Thursday, October 31, 2019
United parcel service and aviation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words
United parcel service and aviation - Essay Example This paper presents the detailed summary of UPS marketing in aviation sector and other aspects like what are the services offered by the United Parcel Service for the customers of UPS. UPS business has seen a remarkable growth in the last fifteen to twenty years.The extent of competition between their competitors has also reached to a point of saturation which is making the UPS aviation sector to entice the customers with lucrative offers. Due to this competition the other parcel service operators are also providing out of the air port services to the customers.In the process to achieve the targets set by the UPS, employees try to provide the customers with the best discounts possible. In addition this paper classifies how many types of air busses are available with UPS and what are the techniques or services offered by the UPS to target the customers. The name of the competitors mentioned in the work is only used for the information purpose and not for circulation within the media.T he role of UPS in aviation sector is quit evident because the aviation sector uses some of the best servers and computers related with high end aeronautic equipment used for aviation which should help UPS to grow maximum extent possible and hence UPS support and substantiate the uninterrupted break thru in the work culture of the present day business requirements.United Parcel Service started in 1970 first as a messenger company in the United States. Now its stake is approximately $36 billion. It achieved this position by focusing on the goal of enabling commerce around the globe. Today UPS is the world's largest package delivery company and also a leading global provider of specialized transportation and logistics delivery. It operates in 200 countries worldwide. The growth of UPS in terms of economy is surprising, who would have imagined that a teenage boy borrowing one hundred dollars to start a package delivery business would create a company that is presently worth more than thirty billion dollars. Jim Casey, who was the founder, with the help of his brother and friends started The American Messenger Company in the year 1907. Their main task was to deliver packages, different sort of luggage and messages. At that the main transport for the company was bicycle. Though initially they faced many problems their business was a success. The only marketing techniques UPS uses to target customers to use UPS instead of DHL, FED-EX, USPS etc are the wide variety of services they provide to their customers and global clients. They not only provide wide variety of services but also make sure that the services provided are above the standards set by the company. According to business and commerce marketing is done for which there is no market. The service that UPS provides has a ready made global market. UPS sure knows how to tap the global market. To tap the global market UPS instead of using marketing techniques it believed in providing high-end customer service round the clock throughout the year The most important and primary services provided by the UPS are. 1. Shipping. 2. Tracking. 3. Support. 4. Business Solutions. Shipping: A customer can himself create a shipment to what ever the location he requires across 200 countries worldwide. A customer can calculate time and cost required for shipment to a specific location.
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Lawn Care Case Essay Example for Free
Lawn Care Case Essay 1) A) Currently Lawn Care focuses on quality and innovation. Their product is said to be the best available with the highest quality grass seed and fertilizer in the world. They are also a very well known company which is another competitive advantage. They specialize in providing the best and quickly delivering the product to the customer demanding the product. B) The company perceives the quality of their products, and their direct delivery to be the order winner for the company. They provide what is expected, in terms of high quality seed and fertilizer, making this also an order qualifier. Another company, such as their competitor may consider the installation they proved to be the order winner, in that it sets them apart from their competition. C) CBP 2) A) Lawn Cares competitorââ¬â¢s current strategic mission is to provide a bundle package. Their competitive advantage is that they also install the product. They save the customer time, and create convenience for the customer because they do not have to find and contact and plan with a third party to have the work done. B) The competitor perceives the need for seed, fertilizer, and sod as the order qualifier, and the installation and additional yard work they provide as the order winner because it sets them apart from their competition, Lawn Care. 3) If Lawn Care were to add the application business to their existing business they would need to secure more employees. They would need employees who have experience in landscaping and are able to do the physical labor. This could take months to find and train the new employees. They would also need to purchase equipment such as lawn mowers, trucks, trailers, etc. toà assist in the application side of the business. This would involve using some of their assets to purchase and later on repair and manage upkeep, but they would achieve a gain in capital equipment assets. Lawn Care would also have to use additional resources to market their new service bundle. The addition of installation would not do the company any good if nobody knew they were now offering the service. It may be beneficial to the company if they contacted previous customers as well to tell them of the changes and see if they need any more work done. Changing advertisements and adding new advertisements and promoti ons would also take months, but would benefit the company in the long run. 4) Lawn Care would have to consider how the community and previous customers would react to the changes and whether they would find the change beneficial and take advantage of the new services offered. Stakeholders would be affected as well with the relocation of assets and the risks being taken by Lawn Care to add such a substantial portion to their business. The changes and how they will effect stock in the company is an important economic sustainability factor for the company to consider. The company was accused of pollution and other damage application mistakes before implementing this new service bundle. The company should consider environmental sustainability and because they would have more control of the application process than they did previously they will need to be more aware of how they are affecting the environment and what they can do to prevent any future claims against them. The company should also determine how they will market the product and how this will affect social sustainability. What can they do to make everyone aware of the products and gain back any customers they lost to their competition before offering the service? Lawn Care needs to consider how sustainable the service will be and make sure that it will be a lasting effort before purchasing the new equipment and implementing new processes.
Saturday, October 26, 2019
Procurement And Inventory Management At Green Chilly Management Essay
Procurement And Inventory Management At Green Chilly Management Essay The Company GREEN CHILLY is a restaurant chain operating in the UK. It runs several restaurants for takeaway meals and for people that will stop and sit down for lunch or during any other time of the day. The special approach of that restaurant chain is that to a high extend they source healthy food from local suppliers so pointing out their environmental responsibility. On the other hand they use a lot of other products that will be sourced by the central procurement organization. The company has 53 restaurants all over the UK. Altogether they serve around 16.000 meals every day. In addition they have around 23.000 customers stopping for smaller snacks. The restaurant chain is facing certain seasonality due to holiday seasons and weather conditions influencing customer preferences. Green Chilly faces some issues due to their successful growth in recent years: There is no structured procurement process in place. Quality issues with some fresh products (e.g. salads, vegetables) due to different local supplier performance have been identified. Prices for raw materials are assumed to be significant above the average. Shortages of some promotion meals have been identified. 1. Procurement Process Develop a structure for the sourcing process that the company will define for the procurement process. Which processes are especially relevant for production material (e.g. supplier selection, volume forecasting). Give examples. Discuss which processes of the strategic procurement process would be very relevant for either for food or for non-food (e.g. MRO, restaurant equipment, facility management) supply categories. 2. Supplier Selection Develop a decision making example of the selection of a supplier for one supply category. Discuss the differences between monetary and non-monetary criteria and include this in your decision problem. Describe the steps of your calculation and discuss, how sensitive is your solution against changing supplier performance. Set up the data for potential suppliers. 3. Supplier Qualification How could the company improve supplier co-operation and what would you consider as a program for supplier relationship management. Thinking of the food business what could be done by the restaurant chain to qualify suppliers and create closer relations. Try to investigate and illustrate best practices e.g. from fast food chains. Table of Contents Procurement and Inventory Management 2 COMPLETION DATE 2 PLEASE NOTE 2 CASE GREEN CHILLY 3 The key facts are: 3 Green Chilly faces some issues due to their successful growth in recent years: 3 1. Procurement Process 4 Develop a structure for the sourcing process that the company will define for the procurement process. Which processes are especially relevant for production material (e.g. supplier selection, volume forecasting). Give examples. Discuss which processes of the strategic procurement process would be very relevant for either for food or for non-food (e.g. MRO, restaurant equipment, facility management) supply categories. 4 2. Supplier Selection 4 Develop a decision making example of the selection of a supplier for one supply category. Discuss the differences between monetary and non-monetary criteria and include this in your decision problem. Describe the steps of your calculation and discuss, how sensitive is your solution against changing supplier performance. Set up the data for potential suppliers. 4 3. Supplier Qualification 4 How could the company improve supplier co-operation and what would you consider as a program for supplier relationship management. Thinking of the food business what could be done by the restaurant chain to qualify suppliers and create closer relations. Try to investigate and illustrate best practices e.g. from fast food chains. 4 Table of Contents 5 Question 1 6 Introduction 6 1 Procurement/ Sourcing Process 7 Kasavana (2004) stated, that the procurement process is a demanding, elaborate process, which requires knowledge buyers, capable sellers and thorough set of inventory and audit procedures. This is especially true in restaurants where the procurement function should ensure JIT (just in time) deliveries and high quality standards since its primary product (raw materials) have a short life cycle. 7 2 Strategic Procurement Process and Production Material Processes 9 2.1 Procurement Strategy and Organizational Development 9 2.2 Make or Buy, Segmentation of Supply Categories and Strategic Planning of the Procurement Volume 10 Figure 3. Pareto Analysis 11 2.3 Supplier Selection Process 12 2.4 Strategic Alliances/Closing Contracts 13 2.5 Strategic Supplier Relationship Management 13 2.5 Supplier Qualification and Development 14 The sub processes include identification of strategic suppliers, gap analysis of requirements expected by suppliers, a program for training and improving suppliers and monitoring the performance of the suppliers. 