The effect of occupational fraud and abuse on the company

Occupational fraud and abuse is defined as â€Å"The use of one’s occupation for personal enrichment through the deliberate misuse or misapplication of the employing organization’s resources or assets† (2012 Report To Nations On Occupation Fraud And Abuse, 2012). Occupational fraud entails deceiving employing organization to obtain resources or assets for personal gain and abuse involves misapplication of the resources provided by the employer. Occupational fraud is typically for three types:1. Corruption 2. Asset Misappropriation 3. Fraudulent Statement.Amount these three categories, asset misappropriation, and corruption are the most common types of fraud and abuse. In 2012 total number of median loss of occupational fraud and abuses of all the reported cases was $140,000, and one-fifth of the cases involved losses of least $1 million (2012 Report To Nations On Occupation Fraud And Abuse, 2012).On an average United States organizations incurred 6% of revenue lo ss every year due to occupational fraud and abuse (Scott, A, 2002). Victim organizations not only bear the revenue loss but these types of frauds can also damage its goodwill in the community as well. Large organizations with multimillion turnovers can bear these losses but can have a devastating effect on small organizations. U.S. governmental oversight of accounting fraud and abuse and its effect on the company In the past many companies used the flexibly in accounting framework to modify its financial statements to present the perfect picture to the investors.Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) finally than introduced some detailed changes in the accounting framework. In addition, it introduced processes to enhance outside auditing, made recommendation to strengthen the audit committee, and encouraged cultural change. SEC’s Division of Corporate Finance is responsible to review critically the financial statements of the targeted companies to ensure that it is new and ex isting accounting rules are being followed and to minimize fraud and abuse using fraudulent statements. Additionally, SEC’s Division of Enforcement is responsible to bring civil  cases and penalties against the companies that attempts to conduct fraud or violets the security acts. Because of this oversight by SEC and government, companies are providing detail disclosures, more transparent financial statements to the investors and users of financial statements.Potential corruption schemes to be aware of in the companyCorruption means misusing the entrusted power or authority against the official duty to obtain benefits. Corruption schemes can be broken down into four categories: 1. Bribery- This entails offering, giving, and receiving anything of value to influence the decision. Official bribery involves providing or offering anything of value to influence the decision of government agent or employee. Commercial bribery deals with providing something of value to influence a business decision rather than decision of government employee or agent. Generally, there are two types of schemes involve in bribery: †¢Kickback Schemes: These schemes are possible because of collusion between employee of the victim company and outside party, typically vendors. In this, vendor submits either inflation or fraudulent invoices to the victim company, and the employee in the victim company makes sure that the payment is made on those invoices.After the payment, employee gets his or her share of payment that is known as kickback. In some cases, employee receives payment just by diverting excessive business to vendor. 2. Illegal Gratuities- In this corruption scheme, something of value is given to the employee to reward the decision. This is different from kickback schemes because benefits are provided as a reward for the decision made not to influence the decision. 3. Economic Extortion- This scheme is different from bribery and illegal gratuities, as in this case em ployee of the victim company demands something of value from outside party, and refusal to pay by outside party may causes loss of business.4. Conflicts of Interest – This occurs when employee has an undisclosed economic or personal interest in a transaction that makes the employee not to think in the best interest of the victim company that ultimately adversely affects the company. Recommendation of types of accounting evidence and methods of gathering such evidence to support the financial status review It is of great importance that every fraud examiner or forensic accountant to have good knowledge of the rules of the court, legal  system, and evidence for successful competition of the investigation. In order to be accepted as evidence, it must be relevant, material, and competent. â€Å"Relevant evidence means evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it w ould be without the evidence† (â€Å"Rule 401: Relevant Evidence- TN Court†, 2013).Materiality requires that evidence must prove a point and competency entails that evidence must be sufficient, reliable, and relevant to the case (WELLS, 2011). There are two types of evidence can be used to support the financial status review: 1. Primary evidence: This type of evidence is regarded as the best evidence because of its authenticity, credibility, and existence to prove a point and can value to a case. In addition, it provides direct evidence on the topic under review. These include original documents, accounting records, account statements, interviews, hand-written statements, etc. 2. Secondary evidence: This type of evidence is typically used and acceptable when the primary evidence is not available or destroyed.Every effort should be made to introduce and use primary evidence for better and credible representation of facts. These can include photocopies of the original doc uments, testimony of witness, etc. While doing full financial status review we can obtain information using various sources, such as emails, operating systems, database, accounting records, interviews with different personnel, bank statements, etc. We can also deploy audit techniques such as testing controls, analytical procedures, using substantive procedures, computer assisted audit techniques to obtain sufficient and reliable evidence to support financial review.

Functionalism: Sociology and Social Order

The functionalist model of how society works has many limitations and few strengths. ’’ Explain and also asses this view. By Sadhana sanba In the study of sociology, functionalist perspective is a view of society that focuses on the way various parts of society have functions and live in a ‘consensus’ that maintain the stability and social order of the whole. Functionalist model of how society works tends to focus to be an organized, stable, well integrated system , in which most members agree on basic values which is as called’ ‘value consensus’.However, functionalist theory alongside the other school of theories such as marrxism (conflict theory) and interactionism is criticized for having many limitsaitons of explaining thew social phenomenon of its working. Herbert spencer an early functionalist and later emile Durkheim compares the working of society to the organic analogy and the way a biological organisms works. Any organisms has a structure- that is , a set of inter-related components, such as head, limbs, a heart lungs and so on.Each of these parts has functions – that is a positive and need consequence for the whole system. In th3ee same way, spencer argued , a society has structure. Its inter-related parts are family, religion, values and norms, social elements and so on. Ideally,hence, each of these componenets also has a function that contributes to the overall stability of social system. However, the analogy has many . limmits. it is difficult for example to compare the way organisms grow to the way society grows and change. Is therea social equivalent to the DNA the genetic program present in every species?Does a society really have a series of complementary institution together to make the whole function smoothly to the mutual benefit of all? Although, Modern-structural-functionalism does not press the analogy between a society and an organism and has subsequently been much refined and modifi ed, however, the functionalist view of how society works still has few strength only Talcott Parson(1951) argues that any society has four functional needs or pre-requisites that need to be met for it to survive: these are adaptation ,goal attainment, integration and latency (AGIL).However , his model of society’s working has been havily criticized for being bland abd fruitless by the way arsons went about examining society. Parsons also tried to show how consensus based on shared values is essential to social order. He also concluded that the stratified system is crucial in mainting consensus in society which, in the other way, conflict theory of karl marx describes as ‘inequality’.Parsons and Durkheim evidently saw social inequality ‘stratification’ as a necessary and universal feature of society and that inequality could be mitigated by the prevalence of social mobility completely disregarding the fact that social inquality in a society is a key s ource of social conflict and dominancy. Also, the functional view of assuming the existence of a meritocratic society i. e, a society where everyone has a equal chance og achieving high social status and reward is not contextual.This kind of role and effects only works if many other features of society are ignored and even distorted.. here, Melvin Tumin (1953) argues that how and why are some social position assumed to be functionally more important than others ? Who decided and how ? The concept of ‘functional satisfication is value laden and deciding which postions are functionally more important than others cannot be done objectively for example the payment that the top football stars in the Uk and the earnings of the prime minister in the same country. The players ears six times mored than the political figure .Hence, society always cannot be induced by the material rewards and functional theory maybe dysfunctional and damaging it may generate conflict and antagonism betwe en social strata rather than furthering social integration to which Weberain view explains the dynamics of stratification in modern society with existence of conflicts between owners and workers creating white collar and blue collar workers. Functional view of creating social order an important model of society ,has been criticized for its limitation on the fact that it serves only the selfish ambitions of the rich and powerful.As Durkhein believes t hat society is in its essence its moral codes . The rules and order, the degree competitiveness between people and governmental conducts help to cement and build social order he called them the mechanical and organic principles of solidarity . The description of ‘mechanical solidarity and ‘organic solidarity’ provides insides about the basic way of forming social order in society which in face Max Weber argues is more applicable and impliable only in the industrial complex societies and is criticized by Marx for disre garding the poor , economically weak and ‘proletariat’ as in his words, society.Hence, the phenomenon of ‘collective conscience’ and ‘value consensus’ the functionalist theory implies in one way or other inherently conservative that is focused only on a particular social theme. It does not consider that order and conflict exist side by side and as Marx says is achieved through the domination by the few over the many, and that domination is possible because it reflects the economic circumstances of the groups which is constantly unstable as it is based on equality and continuing conflict of interest between those who own the means of production and who don’t.In the same way interactionist view of how society works emphasizes that members of societies are not just constrained in their everyday lives by moral codes or by economic relationships but that each individual are actors in each situation they negotiate or confront to which is also simplifiedly said ‘situational interaction’ Hence, functionlist perspective is limited with logical problem it embraces,if something in society is recurrent, functionlist say that it must be meeting a need.Functionalism lacks any real power to explain social change or changes. It leans heavily towards describing society in a stable condition and seems to emphasizes the status- quo: the media reflect all views, women are domestically oriented, marriages are happy, all individualist are ladened by values and norms that they internalize confining into it to create social order and so on.Functionalist risk the temptation of dismissing disruptive changes as dysfunctional, even if those changes are necessary, inevitable and beneficial in the long run However functionalist theory perspective is useful in explaining the functions or consequences, that a given element has in society which contribute the stability of the social system as a whole and hence, therefore, insights hum an beings of their existence and role in a society. Posted byingsamaat9:06 AM 1 comment: 1. BuzzerOctober 9, 2011 9:31 AM It really helped me a lot. ReplyDelete Add comment

