Michel et Augustin Essay

In 1978, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield launched Ben & Jerry’s, an ice-cream brand made from milk products and 100% natural ingredients. Two young students, Augustin Paluel-Marmont and Michel de Rovira have decided to take example from this mythical brand (as well as Innocent), and launch their own brand of biscuits: Michel et Augustin! The story of their brand building is truly a successful adventure, which gives by the way a whole meaning and a huge capital of sympathy to their brands, what the two friends are far from hiding, on the contrary†¦ They wanted to recreate the delicious biscuits of their â€Å"grandma† by gathering all the best and natural ingredients. But their positioning is not only about tradition and nostalgia, on the contrary. Admittedly, they use souvenirs as Proust and its famous Madeleines to hit their target – the 18-25 years old living in city – but want to go beyond tradition. Indeed they claim a return of quality, but in a modern, original and more often crazy way! Values & Identity: a new way of defining itself => put joy of life and fun at base corporate value Michel et Augustin have created a new way of claiming values, which contributes totally to their original brand identity, which could seem not really serious at first sight. The brand value corresponds fundamentally to both friends’ values. And no need to try to understand them, if you do not know the story of these two young entrepreneurs. Michel was consultant in strategy and Augustin was in Air France Marketing. The both young men were on tracks to build a great career. But they decided to drop everything to make their dreams come true, to live their own passion! Indeed, they did not recognize themselves in the traditional corporate value. They wanted something more, something different, whit less constraints and more joy of life! Then, they launched in 2004 their own brand of biscuits and milk products, surrounded by those unconventional values, converging to one motto, one mutual dream: â€Å"Make the world smile†. And those values, incarnated in the good mood are far from being only a marketing communication. Beyond their headquarter which is called â€Å"the Bananeraie†, their slogan â€Å"Les trublions du bon gout† and their â€Å"crazy† and unexpected packaging, the atmosphere of the firm is truly defined by this central value. Both co-directors claim the same value, as simplicity, enjoy life, solidarity, sense of the effort, in their communication than in the place of work. Thus, the 31 workers of the â€Å"Bananeraie† form the â€Å"tribu†, Michel is the â€Å"calife†, Augustin â€Å"the Vizir†, and Nicolas, the accounting manager, the â€Å"conteur de bonnes nouvelles†. Good news is announced by ringing the bell in the office†¦ In short, Michel et Augstin advocates new values, based on sincerity and fun, which are totally conveyed within their management. Their website conveys as well their will of differentiation. As example (below), they denounce on their website the usual cliche on food product benefits. Instead of giving these controversial and usual reasons to like their products, they put forward the simplest and most basic reason to like them: because they are good and fun! And all this convivial values are aimed to one objective: build a deep and true relationship with their customer. Make the world smile† is then far easier when the values are supported by the brand and the employees themselves! Events, website and packaging become next the ambassadors of those values among the customers! One question remains, is it possible to claim fun, in communication as well as in workplace while being serious in his job? Indeed, as they are facing an increasing growth, with all responsibilities and issues coming by, it will be more and more complicated to keep such a spirit of work†¦ Packaging => An instrumental way to convey their values They do not play the cart of nostalgia, on the contrary! The brand wants to build a great complicity with its customers, in a fun and simple way, without any hypocrisy. Then, the name â€Å"Michel et Augustin† and the logo (drawn in a caricature style) are made to convey an enthusiastic impression, far away from usual institutional statements. Thus, for more interactivity, they go until giving their email addresses and their phone number on the back pack of products! We can then say, without exaggerating, that the four criteria of a good packaging are fulfilled. Indeed, their packaging is fully: Attractive thanks to its strong originality (story of the brand told in a fun way on the back pack, attractive colors which are well standing out in shelf – with the violet for example – ) * Functional, really easy to open, does not take too much place * Easy to produce and inexpensive * Coherent with the brand value (cf. the phone number, best example of the brand humor and the will of nearness with its customers) Communication => a â€Å"street† Marketing aligned with their spirit The art of the â€Å"story telling† they stress so much is obviously one of their priorities in their marketing strategy. Although this brand counts from now one among strong and solid alimentary firms, it can really not compete with Danone or Nestle from a communication budget point of view. Indeed, it is not possible for this launching brand to dispense large amoung in TV advertising, or huge communication campaign. It has to be clever about it, and find creative and cheap way to become famous. And Michel et Augustin has precisely found the right way to do so, by cultivating this story telling art, mixed with their crazy and bluffing behavior. The both creators acknowledge that their product packaging is their best weapon to reach and target the customers. Yet, they did succeed to create the buzz with unexpected events. For example, they benefited from the huge media retransmission for the â€Å"Entrepreneurs Salon† by putting their yoghourt bottle at the Bill Gates‘ table. Thanks to its initiative, they were exposed in front of the â€Å"whole† world, as the bottle with the cow was filmed with Gates drinking it! Best inexpensive advertising ever!

Individual players Essay

The purpose of this assignment is to investigate whether or not team cohesion has an impact on an individual players performance within a rugby team. The assignment will look into whether (if there is a impact at all) the impact is negative or positive, and how that relates to the different types of players in different ways. The research will look into the methods of increasing or decreasing cohesion within a rugby team e.g. nights on the town. Group dynamics is an interactive process and is concerned with changing patterns of tension, with conflict, adjustments and the building of cohesion within a group. The way a group is affected by dynamics helps determine the way in which leadership and dominant sub group patterns emerge. Therefore this influences players behavioural patterns and how attitudes are altered in the short and long term. These changes can be temporary or permanent. An example of this, relating to rugby, would be the emergence of a captain, vice captain, the first team players and the substitutes. A players status in the team is a major factor in there powers of influence but the character of a player is also very important. A player who does not attend regularly and has no status can have a major influence on the team, this depends on the players ability to impose there ideas, experience, and skill on the team. Shaw described a group as:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"†¦.two or more people interacting with one another in such a manner that each person influences and is influenced by each other person.†Ã‚  Woods said that one of the defining features of a group is that  Ã¢â‚¬Å"†¦.Its members having common beliefs, usually unspoken, about what is acceptable and unacceptable, how things are done†¦.†Ã‚  In sport groups are usually seen in the form of a team. There are many different types of teams within the game of rugby, such as, the playing team, the coaching team, and the management team. There are a team of supporters in the form of the crowd. Cohesion is a term closely associated with group dynamics and is a two way process, it can be defined as  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The degree in which members of the group desire to remain in the group†(internet 2  Or  Ã¢â‚¬Å"†¦individuals attracted to a group through common motivation and value the relationships within a group†(Galligan).   In the case of a rugby team the common goal would be to win matches, or at a lower level simply to participate in the game. The English national team now has a common. Goal of trying to win the world cup, my research would indicate that the national team is very cohesive and do value the relationships within the group. There success in recent years would be proof of this, as a very high cohesion relates to successful results. â€Å"One is always hearing about how important it is for a team to gel, bond or have good chemistry. Cohesive teams can achieve dramatic and awesome things. The way players interact has a tremendous impact on the way a team performs.†(Internet 1)  How well England do in the world cup will be a good indication to whether success is related to cohesion.