14 2.6 Procurement Policies and Guidelines Definition, Organizational Effectiveness/Efficiency Improvement 15 3 Strategic Procurement Processes that are relevant for either food or non food supply categories 16 Conclusion 17 References 18 Bibliography 19 Question 3 19 Introduction 19 1 Improvement of Supplier Cooperation and Supplier Relationship Management Program 20 2 Supplier Qualification and Creation of Closer Relationships 26 Conclusion 27 References 28 Bibliography 29 Question 1 Introduction Purchasing has evolved in the past years from a passive buyer of goods and services to an active contributor that is essential to an organizations competitive advantage (Cavinato 1999). Procurement is viewed by organizations as the activity of purchasing goods/materials and services at minimum cost, transporting them and moving them towards the production process. Procurement also covers a wider area, and may include activities such as material supervision and management as inventory control, traffic receiving, incoming inspection, and salvage operations (Laakmann and KÃ ¶hler 2010). Procurement in organizations has evolved from its traditional transactional function towards a role that incorporates strategic partnerships, cooperative alliances and supply network planning. Therefore procurement strategies can be seen as means in achieving comparative advantage and long-term strategic goals (Tassabehji and Moorehouse 2008). The procurement process incorporates both primary and a support activity, such as the procurement of direct and indirect material and at the present time also involves strategic planning (Simchi-Levi and Kaminsky 2003). Consequently, procurement processes have developed in to strategic procurement process that aids the organization to achieve strategic and operational objectives. In the next section Green Chillys structure of its sourcing process that will be used by the organization as its procurement processes will be developed and elaborated as which processes of the strategic procurement process are relevant for either food or non food supply categories. 1 Procurement/ Sourcing Process Kasavana (2004) stated, that the procurement process is a demanding, elaborate process, which requires knowledge buyers, capable sellers and thorough set of inventory and audit procedures. This is especially true in restaurants where the procurement function should ensure JIT (just in time) deliveries and high quality standards since its primary product (raw materials) have a short life cycle. In order to maintain costs and increase productivity, purchasing practises in restaurants need to be controlled. An inefficient purchasing order could lead to inflated costs of goods that could have a negative effect on the organizations bottom line (Kim and Shunk 2003) For these reasons, Green Chilly should structure a procurement process that may result in the improvement of effectiveness and efficiency and also cost savings. Activities that are usually involved in the procurement function and could be incorporated by Green Chilly include (Monczka, Trent and Handfield 1998): Commodity analysis Market research Purchase order tracking and follow up Determination of needs and specification for inter -firm customer Transmitting forecast of future needs to suppliers Supplier performance measurement Management of suppliers quality Contract management and negotiation Management of inbound/outbound transportation Price cost analysis Employing best practices in procurement certifies that Green Chilly shall make the correct decisions. In order to do so Green Chilly should align the procurement process with the organizations strategic goals and objectives. These objectives if suitable, can be achieved by sourcing strategies that rely on a clear set of tactical procedures to ensure implementation (Sollish and Semanik 1999). The focus of the organizations sourcing strategies is to integrate supplier capabilities with the organizations process in order to achieve comparative advantage. The activities that are associated with sourcing strategies include (Monczka, Trent and Handfield 1998): Supplier identification Supplier evaluation and selection Supplier management Supplier development and improvement Supplier integration to ongoing processes Consequently, the procurement function covers both the operational procurement of materials and services and the administration management of sources of supply. Therefore, Green Chilly should take into consideration the critical importance of the links between the strategic and operational tasks of the procurement process, as indicated in figure 1 (Laakmann and KÃ ¶hler 2010). Figure 1. Strategic and Operational Procurement The strategic procurement system is based on two main pillars that are the sourcing system and the strategic partnerships. These pillars are the framework for the operational sourcing process that shall be based in developing the sourcing process which will later be expanded in Green Chillys procurement process, as indicated in figure 2 (Laakmann and KÃ ¶hler 2010). Figure 2. Main Pillars of Strategic Procurement 2 Strategic Procurement Process and Production Material Processes The strategic procurement process is adapted from Laakmann and KÃ ¶hler (2010) for the use of this report and the steps of the process that is proposed for Green Chilly to incorporate for its procurement process are further expanded in the following sections. All of the below processes are relevant for the production of materials as each of the processes such as supplier selection, evaluation, procurement strategy and so on, as shall be indicated, play a critical role in the decision making and execution of producing materials. 2.1 Procurement Strategy and Organizational Development The first step in the development of Green Chillys procurement process is the establishment of a procurement strategy. In order for Green Chillys procurement strategy to be successful it has to incorporate the needs of the organization and to be in consistency with their internal capabilities as well as the competitive advantage that is to be achieved through the overall business strategy (Monczka, Trent and Handfield 1998). Therefore Green Chillys procurement/purchasing activities need to be consistent with the business strategy and make a proactive contribution the creation of corporate values and plans. The sub processes that fall under this category are the identification of needs, the definition of the procurement task, and the purchasing business system. As already established, procurement arises when the organization recognizes the need for materials/services and so on. When the need is recognised the organization should then release a material requirement to its supplier. The organization should make sure that inventory is always restocked. An issue has already been identified, where Green Chilly is experiencing some shortages in its promotional meals. In order to solve this issue a more accurate forecast of demand could be embedded based on historical trends. Various procurement strategies are employed by organizations to deal with different situations. In the case of Green Chilly, based on the information given by the case study, where quality issues with some fresh products and above average prices on raw materials are experienced, the organization could take under consideration two types of procurement strategies: long term supplier relationships and the total cost of ownership. In accordance to the first strategy (which shall be further expanded in the following sections) Green Chilly could establish long-term relationships with selected suppliers following a supply base optimization process. The outcome of this strategy is the it could enable Green Chilly to increase volumes of raw materials to reduce product cost, improve quality (by cooperating with suppliers) increase delivery performance etc. (Monczka, Trent and Handfield 1998). In accordance to the second strategy, total cost measurement could lead to better decision making as it identifies all the cost associated with purchasing decision and with supplier non performance. Cost variances can be analyzed such as in the case of Green Chilly, increase in prices and quality issues and try to find solutions (Monczka, Trent and Handfield 1998). The output of this process is the functional procurement strategic objectives, definition of the procurement tasks and policies, where procurement tasks can involve supplier selection and negotiation of contracts, specifications of the quality and delivery arrangements and price for inventory for a given volume or period time etc (Bradbury et. al. 2010), supplier cooperation model, and the decision requests for the general management. 2.2 Make or Buy, Segmentation of Supply Categories and Strategic Planning of the Procurement Volume In this category the sub processes include analysis of products, value chain and sourced volumes, make or buy strategy and strategic forecast of purchasing demand. Make or buy can apply to Green Chilly on the grounds that if the company would prefer to buy for example ready made packages of raw materials (salad package of various greens) or make it, based on whether it is financially profitable. Green Chillys forecasting demand can be based on historical volume trends and quantity as well as taking under consideration the seasonality that the restaurants operates, forecasts can additionally be made in accordance to last years sales to establish a pattern, when possible, of seasonality. As already established, Green Chilly is experiencing an issue with higher prices of raw materials and quality issues. In order to solve this issue, higher volumes of raw materials can be ordered (or based on the long term suppliers relationships better prices can be negotiated and quality standards) to decrease the unit cost. Since Green Chillys primary product are raw materials that have a short life expectancy the cost of carrying inventory is not advisable. Green Chilly could use the central procurement organization to negotiate better prices for such products. In regards the environmental responsibility the company wishes to maintain, it could attempt to source from local suppliers where economically affordable. In this category Green Chilly should take into account supply categories, demand forecasts, make or buy strategy, sales plan and product portfolio. The organization could use the Pareto analysis (figure 3) (Bradbury et. al. 2010) to aid them prioritise procurement activities and create a product portfolio by classifying products into A B C categories, and also decide which products can be sourced from the central procurement and which from the locals suppliers. Figure 3. Pareto Analysis Class A products are one-for-one basis, class C items can be ordered in large batches and class B products are somewhere in between. Green Chilly could for example, purchase class A products directly from local suppliers in order to ensure delivery and negotiate prices and let the central procurement organization purchase class C products to ensure better prices and vice versa. By using the Pareto analysis the organization can classify all its products and create a product portfolio that will aid Green Chilly in its decision making. The output of this process is that supply categories are defined, a structure is set, a make or buy decision is formulated and purchasing is forecasted as is the sourcing of demand. 2.3 Supplier Selection Process The sub processes of this category include supplier identification, supplier pre-selection, supplier selection and supplier contract. Figure 4 shows the funnel model of supplier identification and selection by Laakmann and KÃ ¶hler (2010) that Green Chilly could use. Figure 4. Funnel Model of Supplier Identification and Selection In this procurement process consideration should be applied to the supply market, the sourcing and procurement strategies/policies, suppliers cooperation models as well as the evaluation and audit of the results. Firstly, Green Chilly has to evaluate the requirements that are needed and also try to evaluate its sourcing requirements from suppliers that can include supplier quality (Green Chillys quality issues), cost competitiveness (increase in raw materials cost), potential delivery performances and technological capabilities (Zenz 1994). Then, Green Chilly has to gather and analyze information about potential suppliers. There are various methods to locate potential suppliers such as business directories, online search engines and many more. With the growing efficiency and increased interactivity provided by the web Green Chilly could establish e-procurement for a more effective product search, rapid data interchange from e-market places and e-hubs (Kasavana 2004). Once the research focus is established and suppliers are identified, a candidate list is created as well as a database with the information about the supply markets for future reference. A first cut based on the preliminary evaluation can then be performed to narrow the list of potential suppliers before conducting an in-depth evaluation. This can be based on criteria such as financial risk analysis, evaluation of previous and current supplier performance (Sollish and Semanik 1999). Additionally a further evaluation can be carried out based on criteria such as price, quality, delivery, responsiveness, capability and competitive value and many more (Zenz 1994; Lamming and Cox 1999). Suppliers ability to respond to specifications or the scope of the work can be investigated by an on site visit to inspect the suppliers facility and establish if the supplier qualifies to meet requirements. Additionally the suppliers operational capacity, technical capability and financial ability should be taken under consideration (Solish and Semanik 1999). Once the suppliers are selected and audited then negotiations can be conducted and agreements could be executed depending on the success of the negotiations and by providing performance feedback. 2.4 Strategic Alliances/Closing Contracts To create strategic alliances Green Chilly has to clarify its supply category and determine the required degree of cooperation. Establishing close ties with suppliers and increasing investment in value chain partners encourages trust, dependability and cooperation amongst the supply chain partners. Strategic alliances could lead to competitive advantage by revenue gains and cost savings (Chen, Paulraj and Ludo 2004). Furthermore, once the requirments are determineed, agreements should be negotiated and developed and measures of performance should be established. 