Technology and Operations management

Introduction Operations management involves careful planning and organizing of activities and processes to be carried out in an organization. In managing the operations, an organization has to control and assess the use of the available resources. Technology has been employed to help manage the operations hence achieve quality improvements in organizations. Technology use requires special knowledge and expertise for a success. Currently technology has been used to enhance management processes in many institutions. To benefit from technology use qualified technical resources are required (Belout, 2004). All the projects in an organization have to be managed well for a success.Project Management Project management is process by which resources involved in a project are carefully and systematically organized to help achieve accomplish a specific task. Project management therefore involves clear definition of the goals and objectives to be achieved using the available resources. Project management is done in phases. The phases start from information gathering, developing and implementing plans, assessments and maintenance (Free management Library, 2009).To successfully determine the project scope and plan, an organization requires special knowledge and expertise. When right skills and expertise are used, user’s satisfaction will be met or exceeded. Project management therefore requires process improves to meet customer satisfaction and business process reengineering to achieve quality. Through business process, reengineering customer satisfaction can be met and even exceeded (Stanleigh, 2009).Technology and operations management Project management processes vary depending with the type of project and the goals to be achieved. According to Stanleigh (2009), projects are unique hence when managing projects each requires specific processes or resources to be used. Operations management involves efficiency hence quality production. To improve on operations an or ganization has to employ management practices in many aspects. Quality and project management has to be carried through planning well and employing qualified staff.Proper planning leads to proper usage of resources hence avoid wastage. Improved efficiency enhances improvements in quality productions. Business operations can be reengineered and technology use adopted. Technology use for instance automation of processes has lead to elimination of some production processes by eliminating some processes, effective resource consumption and efficient production (Jackson & Klobas, 2008).Conclusion Management is very fundamental in all organizations. Management should be done in all operations carried out in an organization. Management of operations will ensure efficiency in resource usage hence quality productions. To achieve a continuous improvement, innovation and technology use has to be encouraged. Technology management has benefited many organizations. Through technology use, producti on processes have been reduced. Businesses reengineering has led to elimination of non-productive processes (Jackson & Klobas, 2008). Technology use hence leads to effective resource use and production processes.Reference: Belout, A. (2004). Int. J. of Project Management, 22(1), 1—11. Viewed on 29th May2009. Available at Factors influencing project success: the impact of human resource managementFree Management Library. (2009). Project Management. Viewed on 29th May 2009.Available at http://managementhelp.org/plan_dec/project/project.htmJackson, P. & Klobas, J. (2008). Int. J. of Project Management, 26(4), 329-337. Viewedon 29th May 2009. Available at Building knowledge in projects: A practical application of social constructivism to information systems developmentStanleigh, M. (2009). Process Management vs. Project Management. Viewed on 29thMay 2009. Available at http://www.bia.ca/articles/pj–pm-vs-pjm.htm Technology and Operations management Introduction Operations management involves careful planning and organizing of activities and processes to be carried out in an organization. In managing the operations, an organization has to control and assess the use of the available resources. Technology has been employed to help manage the operations hence achieve quality improvements in organizations. Technology use requires special knowledge and expertise for a success. Currently technology has been used to enhance management processes in many institutions. To benefit from technology use qualified technical resources are required (Belout, 2004). All the projects in an organization have to be managed well for a success.Project Management Project management is process by which resources involved in a project are carefully and systematically organized to help achieve accomplish a specific task. Project management therefore involves clear definition of the goals and objectives to be achieved using the available resources. Project management is done in phases. The phases start from information gathering, developing and implementing plans, assessments and maintenance (Free management Library, 2009).To successfully determine the project scope and plan, an organization requires special knowledge and expertise. When right skills and expertise are used, user’s satisfaction will be met or exceeded. Project management therefore requires process improves to meet customer satisfaction and business process reengineering to achieve quality. Through business process, reengineering customer satisfaction can be met and even exceeded (Stanleigh, 2009).Technology and operations management Project management processes vary depending with the type of project and the goals to be achieved. According to Stanleigh (2009), projects are unique hence when managing projects each requires specific processes or resources to be used. Operations management involves efficiency hence quality production. To improve on operations an or ganization has to employ management practices in many aspects. Quality and project management has to be carried through planning well and employing qualified staff.Proper planning leads to proper usage of resources hence avoid wastage. Improved efficiency enhances improvements in quality productions. Business operations can be reengineered and technology use adopted. Technology use for instance automation of processes has lead to elimination of some production processes by eliminating some processes, effective resource consumption and efficient production (Jackson & Klobas, 2008).Conclusion Management is very fundamental in all organizations. Management should be done in all operations carried out in an organization. Management of operations will ensure efficiency in resource usage hence quality productions. To achieve a continuous improvement, innovation and technology use has to be encouraged. Technology management has benefited many organizations. Through technology use, producti on processes have been reduced. Businesses reengineering has led to elimination of non-productive processes (Jackson & Klobas, 2008). Technology use hence leads to effective resource use and production processes.Reference: Belout, A. (2004). Int. J. of Project Management, 22(1), 1—11. Viewed on 29th May2009. Available at Factors influencing project success: the impact of human resource managementFree Management Library. (2009). Project Management. Viewed on 29th May 2009.Available at http://managementhelp.org/plan_dec/project/project.htmJackson, P. & Klobas, J. (2008). Int. J. of Project Management, 26(4), 329-337. Viewedon 29th May 2009. Available at Building knowledge in projects: A practical application of social constructivism to information systems developmentStanleigh, M. (2009). Process Management vs. Project Management. Viewed on 29thMay 2009. Available at http://www.bia.ca/articles/pj–pm-vs-pjm.htm

Marketing Strategy for Business ''Express Star'' Essay

Marketing Strategy for Business ''Express Star'' - Essay Example The company is looking for ways to use the brand value of MNA and gain trust held within the market it serves (Andereck, 2005). At present the company is setting up a new business arm completely different from the present business units. It has decided to open up a new recruiting agency by the name Star Employment Service. Other than that there are plans to build new revenue streams, which will either complement the existing media products or will lead to new business opportunities away from the traditional business model (Abratt et al. 2011). The present research paper endeavors to produce a rough sketch of the marketing strategy that Express & Star can follow. The current strategy of Express & Star and its applicability, benefits are discussed in the present business environment. Then a detailed external and internal analysis is produced to reflect the best strategic option available to Express & Star. The choice of the most suitable strategy is explained with justification, and th en followed up with subsequent implementation. It is finished off with the inclusion of the control systems to keep the changes within the desired level. Integration of the marketing problem-solving modes and marketing management support system There are more than 5 different types of marketing management models in the market. Some of the marketing management models have core statistical application and controlling techniques. There are vast differences in the marketing management models like in Marketing Information System, the main idea is to support the marketing management team with critical marketing information processed and filtered by applying statistical techniques. There is another type of model which is called the Marketing Decision Support System (Wierenga and Bruggen, 1997). The marketing decision support system helps to derive different strategic decisions using statistical concepts combined with strategic concepts and ideas. Again there is another different set of too l called the Marketing Management Support System. The marketing management support system helps to achieve a different set of benefits which are completely different than the other marketing management techniques discussed above. The different marketing management techniques have unique set of benefits and applications which distinguished them from each other. Although one thing that must be noted is that all the different kinds of marketing management techniques have more or less the same origin. The origin of the different marketing concepts lies in the marketing problem solving modes, which is short formed as the ORAC framework (Wierenga and Bruggen, 1997). The ORAC framework includes the optimizing option, reasoning option, analogizing option and the creating option. It is important that there is proper correlation between the ORAC framework and the marketing management support system. The following diagram gives an indication of the correlation between the marketing management support system and the ORAC framework Source: (Wierenga and Bruggen, 1997) The diagram indicates the relationship between the MPMS and the MMSS. Optimizing leads to development of the marketing model estimation, reasoning leads to MKIS, MDSS, MNN and MKBS. Analogizing leads to the development of MCBR and MNN. Creating leads to the d

Agricultural Climate Adaptation Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Agricultural Climate Adaptation Plan - Essay Example A climate change adaptation plan needs a set of responses that will highly improve rice production despite the changing climatic conditions rather than just maintaining the existing level of production. In rice production, adaptation to climate change is quite complex, and it is essential for it to entail a range of social, economic and environmental factors. It must also entail technological and financial constituents that are creative. This may include: improved awareness and application of indigenous knowledge and managing strategies. Climate change and global warming have negative impacts on rice production. Typhoons are a current occurrence in Luzon Island cause damages to the crops which in turn minimizes crop yields, cause destruction to forests; forests are responsible for maintaining water table balance, cause an increase in the cost of the rice transportation and affects access to water. Rainfall shortages and the long dry spells in the area make farmers rely more on irrigation that is quite expensive and cause rice paddies to have very little water because of high vapor transpiration. Floods in the area make the islands water sources to be saline which in turn results to degradation of cultivated land by making the soil saline and damages crops and cause yields to decrease. It is imperative for adaptation strategies to be employed. These include Biophysical, economic and socio-cultural adaptation strategies (Chen et al. 28). Adaptation process involves strategic, incremental and transformational adaptatio n. According to the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report, transformational adaptation results to changing of the basic features of the system while responding to climate change and its impacts Incremental adaptation is considered to be developing of activities and behaviors that are present downsize the losses or ameliorate the benefits that are as a result of natural climate shift and extreme events. One of the adaptation responses would be a

Environmental Microbiology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Environmental Microbiology - Assignment Example The reason as to why they are considered together is for human convenience and not as a reflection of their biological, evolutionary or ordered relationships. It is also important to note that algae are also known to be phototropic. Lenntech.com (1) asserts that almost all algae are eukaryotes and the exact nature of their chloroplasts which contains DNA is different in different lines of algae. Cyanobacteria are a classification of organisms traditionally incorporated among the algae though they have a prokaryotic cell structure and they conduct photosynthesis directly within the cytoplasm and not in specialized organs. Expertscolumn.com (1) categorically explains the significance of algae. Economically, Phytoplankton from algae is a source of food to many aquatic living things such as fish and also provides oxygen to their surrounding environment. The desmids help in analysis of water contamination or pollution. Another example is the brown algae. The brown algae contain alginic acid which is a source of lginites. Algae have negative effects as much as they have many uses. A typical scenario is that when a huge increase of algae occurs, a ‘red tide’ occurs. This is characterized by the ocean changing its color to red in certain areas as a result of the pigment coming from the algae. In conclusion, more research should be done to discover more areas through which algae can be utilized as opposed to their negative effects. This can be attributed to the fact that algae will always exist within our society and the more ways of utilizing them in our lives, the better. Expertcolumn.com. â€Å"The Significance of Algae in Economy and Environment as well as Its Harmful Effect†.7 Jan. 2011. Web.27 Oct. 2011

Public art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Public art - Essay Example According to Baca (89), modernity has it that art is no longer representation of abstract issues, rather, there are deep meanings embedded in them. Symbolism has to be taken into account when making any form of art, and especially public art (Baca, 89). In this art, the meaning is extension of the fight for equality and no segregation. Rosa Park was a real symbol of war against segregation, and by honoring her with a sculpture; the artists were keen on making her efforts resurface. Half a century ago, Rosa Park could stand against any form of inequality, segregation and injustices. She was a humble, courageous and quite a humble woman and in the circles of civil rights movement, she still represents their fight. She is placed right in the middle of a public area, and this means that she will revoke memories of civil rights movements in the past. This public art has a representation with the site. The site is public and therefore the aim intended by the artists is public. The bus station where she is placed can attract all people of different races, colors, social status and ethnicity. She is placed in such a place to show that what she fought for was for the benefits of all and not just one race, one generation or one social class. The more than $60,000 bronze statue represents not only issues of the past, but realities of the

Corporate Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 4

Corporate Finance - Essay Example The price of Woolworths Limited company share can be calculated by formula: P= D [1] (r-g) where D [1] is the next dividend= 81 (from expected growth using current growth rate of 14.51%). P is the stock= 81* 9.91-0.1451 giving as price of share at 793.39.Substituting the figures into the formula; Therefore, this is to mean that Woolworth limited company paid as compensation 6.3 to the market demand in exchange owning the assets, which have the risks of ownership. It is a widely used formula by most companies for assurance purpose, to those who buy shares of those particular companies for risk taking. A keen and a thoughtful look on the Woolworth limited company annual report is suggestive that they have massive risks. By natural law of commerce, the riskier the business or the company the higher the cost of debt. The company uses various bonds, and loans and other form of debts that in turn give insights the rate of being paid by company to use debt financing. The cost of debt is usually calculated by a simple multiplication of the credits before tax rate by one minus marginal tax. So in this segment borrowing of Woolworth will be considered in coming up with the cost of the debt of the company. Borrowing here are stated at amortized cost with the difference between the cost and redemption value recognized in a collected income over a period of borrowing. Consolidated cash flow statement of Woolworth limited company the amortization of borrowing costs was 3491.6 (Woolworth Limited Annual Report 2013, pg. 162)while the marginal tax for the company was in the range of 30 % (Woolworth Limited Annual Report 2013, pg. 48). Substituting into the formula; This are the overall cost for financing a company like Woolworth limited. The mode of financing usually plays a pivotal role in determining the cost of capital. Financing can be done in two ways to a company or a combination of both. The two modes

