Micromax Mobile : How to Increase Market Share

Consumer buying behaviour report Micromax mobile phones By Mansi Choksey Roll no. 19 PGDM Marketing Product chosen: Micromax Mobile phones Issue to be addressed: How to increase Market share: Background on the company: Micromax Mobile needs no introduction today. Just two years back people were not aware of  the brand  at all but today it’s India’s third largest mobile selling company by volume after Nokia and Samsung (IDC Report). Brand’s success can be attributed to it’s ability to understand the need of the market ,aggressive marketing with a budget of Rs. 00 crore and smart  distribution channel  management. Its one of the leading Indian Telecom Companies with 23 domestic offices across the country and international offices in Hong Kong, USA, Dubai and now in Nepal. With a futuristic vision and an exhaustive R&D at its helm, Micromax has successfully generated innovative technologies that have revolutionised the telecom consumerspace. As pe r IDC report Micromax displaced LG to become third largest selling  mobile handset company  in india with a market share of 6%.Nokia is market leader with 62% share and Samsung is on second place with 8% market share. The company today sells more than a million handsets a month and is now a Rs. 1600 cr worth brand. The company has presence in more than 500 districts and 90,000  retail outlets. The company started its Mobile handset business in 2008 and the challenge was to establish an identity in a market dominated by big MNCs Like Nokia,Samsung,LG and Motorola. Today Micromax has become a brand which people relate and look up to for realizing their individual device preferences and other out-of-the-box solutions.Micromax, is now churning out 1 million phones a month. Micromax is on a mission to successfully overcome the technological barriers and constantly engender â€Å"life enhancing solutions†. The company's vision is to develop path-breaking technologies and effi cient processes that incubate newer markets, enliven customer aspirations and continue to make Micromax a trusted market leader amongst people. Micromax founders : Rajesh Agarwal: handles company finances Sumeet Arora: chief technology officer Vikas jain: handles alliances with other companiesRahul Sharma: risk taker with the big ideas 4 P’s of marketing for Micromax mobiles: 1. Product Micromax has been quite effective in the marking a difference with almost every product that it launched. The range that they have covered varies quite a large variety. Right from the handsets with 30 days battery backup, dual SIM, handsets switching networks (GSM -CDMA) using gravity sensors, aspirational QWERTY keypad handsets to operator branded 3G handsets to the most exciting OMH CDMA Handsets, etc. Every product of Micromax had the potential to grab the attention of media as ell as the consumers in a market which is already flooded with mobile phone handsets and a launch is there in ever y day or two. 2. Price Micromax specialized in entry-level and mid-segment handsets priced between Rs1,800 and Rs2,400 when it started selling the devices in 2008, confining itself to small towns and rural areas in the first 12-18 months. Encouraged by its success, the firm expanded to larger cities and now has a distribution network of 55,000 retailers, which it plans to scale up to 70,000 by the end of March as part of its strategy to raise sales to 1. million handsets a month. 3. Place Micromax is one of the leading Indian Telecom Companies with 23 domestic offices across the country and international offices in Hong Kong, USA, Dubai and now in Nepal. Micromax has invested Rs100 crore to set up a plant in Baddi in Himachal Pradesh as it feels outsourcing manufacturing completely leaves the door open for supply-side uncertainties. Production will be scaled up from an initial 50,000 per month. â€Å"If everything goes right, by the third phase in March 2011, the Baddi plant will b e making about 500,000 handsets,† Jain said.If the plant isn’t able to cope with the numbers, the fallback plan is to acquire a facility in South Korea, Taiwan or China, he added. 4. Promotion Having gained traction, Micromax is also working on a strategy to create awareness in the metros, which includes tying up with MTV for co-branded phones. Micromax has also tied up with a Bollywood celebrity â€Å"AKSHAY KUMAR† as brand ambassador. Micromax has also tied up some pretty big brands like Yamaha for enhancing their audio experiences and the X360 comes with an MTV branding and exclusive content.It is utilizing the integrated market communication tools like sponsoring events (cricket match and film awards), advertising through hoardings, TV, radio etc very effectively. With a 360 degree advertising and marketing strategy sketched out, the company has an optimistic outlook for the telecom consumer space. Currently present in more than 40,000 stores across the count ry, the company plans to have an aggressive market incursion to reach out to its customers through 70,000 operational stores in the coming year The following tools of IMC are being used by Micromax:Events and experiences For marketing of its products the company is riding on two enduring Indian obsessions–sports and films–to build its brand. Following up on its association with the popular Twenty20 cricket Indian Premier League (IPL), Micromax, a brand that is less than three years old, has become the title sponsor of almost all tournaments and series of which India is a part, including the recently concluded Asia Cup, the forthcoming India-Sri Lanka Test series and the India-New Zealand-Sri Lanka tri-series in August.The objective behind the cricket â€Å"roadblock†, as such behavior is termed in advertising, is to drive brand awareness and recall. The company believes that while cricket may boost a brand instantly, viewers may still not remember the brand afte r the match or the tournament. Even if consumers remember a series, they may not remember the advertisers. That's when they thought of a roadblock and decided to sponsor all cricketing properties post IPL. Bollywood is also a major platform for the brand, which is targeting consumers between 18 and 27 years.Bollywood's most bankable star Akshay Kumar was signed on as the brand ambassador six months ago. More recently, his wife Twinkle Khanna was engaged to promote Micromax's bling phone that comes with Swarovski crystals and a vanity mirror. To push its association with films, the firm also sponsored the IIFA (International Indian Film Academy) Awards held in Sri Lanka, where Micromax recently launched its phones. The brand is now ready to enter Bangladesh and West Asia. Advertising Broadcast media micromax use television to broadcast their advertisements. Apart from using cricket, films, celebrity micromax also advertise through news papers.They also utilize hoarding and bill board s to advertise their products. Prime site recently kicked off a month-long campaign for Micromax mobile phones in Delhi, executed mostly through hoardings. Going further, this promotion will be extended to the other regions of northern India as well. All the Medias used by micromax are very carefully selected as to reach its target audience and through each medium the innovative aspect of the product is portrayed. The three advertising objectives of micromax mobile are * To create awareness * To increase recall of their brand * To create brand equity.Company’s current marketing strategy: 1. Tapping the Indian consumers by knowing what they need specifically: a. Indian context: When Nokia or Samsung roll out a new model they do so from its global portfolio rather than launching something specifically for India. Micromax realized the fact that there are certain unmet needs still there in the market which is not being addressed by big brands. Micromax’s strategy ,since th eir inception has been to identify the unmet latent needs of people and come up with a product which no one else has and thus fits well with the consumer need. b. Rural context:Micromax initially targeted rural market and once it established its presence went on to lure urban youth. Micromax’s first innovation – a handset with 30 days of standby battery life — crucial in a country like India where power failures are common. Also in rural areas its not easy to charge one’s mobile phones because not only are there power failures but also they don’t have money to pay for electricity every month and hence such a phone was introduced. Also One of the major aspects that contribute towards the substantial monthly growth of Micromax is its 80% sales in the rural areas.After building a strong presence in the rural market, where the prominence of both subscribers and operators is rapidly increasing, Micromax is now progressively moving towards establishing i ts foothold in the competitive urban towns as well. 2. Value for money & Cost effective: The company didn’t bank on price competition only rather it catered to the needs of people unaddressed by MNC brands. Big brand like Nokia, Samsung had not introduced Dual sim phones earlier. But with the onset of such phones launched by Micromax, Nokia , Samsung etc. ave tough competition and their phones are just a case of â€Å"me-too† products. Also Micromax has made sure that all their mobile phones are value for money and serve the purpose and the need of the customer. 3. R&D and Innovation : Versatile Product Portfolio: It was the first to introduce: a) Handsets with 30 days battery backup b) Handsets with Dual SIM / Dual Standby c) Handsets Switching Networks (GSM – CDMA) using gravity sensors d) Aspirational Qwerty Keypad Handsets e) Operator Branded 3G Handsets f) OMH CDMA Handsets, etc. . First mover advantage: They have introduced phones specially targeti ng the Indian people which were never even thought of remotely by the top players in the mobile phone industry like Nokia & Samsung. So they clearly have a first mover advantage. 5. Outsourcing the manufacturing: Instead of manufacturing itself, Micromax sourced its handsets from 12 factories in China, South Korea and Taiwan. It was model-based sourcing: Micromax would come up with an idea and give it to the factory best placed to deliver it.This is different from, say, Nokia, which would be compelled to stay in-house or go to a vendor-partner, even if another vendor had better capabilities to execute a particular model. 6. Smart distribution channel management: Micromax also looked at distribution in a new way, standing by its cash-only model. While rivals offered a 60-day credit line, Micromax refused to give credit. â€Å"If the distributor does not buy your handsets, there is no pressure on him to sell them,† explains Mr Agarwal. At the same time, Micromax offered to supply distributors regularly to keep inventories down.So, distributors didn’t have to shell out large amounts upfront or have a lot of money locked in. â€Å"If we give a distributor 1,000 handsets and ask him to sell them over a month, he will worry about his daily sales,† says Mr Agarwal. â€Å"But if we supply less, demand will be close to equal or more than supply. †Micromax has 34 super-distributors across India. Unlike a Nokia or a Samsung, it doesn’t interact with the 500-plus sub-distributors. Neither does it intervene in how the super-distributors sell or place the products. â€Å"We offer our super-distributors a 15% margin, which is higher than the ndustry average of 6-10%,† claims Mr Jain. 7. Unmet needs of consumer 30-DAY BATTERY PHONES April 2008: Rs 2,249; Now: Rs 1,999 The X1i, Micromax’s first phone, had a battery that could give 17 hours of talk time and go 30 days on a single charge. DUAL-SIM PHONES July 2008: Rs 1,999-12 ,999 For those who want two numbers but one handset PHONE-CUM-REMOTE May 2010: Rs 2,999 A mobile that can switch TV channels and even change the AC Temperature PHONE-CUM-STEREO Feb 2010: Rs 4,999 With 3D surround sound, fed by Yamaha and Wolfson BLING Feb 2010: Rs 5,500 A big hit with women, comes with Swarovski embellishmentsIN THE WORKS A mosquito-repellent phone. A phone that can be used as a computer mouse Micromax focuses on being different 8. Production related moves: Micromax is investing Rs 100 crore to set up a manufacturing plant in Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, to ensure its outsourcing model does not cause supply-side uncertainties. Production is being scaled up from 50,000 units per month to 500,000 units a month by March 2011. How to increase the market share with respect to the consumer buying behaviour: Steps of consumer buying behaviour: 1) Need awareness:The beginning point of most purchasing is your potential buyer recognition of a need in their life. This need can be established by encountering a problem or prompted by a company's marketing. Already Micromax is into a lot of marketing through promotions, Ads, sponsorships of events, etc. But few suggestions on that front to make sure that their potential consumer hears them rightly is – * Now they are at the 3rd position in the mobile handset industry and they have achieved a good market share in a very short span of time, so their advertisements should focus on brand building. They don`t develop very creative advertisements, sometimes their advertisements are mere noises like the advertisement featuring Akshay kumar. They must add creativity to their advertisements. (Micromax Bling Ad featuring Twinkle Khanna is an exception to this point). * Break the resistance of no need by aligning their marketing with the current needs and wants of your market. * It’s a general norm that whatever is expensive is good to use, of high quality, has more life and is definitely something which wil l increase one’s status.So it would be a good strategy to increase the prices which will work for the image of Micromax because there is a risk of the brand being perceived not as an aspirational brand but a ordinary price warrior if it does not focus on the quality of the communication. * The needs of not even two consumers are the same. Therefore, they buy only those products and services, which satisfy their wants and desires.To survive in the market, a firm has to be constantly innovating and understand the latest consumer needs and tastes it will be extremely useful in exploiting marketing opportunities and in meeting the challenges that the Indian market offers. This reality can be turned into an opportunity by introducing â€Å"Customization of mobile phones†. a) People can goto Micromax mobile stores, and fill a form listing their options of the type of phone they want, color of the phone, screen size of the phone, features like audio player, radio, one  œtouch applications, etc. ;amp; all other specifications of the phone. ) Once that form is filled the Micromax staff can show a picture of the newly designed phone to the consumer on a computer and if necessary can make any changes and then finally place the order for such a phone. c) Payment terms and conditions can be advance payment – half the price of the phone at the time of placing and half at the time of delivery. This makes the consumer feel that the mobile phone company is not only generally consumer centric but it believes in the fact that every person is different and unique in his/ her own way and would have different needs and wants.Also this gives a chance to the consumers to become innovative and its definite that a consumer will definitely want to buy such a phone again from Micromax. 2) Information search: Its important to make sure consumers know about all the new variants and products that the company introduces. With the rise of the Internet, it has never been easier for buyers to research their purchase. It needs to make sure that all information is readily available on the website.They can break the resistance of lack of education by adding an educational seminar to their marketing mix to provide maximum information about their company, phones, promotions, variants, prices, etc. to not just the tech-savvy urban population but also the rural people. Their goal at this point in the buying process is to get their product or service in front of the consumer. They need to make them aware of their solution. 3) Check options: Once the consumer understands his or her situation and has gathered research on possible solutions, the mobile handset buying process enters an evaluation period.The consumer now starts to take a close look at specifics, such as the company providing the solution, the brand name of the product, and the features and benefits of each solution. Branding  and product differentiation are extremely important tools of per suasion during the evaluation stage. This is where the strategies listed above would help Micromax gain an edge over its competitors and increase the market share when a potential consumer would sit and evaluate his options while buying a cell phone. 4) Purchase: After a comprehensive review of solutions and specific products and services, the consumer makes a purchase decision.At this point in the buying process, supporting information needs to be provided to reinforce the decision to buy. Help the buyer by telling them what and why the company/ staff in the store would recommend a certain handset as they are the experts in that. Also Depending on urban / rural population, the company can provide different payment options or billing terms. 5) Evaluation of the purchase: The buyer will look for reinforcement from media, friends, and other sources confirming they made the right decision. Cognitive dissonance or â€Å"buyer's remorse† happens when the buyer begins to feel the p urchase wasn't right for them.To make sure such dissonance doesn’t occur they should offer warranties, there must be after purchase follow-up calls to make sure that the consumer is happy with the handset he/she has purchased, excellent after sales service by opening as many service centers as possible in all parts of India. It is crucial to building strong relationships with customers and encouraging repeat purchases that you not only provide a positive purchase experience and after sale support, but that you strengthen the buyer’s perception that they made the right purchase decision.