Donald Duck Mathematical Magic Trick Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Donald Duck Mathematical Magic Trick - Essay Example The Golden Mean is a special ratio equal to 1:1.61803399, which is considered to be the ratio of beauty. The Ancient Greeks used this ratio in Golden Rectangles found in many of their architectural designs like the Parthenon. In later years, the Golden Ratio was used in even more architectural and artistic designs like the Cathedral of Notre Dame and the Mona Lisa painting. The Golden Mean is also known to be able to multiply itself until infinity. Infinity is another concept that we discussed in class. It means something that goes on forever and does not end. The Golden Rectangle was found in the pentagram and it can be formed from the parts of the pentagram at an infinite number of times. The video showed that when the pentagram is deconstructed, and the parts were arranged according to their lengths, the two short parts combined formed the longer part in the ratio of the Golden

Discuss the positive and negative impact of globalisation with Assignment

Discuss the positive and negative impact of globalisation with reference to two contrasting countries. (two countries are UK a - Assignment Example However, the ongoing financial crisis that resulted from the collapse of the real estate market has slowed the process of globalization, which is sometimes blamed by the critics for the surge in unemployment and inflation. Based on the reports of Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Odom and Koech (2010) highlighted that the economic recovery has been slow in developed countries including the UK, while the developing countries including India are making fast economic progress. The compiled reports of Central Intelligence Agency pointed that the UK had recorded a GDP growth rate of 1.6% in 2010, which was better than its negative growth rate of -5% in 2009 (United Kingdom, 2011). However, the Central Intelligence Agency also remarked that India had recorded a growth rate of 8.3% in 2010, which was marginally greater than its growth rate of 7.4% in 2009 (India, 2011). Since India and the UK represent the developing and the developed economies respectively, this paper compares the positive a nd the negative impacts of globalization on these two countries. 2. Discussion Globalization has definitely increased trade in India and the UK besides encouraging entrepreneurship among the youth of these two countries. Due to globalization, some economic sectors of India will have more advantage than the UK, while there will be some economic sectors where the UK will have more advantage than India. The following section contrasts the positive and the negative effects of globalization in India and the UK. 2.1. Manufacturing: Since India has lower labour costs than the UK, globalization has caused an increase in the manufacturing activity in India, while the manufacturing activity in the UK has comparatively slowed down as industries favor India as the low cost manufacturing base (Economics Help, n.d.). 2.2. Employment: When the manufacturing industries of the UK shift their bases to India or another developing country, there will be loss of employment in that particular sector of t he UK, while India will gain employment in the manufacturing sector. The unemployment rate in the UK was 7.9% in 2010, while it was 7.6% in 2009 (United Kingdom, 2011). However, the unemployment rate in India was 8.3% in 2010, while it was 7.4% in 2009 (India, 2011). The unemployment in manufacturing sector in the UK will be offset by employment generation in other sectors, such as finance and insurance, which shows that globalization causes shift in jobs from one sector to another without causing major catastrophic changes (Economics Help, n.d.). 2.3. Business Process Outsourcing (BPO): India has highly educated and talented professionals well-versed in speaking, writing, and reading English language. Due to a large pool of competent workers expert in providing IT enabled services to the business clients, several countries, such as the USA, Canada, Germany, Switzerland, and the UK outsource their work to India. Globalization has helped India to expand its BPO industry, while the UK has been a laggard due to the high labor and infrastructural costs. The size of the Indian BPO industry is estimated to be around $69 billion as of 2010 because the developed countries outsource their business assignments to India where the wages are nearly 80% lower than

History Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

History - Article Example ich changed milk into cheese, meal into bread, malt into beer, and flesh into bacon.† (Ulrich, p.48) Further, â€Å"preparing the simplest of meals required both judgment and skill...The most basic of housewifes skills was building and regulating fires – a task so fundamental thtat it must have appeared more as habit than craft. Summer and winter, day and night, she kept a few brands smoldering, ready to stir into flame as needed.† (Ulrich, p,47) Simple as these activities might sound, one becomes an expert in them through long and arduous training during their formative years. Often times, women use intuition and common sense to supplement the skills they leart from their mothers and aunts to carry out these complex and challenging household tasks. Given that the colonial society was an agrarian society, the housewifes domain extended â€Å"from the kitchen and its appendages, the cellars, pantries, brewhouses, mikhouses, washhouses, and butteries which appear in various combinations in household inventories, to the exterior of the house, where, even in the city, a melange of animal and vegetable life flourished among the straw, husks, clutter and muck†. (Ulrich, pg. 45) In order to handle all of these places on an everyday basis and single-handedly requires high skilfulness and presence of mind – both qualities women in colonial America possessed in abundance. How did colonial American women participate in economic activities that helped sustain their families, even if they did not have a job outside the home? In other words, what sort of things did they do? The importance and complexity of womens contributions were not acknowledged due to the subordinate status assigned them by society and also due to the fact that their activities were confined within household limits. Whereas men, by virtue of involving themselves in more conspicuous labor activity in the open farms were easily recognized as the breadwinners and providers for their families.