2.5 Strategic Supplier Relationship Management The sub processes of Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) include the types of relationships the organization has to decide, definition of the organizations processes for SRM and establish a communication system and IT solutions for collaboration. Working closely with a few selected suppliers and establishing collaborative relationships Green Chilly can gain performance advantages. By sharing information with suppliers and communicating knowledge competitive advantage can result. Buyer-seller communication could establish trust for Green Chillys supply base, which can result in minimizing suppliers costs (raw materials) due to better negotiations of prices because of long-term contracts, an increase in quality standards and better evaluation of performance to increase quality as well as technological insights (Chen, Paulraj and Ludo 2004). Green Chilly can use IT collaborative solution software to improve communication with suppliers and gain new revenue while reducing operational cost (Kim and Shunk 2003). By automating more SRM functions, Green Chilly could reduce the levels of transactional activities and gain efficiency. The output of this process is to establish the types of relationships with suppliers, the activities for SRM, availability of sourcing/supplier information and collaborative processes for procurement planning. 2.5 Supplier Qualification and Development The sub processes include identification of strategic suppliers, gap analysis of requirements expected by suppliers, a program for training and improving suppliers and monitoring the performance of the suppliers. Effective supplier development for Green Chilly could begin by determining the appropriate numbers of strategic suppliers; by performing a supply base optimization Green Chilly could identify those suppliers (Monczka, Trent and Handfield 1998). This should be an ongoing process that shall help the organization to evaluate the best suppliers and try to develop strategic alliances with. Additionally, by establishing a supply network Green Chilly could qualify the appropriate suppliers that it wishes to do business with and by setting appropriate performance indicators decide which suppliers are suitable for their development program. A development program for suppliers that Green Chilly could incorporate is to work directly with suppliers to improve performance since the organization is experiencing quality problems with the performance of suppliers. By working closely with suppliers Green Chilly could assist in quality improvements and measurement techniques on how to identify and eliminate problems. Additionally, performance improvements that could be established are cost reduction (raw materials), delivery and scheduling improvements (shortfalls in promotional meals. For example Green Chilly could work with suppliers to develop a JIT purchasing and manufacturing system since the primary product of the organization is raw materials that have a low life expectancy such a development will be beneficial. The outcomes will be a better understanding from both parties, improved processes and delivery performance. 2.6 Procurement Policies and Guidelines Definition, Organizational Effectiveness/Efficiency Improvement In this category the sub processes that Green Chilly should follow are the evaluation of the procurement tasks and processes as well as the corporate policies and the development of a standard for operating procedures by giving a detailed description of the functional duties or steps for a specific task. Additionally a continuing improvement program should be established, a skill matrix for staff should be developed and an internal and external communication. Significant procurement policies for Green Chilly are for example the quality issues it experiences from local suppliers performance and the above average cost with raw materials. For a restaurant quality issues are critical in maintaining the restaurants credibility and customer loyalty (Zenz 1994). As already mentioned by collaborating with selected suppliers Green Chilly can deal with such issues by development programs or cooperation and selection of new suppliers. The outcome of this process will be the operational policies and management ethics, training and continuous improvement structures and the established sourcing process. Figure 5 indicates based on the above already discussed Green Chillys sourcing process that will be used as its procurement process. Figure 5. Green Chillys Procurement Process 3 Strategic Procurement Processes that are relevant for either food or non food supply categories Green Chillys procurement can de divided into the procurement of direct and indirect products. Indirect products/services are commodity items that are used in the day-to-day operations (MRO, IT equipment, services, capital equipment, facility management etc), direct goods include raw materials that are used to create finished products (http://www.clarity-consulting.com Accessed: 01/03/10). In this section the above processes of the strategic procurement process relevant for food and non-food supply categories of Green Chilly will be indicated. In the procurement strategy process where the organization requirements are identified and policies and tasks of the procurement process are formulated, it does not seem to be very relevant for food and non-food supply category. However the procurement strategy is the base for the purchasing strategy and it is where Green Chily shall make decisions on sourcing, whether to pursue contracts versus spot buying and suppliers recruitment plan and model. Therefore it can be argued that it is relevant for both the supply categories. In the make-or-buy and strategic planning of procurement and volume Green Chilly has to decide which materials is going to produce in house or source, and at what volumes by forecasting demand, thereof it is the organizations sourcing strategy. This process is the most relevant for both food and non-food categories. Make-or-buy decisions are usually very simple. Most organizations source production equipment, MRO supplies, capital equipment and services because they cannot manufacture them as well as raw materials where in the case of Green Chilly the primary (direct) products is the latter. Furthermore, the suppliers selection process and the strategic alliances process are considered very relevant for the food supply category. This is due to the fact that in these sub processes Green Chilly has to select the appropriate suppliers based on performance requirements such as quality cost effectiveness, delivery performance etc and establish cooperative relationships and strategic alliances with the selected suppliers. Due to the fact that Green Chillys primary product is raw materials price, quality and availability are of critical importance and this is dependent on the suppliers. Moreover, supplier relationship management process and qualification and development of suppliers process where the company has to develop trust relationships where open flow of information should be established in aiding the organization achieve comparative advantage by developing and qualifying suppliers that would provide Green Chilly with quality products and no replenishments based on contingency supply plans, this sub process is considered very relevant for food supply categories. Finally the procurement policies and organizational improvement process is considered very relevant for both food and non food supply categories as it is the stage where the organization evaluates its processes and tries to determine if good practices were applied or if improvement of the processes is required. Conclusion Green Chillys issues with suppliers quality, above average prices of raw materials and shortfalls in promotional meals could be resolved with the appropriate procurement process as established above. By creating a procurement policy where the sourcing process can establish efficiencies and effectiveness to select, develop and control partnerships with suppliers and thus create strategic alliances and overcome the issues as well as decisions on which is the most appropriate solution for sourcing, either it be form the central procurement organization or directly from local suppliers, shall aid Green Chilly in accomplishing its strategic objectives and goals. Thus, a strategic procurement process is vital to the successful performance of the organization. Furthermore by clarifying which supply categories, food or non-food, are relevant to the sub processes of the strategic procurement process shall assist Green Chilly to improve operational performance by making procurement tasks more uncomplicated and repeatable. It is highly advisable that Green Chilly should engage in e-procurement to enjoy online economies such as effective product search process, improved needs matching, rapid data interchange, lower transaction costs, enhance productivity, vendor relations, improved pricing and customer relationship management (Kasavana 2004). References Bradbury, K., Hill, J., Whicker, L., and Malins,M. (2010), Logistcs and Operation Management, Module Notes, WMG Cavinato, L.J. (1998), Fitting purchasing to the five stages of strategic management URL:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURLHYPERLINK http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2_user=10_coverDate=06/30/1999_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1238910197_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0HYPERLINK http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2_user=10_coverDate=06/30/1999_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1238910197_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2HYPERLINK http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2_user=10_coverDate=06/30/1999_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1238910197_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0HYPERLINK http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2_user=10_coverDate=06/30/199 9_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1238910197_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_user=10HYPERLINK http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2_user=10_coverDate=06/30/1999_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1238910197_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0HYPERLINK http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2_user=10_coverDate=06/30/1999_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1238910197_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_coverDate=06%2F30%2F1999HYPERLINK http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VGR-3WRBWC0-2_user=10_coverDate=06/30/1999_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1238910197_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_u
Friday, October 25, 2019
Ernest Hemingway :: essays papers
Ernest Hemingway Ernest Hemingway uses symbolism to help the reader gain a better perspective of how the protagonist feels in his story. Symbolism occurs when the author uses one thing to represent another. This helps to give the reader a better idea of the situation or feeling in a given scene. There are several types of symbolism utilized by authors. One type is conventional symbolism. Conventional symbolism is common to the area where the story takes place. While another type is personal which simply is closely tied to the individual. Still a third type of symbolism is universal, which hold a widely understood meaning. As we examine "Hills Like White Elephants" we notice how Hemingway integrates both personal and conventional symbolism in order to help the reader relate to the situation. As the story begins the reader is thrust into the lives of two individuals who wait in a small bar for their train to come. The symbolism is evident as early as the description of the setting when the introduction says, "The hills across the valley of the Ebro were long and white. On this side there was no shade and no treesâ⬠¦". This opening statement describes the actual landscape and also describes the situation that the two characters face which is dismal and dark. The reader might possibly wonder about what the other side of the hill looks like. The opening sentence might also be used as conventional irony since the hills are local to the setting of the story. The opening description of the setting later goes onto say, "â⬠¦the station was between two lines of rails in the sun". This also relays the current situation of the protagonist as being stuck between to sides. The reader experiences personal symbolism as the story advances. While focusing on her decision, she looks at her life says, "That's all we do isn't it-look at things and try new drinks". In this reflection, she is mentioning how monotonous her and her boyfriend's lives are with no change and no responsibility. Apparently the boyfriend enjoys this way of life in that he is the one pushing her towards his way of thinking without openly appearing to push her. The editors express their feelings of the symbolism used by Hemingway in saying, "Clearly the child begun in the girl's womb is a 'white elephant'"(book Arp, 184).