Coffee Speech Essay

General Purpose: Informal Specific Purpose: is on the topic of caffeine†¦ its beneficial effects AND its negative effects. Statement: also to inform coffee users about coffee. Introduction IOpen with impact: before you go to Starbucks store buy take and take a sip of your favorite coffee†¦ AWouldn’t you want to know a better about what you benefit and don’t out of your coffee? B I drink a lot of coffee, so I was wondering how that might affect my health CThis inspired me to do some research on the subject II Thesis: This knowledge better informs the user on what they are investing their money in. Connect: What you whant to know about caffeine is, A. Why do most humans use it. BWhat products have it CWhat are the advantages and disadvantages Preview: How many of you here consider yourself caffeine addicts? How much coffee do you drink in a day? One cup? Two cups? More? How about caffeinated sodas? Body I. Main point: Caffeine is pervasive in our society these days and every few months we hear about how a study has shown that it is bad for us or good for us. What are we to believe? A. Benefits B. Disadvantages C. Safe levels of caffeine consumption D. Effects on the body II. Main point: Today, I’d like to give you some of the facts about caffeine and its effects on your body. I may not cause you to change your coffee consumption, but at least you’ll be better informed about what you are putting into your body. III. (Transitional sentence: I’m going to talk about the beneficial effects of caffeine, the negative effects and discuss what are considered to be ‘safe’ levels of caffeine consumption Main point: Let’s start with the good news. Caffeine, which comes from the leaves, seeds and fruits of about 63 different plants, is well known as a stimulant. That’s why people drink it, right? A. Caffeine does help you wake up and feel more alert and it has been shown to increase attention spans. 1. This is a beneficial effect for people who are driving long distances and for people who are doing tedious work. 2. Calling this a health benefit may be stretching it, though staying awake while you are driving a car definitely contributes to your well-being! 3. Caffeine also contains antioxidants, which have been shown to have cancer prevention qualities 4. When consumed in small quantities – for example, when you have one cup of coffee or one soda – caffeine can increase your heart rate, cause you to urinate more (which can cause dehydration) and prompt your digestive system to produce more acid. B. When larger amounts of caffeine (over 600 mg per day) are ingested over long periods of time, they can cause sleep problems, depression and digestion issues, and headaches when not used. 1. Transition: According to a Medline article on the National Institutes of Health website, having caffeine in your diet is not of any benefit to your health, but by the same token moderate consumption is not considered harmful. 2. They say that having up to 3 eight ounce cups of coffee a day – or 250 mg of caffeine – is considered (quote) â€Å"average or moderate†. 10 cups of coffee a day is considered excessive. Also, remember that the amount of caffeine per cup can vary greatly depending on the type of beans that are used and the strength of the brew. Conclusion Summarize: As you can see, caffeine can have both positive and negative effects on our health and well-being. Nevertheless, the bottom line is that if you drink your coffee or sodas in moderation, you don’t have to worry too much. Close with impact: So, the next time you are wondering whether or not you should have that second cup of coffee to perk you up, relax. At least now you know what it will – and won’t – do for you! References before you go to Starbucks or any other coffee selling store or brands, buy and take and take a sip of your favorite coffee, Wouldn’t you want to know better about what you benefit and don’t out of your coffee? I drink a lot of coffee, so I was wondering how that might affect my health, this inspired me to do some research on the subject. This knowledge better informs the user on what they are investing their money in, Why do most humans use it, what products have it, what are the advantages and disadvantages. How many of you here consider yourself caffeine addicts? How much coffee do you drink in a day? One cup? Two cups? More? How about caffeinated sodas? : Caffeine is pervasive in our society these days and every few months we hear about how a study has shown that it is bad for us or good for us. What are we to believe? But Today, I’d like to give you some of the facts about caffeine and its effects on your body. I may not cause you to change your coffee consumption, but at least you’ll be better informed about what you are putting into your body, I’m going to talk about the beneficial effects of caffeine, the negative effects and discuss what are considered to be ‘safe’ levels of caffeine consumption. Let’s start with the good news. Caffeine, which comes from the leaves, seeds and fruits of about 63 different plants, Caffeine does help you wake up and feel more alert and it has been shown to increase attention spans. It’s well known as a stimulant. That’s why people drink it, right? This is a beneficial effect for people who are driving long distances and for people who are doing tedious work, calling this a health benefit may be stretching it, though staying awake while you are driving a car definitely contributes to your well-being! Caffeine also contains antioxidants, which have been shown to have cancer prevention qualities, When consumed in small quantities – for example, when you have one cup of coffee or one soda – caffeine can increase your heart rate, cause you to urinate more which can cause dehydration but it can prompt your digestive system to produce more acid. When larger amounts of caffeine over 600 mg per day are ingested over long periods of time, they can cause sleep problems, depression and digestion issues, and headaches when it’s not used. According to a Medline article on the National Institutes of Health website, having caffeine in your diet is not of any benefit to your health, but by the same token moderate consumption is not considered harmful. They say that having up to 3 eight ounce cups of coffee a day or 250 mg of caffeine is considered â€Å"average or moderate† now 10 cups of coffee a day is considered excessive. Also, remember that the amount of caffeine per cup can vary greatly depending on the type of beans that are used and the strength of the brew. As you can see, caffeine can have both positive and negative effects on our health and well-being. Nevertheless, the bottom line is that if you drink your coffee or sodas in moderation, you don’t have to worry too much. So, the next time you are wondering whether or not you should have that second cup of coffee to perk you up, relax. At least now you know what it will – and won’t – do for you!