Nursing Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Nursing Leadership - Essay Example As the patient fell from the bed and broke his arm, the nurse and hospital were liable for damages. This paper aims to identify nursing policies that were not followed so as to prevent such a scenario from occurring. Firstly, nursing leadership and managerial qualities in regards to the present situation shall be outlined. Secondly, issues of nursing accountability shall be detailed. Next, the concept of team-work as pertains to the scenario shall be highlighted. Following, the topics of clinical governance, as well as teaching and facilitating of nurses in general, shall be outlined as relevant to the present scenario. Some of the areas that leadership and management incorporate are finances, business focus, information management, and marketing (Baker, 2000a; Kelly-Hayes, 2003). When a patient falls from a bed because procedures have not been followed, it is clear that nursing leadership and management training is lacking. In the current scenario, additional costs were created within the hospital to care for the patient, in regards to the broken limb, as well as consultation with attorney's to establish their legal obligations, and in administration costs to report the incident, and to process ongoing documentation relevant to the complaint made by the family. From the point of view of nursing being a business, the scenario i... The information management that was lacking was that the nurse did not have available protocols to compare her patient care to. In regards to marketing, the hospital as well as the nurse has provisioned the patient and family with an image of being incompetent and neglectful in their care for the patient.Recent studies point to a distinct lack of leadership qualities amongst nurses in general, and attribute this to a lack of training in the area (Laukkanen, 2005). Unfortunately, this is a waste of resources as nurses are in key position to influence hospital care policies, as well as state and national legislation (Sullivan, 2001). It is contended that student nurses need to be encouraged to develop their leadership and managerial skills, as well as their clinical skills (Baker, 200b). For example, a more salient awareness of cost-containment issues could have motivated the hospital to have set protocols for the bed-care of elderly patients (Antrobus, 1999). Additionally, the use of job re-design amongst the nursing staff could have provided the hospital with a critical evaluation of the sequential tasks of each job a nurse undertakes, and provided solutions for combining tasks to improve patient care (e.g., saying goodnight/see you later to a patient also includes the action of the hands checking the bed-rail is up) (Sullivan, 2001).Quality management important to nursing as it allows for an evaluation of the outcomes of practices. In turn, this style of management provides for a preventative approach to nursing that identifies potential problems quickly, and facilitates research into viable alternative solutions (Belcher, 2000; Hendel & Steinmann, 2002). As such,

Short Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Short Paper - Essay Example The female characters, on the other hand, are wives to the male characters and they play unofficial roles in the unearthing of the murder. The thoughts, feelings, and reactions that one gathers while reading the play range from empowering to inspiring, considering the critical roles that women play in the story and in the society at large, particularly when it comes to their forensic knowledge. As one reads the story, some of the ideas that emerge are the role of women in driving key agendas of the society. Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale, though lacking official roles in the play, offer insightful ideas on the case and help the investigation take a logical course. The clumsy looking kitchen described by the playwright is a depiction of the condition under which the Sherriff and the County Attorney were living under, together with their wives. The farmhouse that Susan Glaspell describes as having been recently abandoned shades more light about the setting of the story and one cannot agree more about the plight of the investigators. It is hard to deviate from the thought of the perfect setting for investigation but again one will understand that the story was set based on a 19th century incident. One would expect the investigation to have taken place at the actual crime scene, which was the bedroom. Perhaps the officers investigating the murder of Margaret Hossack’s husban d did not want to interfere with the evidence at the crime scene. When it comes to the feelings, reactions, and responses to the story, it is worth noting that the setting of the play is rather unique, considering that the storyline is a murder investigation. It is quite weird for a murder investigation to take place in a domestic setting. One would expect the collection of evidence to take place at the crime scene before the investigators proceed to the forensic lab for further

Global Strategy Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Global Strategy Plan - Essay Example Because of worldwide business expansion, the recognition of IBM-International Business Machines Corporation extended throughout the world. In the era of innovation, IBM product line has increased significantly. IBM first introduced LAN-Local Area of Networks and became the pioneer of LAN. This process allows PC users to exchange data, information, files etc. and to share printers within an office complex. In the twenty first century, IBM has become a renowned name in IT service management, consulting business and computer software-hardware industry. Samuel J. Palmisano is the president and CEO of IBM since 2002. (History of IBM, 27 March 2010, pp. 1-13)Â   Brief History- This article creates a complete dynamic model of global strategic planning for IBM. This dynamic model shows many aspects of strategic planning system of IBM. Within this dynamic model of framework, some issues like competitive assessment, focusing on strategic issues, portfolio planning, threat or opportunity analysis, business intelligence and performance management will be emphasized and analyzed. Over the years, IBM has refined their strategic planning process. This strategic planning process works as a structure for decision-making. Like many other multinational business giants, IBM management team emphasizes on global business development. Staring with IT services, IBM is now diversifying themselves into different business solution providers like IT infrastructure, enterprise solutions, business consulting, outsourcing services and business intelligence etc. At IBM, Information Technology means achieving high and real business performance that is reflected in th e business objective and venerable business commitment. IBM provides high-class business solutions with greater efficiency and accessibility to their clients. The management of IBM wants to anticipate and adapt to future changes and uncertainties rather than the victim of them. The IT, IT enabled

Tennessee V. Garner Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Tennessee V. Garner - Research Paper Example The woman who had reported the said burglary explained to them that she had witnessed someone break into the next door and the officers quickly responded by searching the said premise. As Hymon covered the back, he saw someone running from that address and pursued him. With the help of his flashlight, he spotted someone hiding next to a backyard fence thirty to forty feet away and commanded the young man to stop but the suspect ignored and made an attempt to jump off the fence. It was at this moment that Hymon fired a shot that struck the fleeing suspect in the head as he fell. Later identified as fifteen -year-old Edward Garner, the suspect died while undergoing treatment shortly after the shooting incident. Later in 1975, Garner’s father filed a civil suit against the police department of Memphis, the mayor, director of police and the officer involved-Hymon claiming that his son’s constitutional rights had been violated (Blume, 21). In this suit, the slain suspect rights were said to have been violated by Officer Hymon under the 4th, 8th and 14th amendments at the time of his shooting. The other defendants were sued for to taking due care in the hiring process and poor supervision of the police officer that the plaintiff claimed was responsible for his son’s death in equal magnitude (Blume, 23). The first trial was held in 1976 and in the end; the district court gave a motion for a verdict directed in favor of the city and its police department. On appeal, there was an affirmation by the Sixth Circuit on aspects of the ruling by the district court in their decision to dismiss the case against individual defendants. The court was however instructed to review if municipality had the liberty to be granted immunity because its policies were in tandem with state law and not so, relook into whether deadly force while arresting

Demonstration Presentation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Demonstration Presentation - Essay Example During my presentation am going to talk about the history of animation, types, and demonstrate how they can be designed using basic equipments. I will also elaborate on how one can benefit from the different animation designs. 1. Based on â€Å"historical dictionary of animation and cartoon† by Nichola Dobson, he mentioned that the invention of animation designs is attributed to Etienne Gaspard.This was first discovered in 1798 when he projected moving images using â€Å"Magic Lanteren†. 2. However the first animation graphic design to be produced to the public was in 1908. It was in the form of stop motion produced by a French film maker named Èmile Cohl’s with title â€Å"fantasmagorie† = â€Å"phantasmagoria† 4. During those days there were different types of animation designs. At this juncture I would kindly request all of you to be attentive as I mention some the designs. They include: 2D †¦ â€Å"2D, 3D, stop motion, and Sculpture. A. Since last year, I have been using my hobby of designing animations to get some benefits. I started by drawing free animation designs in the youth magazine until I became a member in animation