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Art History Paper on the Aljaferia Palace
I. Introduction The Aljaferia Palace is a medieval Islamic palace built during the 11th century and located in the heart of present day Zaragoza, Spain. The palace reflects the splendor attained by the kingdom of the taifa of Zaragoza at the height of its grandeur. Today, the Aljaferia Palace contains the Cortes or regional parliament of the autonomous community of Aragon. The structure holds unique importance in that it is the only conserved testimony of a large building of Spanish Islamic architecture of the era of the Taifas, independent kingdoms.As a work of art, the Aljaferia Palace belongs to the style of Mudejar Art. Mudejar Art, a style which is native and unique to the history of Spain, was a meeting point between Christianity and Islam. The term Mudejar refers to the Muslims who continued to practice their religion and their customs in the territories which became part of the Christian dominions as the Reconquest of the Hispanic kingdoms advanced into southern Spain. It cam e into being and flourished thanks to the social phenomenon represented by the climate of peaceful coexistence between three cultures: Christian, Muslim and Jewish.This system of artistic work ââ¬âa heritage of the Islamic traditionââ¬â left its mark both on Christian architecture and on its sumptuary arts. Mudejar art isà widely accepted as aà hybrid of Moorish, Gothic and Romanesque styles. After the capture of Zaragoza in 1118 by Alfonso I of Aragon during the reconquista, the Aljaferia Palace became the residence of the Christian kings of the Kingdom of Aragon and as such was converted into the focal point for spread of the Mudejar Architecture of Aragon. II. HistoryThe Aljaferia Palace was built during the second part of the 11th century in the Moorish independent Muslim state called the Taifa of Zaragoza, present day Zaragoza, Spain. It was built to be the residence of the Banu Hud dynasty during the era of Abu Jaffar Al-Muqtadir after abolishing Banu Tujibi of Kin dah dynasty. The Banu Hud were an Arab dynasty that ruled the taifa of Zaragoza from 1039-1110. In 1039, under the leadership of Al-Mustain I, Sulayman ibn Hud al-Judhami, the Banu Hud seized control of Zaragoza from a rival clan, the Banu Tujibi.His heirs, particularly Ahmad I al-Muqtadir (1046-1081), were patrons of culture and the arts. In the second half of the 11th century, Ahmad I built the Aljaferia Palace as the royal residence for the Banu Hud dynasty and it is practically the only palace from that period to have survived almost in its entirety. Later, in the 1200s, a coalition of Christian kings drove the Moors from Spain in a 300 year long campaign called the Reconquista. As Moorish territory fell to the Christian kings of Spain, the Aljaferia Palace became the residence of the Christian kings of the Kingdom of Aragon.The Aljaferia Palace served many functions throughout history. As stated before, it was built by the Taifas Kings of the Banu Hun dynasty as a leisure resid ence but was also a defensive building. The palace later functioned as the residence of the Christian kings in the Kingdom of Aragon after the capture of Alfonso I of Aragon in 1118. It was also the birthplace of Saint Isabel of Portugal in the year 1271. It was used as the royal residence by Peter IV of Aragon and subsequently, on the principal building site, a renovation was carried out that converted these chambers into the palace of the Catholic Monarchs in 1492.In 1593, the structure experienced another renovation that converted it into a military base, first according to Renaissance designs (which today can be observed in its moat and gardens) and later as military quarters. The building suffered continuous alterations and considerable imperfections, above all with the Siege of Zaragoza during the Peninsular War until it was finally restored in the second half of the 20th century. III. ConstructionThe Aljaferia Palace is a complex group of structures that have been built aroun d one another from the Islamic age until modern times, including Christian modifications during the Middle Ages. The Palaceââ¬â¢s original plan was small, approximately 70 x 70 meters, and it was surrounded by a continuous wall punctuated by round towers, only three of which survive. Two of these towers flank the entrance, creating a highly fortified exterior in contrast to the luxurious ornament of the small courtyard, so-called throne hall, and mosque that remain from the eleventh century.These spaces are distinguished by architectural motifs and an ornamental programme that evoke caliph al Cordoba. However, the interlacing arches and carved stucco ornament of the Aljaferia achieve a level of complexity and fantasy that pushed an established repertoire of forms into new realms. These diminutive, highly decorated spaces have been interpreted as settings intended to evoke paradise for majalis ââ¬â gatherings of the ruler and a highly exclusive group of companions ââ¬â at which wine drinking and poetic recitation took place.The Muslim palace is the best-preserved palace complex from the epoch of the Taifa kingdoms on the Iberian peninsula. The quadrangular enclosure still retains part of its original adobe perimeter wall. It is reinforced with large semi-circular towers and a rectangular tower on the north side called the ââ¬Ëtroubadour's tower' (Torre del Trovador), the lower part of which is the oldest part of the complex. Also in the Palaceââ¬â¢s original construction, extra ramparts were made in the open field surrounding the Aljaferia. With urban expansion over the years, the building has remained inside of the city.However, the city of Zaragoza has not been able to honor the landscaped surroundings of the Aljaferia. A freeway was built and now passes only a few meters away from the Aljaferia Palace. The best-conserved part of the Palace is the north wing. In this area, on the east side of the portico and next to what is believed to have b een the great audience chamber of al-Muqtadir, known as the ââ¬ËGolden Room' or ââ¬ËMarble Room', there remains a small octagonal mosque whose location, intimate character and small size suggest that it was designed as a private oratory for the king and his family.In the south wing of the palace, as on the north side, there was another large hall with side rooms and a porticoed area that served as an antechamber. Sadly, this hall was demolished in the 14th century to make way for the Chapel of St George, which in turn was destroyed in 1867. Nonetheless, before the demolition, a number of arches, capitals and other decorative elements were salvaged from this area, which has enabled the portico and two of its side rooms to be reconstructed in recent times. The oldest construction of the Aljaferia is called Troubadour Tower.The tower received this name from Antonio Garcia Gutierrezââ¬â¢s 1836 romantic drama The Troubadour, which was converted into a libretto for Giuseppe Verdi ââ¬â¢s opera Il trovatore in 1853. The tower is a defensive structure, with a quadrangular base and five levels which date back to the end of the 9th century AD, in the period governed by the first Banu Tujibi, Muhammad Alanqur, who was named after Muhammad I of Cordoba, independent Emir of Cordoba. According to Cabanero Subiza (1998) the Tower was built in the second half of the 10th century.In its lower part, the tower contains vestiges of the beginning of the heavy walls of alabaster ashlar bond masonry, and continues upwards with plank lining of simple plaster and lime concrete, which is a thinner substance for reaching greater heights. The outside of the tower does not reflect the division of the five internal floors and appears as an enormous prism, broken by narrow embrasures. Access to the interior was gained through a small door at such height that it was only possible to enter by means of a portable ladder. Its initial function was, by all indications, military.The firs t level conserves the building structure of the 9th century and shelters two separated naves and six sections, which are separated by means of two cruciform pillars and divided by lowered horseshoe arcs. In spite of its simplicity, they form a balanced space and could be used as baths. The second floor repeats the same spatial scheme as the previous floor, and the remains of Muslim brick-work from the 11th century can be seen in the brick facades, which indicates that the second floor was possibly reconstructed at the same time as the palace during the epoch of Al-Muqtadir. IV. Artistic AnalysisWhen the Aljaferia Palace became the residence of the Christian kings of theà Kingdom of Aragon after the reconquista, it also becameà the focal point for the outward spread of theà Mudejar Architecture of Aragon. Mudejar Architecture of Aragon is an aesthetic trend in the Mudejar style, which is centered in Aragon (Spain) and has been recognized in some representative buildings as a Wo rld Heritage Site by UNESCO. The chronology of the Aragonese Mudejar occupies 12th to the 17th century and includes more than a hundred architectural monuments located predominantly in the valleys of the Ebro, Jalon and Jiloca.In this area there was a large population of Muslim origin, although many of them were nominally Christian. Described as Mudejar or Morisco, they kept their workshops and craft traditions, and rarely used stone as building material. The first manifestations of Aragonese Mudejar have two origins: first, a palatial architecture linked to the monarchy, which amends and extends the Aljaferia Palace maintaining Islamic ornamental tradition, and second, a tradition which develops Romanesque architecture using brickwork rather than masonry construction and which often displays Hispanic-rooted ornamental tracery.The development in the twelfth century Mudejar art in Aragon is a consequence of the political, social and cultural conditions that prevailed in Spain after t he Reconquista. This art, influenced by Islamic tradition, also reflects various contemporary European styles, particularly Gothic. Present until the beginning of the seventeenth century, is characterized by extremely refined and inventive use of brick and glazed tiles in architecture, especially in church steeples. The Aljaferia Palace clearly exhibits the style of Mudejar Architecture of Aragon with its strong influence of Islamic art.The Palace was built using traditional models in Islamic palatine architecture: a large open central courtyard leading to all of the living rooms with two pools on the north and south sides. The ceremonial and private rooms, also located on the north and south ends of the building, are preceded by porticoes made up of mixtilinear and poly-lobed arcades that stretch the length of the central courtyard to serve as visual screens. In the Northern portico, there is a small oratory of octagonal floor, with the mihrab in one of its sides decorated with â⠬Å"atauriquesâ⬠, Islamic decoration based on vegetal motives.In addition to its Islamic influences, the Aljaferia Palace exhibits the style of Moorish Architecture. One of the most distinguished characteristics of Moorish architecture is the plain exterior of a structure with an exquisitely ornate interior, similar to the Aljaferia Palace. The Moorish people were nomads and lived in tents; this naturally translated into the interior of the tent being the one place that was decorated with beautiful textiles, lush gardens and simple, portable furnishings.The use of geometry in decor was a nod to the Moors' talent in structural design and mathematics. The Koran forbids the copying of natural forms so instead craftsman used stars, crescents, crosses, hexagons and octagons. These geometric shapes and patterns were created in wood, plaster, tile and textile designs and used these colors in their designs: red, blue, green, white, sliver and gold. The Aljaferia Palace exhibits these c haracteristics with geometric patterns and the use of these same bright colors.The Moorish influence on design is one that acutely reflects the religous and topographical influences of Islam and Spain. The interior elements of these buildings in clued: yeseria, artesonado,à horseshoe & scalloped arches, stalactites, simple columns and multifoils. The interior of the buildings were decorated with fantastic and minutely colored ornamental details. Elements