Treating Animals with the Same Respect as Humans

Treating animals with the same respect as humans In 2012 there were 35 000 animal cruelty cases reported in the media all over the world. What is more, there are many atrocious videos posted on the internet in which animals are being ill-treated or killed. Statistically, one fifth of all domestic animals are not well treated. These facts arouse the question: ‘Should animals be treated with the same respect as humans? ’. In spite of the fact that animals are not conscious thinking creatures, they should be treated as humans because they are biologically similar to us and they are our companions.First and foremost, animals are biologically similar to humans. Their genetic code is similar to ours because it is made of the same nucleotides that encode amino acids. DNA is the carrier of genetic information in which our behaviour, appearance and genetic predispositions are encoded. Human and animals’ structure of DNA is almost the same. The best example is the DNA of th e great apes which is in 95 percent similar to the human. Even though many people can say that animals do not feel anything, animals are able to feel pain, happiness or anger owing to the developed nervous system.The typical examples of that are a dog which howls when it feels pain and a cat which purrs when it is being stroked. Many experiments were held in which e. g. chimpanzees were learnt how to count fruits shown on the screen and with the right answer they were getting a reward, and they were able to learn it which is the clear proof that they are able to learn certain conducts in the course of time. Furthermore, many species of animals are human companions. Choicely trained dogs are used to help blind people function in the world. Jack is one of the many people who without his dog would only have to stay at home and be dependent on his family.However, it is not the life that those people want to live and dogs are the unbeatable mean of helping them in their day-to-day activi ties. Secondly, enormously keen sense of smell that sniffer dogs have is most useful in rescuing people who have been trapped under the rubble because they can smell the scent of human in the places where the sight of rescue team is limited. Cats or hamsters are bred because of the very simple reason – they are ideal for children. Most of them are tame and they like being stroked. On the other hand, opponents say that animals should not be treated as humans because they are not conscious thinking creatures.The only way of communication between them is using primitive codes, not developed language e. g. bees are dancing in order to communicate something to others or elephants are making sounds that are not audible for humans. What is more, these codes are only used by them in order to survive their assemblage. All in all, no matter what opponents may say, animals should be treated with the same respect as humans. They are biologically similar to humans at the DNA level and the y are perfect human companions used in order to help people and beguile their free time. They should not be treated as if they did not feel anything.

Applied Pharmacology Module 1 Workbook Learning Activity Dropbox Essay

Applied Pharmacology Module 1 Workbook Learning Activity Dropbox - Essay Example They further will also indicate a specific timeframe for the implementation of the policies along with a detailed plan for the expenditure (How to Develop and Implement a National Drugs Policy, 2003). The key components include† selection of essential drugs, Affordability, Drug financing, Supply systems, Regulation and quality assurance, Rational use, Research, Human resources, Monitoring and evaluation† (How to Develop and Implement a National Drags Policy, 1988). As a paramedic, my estimation is that the role played by national strategy in formulating the greatest possible use of medicines to develop the health results of all Australians is very remarkable (About Quality Use of Medicines, 2008). This has also provided an opportunity for the paramedic like me to expand a consistent approach to prescribe medicines that supports quality use of medicines, safe practice, and effectiveness of healthcare services.   Hawthorn is a heart herb belonging to the rose family. It is white to brownish in color and united with its extremely rose-like, lobed leaves, and brown wooded stems. The herb also works well with other tonic herbs and, therefore, fortifies its effect on the patient’s body. The leaves, berries and flowers of Hawthorn are used by herbal practitioners in UK in combination with prescribed drugs to treat hypertension (Herbs and Dietary Supplement in the Pretension and Treatment of Cardiovascular Disease, 1954). â€Å"Hawthorn (Crataegus) may play a role in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and in particular, congestive heart failure† (Research Update of Hawthorn Fruit Extras Hawthorn Leaves Extras, n.d). Evidence gathered show that hawthorn may lead to anti ischemia or reperfusion-injury, hypolipidemic, hypotensive and anti-arrhythmic effects. â€Å"Clinical trials have confirmed that hawthorn leaf and flower extracts are beneficial for

HW Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

HW - Essay Example s tend to blend, by themselves, with each other revealing a whole new picture far from the simple colored square-circle-circle pattern you can observe up close. This is where you can view the real image of the person in the portrait. This was not done by Close through simply blotting dots on the canvass but each element in the pattern was carefully done with so much accuracy and precision that the colors are in their respective spaces in order to achieve the perfect disclosure for the actual image of the portrait. This technique has been tried by many artists but has been completed by only a few and yes, it can be asserted that Chuck Close is one of the few who did perfectly well in this art style. Denvir (1999) defined Impressionism as a movement in the Art History focusing on the depiction of the light’s presence in order to represent the passing of time the same way as Claude Monet portrayed in his painting Impression, soleil levant (Impression, sunrise) which clearly showed the breaking of the dawn through the vaporous frontage of the sun. Claude Monet exemplarily embodied Impressionism with the 250 oil paintings he made of the Lilies in the Pond series where each is unique from another in terms of hue and panache qualitatively. The intricate brush strokes vividly illustrate the position of the light indicating the time at which the work was completed. The works of Monet is not just a panorama of lilies in a pond from different perspectives but this series of artworks exemplify the sequence of time in an exquisite manner. The tolerant comportment he applied in his paintings made each of Monet’s work to be so engulfing; captivating enough for you to lose grip of the ground you are in. Monet’s Water Lilies, Morning; Willows is a great inspiration for Optical Arts as it shows imaginary movement through the wobbly patterns and the choice and contrast of colors make the painting appear to be moving. Though there is neither a defined perspective nor a

The Five-Task Strategy Making Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Five-Task Strategy Making - Assignment Example Monitoring significantly increases the chances of success of the strategy-making process because it offers a critical outlook of the whole exercise, including areas of weakness and how to correct them. Unlike monitoring, evaluation is concerned with what has been achieved. In this exercise, the organization examines the decisions and actions it has taken and determines whether they were successful or not. In case of failure or success, evaluation reveals the reasons for the outcome. The organization can then use this information to develop more effective processes in the future. Corrective adjustments are often done either to increase the success ratio of the process, or to develop better procedures and systems to support future processes (Neluheni, Pretorius, & Ukpere, 2014). The whole process of monitoring, evaluation, and corrective adjustments can be done by either internal or external practitioners. Ultimately, organizations should aim at limiting the amount of monitoring, corrective adjustments and evaluation by conducting highly efficient and effective planning (Valler, Tait, & Marshall, 2013). Thorough planning limits the need for intensive monitoring and evaluation and large-scale adjustments by reducing the number of mistakes made. There are three key elements of strategic planning addressed in this case study. The first is the development of a strategic vision, mission, and core values. The second is setting objectives, while the third is crafting a strategy to attain the objectives and the company vision. In this case, Harry Lindsol, who is a prospective investor, has conducted an analysis of the market and relevant trends before deciding on the best investment option (Thompson, Peteraf, Gamble, & Strickland, 2014). He has also made a strategic investment decision because his course of action is based on comprehensive analysis and evaluation of all relevant factors. A major advantage offered by eBooks relates to editions.

Perestroika and Glasnost Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Perestroika and Glasnost - Essay Example : The major factors of the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the Eastern Bloc are interconnected because internal conflict and the reformatory policies (say, Perestroika and Glasnost) of the later leaders hindered the full-fledged development of communism. One can see that internal conflict (say, ideological) and economic burden accelerated the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Within this context, political policies adopted by Joseph Stalin were totally against the people. Besides, the war in Afghanistan proved to be an economic burden to Soviet Union. The communist policies like control over media and single party system resulted in the totalitarian control of communist party over the mainstream society. Moreover, the arms race during the Cold War era affected the economic backbone of Soviet Union. Industrialization helped the military in Soviet Union to be the most powerful tool of the state. The lack of productivity resulted in the economic collapse of Soviet Union in 1980s. The measures adopted by Mikhail Gorbachev, like Perestroika and Glasnost, did not help Soviet Union to save itself from its ultimate collapse. In short, internal conflicts originated from political and economic factors accelerated the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the origin of Russia. The most important factor behind the collapse of the Eastern Bloc was the collapse of Stalinism in Soviet Union. Earlier, the fall of German imperialism at the end of the WWII was exploited by the communist leaders in Soviet Union to spread communist ideology in Europe. Perry, Berg and Krukones (2009), state that â€Å"Meanwhile, the Soviet Union created international mechanisms to oversee and exploit the region’s economic production and military resources, so that the phrase â€Å" Eastern Bloc† became entirely fitting† (p.311). For instance, the European nations like Hungary, East Germany, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia etc were under the control of Soviet Union, especially Stalinism.

