Basic difference between Behavior therapy and Psychoanalysis Essay

Basic difference between Behavior therapy and Psychoanalysis - Essay Example The therapist (psychoanalyst) helps the client "uncover" unconscious motivations, unresolved problems from childhood and early patterns to resolve issues and to become aware of how those motivations influence present actions and feelings. Once the Behavior therapist enquires Jack about himself and few formal questions, Behavior therapist will ask some more specific questions related to his way of treatment. The questions would be regarding Jack's interests, motivations, Friends, Academics, fantasies, strengths, goals, ambitions, aspirations, happy moments, distractions, weaknesses, other phobias (if any), disinterests, irritations, cultural values, relaxation techniques etc., Once Behavior therapist finds the reason behind the phobia, he will try to motivate the Jack to encounter the phobia on face, but with suitable rewards. Say Jack is interested in Sports, then the Behavior therapist will offer him a pair sport shoes for every encounter Jack faces with the phobia. This will make the situation into a competition rather than problem. Once this competition attitude sets in, Jack will unknowingly transfer his 'energy of phobia' into competitive spirit. And this is what Behavior therapist would like to achieve. Jack's treatment is properly scheduled with/without medication

Project on McDonald’s Corporation Essay Example for Free

Project on McDonald’s Corporation Essay Introduction and Background In 1940 two brothers Dick and Mack Macdonald opened their own restaurant. Eight years ago the first concepts and rules of fast food production and sales were formulated by them. Initially the business was created in a such way that everything should be very fast and effective. Brothers spent much time elaborating the layout of the kitchen in their first restaurant, so  they achieved the goal. Inspire of the fact that later they sold their business and their family no longer the owners of it, nowadays mcdonalds have the same efficient system of production and sales that it is able to introduce and maintain all over the world using different strategies and methods. External Environment External environment is a bunch of various outward forces that may have a great impact on the company’s performance. The external environment of every company comprises of three levels: the general, industry and competitor environments. The integration of information received from these environments helps to identify and shape the company’s strategies. Thereby, in order to understand what hindrances company faces or may encounter in the future, it is essential to analyze all the levels of its external environment. It was mentioned earlier that the headquarters of McDonald’s locates in the U.S. so we will analyze general and industry environments in this region. General Environment The general environment is usually examined by the analysis of 7 segments: demographic, economic, political/legal, sociocultural, technological, global and physical environment segments. First of all, the demographic segment is concerned with the population structure and Ã' omposition. The USA’s population is estimated at 313 286 000 people in 2012. By analyzing population composition, it can be said that there is very high level of immigration. Moreover, it can be said that the birth rate is sufficient: 13.68 births/1,000 population in 2012, according to CIA World Factbook. Thereby, these statistics help to understand that the region is quite profitable and comfortable to operate in due to the large population size and excessive number of potential employees. Last but no least, according to U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income during period of 2006 to 2010 is $51914 which is quite high. Secondly, the political/legal segment is quite important for the analysis because the industry is highly contingent on the different kind of taxes imposed by the governments. McDonald’s  Corporation is obliges to pay business taxes, payroll taxes, Food Product Association taxes (19% of the total profit and 19% in the price of each product) and health and social insurance for the employees. The changes in government’s tax policy may utterly affect the company’s revenue. As regards the economic segment, one of the major challenge for fast food industry is that to keep the price is low for the customer. However, it is quite hard because nowadays the USA is still suffering from the financial crisis which can be a possible reason to decrease in outside food consumption in a whole. The dimension influencing the fast food industry the most is the sociocultural. The reason is that the industry is dependent on people’s preferences and opinions that’s why even tiny changes are crucial. From 2000 to 2002 McDonald’s profits dropped from $1.977 million to $893 million. It was caused by the increase of customer’s health-consciousness and fears of obesity, as a consequence, some customers prefer more healthier options which offer a greater variety of food for health conscious customers. Furthermore, it is quite important to devote attention to technological segment because the technologies always mean faster operation and cost minimization. McDonald’s uses different modern appliances to prepare its food without many dangers and in a quick way. Moreover, the majority of McDonald’s restaurants provides free Wi-Fi. In addition, McDonald’s improved the technology of its supply chain management. Regarding the global segment, it should be highlighted that most U.S. companies are focused globally which means that they operate in many different countries. McDonald’s is not an exception. It is located in 119 countries and is known as one of the most spread fast food restaurants’ chain. Last but not least, nowadays more and more companies are concerned with social responsibility and environmentally friendly policies. Industry Environment The industry environment is usually analyzed by Porter’s five forces model. Firstly, it is the Threat of New Entrants. The threat of new entrants in the fast food industry is high because there are no legal barriers which would keep them from entering the industry. The major barriers in which a firm faces in the industry are the economies of scale and the access of the distribution. In order for a firm to enjoy success in the industry, they must spend a large amount of capital on advertising and marketing. The industry is very competitive because firms are always attempting to steal customers from each other. Access for distribution is crucial in the restaurant industry because if the customer can’t see you or access you easily it’s possible that they won’t go out of there way to eat there. Franchise options also make is easier to enter the market, for example Subway has built their strategic plan around franchise options. Therefore, initially the only cost to enter the market is the starting capital required to open a restaurant. However, it can cost upwards of millions of dollars for all the equipment, licensing, and the property. This costly barrier is the most probable reason that people do not enter this business. The food-service industry doesn’t have any exit barriers, which allow firms to easily leave the industry if they’re not successful, at virtually only the cost incurred. The second force is Bargaining Power of Buyers. McDonald’s, and the industry, has attempted to gain market capitalization, by keeping the customer satisfied, due to the fact there are relatively no switching costs. For this reason, they have adopted the slogan, â€Å"the customer is always right.† The industry must try to maintain a hold on the market by conforming to a changing society as well as maintaining high quality. One of the industry’s most recent concerns is that of creating a healthier society and prevention of obesity. McDonald’s corporation has faced previous law suits on being held accountable for obesity, similarly following the litigation process of cigarettes and tobacco companies. The courts ruled against this issue in McDonald’s favor, making this a remote future risk factor. McDonald’s has had to paid legal fees in order to defend itself in this type of litigation;  however, even with this incremental cost they are still achieving a significant rate of earnings growth. In addition, McDonald’s, in it’s effort to be a more socially responsible corporate citizen by supporting a healthier society, has developed â€Å"light† and healthy menu items in order to give customers additional eating options and in doing so, broadening the array of its customer base while offering it’s existing customer base with healthier menu options. Thirdly, it is Bargaining Power of Suppliers. It can be said that McDonald’s has a large bargaining power because of the fact that they spend 4.852 billion dollars in food and paper in 2004. This can be argued that the companies that McDonald’s buys from could be largely dependent on McDonald’s business. Although in recent years the industry has had a small problem with beef, because of the outbreak of the mad cow disease. This problem raised the cost of beef in Europe tremendously but the cost actually went up around the world because of the beef shortage in Europe. In this case it can be argued that the suppliers of beef have a strong voice as well. The suppliers that sell to McDonald’s have a strong voice also because of the fact that the switching cost for McDonald’s as a whole would be so tremendous that they would not want to make that change, so any problems or disputes would be worked out with there suppliers. Also, with the competition and the number of buyers in the market place, losing a large company like McDonald’s could destroy any supplier but there are other prospects out there to buy that product like Wendy’s, Jack in the Box, Burger King and a few others that they may be able to salvage there losses. As for the paper goods that McDonald’s buy from the manufacturers, if McDonald’s were to change manufacturers the supplier could easily change there manufacturing to note book paper by just readjusting the machines but it would come at a great cost. The fourth force is Threat of Substitute Products. McDonald’s is known for their famous French Fries, Big Macs, and Happy Meals. Competitors of the industry also try to compete with similar products; therefore, leading to price wars. McDonald’s created a Dollar Value Menu, in response to competitors such as Wendy’s 99 cent menu. Overall, the industry has tried various product differentiations in order to accumulate greater market share, but most consumers are drawn to the classics for which the establishment is known for. However, growing concern  to achieve a healthier society has led McDonald’s, as well as other competitors, to make extensive menu changes, in order to conform to a more concerned society. McDonald’s is doing more and more to compete with health focused restaurants like Subway. Nutritionist and other leading experts have been hired to join the McDonald’s team in order to ensure that the correct items are added to the menu, while still keeping and improving the classics that they are famous for. For example, the chicken nuggets that we all grew up on are now 100% white meat. McDonald’s is flexible in their menu to conform to the changing tastes of society, but they always serve with a smile! The fifth and final force is Competitive Rivalry within an Industry. Currently in the fast food industry, there is intense competition for growth in the market. The market growth is rising because of the convenience factor and busy consumers not having enough time to cook a meal. The restaurant industry is also growing rapidly due to opportunities in other global markets. In McDonald’s case, they actually have a competitive advantage because they have already entered many different countries and are succeeding in these countries. Each firm within the food-service industry is susceptible to losing customers because there are relatively no switching costs for consumers, therefore the industry has to rely heavily on their brand image and quality of products. McDonald’s has a number of competitors; however they are currently the leader of the industry in market capitalization with a cap of $39.31 billion. Competitor Analysis It is almost vital to know the competitors in your industry in order to be able to overtake and surpass them. The top competitors of McDonald’s are Burger King, Wendy’s, KFC and Subway. Burger King Burger King is the second largest hamburger fast-food chain in the world and is the number one competitor for McDonald’s. Burger King has 11,400 locations in 58 countries and derives 55 percent of its revenue from the drive-through window. Burger King reported 1.72 billion in 2002 in revenue which is a 17 percent increase compared to a 4 percent increase reported by  McDonald’s over the same period. Burger King’s distinct assets include the unique Whopper with its one of kind charbroiled taste and the company policy of preparing the hamburger any way that the customer wants it. Burger King has distinguished itself over the years in many ways including being the first in the fast-food industry to enclose its patio seating in 1957 thereby offering customer indoor dining experience. Burger King also differentiated itself when it installed the drive-through window in its restaurants in 1975. In addition to the Whopper Burger King also offers a few set items on its breakfast menu that differs it from it competitors including the Croissan’wiches and french toast sticks. The rest of the menu also offered the unique veggie burger and chicken Caesar