of nature always included in these buildings were courtyards with gardens, fountains, reflecting pools and exquisite landscapes.The Aljaferia Palace encompasses these religious and geographical influences of Moorish Architecture with its scalloped arches, detailed engravings, and many courtyards containing both fountains and reflecting pools. From Christian times, it conserves a staircase of honor, several rooms decorated with sober coffered ceilings, and especially the Throne Room, that could be placed among the best works of thi s kind. The architectural and decorative elements of the palace are inspired by Cordoban models but embellished for the Aljaferia.The curious combination of intertwined mixtilinear and poly-lobed arches and the opulent vegetal decoration greatly complicate the decorative scheme. In contrast with its austere, fortress-like exterior, the palace interior presents great ornamental beauty and refinement that reflect two entirely different worlds: a defensive exterior with a refined and cultured interior where the sovereign and his court lived. The architectural style of the Aljaferia Palace is truly a combination of its many cultural, religious, and functional influences.It represents Islamic, Spanish, Christian, and Moorish styles and helped to define what we know today as the style of Mudejar Architecture of Aragon. VI. Conclusion The Aljaferia Palace is one of Zaragoza's top historical attractions. Unique in its historical context as the largest surviving example of Islamic/Spanish ar chitecture from the Taifas period, it is the only large building from the time of Muslim rule in Spain that can be seen outside of Andalusia region.Today the Palace serves as the set of the Cortes de Aragon. It is the most important civil building of the Aragonese heritage. References https://aulaglobal2. uc3m. es/file. php/37496/9. Islamicsin. pdf http://www. travelinginspain. com/zaragoza/aljaferia_zaragoza. htm http://islamic-arts. org/2012/the-aljaferia-palace/ http://archnet. org/library/sites/one-site. jsp? site_id=4821 http://www. spain. info/en/conoce/monumentos/zaragoza/palacio_de_la_aljaferia. html
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Andes - The Worlds Longest Mountain Chain
Andes - The World's Longest Mountain Chain The Andes are a chain of mountains that extends 4,300 miles along the west coast of South America and bisects seven countries- Venezuela, Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. The Andes are the longest chain of mountains in the world and include many of the highest peaks in the Western Hemisphere. Although the Andes is a long mountain chain, they are also narrow. Along their length, the east-to-west breadth of the Andes varies between about 120 and 430 miles wide. The climate throughout the Andes is highly variable and depends on latitude, altitude, topography, precipitation patterns, and proximity to the ocean. The Andes are divided into three regions- the northern Andes, the central Andes, and the southern Andes. Within each region, there is much variation in climate and habitats. The northern Andes of Venezuela and Colombia are warm and wet and include habitats such as tropical forests and cloud forests. The central Andes- which extend through Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia- experience more seasonal variation than the northern Andes and habitats in this region fluctuate between a dry season and a wet season. The southern Andes of Chile and Argentina are divided into two distinct zones- the Dry Andes and the Wet Andes. There are about 3,700 species of animals that live in the Andes including 600 species of mammals, 1,700 species of birds, 600 species of reptiles, and 400 species of fishes, and more than 200 species of amphibians. Key Characteristics The following are the key characteristics of the Andes: longest mountain chain in the worldincludes the Atacama desert, the driest desert in the worldincludes the Andean Plateau, the second-highest plateau in the worldlocated on the Pacific Ring of Fireincludes of the highest active volcano in the world, Ojos del Salado, which lies on the border of Argentina and Chilesupports a number of rare and endangered species including short-tailed chinchillas, Andean flamingos, Andean condors, spectacled bears, Junin rails, and Titicaca water frogs Animals of the Andes Some of the animals that inhabit the Andes include: Alapca (Vicugna pacos) - The alpaca is a domesticated species of even-toed hoofed mammal that belongs to the camel family. Alpacas are native to South American. They are kept in herds in the high altitude plateaus in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and northern Chile. Alpacas are grazers that feed on hay and grasses.Andean condor (Vultur gryphus) - The Andean condor is found throughout the Andes, although it is far less common in the mountain ranges of Venezuela and Columbia. Andean Condors inhabit grasslands and alpine habitats up to 16,000 feet. It prefers open habitats where it can locate carrion as it soars above.Short-tailed chinchilla (Chinchilla chinchilla) - The short-tailed chinchilla is one of just two species of chinchillas alive today, the other being the long-tailed chinchilla. Short-tailed chinchillas are an endangered species of rodent that once inhabited areas of the central and southern Andes. The species was heavily exploited for its fur and as a result their numbers declin ed drastically. Short-tailed chinchillas are currently classified as critically endangered on the IUCN RedList. Andean mountain cat (Leopardus jacobita) - The Andean mountain cat is a small cat that inhabits high montane regions of the central Andes. The Andean mountain cat is rare, with less than 2,500 individuals remaining in the wild.Titicaca water frog (Telmatobius culeus) - The Titicaca water frog is a critically endangered frog that is endemic to Lake Titicaca. Titicaca water frogs were once common but have declined due to hunting, pollution, and predationà by trout that have been introduced to the lake.Andean goose (Chloephaga melanoptera) - The Andean goose is a large sheldgoose with black and white plumage, a pink bill, and orange legs and feet. The Andean goose inhabits elevations of the Andes above 9,800 feet in Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile.Spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus) - The spectacled bear is South Americas only native species of bear. It inhabits forested areas of the Andes mountain range including Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru. Spectacled bears have black fur, keen eyesight, and distinctive golden-colored rings of fur framing their eyes.
Monday, October 21, 2019
Strategies for promoting excellence in a time of scarce resources essay
Strategies for promoting excellence in a time of scarce resources essay Strategies for promoting excellence in a time of scarce resources essay Strategies for promoting excellence in a time of scarce resources essayGM is one of the largest US car manufacturers, which holds a leading position not only in the US but also in the world. In spite of the steep decline the company has faced since the economic recession in the US in 2008, the company is on its way to recovery. At any rate, GM still holds a strong position in the US as well as in the international market being one of the largest car manufacturers in the world. In spite of the steep decline and bankruptcy run under Chapter 11 in 2009, the company has undergone consistent reorganization and has started the recovery to regain its position as the world leader in the car manufacturing industry.The vision, mission, and stakeholders of a firm and their impact on the firmââ¬â¢s overall successThe vision of the company is the creation of the brand number one car manufacturer in the world that brings customers high quality vehicles that match their expectations and are manu factured in accordance with GM traditions. The company is also involved in socially responsible operations and serves to interests and needs of its employees and local communities (GM Investors, 2014).The mission of the company is to design, build and sell the worldââ¬â¢s best vehicles that leads to a healthy balance sheet of the company and world-class products that are winning in the market place (GM Corporate Strategy, 2014).Key stakeholders of GM involve employees of the company, managers, top executives, share holders, suppliers, customers and members of local communities, where production facilities of the company are located.PESTELThe political environment is positive for GM because since 2009, when the company ran bankrupt under Chapter 11, the company relies heavily on the government support, while the government accelerates the reorganization of the company that leads to the enhancement of the marketing position of the company in the US as well as the global market (McC racken, 2009). At any rate, the government backup turned out to be crucial for the survival of the company in 2009 and, at the moment, the company has started revival through the complex reorganization.The economic environment is still quite challenging because the global economy faced a considerable downturn in the late 2000s but the early 2010s have brought the steady recovery, while at the moment the car manufacturing industry in the US is growing fast and has already regained its position as car sales have reached one of the highest levels within a decade (DePamphilis, 2012). However, GM as well as other American car manufacturers face the tight competition from the part of Japanese and other leading car manufacturers, such as Toyota and others.The social environment is also quite challenging because, on the one hand, the company attempts to bear the social responsibility with regard to its employees, while, on the other hand, the company has to save costs that means the reducti on of spending on social programs to optimize the marketing performance of the company. In addition, the company faces the pressure from the part of local communities, which grow concerned with environmental issues as well as economic ones (Gustin, 2008). In this regard, one of the main concerns of communities, where American production facilities of the company are located, involves the economic impact of GM and employment opportunities the company creates for those communities.The technological environment is positive and friendly in relation to GM because the company traditionally focuses on innovations. Technological innovations allow GM to introduce new products and improvements that make its vehicles more attractive to customers than products of rivals. However, at the moment, the company focuses on the introduction of innovations oriented on the enhancement of fuel efficiency of GMââ¬â¢s vehicles and their minimal impact on the environment (Breneman Taylor, 2009). For exa mple, the company develops new cars, which use alternative fuels, including hybrid vehicles using gasoline and electricity, or all-electric vehicles, or hydrogen vehicles, or flexible-fuel vehicles, which use either ethanol, or gasoline, or both.Environmental issues have become particularly important today and the company has to deal with them effectively to preserve their strong position in the global market. In fact, customers in well-developed countries grow more and more concerned with environmental issues. This is why the company has to match demands of customers but the problem is that GM was traditionally oriented on manufacturing of large vehicles, which have never been fuel efficient. As a result, today, the company has to change its production and introduce innovations to make its vehicles fuel efficient and, therefore, less harmful for the environment.The legal environment is basically favorable for the successful business development of the US. GM is the US-based company but the company operates globally. The US legislation is stable and does not raise barriers on the way of the company to its successful business development. Problems may and sometimes emerge, when GM enters new markets, where the company has to deal with the new legal environment. As a rule, the company respects the corporate standards and enters markets, where legal norms and rules are clear and transparent. Nevertheless, the international market expansion may raise certain legal difficulties, when the company has to create