1- Web API & 2- Rich Interface Technologies Essay

1- Web API & 2- Rich Interface Technologies - Essay Example Some of the factors that have fueled the growth of web APIs have also been contributed by the growth of mobile (Gosnell, 2005) devices and the need to distribute services across multiple platforms. This has been through development of web based applications that support sharing of data such as photos, geographical mapping and even online payment services. Business found using APIs have found that they ultimately increase their customer and partner reach by more than 70%. This is attributed to the ease in which businesses make connections as well as the fact by which companies ability to open up their services to more platforms and devices is improved. It can also be said that the use of web API’S have resulted in increased traffic and service use by participant entities. This has been attributed to a more that 60% increase in the use of Web services to companies. The creation and adoption of Web API has also seen the improvements of developer’s productivity that has greatly impacted on innovation. For instance the integration of email services with social media companies has highlighted but a few of these innovations. The use of web APIs have not gone without the challenges that come about with risk of attacks. Considering the fact that web APIs have often involved the use and integration of data, this has attracted attackers (Halper et al., 2011) to access privileged data either through SQL injection or XML attacks that have greatly compromised on the stability of web APIs as in most cases there operation are challenges due compromised latency handling of data. Evaluating web API from a business point of view it would be correct to point out that many business organizations and companies have realized that they can no longer expect to connect with a sufficient number (Halper et al., 2011) of customers only through a

Barry Bond And Jackie Robinson Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Barry Bond And Jackie Robinson - Essay Example Before drawing comparison of both these luminaries from the world of sports, it is quite pertinent to mention that these two players are from different era and Robinson was the first to break the concept of colour line in the history of baseball since his first appearance with the Brooklyn Dodgers in the year of 1947. And, he was the first black man to play in the league since 1880s. This fact helped him to bring an end to the racial segregation prevailing in the world of sports and particularly in professional baseball. He was an epitome of character and his impeccable talent provided a strong blow and challenge to the traditional basis on which the segregation was made in the area of baseball. He also made a considerable contribution in the Civil Rights Movement. On the other hand, the accomplishment of Bond as a baseball player is remarkable and this places him in a position unparalleled with the baseball players of all times. He has set a record of getting seven ‘Most Valuable Player Awards’ but in the personal front he had certain loop holes which makes him a diminished entity to an extent before the personality of Robinson.

MGT302 - Org. Behavior and Teamwork SLP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

MGT302 - Org. Behavior and Teamwork SLP - Essay Example The strategic processing styles combines to give four Strategic Patterns that are Changers, Performers, Perfectors and Conservators. Affect of Strategic Processing Styles and Strategic Pattern on Communication and Decision-making at Work The four strategic processing styles are of equal value but the two strategic styles that will give the optimal results are relational innovators and hypothetical analyzer. The relational innovator is capable of producing ideas and enjoys using unconventional methods. Hypothetical analyzer is able to resolve such problems which cannot be solved easily. The combination of these two strategic processing styles generates strategic pattern perfectors. Perfectors strategic pattern is the combination of planning and action. In perfectors strategic pattern the relational innovator has the capacity to produce new and innovative ideas and hypothetical analyzer is capacitive of analyze the idea, make changes to it or amend it and give rise to a idea that will certainly result in a profitable condition. The whole process of this pattern generates a circle of ideas and their examination which always produces new and innovative ideas and new businesses comprising these ideas.

Verbal Communication Essay Example for Free

Verbal Communication Essay Verbal and nonverbal communication can affect the way that communication is interpreted among many people throughout society and within the criminal justice system. Communication is the best way to relay information whether it is verbal or nonverbal. Both of these forms of communication can be effective throughout the criminal justice system from police situations, courtroom settings, and correction facilities to a juvenile facility. Verbal and nonverbal communication can be valuable when there is a police situation. In a situation such as a robbery, the witnesses would use both verbal and nonverbal communication in order to help the police with the investigation. Witnesses are most likely to use body language such as putting their head down, not looking directly at the officer or crossing their arms during an interrogation. They would also use gestures with their hands to identify different descriptions of a suspect or the scene of the crime. Witnesses are also likely to tell the investigator verbally what they saw. In a police situation where an officer or the chief of police is making a public announcement verbal communication would be the most important and the most used form of communication when making a public announcement. While making a public announcement, the officer or chief of police will have to verbally inform the public of whatever the situation is going on. Verbal communication would be the primary choice when it comes to testifying in court. Verbally, all parties in the court room setting would use this form of communication to get information throughout the courtroom. The attorneys will communicate verbally among each other, the witnesses, the jurors and the judge. An example of the communicating verbally when testifying would be the attorneys questioning the person that is on the stand which would be a witness or the defendant in the case. When the witness or defendant is giving their testimony it will be communicated to the attorneys, jurors and the judge in order for jury to come to a verdict in the case. I do also believe that nonverbal communication can be used when testifying. Nonverbal communication while testifying would include not looking directly at the attorney who is asking the questions. In a corrections facility both verbal and nonverbal are factors when dealing with your peers, inmates or other employees within the facility. Depending on the situation, I believe that both of these communication methods are able to be  used successfully to communicate with one another. When dealing with the inmates, using nonverbal communication could work just as well as verbal communication. Most of the time, once an inmate sees a worker or correction officer they will know what is to be done without the officer speaking a word to them. Then, there are times where officers will have to use verbal communication, to get a direct order across to an inmate. In particular, if a hostile situation that is taking place and they have to take in control of the situation. When dealing with other employees in the facility, officers can communicate with each other through verbal communication or nonverbal if they want to become discreet around the inmates. Most of the time, the employees may be verbal through walkie talkies or in person with one another. In a juvenile facility, verbal communication may be the best way to communicate with the juveniles. Juveniles may find it very hard to listen to direct orders coming from superiors but, communicating to them verbally will have a better outcome than trying to communicate with them nonverbally. Juveniles will respond to nonverbal communication such as gestures from the officers. Juveniles dealing with other juvenile inmates, they would use nonverbal communication. Many times juvenile facilities will have gangs or multiple juveniles who are friends or associates before they came to the juvenile facility. These juveniles will use nonverbal communication to communicate with each other under the radar of the officers. They may use gang hand signs, body gestures or possibly the way that they wear their clothing. If a juvenile rolls their sleeve up on their shirt, this could be a way of communicating with other juveniles telling them what gang they are a part of or if they are trying to pick a fight. Verbal communication between the juveniles in the facilities is also used. Juveniles would most likely speak in code to one other so the officers would not know what they are saying to each other. Speaking in code is a big form of communication among the juveniles in the detention centers. This could leave the officers out of the loop or distract them from leads on possible escapes or fights that are going to take place. Among all of these areas of the criminal justice system, all of them deal with verbal and nonverbal communication. Both forms of communication verbal and nonverbal are effective in all areas in the justice system. Police situations, courtroom settings, corrections facilities and juvenile facilities all use these forms of communication  different to make them effective for their use. Communication is a key part in making all areas of the criminal justice system function with clarity and understanding.

The Relic Short Story Essay Example for Free

The Relic Short Story Essay â€Å"Come here child†¦Ã¢â‚¬  the old man said to me. It was getting late and I had to go home, but there was something in his voice that beckoned me to take notice. I stopped in my tracks. There in the middle of the empty sidewalk where I was walking along.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"Come.. come†¦ I have something important for you to see.† The old man had messy long hair that have all turned gray and he wore clothes that seemed like rags. His face was wrinkled and dirty but his eyes glimmered of a certain youth that seemed so out of place. I walked towards him, without   clear idea of why I was doing so.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I was about to ask him what he wanted when he answered my question for me. It seemed like he knew what I was thinking. This added both to my wonder and terror of what I was experiencing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"I have something for you..† the old man began, â€Å"It is a relic of sorts and it tells of a great story that happened a long time ago†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   He reached behind him and produced a book, thick with dust and visibly out of shape. From my point of view, it seemed to be hardbound, but at that time I could not make out the title. He stretched his hand with the book clasped between his fingers. I tried to reach it but when as my hand was closing upon it, the old man suddenly pulled the book back.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"This book has a terrible, terrible secret!† he gasped, â€Å"It has been passed on from one owner to the next and on every owner, the book imparts its terrible secret when you’ve read till the end.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"W-what’s at the end?† I managed to ask.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"What’s at the end?!?† the old man chuckled, I could see that his teeth were rotting and the putrid smell of his breath reached my nostrils, â€Å"Child, you must find that out for yourself, but I warn you†¦ you must never, NEVER skip the pages. You have to read the entire book page after page. Learn its contents thoroughly before you arrive at the end.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"Y-yes I underst-and.† I stuttered again, probably due to all the confusion that the experience created.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"How much do you have on you?† the old man suddenly asked.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"What?† I answered with my own startled question.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"How much do you have on you, child?† the old man raised his voice and I cringed at its sound, â€Å"Do you think that this book is free? Hah!†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"W-well, how much is it?† I asked.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"Just answer my question!† came the old man’s response.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"I surveyed my pockets and was surprised to see a hundred dollar bill. Then I remembered that the money was my salary for 4 weeks of doing odd jobs for our neighbors. I thought for a while and then reluctantly handed him my money. The old man snatched it from my hand and then pushed the book to my face.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"Take it!† he ordered, â€Å"Take it and begone!!!†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   And so I took the book and went home bewildered at what had happened. The days followed and I began reading what I have acquired. The story within it was interesting to say the least and I was eager to find out its ending. However, I was mindful about the old man’s warning and so I did not skip to the last page. I read the book whenever I had the chance and after roughly a week, I was almost at its end.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When the time came for me to turn the last page, I prepared myself well and made sure that I could handle whatever it was. I turned the last page, hoping that the book would be merciful, a hope that was shattered to a million pieces by what I saw.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It was terrible†¦ terrible†¦. Joey’s 2nd hand bookshop sale price! $5   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Noooooo†¦.. The end.