salad. Wendy’s Wendy’s is the third largest fast-food chain with 9,000 stores in 33 countries world wide. In 2002 they reported 2.73 billion in revenue which is up 14.2 percent from the previous year. Wendy’s offers several unique items including the Frostys and Spicy Chicken Sandwiches as well as healthier items such as salads, baked potatoes and chili. Wendy’s has also distinguished itself through the creation of the special value menu with all items on it under a one dollar. Wendy’s also owns several small companies including Tim Horton’s and Baja Fresh Mexican Grill. It plans on increasingly using acquisitions of smaller brands to further growth. In next decade Wendy’s plans to add between 2 and 4 thousand new stores worldwide. One important weakness of Wendy’s is the lack of easily recognizable product compared to McDonald’s Big Mac of the Burger King Whopper. KFC Strategic Objectives: KFC has the strategic objectives of expansion along with profits and sales growth. KFC has also been applying its strategies at improving services and making them more and more customer friendly. It has not only been customizing its menu according to the countries that it has been operating in, it has also been trying to cater to different ethnic groups like African Americans and Hispanics. Such types of strategies are focused on increasing the customer base by better customization of products. Other than the  traditional eat-in restaurants, KFC has also been expanding into non-traditional facilities like shopping malls, hospitals, universities, stadiums; office buildings etc and a number of strategies have been formulated to aid this kind of expansion. Competitive Advantage: A very strong financial background is one of KFC’s competitive advantages. KFC has been functioning as a multinational corporation for several decades. As a result, the company is familiar with the logistical and quality problems which accompany operating an international food operation, and has demonstrated that it can work with host countries and businesses within the host country to develop a strategy which works in the most cost effective way. With the passage of time, KFC has developed another very important competitive advantage for itself — Environmental Friendliness. In March 2009, the first eco-friendly green KFC was opened in Northampton USA. The restaurant is designed according to environmental goals that include cutting energy and water consumption by 30 percent and reducing CO2 emissions. Operations at the new site are also expected to reduce waste and the amount of rubbish sent to landfills; the restaurant composts and recycles other waste, grease and used cooking oil. Other than this, in an effort to reduce its packaging by 1,400 tons, KFC is now switching from cardboard to recyclable and biodegradable paper wrapping for some of its products. Subway Strategic Objectives: The strategic objectives of Subway focus on creating a global strategic plan to enable Subway restaurants to succeed internationally. Other than this subway is intent upon introducing the concept of ‘healthy fast food’. Sandwiches of Subway have been included in diet plans by experts. Subway’s stand regarding obesity in children is not new to its customers. Strategies at Subway are not only about a really ambitious increase in franchises all over the world but they are also about making the food more and more appealing to the health conscious customers because health conscious attitudes, according to the experts, are here to stay now. Competitive Advantage: One of the greatest competitive advantages that Subway was born with is its healthy menu. The salads and sandwiches appeal much more to the people as compared to fried chicken, burgers, fries and pizzas. With its advertising and promotion, Subway has long been highlighting its healthy food in advertising and promotions and with the passage of time, it has established itself as a healthy brand. Another competitive advantage that subway enjoys is the fact that along with traditional locations, Subway restaurants can be found in more than 4,000 non traditional locations such as food courts, health clubs, hospitals, universities, amusement parks or just about anywhere. In fact, Subway restaurants can even be found in automobile showrooms and Laundromats! This global presence is indeed a sustainable advantage for Subway and needs to be managed properly. Subway’s fresh food is also a competitive advantage because unlike its competitors like McDonald’s it allows its franchisees to choose their own food suppliers, to ensure they can access the freshest ingredients. Resources, Capabilities and Core Competences Resources †¢ Human resources McDonald’s is does its best to reward outstanding employees for exception work. It is also putting more emphasis on its hospitality training to ensure a friendlier and customer focused support staff. †¢ Brand loyalty The long queues to McDonald’s in food courts is the best illustration of high level of brand loyalty, that company continues to develop. In advertising campaigns McDonald’s uses the slogan â€Å"I’m lovin’ it† which it there attempt to make McDonald’s an easy choice for families. They have also started using popular music to appeal to youth population. †¢ Real estate It may be surprising, but real estate ownership is one of the significant Mcdonalds resources. It is estimated that McDonald’s generates more money from its rent than from its franchise fees. One of the ways in which  McDonald’s receives funds from its franchises is in rent money. McDonald’s owns all property in which a McDonald’s outlet was built regardless if the location is a franchise or company owned. Capabilities McDonalds used to have several capabilities, among them hiring process and employees training and product innovation.  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Hiring process  It is complicated and systematic. It comprises of 3 main stages. 1. Initial interview and psychometric evaluation. On this step the candidates undergoing simple interview and tests evaluating their verbal and critical reasoning 2. Job evaluation. On this step candidates have 2 days practice in a restaurant that allows them to look at McDonalds as a future employees and HR team to assess candidates performance 3. Final interview. The last stage of hiring process includes overall interview and decision about the candidates is made. Taking into consideration staff training, McDonalds has many training programs on every level of restaurant. Training forums are made for basic workers and they start from the very beginning of working in the restaurant. They are designed to help employees with their communicational skills and encourage growth in the company. Other programs are created for managers of the restaurants, such as Basic Shift Management, Advanced Shift Management, and Systems Management Course . Their main objectives are: providing information about internal standards and procedures, teaching data analyses and strategies of identifying and solving different problems. For higher levels employees McDonalds has internship programs for students and recent graduates. Programs let them practice in different spheres of companies performance such as Information technologies, Marketing, Finance and others. Other McDonald’s project Leadership Development program is based career planning, Individual Development plans, career maps, succession planning, learning activities and others. †¢ Product innovation The main resource developing product innovation strategy are full-time chief working in studios in Munich, Hong-Kong and Chicago. Moreover, localization of products also plays important role in development of innovative products. For example, in India Beef and pork products are not offered due to Indian religious beliefs. What is more, meat and vegetarian meals are prepared in separate areas of the restaurant again as a result of religious laws about preparation of food for vegetarians and meat-eaters. There is an Indian version of the Big Mac in India is called the Maharaja Mac and made with two grilled chicken slices, onions, tomatoes, cheese and a spicy mayonnaise. In Taiwan company introduced kao fan (literally baked rice), that resembles a burger with rice patties in place of buns. Finally, in Philippines McDonalds serves even spaghetti with in sweet tomato sauce, topped with cheese. Core Competences †¢ Produce quick cheap food to large number of customers With this concept, they are able to expand into many countries be the largest fast-food chain in the world. The process of production is the company core competence. Initially it was designed in such way as to be fast and very effective. There is precise guidance of how to do every activity. Mcdonalds pioneered in the systematization of its processes. Efficiency of operations and synchronization is the basis for success of the company. Also, it may be said, that burgers and fries are themselves McDonalds core competences. McDonald’s classic burgers has always taste the same in any outlet in the world. This consistent quality assures customer’s trust and loyalty to the product. It also provides an assuring brand experience. †¢ Structure Some specialists consider the unique organizational structure of McDonalds as its core competence. McDonalds never used rigid hierarchical organizational structure, that company managed to sustain over the years. It uses â€Å"freedom with framework† mantra, keeping structure decentralized. It allows local managers to make decisions by themselves. It also plays significant role in localization of menu due to local needs. Business-Level Strategy The business level strategy McDonalds uses integrated cost leadership and differentiation. It means the products of mcdonalds is the cheapest on the market and more over McDonalds does its best to make them absolutely different from what others produce, using localization and launching new products almost every year. So the target of its strategy is to meet the needs of buyers whose preferences are distinctively different from others. So MD deals with the costumers who want very fast service with good quality. And it is different from the visitors of not fast food restaurants. The product line is customized to meet their needs. The marketing emphasis is put on communication and market analysis again to satisfy their needs. Finally the way to sustain strategy is remaining dedicated to serving one niche and be better than competitors in everything and do not dilute the brand image entering other niches. Corporate-Level Strategy Corporate-level strategy is a strategy which is aimed at the long term position of a business. A corporation or business can use plenty of methods to develop a corporate level strategy, however, basically, there are four main strategies that almost all businesses use which are: †¢ Concentrate on a single business, other words, business stays on the same industry on purpose to create a strong competitive position within the industry. †¢ Diversification; which is to move to a new business to provide a new good or service. There are two kinds of diversification, related diversification which is to compete in similar area/industry of activities to build a  synergy and unrelated diversification which is to enter a new industry to compete and build a portfolio strategy. †¢ International Expansion. This means some competition in more than one market to serve the needs of the other markets/countries.  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Vertical Integration. This is a way to cut costs by providing your own ways of inputs, backward vertical integration and your own channels of distribution and selling outputs by forward integration. Therefore, now let’s move directly to McDonald’s corporate-level strategy. Nevertheless, before we start to consider all the main points of this particular type of strategy, some overview details will be given. Mc Donald’s is a fast food restaurant operating on a global basis. It is operating on 119countries world wide. Mc Donald’s was opened for the first time in Cyprus in June 1997 and by now there are 16 Mc Donald’s restaurants in Cyprus. So, Mc Donald’s uses corporate level strategies like all other global basis corporations in order to reach corporate goals to be cost effective. MC Donald’s is a business which only concentrates on a single task which is the fast food business industry as stated by Dr. Weber, (2000). This special issue someday will help a lot the business to concentrate directly on one single task and get not only more power and market share, but consumer loyalty also in result. This happens because of the fact that they will run many strategies to find the best solutions of the consumer needs and preferences. However this can be very risky if the business fails to meet the right needs of consumers and therefore will not be profitable and as a result will close down due to the possible bankruptcy. Firstly, as it was stated in Washington post (2005) MC Donald’s diversifies its operations in many ways. Thus, the company uses related diversification in order to produce the same products which are burgers and salads basically, but they provide just an enormous number of choices, such as: Big Mac or Mac chicken, different kinds of salads. Moreover, McDonald’s operates in more than one geographical area but still performing the same task. Also it has opened MC cafes all around the world. McDonald’s gets many advantages by doing related diversification, firstly, if there are two Mc Donald’s restaurants in a city, then the two firms can build a synergy by co-operating with the right to use some special facilities such as the advertisements, suppliers and