partnerships, for example, to enter new markets. Nevertheless, the US and other major markets have the stable legal environment that contributes to the successful business development.Five forcesThe bargaining power of suppliers of GM is basically high since the company uses reliable suppliers, which have the extensive experience of cooperation with GM. The major suppliers of the company are reputable and reliable companies, which are, to a significant extent, dependent on GM.The bargaining power of buyers have started to increase and reached the high level recently, although in 2008-2009, the company faced a considerable downturn in its sale rates.The threat of substitutes is growing to be higher today, as other car manufacturers tend to develop new vehicles using alternative fuels, instead of gasoline and fossil fuels, which prevail among cars manufactured by GM.The threat of new entrants is relatively low because the world car manufacturing market is saturated and the competition is tight. This is why new entrants will face extremely high barriers to entry, which they may not be capable to overcome. Therefore, the threat of new entrants is low. In addition, GM and other US-based car manufacturers count on the government support, which helps them to keep barriers to entry high.The industry rivalry is high and this is probably the major threat for the position of the company in the US and global market today. In fact, the development of the rivalry in the industry resulted in the difficult position of GM, when the company has faced the downturn in its business development in 2008. However, the company used to be the world leader among car manufacturers. Prior to the crisis of 2008, GM was the largest car manufacturer in the world. But after 2008, the company has lost its leading position and Toyota has outpaced GM and become number one car manufacturer in the world.The external environment for opportunities and threatsIn spite of the considerable downturn in the economic development of GM, the company still has considerable opportunities to expand its business and maintain the leading position in the US and global market. The company has huge production capacity and can keep growing, on the condition of the development and implementation of the successful marketing strategy that allows the company to optimize its marketing performance and enhance its position globally.In addition, the company can enhance its brand image and become the multinational corporation that promotes environment-friendly policies and conducts the policy of social responsibility for its employees as well as local communities.On the other hand, the company faces the threat of the tightening competition and increasing the public pressure because of the environmental issues. The tightening competition can undermine the position of the company in the global market.The internal environment of a company for strengths and weaknessesThe internal environment of GM contributes to the enhancement of its competitive position in the global market. The company has the experienced personnel and well-developed research and development department which contribute to the steady and successful development of the company.In addition, the company has a solid production base along with the extensive network of reliable suppliers at the domestic and international level.On the other hand, the company has a number of weaknesses which need imme diate elimination. One of the main weaknesses of the company is the production of large vehicles with low fuel efficiency. As a result, the company needs to develop new vehicles, which are fuel efficient that may be achieved either through the reduction of size of vehicles or introduction of technological innovations to save fuel and make them more fuel efficient.Furthermore, the company has to enhance its brand image through the development of the positive attitude of customers. For example, the US customers are not always confident in GM vehicles, which they consider to be unreliable compared to Japanese cars, for instance.Various levels and types of strategy in a firmThe company has several layers of levels and respective types of strategy. At this point, it is possible to distinguish three major levels: local, national and global. At the local level, the company focuses on the development of the production line, identification of local suppliers or supply of required parts from other units of the company. As a rule, this is the plant level, when the plan manufacturing GM vehicles develops its operations and operates in accordance to the corporate strategy.At the national level, the company develops the marketing strategy for the national market, like the US, for example. Operations and strategy at the national level involves the large scale business plan and long run strategy oriented on the development of the company within the national market. In this regard, the US market is the major target market for GM but, today, the company attempts to enhance its position globally and expands its operations entering national markets of other countries, including the EU, South Africa, Asian countries and others.At the global level, the company elaborates the global strategy oriented on the international market expansion and taking the leading position in the global market. At the moment, GM attempts to regain its leading position in the global market and to reach t his goal the company has to have the global strategy which determines the global development of the company.Ways in which corporate governance will affect strategic decisionsThe corporate governance has a considerable impact on strategic decisions taken by the company. For example, the centralized corporate government implies that strategic decisions are taken by the board of the company at the top level. This way of the corporate governance is not effective in case of GM because the excessive centralization slows down the decision making process and raises the problem of the low effectiveness of strategic decisions taken by the company. For example, if the company needs to take a strategic decision at the national level, the outlet of GM located in this country could take a faster and more effective decision than the decision taken by the board in the US. Similarly, the local management can take decisions at the local level more effectively and successfully than the board.Another w ay of the corporate governance focuses on the decentralization of the corporate governance, which is more effective in case of GM. To put it more precisely, the decentralization of the corporate governance implies the autonomy of outlets of the company located in different parts of the world. Their autonomy allows them to take strategic decisions autonomously in response to the changing business environment and particular challenges that they face at the national or local level. This corporate governance strategy is more effective because it makes the corporate governance and strategy more flexible. The board determines the strategic framework within which all outlets and departments of the company operate and they use their autonomy in the decision making process to maximize their effectiveness and to match the corporate strategy and strategic goals determined by the board.The relationship between strategy and organizational structureThe companyââ¬â¢s strategy depends on the org anizational structure. The corporate strategy is grounded on the organizational structure but, at the same time, the corporate strategy influences the organizational structure. The complex organizational structure of GM forces the company to develop flexible global strategy which grants local outlets of the company wide autonomy to make the entire corporation flexible and capable to confront changes in the business environment.In addition, the company has undergone reorganization since 2009 to optimize its marketing performance. The reorganization mirrored the new marketing strategy of the company oriented on the improvement of its financial and organizational performance. The company discontinued some brands and sold others, as was the case of SAAB, for example. Instead, the company focused on those brands which were popular and had the greatest marketing opportunities.ConclusionThus, GM is a strong company operating in the car manufacturing industry. The company is recovering afte r the steep decline, which GM faced in 2009 and which led the company on the edge of survival. However, after restructuring and reorganization the company is regaining its position fast not only in the US but also globally.
Sunday, October 20, 2019
Jules Verne The Father of Science Fiction essays
Jules Verne The Father of Science Fiction essays Jules Verne: The Father of Science Fiction The father of Science Fiction, a visionary French novelist, a short story writer, and a dramatist. This is the essence of the man we know today as Jules Verne. In his voluminous writings he foresaw a number of scientific devices and developments that were more than a century ahead of his time. Some of the inventions he imagined were created later in his lifetime, but some are still to be invented. He wrote over 80 books mostly before 1900 and a few of the things he described were helicopters, modern weapons, movies with sound, television and rockets. He was also the author of 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, which was written in the 1800's - years before the first sub was invented. Jules Verne was an amazing writer who predicted the science future of the world. He was popular with all kinds of readers: rich, poor, young, old, scientists, artists and rulers. Jules Verne came into Nantes, France on February 8, 1828. As a son of a magistrate he was a very ambitious child who was always eager to learn and be knowledgeable. His parents were also very interested in traveling and going on safaris to new and undiscovered lands (Verne, Microsoft Encarta). This was thought to have a big influence on his later writings. When he was six years old he began attending boarding school and when he was nine he moved on to St. Stanislas, a secondary school, with younger brother, Paul (Verne, Something about the Author). When he was very young he ran off to be a cabin boy on a merchant ship, but he was caught and returned to his parents ("Jules Verne" Encyclopedia Britannica). In 1847 Jules was sent to study law in Paris. While there, however, his passion for theatre grew. Later in 1850, Jules Verne's first play was published. He then dropped out of Law School and began to explore the field of theatre and writing more intensely. However, his father was outraged when he h ...
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Ethical treatment of native americans Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Ethical treatment of native americans - Essay Example Native Americans never understood the European ideology. They did not have a clue the reason the Europeans were able to fight for land. Native Americans believed that death makes one the owner of nothing. They also failed to understand the way one individual or group could ââ¬Å"ownâ⬠land because were not capable of owning the sky. It is this peaceful ideology of Native Americans that made them be the best target to the treaties and the land agreements gave by the United States government. The Indian Removal Bill was passed by the Congress in 1828, and it compelled the Indians living in the south to move to a new place or would be subjected to the state laws. The North strongly opposed this bill while the South supported it. The Bill that barely passed the Senate and House was a popular distribution support of the fertile Indian lands. The U.S. government was attracted into the Indians relocation since it provided the southern farmers with more farmland. As far as the practica l relocation went on, the task of relocating the Indians was in the hands of the Army, who by then often signed the work off to contractors. Attempts by the Indians at conforming were pointless and crushed quickly. The time Cherokees Americanized their tribe and adopted ââ¬Å"the American Wayâ⬠, the Georgia State quickly went in militias, forcing them on their way. Many Indians tribes fought for the U.S. against their fellow Indian brothers in return for the promise that the government to them that they would be protected against the removal.