INTERNSHIP PORTFOLIO Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

INTERNSHIP PORTFOLIO - Thesis Example There is a high level of turnover for subordinate positions that is caused by the frustrations that come from a non-horizontal structure with more job autonomy. Academic learning provided insight into the psychological mechanisms that drive employee behaviour and needs related to the work environment. This formal learning helped me to understand why some people in the workplace are more motivated and why others tend to be less productive. Gambrel & Cianci (2003) identify that employees have a need for affiliation and recognition from peers and from supervisors. Once these have been satisfied and there is a more team-based environment, employees can build on their self-confidence, and feel as though they are having a useful impact on their job environment as an element of power and control (Gambrel & Cianci). Personal notations taken throughout the course of the internship at ATF Bank indicated that there was not a unified and harmonious culture of belonging at this organisation with no structured (formal) or informal policies about group working and creating a culture of quality and interpersonal communication development. ... Many of the managers at the organisation were expatriate leaders send from France, the United States, and also Egypt because of their specialized knowledge in human resources and overall global finance. Many people from Kazakhstan had difficulty working with these cultures due to their social and management principles. For example, academic learning provided knowledge on Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions framework that gives a very basic breakdown of different cultural values across the world. Blodgett, Bakir & Rose (2008) offers that collectivists have a strong value for group welfare and expect group loyalty as part of a larger family unit. In opposite accord, individualists value self-expression and want to work independently from others (Blodgett, et al.). Because of these differences between the foreign managers and those in the host country, coupled with no organisational structure that allowed for innovation and recognition, developing team-based systems and gaining peer s upport was next to impossible. A self-assessment profile, the Myer-Briggs inventory, gave me a strong inclination toward extroversion above all other principles on the scoring instrument. Churchill & Bayne (1998) describe extroversion as the ability to work well with others and able to focus with comfort on the external social world; a more interactive person. This fits well with my self-report on personality as I have always been a person that takes a visible leadership position when in social and work groups. This is why the need to negotiate conflict and understand cultural principles for foreign workers was so critical, since these skills are necessary for success in business and in a leadership role and

Marketing plan for topps tiles for 2009 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Marketing plan for topps tiles for 2009 - Essay Example The additional spending it had made on a national level TV advertisement campaign coupled with the inflationary trends have resulted in the increased gross expenditure of 43 percent of the total revenue, while it was only 41 percent the last year. On the basic earning reported per share, the results showed a reduction of about 16.5 percent (Topps tile , 2007). But initiatives are being taken to position Topps tiles as the most favoured brand through different customer relationships initiatives, advertisements and also variety of social outreach programmes. The marketing plan for the Topp tiles have been prepared after a very careful analysis of current market position and anticipated growth for the current year. The plans would include all the possible stakeholders in the business of tiles. They are the customers, builders association in UK and also other business players targeting similar set of customer needs. The primary approach is to create a wide range of product choices that would make the customer with excellent choices and hence the purchase could be completed for the choice expected by them. The broad distribution of buyers are shown in the figure 1. Innovative strategies are adopted for the effective marketing of Topp tiles across U K and Holland. The emphasis would be on strengthening the existing customer base at the current sales locations and hence concentrate more to stabilize the leadership position in the tile segment. In one of the important plans proposed, the effort is given to motivate a buyer to have more purchases in the period even though the market studies have shown the prevailing tendency among the customers as to reduce the buying choices to the most minimum levels. Hence, it is to be planned that every prospective customer need to be motivated to have a higher volume of choices, which could

How occupational status, intergenerational mobility and social network Essay

How occupational status, intergenerational mobility and social network affects individual's status attainment - Essay Example There are different factors which are responsible for status attainment. Some of them are occupational status, intergenerational mobility and social network. Depending on the positioning of the individual with respect to these factors, the status attainment of an individual is determined. This paper studies some of the likely effects of these three factors on the individual's attainment of his status. In studying the concept of social attainment, human capital theory, theories on discrimination and the status attainment models have been used. According to Dr.Pretty Lam (2000) Human capital theory explains the differences in social and economic positions on the basis of factors like, education, work experience and on the job training. Besides the human capital, the concepts of social capital and cultural capital will also be used. "The educational and occupational status attainment process links socio-economic status and mental ability to educational and occupational attainment by means of intervening social psychological variables, including academic performance, the influence of significant others and educational and occupational aspirations." (William H. Sewell, Archibald O. Haller, George W. Ohlendorf 1970) Many analysts even today will substantiate the statement of Blau & Duncan (1967) that "occupational status summarizes much of what matters in the system of inequality". While this fully applies to modern societies, it is even more true for historically observed societies. Occupational position has been the most prominent indicator of social inequality in the past, even more than it is today. Thus by subscribing to the social inequality, the status attainment is more than influenced by an individual's occupational standing and its relevance to his societal status. The occupational position this assumes an important position in the status attainment of an individual. 3.0 Intergenerational Mobility and Status Attainment: For quite some time, the influence of family background on the adult children's economic outcomes has been the focus of research economists. Most of the studies are based on the model developed by Becker and Tomes (1986). In the model, the altruism of the parents is assumed to be of great importance and the parents care about their children's welfare. Parents through heredity like generic traits, cognitive ability and through family environments like family connections pass on endowments to their children. As per Anh Nguyen and Haile Getinet (2003) in addition, parents can influence the economic outcomes of their children by purportedly investing in their children human capital. Because of market imperfections, some parents cannot invest in their children's education at the optimum points, which leads to persistence across generations in economic status, and the poor remains poor. Thus intergenerational mobility of income and earnings has a clear impact on the status attainment of an individual. Apart from the income and earnings, educational attainment and occupational linkage across generatio

Reasons I Choose Belmont University Essay Example for Free

Reasons I Choose Belmont University Essay One of the universities that have caught my attention was the Belmont University. Coming from a Christian Community, I felt that the university can help me develop into a more mature Christian. The schools mission is to provide an to its education that is academically challenging, that promotes the empowerment of both men and women. Their diverse backgrounds help hone the students to become engaged with current issues, and in the improvement of the society, through their compassion, courage, discipline, and faith in God. Since the university is centered on the needs of its students, the university provided an environment that helped its students grow spiritually and intellectually. With the help of their peers and professors, the students are able to help themselves become the best in their chosen field. In addition to this, the university offers a wide variety of courses that cater to each individuals interest and needs. Admission to the university definitely allows an individual to grow and mature to become a better person, both intellectually and spiritually. Other factors are also taken into great consideration, such as their social and physical needs. The diversity and artistic favor that this university has can help in the building of strong foundations for the future of its students. Belmont does not only offer a conducive environment suitable for learning, but also caters to an environment contributory to spiritual growth. In addition to this, the universitys location is beyond par. Since Nashville is known to be a â€Å"Music City†, the university can help hone its students to become excellent in their field by providing world class performances. After acquiring a degree form Belmont, anyone can easily find jobs just outside of the university, with the wide array of job offerings in Nashville. Church-related activities may still be practiced, through the number of churches near the vicinity. The Belmont University is definitely the answer to all our prayers.