Inclusive Instructional Strategies & Accommodations Essay Example for Free

Inclusive Instructional Strategies Accommodations Essay Diana Pastora Carson is a special education teacher and founder of Ability Awareness in Action organization. She always had an interest in changing the lives of disabled people from pitiful life and exclusion to inclusion and life full of dignity and hope. The concern in Diana’s nature came from presence of a brother who was preserved from others as a disabled and dependent human being. Diana’s Brother, Joaquin, was diagnosed with Autism at an early age. While he was in school, he had been placed in an exclusive classroom for students with significant mental retardation. He was twice placed in a state institute due to misunderstanding of his character and his attempts to communicate with his services. Currently, Joaquin resides in a state institute, where he is ill, emotionally and physically, from being locked up in a building away from his friends and family. He expressed his feelings about living in such environment to his sister in a painful way as he once said: â€Å"Diana, people are so boring here†. His family has been trying to get him out of there as soon as possible. They have also taken his case to the court and are waiting for the final decision to be made. They want to get Joaquin out of there and bring him in a home of his own with people who love him instead of staying in that institute any longer. The training, titled ‘Inclusive Instructional Strategies and Accommodations’, is about including all children, whether they have a disability or not, in general education classrooms specifically, and in the community, generally. Everybody deserves to belong to and live in their communities. A teacher has an enormous role in making all students belong to that classroom through her knowledge about each and every student of his/hers, and through recognizing uniqueness in each one of them. This should make the teacher create a supportive environment that meets each student’s needs, and an atmosphere that promotes acceptance of differences and diversity, learning, hope, and collaboration. Moreover, the teacher is responsible for building a curriculum that meets each student’s level and accommodates tests and homework. A great teacher would avoid labels that discriminate individuals with disabilities to avoid lower expectations. Those labels may help professionals recognize what disabilities the students have, in order to provide them with services that meet their needs. However, people within the same label or disabilities may vary; therefore, we cannot always judge someone based on the labels. Moreover, it is very unprofessional to address someone by his/her disabilities as no one likes to be looked at for something that they did not choose for his/her self and it may affect his/her self-confidence. Students’ dignity must be preserved by the teacher and whoever is around, for instance, peers, and family. Professionals working with disabled people should advocate the community about appreciation of diversity and encourage students to speak out their thoughts, make choices, and blend in the society. Most importantly, the teachers should listen to students attentively; look at their body language, written expressions, and vocalization for effective communication. During the training, many strategies and activities to develop a classroom community were shared by Diana, such as setting roles for the classroom, encouraging reading books that promote diversity and discussions, and different cooperative games. Diana also explained how a customized lesson should be designed as a teacher must know her/his students in order to alter lessons based on each student’s needs. Teachers should also know how to model, guide, and measure students’ independent achievements through knowledge of students’ strengths and limitations. Diana enlightened the importance of giving students’ time to process new information, retrieve old information, and speak out their answers. It is very important to break the lesson into smaller parts along with asking questions in between to check students’ comprehension and to encourage discussions about the lesson. It is very essential to bring movement and interaction into the curriculum, serve the different types of intelligences and most importantly honor every student for who he/she is and be aware of the impact teaching will have on his/her future life. Furthermore, visual aids can assist students in organizing their thoughts, memorizing them, and make learning more enjoyable and personal to them. Finally, commitment to learning, inclusion of all children, and building a quality future for each child is a must step for developing a loving community where everyone belongs. By having a brother with a disability, whose community isolated him from others by not providing him with education programs that serves his needs, making public places inaccessible for him, and not advocating the public about disabilities, Diana has learned to honor diversity and anyone who is working towards treating people with disabilities with dignity and respect. It has encouraged her to change the lives of those who are different from normal people, whether with a disability or not. It has motivated her to include all of them in a classroom that promotes collaboration, understanding, and hope. Furthermore, it has opened her eyes to the importance of advocating the society about disabilities and their inclusion, to change the image and future of the disabled in the community.

Analysis of Keyblogger

Analysis of Keyblogger Keyblogger is basically a spyware. As indicated by its namesake, it logs or recors your keystrokes. When you type in your username or password, this information is logged and amde available to the hacker. Keyloggers can either be physical or software-based, the latter being more difficult to detect. A keylogger works in several different ways Each keystroke is recorded and immediately dispatched to some remote listener over the internet. Keystroke are collected ina temporary file, which is then periodically uploaded to the authors location over the internet. The keystrokes are collected in a temporary file, but much like a spam bot, can listen for and recieve instructions from the author. The logger could thus upload the collectedinformation when requested. The collected keystrokes could never be uploaded. Instead, if someone has remote access to your machine, or even physical access to your machine, they could simply come by and copy theinformation manually. Finally, the information may not even be kept on your machine. There are keyloggers that include a little flash memory and can be quickly inserted in between installing, the person behind it stops by and picks up the device containing all yourinformation. There are two methods for bypassing keyloggers, both which involve confusing the logger with random keystrokes. The first, when you need to enter a username or password, is to randomly insert irrelevant numbers and letters in between the same. Once entered, just select the random hits wih the mouse and delete them before logging in. The second is for foolingkeyloggers that capture all keystrokes and not just those typed in the password box. Enter your info randomly across the browser and search bars along with random numbers and letters. When you wish to log in, simply copy and paste the relevant bits into the log-in boxes. You can use KYPS, a reverse proxy server that takes a password, encrypts into a one-time code, printed from the KPYS web site that can be used to log into any computer safely. After being decrypted by the KYPS system and logged in, it deletes the one time code as a password. KYPS also acts as a normal proxy to protect your browsing history. When browsing, it displays the KYPS URL along with random characters and symbols to maximise security. The work offline option shouldnt be relied on too often. This feature is specific to Internet Explorer or the application with that function, and its not too hard for a keylogger to bypass something so narrow. Also, even if you physically pulled out the internet connection wire from your PC, only the first of the above approaches is rendered harmless. The keylogger can still quietly collect the data and transmit it when a connection is available. As such, there is no way to be 100% carefull against keyloggers. It depends on specific keyloggers most of the time. However, you should always remain careful and cautious when entering a cyber cafà ©