Technology Forecasting And Strategic Planning In Dell

Technology Forecasting And Strategic Planning In Dell The prediction of technology can be described as foreseeing where technology is going to be in the future. Steps must be observed when a statement of a project is made. The choices and resolution ought to be gritty at the establishment of the plan succession in order to foresee the future and be aware of the technologys to apply. In addition due to the other alternative technology options, forecasting is required on a regular basis for companies, if possible the forecast result may be enumerated earlier and changes can occur. These results can be measured and this will approximate the level of the transformation needed. Another feature of technology forecasting is doubt about the impacts of technology in this world, for example inflation. Inflation is a decline in the power of money; it has influenced technology both in good and bad ways. Creditors will lose money and debtors will gain money when an unexpected inflation occurs. Tools such as field testing, interviews and prototype ar e been used together with forecasting to obtain assurance in the marketplace. Any organization that is capable of putting into practice valuable prediction will be more prepared to look for the stability between handling demand for goods or services and the ability or facility to meet this demand. The capability of utilizing this distinctive stability helps an organization to utilize this as a benefit for competition over its competitors. Strategic planning is the method of approach used in making choices and assigning its supplies to follow this approach. It provides the basis and structure of a business arrangement. Organizing the strategic plan of a business is an effective requirement for business success, without this plan most business will probably be unsuccessful. Analysis technique which dells employs for strategic planning is SWOT analysis refers to the strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threat that a company undergoes Strategic planning questions involve a number of of the following enquiries: -What do we produce? -What do the customers want? -How can we satisfy this want? Once the objectives and goals of the company are defined, strategic planning and forecasting have to be put in place to achieve this. The objectives or aims of an organization are basically a more visible declaration of the idea or vision identifying the undertakings to be attained if the vision becomes a reality. The set out goals are more recognized proclamation of the exact or precise activities necessary to realize the goals beginning from the present or existing position. At this stage, preparation developed should cover the following issues: Vision, Mission, Value, Strategies and Programs. The aim of this essay is to illustrate and demonstrate the various ways the company dell applies forecasting and strategic planning to its business operations, how they interact with each other and method used. The objective of this essay is to critically evaluate the concept of success of this company, followed by organisation factors researched on this topic. Methodology. Information was collected from Internet sources, Academic books and journals. History of Dell. Dell was founded by a man named Michael Dell in 1984.His aim was to designs and customizes its computers according to the needs of the customer. Michael Dell was still a student of University of Texas and the company was still called PCS limited. The year after Dell produced its first computer of its own specification and named it Turbo which had eight megahertz processor. What makes dell different is the fact that it allowed individuals to customize their products when ordering. Michael Dell made a change in the ways computers were been sold. Product line today includes desktops, laptops, and servers. The company make profit of 73million dollars in the first year of trading. In 1988 the company went PUBLIC giving shares for 8.50 a piece and changed its name to Dell. The first dell laptop made its appearance in 1991 and in 1933 dell company became one of the top fives company companies in the world. In 1996 their products were sold through the website. It grew between the 1980s and 1 990s to become the largest seller of computers. Operations carried out by dell include customizing hi tech products like laptops, desktops and servers. In 2010 dell has topped HP and Acer in the production of computers. Dell says the customer comes first and that is an integral part in the companys structural heritage and hierarchy is creating long-lasting partnership and working with them to provide their needs and provide solutions that support their success. The concept of solution being driven to address the specific customer challenges. Michael Dell said we are becoming the pc outstanding company not just the pc supplier (Hedrick and struggles,1997) in 2005 it took first place among the ranking of most admired companies issued by Forbes magazine. Dell has undergone a series of past events. one of which was achieving an increase in dual numbers in sales done yearly. The vision statement is to operate hand to hand with partners and supply readily products at all times including t he supply of quality customer encounter in the market place. Dells main opponents are HP and Acer. In the marketplace and small industry it encounters contestant from fellow direct vendor, gateway. As dell progresses into new service business such as creating of none computing products like television, it faces new competition such as LG. Dells achievement stayed through the subsequent years though could not completely stay away from the universal disaster of the PC business of the new millennium. Dells enlargement speed has drop down, ensuing in a decrease in its store value. On the other hand, Dell has been able to remain a triumphant business, as its increase speed persists to outpace the entire business. Distant from this, Dell has been determined to go into fresh marketplaces and, therefore make bigger its merchandise assortment servers, desktop, PCS also flat-screen TVs. Dell transformed its name in 2003 as of Dell Computer Corporation into Dell Inc., so as to reflect the growth of the business from a PC producer to a business that make available a broad selection of technology equipments Strategic Process of Dell. The strategy of Dell is crumbling income margin all through the PC market, a terrible growth for competitors who cant continue. Dell is charging its mechanisms not so much such as modern inventions except for airline tickets and little margin in products. Capability in Dell is quite rigid with many large computer suppliers like Toshiba and Sony. Societal issues also influence the commerce surroundings of Dell. Companies that sell computers have to recognize that in the Chinese tradition, individuals are still unconfident about credit card sales because of the enormous cost of computers in China. Corporations then must put in door-to-door or facial contact procedures to increase consumers reliance and consumers believe in the corporation and its merchandise. Dell also has attained the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System (EMS). Dell aspires at product plan, moving of goods and many more. Since part of Dells ISO 14001 EMS, the association put into operation of achievements where b y the aim is to make it get better inner trade environment performance in a nonstop development procedure which is applied to contribute to achievements all way through the company. Dell has placed to expand its product name further than ordinary computer merchandise by influencing its status as head of e-commerce. Dell began to re-identify in year 2000, as the corporation that is acquainted with how e-business work. It has contributed to its online transaction expertise with a small number of large clients as they build up their own E-commerce abilities. Dell features a few energy from its opponents; in the case of Information Technology as the EDI tool offer extremely efficient prospect in decreasing costs and it can launch the rigid connection involving Dell with its providers and Dell with its clients. Dell began trading its own kind of handheld computers, named the Axim, at little amount which can be regarded as high prospective and CEO, Mr. Michael Dell mentioned how Dells accomplishment lay in making it as simple as possible for a person to buy a computer. There are a number of applications that are presently life form utilized by Dell and they are essential to the important procedures of Dell production and the Dell direct which are its functional reasons for achievement. A few application are presently being made use of by Dell are important excluding the fact that they are not regarded for certain significant achievement. Mission DELLS STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS. Objectives Situation Analysis Implementation Control Key success factors for Dell includes: -Product customization for business and consumer customer -Economical prices -Better connection with suppliers -Produce customization for Business and Consumer client -Superior customer deal Outstanding cost arrangement Activity Large business and government Industry, home offices and small business Customer recognition and attainment Telesales supported by direct sale force in local offices Publicity and promotion Asset Open account and third part listing Credit cards and third party leasing logistic Manufacturing to order and shipment through third party carriers Manufacturing to order and shipment through third party carriers Business strategy: Dells Companys success is the connection among all of its competencies. The direct sale is dependent on the built-to-order system, and the built-to-order system relies on the supplier integration system. Hence a dell pc is intended to reduce human touches in making, contractor are certain to make sure high product excellence, contractor are physically included into making and the whole charge accomplishment process id run by a stylish mixture of inner and outer information A benefit of direct sales and build-to-order making is that costly catalogue doesnt put up in the path and doesnt gain its value earlier than it can be put on the market and fresh goods can be brought in not having to remove older inventory in the path. Dell know so much information about the end user, information such as: what product was bought from dell, how many products were bought, where the product was delivered to and so on. The following discuss how the company achieved success, the process involved. -Direct sales -Build to order -Supplier integration Direct sale Michael Dell said this direct association assemble important information concerning the client, therefore Dell is familiar with its clients, details that allow Dell to propose add-on products and services, and remain, in wide-ranging, closer to the client. this make available Dell with assets of promotion and manufactured goods growth idea. Michael Dell states that there are two major services which bring Dell closer to its clients: Premier Pages and Platinum Councils. Premier Pages, now called Premier.Dell.com, are modified IT procurement and help websites for big customers, which allows them choose and control their acquisition from Dell, hence leaving to salespeople a more review task. Premier.Dell.com stands for a personalized auction place and as Dell has discovered how important that is, it has enlarged the amount of Premier Pages from 1000 in 1998 to 50,000 in 2000 Platinum assembly are local gathering of Dells major clients, where management, salespeople and technicians talk about their practice with Dell and their requirements and prospect from the technology. in addition, Dells client understanding proposal, Dell meeting, the Direct2Dell blog and the Idea Storm demonstrate the significance that Dell set on its client interaction This model called the direct sale model has been in existence for ages. Dell Company produced almost all its products after an order was made by a customer. Presently, Dell is among on the few computer makers that builds their own personal product. This type of process has successful over the years. Its a competitive advantage over competitors, while also selling its products at a lesser price. Dell also managed to offload much of the financial burden of manufacturing to suppliers, and its manufacturing efficiency is legendary, because of this model dell has grown faster than its competitors HP and Acer. Final customer dell suppliers Build to order The original trading model that Dell has initiated within the PC business has broken the we contain to build up the whole thing existing vision of the globe and has administered to draw attention to constituent gathering as a deferential important action of a pc business, The build-to-order plan takes this accomplishment more advanced. Dell select dealers who are knowledgeable, understanding and the capability to transport products on time and their presentation is frequently assessed against pre-settled method. In fact, quarterly Dell gets together with its dealers to give straight response on presentation and upcoming prospect. The presentation is assessed with the help of a scorecard that evaluates each dealer with its rivals based on price, superiority, dependability and delivery. As compensation, Dells executed dealers are endowed with guidance and help in order to advance their progression. The method Dell used in developing maintenance for the 100 percent construction ability, importantly to enhance its need in planning and company appropriate performance, order to minimize the time taken in ordering delivery of services and improve the customers service. They went into partnership with Accenture to rapidly produce an innovative, high-performance chain of supply and development resolution. Because of usage of this model dell has grown faster than its competitors HP and Acer Presently, in Dells foundations is all over the world and the program paid an excess. The company has the ability to become accustomed more quickly and efficiently quickly varying technologies, and also keeping up with its reputation as a high-performance industry. Dell is a ruler provider of products and services required for customers to construct their technology infrastructures. The company was originated in 1984 and presently has about 34,400 employees in 34 countries, worldwide marketplace contribute in surfeit of 15 percent, and yearly revenues of almost $32 billion. Supplier integration Traditional computer companies had to be vertically incorporated and developed the many gears of the computer themselves. When Dell first started off, the traditional process could not be afforded. Instead, Dell leveraged savings finished by others and decided on the release of answers and system to clients, which is the mind of the direct business model. This has allowed Dell influence their relationships with both its suppliers and customers. Though the small amounts of dealers of Dell are the correspondent of associates and are treated as if they were actually a fraction of Dell. This partnership will last as long as each partner maintains its leadership in technology and of course quality. The dealers of Dell are given precisely what the daily needs of the company will be, thereby making it possible for the open access of information