sometimes events, for instance, charity events. Secondly, as stated by Ricky, W (2003), the firm depends less on a single product, so it’s less vulnerable to competitive or economic threats. Other words, Mc Donald’s having variety of products like burgers, salads, ice creams and drinks is not being threaten of competition because this particular company has diversity in its products, for instance, Mc Donald’s Greek Mac makes it more stable and steady than such rivals as Burger King because the rivals do not have such product. Thirdly, it allows the firm to use technology or expertise developed in one market, for example, fast food to enter a second market more cheaply and easily e.g. MC Cafà ©. However, the only disadvantage that Mc Donald’s faces, is the cost of coordinating the operations of the related divisions. In 2001, McDonalds launched a new venture by opening two hotels in Switzerland (Zurich and Lully) under the name â€Å"Golden Arch Hotel† Stefan, M (2005). This is a good example of an unrelated diversification because of the fact that Mc Donald’s is taking risks of its business from a single activity to many others like taking part in the Hotel industry. Unrelated diversification provides a portfolio for Mc Donald’s because it is operating on two absolutely different industries and the risk is reduced because if one of the two markets that the business has activity in fails to grow successfully, then the growth of the other market will cover the costs of it. Secondly, such strategy is less vulnerable to competitive threats because any given threat from a competitor is likely to affect only a portion of its total operations. However, unrelated diversification is very difficult to manage since the company has to deal with two markets and their strategies, plans and organization and coordination of each specific market which it is  dealing with. McDonald’s has introduced the American concept of fast food to many foreign Markets as stated by, Francine L, (2005). Moreover, the firm has by now, expanded throughout most of the world by operating on 119 countries. †¢ Thus, Mc Donald’s is known globally today because it is expanded internationally. †¢ Mc Donald’s is using multi-domestic strategy to serve each nations needs. It is customizing the fast food menus for each specific country/nation to suit the people’s wants. For instance there is Greek Mac in Cyprus and Greece. †¢ The advantage of this strategy is that the company is targeting a nation very effectively and gains market share by attracting the customers whereas, the cost of production will increase in order to add a new feature to the firm and the prices will rise to cover the costs. As stated in â€Å"Getting the Facts Straight† leaflet of Mc Donald’s, the firm is working with top suppliers and independent experts on health and safety. The Cyprus Mc Donald’s restaurants’ inputs such as meat, is ordered regularly from Italy with the highest quality and when they enter the island,  it is supplied to all the franchise branches on the island by Mc Donald’s vans and trucks. This shows that Mc Donald’s owns its inputs and has its farms to breed cattle and grow vegetable and potatoes. Therefore, this allows the company to diminish costs by doing vertical backward integration. Moreover, it maintains a guaranteed time, quality and amount of supply to the restaurants when required. The drawback of vertical integration is that, at the beginning of the integration huge amounts of capital should be invested in to the backward integration. Mc Donald’s business has been working since 1956 till now successfully and still operates under these corporate level strategies. Cooperative Strategy A cooperative strategy means interaction between two or group of companies which work together to achieve a shared objective. By measures which are  included in cooperation, companies can create value for the customer at a lower cost or with more benefits than it is able to do by itself. The primary type of cooperative strategy used is strategic alliances. Such kind of cooperations means that companies partly share their resources and capabilities between each others to produce new resources and capabilities, e.g. gain shared objectives. Such corporations as McDonalds, Coca-Cola and Disney are the biggest multinational corporation with outstanding profits.But how can they enlarge their profits with the same amount of resources? The answer to this question is cooperation. Lets look through some strategic alliances formed by McDonalds. Alliance with Coca-Cola McDonald’s alliance with Coca-Cola has  «no piece of paper to fall back on—just  «a common vision and a lot of trust », according to Mr Ivester (Coke’s chairman) ». On setting up in the burger business in the 1950s, one of Ray Kroc’s first successes was persuading a Coke executive Waddy Pratt to provide him with their drink. Cokes relationship with McDonald’s goes far beyond than just a supplier It has helped McDonalds to go to the new markets all over the world, because Coke is sold in almost twice as many countries as McDonald’s. Michael Quinlan, McDonald’s chairman,  «runs off a long list of areas of cooperation, from banking relationships to equipment design ». There is also very close relations between the members of this alliance at board level. When Coke’s chairman Robert Goizueta died, flags flew at half-mast at McDonald’s around the world. Alliance with Disney The alliance between McDonalds and Disney has moved way beyond doing only movie promotions with Happy Meal toys. Nowadays this alliance has made enormous amounts of progress, for example McDonalds being a sponsor of Dinoland, one of Disney’s attraction in Animal Kingdom, has built its restaurant outside this attractions park. This new smart McDonald’s is decorated in DisneyWorld style. The staff wear uniforms which is approved by  Disney, which demonstrates McDonald’s characters. Alliance with Master Card and Visa McDonalds has announced an alliance with MasterCard and another alliance with Visa USA to bring cashless payment options to McDonalds restaurants in the US. By this cooperation with MC and Visa, a company has provided more comfortable system of payment in McDonalds which attracts customers. Alliance with Malls and Gas Stations McDonalds latest expansion targets call for approximately 3,000 new restaurants world-wide both 2008 and 2009. Two-thirds of new restaurants will be built outside the USA. On the other hand, in the US approximately 600 new restaurants will be so-called satellite units mini-McDonalds found in malls and especially in nationwide retailer. McDonalds has formed alliances with Amoco Oil Co. and Chevron Corp. in the US to built restaurants in tandem with gas stations to cover more and more destinations all over the country. Global Strategy McDonalds has initially expanded to international markets in the conditions of strong regulations and overcrowded market in the USA. In the very beginning they offered a standardized products and attracted new clients with clean environment policy and brand equity. Recently the company adapt to new conditions by providing new product line and redesigning retail space in order to meet local needs and tastes. This strategy has allowed McDonalds to adapt quickly to new countries, but at the same time it created a long-term threat of diluting the brand and loosing its association with American culture. For instance, in Europe McDonalds becomes going beyond fast-food conception. In order to compete with coffee shops, McDonalds started offering more comfortable conditions, such as WI-FI and iPods for rent. Moreover, they created new healthier and locally adopted foods. Some specialists suggest, that if the company continue to expand with this strategy, it will be quite difficult to remain recognizable and meaningful brand.  Now it is time to consider McDonalds global strategy in more detail, taking China, South Africa, Brazil and Saudi Arabia as examples of strategy realization. But firstly, it is worth mentioning a few background facts. There is an incredible opportunity to expand in the world. McDonalds annual growth rate is about 1000-1500 restaurants and by 5-10 countries. According to the statistics, the company employed about 2 million people worldwide in 2000. The company adapts easily to new customers preferences by incorporating in the menu pommefrite sauce in Belgium and Holland and special mayonnaise based sauce in Iceland. China The McDonalds strategy in China is vary specific and it is aimed for adaptation to local culture. In comparison with the US, it was important for Chinese clients to focus not only on the food, but also on the restaurants’ atmosphere. That is why in China McDonalds restaurants are very similar to the American coffee houses with comfortable conditions for conversation and meetings. An other part of McDonalds strategy is introducing national tastes in its menu, such as the teriyaki burger. South Africa In South Africa McDonalds decided to focus on high populated cites. The point is to serve people where they eat, shop or play. The companies survey figured out that drive thru facilities are much effective then restaurants themselves, that is why there was made a decision on improving retail spaces. Moreover, McDonalds marketing strategy was concentrated on potential customers with different income level. In South Africa McDonalds has 90 branches spanning all nine provinces. It has 3 000 staff in just 39 restaurants, most working for franchisees. Each new restaurant opening creates as many as 80 new jobs, which is really important in current conditions. Brazil The eighth largest McDonalds market is concentrated in Brazil. Management team here is mostly focused on quality improvement and customer satisfaction and it was awarded for these efforts with Franchising Hallmark of Quality. Furthermore, McDonalds Brazil is one of the best employers and fifth among most admired companies in the country. Saudi Arabia and India The most characteristic feature of McDonalds in Saudi Arabia is that it closes five times a day for muslim prayers. McDonalds India offers aloo tikki and paneer. And it doesnt serve beef or pork at all. The Big Mac becomes Maharaja Mac in India. The company created special conditions for vegetarians with separate kitchen, cook and utensils. Moreover, in Ahmedabad the company decided to open an all-vegetarian outlet. Holding in respect Muslim tenets of belief, the company does not serve pork in all Islamic countries. There are two absolutely unique restaurants in the Holy City of Makkah, where Moslem customers are exclusively served by the staff, fully consists of Moslem employees, from the Service Crew to the Restaurant Manager level . And finally, McDonalds efforts have improved the local industries and national economy due to the fact that more than 50% of the products used are manufactured locally and in the gulf regions. Recommendations For Business-Level Strategy The main recommendation in terms of business-level strategy is to remain in the same niche. McDonald’s pioneered the whole concept of the fast food restaurant, that is why it should go to some other businesses, such as higher-level restaurant, because it can dilute their image of best fast food restaurant. For Corporate-Level Strategy Due to the fact that not every family has a direct access to McDonald’s cafes or just their place is too far from the restaurants, the idea to provide fast food to supermarkets. The products will be sold in the special vacuum package, so that it would have their original taste. This way the restaurant will loose nothing because there are only advantages which consist of making extra profit and gaining customer loyalty through spreading their production into the farplaced (far located) regions. For Cooperative Strategy As we have seen in the examples of McDonalds alliances – cooperation is very efficient way of development. In my opinion, McDonalds can cooperate with greater amount of companies. However, it should be very selective in choosing partner not to dilute its image. For example McDonalds can cooperate with Apple: McDs can provide free rechargers to Apple gadgets in its restaurants, while apple spread some apps by the AppStore. I think that McDonalds also should create alliance with some attraction park companies, as theyve made with Disney. Of course it would be more profitable for McDonalds because of the amount of clients concentrated in one place. On the other hand, ones park logo and symbolic in MacDonalds is worth it. For Global Strategy In spite of the fact, that McDonalds has great expansion opportunities, it is essential for the company to remember about its strength and to prevent brand dilution by means of concentrating on traditional American fast-food menu and including no more then 30% of specific dishes. Talking about the company’s pros, it is essential to continue developing and improving marketing campaign towards children and adults in foreign countries. In addition, such fresh ideas as creating vegetarian restaurants should be adopted in more countries in order to give customers alternative choice. Moreover. It would be a great idea to install Internet access terminals in each restaurants in order to reduce the amount of lag time between a customer’s orders and pick up of the order. This will show the innovative company level and improve its brand image for customers. Conclusion In the conclusion it is worth mentioning that the best prove of fantastic effectiveness of McDonalds strategy is the fact that its competitors trying to copy its standards and processes to become more competitive at the market where McDonald’s still remains the leader. View as multi-pages