Impact of the Dollar Currency Base Metal on India

Impact of the Dollar Currency Base Metal on India Abstract: Currency Future is a future contract in which specified currency can be bought or sell at pre determined price and date. In developed nations like US and UK the currency price increment impact on physical trading volume, it decrease it on currency price increment and increase it on currency price decrement. Like this, same thing happened in developing nations. In India the base metals prices so much impacted due to currency future price volatility. In India, the currency future trading was started on 29th Aug. 2008 in National Stock Exchange (NSE), in Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) on 7th Oct. 2008 and in Bombay Stock Exchange on 1st Oct. 2008. The objective of this paper is to measure the correlation of base metals with currency future trading i.e. US $. This research paper is an attempt to consider the investor behaviour regarding currency future trading in India. Some factors which have been considered for research are currency future, base metals and price movement in upward or i n downward side. The results are analyzed with the help of statistical tools and techniques. Introduction Currency Futures means a standardised foreign exchange derivatives contract traded on a recognised stock exchange to buy or sell one currency against another on a specified future date, at a price specified on the date of contract, but does not include a forward contract. Currency derivatives can be described as contracts between sellers and buyers whose values are derived from the underlying which in this case is the exchange rate. Currency Derivatives are mostly designed for hedging purposes, although they are also used as instruments for speculation. Currency Derivatives i.e. Currency Future are standardised in terms of contract sizes, trading parameters settlement procedures and traded on regulated exchange. The contract size is fixed and is referred to as lot size. Future contract are traded through exchanges, the settlement of the contract is guaranteed by the exchange or clearing corporation and hence there is no counter party risk. In INDIA the currency future trading was started on 29th Aug. 2008 in National Stock Exchange (NSE), in Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) on 7th Oct. 2008 and in Bombay Stock Exchange on 1st Oct. 2008. Currency Future trading play a vital role in developed nations and developing nations. It makes the so much volatility in metal prices in terms of online trading as well as in physical trading. After the starting of currency future trading in India the volatility increase in the MCX non precious metal. The total number of contract traded before starting of currency future trading in non precious metal are 84186 (lots) and after the starting of currency future trading 69358 (lots). It shows that there is lot of volatility in the metal market sometime it increases the volume or sometime it decrease the volume. Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (MCX) is a state of the art electronic commodity future exchange. The head quartered of MCX in Mumbai. The demutualised exchange set up by Financial Technologies (India) Ltd (FTIL) has permanent recognition from the Government of India to facilitate online trading and clearing and settlement operations for commodity futures across the country. The operations started in Nov 2003. MCX offers more than 40 commodities across various segments such as bullion, ferrous and non ferrous metals and a number of agro-commodities on its platform. The exchange is the worlds largest exchange in Silver, the second largest in Gold and Copper. MCX has been certified to three ISO standards including ISO 9001- 2000 Quality Management System standard, ISO 14001: 2004 Environmental Management System standard and ISO 27001:2005 Information Security Management System standard. Literature Review Since the beginning of trading in financial futures and options in the 1970s, the effect of financial derivatives trading on the underlying spot markets has been of great interest to both academics and practitioners. One of the issues commonly investigated by finance researchers is whether futures trading increases the price volatility of underlying markets and thus leads to destabilisation of these markets. Previous studies provide mixed evidence on this issue. To investigating the market behaviours (such as currency price volatility, metal market depth and trading volume) is an important aspect of research on the market microstructure literature. Tauchen and Pitts (1983)1 argue that these three variables are closely related. However, most studies deal with mutual contemporaneous relationship between two of those three dimensions and reach no consistent results. Very few empirical papers investigate the dynamic nature of the interactions, such as the feedback effects between those three variables. The relationship between currency future and trading volume has been examined frequently and usually is in a positive correlation between volatility and trading volume. Copeland (1976)2, develop sequential arrival of information models where new information flows into market to generate both trading volume and price movement. Karpoff (1987)3, reviews empirical and theoretical research on the relation between price changes and trading volume in financial markets. Eighteen of nineteen empirical papers support the positive correlation between volatility and trading volume. Bessembinder and Segun (1993)4 accommodate persistence in the positive relationship on eight futures market by ARCH-GARCH empirical method. In those studies above, it is consistently positive contemporaneous relation between return volatility and trading volume but lacks consistent in the relation between return volatility and market depth or between market depth and trading volume. Furthermore, there are few studies for the analysis of return volatility and trading volume incorporating with the market depth, which is proven to be fundamentally related to trading activity and market behaviour of return volatility (Bessembinder and Seguin, 1992)5. As suggested by Malliaris (1997)6, the origin of futures markets is related to the necessity to manage the risk associated with volatile spot price changes of certain assets. It can also be claimed that futures contracts became more popular since the economic deregulation in 1970s, which resulted in increased volatility in foreign currencies, debt instruments and stock indexes. Market observers and regulators have generally acknowledged the crucial role that futures markets have in risk transfer and price discovery, but they have often expressed concern over the potential role that futures activity may have in destabilizing the markets. Antoniou and Holmes (1995)7 examined the impact of trading in the FTSE-100 index futures on the spot price volatility and concluded that futures trading improves the quality and speed of information flowing to spot markets. Their evidence suggests that there has been an increase in spot price daily volatility, but that this due to increased information in the market and not to speculators having adverse destabilizing effect. Some studies provide empirical results that support the opinion that trading in futures can destabilize the spot market. For example, Figlewiski (1980)8 investigates the futures contracts for Treasury Bills (GNMA pass through certificates) and provides evidence that futures market activity increases the volatility of cash prices. More recent study by Bae, Kwon and Park (2004)9 focuses on the effect of the introduction of index futures trading in the Korean markets on spot price volatility. The authors concluded that introducing the futures and options trading on the Korean stock exchange resulted in both larger spot price volatility and greater market efficiency (allowing for quicker adjustment of market prices to information). The combined average daily turnover of the currency futures contracts in all the three exchanges (NSE, BSE, MCX) increased from USD 1.1 billion in March 2009 to 2.5 billion in September 2009 – which means a growth of more than 125% in just six months period. Objectives of Research Paper To know the impact of Currency Future US$ on base metal with reference to India. Hypothesis of Research Paper Null Hypothesis: There is positive impact of currency future US$ on base metals, if US$ increases than the price of base metals increases and vice versa. Data Analysis The impact of currency future i.e. US$ on base metals is totally depend on the day to day trading prices of currency as well as metals. To find out the impact of currency on base metals we need the daily transaction prices, for this we collect it from secondary resources. To find out the correlation of currency future and base metals I summarise the data in average form. I collected per day USD INR pricing data for twenty seven months and calculated its average per month. For the base metals, I selected five metals (viz. Aluminium, Copper, Lead, Nickel, and Zinc) collected their pricing data for each day for twenty seven months and calculated its average per month. Here we can see in the table no. 2 there is correlation coefficient between currency future and base metals. Aluminium, Copper, Lead, Nickel and Zinc are inversely correlated to currency future. There is impact on the Aluminium -0.787, the copper -0.267, lead -0.770, nickel -0.897 and zinc -0.850. When the currency future prices raise the base metals prices decrease and sometimes the base metals prices increase. It shows that the currency future and base metals are inversely correlated. Conclusion The data analysis of the currency future and the base metals shows that there is a correlation between them. When there is volatility in the currency future and base metals it impacts the relation between them. Sometimes it makes the positive relation between currency future and base metals and sometimes it makes the negative relation between them. Due to this the economic condition of India is so much impacted. When the prices volatility increases in base metals it creates the problem in physical metals trading that impact directly or indirectly to the economic condition of our nation. The data analysis represents the inverse linear relationship between currency future and base metals. Scope of research There is so much scope of this research because it is a new concept in India. Before two years ago the currency future trading was started in India. The currency future trading is a concept which is not very common. People are not so much aware about it. This paper is related with base metals only but further the whole metal market is influenced by it.