Many Words Can Be Used To Describe Martin Luther Religion Essay

Many Words Can Be Used To Describe Martin Luther Religion Essay Many words can be used to describe Martin Luther. As a reformer in the fifteen hundreds he was confident, bold, and controversial. It seems odd that the formation of his faith took place in one of the most pious endeavors one can undertake, the life of a monk. The man who passionately spoke against the pope, the Turks, and the Jews got his beginnings in the most humble of lifestyles. In the year 1505, Martin was walking back to Erfurt from a trip to Mansfeld in the middle of a storm. A lightning bolt struck him and he cried to St. Anne for help exclaiming I will become a monk.  [1]  this vow led to drastic changes in Luthers life. Luthers father, Hans, was very proud of his sons masters degree and was anticipating great things from his son1, and Martins vow to join the monastic life upset his father. Despite his fathers urgings, Luther took his vow seriously (believing it to be the will of God) and became a monk. Martin Luther entered the Augustinian Order in the Black Cloister of Erfurt. The life of a monk in the middle ages was not an easy one. The monks took many vows, the three key vows being the vows of obedience, poverty, and chastity.  [2]  The vow of chastity refers to sexual purity and abstinence. The vow of poverty led monks to dispose of all personal property and live simple lives. The vow of obedience bound monks to their superiors in the order and the church. The life of the monk involved an intense routine of worship services, prayers, confessions, and other religious acts. Luther was not brought peace by these acts as many other monks in his order were, but was instead tortured by the monastic life. Luther said I hoped I might find peace of conscience with fasts, prayer, and the vigils with which I miserably afflicted my body, but the more I sweated it out like this, the lest peace and tranquility I knew.1 He took the monastic rituals extremely seriously, leading him to rep eat prayers and other rituals over and over again if he felt he had omitted Luther once commented Along with many others, I myself have experienced how peaceful and quiet Satan is inclined to be during ones early years as a monk.  [3]  Luther was known to spend many nights in terror over spiritual matters, which further burdened his already stressful life. Although the life and rituals of a monk brought Luther no comfort, he was diligent in his performance of his duties. Luther said If anyone could have gained heaven as a monk, then I would indeed have been among them.5 An important occurrence in Luthers journey as a monk took place on Cantate Sunday in 1507. Martin Luther had the opportunity to perform his first mass. In attendance were his Father, Hans, and several of his spiritual mentors. He was worried about his ability to celebrate the mass perfectly. Luther said of the preface to the mass (where Luther addresses God the Father through the Son); At these words I was utterly stupefied and terror-struck. I thought to myself, With what tongue shall I address such Majesty. . .Who am I that I should lift up my eyes . . ? At his nod the earth trembles. . . And shall I, a miserable pygmy, say I want this, I ask for that? For I am dust and ashes and I am speaking to the living, eternal and true God! Luther was in terror as he stood unworthy before the one true God. This event had profound effects on Luther and his celebration of the mass. Luther seemed throughout his career as a monk to be constantly preoccupied with his unworthiness. This is one of t he many issues that haunted Luthers nights during his time at the monastery. After the mass, Luthers father rebuked him and reminded him of his disapproval by reciting the fourth commandment. Luthers first mass was a traumatic experience in his life. Another issue that haunted Luther was the practice of confession. Luther spent much of his time as a monk confessing his sins. Much the same as prayers and canonical hours, Luther was haunted with the thought of imperfect performance of confession. Luther confessed his sins over and over again to his superior and confessor, Johann Staupitz, who would come to have a great influence on Luthers faith walk. Staupitz eventually became frustrated with Luthers confessing and reconfessing and told him You want to be without sin, but you dont have any real sins anyway. Christ is the forgiveness of awful sins, like the murder of ones parents, public vices, blasphemy, adultery and the like. These are real sinsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ you must not inflate your halting, artificial sins out of proportion! Luther was reported to have spent more than one occasion in six hour plus confession sessions with Staupitz. Staupitz and Luther had many discussions over the course of Luthers confessing that helped shap e the faith of the young monk. They discussed grace and salvation through the blood of Christ alone, concepts that would appear strongly in Luthers reformation Staupitz made many attempts to convince Luther to become a doctor and was eventually forced to order Luther under his vow of obedience to become a doctor. After Luther received his doctorate in October of 1512, he engaged in deep biblical study in preparation for his lectures. He spent much of his time writing letters regarding theological matters. During this time his theology began to develop concerning the righteousness of God. Previously he had been frustrated with this concept, saying I felt, with the most disturbed conscience imaginable, that I was a sinner before God. I did not love, indeed I hated the righteous God who punishes sinners and secretly (if not blasphemously and certainly with great grumbling) I was angry with God, and said As if needed it is not enough that miserable sinners, eternally lost through eternal sin, are crushed by every kind of calamity by the law of the ten commandments, without having God add pain to pain by the gospel and also by the gospels threat ening us with his righteousness and wrath! Luthers concept of the righteousness of God shifted from righteousness being something that is achieved by humans to it being a gift bestowed upon mankind by God. This was a critical transformation in Luthers thinking that led to many other changes. Luther became increasingly unhappy with the practices of the church, particularly the practice of indulgences. Luthers frustration with indulgences led to the posting of the ninety five theses on the door of the church in Wittenberg. Thus began the protestant reformation. Throughout the Reformation, Luther put out many documents regarding many areas of the life of a Christian. Many of these documents addressed the monastic life that Luther struggled so much with in his younger years. Monastic vows were addressed in many of Luthers important documents including To The Christian Nobility, and On The Freedom of A Christian. Luther even condemned the monastic lifestyle as a blasphemous humanly invented service in the Smalcald articles, one of the items in the book of Concord. Luthers strongest condemnation against monasticism came in his 1521 document The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows. This document was brought about by argument over the issue of clerical celibacy taking place at churches in Magdeburg, Meissen, and Wittenberg. Luther wrote Theses on Vows addressing this subject. He was urged to write The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows. when it came to his attention that many monks were leaving of considering leaving their monaster ies. This book would serve as a guide or manual for a monk had left or was considering leaving. The concept of counsels is essential to understand when approaching this work of Luther. Luther shows that the teachings of the New Testament are split up into precepts and counsels. Precepts are the teachings that God has commanded us to follow. Counsels are teachings that may be beneficial to the life of a believer, but are not commanded. One of the problems with the situation regarding monastic vows is that supporters of vows see the commands of Christ as counsels rather than precepts. Luther holds the view that Christs teachings are precepts and following anything contrary to or even beyond the teachings of Christ is sin. This argument is of great importance to the issue of monastic vows. The first section of the book is entitled Vows do not rest on the Word of God, they run counter to the Word of God. Luther starts out his document by presenting monastic vows as a danger. The fact that monastic vows are not commanded in the Bible was Luthers first major issues with the practice. Luther says that the father of monks, St. Anthony did not intend for Christians to pursue a monastic lifestyle, the lifestyle was what he felt led to live. Only after St. Anthonys life did the monastic lifestyle become a vow. Luther also speaks to the authority of Paul in this first section of the work. He says that Paul had unique authority compared to most church fathers because his authority came directly from Christ. After making those two points, Luther says Let this principle be laid down: Whatever is commanded which is contrary to or beyond Christ is condemned. He goes on to say that this principle exists even if it is in an attempt to follow the saints of church fathers. Although Luth er does not believe in the divine authority of the saints or church fathers, he uses the saints in his work which would certainly appeal to a monk debating whether or not to leave the monastery. Luther clarifies the purpose of the gospel as he moves through this section. He feels as if part of the idea behind monastic vows comes from a flawed view of the gospel. The gospel is simply the promises of God declaring the benefits offered to man, according to Luther. The gospel, which frees us from death, sin and the power of the devil, should not lead one into a monastic life. This section also states that everything taught by Christ is necessary to be obeyed. The teachings of Christ are clearly laid out for us as necessary when he refers to them as commandments. Since the teachings of Christ are commandments, Luther says that choosing to follow something else such as monastic vows is Godlessness, blasphemy, sacrilege. Luther is extremely clear that virginity is never commanded in the bible. Moreover, it is not a counsel, biblically is not recommended for our benefit. Luther rebukes the church presenting virginity as something needed for salvation. Luther also says that monastic vows are improper because they cause monks to forsake their Christian duty, a concept very important to Luther. The first section of The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows uses scripture and logic to show that monastic vows are not mandated or suggested in scripture, and in some cases can run contrary to scripture. The next section of the work is titled Vows Against Faith. Luther goes to lengths in this section to show that monastic vows are sins. Luther claims that those who take monastic vows are not placing their faith in Christ but in other things. Luther puts it well when he says They assess all the things of God by the limitations of their own human judgment, and found their faith not on the rock of faith but on the sands and swamps of their own unbelief. The belief in vows and therefore works is unnecessary in light of salvation through the blood of Christ. This concept goes to show the impact that Luthers time at the monastery had in his theology. The long nights he spent contemplating salvation and the long discussions he had with Staupitz through the confessional wall concerning grace were making their appearance in his theology. Luther cites scripture throughout this work, leaning especially on Romans on the topic of justification. Over the course of his work during the reformation, Luther was relentless in his defense of the gospel, especially when any party threatened salvation by faith alone. When Tetzel was at the height of his popularity, Luther was quickly on the defense, writing and speaking passionately against the sale of indulgences. This was also the case with monastic vows. Luther spent page after page giving passage after passage explaining that salvation was a gift of God, not achievable by works. To assist in making his point against monastic vows, he brings up that the apostle Paul said Everything that is not of faith is sin. Luther is very clear that monastic vows violate faith. The next section in The judgement of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows is entitled Vows Are Against Evangelical Freedom Luther takes time to define Christian Liberty, which he did in an in depth manner approximately one year prior to this work in On the Freedom of a Christian. Part of the freedom given to us by Gods gift of salvation, according to Luther, is that we do not have to place out trust in works. Monastic vows represent a direct violation of this concept in Luthers eyes. Luther An important part of The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows comes when Luther speaks of the two ways to carry out works of the law. According to Luther, there are times when works of the law are carried out by our own will and effort. Works of the law are often done by the work of Christ in the life of a Christian. Luther says that vows can work in much the same way. It is possible for Christ to work in the life of a Christian leading him or her to make a vow in the spirit of freedom. In the case of Monastic vows however, Christ is not leading towards a vow. Christ cannot be behind a monastic vow because monastic vows attempt to further bind monks to the law (which as Luther stated earlier is not the law of God, but includes extra regulations added by humans). All Christians should have the freedom of the gospel, not the bondage of the law. Luther says that a vow complying with evangelical freedom would include a way to relinquish the vow. This is sometimes necessary accordin g to Luther who says If love should demand that the vow be broken and you were to hold fast to your vow you would be sinning. Luther began his document by destroying the authority of monastic vows. When he comes to his fourth section, Vows Are Contrary To The Commandments of God, he has also shown monastic vows as enemies of Christian freedom and of the faith itself. Luther begins the section by taking issue with the denominations of monks; They are no longer called Christians, or children of God, but rather Benedictines, Dominicans, Franciscans, Augustinians. In fulfilling the title of this section, Luther shows monastic vows being in opposition to both the first and second commandments. Monks, by elevating themselves above other members of the body in title and behavior, set themselves as the head of the church rather than Christ. This is a clear violation of the first commandment. Luther also presents monks as having an inflated view of themselves, believing themselves to be more pious, more worshipful, and more holy. Luther sees this as a violation of the second commandment. He says that by their action s and their view of themselves they blaspheme against the name of God. The practice of monastic vows is in contrast to the first table of the Ten Commandments, dealing with humans relations to God. Luther also accuses monastic vows of being in violation of the second table of the Ten Commandments, the table dealing with the reactions between men. The nature of the monastic lifestyle, seclusion and piety is a violation against ones Christian duty to his or her neighbor, or as Luther puts is a violation against love. Luther has now taken his views farther than before, accusing monastic vows and monks themselves of directly violating several of the Ten Commandments. The fifth and final section of Luthers work, Monasticism is Contrary to common sense and reason, showcases his God given abilities. Luther was well versed in logic and rhetoric from his schooling. This final section uses logic as much as scripture to put to rest the issue of monastic vows. Luther takes very basic biblical concepts and uses logic to show how monastic vows are contrary to the concepts. After this logical attack, Luther finishes the work with a Final Assault. Luther takes the ideas expressed over the lengthy work and condenses them into a conclusion. He shows each of the three vows that monks take to be unnecessary, unworthy, and sinful. The indecisive monk reading The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows no longer has any questions as to the worthiness of monastic vows. Martin Luther wrote The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows to help struggling monks, of which he was one, in their decision to leave their order. Many of the issues that Luther addresses in this work are issues that confronted him during his time at the monastery. Luther was haunted by the need to perform works to gain salvation in his time at the monastery. He was also haunted by the need to perform the practices and rituals necessary of a monk. He addresses both of these issues at length in his document. His time at the monastery makes this piece a very personal work for Martin Luther. Luther underwent a transformation during his time at the monastery that led to his reformation theology. After his theological transformation, he applied his theology to the issue of monastic vows that haunted him for so long. Martin Luther was profoundly affected by monasticism, which showed in the theology of the reformation.