Management of Implant Related Nerve Injury

Management of Implant Related Nerve Injury Nerve injury following implant therapy often results in paraesthesic or anaesthesic effects that affect quality of life of the patient. Patients usually experience postoperative changes in sensation, including pain, even though the intraoperative procedures were uneventful. In cases of uneventful clinical implant placement procedures, a postoperative telephonic interview, as soon as the effects of anaesthesia have dissipated, will enable the clinician to determine possible nerve injury and hence initiate management protocols. Postoperative radiography would be essential to assess whether the inferior alveolar nerve canal or mental foramen have been traversed, however it must be noted that absence of radiographic findings do not preclude nerve injury. Management protocols aim to alleviate pain, loss of normal sensation and overall discomfort following nerve related injuries, with varying degrees of success depending on the nature of injury. Hence, it is clearly identified that the imp ortance of comprehensive pre-planning mitigates the need for management of nerve related injuries. Nerve injuries in the maxilla are relatively uncommon compared to mandible. Branches of the greater palatine nerve, posterior superior alveolar nerve, and the nasopalatine nerve, which supply the gingival issues in the anterior and posterior palate and buccal mucosa of the maxilla, are inevitably damaged due to flap procedures in implant therapy. Due to the rich anastomosis between these nerves, very rarely does this damage result in neural deficit. Numerous academic studies have been attributed to implant related nerve injury of the mandibular branch of the trigeminal nerve, more importantly, the inferior alveolar nerve, mental nerve, and the lingual nerve. Interventions can be broadly classified as, a.  Non-surgical b.  Surgical, and c.  alternate treatments. a. Non-Surgical Therapy This form of therapy should be mandated as soon as signs and / or symptoms of nerve injury be suspected, whether intraoperatively or postoperatively. Corticosteriods, dexamethasone (8mg daily for 3 days) or prednisolone (1mg/kg/day up to 80mg day), in high doses have been shown to minimize neuropathies in acute nerve injuries if administered within 1 week of the injury. A non-steriodal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) could be added to the regimen or prescribed as an alternative. Ibuprofen, 800mg three times daily for 3 weeks, is a suitable NSAID. Corticosteriods and NSAIDs reduce the inflammatory response with corticosteroids having the added effect of preventing ectopic discharges from injured axons and preventing neuroma formation (Juodzbalys et al, 2011). Pain and temperature are the first sensations to resolve with other sensations taking longer (Alhassani and Alghamdi, 2010: 405; Juodzbalys et al, 2011). The use of topical applications has not been broadly researched. Capsaicin and clonidine patches along with EMLA paste (4% lignocaine) are some of the products used to treat hyperalgesia with varying success. Topical clonazepam, 0.5mg to 1.0 mg 3 times day was shown to be effective in relieving burning oral pain (Graff-Radford and Evans, 2003: 979, Fukada et al, 2012). Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), antiepileptic drugs, and muscle relaxants have been effective in treating cases with neuropathic pain and intermittent pains which exhibit an â€Å"electric shock† – like symptoms (Graff-Radford and Evans, 2003: 980). An example of a TCA is amitriptyline although other antidepressants can be used. In patients where TCAs are contraindicated, serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (Venlafaxine) can be prescribed. Gabapentin and topiramate are antiepileptic drugs which stabilize the injured nerve membrane. It must be noted that this class pharmacological agents depress the activity in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Hence patients on these therapies can expect side effects including, drowsiness, loss of memory, and somnolence. It can be expected that some patients cannot manage the side effects of these drugs and opt to live with pain or altered sensations (Renton et al, 2012; Park et al, 2010: 345). Cryotherapy is effective treatment to minimize swelling over the osteotomy site and hence minimizing secondary nerve damage due to swelling. Use of ice packs in the first 24 hours promotes post-surgical recovery and reduces nerve degeneration and neuroma formation (Juodzbalys et al, 2011). A stellate ganglion block is a treatment modality that used to treat patients experiencing chronic neuropathic pain and to relieve subjective symptoms. If performed early,1 to 2 month post nerve injury, it accelerates neurophysiological repair by blocking the sympathetic nervous system hence increasing blood flow and decreasing oedema (Fukada et al,2012;). A more recent non-surgical, non-invasive approach includes the use low level laser therapy (LLLT), also known as cold laser therapy, for inducing tissue repair. The initial concept, now available for mainstream commercial use, has been gaining interest as research with over 200 random clinical trials have been already published, 50% of which were aimed at pain relief, but it must be noted fewer studies have investigated its efficacy in the head and neck region. LLLT broadly aims to reduce inflammation and provide analgesia by blocking peripheral axonal transmission and stimulating nerve regeneration / healing. After repeated treatments with LLLT, decreased central sensitization is acheived (ThorLaser). [ABDUL PLEASE ASSIST ME WITH THAT REFERENCE FROM THORLASER]. In animal studies, LLLT has shown positive results in enhancing myelination of axons and nerve function. In the Midamba and Haanaes 1993 study, similar protocols were used on patients with long standing inferior alveolar or l ingual nerve neurosensory deficits, an average of 71,1% improvement was noticed in subjective symptoms (cited in Ozen et al, 2006: 7). The use of vitamin B12 as an adjunct with routine pharmacotherapy is thought to promote the regeneration of nerve terminals. Modalities that increase blood flow to the injured nerve also promote healing. These include near infrared therapy to increase local blood flow and adenosine triphosphate by causing vasodialation. b.Surgical Therapy Microsurgical repair includes procedures that involve internal neurolysis, external neurolysis, and removal of the neuroma. Microsurgical repair of the injured nerve carries its own risk as permanent anaesthesia is a possibility. Hence, these procedures are carried out with aid of a microscope by specialist neurosurgeons or trained maxillo-facial surgeons. Microsurgical repair of the lingual or inferior alveolar nerve has been shown to have significantly improved sensory outcomes in most patients with total recovery in a fewer patients. Zicchardi et al (2009: 300) have concluded that statistically, there were no significant differences between the microsurgical neurosensory outcomes between the inferior alveolar and lingual nerves. It has been reported that 55% to 82% of patients show improved neurosensory outcomes of microsurgical repair of the inferior alveolar nerve (Strauss et al, 2006: 1769; Bagheri et al, 2012: 1983). This wide range leads to hypothesize that other factors play a role in the outcomes of microsurgical nerve repair. Time between the nerve injury and microsurgical repair has been a topic of debate with regards to sensory outcomes. Some groups advocate early repair (6 month or earlier post-injury), and some groups finding no statistical difference in sensory outcomes between early or later repairs. However, in a retrospective cohort study undertaken by Bagheri et al, a cohort of 167 patients were evaluated post-microsurgical repair, where it was deduced that early repairs were directly related to better outcomes. Younger patients (patients less than 51 years) also yielded a more favourable outcome than older patients. Neurosensory testing will also give insight into the severity of damage and hence the outcome of microsurgical repair, if indicated. In cases where it has been clearly established that nerve damage has occurred post implant therapy, removal of the implant within 24 to 30 hours has been shown to resolve neuropathy (Renton et al, 2012). c.  Other Treatment Modalities It is clear from above that nerve injury post implant therapy has an effect on the quality of life of affected patients. Some patients even lose confidence in their treating physician / dentist / specialist as a result, and opt for alternate management strategies. Psychotherapeutic interventions, including cognitive behavioural therapy, aim to manage the resulting depression, if diagnosed. When combined with psycho-active chemotherapy, stress management techniques, and hypnosis, has been shown to be effective in managing neuropathic pain. Patients are taught to modify their behaviours according to their symptoms, psychological traits and ultimately decreasing patients’ pain-related disability (Dickenson et al, 2010: 1644). Further investigation into treatment modalities for nerve injuries, iatrogenic or otherwise, make mention of other procedures, that are beyond the topic of this discussion, but include the use of epidural injections, neuromodulation, transcutaneous electrical stimulation, spinal cord stimulation and deep brain stimulation. There are no clearly defined management protocols for the management of nerve injury post implant therapy, however, Juodzbalys et al, (2011), have constructed a management guideline that incorporates some of the treatment modalities described above (See Table 1). REFERENCES Alhassani, A., Alghamdi, A.S.T., 2010. Inferior alveolar nerve injury in implant dentistry: Diagnosis, causes, prevention, and management. Journal of Oral Implantology, 36 (5), 401 – 407, viewed 30 April 2014, (Ebsco online / Allen Press). Bagheri, S.C, Meyer, R.A, Cho, S,H, Thoppay, J, Khan, H.A, Steed, M, 2012. Microsurgical repair of the inferior alveolar nerve: Success rate and factors that adversely affect outcome. Journal of Oral Maxillofacial Surgery, 70, 1978 – 1990, viewed 30 April 2014, (online Science Direct). Dickinson, B.D, Head, A, Gitlow, S, Osbahr III, A.J, 2010. Maldynia: Pathophysiology and management of neuropathic and maladaptive pain – A report of the AMA Council on Science and Public Health. Pain Medicine, 11, 1635 – 1653, viewed 24 May 2014, (Ebsco online / Wiley Blackwell). Fukuda, K, Ichinohe, T, Kaneko, Y, 2012. Pain management for nerve injury following dental implant surgery at a Tokyo dental college hospital. International Journal of Dentistry. vol. 2012, Article ID 209474, viewed 22 April 2014, (Ebsco online / Hindawi Corporation). Graff-Radford, S.B, Evans, R.W, 2003. Lingual nerve injury. Headache, 43, 975 – 983, viewed 21 April 2014, (Ebsco online / Wiley Blackwell). Juodzbalys, G., Wang, H-L, Sbalys, G., 2011. Injury of the inferior alveolar nerve during implant placement: a literature review. Journal of Oral Maxillofacial Research , 2 (1), 1 – 20, viewed 22 April 2014, (Ebsco online). Ozen, T, Orhan, K, Gorur, I, Ozturk, A, 2006. Efficacy of low level laser therapy on neurosensory recovery after injury to the inferior alveolar nerve. Head Face Medicine, 2, 3-9, viewed 01 June 2014, (Ebsco online / BioMed Central). Park, J.H, Lee, S.H, Kim, S.T, 2010. Pharmacological management of trigeminal nerve pain after implant surgery. International Journal of Prosthodontics, 23, 342 – 346, viewed 22 April 2014, (Ebsco online, Quintessence) Renton, T., Dawood, A., Shah, A., Searson, L., Yilmaz, Z., 2012. Post-implant neuropathy of the trigeminal nerve. A case series. British Dental Journal, 212 (E17), 1 – 6, viewed 30 April 2014, (online Nature Group). Strauss, E.R, Ziccardi, V.B, Janal, M.N, 2006. Outcome assessment of inferior alveolar nerve microsurgery : a retrospective review. Journal of Oral Maxillofacial Surgery, 64, 1767 – 1770, viewed 05 May 2014, (Ebsco online/ Quintessence). Ziccardi, V.B, Riviera, L, Gomes, J, 2009. Comparison of lingual and inferior alveolar nerve microsurgery outcomes. Quintessence International, 40, 295 – 301, viewed 02 May 2014, (Ebsco online/ Quintessence). THORLASER