Capital Punishment Essay - America Needs the Death Penalty :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

America Needs the Death Penalty      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ever since the death penalty has been declared constitutional in 1976, thousands of people have been placed on death row and 314 of them have been executed.( Yaffe,1)   Thirty-eight states now allow the death penalty, with New York being the last to adapt this legislation last March.   Massachusetts and Iowa have been trying to pass a law that would to allow the death penalty to be used in their states.   Capital punishment is most often saved for murder and sometimes arson, treason, burglary, and forcible rape of a 14 year old or under from a 18 year old or older, but it varies within each state. There are many politicians who are trying to pass laws banning the death penalty.   There are around 3000 people on death row across the country right now and if these politicians get their way, then 3000 lives will be spared.(Matthews,1)   The rage of this issue continues to persist   with many people questioning if capital punishment is really the answer to solving the problem of crime.   The death penalty sh ould beallowed because it is not inhumane but rather fair and it's continued use will end up helping out society in many ways.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Many people who oppose the death penalty say it is inhumane and unfair. These people who oppose it say that all human life has the right to be respected. All human life does have the right to be respected but there is a point when that right can be lost, if someone takes the life of another human being then they have given up that right.   Another claim the opposers to the death penalty make is that the death penalty encourages more murders because if people see the authority taking someone's life, then they will think they can do it too.   This is not true, if criminals see that more and more people are getting the death penalty, this will cause them to think their actions over. The United Kingdom abolished the death penalty in 1965 and since then, violent crime has more than doubled.(Matthews,2)   The death penalty is not inhumane because it can be done painlessly and quickly.   In most cases when the execution was performed the process that was most often used was lethal injection. Out of   the 314 executions that have taken place since 1976 the majority of them, 179 have been done by means of lethal injection.   The electric chair has been used 123 times, the gas chamber: 9 times, a firing squad: twice, and hanging: once.(Rodriquez, 4) Lethal injection is a quick, non-suffering way to execute the death row

A Rose for Emily By William Faulkner :: Free Essay Writer

In my opinion, William Faulkner displays a perfect example of the old saying, â€Å"what goes around comes around† in the short story A Rose For Emily. The main character, Miss Emily Grierson, doesn’t know why the public eye looks at her the way it does, she also doesn’t know why people act so differently around her. I believe it is strongly because of her father and the way he treated her while she was growing up. The story only spoke briefly about the father, but what they did say made him out to be somewhat controlling person. The story mentioned that there was a picture in the house that showed Miss Emily and her father standing in the doorway. Miss Emily was placed in the background and her father was in the front with a whip. To me, that seems very intimidating and controlling. In some situations people use a whip to control or tame a situation or even person. Another instance that seemed to be controlling on the part of the father was that no one was ever good enough for his daughter, Miss Emily. Mr. Grierson was always running off the young men that would come around the house to see Miss Emily. Miss Emily’s father never even tried to see if any of the young men were of any interest to Miss Emily. The story also states that the Griersons thought that they were better than the other people in the town. The fact that Miss Emily’s father was a controlling man was one of the main, but not only, motivations for the way that Miss Emily acted and reacted to the public. Another characteristic of Miss Emily was that she was not a very sociable person with the community except for that six or seven years when she taught china painting. The reason that I feel Miss Emily acted in this way was again due to the controlling nature of her father and the fact that she was raised to think that she was better than the other people around her. With Miss Emily’s father being in control of the things in her life she did not know how to react to or communicate with other people in a normal manner. The next action that I would like to address that Miss Emily acted upon was to choose a man that no one agreed with.

The Nature of Power Essays -- Literary Analysis, Joy Kogawa

In the book, Obasan, Joy Kogawa uses imagery to convey different symbolic meanings in Naomi's life. Naomi goes through a journey in the novel to uncover the truth of her past. One of the many literary elements that the novel possesses is animal imagery that emphasizes meaning and contributes to the novel's theme. Several animals are mentioned throughout the novel to represent Naomi's emotions and her journey. Kogawa utilizes the several instances of animal imagery in her novel, Obasan, to reveal the nature of power, both physically and emotionally, and the victim of power—Naomi. Animals such as the chicks represent Naomi's helplessness and innocence as she lived in a world without her mother or knowledge of her history. The animals that Kogawa uses, kittens, chicks, and birds, are not strong enough against humans. They are not lions or tigers that can do harm upon other animals or human beings, therefore this makes them easily threatened and killed by power. Throughout the novel, the animals are controlled by humans, the same way Naomi is controlled by the adults around her. Naomi relates to the animals and often dreams about them; for example, she dreams of an encounter with a couple who owns a beast. It is either a dog or a lion, Naomi does not know, but she knows that it "belongs to the man. Its obedience is phenomenal" (35). The word "phenomenal" signifies how much the man has control over his dog—so much that the creature turns out to be a robot. It has no feelings and is easily manipulated, it cannot run away or fight back—the same way Naomi is in the novel. An adult who frightens Naomi greatly with domination over her unlike anyone else is Old Man Gower. He forces himself on her, using his hands and words, both physical... ...og is able to escape with its healed leg; the frog is able to move on from its past unlike Naomi. Kogawa's strategy to use animals in her novel, Obasan, is for a reason, as well as what kinds of animals. The animals and Naomi live in an unjust world where power is used to dominate them, ends the animals' lives, and affects Naomi for a long period of time. Naomi goes through a journey but does not overcome the nature of power that has haunted her since childhood. She remains the victim of power even as she finds out the truth about her mother and goes back to the coulee at the end. By using the animals, Kogawa shows how complicated Naomi's journey is, how she is has to remain silent, she is excluded from her family, and carries the past with her even at thirty-six. Kogawa is sending the message that animals are just as fragile and easily threatened as humans. The Nature of Power Essays -- Literary Analysis, Joy Kogawa In the book, Obasan, Joy Kogawa uses imagery to convey different symbolic meanings in Naomi's life. Naomi goes through a journey in the novel to uncover the truth of her past. One of the many literary elements that the novel possesses is animal imagery that emphasizes meaning and contributes to the novel's theme. Several animals are mentioned throughout the novel to represent Naomi's emotions and her journey. Kogawa utilizes the several instances of animal imagery in her novel, Obasan, to reveal the nature of power, both physically and emotionally, and the victim of power—Naomi. Animals such as the chicks represent Naomi's helplessness and innocence as she lived in a world without her mother or knowledge of her history. The animals that Kogawa uses, kittens, chicks, and birds, are not strong enough against humans. They are not lions or tigers that can do harm upon other animals or human beings, therefore this makes them easily threatened and killed by power. Throughout the novel, the animals are controlled by humans, the same way Naomi is controlled by the adults around her. Naomi relates to the animals and often dreams about them; for example, she dreams of an encounter with a couple who owns a beast. It is either a dog or a lion, Naomi does not know, but she knows that it "belongs to the man. Its obedience is phenomenal" (35). The word "phenomenal" signifies how much the man has control over his dog—so much that the creature turns out to be a robot. It has no feelings and is easily manipulated, it cannot run away or fight back—the same way Naomi is in the novel. An adult who frightens Naomi greatly with domination over her unlike anyone else is Old Man Gower. He forces himself on her, using his hands and words, both physical... ...og is able to escape with its healed leg; the frog is able to move on from its past unlike Naomi. Kogawa's strategy to use animals in her novel, Obasan, is for a reason, as well as what kinds of animals. The animals and Naomi live in an unjust world where power is used to dominate them, ends the animals' lives, and affects Naomi for a long period of time. Naomi goes through a journey but does not overcome the nature of power that has haunted her since childhood. She remains the victim of power even as she finds out the truth about her mother and goes back to the coulee at the end. By using the animals, Kogawa shows how complicated Naomi's journey is, how she is has to remain silent, she is excluded from her family, and carries the past with her even at thirty-six. Kogawa is sending the message that animals are just as fragile and easily threatened as humans.