Assessing The Conflict And Consensus Approaches

Assessing The Conflict And Consensus Approaches Consensus is a concept of society in which the absence of conflict is seen as the equilibrium state of society based on a general or widespread agreement among all members of a particular society. The consensus ideology proposes that society consists of social institutions which are all dependent of each other and are vital for maintaining social order. The consensus theory highlights harmony, integration and stability. Functionalists argue that the main institutional groupings play a tremendous role in determining the culture of society. These, as example include economic, politics, family and kinship, as well as media. Economic growth plays a role as well because it affects the way certain societies think and how they run their everyday lives. The functionalist perspective is rooted in the work of Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) and gives the view of society as an organism in which each part functions in a certain way to ensure the stability of the whole. Though society is something which exists on its own it has a structure of parts that maintains it. The parts are institutions like the family or the church, which are useful or functional in some way, but if the institution was no longer functional it would disappear and be replaced like a passing fashion. People involved in these institutions may not be aware of their function, but because the institution exists certain effects follow. Institutions are long lasting so therefore functional. The foundations of functionalism explain how social inequality is necessary to motivate the more talented members of society to train to fulfil the demands of social positions which are functionally more important than others. They list the rank order of positions as religion, government, wealth and technical knowledge and point out that only a limited number of people have the talents which can be turned into the skills needed for these positions. This takes training which means social and financial sacrifices are made, so in order to encourage people to undergo this training, and to endure the demands of the future position itself, they are given certain privileges. This may include access to scarce resources such as property, power and prestige. This access to scarce resources produces stratification but also inequality in the amount of resources allocated to different people. This inequality is both functional and inevitable. Functionalist theories state that education meets the needs of the industrial society as well as the cultural society and has the important role of socialising the individual to fit into, and continue, the social system. Individuals are born into a society that already has an identity of its own and education has the function of passing on shared values and skills. Where functionalism uses consensus, shared norms and values and concepts such as order, harmony, cohesion and integration, Marxism takes a different view. Marx argues that that economic inequality is at the heart of all societies. Conflict is a disagreement or clash between opposing ideas, principles, or people-this can be a covert or overt conflict. The conflict perspective is based on many conflict approaches. In spite of their inconsequential differences, they all have a model of society as a whole and they collectively share the view of the structural approach. Additionally, all perspectives, in some form or another, share the notion that sociological groups have different interests. As a result, they propose that conflicts are always probable since that when different groups advocate their own individual interests, it tends to cause disagreement and in certain situations, resentment. Arguably, the two most prestigious standpoints within the approach are the Marxist and feminist conflict theories. A major difference between functionalism and the conflict perspective is that the conflict approach accentuates the existence of competi ng groups whilst functionalism views groups as being fully cooperative. Conflict theorists emphasise conflict and contradiction whereas consensus theorists maintain that societys institutions work within functional unity. The conflict paradigm (particular Marxists), conversely, holds that society has an infrastructure and a superstructure that work independently. The ideology considers value as being the mechanisms for keeping society together. Conflict theorists reject the assertion and claim that values are imposed by the powerful groups in society. Conflict theory, proposes that conflict, struggle and change are more prevailing within society. Marxism sees human history as a class struggle, with oppressor and oppressed wrestling for control. The dominant class controls and owns the means of production or wealth generation, and the working class in therefore controlled by them. Welfare is a result of the strength of working-class resistance to exploitation, a concession the dominant class must make to maintain social order. Programmes such as welfare and pensions help to legitimise the capitalist system with the working class. Welfare then becomes another vehicle for power and control by the dominant class. Its purpose is to placate rather than empower the poor, and seeks to reduce the individual to a state of dependency on those in power. According to Marxist theory, society has unfolded in a series of ever-progressing and better structures, as defined by their economic development and modes of production, from the primitive communal to slave-based to feudal to capitalist. The final stage was communism. This was predicted to be the best possible means of governance and structure of society, one that would erase inequalities and allow individuals to achieve their full potential and value within their community. Marxism viewed the individual as part of a collective organism, society. Inequalities in society resulted from distinction in classes, not particular individual decisions or behaviours. Conflict was between these classes, and rooted in struggle for power. Marxism assumes the individual can and will contribute to the greater community as much as they are able, and will be motivated by the common good. When society has evolved or elevated itself to this place, inequalities will be dealt with appropriately The problem with broad application of Marxist theory is that individuals do take advantage. As Wes Sharrock 1977 puts it: The conflict view is founded upon the assumption that society may provide extraordinarily good lives for some usually only possible because the great majority are oppressed and degraded. Difference of interest are therefore as important to society as agreements upon riles and values, and most societies are so organised that they not only provide greater benefits for some than for others Social conflict differs from consensus because it is interested in the way unenequal distribution of advantage in a society structures behaviour and is interested in the conflict inherent in such a society. The Marxist perspective concentrates on the differences between groups and concepts such as control, conflict, power, domination and exploitation. This is the theory based on the work of Karl Marx (1818-1833) Marx felt that social class was the main form of inequality and saw only two significant social classes. He maintained that it was capitalist industrialisation that led to this two class society, the bourgeoisie who owned the means of production (e.g. factories) and the proletariat who became the wage labourers (working in the factories). What the bourgeoisie, therefore, produces, above all, is its own grave diggers. Its fall and the victory of the proletariat are equally inevitable. (Marx and Engels. 1848) Is social stratification socially constructed. Throughout the ages there has always been evidence in stratification and how it is socially moulded into almost everything. It can be seen In families, the workforce, in politics and international from one country to another, male against female, ages from young to the old and from the rich to the poor. It is even seen in the animal kingdom and it appears to be a natural instinctive survival mechanism but one that is unfair. It seems to happen when one or more people having a belief in something which in turn over powers the next therefore creating a layer with a low medium and high for example the class system of the poor and the bourgeoisie It depends on the individuals definition of social stratification however one may understand it as a form of hierarchy which is displayed almost in everything and everywhere we are only free when we are first born from then on in we belong to a class starting within the family union through to a much bigger ranking within local to international society. FOUR SECTIONS : RACE GENDER SEX AND AGE There are two reports which have been commissioned by the government to try and find some evidence of variations in health and illness. These are The Black Report (1980) chaired by Sir Douglas Black and The Independent Inquiry into Inequalities in Health by Sir Donald Acheson (1998). Firstly, in The Black Report inequalities in human health take a number of distinctive forms. Most attention is given to differences in health as measured over the years between the social (or more strictly occupational) classes. When comparing rates of mortality among men and women in each of the 5 classes. Taking the 2 extremes as a point of comparison it can be seen that for both men and women the risk of death before retirement is two-and-a-half times as great in class 5 (unskilled manua1 workers and their wives), as it is in class 1 (professional men and their wives). One of the most distinctive features of human health in the advanced societies is the gap in life expectancy between men and women. This phenomenon carries important implications for all spheres of social policy but especially health, since old age is a time when demand for health care is at its greatest and the dominant pattern of premature male mortality has added the exacerbating problem of isolation to the situation of elderly women who frequently survive their partners by many years. The imbalance in the ratio of males to females in old age is the cumulative product of health inequalities between the sexes during the whole lifetime. These inequalities are found in every occupational class demonstrating that gender and class exert highly significant and different influences on the quality and duration of life in modern society. Rates of age-specific mortality vary considerably between the regions which make up the United Kingdom. Using mortality as an indicator of health the healthiest part of Britain appears to be the southern belt (below a line drawn across the country from the Wash to the Bristol Channel). This part of the country has not always exhibited the low rates of mortality that are found there today. In the middle of the nineteenth century, the South East of England recorded comparatively high rates of death, while other regions like Wales and the far North had a rather healthier profile. The fluctuation in the distribution of mortality over the years suggests that social (including industrial and occupational) as much as natural factors must be at work in creating the pattern of regional health inequalities. One of the most important dimensions of inequality in contemporary Britain is race. Immigrants to this country from the so-called new Commonwealth, whose ethnic identity is clearly visible in the colour of their skin, are known to experience greater difficulty in finding work and adequate housing (Smith, 1976). Given, for example, these social and economic disabilities it is to be expected that they might also record rather high than average rates of mortality and morbidity. Class differences in mortality are a constant feature of the entire human lifetime. They are found at birth, during the first year of life, in childhood, adolescence and in adult life. In general they are more marked the start of life and in early adulthood. Average life expectancy provides a useful summary of the cumulative impact of these advantages and disadvantages throughout life. A child born to professional parents, if he or she is not socially mobile, can expect to spend over 5 years more as a living person than a child born to an unskilled manual household. At birth and during the first month of life the risk of death in class 5 is double the risk in class 1. When the fortunes of babies born to skilled manual fathers are compared with those who enter the world as the offspring of professional workers the risk of mortality is one and half times as great. From the end of the first month to the end of the first year, class differentials in infant mortality reach a peak of disadvantage. For the death of every one male infant in class 1, we can expect almost 4 deaths in class 5. In adult life, class differences in mortality are found for many different causes. As in childhood the rate of accidental death and infectious disease forms a steep gradient especially among men; moreover an extraordinary variety of causes of deaths such as cancer, heart and respiratory disease also differentiate between the classes. The duration of the human lifetime is one of the best means of approximating the lifelong pattern of health of individuals and whole populations. As we have seen, the risk of premature death in Britain today is systematically related to socioeconomic variables. This association is not new or unusual. Death rates have always been relatively high among the underprivileged and materially deprived sections of communities. Why this should continue to be so in an era characterised by new patterns of disease, increased purchasing power, and state provision of free medical care is more perplexing. In infancy and childhood where the class gradients are steep, the major causes of death are in many ways directly linked to poverty and to environmental risk. In adulthood the relationship between health and class becomes more complex and in old age social and economic deprivation becomes a common experience. Both Cartwright and OBrien (1976) and Buchan and Richardson (1973) have studied GP consultations in depth. Both investigations showed that middle class patients tended to have longer consultations than did working class ones. More problems were discussed at consultations with middle class patients than with working class ones. Cartwright and OBrien also found that middle class patients were, in a sense, able to make better use of the consultation time, as measured by the number of items of information communicated and the number of questions asked. Moreover even though working class patients tended to have been with the same practice for longer, the doctors seemed to have more knowledge of the personal and domestic circumstances of their middle class patients. In an earlier study Cartwright had found that middle class patients were more likely to be visited by their GP when in hospital than were working class patients (Cartwright, 1964). For cultural reasons then, and also because th ere is a tendency for the better doctors to work in middle class areas, the suggestion is that middle class patients receive a better service when they do present themselves than do working class patients. In the case of family planning and maternity services substantial evidence shows that those social groups in greatest need make least use of services and (in the case of antenatal care) are least likely to come early to the notice of the service. Cartwright (1970) found clear class gradients in the proportion of mothers having an antenatal examination, attending a family planning clinic, and discussing birth control with their GP. Unintended pregnancies were more common among working class women. Bone (1973) also found that women from the non-manua1 classes make more use of family planning services than those from the manual classes. This was true both for married and for unmarried women. Similar differences have been found in presentation for post-natal examination (Douglas and Rowntree, 1949) and (by Gordon, 1951) immunisation, ante-natal and post natal supervision and uptake of vitamin foods. The National Child Development Study (1958 birth cohort) found substantial differences in immunisation rates in children aged 7, as well as in attendance at the dentist. Among women, it has been found that those in classes 4 and 5 are much less likely to be screened for cervical cancers even though mortality from this condition is much higher in these classes than in the non-manual classes. In the Acheson report, the findings were much the same as The Black Report. The Acheson Report has also shown that health was improving but more for the higher than lower social classes. Premature mortality, that is death before age 65, is higher among people who are unskilled. If all men in this age group had the same death rates as those in classes I and II, it is estimated that there would have been over 17,000 fewer deaths each year from 1991 to 1993. Deaths from accidents and suicide occur at relatively young ages and each contribute nearly as much to overall years of working life lost as coronary heart disease. Death rates from all three causes are higher among those in the lower social classes, and markedly so among those in class V (Office for National Statistics and Blane Drever 1998). In adulthood, being overweight is a measure of possible ill health, with obesity a risk factor for many chronic diseases. There is a marked social class gradient in obesity which is greater among women than among men. (Colhoun and Prescott-Clarke, 1996), (Prescott-Clarke and Primatesta 1997), (Prescott-Clarke and Primatesta 1998). In 1996, 25 per cent of women in class V were classified as obese compared to 14 per cent of women in class I. Another indicator of poor health is raised blood pressure. There is a clear social class differential among women, with those in higher classes being less likely than those in the manual classes to have hypertension. In 1996, 17 per cent of women in class I and 24 per cent in class V had hypertension. There was no such difference for men where the comparable proportions were 20 per cent and 21 per cent respectively (Prescott-Clarke and Primatesta 1997). Across different ethnic groups, there are very different rates of unemployment. Those from minority ethnic groups have higher rates than the white population. Black men have particularly high unemployment rates as do Pakistani and Bangladeshi women (Office for National Statistics 1998). Between 1982 and 1992, there was a steep increase in the number of households accepted by Local Authorities as homeless. Since then, there has been a decrease of about a quarter. Of the 166,000 households classified as homeless in 1997, over 103,000 were accepted by local authorities to be unintentionally homeless and in priority need. Over half of households accepted by local authorities as homeless had dependent children and a further tenth had a pregnant household member (Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions 1997 and 1998). There is a clear social class gradient for both men and women in the proportion who smoke. In 1996, this ranged from 12 per cent of professional men to 41 per cent of men in unskilled manual occupations and from 11 per cent to 36 per cent for women (Office for National Statistics 1998). In spite of the major class differences in dependence on alcohol in men (Meltzer et al 1995), there are very small differences in the reported quantities consumed. This is not the case among women where higher consumption is related to higher social class (Office for National Statistics 1998). People in lower socioeconomic groups tend to eat less fruit and vegetables, and less food which is rich in dietary fibre. As a consequence, they have lower intakes of anti-oxidant and other vitamins, and some minerals, than those in higher socioeconomic groups (Colhoun and Prescott-Clarke 1996), (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food 1996), (Department of Health 1989), (Gregory et al 1990), (Gregory et al 1995). One aspect of dietary behaviour that affects the health of infants is the incidence of breastfeeding. Six weeks after birth, almost three quarters of babies in class I households are still breastfed. This declines with class to less than one quarter of babies in class V. The differences between classes in rates of breastfeeding at six weeks has narrowed slightly between 1985 and 1995 (Foster et al 1997). Class inequalities in health have been accounted for in a number of different ways. The report of the DHSS Inequalities in Health Working Group The Black Report lists four types of explanation. These are inequality as an artefact, inequality as natural selection, inequality as material deprivation and inequality as cultural deprivation. The artefact explanation argues that inequalities in health are not real but artificial. They are an effect produced in the attempt to measure something which is more complicated than the tools of measurement can appreciate. It is argued that changes in the occupational structure are likely to combine with age to confound any attempt to measure inequality in mortality even at one point in time. It is suggested that the age structure of social class 5 is likely to be biased towards older workers because younger recruits to the labour force will have entered better paid, more skilled occupations, that have expanded since the war. Since the mortality risk increases with the age, this effect is likely to enlarge the rate of social class 5 as a whole. If so, the observed gradient is really caused by the skewed age structure of the unskilled manual class rather than by the poorer health of its members. The most persuasive attempt to explain health inequalities as the outcome of a process natural selection, has been put forward by the statistician, Jon Stern. He argues that those people with better health move up the social class ladder and those with poorer health move down the social class ladder (Stern 1983). Stern defines health as a fixed or genetic property of individuals largely independent of their immediate social and economic environment. His argument rests on the assumption that health itself increases the probability of social mobility and that the class structure permits movement up and down. This means that no matter how deprived the social background, a genetic potentiality for good health will enable a person to overcome material disadvantage and climb out of poverty. Material deprivation means a shortage of the material resources on which healthy human existence depends. This means that health is directly affected by the material circumstances in which people live. In less developed societies (poor housing) its effects may appear in very high death rates from diseases primarily caused by malnutrition and exposure. People in poverty may not be able to afford or access healthy foods to stay healthy or they may become ill more often because of poorly heated homes. Health inequality as cultural deprivation means that the poor have a self destructive culture which leads them to become ill because of the lifestyles and personal habits in which they engage, for example, smoking, alcohol, poor diet and lack of exercise, but these poor health behaviours are also a strategy to cope with the persistent material deprivation they experience. The psycho social explanation suggests that long term chronic stresses are unevenly distributed in society, basically in line with class position (structural inequalities). The impact of stresses depends on how individuals view them, subjectively, and deal with them. This, in turn, depends on the buffering resources we have in terms of personality, social background, location in the social structure, education, financial resources, and the supportiveness of the social environment. The social environment and the social location can generate self efficacy which is a feeling of personal control, mastery over ones life, instrumentalism (opposite concept to fatalism, powerlessness, learned helplessness). Self efficacy is the extent to which individuals see themselves in control of the forces which have a significant influence on their lives. Self efficacy is linked to self esteem, self concept, social support and individuals coping style. In other words, the psycho-social approach forges a link between class position and vulnerability to social stresses. Wilkinson et al (1990) discuss a social cohesion approach and argue that social and power inequalities (i.e. authoritarian hierarchies and non democratic social organisations, and potential status inequalities such as gender and ethnicity) will affect the quality of social relationships. Where inequalities produce anger, frustration, fear insecurity and negative emotion, social relations will suffer. Better health is linked to better social relations, through trust, more security, more social support, more self esteem, self respect, a sense of belonging and less financial and material disadvantage. Thus democratic and participatory styles of social organisation from the family to political organisations have a health enhancing effect. A life course theory regards health as reflecting the patterns of social, psychological and biological advantages and disadvantages experienced by the individual over time. A life course theory of health inequality regards these patterns as being profoundly affected by the position of individuals and families in social and economic structures and hierarchies of status. However, these links themselves depend on the political and cultural environment, which means that there is a need for a life course political economy of health, which examines the ways in which economic and social policies influence the accumulation of material and psycho social risk. The ways in which advantages and disadvantages combine over the life course influence both how long each individual may spend in good health, and also what form of illness they may acquire. In conclusion, there are many inequalities in health and all the findings from The Black Report in 1980 are still around today, which was shown in The Acheson Report. The table below shows the standardised mortality rates (SMRs) for ten equal-sized geographical areas in terms of population (or deciles). SMRs which are greater than 100 indicate higher chances of mortality, all relative to the national average. The table demonstrates a continuing polarisation in mortality rates. People living in the best areas have an improving life expectancy, whilst those in the worst areas face a decline, to such an extent that by 1998, those in the worst areas were twice as likely to die by the age of 65 as those in the best areasgraph showing Standardised mortality ratios for deaths under 65 in Britain by deciles of population, 1950-1998 graph showing Health inequalities in infant mortality (by social class for sole registrations)