MATH, SCIENCE, AND PINK COLLARS: GENDER STEREOTYPING AND ITS EFFECT ON

High school and college are both important institutions in many peoples' lives. These academic institutions are seen as places where identities are forged, friendships are made, important basic lessons are learned, and ideally, plans are made regarding both near and distant futures. High school and college are toted as places where post-pubescent adolescents are supposed to find out what exactly they want to do with their lives – a period of four to eight or more years where the groundwork for the rest of your life out in the â€Å"real world† is laid out. Whether you want to be a social worker, a chemical engineer, or a teacher, high school and college are the places where you can learn about what you are interested in as well as where you can receive a basic education. High school and college are also the places where gender roles and stereotypes, especially in academics, begin to become glaringly obvious. In high school and especially in college, more of the curriculum is geared towards individual interests than in previous schooling environments. These specialized programs allow students to pursue things that they feel genuinely interested in, as well as allowing them to avoid those subjects that don't like. If someone is interested in taking an arts or a social studies class rather than an additional English class, they can usually do so without much trouble. In many cases, during the high school and college years, it is a widespread phenomenon that girls tend to lean more towards the â€Å"softer† subjects, such as English, art and social studies classes, while boys tend to lean toward science and mathematics. How do stereotypical gender stratifications affect the types of classes that members of each gender take? Do these ... ...nce courses. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 13(4), 435-466. Levine, P.B., & Zimmerman, D.J. (1995). The Benefit of additional high-school math and science classes for young men and women. Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, 13(2), 137-149. Kiefer, A.K., & Sekaquaptewa, D. . (2006). Implicit stereotypes and women’s math performance: how implicit gender-math stereotypes influence women’s susceptibility to stereotype threat. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 43(1), 825-832. Good , C., Aronson, J., & Harder, J.A. (2008). Problems in the pipeline: stereotype threat and women's achievement in high-level math courses. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 29, 17-28. Steele, J.R., & Ambady, N. (2006). â€Å"math is hard!† the effect of gender priming on women’s attitudes . Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 42, 428-436.

Risk Aversion and Question

Question 3 (5 points) Suppose your dear old Grandfather approaches you for investment advice. He knows of your great training in finance and statistics and gives the following instructions: â€Å"Obviously, I want to maximize my returns, but since my life is now quite boring, I also enjoy a good thrill. My first priority is to pick the security with the highest return. After that, pick me the most volatile investment so I can enjoy the thrills of holding risk. Suppose there are three securities (X, Y, and Z) to choose from next year, the economy will be in an expansion, normal, or recession state with probabilities 0. 0, 0. 20, and 0. 40 respectively. The returns (%) on the securities in these states are as follows: Security X {expansion = +13, normal = +9, recession = +7}; Security Y,{+1 5,+1 5,+2}; Security Z {+17,+10,+2. 5}. Which investment best fits your grandfather's needs? Your Answer Correct. Once you see the calculations, his preferences determine the obvious choice. Securi ty X. An exposure to how your choices depend on your risk preferences. Question 4 (10 points) The more idiosyncratic risk in the return of a security, the larger the risk premium investors will demand.Your Answer True False. 10. 00 Correct. You understand risk-aversion and the implied diversification by investors. 10. 00 / 10. 00 Fundamentals of risk and diversification. Question 5 (10 points) We often want to find investments that perform well when other parts of our portfolio are struggling. When considering stocks to add to the portfolio, those with a correlation closer to zero with our existing portfolio will most effectively help us diversify. Your Answer Correct. You understand relationships and their critical role in diversification. True.Again, understanding relationships and diversification. Question 6 (10 points) As a CEO you wish to maximize the productivity of your workers. You are thinking about providing your employees with smartness so they can be readily available to clients and increase sales. However, you are also concerned that your employees are Just as likely to download APS that will distract them from their work, leading them to play games and update their social networking sites rather than focus on the Job of pleasing clients. To test this you randomly select 6 employees for an experiment.You provide 3 with the new smart phone and the other 3 use their existing technology. The following chart shows their changes in sales. Based on this small sample, what is the correlation between smartened and increase in sales? [Hint: It may help to use the spreadsheet function COERCE to calculate the correlation] (Enter the answer with no more nor less than two decimal places, and leave off the % sign. For example, if your answer is 13. 97% you should enter it as 13. 97 NOT 0. 14 nor 14) {Anthony, Smartened: Yes; change in sales 120; Kirk,Smartened No; Change in Sales 60; Michael, Smartened No; Change in Sales 150; Scarlet. , Smartened Yes; Change i n Sales 130; Pete, Smartened Yes; Change in Sales 40; Angela, Smartened No; Change in Sales 60. } Answer for Question 6 You entered: Your Answer 8. 03 Correct. You know how to calculate/measure relationships. Calculation of correlation; important to finance and Just about anything else. Question 7 (10 points) Investors generally do not like to bear risk. Because of this, the price of an otherwise identical government bond relative to a corporate bond will be Your The same. Lower. Higher. Correct.You will be willing to pay less for something that you dislike relative to the alternative. Total Simple pricing of risk-aversion. Question 8 (1 5 points) Suppose your client is risk-averse but can invest in only one of the three securities, X, Y, or Z, in an uncertain world characterized as follows. Next year the economy will be in an expansion, normal, or recession state with probabilities 0. 40, 0. 40, and 0. 20, respectively. The returns (%) on the three securities in these states are as follows: Security X {expansion = +14, normal = +10, recession = +7}; Security Y {+1 1, 9, +8}; Security Z {+13, +8, +7. }. Which security can you rule out, that is, you will not advise your client to invest in it? Your Answer Inherent 0. 00 Calculate the basic statistics for all three securities and evaluate them based on risk- return trade-offs. Security Z. None of the securities. 0. 00/ 15. 00 This is a real life situation that requires you to think through a bit. Question 9 (15 points) You have Just taken over as a fund manager at a brokerage firm. Your assistant, Thomas, is briefing you on the current portfolio and states â€Å"We have too such of our portfolio in Alpha.We should probably move some of those funds into Gamma so we can achieve better diversification. † Is he right? [Hint: Feel free to use spreadsheet statistical functions. ] Here is the data on all three stocks. Assume, for convenience, that all three securities do not pay dividends. Alpha, Current Price 4 0; Current Weight 80%; Next Year's Price: Expansion 48, Normal 44, Recession 36; Beta, Current Price 27. 50; Current Weight 20%; Next Year's Price: Expansion 27. 50, Normal 26, Recession 25; Gamma, Current Price 15; Current Weight 0%; Next Year's Price: Expansion 16. 0, Normal 19. 50, Recession 12. Your Answer It depends. Yes. 15. 00 Correct. You know how to calculate relationships and to make informed portfolio management decisions. No. 15. 00/ 15. 00 A good question for figuring out portfolio composition given that we are into diversification. Question 10 (1 5 points) Suppose there are two mortgage bankers. Banker 1 has two $1,000,000 mortgages to sell. The borrowers live on opposite sides of the country and face an independent probability of default of 5%, with the banker able to salvage 40% of the Ortega value in case of default.Banker 2 also has two $1,000,000 mortgages to sell, but Banker g's borrowers live on the same street, have the same Job security and income. Put differe ntly, the fates and thus solvency of Banker g's borrowers move in lock step. They have a probability of defaulting of 5%, with the banker able to salvage 40% of the mortgage value in case of default. Both Bankers plan to sell their respective mortgages as a bundle in a mortgage-backed security (MBPS) (I. E. , as a portfolio). Which of the following is correct? Your Answer Banker 1 ‘s MBPS has a higher expected return and more risk.Banker g's MBPS has a higher expected return and more risk. Banker 1 ‘s MBPS has more risk, but the expected returns on both MBPS are the same. Banker Xi's MBPS has a higher expected return and less risk. Banker g's MBPS has more risk, but the expected returns on both MBPS are the same. Correct. You can calculate, and base decisions on, risk-return trade-offs. Banker g's MBPS has a higher expected return and less risk. A topical issue given the current crisis; requires you to both calculate and make decisions based on risk-return trade-offs.

