the roof of the hotel enjoying a talk, they can hear and see the gunfire as they look out into the city. These kinds of intrusions constantly remind the audience of the graveness of the situation, and engage them in the atmosphere, creating a constant fear and paranoia of what will happen next. United 93 sometimes has talking in the background and never focuses on one person’s speech either. Especially in the scenes with Ben Sliney, it was sometimes difficult to tell who was talking. The people working in the background even had voices to answer to. That’s exactly what it would be like if we were there – there would be people talking over people and constant confusion. This texture of sound again adds to how genuine the film is perceived to be. Terry George and Paul Greengrass employ similar and different techniques to achieve verisimilitude in their films. Greengrass kept his movie as true to the events as possible. Terry George added in a few extra bits to add to its entertainment value, yet managed to capture the scope of the genocides very well, tell the story of Paul Rusesabagina in a credible manner, and maintain historical veracity. â€Å"Hotel Rwanda† (2004) directed by Terry George†United 93†³ (2006) directed by Gary Ross