Family Formations Essay -- Sociology Family Structure

Outline and critically assess the most significant crises, conflicts and changes in family formations over the last two decades (since 1990). Make reference to your own experience, in terms of changes in identity and identifications over time. In order to address the question it is important to present the evidence which shows that there have been conflicts, crises, and changes in society since 1990. It is widely understood there are many formations of the family. This involves the forever changing affects on society which bring us back to the family. This essay will discuss the social changes occur within the family paying particular attention to lone parenthood. It will look at changes to marriage, divorce, births outside marriage and poverty and look at to what extent these changes have had on British society since 1990, and also what these changes have meant to the family within. In Western Society, over the past two decades there has been significant changes in the which the family is forming. We have seen major shifts in the demographic constitution of the family and public policy, especially in terms of their formation and dissolution. As a result of this there is far more diversity in people's domestic and living arrangements compared to how they were earlier in the centuries. It has been noticed over these recent decades that living patterns between individuals are less and less conforming appropriately to the model of the nuclear family leaving some commentators to claim the family is in terminal decline. Increases in divorce, cohabitation, births outside marriage and lone parent families all result in old certainties to family formations being questioned. (Kiernan, 1998) In society, the family is seen as a ... ... London:Family Policy Studies Centre Giddens, A. (2006) Sociology Fifth Edition. Polity Press Bridge Street: Cambridge Cheal,D. (1991) Family and the State of Theory, Harvester Wheatsheaf:Hertfordshire Kiernan,K. Land, and Lewis, J. (1998) Lone Motherhood in Twentieth-Century Britain Clarendon Press: Oxford Parental Divorce in Childhood and Demographic Outcomes in Young Adulthood, Demography, 32: 299-318. Murray, C. (1996a) 'The emerging British underclass', in Lister, R (ed.) Charles Murray and the Underclass: The developing Debate. London: Institute of Economic Affairs Murray, C. (1996b) 'Underclass: the crisis deepens', in Lister, R (ed.) Charles Murray and the Underclass: The developing Debate. London: Institute of Economic Affairs Dallos, R. (1991) Family Belief Systems, Therapy and Change, Milton Keynes: Open University Press

Comparison of Michelangelo8217s and Bernini8217s Davids Essay example -

Comparison of Michelangelo8217s and Bernini8217s Davids â€Å"The greatest artist has no conception which a single block of marble does not potentially contain within its mass, but only a hand obedient to the mind can penetrate to this image.† Michelangelo describes in the above quote what it is like to carve a likeness of a person out of a large block of marble. As we know from seeing his work, he did an excellent job with this task. Bernini did just as fine a job on his, but in a much different way as you will see in the following pages. Michelangelo Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475, in Caprese, Italy, a tiny village, owned by the nearby city-state of Florence. His father was the mayor. He attended school in Florence, but he was preoccupied by art. When he was 13, his father agreed to apprentice him to some well-known painters in Florence. Michelangelo was unsatisfied with these artists, because they would not teach him their artistic secrets. He went to work under another sculptor hired by Lorenzo de Medici. When Michelangelo was 21, he went to Rome, where he was commissioned to carve a group of marble statues showing the Virgin Mary supporting the dead Christ on her knees. His sculpture was called Madonna Della Pieta, and it made Michelangelo famous. A few years later, in 1501, he accepted a commission for a statue of David. He took on the challenge of carving this beautiful work out of a â€Å"huge oblong chunk of pure white unflawed Carrara marble – some 18 feet high and weighing several tons - that had been badly block out and then abandoned by an earlier sculptor† (Coughlan 85). This piece had always fascinated Michelangelo, but neither he, nor anyone else, could think of what to carve from it, until now (Coughlan 85). Thus began a new era in art, the High Renaissance. He began carving this statue for the city of Florence. It would become a symbol of this city, â€Å"a city willing to take on all comers in defense of its liberty† (Coughlan 91). The statue acquired this meaning by the way Michelangelo depicted this biblical character. Instead of presenting us with the winner of the battle, with the giant’s head at his feet and a sword in his hand like Donatello did many years before, he portrays David right before the battle begins. David is in the moment where his people are hesitating and Goliath is mocking him. He is placed... ...that will live on forever, just as their names and sculptures will. Works Cited Ceysson, Bernard. Sculpture: The Great Tradition of Sculpture from the Fifteenth Century to the Eighteenth Century. New York: Rizzloi International Publications, Inc, 1987. Coughlan, Robert. The World of Michelangelo:1475-1564. New York: Time-Life Books, 1966. Gilbert, Creighton. Michelangelo. New York: McGraw-Hill Books Co, 1967. Hartt, Frederick. Michelangelo: The Complete Sculpture. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Heusinger, Lutz. The Library of Great Masters: Michelangelo. New York: Riverside Book Co, 1989. http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/Choir/4792/david.html http://www.murrayco.com/eleganza/238David.html http://www.arthistory.sbc.edu/euroart/117euroart/berninidavid.html Janson, H. W. History of Art. 4th ed. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc, 1991. Keutner, Herbert. Sculpture Renaissance to Rococo: A History of Western Sculpture. Greenwich, CT: New York Graphic Society, 1969. Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc, 1995. Wallace, Robert. The World of Bernini: 1598-1680. New York: Time-Life Books, 1970. Comparison of Michelangelo8217s and Bernini8217s Davids Essay example - Comparison of Michelangelo8217s and Bernini8217s Davids â€Å"The greatest artist has no conception which a single block of marble does not potentially contain within its mass, but only a hand obedient to the mind can penetrate to this image.† Michelangelo describes in the above quote what it is like to carve a likeness of a person out of a large block of marble. As we know from seeing his work, he did an excellent job with this task. Bernini did just as fine a job on his, but in a much different way as you will see in the following pages. Michelangelo Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475, in Caprese, Italy, a tiny village, owned by the nearby city-state of Florence. His father was the mayor. He attended school in Florence, but he was preoccupied by art. When he was 13, his father agreed to apprentice him to some well-known painters in Florence. Michelangelo was unsatisfied with these artists, because they would not teach him their artistic secrets. He went to work under another sculptor hired by Lorenzo de Medici. When Michelangelo was 21, he went to Rome, where he was commissioned to carve a group of marble statues showing the Virgin Mary supporting the dead Christ on her knees. His sculpture was called Madonna Della Pieta, and it made Michelangelo famous. A few years later, in 1501, he accepted a commission for a statue of David. He took on the challenge of carving this beautiful work out of a â€Å"huge oblong chunk of pure white unflawed Carrara marble – some 18 feet high and weighing several tons - that had been badly block out and then abandoned by an earlier sculptor† (Coughlan 85). This piece had always fascinated Michelangelo, but neither he, nor anyone else, could think of what to carve from it, until now (Coughlan 85). Thus began a new era in art, the High Renaissance. He began carving this statue for the city of Florence. It would become a symbol of this city, â€Å"a city willing to take on all comers in defense of its liberty† (Coughlan 91). The statue acquired this meaning by the way Michelangelo depicted this biblical character. Instead of presenting us with the winner of the battle, with the giant’s head at his feet and a sword in his hand like Donatello did many years before, he portrays David right before the battle begins. David is in the moment where his people are hesitating and Goliath is mocking him. He is placed... ...that will live on forever, just as their names and sculptures will. Works Cited Ceysson, Bernard. Sculpture: The Great Tradition of Sculpture from the Fifteenth Century to the Eighteenth Century. New York: Rizzloi International Publications, Inc, 1987. Coughlan, Robert. The World of Michelangelo:1475-1564. New York: Time-Life Books, 1966. Gilbert, Creighton. Michelangelo. New York: McGraw-Hill Books Co, 1967. Hartt, Frederick. Michelangelo: The Complete Sculpture. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Heusinger, Lutz. The Library of Great Masters: Michelangelo. New York: Riverside Book Co, 1989. http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/Choir/4792/david.html http://www.murrayco.com/eleganza/238David.html http://www.arthistory.sbc.edu/euroart/117euroart/berninidavid.html Janson, H. W. History of Art. 4th ed. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc, 1991. Keutner, Herbert. Sculpture Renaissance to Rococo: A History of Western Sculpture. Greenwich, CT: New York Graphic Society, 1969. Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc, 1995. Wallace, Robert. The World of Bernini: 1598-1680. New York: Time-Life Books, 1970.