Starbucks Delivering Customer Service

Lifetime Value For Unsatisfied, Satisfied And Highly Satisfied Customers The story of Starbucks transformation from a small independent coffee shop tucked away in a corner of Seattle’s Pike Place Market to a cultural phenomenon spanning the globe is legendary. A number of factors have been attributed to the success – one being a keen understanding of its patrons. There are multiple methods used to obtain customer information and the value derived therein. Customer lifetime value is one. Customers are assets, and their values grow and decline.Segmenting customers based on their lifetime value is a powerful way to target them because marketing mix activities can then aim at enhancing customer value. (Ho, 2006) Roughly translated, customer lifetime value is the projected profits that a customer will generate during their lifetime. We used the case data to segment Starbucks customers into three distinct categories of unsatisfied, satisfied and highly satisfied. Fortunately, the case provided some useful data to make our initial assumptions about the stream of expected revenues from each category.Exhibit 9 UnsatisfiedSatisfiedHighly Satisfied Number of Starbucks Visits/Month3. 904. 307. 20 Average Ticket Size/Visit$3. 88$4. 06$4. 42 Average Customer Life (Years)1. 104. 408. 30 The data allowed us to calculate the annual expected revenues by taking 12, the number of months in a year, times the product of each component given in Exhibit 9 for each category of customer. UnsatisfiedSatisfiedHighly Satisfied Expected Lifetime Future Revenue$ 199. 74$ 921. 78$ 3,169. 67To derive the CLV it is necessary to determine the profits. This requires taking costs against the expected future revenues. The expected costs are typically any amount incurred from attracting, selling and servicing customers. The best representative cost of servicing the customer from the given data was the gross margin from Starbucks financial statements. After all, this number reflects the true costs incurred in servicing each customer, while leaving out extraneous expenses such as depreciation and other corporate overhead that have little relation.FY 1998 FY 1999 FY 2000 FY 2001 FY 2002 Average Net Revenue1,308,700,0001,686,800,0002,177,600,0002,649,000,0003,288,900,0002,222,200,000 Gross Profit730,200,000939,200,0001,215,700,0001,536,200,0001,938,900,0001,272,040,000 Operating Profit109,200,000156,700,000212,300,000281,100,000310,000,000213,860,000 Net Income68,400,000101,700,00094,500,000181,200,000215,100,000132,180,000 Gross Profit Margin55. 80%55. 68%55. 83%57. 99%58. 95%56. 85% Operating Profit Margin8. 34%9. 29%9. 75%10. 61%9. 43%9. 48% Net Profit Margin5. 23%6. 03%4. 34%6. 84%6. 54%5. 0% The average of the five years of financial statement data was used for the margin to take against revenue. The figures below represent the CLV for each category using a discount rate of 12% to give the present value. A discount rate between 10% – 20% is typically used in these applications. Starbucks is a mature company at this stage of development and the cost of capital is likely to be toward the lower end of the spectrum. Unsatisfied Satisfied Highly Satisfied Expected Lifetime Future Revenue $ 199. 74 $ 921. 78 $ 3,169. 7 Gross Margin56. 85%56. 85%56. 85% Discount Rate 12% CLV Undiscounted $ 113. 55 $ 524. 03 $ 1,801. 94 CLV Discounted$105. 88 $405. 59 $1,137. 64 Finally, we calculated the annual CLV for each category to provide information for our upcoming problem facing Starbucks about investing in increasing staffing levels. The annual amounts were derived by annualizing the products of visits/month and average ticket size/visit. Unsatisfied Satisfied Highly Satisfied Number of Starbucks Visits/Month 3. 90 4. 0 7. 20 Average Ticket Size/Visit$3. 88 $4. 06 $4. 42 Customer Annual Value $ 103. 23 $ 119. 10 $ 217. 10 Traditional Customer Annual Value (textbook version)$209$241$440 For comparison, our group also decided to calculate the textbo ok version of CLV by taking the average retention rate of 75% derived from Exhibit 8 and inputting it into the formula used in the text. We used the same discount rate, 12%, and took that rate times the product of the number of Starbucks visits/month and average ticket size annualized.CLV = m * r/(1 + I – r) Exhibit 8 % of Starbucks’ customers who first started visiting Starbucks . . . In the past year27% 1–2 years ago 20% 2–5 years ago 30% 5 or more years ago 23% Average25% $40 Million Investment In Improving Its Customer Service Using the data provided from Exhibit 3 in the case in regards to sales data broken down for each company operated store in North America we derived the figures in the table below. DailyWeeklyMonthlyYearly Average Store Sales$2,194$15,400$66,733$800,800 Average ticket/visit$3. 85$3. 85$3. 85$3. 5 Average Customer Count5703,99017,338208,050 One assumption made was the investment in improving customer service would be restricted to North American stores (4,574) from our calculations regarding the forecasted cost of $40 million. As mentioned in the case, â€Å"the company had plans to open 525 company-operated and 225 licensed North American stores in 2003. † (MOON, 2006) Consequently, these were the figures used to determine the forecasted North American store growth in 2003 and the same growth projections were made for subsequent years.Additionally, using the customer count derived from the calculations in the previous table we projected the change in customer count by using the same retention rate of 75% calculated from Exhibit 8 to determine the amount of retained customers. This is also supported by the fact the Starbucks’ cannibalizes its existing store revenue by opening new stores in geographically clustered markets. But this is offset by the total incremental sales associated with new store concentration. That figure was then used to provide the new customers by taking (1 – 75% = 25%) the percentage times the retained customer count.Thereby, our total projected customers equaled the sum of the two and those amounts were continually projected forward. YearCustomers Retained/storeNew Customers/storeTotal Customers/storeNumber of Stores 2002208,0504,574 2003156,03839,009195,0475,324 2004146,28536,571182,8566,197 2005137,14234,286171,4287,213 2006128,57132,143160,7148,396 2007120,53530,134150,6699,772 2008113,00228,250141,25211,375 One final assumption, the growth rate in stores was halted in 2008 to reflect the effect of the recession.All of these amounts allowed the $40 million investment in customer service to be broken out per store over our projected period spanning years 2002 – 2008. Year2002200320042005200620072008 Customer retained/store156,038146,285137,142128,571120,535113,002 New customer/store39,00936,57134,28632,14330,13428,250 Total customer count /store208,050195,047182,856171,428160,714150,669141,252 Number of Stores4,5745,3246,1977,2138,3 969,77211,375 Improvement/Acquistion Cost per store$8,745$7,513$6,455$5,545$4,764$4,093$3,517As shown, the growth in stores allows for a considerable reduction in the per store cost over the projected period. The initial acquisition cost was made by simply dividing the initial $40 million cost by the number of stores in 2002. From the information provided on Page 11 Fig A – Customer Visit Frequency, we calculated the customer base for each satisfaction level. Added to this information was the data derived from the prior table to break out the forecasted revenue stream less the acquisition cost to arrive at the profits made from improving customer service. 002200320042005200620072008 Number of Customers208,050195,047182,856171,428160,714150,669141,252 Customers – Unsatisfied87,38181,92076,80072,00067,50063,28159,326 Customers – Satisfied76,97972,16767,65763,42859,46455,74852,263 Customers – Highly Satisfied43,69140,96038,40036,00033,75031,64129,663 Total R evenue per store$800,800$840,840$882,882$927,026$973,377$1,022,046$1,073,149 Acquistion/Improvement Cost for store-$7,513-$6,455-$5,545-$4,764-$4,093-$3,517 Total Revenue – AC$833,327$876,427$921,481$968,613$1,017,953$1,069,632To increase the profitability based on the CLV data, the maximum bang for the buck is gained by increasing the customer level from satisfied to highly satisfied. Making this switch, Starbucks not only will see an increase in average ticket size from $4. 06 to $4. 42, but the frequency is also increased from 4. 3 to 7. 2 visits per month. All gains yield an additional $98 in incremental gross profit per every customer moved up in satisfaction. Additionally, customer life increases from 4. 4 years to 8. 3 years.As shown in the table below, it makes more sense to pursue after switching satisfied customers to highly satisfied customers as the NPV is far greater than the alternative. Using the NPV from the table and improvement cost for each store we can cal culate the minimum number of customers that we need to switch in 2003 per store. The minimum number of customers to be switched in 2003 = Improvement cost / NPV of satisfied to highly satisfied. = $7,513/$497 = 16 customers/store = 16 * 5,324 stores = 85,184 total customersCustomer LTV/yearChange in revenue by moving up in customer satisfaction levelAvg Customer LifeNet Present Value Unsatisfied$103 Satisfied$119$164. 4 yrs$51. 86 Highly satisfied$217$988. 3 yrs$497. 31 As Starbucks expands and builds more stores, improvement cost per store that is needed is reduced. This, in turn, has a direct effect in reducing the number of customers it needs to switch up one level. Qualitative assessment of Starbucks’ challenges Expectancy-Value ModelKey Attributes (Exhibit 10)Customer Ranking (Exhibit 10)Weights (Exhibit 11)Customer ranking (Exhibit 11)Combined ProbabilityRanking of Importance Treated as a Valuable Customer0. 75free cups after certain number of visits0. 190. 14251 Friend ly Staff0. 73Friendlier, more attentive staff0. 190. 13872 Appropriate Prices0. 65Reduce Prices0. 110. 07153 Fast service0. 65Faster, more efficient service0. 10. 0654 Knowledgeable Staff0. 39More knowledgable staff0. 040. 01565 Selection of merchandise0. 5Better Quality/Variety of Products0. 090. 00456 There is a direct relationship between customer satisfaction and number of visits and revenue which eventually leads to higher profits, Starbucks’ should raise the customer satisfaction levels of its current customer base by making them visit stores more frequently. By using key customer attributes from Exhibit 10 and the consumer weights which was given in Exhibit 11, we can use the expectancy value model to see what are the perceived values to the customer.We can then rank the attributes that consumers would value the most. The expectancy value model shows that faster service is not the highest in perceived value to consumers. There are others that rank higher. Specifically, Starbucks should focus on treating the customer as a valued consumer by rewarding the consumer with free cups of certain coffees after so many purchases. This would surely build more loyalty to the their brand, especially among both the newer and older customers.Starbucks can achieve this by doing one or more of the following: †¢Prices and Promotions – Since Starbucks’ typical customer profile is evolving, the company should look in to running promotions such as discounted prices or a free drink after so many number of visits which could generate additional revenue and possibly increase the average ticket size and customer life for both unsatisfied and satisfied customer level as well as build loyalty among newer and older customers. Improve value to customers with friendly staff – Knowledgeable staff who offer attentive service by greeting and knowing regular customers as well a remembering their drinks would help to improve the value proposition for Star bucks’. This will also try to bridge the gap between Starbucks’ and various other independent specialty coffee shops. †¢Cleanliness – Starbucks’s should ensure that the store is clean at all times (i. e. , restrooms, countertops, trash cans, seating areas, etc. as store cleanliness was ranked as key attributes in creating customer satisfaction (Exhibit 10) †¢Convenience – next on the list is convenience. Starbucks’ could continue to offer customized drinks and further promote sales of its SVC cards to help customers pay for their concoction at their convenience. †¢Improve the customer snapshot measuring techniques to strike a balance in measuring customer satisfaction level. †¢Improve the quality and variety of the coffee Explore additional opportunities to earn peripheral revenues in selling pastries, sandwiches, lunch menus or even liquor. †¢Study in making store atmosphere more conducive to ethnically concentrated geographical locations. WORKS CITED Ho, T. -H. (2006). Incorporating Satisfaction into Customer Value Analysis: Optimal Investment in Lifetime Value. Marketing Science , 260-277. MOON, Y. (2006). Starbucks: Delivering Customer Service. Harvard Business Review .