Is Balochistan the New Bangladesh?

THESIS STATEMENT: Despite the similar unfair treatment towards Balochistan, like Bangladesh; Balochistan is not the same situation as Bangladesh. Ever since Pakistan came into being it has faced numerous challenges, some of which have been crucial to overcome in light of its handicapped economy, and lack of a headstrong goverment. A very crucial point along these years has been the loss of East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, which revolted against the government of Pakistan due to unfair treatment of their people and gained independence for themselves with the help of the Indian Army, when matters were beyond bad.The case in discussion here is the recent turmoil in Balochistan; their lack of autonomy, lack of security, and extraction of resources. Does that make Balochistan the next Bangladesh? According to the following analysis, not so much. Social Similarities: The cry for independence in East Pakistan that led to the formation of Bangladesh started from the language riots. When East P akistan, which made up 60 percent of Pakistan’s population, was denied their right to Bengali being the national language; they became infuriated since most people there couldn’t speak Urdu or English very well.This need for their language brought about the start of the Bengali nationalism. The angry Bengalis of East Pakistan started rioting massively, fighting for their language; hence uniting the youth and the students towards one cause and starting the Bengali Nationalist Movement. The nationalism in Bengalis and their protests towards the wrong being done to them in other ways such as politically and economically brought about their first cry for independence.Similarly in Balochistan, the exploitation of their people, the atrocities done to them, and unfair conditions has led to the Balochistan Nationalist Movements. Organizations like BLA (Balochistan Liberation Army), BRA (Balochistan Republican Army), and BLF (Balochistan Liberation Fund) are all working towards supporting Baloch nationalism and fighting for their rights. Even though the cause of this nationalism in Balochistan does not have much to do with language, the fact that this nationalism has evolved and is now pressing the Balochis towards wanting independence, is a striking similarity etween Balochistan and Bangladesh. It can be said that this nationalism is what is driving both Balochis and Bengalis towards the larger picture of wanting independence. Differences: Even though socially Bangladesh and Balochistan are similar with their nationalism standing high and above, there are a lot of social differences that keep them apart from falling under the same situation. In Bangladesh, the Bengalis were a lot more united as a whole.Since the beginning Bengalis never wanted to be divided, but when they were done so against their will and then given to a federation that didn’t allow its language, agitation had built up amongst the Bengalis. This nationalism amongst them was very uniting, and helped them in the later years when they faced other unfair conditions politically and economically. So the fact that their leader Sheikh Mujib Ur Rehman and their different Nationalist movements led by the students were very united in their goals made their nationalism even stronger.It can be said that those leading the protests in Bangladesh wanted the goodwill of all the Bengalis and wanted their voice heard. However, in Balochistan that unity is seen missing. Historically, Balochistan was a large land mass which had different tribes living together, divided into borders, each on their own. Balochistan as a primordial ethnicity never existed. The Mughals had first set up Kaalat, with a king/emperor given the title of ‘Khan’. Slowly, five different states were set up in Balochistan, each with their own leader.Later on when Pakistan came into being, these 5 states were still pretty much separate without a larger name of a geo political entity. The name Ba lochistan was given to these tribes’ years after they had been a part of Pakistan, in 1971 when Balochistan was made a province. Slowly and gradually the political issues started tearing the Balochis into protesting for their rights. Since the tribes had been divided and appointed Sardars/chiefs to rule them, these Sardars started manipulating their own Balochi people into getting the government to fulfill their demands.Hence the Sardars would light up a fire, the people would start riots and the Government of Pakistan would pay them to calm them down. This continued until the Balochis backfired on their own Sardars and kicked them out of Balochistan. In light of this, it can be said that Balochistan isn’t very united in its cry for independence/autonomy. The different organizations working for the Balochistan Nationalist Movement don’t work together, since they come from different families and have different agendas of their own.The Balochis were led down by th eir own Sardars who should have been holding them together and protecting them, but instead they were not willing to put aside their own agendas, goals and conflicts; this made the different Sardars stand against one another and not come together to stand for a larger cause for their people. Hence Balochistan is way different from Bangladesh in the sense that it lacks Bangladesh’s unity and strength that came from their union in Nationalism. Economical Similarities: Balochistan and Bangladesh both present one similarity, which is economical neglect from the rest of Pakistan.When Bangladesh was East Pakistan, it formed 60% of Pakistan’s population; however, resources were put more towards the establishment of West Pakistan, as compared to East Pakistan. Hence, East Pakistan was always economically ignored and not given higher weightage in line of the fact that they formed a larger portion of Pakistan. Resources were taken from East Pakistan and put to the betterment of West Pakistan; later in the years Ayub Khan’s industrialization plan, which was the golden age of Pakistani Capitalism, also involved setting up industries in West Pakistan, instead of East Pakistan.In the very same manner, Balochistan is also being economically neglected. Even though Balochistan is a desert and is largely barren, that does not mean that it lacks its fair share of natural resources. The land of Balochistan contains natural resources like Sui Gas and Rico Diq, which are worth hundreds of billions of dollars making it one of the world’s potentially richest regions. Yet, the people of Balochistan live in poverty, deprived of clean drinking water, education, and the natural gas that their own land pumps to the rest of Pakistan.This makes it a similar target of extraction of resources and lack of constructive attention, just like Bangladesh was. Geo Strategic Differences: Even though similar in the unfair treatment they received economically, Both Banglades h and Balochistan are different from one another from a geo strategic point of view. Talking about Balochistan, it is the largest land mass of Pakistan, is full of natural resources like