which is mutual sharing among Dell and its supplier. Technology boosts the economic incentives of such type of association due to the fact that it s peeds time to market and creates respect that is shared among purchaser and vendor This type of partnership, thus posses the challenge of change on focus from how much inventory there is as well as how fast it is moving and is calculated by inventory velocity, which has Dell functioning with dealer to repeatedly decrease inventory (stock) and increase its speed. The channel plan used by dell: The act of deciding a channel supply chain is an essential and effectual strategy which is very compulsory. The supply chain master can make a influential new channel that decreases its contestant s access to vital aim financial records and the marketplace area. There are battles between the producers, distributors and competitors over client possession by means of inter company supply chain associations. The success of this supply chain associations are the explicit ideas. The internet also opens new prospects and extent for enhanced customer deals. However the companies newly produced channel should retain the fit among a companies business form. in the premature period of a technology produce life cycle, distributors are significant for following innovative adopters. An improvement straight channel scheme gave dell these fundamental basics of its supremacy packed business model. The main suppliers of dell come mainly from pc makers who are of the same group. For example, IBM for t he hard drives as well as Intel which it has used for its sole source of its microprocessors. A decision which was imposed to simplify its product development but if INTEL is unable to meet its market demand as it was in the late 1999 and early 2000 then it would cost more. The manufacturing of dell is done in the united state but about 70% of its procurement is completed in the Asia appeasing area. Between 1992 and 1997 dell condensed its figure of supplier by 75%, plus about fifteen of these are its key suppliers who provide 85% of its materials. In other to reduce its complexity of managing its supply chain, Dell is in conjunction with these contractors in multiyear preparation as well as negotiating. Customer comment Market insight Extremely crisp product life cycle evolution Capability to manage costs on a actual basis Dell toiled at length to create an helpful supplier running function in command to cut down module guide times and uphold unconditional excellence standards necessary by the procedure. Objectives of Dells Strategic Plan: Swot Analysis: SWOT analysis which is part of strategic planning is used to determine the strength, weakness, opportunities and threats involved with Dell. This analysis identifies and specifies the issues which are positive or negative to dells business objectives. First the strength of the company which is been used to achieve the objects of dell, then weakness which includes factors affecting the business ,and then opportunities which will aid the achievement of these objectives, finally threat includes environmental or external factors which affect performance. The process of identifying these swat analysis is very important for businesses such as dell as it involves steps involved for achievements of objectives and development. Strength and Weakness relate to matters concerning the following resources: sales of a product, operations efficiency, product services, and cost productivity. -Strength: Dell is the Worlds biggest PC creator their products are one of the best globally, by providing customers with the best effective way to meet their needs. Dells proficiency is their cost strategy. They sell their products directly to customers thereby reducing consolatory. -Weakness: New product market on corporate clients. The company gets their suppliers from other countries that can cause the company some embarrassment. In the year 2004 Dell had to recall 4.4 million laptop adapters because of a fear that they could overheat, causing electric shocks or fires. -Opportunity: Bringing new products to the marketplace at an affordable price. Also introducing new products such as printers and also non-computing goods. Dell is selling low cost products to retailers in the United States of America. They rebrand for other companies gives the company new market segments. -Threat The competitors of computer companies pose a big threat in the market place world wide. rivals such as Acer and HP deduce the growth of the company. Dell gets product components from far regions like India where the work cost are really cheap, but this information is available to competitors, so they can apply the same process. Also as Dell been a global company, it is open to instability in the global exchange market. Variation in currency rate could leave the company exposed to possible loss in part of its supply chain. Technology changes is also a treat because of advancement of technology in the economy Monitoring the Strategy The help of digital nervous system nevertheless the CEO might find out what is going on the tactic front and on all other sides. This is one of the major strategic problems, can you supervise tactics and their results at any time they want or anywhere you want. The solution cannot be positive unless the nervous system is widely spread giving optimistic answers to a dozen other significant questions. 1. Has e-mail developed into the main internal message system? 2. Is it possible to get trade data information on-line? 3. Do they use PCs for trade study? 4. Do individual use the digital system to get rid of paper and official procedure? 5. Have you improved procedures to abolish single-task work for multi-functional tasks? 6. Does monitoring the system improve excellence and competence? 7. Do customers have feedback on-line? 8. Clients association are they put up into the system? 9. Do you converse by means of the digital system with all contractors and associates with the endeavour of restricting cycle times and hastening processes? 10. Is the middleman eradicated, replacing of deliverables? Getting right and accurate answers from the questions above has so many advantages and having wrong answers minimizes the companys efficiency. It requires no knowledge of technology and business awareness. The right answers underpin the efficiency of the strategic plan. Distribution Planning Strategy Demand planning includes push and pull system, understanding the customers demand on cost matters, positioning of goods at appropriate distribution centres all this to reduce working the working capital, a key to control inbound logistics with contractors and agreed maker. containing the fraction it requires at the accurate time to gather a pc, dell needs contractors to embrace record in store in a 15-30minute compel of its plant. Dell then notifies the warehouse when components have to be stocked up and they are taken to the plant, where they are towed off the truck according to their requirement. Dell prepares mechanism awaiting customers instruction (push) and it decides on the capability of gathering plants on customer order starting point (pull), it needs demand forecasting for these two issues. Both pull and push methods require future demand of customers. Customer order and manufacturing cycle Push and pull of Dells supply chain. Procurement cycle Pull processes Push processes Customer order arrives Supply chain strategy of dell: Supply chain management is becoming significant in this day trading globe. In addition in todays supply chains there is perpendicular breakdown of manufacture, signifying that businesses are liable to focus on their core capability and subcontract their logistics and less important procedures just to keep capital. Delay is a common run through, where there is a setback in result construction and particularly in developing of a produce, ensuing in improved forecasts about the end manufactured goods requirement over time Michael Dells calculated selection and his efficient method of understanding them have taken part in an important role in Dells victory tale. The major constituent of his winning company model of the corporation is its supply chain management; for this reason, a lot of theorists of Supply Chain Management tried to examine Dells SC approach, and quite a lot of businesses have tried to duplicate the business model, without accomplishing it yet. This detail illustrates the difficulty of Dells SC tactic and its exceptional method of positioning it to training. The important fundamentals of Dells business form are its direct sales model, built-to-order and supplier integration. A supply chain is made up of all parts concerned, in satisfying a client demand . In other words, a supply chain (SC) includes all organizations that collaborate in order to produce and deliver a finished product to the final customer, as well as the customer himself. Supply chains may be dissimilar in dimension, difficulty of dealings among the members and sharing of material existence. The supply chain of Dell includes: The client Dells website Dells gathering plant Dells dealers. Supply chain reaction: React to broad variety of quantities demanded Attempt to meet short lead times Handle a wide variety of goods construct high inventive goods Handle delivery doubt Responsiveness of the supply chain implementation High Low Cost High Low Separate from the direct model and build-to-order supply chain scheme, forecasters have treated with previous matters which will add to Dells accomplishment. point out, Dells undisclosed formula relating to its supply chain is suitable combination of procedure and individuals fundamentals from Michael Dells statements that our RD centre of attention on procedure and excellence development in developing and one of our main confrontation is looking for directors who can split and act in response to quick changes .The solution of supply chains is individuals, because they introduce the Supply chain into existence Support the Supply Chain Strategy with the Business Strategy Generally businesses build up a SC plan later than when business strategy has already been definite. At the same time as this advancement can distribute some worth, it does not maintain the combination into the business strategy enlargement of very prevailing SC model choices; this possibly will considerably advance the business strategy. The supply chain strategy has to at all times sustain the objective of the business strategy Forecasting Companies who are capable of putting into practice valuable forecasting methods and the capability of using this distinctive technique makes a will be at a greater advantage over competitors. A range of forecasting models to select from, Dells uses forecasting method to make decisions and plans about its future. Future researchers examine and identify the best alternative future features. It makes it possible for people to alter or be prepared for whats ahead of them in the future. No matter the type of forecasting we apply, there will be an issue about uncertainty and blind spots will occur. Dell uses long term forecasting method which is usually less precise than short term methods. The future is however filled with doubt. Information of the past makes available the raw materials from which the brain then constructs ideas of the future. The accuracy of dells forecast was between 70 to 75 percent due to its accurate account selection. Whenever there is an uncertainty in the company dell manager raises the forecast on high-end products because it is way better and much easier to sell up and high-end had a more extensive shelf life. Demand Forecasting Methods At the moment job environment gives professionals the face up to meeting the clients request instantly. Demand and Lead times are the most fearful numbers for many SCM professionals as they pose to stay elusive. This route gives you the environment of Demand and supply management, a variety of procedure as well as constituent of cost, procedures to put together, estimate and purify data and the statistical proficiency to apply different forecast models to maintain your company Steps of forecasting methods include the following: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Choose on the type of forecast à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Decide on the things to be forecast à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Decide the period prospect of the forecast à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Past demand for products à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Current state of the economy à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Collect the forecast information à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ put together the estimation à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ validate and apply findings Benefits of Forecasting -Enhance clients contentment -Decrease stock-outs -Programme inventions more resourcefully -Subordinate security stock needs -Decrease produce obsolescence expenses -Supervise delivery improvement -Improve pricing and promotion management -Settle better-quality conditions with contractor Difficulties in using Forecasting Technology: The rate at which the advancement of technology is growing makes it impossible to fully predict technology characteristics. Sometimes when the truth is staring right as us, we find it hard to accept it due to repercussion which may take place after. It takes guts and nerve to accept this allegation of the judgment .Nevertheless opposition to change is a normal human feature, it is tremendously tricky to endeavour ahead of our autonomy of approval in forecasting innovative technologies. The Future of Dell Dell continuously processes its business scheme, by ingoing into new marketplaces such as electronics so as to raise profits. The business has placed insistent income objectives approximately twice the received income at the moment. To assemble these objective, altering trading surroundings and the business usually changes its supply chain strategy. This is not only to make sure that the supply chain is strategy aligned with the business strategy, but also to keep ahead of the competition. According to CEO Rollins, Dell directs the important series in a more enhanced way than someones else on the globe; the single one close to us may be Wal-Mart. Outsourcing In the late 1980s companies in the United States began to concentrate on their core competencies. This started a move to outsource functions that werent related to a companys main line of business. Outsourcing business has grown manifolds and the present market is estimated to be around US$ 500 billion (M. Lacity, 2002). Outsourcing phenomena has caught the interest of academicians too and the academic researchers have analyzed this phenomenon in various perspectives. As an offshoot of this IT outsourcing, companies in the late eighties started to experiment with offshore sourcing to varying extent. Research has also been done in the overseas outsourcing of IT work to a limited extent. There has been a great deal of interest in the trade publications on off shoring than in the academic publications, for reasons such as adverse skill availability, cost savings and quality. Dell doesnt have significant amount of resources tied up in physical facilities dedicated to wining the first to market battle For each consecutive invention of techno