Case 4 Ginger – Smart Basics.Pdf Uploaded Successfully

C AS E 4 Ginger: Smart BasicsTM Dr Mukta Kamplikar1 Roots Corporation Limited develops and operates a fast-expanding chain of economy hotels across India under the â€Å"Ginger† brand. There is currently a lack of competition in the branded economy hotels segment and Ginger is the only branded economy hotel chain in India. The Ginger hotels are built around a concept that provides facilities to meet the key needs of today’s traveler, at affordable rates.Ginger faces challenges in different aspects of its business as it aims to deliver consistently, quality service to the customer and manage customer expectations. COMPANY BACKGROUND Exhibit 1: The proportion of hotel segments across Indian cities. Jaipur Cochin Goa Pune Hyderabad Bangalore Chennai Kolkata Mumbai Delhi/National Capital Region Budget Mid-market First class Lurxury R oots Corporation Limited (RCL) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL). IHCL is a part of the Tata Group of c ompanies (see www. tata. om), India’s premier business house. Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces comprises 77 hotels, 7 palaces, 6 private islands and 12 resorts in 40 locations across India with an additional 18 international hotels in the Maldives, Mauritius, Malaysia, Australia, UK, US, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Africa, and the Middle East. Incorporated on 24 December 2003, Roots Corporation Limited operates the ? rst-of-its-kind category of Smart Basicsâ„ ¢ hotels across India. Launched in June 2004, the Smart Basicsâ„ ¢ concept created a revolution in the world of Indian hospitality.Roots Corporation Limited develops and operates a fast-expanding chain of economy hotels across India under the â€Å"Ginger† brand. The company either owns/ leases land on which it develops and operates hotels and has now started entering into joint developments where the owner brings in the land and bare shell and leases the same to the company. The company’s recent growth has been organic, through developing and operating hotels in new cities or by going for additional hotels in existing markets; thus expanding the geographic reach of the hotel chain.The company intends to develop and operate additional hotels under both business models to maintain or achieve a dominant position in every market covered by their Ginger hotel chain. The Economy Segment Historically, hotel development projects in India generally focused on upscale hotels that were primarily targeted at international tourists and corporate travelers. New hotels will be concentrated in 18 main cities over the next 10 years, as shown in the following chart. Exhibit 2: Projected hotel expansion rate over 10 years. 60 50 Number of hotels 40 30 20 10 0De lhi N Mu CR Ba mba n Hy galo i de re rab ad P Ch une en n Ja ai ipu r G Ko oa lka Vis t akh Ko a ap chi Ah atn em am da b Ud ad aip u A r Lud gra h Luc iana kn M ow Co yso imb re ato re Source: HVS International. 446 Case Study Between 2007 and 2010, supply will increase in all categories of hotels, as shown in the chart below. Exhibit 3: Projected supply increase in all categories of hotel. Increase over Five Year Development of Supply Mid-market First Class Proposed Supply Existing Supply Budget Luxury a? liations as opposed to Ginger hotels, which are part of a network of hotels).Going forward we see competition continuing from the unorganized section of the market as well as from newer international and local hotel companies who have announced their intent to set-up hotels across the country in the value segment. The market is witnessing a fair amount of activity in this segment of the hotel market. Some of the companies who have announced plans to establish a presence in the country are shown in Exhibit 4. Exhibit 4: Lodging brands venturing into India. Brand Formule 1 Promoters Plans Agra Ahmedabad Bangalore Chennai Delhi (NCR) Goa Hyperabad Jaipur Kolkata Mumbai Other Cities ,336 519 1,906 2,075 7,030 2,252 1,442 1,298 1 ,354 7,402 8,056 384 462 7,794 4,407 28. 7% 89. 0% 408. 9% 212. 4% 69% 48% 55% 36% 74% 18% 57% 42 61% 36% 47% 31. 1% 28. 0% 24. 8% 12. 4% 25. 4% 11. 7% 11. 2% 30. 8% 3. 9% 32. 5% 16. 7% 38. 0% 27. 0% 43. 6% 34. 4% 36. 3% 29. 4% 28. 9% 18. 6% 37. 5% 15. 6% 37. 0% 23. 1% 38. 2% 25. 6% 21. 3% 26. 0% 49. 7% 26. 7% 24. 0% 62. 5% 51. 9% 14. 2% 10. 9% 10. 0% 18. 4% 18. 8% 26. 0% 9. 7% 13. 6% 53. 5% 10,856 154. 4% 2,632 7,408 2,770 2,465 9,318 6,870 116. 9% 513. 7% 213. 4% 182. 1% 125. 9% 85. 3%Accor in a 100 hotels in the next decade joint venture with Emaar MGF Isthitmar, Dubai New look pod hotels Easy Hotels Sleep Inn Source: HVS International. Choice 10 hotels by 2010; ? rst hotels Hotels with to be in Tirupati and Vizag Gupta Group Air Asia, Malaysia Lemon Tree partnered by Warburg Pincus First hotel to be in Goa 10 hotels by 2010 While growth is expected in the upscale hotels, the growth in the economy segment is still minimal. While several chains, both domestic and international, ha ve announced plans for development of hotels in this segment, visible action on the ground is limited.Economy hotel chains in India mainly target value-conscious domestic business and leisure travelers who demand convenient lodging, a consistent product and high-quality services. According to a study conducted by Ginger, currently, 37 percent of economy hotel guests are individual business travelers, 23 percent are contract corporate customers and 20 percent are individual leisure travelers. Economy hotel chains aim to satisfy customers’ basic accommodation needs with a? ordable pricing, a comfortable lodging experience and a standardized service-product.Lack of competition in the branded economy hotels segment is a great opportunity for Ginger. Tune Hotels Red Fox Peppermint Royal Orchid 50 hotels by 2010; bids for 11 Hotels hotels on Railway land are held up; ? rst hotel open in Hyderabad Kamat Hotels 50 hotels in the next ? ve years; focused on West coast; tie-up with ONGC /MRPL Wyndham with Gammon 38 hotels by 2011 Kamfotel Days Inn / Super 8 Premier Travel Inn Whitbread 80 hotels in 10 years in a joint venture with Emaar MGF Landmark 20 hotels by 2009 Group, Dubai DIC Starwood No numbers mentioned No numbers mentioned City Max Hotels TravelodgeCOMPETITION The lodging industry in India is highly fragmented and competitive, and competition is expected to persist and intensify. Currently, Ginger competes with three-star full-service hotels from the unorganized sector (these are hotels developed and operated as standalone hotels with no chain/hotel group Campanile While some developments have started in the mid-market segment with Lemon Tree Hotels, Ibis (Accor), Keys (Bergruen Hotels), Day Hotels (Dawnay Day), Hometel (Sarovar Group), Hilton Garden Inn Hotels (DLF) and Taj Gateway Hotels, not much activity is visible at the economy end of the spectrum.This is possibly on account of the high prices of real estate. Ginger: Smart BasicsTM 447 CASE STUDY Ginger—The Service Concept The concept of Ginger was developed in association with renowned corporate strategy thinker, Dr C. K. Prahalad, and the hotels were indigenously designed and developed by the Indian Hotels Company Limited. The Ginger hotels are built around a concept that provides facilities to meet the key needs of today’s traveler, at a? ordable rates. Smart Basicsâ„ ¢ is a philosophy of providing intelligent, thoughtout facilities and services at a ‘value’ pricing and re? cts the new spirit in which people live and work today. It signi? es the emerging lifestyle which is visible in the degree to which individuals have taken control of their various activities viz. the use of e-mail instead of letters, as also the use of mobile phones, conference calls and video conferences to get things done quickly and e? ciently. Essentially, it is simplicity and convenience in ease of doing business (awareness, booking channels, payment gateways); inform ality, style, warmth and modernity in its approach to product design, service philosophy and a? rdability in pricing. The ? rst of the Smart Basicsâ„ ¢ hotel was launched in Bangalore and was called indiOne. When the test marketing of the concept was completed, there were slight changes to improve the hotel facilities and services. After that, the Smart BasicsTM concept was rolled out across India. This category of hotels was launched with a new name, Ginger hotels, in line with the fresh, simple yet stylish and warm world of Smart Basicsâ„ ¢. An up-and-coming category of hotels, Ginger de? nitely signi? es simplicity, convenience, informality, style, warmth, modernity and a? rdability. The target segment for Ginger is the large growing middle class with increasing disposable incomes. They are the class of travelers who would spend on travel but not on luxury accommodations. These travelers look for value-for-money accommodation that is clean and secure and also include intern ational travelers looking for hygienic accommodation in the smaller cities. Ginger is the only branded economy hotel chain in India with a nationwide network of 12 hotels, with an additional 20 hotels under development as of 31 May, 2008.Their early-mover status in many markets and established regional operational synergy has enabled Ginger to develop and operate hotels e? ciently and successfully in targeted markets. As the only branded economy hotel chain in India, the chain has been able to establish credibility with property owners and secure desirable properties on favorable lease terms. The economy segment (3-star) is better protected against and more resilient to the volatility in the hospitality segment as compared to the upscale segment. THE OFFERING—SMART BASICSâ„ ¢Ginger hotels designed their facilities and services to include The Square Mealâ„ ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€a multi-cuisine restaurant, on-site cyber cafe, a meeting room (that seats 10 people), laundry facility (sa me day delivery), on-site ATM, a Gymnasium, secure parking and Doctor-on-call. Ginger lays special emphasis on environmental and ecological issues through the use of compact ? uorescent lights (CFL), well utilized natural lighting, auto-time management for air-conditioning and energy-e? cient hydro-pneumatic systems. Ginger provides ingle rooms for the lone traveler; twin rooms with separate beds for those who travel together; double rooms with a queen-size bed; and special rooms for the speci? c needs of the physically challenged. The rooms are packed with electronic locking systems, cable TV, Internet connectivity, a mini fridge, tea/co? ee makers, self controlled air-conditioners, an ergonomic work area, and a 17-inch ? at screen TV. Each room has branded toiletries, 24-hour hot and cold running water, a shower area, and bath and hand towels. Exhibit 5: Smart BasicsTM amenities. 48 Case Study Exhibit 6: Innovative promotion — A life-size model created for a campaign that i s carried to metros across India. Ginger operates predominantly in a large geography of nonmetros with uncontested market opportunity. Exhibit 7: The Ginger Development Map To ensure safety, Ginger is equipped with 24-hour security, closed-circuit TV to maintain records of all visitors, swipe card locks and digital safes located at a Give ‘n’ Takeâ„ ¢ counter at the lobby. In addition, it has supporting infrastructural facilities including administrative o? es, kitchens, housekeeping, HVAC facilities, diesel generators for emergency power supply, water treatment plant, sewage treatment plant, etc. Ginger has outsourced food and beverage to partners operating on a revenue-share model, which includes Cafe Co? ee Day in selected properties. Ginger also o? ers other facilities like â€Å"SMART Wellness†, which is an Ayurvedic wellness facility for business travelers at a low cost. This has been developed with Arya Vaidya Pharmacy at all businesscum-leisure locatio ns.Ginger has introduced â€Å"SMART Sleep,† which includes a posture-pedic mattress for absorbing and redistributing pressure from the body weight, a tropical duvet and an anti-allergy pillow. The company has also introduced selfoperated vending machines that accept Indian currency for customer’s convenience. The company is now developing a â€Å"SMART Shower†. The organization believes that a customer’s sleep and bath are his most important needs at their hotels. Going forward, Ginger plans to develop its own range of merchandise that will be o? ered in its hotels and on its website.The merchandise is to include their bath collection, bedding collection, furnishings and decor, apparel, accessories, travel accessories and etc. Ginger intends to increase their revenue per available room by adopting a ? exible pricing approach/policy, which will be linked to the occupancy levels in the individual hotels. EMPLOYEES AND TRAINING Ginger believes that their ab ility to attract good talent, train and retain employees is critical for their growth