The Varied Size of the Roman Legions

The Varied Size of the Roman Legions Even in the course of a military campaign, the size of a Roman legion varied because, unlike the case of the Persian Immortals, there wasnt always someone waiting in the wings to take over when a legionary (​miles legionarius) was slain, taken prisoner or incapacitated in battle. Roman legions varied over time not only in size but in number. In an article estimating population size in ancient Rome, Lorne H. Ward says that up to at least the time of the Second Punic War, a maximum of around 10% of the population would be mobilized in the case of a national emergency, which he says would be about 10,000 men or about two legions. Ward comments that in the early, close-to-annual border skirmishes, only the number of men in half a conventional legion might be deployed. Early Composition of the Roman Legions The earliest Roman army consisted of a general levy which was raised from the aristocratic landowners .... based on the three tribes, each of which provided 1000 infantry.... Each of the three corps of 1000 comprised ten groups or centuries, corresponding to the ten curiae of each tribe.- Cary and Scullard The Roman armies (exercitus) were composed mainly of Roman legions from the time of the legendary reforms of King Servius Tullius [also see Mommsen], according to ancient historians Cary and Scullard. The name for the legions comes from the word for the levy (legio from a Latin verb for to choose [legere]) that was made on the basis of wealth, in the new tribes Tullius is also supposed to have created. Each legion was to have 60 centuries of infantry. A century is literally 100 (elsewhere, you see a century in the context of 100 years), so the legion would have originally had 6000 infantrymen. There were also auxiliaries, cavalry, and non-combatant hangers-on. In the time of the kings, there may have been 6 centuries of cavalry (equites) or Tullius may have increased the number of equestrian centuries from 6 to 18, which were divided into 60 units called turmae* (turma in the singular).Increasing Number of LegionsWhen the Roman Republic started, with two consuls as leaders, each cons ul had command over two legions. These were numbered I-IV. The number of men, organization and selection methods changed over time. The tenth (X) was Julius Caesars famous legion. It was also named Legio X Equestris. Later, when it was combined with soldiers from other legions, it became Legio X Gemina. By the time of the first Roman emperor, Augustus, there were already 28 legions, most of which were commanded by a senatorial legate. During the Imperial period, there was a core of 30 legions, according to military historian Adrian Goldsworthy. Republican Period Roman ancient historians Livy and Sallust mention that the Senate set the size of the Roman legion each year during the Republic, based on the situation and available men. According to 21st-century Roman military historian and former National Guard officer Jonathan Roth, two ancient historians of Rome, Polybius (a Hellenistic Greek) and Livy (from the Augustan era), describe two sizes for Roman legions of the Republican period. One size is for the standard Republican legion and the other, a special one for emergencies. The size of the standard legion was 4000 infantry and 200 cavalry. The size of the emergency legion was 5000 and 300. The historians admit of exceptions with legion size going as low as 3000 and as high as 6000, with cavalry ranging from 200-400. The tribunes in Rome, after administering the oath, fix for each legion a day and place at which the men are to present themselves without arms and then dismiss them. When they come to the rendezvous, they choose the youngest and poorest to form the velites; the next to them are made hastati; those in the prime of life principes; and the oldest of all triarii, these being the names among the Romans of the four classes in each legion distinct in age and equipment. They divide them so that the senior men known as triarii number six hundred, the principes twelve hundred, the hastati twelve hundred, the rest, consisting of the youngest, being velites. If the legion consists of more than four thousand men, they divide accordingly, except as regards the triarii, the number of whom is always the same.- Polybius VI.21 Imperial Period In the imperial legion, beginning with Augustus, the organization is thought to have been: 10 squads (contubernia - a tent group of generally 8 men) a century, each commanded by a centurion 80 men [note that the size of a century had diverged from its original, literal meaning of 100]6 centuries a cohort 480 men10 cohorts a legion 4800 men. Roth says the Historia Augusta, an unreliable historical source from the late 4th century A.D., may be right in its figure of 5000 for imperial legion size, which works if you add the 200 cavalry figure to the product above of 4800 men. There is some evidence that in the first century the size of the first cohort was doubled: The question of the size of the legion is complicated by the indications that, at some point subsequent to the Augustan reform, the organization of the legion was altered by the introduction of a doubled first cohort.... The principal evidence for this reform comes from Pseudo-Hyginus and Vegetius, but in addition there are inscriptions listing discharged soldiers by cohort, which indicate that about twice as many men were discharged from the first cohort than from the others. The archaeological evidence is ambiguous... at most legionary camps the pattern of barracks suggests that the first cohort was of the same size as the other nine cohorts.- Roth * M. Alexander Speidel (Roman Army Pay Scales, by M. Alexander Speidel; The Journal of Roman Studies Vol. 82, (1992), pp. 87-106.) says the term turma was only used for the auxiliaries: Clua was a member of a squadron (turma) - a subdivision known only in the auxilia- led by a certain Albius Pudens. Although Clua named his unit simply by the colloquial expression equites Raetorum, we can be certain a cohors Raetorum equitata was meant, perhaps cohors VII Raetorum equitata, which is attested at Vindonissa during the mid-first century. The Imperial Army Beyond the Legions Complicating questions of the size of the Roman legion were the inclusion of men other than the fighters in the numbers given for the centuries. There were large numbers of slaves and civilian non-combatants (lixae), some armed, others not. Another complication is the likelihood of a double-sized first cohort beginning during the Principate. In addition to the legionaries, there were also auxiliaries who were mainly non-citizens, and a navy. Sources Roman Population, Territory, Tribe, City, and Army Size from the Republics Founding to the Veientane War, 509 B.C.-400 B.C., by Lorne H. Ward;  The American Journal of Philology, Vol. 111, No. 1 (Spring, 1990), pp. 5-39A History of Rome, by M. Cary and H.H. Scullard; New York, 1975.The Size and Organization  of the Roman Imperial Legion, by Jonathan Roth;  Historia: Zeitschrift fà ¼r Alte Geschichte,  Vol. 43, No. 3 (3rd Qtr., 1994), pp. 346-362How Rome Fell, by Adrian Goldsworthy; Yale University Press, 2009.