To Download Or Not To Download :: essays research papers fc

The Internet is an extremely useful resource. Using it, one can obtain information on nearly any topic. A relatively new item of Internet technology for sharing music has emerged and brought with it, countless legal debates: Napster. Napster allows people to share music files, discover new artists, and become part of the online-music community. Although Napster’s opponents argue that sharing music files is immoral and should cease immediately, the positive elements that Napster brings to the Internet overshadow any regret for its use. Marc Geiger, executive of â€Å"Artist Direct,† an online music-marketing firm and Napster champion, states, â€Å"Napster is totally community oriented. It brings artists and fans together, and can allow struggling musicians a chance to be heard; that’s what the program is all about. The more people hear the songs, the more they want {to} buy the CD† (Sullivan). Struggling musicians who do not receive widespread media coverage to enhance their own album sales find Napster invaluable (Sullivan). These avid Napster supporters can use the medium to distribute and publicize their music with literally no cost (Sullivan). Richardson, CEO of Napster, Inc., is promoting the good side of the software, and trying to make upset artists understand that this program is for the little guys (Sullivan). Richardson maintains that Napster will not hinder music sales, but will have an opposite effect (Sullivan). Napster is an MP3 file-sharing program that enables users to share their music with one another. Anyone with a computer can download the program, sign the user agreement contract and then start swapping music. The program includes chat features, top music sharing lists, search capabilities, charts showing the status of the file transfer, and other assisting utilities (Allen). The chat rooms allow users to converse and exchange information with other people â€Å"in† the room (Allen). The search feature allows the music consumer to search by song title, artist, along with a myriad of other variables. The file transfer element of the program allows listeners to manage file downloads (files which they are receiving) and uploads (files which others are copying) (Allen). Napster also includes a â€Å"library,† a utility for sorting and listing music files stored on a given computer (Allen). Napster users can also listen to their newly downloaded files with Naptster’s built in mp3-player (Allen). The program is easy to use and does not contain too much technical jargon (Allen). A Northeastern student named Shawn Fanning developed Napster in his college dorm room to share ideas and music with his friends.

Satirical Poem :: essays research papers

University Applying to college is a slow and painful process. Because it’s really hard to get accepted, unless You are better qualified than thousands, and their thousands. You know; the bank accounts in the Caribbean islands. I had to study really, really hard for the SAT’s, In order to even stand a shot into any of the ivy leagues. And luckily, My family, Can donate a library, Or instead of Columbia University, I’d be off to Albany. There are whole bunch of these so-called admission committees, Who skim through your extracurricular activities, Because that’s the only way you might be able to get in with those B’s. Although the wait is lengthy, don’t worry, because it really is fair, You see, because if you’re a minority, deny you, they wouldn’t dare. If the letter says â€Å"Sorry, but we can not accept you into the graduating class of 2005† You’ll survive! Because you can still resort to the U.S News and World report, And look at the next twenty-five schools for comfort. Worst comes to worst there’s a neat little trick, All you have to do is be born holding a lacrosse stick. Or if you really want to pull a rabbit out of a hat, Try complementing that with a baseball bat, Perhaps even a wrestling mat, And you’ll get in, just like that! And most importantly you must decide West coast or East coast and how long is the ride? But it all pays off at the end, with a job at Price Waterhouse Cooper or Goldman Sachs, So that at the 10 year high school reunion you’ll be getting the last laughs. What’s really amazing though is that with all these great schools this country has to offer It’s amazing that so many kids are still hanging out, smoking on the corner. Corrupting their minds with drugs and whores While all their spare time should be spent improving their scores. Taking test after test after test after test after test, Making sure their parents standards are met, and of course kept

Imagine a Brave New World Essays -- Brave New World

Imagine a Brave New World  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Imagine living in a world without mothers and fathers, a place in which all those around you are human clones with no personality, a vast array of people that are not seen as individuals but a social body. This society results from the absence of spirituality and family, the obsession with physical pleasure, and the misuse of technology. The society described above, becomes a reality in A Brave New World, a novel depicting how the advancement of science effects humanity. A Brave New World takes place in 632 A.F.(after Henry Ford, inventor of assembly lines), many years after civilization started to be controlled. Civilization is reconstructed into a new society after a global nine year war. The war was so brutal and tiresome, that the people decide to control the world's actions through means of science. The society predetermines human embryos to certain levels of intelligence, and chemically eliminates becoming sick or old. Children are placed in different castes to decide divisions in labor. The five castes are Epsilons, Betas, Gammas, Deltas and Alphas, with Alphas being the highest caste. To determine which caste they are placed in the children are given or denied certain skills and capabilities. The controllers rule the civilization though conditioning, behavioral engineering, and certain mind altering drugs called 'Somae'. The Ten controllers of the world states determine all the rules of the society. The societies dictorial government has chos en machinery, medicine and happiness over God. The citizens choose happiness and stability over freedom and individuality. Without sin and imperfection the citizens are nothing but robots in this Utopian world,a society built on b... ... dilemma in exchanging happiness for freedom and art to gain stability and control over the people of A Brave New World. A Brave New World is very enlightening and thought provoking as it talks about what it means to be human. The price that many people must give up in order gain absolute happiness and stability is freedom, love and religion, aspects of life too precious to omit. There is no war or disease to deal with, but the people don't have the chance to experience art, love and history. Through sacrificing and eliminating these aspects of life, a citizen is robbed of the opportunity to enjoy a well-rounded, mistake-making, lesson-learning, quality life. The aspired goal achieved from giving up freedom, love and religion seems appealing and rewarding, but the reality of the effects on humanity is proven devastating in Aldous Huxley's A Brave New World.   

Tencent Crossfire

Tencent, one of the biggest and most influential IT Corporation in China, had launched its signature first person shooting game Crossfire in 2008. Based on reported statistics, it has over a million online users every day1 and always ranked top place in a lot of game websites. Many Other IT companies always pursue profits when forming their price strategy, but Crossfire is free to play, which seems bizarre and risky. Ultimately, there must be other ways for them to generate the cash to operate the system as well as to earn profits. Firstly, Tencent promised Crossfire is totally free to play, but the underlying strategy is smart and shocking. People may not believe it because everybody knows there is no free lunch in the world. Anyhow, when they give a try, most of them feel surprised that Tencent might have kept its promise. It is definitely free to register an account and download the game package. Tencent will not charge you a cent for it even when you literally play the game. However, after few days trail play, the commitment Tencent made has become pale and weak. That is to say, not only you have to pay, you have to pay a lot. Crossfire is a game in which you will have a gun battle with other online users. People try their best to kill their enemies with the ‘weapons’ in their hands. The ‘weapons’ are usually a gun or other ammunitions, but they are virtual goods. When you are new players, it is capable for you to survive with a simple pistol because you are protected from high level players. Yet you will find it is getting harder and harder facing other veteran players with simple, basic weapons in your hands when you finish the rookie training. Thus, in order to survive, to save your dignity, or if you are already addicted to the game, you have to purchase the weapons you need. The higher level the weapon is, the more it costs you. In fact, this strategy is a very clever move in the online game market. By adopting ‘freemium’ strategy, Tencent enjoys 29. 5% share of revenue in China2 and is a nightmare for its competitors. First of all, the revenue is from creating and selling virtual goods at almost zero cost. Moreover, it is a great opportunity to expand their influence in the market. Sometimes, the choices of a teenager can be random. When playing a game, all they want to do is to have fun with their friends. So if many teenagers are attracted by ‘freemium game’ at first place, the guys left out will soon switch to the same game. When more and more people are playing this game, the social influence will emerge and spread out rapidly, and other products from Tencent can easily take advantage of this. What’s more, it threatens or even damages its competitors in the market. By stealing customers from other games, Tencent compresses the room for other companies since the time people spend on online games are stable. That is, they would not double their play time when he plays two games. Therefore, once a customer is attracted by Crossfire, the profit of the other game which offers hourly based payment will be hugely decreased while Tencent is risk-free with its ‘freemium’ strategy. Also, Tencent is a company that is very good at modeling consumers’ behaviour. Tencent knows that people don’t mind to give a try for free stuff because they think they have nothing to lose. This could be true in reality, but not in Tencent’s world. Online games are addictive, especially for teenagers. Instead of blocking teenagers out by expensive payment at first place, Crossfire let them in and enjoys the game. Then, as time goes, the simple challenge cannot satisfy their needs. Finally, they are addicted to the product and willing to spend money on it. Similarly, the proof is not hard to find in the Apple store, in which the freemium games are leading all app revenue models and are now  accounting for more than 65% 2of app revenue. Finally, ‘freemium’ age has come. As a consumer, it is necessary to know the fact behind the ‘fairy tale’ of free. But for a company, the way of earning money is changing all the time. As the saying goes, â€Å"nothing ventured, nothing gained†. Undoubtedly, Tencent is just the perfect explanation for the proverb. Reference: 1. http://en. korea. com/blog/tech/games/crossfire-%E2%80%9Creaches-2-million-users-in-china%E2%80%9D/ 2. http://www. buzzom. com/2011/09/online-gaming-market-in-china-reaches-usd-1-3b-chinese-firms-dominant/ 3. According to Flurry’s analysis http://blog. flurry. com/? Tag=Freemium