strategy, as people are critical to maintaining the quality and consistency of their services, and thereby their brand and reputation.The business model of Ginger uses a fair amount of outsourcing. Only about 10 managers per hotel are on the payrolls of Ginger, while all other facilities like kitchen, restaurant, backend maintenance, are outsourced. Ginger has a total of about 175 permanent employees. Since housekeeping and food and beverage are outsourced operations, these employees are on the vendors’ payrolls. Ginger tries to leverage on hotel management schools to develop a management talent pool with su? cient capacity to meet the demands presented by their rapid growth.The company aims to recruit, train and retain the best talent through a multi-step recruiting and training process, and career advancement opportunities. Ginger has implemented extensive training programs and periodic te sts for managerial and other hotel-based sta? primarily through training partners. New unit managers of the hotels are required to undergo a two-month training, during which they receive training in managing all core aspects of the hotel operations, as well as the company culture and philosophy. Ginger: Smart BasicsTM 449In addition to training, Ginger has implemented periodic web-based tests to assess the relevant knowledge and skills of their managerial and other employees. The company uses performance-linked compensation structure, careeroriented training and career advancement opportunities as key drivers to motivate its employees. Ginger’s challenge is also to ensure that the outsourced partner delivers up to the service standards that was agreed upon. To be able to create/modify the outsourced partner’s systems and processes to its needs in order to deliver consistent good quality of service to the customer is critical.Since each person in the system is working t owards the same goal of delighting the customer, there are few di? erences in terms of the employee pro? les between employees of the outsourced partner and the employees on the payrolls of Ginger. It is important to ensure that the people working for the outsourced partner see themselves as a part of the same team. It is also important that the outsourced partner sees the advantages in following the policies, processes and systems of Ginger. Ginger operates in a large geography of smaller cities where the pro? es of employees in terms of their exposure to technology, comfort with modern amenities, etc. are di? erent from that of a metropolitan city. The challenge therefore lies in getting these employees to perform up to expectations. To design systems to recruit the right kind of people and provide the right kind of training to employees is a challenge for Ginger because, while the developmental inputs do not need to be the same across unit locations, the output in terms of consis tent service to ful? ll customer needs has to be fairly identical. Additionally, acquiring professionally quali? d employees locally (in remote areas and non-metro cities) and retaining talent at those locations is an area of concern. In their endeavor to retain talent, Ginger makes e? orts to ensure that employees see additional value in non-monetary rewards like developing employees competencies by making this visible to their employees through certi? cations, etc. But to be able to consistently ensure this across locations remains a challenge. If there is attrition, to be able to train and retrain employees (since the numbers are very small) at remote locations becomes very di? ult. Ginger’s people challenges are thus attracting talent and keeping them continuously motivated, given the vast opportunities for most of their young talent. Ginger training head, Bhanot, says: â€Å"We are cost conscious and so we need to use unconventional methods of recruitment because conven tional methods like placement agencies turn out to be very expensive. We recruit through [email  protected], our recruitment portal, and about 48 percent of recruitment happens through this site. The rest of the recruitment is through referral programmes (with rewards for referring).These methods have been successful. We also build relationships with business schools and our employees go to colleges and partner with them by linking with their syllabi, calling students for get-togethers, using students as summer interns; instead of going once in a year like most companies do. We try to build relationships before the recruitment even starts. We also try to address the challenge of keeping our young sta? motivated by giving them opportunities to learn and grow by continuously upgrading their skills.We are a budget hotel and we have chosen e-learning initiatives to cut costs. We have in-house training, induction, training operations and e-learning modules (based on customer feedback s ystems) and program content is created internally. † CENTRALIZED HOTEL MANAGEMENT Personnel at corporate o? ce perform strategic planning, ? nance, project development, sales and marketing, training and other functions and guide, support and monitor the on-site hotel operations and executives. The key elements of Ginger’s centralized hotel management program are: Budgeting and MonitoringThe annual budget is based on historical operating performance of the hotel, planned targeted marketing, planned renovations, operational e? ciencies and local market conditions. Quality Assurance and Training–Quality standards These have been de? ned for all aspects of hotel operations, covering housekeeping and hotel maintenance, as well as ensuring compliance with these quality standards. A set of procedural manuals have been created and employees are trained to ensure the e? ectiveness and uniformity through 450 Case Study the human resources department at our corporate o? e a s well as through outsourced training vendors. The compliance with quality standards is monitored through both scheduled and unannounced visits and reviews conducted periodically at each hotel. Employees are required take periodic tests (including e-certi? cation) in order to monitor compliance with quality standards. In addition, the practice of mystery audits and tracking customer comments through guest comment cards, and the direct solicitation of guest opinions regarding speci? c items, allows Ginger to improve services and amenities at each hotel across the chain.To maintain a competitive edge and enhance their hotels’ appeal the company requires each hotel to allocate a ? xed percentage of their revenue for periodic renovation and replacement of furnishings and equipment to maintain the quality and standards of its facilities. Ginger has implemented a centralized procurement system (where possible, along with the parent company, IHCL) to obtain the best pricing availabl e for the quality of goods sourced to the hotels and to minimize the operating expenses. Ginger supports local sales e? rts of each of its hotels along with corporate o? ce sales executives who develop and implement new marketing programs, and monitor and respond to speci? c market needs and preferences. †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Large travel agencies and smaller travel agents. Call Center—Ginger currently has a call center which can be reached through a toll-free number. Travel portals and other travel related websites. Distribution partners—Partners like BPCL, which is currently rolling out Travel Desks in various BPCL petrol pumps across the country, is also used as a channel for distribution.Access to these channels enhances occupancy rates of the units (hotels) on a day-to-day basis. The Ginger brand, trade names, trademarks, trade secrets and other intellectual properties are used to distinguish and protect their technology platforms, services and products from those of their competitors. This also contribute to their competitive advantage in the economy-hotel segment of the lodging industry in India. These intellectual properties are currently owned by the parent company, Indian Hotels Company Limited.To protect the Ginger brand and other intellectual properties, they rely on laws governing trademarks, trade secrets and copyrights as well as imposing con? dentiality obligations on their employees, contractors and others. Ginger has registered trademarks in India, including â€Å" † and a registered domain name viz. www. gingerhotels. com. Ginger’s corporate marketing and advertising programs are designed to enhance consumer awareness and preference for the Ginger brand—which is to o? r the best value, convenience and comfort in the economy hotel segment of the Indian lodging industry; and to encourage customers’ use of their centralized reservation system. Marketing and advertising e? orts include outdoor advertisements, distribution of ? yers and other marketing collateral on their hotel properties, television, Internet, radio advertising, print advertising in consumer media, promotional events, special holiday promotions and joint promotional activities.In reshaping customers’ expectations to make the brand endearing, Ginger does not provide room service, valet and concierge, and communicates the message â€Å"Please help yourselves† through its advertisements. The advertisements convey that since none of the above facilities are provided by the hotel, the customer saves on tips. However, there is clearly an expectation-perception gap as the Indian customer is still uncomfortable with the concept of Smart BasicsTM. They grapple with â€Å"there was nobody to receive me,† â€Å"nobody gave me water in the room,† â€Å"I called 7 times andMARKETING GINGER Ginger’s core targeted customers consist of corporate customers, value-oriented individual SME business travelers and leisure travelers seeking comfortable and convenient lodging at an a? ordable price. Ginger reviews hotel pricing twice a year and typically adjust room rates annually based on the local market conditions of the city and the speci? c location of each hotel. The corporate o? ce team and the city and hotel managers jointly develop tailored marketing plans to drive sales for each hotel and in each city.Ginger operates in a large geography of non-metropolitan cities like Agartala, Nashik, Bhubhaneshwar and Durgapur where pro? les of customer in terms of their exposure to technology, comfort with modern amenities, etc. are di? erent. The challenge therefore lies in customer responses to these. Ginger is currently using the following distribution channels which includes online media. †¢ Website—Internet Booking Engine hosted on the Ginger website is one of the main channels used for making the bookings. Ginger: Smart BasicsTM 51 the room boy did not tur n up. † Ginger sees many customers each day who enter the hotel not knowing what to expect. The many complaints on the websites and complaints registered across the counters at the hotels have to do with services Ginger does not provide (by design) rather than dissatisfactions caused by Ginger’s service. Creating awareness for the Ginger brand at this point in time is a challenge, and since the business model does not allow huge expenditure on media, innovative promotion is needed.Ginger made quirky use of outdoor media by materializing the idea of using a life-size 3-dimensional hoarding of some parts of the hotel, including getting someone to live in it. This was taken across a couple of metros for promotion and received extensive coverage in the electronic media. Ginger needs to ensure their customers come in recognizing and knowing what they should be expecting from the hotel. The challenge is not only in communication through advertisements, but also to communicate it clearly when a customer checks in. Ginger’s ability to communicate clearly what the customer can expect is an area of concern.This is because there is a tendency not to explain either because the customer does not have the patience to listen or there is a fear of losing this customer. Ginger has been trying to plug this by educating the customer before he/she checks in by having commercials playing in the hotel, training front line managers to give clear messages to the customer as to what Ginger can deliver, and communicating this through advertising. STUDY QUESTIONS 1. 2. 3. 4. What is Ginger’s service concept? Use the Flower of Service to aid you in your answer. How does Ginger create customer value?How can Ginger manage customer expectations more e? ectively? Evaluate Ginger’s brand positioning and communications strategy. Given that the number of players in the budget hotels market is increasing, how can Ginger sustain its unique positioning? Ginger fac es challenges relating to people. How can they overcome these challenges? What are the key challenges in the way to service excellence for Ginger? Give recommendations to Ginger to overcome these challenges? 5. 6. 1  © 2009 Dr Mukta Kampllikar, Senior Practice Consultant, Tata Management Training Center, Pune, India. 452 Case Study