Friday, October 18, 2019
Unequal Distribution of Property and Factions Research Paper
Unequal Distribution of Property and Factions - Research Paper Example The government must, therefore, protect these rights as they develop on the identified individuals with the abilities and the talents, as the key responsibility of the state is to protect its entire citizen and their wealth (Mill and Ryan, 2006). The government will tend to do this by enacting policies and rules that are geared towards the protection of both talent and ability. Talent and ability are one of the greatest resources of any given country since as the individuals become creative in the efforts to enrich themselves resource wise, they, in turn, lead to the growth and development of the whole country and its inhabitants. It is certain that property in the society is not divided equally and the property that is not divided equally exist in different forms which include the following:- there is the category which involves either land or business property. Some of the property owners in the society own property in form of land and indeed large tracts of the land depending on their ability to acquire the land (Rousseau and Cress, 1987). The other groups in the society own property in form of business ventures and franchises operating them jealously and zealously practices that are normally unfair and unjust. Moreover, it is coupled with a lot of irregularities and unfair practices; some of these practices are either ethical or unethical in nature. The round objective though is one that of acquiring property; hence, protection from the government of the abilities and the talent if called for (Mill and Ryan, 2006). The other reason that individuals in the society own wealth or property in an unequal manner are because of the sole reason that there are many injustices in democratic governments of the day.Ã Ã
12 linguistics branches Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
12 linguistics branches - Research Paper Example (Crystal, 1997) Morphology is like the mother who teaches the baby how to talk. This branch often studies how the words are constructed out of smaller units which have a meaning or grammatical function, for example the word friendly is constructed from friend. This branch has a sister two sisters called syntax which studies how the words combine to form sentences and the rules which govern the formation of sentences, and phonetics that studies speech sounds; how they are produced in the vocal tract (articulatory phonetics), how they are transmitted through the air (acoustic phonetics), and how they are perceived by the listener (auditory phonetics).Their mandate is to ensure words are correctly written and spoken. (Crystal, 1997) The screaming child, phonology studies the sound system of language; how the particular sounds used in each language form an integrated system for encoding information and how such systems differ from one language to another. On the other hand the curious father, psycholinguistics always studies the mental processes underlying the planning, production, perception and comprehension of speech, for example how memory limitations affect speech production and comprehension. This is to ensure the child speaks correctly with good perceptions of things. The twin brother of the father, uncle sociolinguistics, is also keen to the social factors such as social class, educational level, and age, sex and ethnic origin so that the child may grow to understand them to link in the sentences. (Crystal, 1997) The elder brother of the child, semantics who studies the meaning and how words and sentences are related to the real or imaginary objects they refer to and the situations they describe. This is to ensure that the child links together the words that are related. However the elder sister of the child, pragmatics is keen in on the context of the situation. He studies the use of language in communication, particularly the relationships between
Ethics and the Conceptual Framework Paper Essay
Ethics and the Conceptual Framework Paper - Essay Example This paper describes, analyzes and compares three areas which are: FASB conceptual framework, judgment & decision making in accounting and principle based accounting vs. rules based accounting. The conceptual framework of accounting was developed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The conceptual framework provides a value resource for the accounting profession, but the framework itself does not affect the day to day activities of a person working in the accounting field. It does not affect the practice of accounting directly since concepts statements do not require changes in generally accepted accounting principles, amend, modify or interpret existing accounting disclosure standards or require changes in accounting procedures or require disclosure of practices that might be in conflict with the concepts (Foster & Johnson, 2001). The primordial purpose of the existence of the conceptual framework is to serve as a base for the FASB in order to facilitate the process of standards setting for the profession. The organization is benefited since the framework provides a solid reasoning methodology which sets a reliable basis that can be utilized by the members of the organization regardless of who are the people working in any particular time period. The framework is a tool that brings consistency to the standard setting process. It helps eliminate personal bias from the standard setting process since the members of FASB are obligated to follow the conceptual framework. Another contribution of the conceptual framework to the accounting profession is that it helps create financial statements and other financial reports that are prepared in a consistent manner that result in reports which all users can understand and interpret in a similar manner. There has always been a dilemma in the accounting profession on the liberties that its professionals should have concerning the judgment and decision making criteria. Back in 1964 the organization that
Thursday, October 17, 2019
Hong Kong Market Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words
Hong Kong Market - Essay Example The paper tells that market research is understood to be a scientific process concerned with gathering and processing critical information, which can be used in marketing management decisions. Due to this, marketing research is considered a critical part of a marketing intelligence system that in most cases functions to improve management decisions using timely, relevant, and accurate information. Marketing research has become popular in many organizations due to perceived benefits the process is seen to generate. For instance, smart organizations have been able to achieve and sustain their competitive advantage by using market information in the most creative manner. Moreover, organizations that adequately satisfy the needs of their consumers have done so by intelligently and creatively using appropriate market research information. Therefore, at this point it can be stated that market research is critical in the modern world especially in the age of globalization and increased cons umerism. Consumers in Hong Kong, just like consumers in other societies are likely to exhibit varied behaviors with regard to consumption. Although consumption is an aspect that is synonymous with all societies, numerous evidences have shown that societies across cultures differ in terms of consumption behavior, consumption pattern, and the overall consumption culture. This is to say, consumption behaviors exhibited by consumers in Hong Kong are likely to differ to behaviors exhibited by consumers in other regions. ... erous evidences have shown that societies across cultures differ in terms of consumption behavior, consumption pattern, and the overall consumption culture (Hoyer and Macinnis, 2009). This is to say, consumption behaviors exhibited by consumers in Hong Kong are likely to differ to behaviors exhibited by consumers in other regions. Therefore, the discovery makes it virtually impossible to generalize consumer behavior across cultures. As a result, introducing a new flavor of soft drink in Hong Kong market will require the company to undertake a detailed market research that aims to identify specific consumer behaviors that are likely to influence or impact the marketing process. Accurate intelligence information about how consumers in Hong Kong consumer products in terms of beliefs, values, demographic factors, socio-economic aspects, cultural issues, lifestyles, and many more (Hoyer and Macinnis 2009). This is critically important since such information will help the management team o f the company to initiate appropriate strategies of marketing for the new product to succeed in the new market. Marketing Research Design In order to successfully carry out market research, the researchers have to develop and implement the most appropriate research design techniques. Consequently, the usefulness of research project is likely to be realized when there is evidence of quality of research design, coupled with appropriate data collection and analysis process based on the design. Research design in marketing research involves identifying the best research methods that are appropriate in obtaining the required data (Churchill and Lacobucci, 2009). As a result, validity and reliability of data to be collected, which is critical in research process depends a lot on the type of
The Model of European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Essay
The Model of European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) - Essay Example The article takes a deeper look at EFQM Model as one of the non-prescriptive models, which has not come under origination to a very long time back, as the historical evidences provides with the information that this model came into emergence somewhere in the latter part of the twentieth century. However, since then it has come under constant review and alterations in order to provide the organizations with a framework that can lead to organizational improvement in terms of its performance. The Model of European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) has come under practical application by numerous organizations from all around the world. This model lay key prominence on the businesses to have an evaluation about the organization's processes and projects on individual basis so that they can know at what positions they are standing, as the ultimate goal of any organization is to attain success and prosperity. This way the organizations have an opportunity to discover their key areas of potential and the gaps that are preventing them to attain their strategic aims and objectives. The EFQM Model exhibits the agenda that it comes under execution by the business community for administering and managing an organization. Thousands of firms and businesses in different commercial facets all over the world specifically in Europe employ this methodology to improve and enhance their performances. This allows them to analyze their overall functioning and operations in diverse aspects. EFQM is a technique that comes under employment by giant corporations as well as small and medium sized enterprises and highlights its current position (Jonker and Eskildsen, 2009, pp.174-175). It also brings to the forefront the strong points and weak areas of the firm. To augment the efficient transfer and sharing of positive working and business ideas and thoughts, a reliable link comes under provision by nine criteria of EFQM scheme. Furthermore, the ongoing projects and the upcoming plan s come under thorough assessment to incorporate them in the approved manner for smooth and well-organized functioning of the organization. The purpose is also to evaluate any loopholes in the plans and to eliminate the possibility of any sort of repetition in the objectives and outlines. This is conducive to enabling the organization to see an unambiguous picture of their working and use it appropriately to decide their priorities and implement them effectively to attain success (Jonker and Eskil
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Ethics and the Conceptual Framework Paper Essay
Ethics and the Conceptual Framework Paper - Essay Example This paper describes, analyzes and compares three areas which are: FASB conceptual framework, judgment & decision making in accounting and principle based accounting vs. rules based accounting. The conceptual framework of accounting was developed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The conceptual framework provides a value resource for the accounting profession, but the framework itself does not affect the day to day activities of a person working in the accounting field. It does not affect the practice of accounting directly since concepts statements do not require changes in generally accepted accounting principles, amend, modify or interpret existing accounting disclosure standards or require changes in accounting procedures or require disclosure of practices that might be in conflict with the concepts (Foster & Johnson, 2001). The primordial purpose of the existence of the conceptual framework is to serve as a base for the FASB in order to facilitate the process of standards setting for the profession. The organization is benefited since the framework provides a solid reasoning methodology which sets a reliable basis that can be utilized by the members of the organization regardless of who are the people working in any particular time period. The framework is a tool that brings consistency to the standard setting process. It helps eliminate personal bias from the standard setting process since the members of FASB are obligated to follow the conceptual framework. Another contribution of the conceptual framework to the accounting profession is that it helps create financial statements and other financial reports that are prepared in a consistent manner that result in reports which all users can understand and interpret in a similar manner. There has always been a dilemma in the accounting profession on the liberties that its professionals should have concerning the judgment and decision making criteria. Back in 1964 the organization that
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
The Model of European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Essay
The Model of European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) - Essay Example The article takes a deeper look at EFQM Model as one of the non-prescriptive models, which has not come under origination to a very long time back, as the historical evidences provides with the information that this model came into emergence somewhere in the latter part of the twentieth century. However, since then it has come under constant review and alterations in order to provide the organizations with a framework that can lead to organizational improvement in terms of its performance. The Model of European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) has come under practical application by numerous organizations from all around the world. This model lay key prominence on the businesses to have an evaluation about the organization's processes and projects on individual basis so that they can know at what positions they are standing, as the ultimate goal of any organization is to attain success and prosperity. This way the organizations have an opportunity to discover their key areas of potential and the gaps that are preventing them to attain their strategic aims and objectives. The EFQM Model exhibits the agenda that it comes under execution by the business community for administering and managing an organization. Thousands of firms and businesses in different commercial facets all over the world specifically in Europe employ this methodology to improve and enhance their performances. This allows them to analyze their overall functioning and operations in diverse aspects. EFQM is a technique that comes under employment by giant corporations as well as small and medium sized enterprises and highlights its current position (Jonker and Eskildsen, 2009, pp.174-175). It also brings to the forefront the strong points and weak areas of the firm. To augment the efficient transfer and sharing of positive working and business ideas and thoughts, a reliable link comes under provision by nine criteria of EFQM scheme. Furthermore, the ongoing projects and the upcoming plan s come under thorough assessment to incorporate them in the approved manner for smooth and well-organized functioning of the organization. The purpose is also to evaluate any loopholes in the plans and to eliminate the possibility of any sort of repetition in the objectives and outlines. This is conducive to enabling the organization to see an unambiguous picture of their working and use it appropriately to decide their priorities and implement them effectively to attain success (Jonker and Eskil
Top Reasons Why Students Fail Chemistry Essay Example for Free
Top Reasons Why Students Fail Chemistry Essay See More About: * chemistry top picks * chemistry homework help * study tips Are you taking a chemistry class? Are you worried you might not pass? Chemistry is a subject many students prefer to avoid, even if they have an interest in science, because of its reputation for lowering grade point averages. However, it isnt as bad as it seems, especially if you avoid these common mistakes. 1. Procrastinating Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow, right? Wrong! The first few days in a chemistry class may be very easy and could lull you into a false sense of security. Dont put off doing homework or studying until halfway through the class. Mastering chemistry requires you to build concept upon concept. If you miss the basics, youll get yourself into trouble. Pace yourself. Set aside a small segment of time each day for chemistry. It will help you to gain long-term mastery. 2. Dont cram. Dont go into chemistry until you understand the basics of algebra. Geometry helps, too. You will need to be able to perform unit conversions. Expect to work chemistry problems on a daily basis. Dont rely too much on a calculator. Chemistry and physics use math as an essential tool. 3. Not Getting or Reading the Text Yes, there are classes in which the text is optional or completely useless. This isnt one of those classes. Get the text. Read it! Ditto for any required lab manuals. Even if the lectures are fantastic, youll need the book for the homework assignments. A study guide may be of limited use, but the basic text is a must-have. 4. Psyching Yourself Out I think I can, I think I can you have to have a positive attitude toward chemistry. If you truly believe you will fail you may be setting yourself up for a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you have prepared yourself for the class, you have to believe that you can be successful. Also, its easier to study a topic you like than one you hate. Dont hate chemistry. Make your peace with it and master it. 5. Not Doing Your Own Work Study guides and books with worked answers in the back are great, right? Yes, but only if you use them for help and not as an easy way to get your homework done. Dont let a book or classmates do your work for you. They wont be available during the tests, which will count for a big portion of your grade.