Chuck E Cheeses

Chuck E. Cheese’s â€Å"Where A Kid Can Be A Kid† Yvonne Bell-White The Catholic University of America This paper was prepared for Financial Decision Making, MBU 652, Summer 2011, taught by Professor Howard S. Steed, PhD Abstract In this analysis paper I choose to learn about Chuck E. Cheeses. I demonstrate my understanding of the categories of Financial Statement Analysis, which includes – profitability, liquidity, activity and debt (leverage). Our class was assigned a company for financial scrutiny and to obtain financial statements (Balance Sheet, Income Statement, and Cash Flow Statement), from the company’s most recent Annual Report. We are to prepare a written analysis of the organization with the following requirements: 1) describing the product or service marketed by the company; 2) evaluate the company in terms of the financial ratios we believe are most helpful in understanding the company’s performance; and 3) include a financial forecast for the said company for the next 2-3 years. We were asked to include an estimate of the company’s prospects for the company industry for the years ahead. Finally, the students were asked to give an oral presentation to the class using this information. I choose to do my analysis of a company called Chuck E. Cheese’s. This paper will explain what I’ve learned about the financial statement analysis categories. Chuck E. Cheese’s â€Å"Where A Kid Can Be A Kid† This class was assigned a company for financial scrutiny and to obtain financial statements (Balance Sheet, Income Statement, and Cash Flow Statement), from the company’s most recent Annual Report. We are to prepare a written analysis of the organization with the following requirements: 1) describing the product or service marketed by the company; 2) evaluate the company in terms of the financial ratios we believe are most helpful in nderstanding the company’s performance; and 3) include a financial forecast for the said company for the next 2-3 years. We were asked to include an estimate of the company’s prospects for the company industry for the years ahead. Finally, the students were asked to give an oral presentation to the class using this information. I choose to do my analysis o f a company called Chuck E. Cheese’s. In 1977, Nolan Bushnell, also known as the father of the video arcade industry, for his formation of Atari, Inc. , founded Chuck E. Cheese Pizza-Time Theaters. It’s a nationally recognized leader in family dining and entertainment. Chuck E Cheese’s is located in 48 states and seven foreign countries or territories. Each store feature musical and comic entertainment by robotic and animated characters, arcade-style and skill-oriented games, rides and many other activities to appeal to families and children between the ages of two to twelve. Chuck E. Cheese stores offers a variety dinning selection consisting of pizza, sandwiches, salad bar and desserts. There business development strategy is focused on maintaining and evolving their existing stores, by developing high sales volume company-owned stores in primarily densely populated areas and selling franchises in domestic and international markets. Chuck E Cheeses are typically opened in shopping centers or free standing buildings near shopping centers As of January 2, 2011, they employ approximate 17,300 employees – 17,000 field based and 300 located at the headquarters. Before investing into a company you should follow expert’s advice. Experts insist on the importance of research and doing your homework before you decide to invest in a company. In other words, dig deep into the company’s financial statement and examine everything from the auditor’s report to the company’s references. Begin your homework by doing a Financial Statement Analysis. The financial statement analysis is how you will identify the company’s financial strengths and weaknesses from understanding the items of the balance sheet. The categories of the financial statement analysis are: Profitability, Liquidity, Activity and Debt (Leverage). Profitability can be expressed as a group of financial metrics used to measure a company’s ability to make a profit as compared to its expenses, including costs acquired during a particular period of time. In doing my homework on my company, Chuck E. Cheese’s, I began with Profitability from the categories on the financial statement analysis, and continued to move through the other categories – Liquidity, Activity and Debt (Leverage). PROFITABILITY Profitability: return on assets (ROA); return on equity (ROE), price/earnings ration (P/E ration), dividend yield and dividend pay-out ration. Return On Assets (ROA) determines the effectiveness with which a company distributes and manages its resources. ROA is expressed as net income divided by the average total assets. The return on assets for Chuck E. Cheese’s is 7%. The amount of net income returned as a percentage of shareholders equity. Return On Equity (ROE) determines a company’ profitability by showing how much profit a company makes with the money shareholders have invested. Therefore the Return on Equity (ROE) is expressed as a percentage and calculated as the net income/average owners’ equity. The return on equity for Chuck E Cheese’s is 33% Assessing the ration of a company’s current share price compared to its per-share earnings is called the Price/Earnings Ratio (P/E Ratio) and is calculated as the market price of common stock divided by the earnings per share and he P/E Ratio for Chuck E. Cheese’s is . 15%. The Dividend Yield is a way to compare the attractiveness various dividend paying stocks. The dividend yield advises an investor the yield he/she can look forward to if he/she purchases stock from the company. To calculate the dividend yield, divide the annual dividend per share by the market price per share. Chuck E Cheese’s did not have the figures written in its annual report to perform calculations. The Dividend Pay-Out Ratio tell how well a company’s earnings supports the dividend payments. It is calculated by dividing the annual dividend per share by the earnings per share. Chuck E Cheese did not have the figures written in its annual report to perform calculations LIQUIDITY One determinant of a company’s debt capacity is the liquidity of its assets. An asset is liquid if it can be readily converted to cash, while a liability is liquid if it must be repaid in the near future. Liquidity is the company’s working capital, current ration and acid-test ration. The components of Liquidity are Working Capital, Current Ratio and Acid Test Ratio. The Working Capital measures both the company’s effectiveness and it’s immediate financial health. The working capital ration is calculated by subtracting the current assets from the current liabilities. The Working Capital for my company is $-17,210. A positive working capital means that the company will be able to pay its short-term liabilities. A negative working capital means a company can not pay its short-term liabilities. The Current Ration is used to provide an idea of the company’s ability to pay back its short-term liabilities. To calculate the current ration you would divide the current assets by the current liabilities. Chuck E. Cheese’s current ration is . 98. A high ration indicates a copy can pay its obligations. But on the other hand, if the current ration is under 1, the company would not be able to pay its obligations. The Acid-Test Ratio serves as a sign that help determine whether a company has enough short-term assets to cover the company’s immediate liabilities with out selling its inventory. The acid-test ration is calculated by cash, plus accounts receivable divided by current liabilities. The acid-test ratio for Chuck E. Cheese’s is 58%. If the ratio is less than 1 a company cannot pay their current liabilities and should be looked at with extreme caution. ACTIVITY MEASURES The Activity Measure measures the volume of activity and is used as a basis for allocating costs. To activity measure includes Accounts Receivable Turnover and Inventory Turnover. The Accounts Receivable Turnover (A/R) ratio is the number of times that accounts receivable amounts are collected within the year. If the A/R Turnover is high the company has a tight credit policy. If the A/R Turnover is low it says the company has a collection problem. To calculate the A/R Turnover – divide the sales by the average A/R. The A/R Turnover for Chuck E Cheese is 27. 57 The Inventory Turnover the Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) divided by the Average Inventory. This show how many times a company’s inventory is sold and replaced of a period of time. The Inventory Turnover for my company Chuck E. Cheese’s is 53. 44 (number of days for turnover) DEBT (Leverage) The Debt (Leverage) includes the categories of Debt Ratio and Debt/Equity Ratio. The Debt Ratio explains what part of a company’s debt has relative to its assets. It gives an idea of leverage and the potential risks the company could face. To calculate the Debt Ratio divide the total liabilities by the total liabilities plus owners’ equity. The Debt Ratio for Chuck E. Cheese’s is 79. The Debt/Equity Ratio can be calculated by dividing the total liabilities by the total owners’ equity. The Debt/Equity Ratio for Chuck E. Cheeses’ is . 39. The Debt/Equity Ratio measures a company’s financial leverage and says what proportion of equity and debt the company is using to finance its assets. Chuck E. Cheeses have an opportunity to further expand globally. They have formalized a strategic plan for international growth and are actively seeking franchise partners in key Latin American countries including Argentina, Brazil, Columbia, Costa Rica, Mexico and Panama. As with any company, doing your research and homework before investing is very important. I enjoyed learning about Chuck E Cheese finance and look forward to maybe one day owning my own franchise. After my research I have new idea for expansion and one day hope to invest.