Henry Fayol Theory of Management Essay Essay Example

Henry Fayol Theory of Management Essay Essay Example Henry Fayol Theory of Management Essay Essay Henry Fayol Theory of Management Essay Essay DEFINITION OF PUBLIC SPHERE THEORYIn rhetoric. the topographic points were citizens exchange thoughts. information. attitude and sentiments.The construct of Habermas populace sphere is a metaphorical term used to depict the practical infinite where people can interact through the universe broad web. for case is non really a web. internet is non a infinite. and so with the populace sphere. It’s the practical infinite where the citizens of a state exchange thoughts and discourse issues in order to make understanding about ‘matters of general interest’ ( Jurgen. Habermas 1997:105 ) History OF JURGEN HABERMAS Jurgen Habermas was born in Dusseldorf. Garmany in 1929. he had served in the Hilter young person and had been sent to them. The western forepart during the concluding months of the war. Habermas entryway onto the rational scence began in 1950s with an influential review of Martin Heideggers doctrine. He studied doctrine at universities of Gottingen and Bonn. which he followed with surveies in doctrine and sociology at the institute of societal research under Maz Horkheimer and Theoder Adono. In the sixtiess and 70s he mark at the university of Heidelberg and Frankfurt am chief. He so accepted a directorship at the Max Pianck establishment in stamberg in 1971. In 1980 he won prize and two old ages subsequently he took a chair at the university of Frankfurt. staying at that place until his retirement in 1994. Habermas on the populace sphere. he means foremost at al a dominant of our societal life in which something coming out in which public sentiment can be formed. The right is guaranteed to all citizen. A place of the populace sphere comes in being in every conversation in which private persons assemble to organize a public organic structure. Citizens behave as a public organic structure when they confer in an unrestricted manner †¦ i. e. with the warrant of freedom of assembly and association and the freedom to show and print their opinions†¦ about affairs of general involvement. The modern-day populaces sphere is characterized harmonizing to Habermas. By the weathering of its critical functions and capacities. In the past promotion was used to capable people or the present political determinations to the populace. Today the populace sphere is recruited for the usage of concealed policies by involvement groups. For Habermas. the rules of the populace sphere are weakening in the twentieth century. The populace is no longer made out of multitudes of persons but of organized people that institutionally exercising their influence on the populace sphere and argument. Habermas introduces the constructs of â€Å"communicative power† as the cardinal normative resources for countering the norn-free steering media of money and administrative power. Associating ‘communication’ with ‘power’ already suggests a mix of the normative resources of communicative action with the impersonal force of power. Is such a conceptual mix stable? As the beginning for democratic legitimation of the usage of province power. communicative power is a cardinal impression in Habermas’s democratic theory. Although. in the medium of in restricted communication†¦ new job state of affairs can be perceived more sensitively. discourses aimed at accomplishing self-understanding can be conducted more widely and expressively. corporate individualities and need readings can be articulated with fewer irresistible impulses so is the instance in procedurally regulated populace sphere. HOW HABERMAS ANALYSIS PUBLIC COMMUNICATION Habermas analysis public communicating in mediaeval times at that place existed no separation or differentiation between private and public sphere. dure to the category pyramid of the feudal system. This system for Habermas positioned greater power at every degree and to this twenty-four hours conventions sing the swayer persisted. with political authorization retained by the highest degree. Rulers saw the province and non as representatives of the province – intending that they represent their power to the people and non for the people. Harmonizing to Habermas. by the late eighteenth century feudal establishments were eventually vanishing along with church’s regulation. doing manner to public power which was given liberty. Rulers become public entities and professionalism bore the first marks of the businessperson which become independent in relation to the authorities. Representational promotion was pushed over by a public force that formed around national and territorial sentiment and single fighting with public power found themselves outside its corporate power. The term â€Å"public† did non mention to the representation of a adult male with authorization. but instead became the legitimate power of exerting power. The populace sphere. harmonizing to Habermas. was the concluding phase of these developments. HOW IMPORTANT HARBERMAS THEORYSolutions can be raised and tested for possible expostulations without the force per unit area to set ‘opinion’ instantly in pattern. Uncoupling communicated sentiments from concrete practical duties tends to hold an intellectualizing consequence. Furthermore. a great trade of political communicating that does non instantly name for political action is surely important to the political discourse a robust. democratic society. Free domain plays an indispensable function in the political procedure as a concerted hunt for truth. We should non be misled into believing that the populace sphere amounts to nil more than a public sphere in which people talk about political relations. Nor does the populace sphere have simply instrumental value for conveying ‘relevant information’ into political procedure. The populace sphere is a normative construct that plays a cardinal function in the procedure that culminates in legitimate political determinations. Harmonizing to Habermas. institutionalized democratic legislation and judicial reappraisal entirely are deficient to confabulate democratic legitimacy. Entirely with legislative determinations. judicial and administrative determination are merely ensured legitimacy through the normative grounds generated by an un-subverted populace sphere. Otherwise. political determinations are dedicated by the power struggles within the political system and non by citizens themselves who. as the references of the jurisprudence. are the 1s affected. Without robust political populace sphere. there is small cheque on the administrative power that dictates the flow of communicating and power within the political system and the people. Therefore. the populace sphere theory is more fatuously an sphere for speaking political relations. It is the primary site for observing jobs. for bring forthing extremist democratic infuses. and for the deliberation of citizens. all of which are necessary for democratic legitimacy. In the undermentioned. I distinguish the of import normative facets of the informal populace sphere theory. 1. Its communicative and organisational construction 2. The capacities required to run into its deliberate function within a deliberative political relations and 3. The qualified out comes or effects generated by the populace sphere. This last facet will take into the treatment of important function of communicative power.

Public administration - nyc bike rules policy Term Paper

Public administration - nyc bike rules policy - Term Paper Example bicycling coalition, has moved to formulate the policy that can be implemented to reduce the number of accidents due to bike riders not following bike lane rules in NYC. Whereas there has been a significant level of focus put on the pedestrians’ involvement in the motor vehicle accidents, there has been little attention accorded to the pedestrians who become victims of cycling-related accidents.According to the NYC traffic rules and regulations section 4-12 (p), in the Department of Transportation Traffic Rules, the policy demands for compliance with the directions of the officers in charge of law enforcement All the initiatives set in action are coordinated and tracked through the bicycle programs within the transportation department, and aided by other agencies, among which is the parking and recreation department, the Department of city planning, the New York State Department of Transportation, and the New York City Economic Development Corporation. Following the occurrence of cyclist-related accidents, various patterns of injuries can be observed, including the injuries of the limbs, the abdomen and chest and head injuries. The failure of drivers to yield the correct way has been cited as a major factor contributing towards frequent bicycle crashes. In this respect, therefore, important measures can be put in place, where modifications and improvements can be made on the engineering solutions and the roadway designs. The move to design intersections for the purpose of encouraging correct roadway behaviors is important for both the cyclists and pedestrians in the dramatic reduction of accidents in the city. The failure of drivers to yield the correct way has been cited as a major factor contributing towards frequent bicycle crashes. In this respect, therefore, important measures can be put in place, where modifications and improvements can be made on the engineering solutions and the roadway designs. The NYC administration has been on the forefront in

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov - Research Paper Example Born in a provincial and remote city on the shores of the Sea of Azov, Chekhov experienced philistine poverty under the supervision of a suppressed mother and tyrant and religious zealot father who was a grocer and son of a serf.Chekhov’s grandfather bought freedom for himself and his three sons in 1841 and taught himself reading and writing. Chekhov’s early life is shadowed by his father’s suppression and strict behavior. Frenzied father forced his sons to sing in evening church choirs. He not only tormented Chekhov and his brothers with late-night rehearsals but also asked them to play their roles as â€Å"master’s eyes and ears† in his shop. Antonsha was soon discovered to be more reliable than his brothers; therefore, father relied on him frequently. However, this compulsion proved to be productive for Chekhov and the world in the form of stories like; â€Å"The Sacred Night,† â€Å"The Sacred Mountains,† â€Å"The Student,† â€Å"Perhaps,† â€Å"and The Archbishop.†Chekhov would have never aware of the religious services and people with simple souls without these exercises. (Bunin 4). Chekhov's Education and Profession Chekhov attended a Greek school in Taganrog (1867-68 and then Taganrog grammar school (1868-79).Hid father’s bankruptcy forced the family to migrate to Moscow. Tutoring made Chekhov independent enough to support himself and spend some time alone in his hometown. In 1879, Chekhov got enrolled in Moscow University Medical School. He supported himself and his family by publishing hundreds of comic stories. Subjects of Chekhov’s stories were nonsensical social situations, marital issues, absurd encounters between husbands, wives, lovers, and mistresses, and whimsical young women. Though Chekhov had much knowledge of these issues, he was shy even after his marriage (Liukkonen). Chekhov worked as a physician in most of his life as adult. He gave credit to his medic al profession for his power of observation and sense of direction in literary work (Loehlin viii).He often stated that, â€Å"Medicine is my lawful wife, and literature is my mistress† (qtd. in Loehlin viii). Writing and Achievements Nenunzhaya pobeda (1882) was Chekhov’s first novel, written in Hungarian context, this novel parodied famous Hungarian writer Mor Jokai’s novels. Jokai was also ridiculed for his ideological optimism during that time period. Chekhov established himself as a famous writer by 1886. The Shooting Party, Chekhov’s second full-length novel was translated into English in 1926.Its characters and atmosphere was also used by Agatha Christie’s mystery novel, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd in 1926(Liukkonen). Chekhov’s first story book was a success which transformed him into a full-time writer. His denial to join ranks of social critics annoyed liberal and radical intelligentsia. Their wrath appeared in the form of criticizin g Chekhov for dealing ad raising social and moral issues and avoiding answers. However, Chekhov won the support of

Coming of Age in Mississippi Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Coming of Age in Mississippi Paper - Essay Example Since this kind of racism is a big part of the American experience for African-Americans in the past, it is important to know about it. The book is set during the 1960s as well, when the civil rights movement was in full swing and it was often very dangerous for African-Americans. That makes this book an important read to anyone who wants to know about this time period in America. During her childhood, Anne was named Essie and she grew up in the rural part of Mississippi in Centreville. Her family was poor and the white people they worked for usually did not treat them nicely. In addition she had family problems, as her father was abusive and then abandoned them. Her mother settles down with a new man, but has more children and times are still difficult. From a young age, Anne had to work after school to make sure her family had enough money to eat. At the beginning of the second section, she becomes aware of the horrible things about race in a new way when she hears of a fourteen-ye ar-old black boy being killed. Throughout high school she becomes more and more worried about things like this, being almost obsessed with killings and KKK attacks on other African-Americans. She goes to college after getting a scholarship to play basketball and while she is there she decides to take part in the NAACP. Her family is upset about this because white people threaten Anne and her family because of it. After college Anne becomes a member of something called CORE and goes to try and encourage African-Americans to take a more active part in their civil rights movement. This part of the book really shows the tension between Anne and many of the other characters, as even among the civil rights activists she is seen as sometimes too serious. The book ends with Anne growing unhappy with how the movement is going because nobody's life is really being improved. Coming of Age in Mississippi is a powerful book that really had a big effect on my way of thinking. Although I have grow n up in the American South in Tennessee, Georgia, and Texas and am not white, I have never experienced anything close to the kind of racism that Anne Moody talked about in her autobiography. It was really an eye-opener to me to read from someone who experienced about how bad things were in those days. After reading about her experiences as a high school girl and especially when she was involved in CORE and trying to get African-Americans to vote in Canton, Mississippi, I now look at the slight racism that still exists in America in a new light. It makes me want to take this book and show it to people who just take their lives for granted in the USA. Even though the book is sometimes very upsetting, I did find myself enjoying it a lot. The author is a very good writer and knowing that she really went through everything in the book made it very easy to get into and forget what time it was. This is hard to do. The things I liked the most about the book was the way that Moody did not sh y away from using strong language if that was what the people it represented would have used. For instance, when Anne finds out about the murder of fourteen-year-old Emmet Till at the beginning of chapter ten, the boys she is with swear quite a lot because they're angry with her for not paying more attention to her own community. This also makes us see Anne's character as a more real person, because she is not trying to pretend that she