Monday, October 14, 2019
Responsible Travel To Natural Areas That Conserves The Environment Tourism Essay
Responsible Travel To Natural Areas That Conserves The Environment Tourism Essay Ecotourism can be seen as a solution or contribution to the problems related to environmental conservation, and also as a threat.à This is because by promoting the integration of locals and tourists to areas of high ecological value, such as natural reserves and forests, fauna and flora of these sites may be affected negatively.à In addition, ecotourism promotes the development of infrastructure and facilities that protect the activity, such as gazebos, trails, eco-lodges, among others.à Similarly, it is critical that only promotes local economic development. On the other side, ecotourism activity helps keep wildlife healthy.à Some places, like the Galapagos Islands, ranches in Namibia, wetlands in Brazil, among others, thanks to tourism and what derives from it, residents of such places are motivated to work for conservation, in the way to keep a tourist activity. Ecotourism is more than people visiting a new place, it has to do with the environment and the activities in which a person involved that may harm the environment. There are some objectives that were implanted with ecotourism: First of all, the most important aim that emerged from the implementation of ecotourism is that travellers need to be more aware of the environment and damage, their actions as travellers and members of the society on earth. The main objectives are to minimize the potential environmental impact on natural and cultural environments of sites visited.à Generate awareness about the nature and care.à Tourism experiences that are favourable for visitors and locals. Funds arising from these tourist activities to the preservation of the place are one of the ends sought to ecotourism, thus establishing the basis for the maintenance of ecological tourism and growth. Funds like these can improve economic development that can lead of having more activities and ways that tourists could use and admire the nature of the land without destroying it.à Another factor that usually does not consider is that ecotourism is a source of income for civilizations not too close to the cities.à Usually, they have the same attraction for a city because in reality, there is much to do in a forest or something.à But nature has much to offer as well.à So if the countries with the special nature can find activities that the public would like to participate, visit the site and those who live there are going to collect the benefits of nature. UN acknowledges in its report World Resources 2002, for the most part, nature tourism fails to meet the ideals of social responsibility implicit in this definition. It also ensures that you may travel destinations and are marketed as ecotourism opportunities to focus on providing accommodation to the environment more favourable to community development, conservation and tourism education.à Therefore, the reality of these trips is that they can sustain ecosystems and degrade at the same time.à Given that the majority of ecotourists come from North America and Europe and most destinations are in the developing world would be doing a damage to these countries if they do not get that nature tourism isà compatible with conservation. But the UN also recognizes that even some of the ecosystems that are carefully managed under the principles of ecotourism are showing signs of degradation.à To illustrate the dangers that ecotourism can lead to natural ecosystems, the UN report takes the example of the Galapagos Islands, a natural paradise and the nerve center of biodiversity.à Not surprisingly, half of birds, 32% of plants and 90% of the reptiles that live there do not exist anywhere else in the world.à At first glance, the report says, the Galapagos Islands exemplify the promise of ecotourism.à Each year the archipelago attracts over 62,000 visitors who pay to dive and walk among the 120 volcanic islands and ecosystems, among other exotic species, contain the turtles are named for the islands. According to UN figures, tourism in Galapagos produces up to 60 million dollars a year and is the source of income of 80% of its residents.à Since 1970, the number of visitors has increased tenfold, helping to expand the resources of the park service to Ecuador and create a model of ecotourism high quality and low impact.à However, when things look closer displayed the consideration involved. Thus, the permanent population of the islands has tripled in the last 15 years due to the arrival of immigrants seeking work in the tourism economy of the islands, which also leads to increased pollution and exploitation of fisheries resources.à And, contrary to the purport ecotourism, it is estimated that only 15% of the capital that is entered from tourism goes directly to the Galapagos economy. In some cases not even a single pound reinvested in conservation and tourist park management, but that money goes to government treasury or at the hands of corrupt officials of the park. Ecotourism Impacts The impact of ecotourism is not only economic, but socio-economic, since it involves the communities.à The achievements in the economic order can even benefit communities and areas of the country that usually are depressed from the position of economics and finance, but have very specific natural resources and with hospitable people, traditions andà very special charms. Ecotourism is also a channel to link the activities of local governments or municipalities with other state and society as a whole, but also engages the municipality with the outside world, thus breaking the isolationà internal and external know yet many of our communities.à In the United States of America, for example, has realized that without direct intervention by local governments is impossible to develop ecotourism.à Recall that in this vast country emerged from the beginning of the twentieth century, the first spaces and protected natural areas that would become national parks, without which they would have lost significant wealth who today are usufruct by the communities living in the vicinityà . In short, ecotourism is an important ingredient to strengthening cultural identity. The close links we forge between everything that defines us as people, that is our way of life and production, our culture, our identity, and nature is what will make us turn this activity called eco-concrete manifestation of thatà symbiosis, as a social practice that opens new horizons in todays changing world, where the features that differentiate us from other countries are put in evidence and become thus a unique appeal to attract new tourists andà stimulate us. In short, ecotourism combines natural resource management, environmental protection and land to productive action of society, generating jobs, income and new procedures, forms and techniques of living and working in areasà rural and urban areas. As such, ecotourism is an economic activity, environmental and cultural battle against the scourge of poverty, social exclusion and the exodus that started the inhabitant of a town of traditions, and why not, to overcome theirà limitations along with its people. Ecotourism development contributes to motorized, national and local, comprehensive and sustainable. Devastating effects from ecotourism Several studies reported any adverse effect on Environment ecotourism course offerings. The ecotourisms offers may be generated in many cases more harm than good for environmental conservation, according to recent scientific studies on various tourist destinations in the expanding mode that is presented by defining as environment-friendly andà lovers whose main customers are reported in Nature. For example, orcas living in the United States coast are struggling to communicate with the noise generated by boats full of tourists looking to find out, as reflected in a study by the University of Durham (United Kingdom) and the Whaleà Museum in Washington and published in the journal Nature. As the number of killer whale watching boats has been increasing over the past decade currently 72 commercial ships and 22 small private boats surrounding the whales every day the length of calls of these animals has alsoà extended in an effort to overpower the engine noise.à The calls have duration of approximately 15% higher when the number of vessels is higher. Also, the British magazine New Scientist reported that the presence of tourists in natural environments of species such as polar bears, penguins, dolphins and many types of birds in animals generated nervousness situations that begin to result in difficultiesà chronic for playback. The impact of human presence in the natural environment of animals may seem a priori mild or nonexistent.à However, small changes in animals such as rapid heartbeat, changes in hormone levels and alteration of eating habits are raising fears of long-term survival of certain species. A team from the University of Auckland (New Zealand) has observed the dolphins along the coast of New Zealand since 1996 and has found these marine mammals reach a state of frenzy by the presence of the boatloads of tourists, reducing orà virtually eliminating its quiet time. Also, Canadian researchers at the University of Manitoba have reported the saturation of photographic tourism with the polar bears as protagonists.à The presence of tourists in the bears habitat during the months of October and November produces irreversible condition for the animal, because in those months is bound to an almost total rest to preserve a surplus of body fat. Other examples of the undesirable consequences of ecotourism are the lower the weight of the baby penguin, and therefore less chance of survival in areas with presence of travelers because the parents neglect their offspring feed to be entertainedà by tourists -, reproductive problems experienced by some types of pheasants in the Amazon, where it was found that only 15% of nests containing a baby in the areas visited by tourists, compared to 50% in regionsà fully protected.
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