oil, gas, coal, gold and many other precious materials and minerals, which are largely valuable to Pakistan.It plays a very important role on the foreign affairs of Pakistan by sharing borders with Iran, and Afghanistan. Protected by the surrounding Arabian Sea as well as mountainous ranges, Balochistan is connected to CARs through the Chaman Pass. Countries like China take interest in developing the Gawadar port in Balochistan; whereas the US also has immense interest in Balochistan’s large land mass; hence its unique geo strategic position is very important for Pakistan.Bangladesh on the other hand was never much important for Pakistan from a geo strategic point of view. Since East Pakistan was thousands of miles away from West Pakistan, with a large mass of enemy territory in between; Bang ladesh never held any geo strategic importance. Moreover, Bangladesh didn’t have the billions of dollars worth of resources, neither did it have any importance to the US which further decreased its geographical importance for Pakistan. The US never held any interest in East Pakistan, since they didn’t sign SEATO, which was a strategic treaty.The geographical importance of Balochistan makes it a lot more valuable for Pakistan, also since if Pakistan loses Balochistan, it basically losses its majority land area, as well as disrupts relations with its connecting countries. However, Bangladesh didn’t hold any such importance and it was always an understood fact that losing Bangladesh would be a lot easier, if ever there was an enemy attack. Political Similarities: Bangladesh was a victim of political instability from Pakistan’s end since the very beginning.The reason Bangladesh and Balochistan want away from Pakistan is the unfair treatment they have received . This unfair treatment varies greatly between the two, but brings them under the same light in the manner that it is highly uncalled for. Bangladesh was always denied its fair share of representation as East Pakistan, similarly Balochistan isn’t given any autonomous power to control its own province; the provincial government in Balochistan has been made highly handicapped with the little power it is granted. Differences:Politically, both Bangladesh and Balochistan fall under unfair treatment; however, the political situations in both areas are very different. When Bangladesh was still East Pakistan, the largest political problem it faced was the fact that it wasn’t granted the political representation in the government that it rightfully deserved, seeing that it was the majority area of Pakistan. From the day Pakistan was formed, till the years that followed, it was obvious that with the government being based in West Pakistan, The majority would be controlled by the minority. In his article Bangladesh: why it happened?G. W. Choudhary writes, â€Å"Pakistan began its political career under a parliamentary system modeled on Westminster and under a federal constitution. But neither the parliamentary system nor the federation was genuine. The constitutional forms and trappings of democracy only provided a cloak for rule by the few who were able to concentrate power in their own hands. During eleven years (1947-58) of so called parliamentary democracy, there was not a single general election, and the provincial elections were described and ‘a farce, mockery and a fraud upon the electorate’. In light of this it can further be explained how East Pakistan never received its fair share of representation in the government. Moreover, there were denied their rightful power when their political party, Awami League won the elections in 1970-71. From the years that followed from 1947, when Pakistan was formed, till 1971, when Bangladesh was for med; East Pakistan was never given its fair share, neither in the army, nor in the government.Hence they were always politically weak despite the fact that there was immense unity amongst their own organizations and political parties, working for the Bengalis. It must be noted that East Pakistan was always politically united amongst its own people; as in there weren’t sub divided feuds amongst the Bengalis that kept them politically at par with each other. In Balochistan this unity was missing. Since Balochistan had never been a single, united political entity; the Sardars were divided in their ambitions and had a tone of feuds amongst themselves.These caused the biggest political weakness of Balochistan. Even though just like Bangladesh, Balochistan never got the representation in army, or government that it asked for; what differentiates the two is the fact that Balochistan fell victim to its own internal feuds. In his article Balochistan is no Bangladesh, Sushant Sareen de scribes this as, â€Å"The trouble is that while many of the tribal Sardars, in their hearts ight be supportive of the Baloch cause, or are being forced by public sentiment as well as the circumstances on the ground to pay lip-service to the aspirations of the Baloch people (for example, Akhtar Mengal insisting on a dialogue with the Pakistani authorities under the aegis of the UN), they are not willing to put aside their personal egos in the service of Baloch nationalism. Their personal ambitions, feuds, rivalries, a desire to be one-up on their fellow Sardars makes it impossible for all of them to come together for the larger cause of their people. † Hence their leadership issues form a major political drawback for Balochistan.Another major political issue that separates Balochistan from being the next Bangladesh is the high importance of anarchy in Balochistan. Even though the legal constitution doesn’t allow for there to be a Jirga system that prevails in Balochist an; but since the judiciary is weak and Balochis don’t trust it, they turn to the Jirga system. Since the Pakistan government never did anything substantial to stop this Jirga system, it has deep rooted itself amongst Balochistan, turning it into anarchy in the name of democracy. This has given way to the Balochistan game.Different countries have come and started to set up their roots in Balochistan trying to take it over. MILITARY Similarities: On 25th March, 1971, Operation Searchlight was started; where six brigades of Pak Army moved into East Pakistan and arrested workers; people of East Pakistan were sexually assaulted by the army and were left crippling while their governor Sheikh Mujeed Ur Rehman was arrested. East Pakistan suffered sexual, physical, and psychological torture at the hands of their country’s army. Similarly, people in Balochistan have suffered and are still suffering at the hands of the Pakistan army.Missing people cases are on the high, bodies a re found lying around after days of waiting and the torture just doesn’t seem to stop. This forms part of the major problems of Balochistan, which is not enough security. Even though this similarity of torture at the hands of the army remains, there's no denying the fact that its intensity in Balochistan is far greater than that in Bangladesh. In light of all the above mentioned similarities and differences, a conclusion can be reached about whether or not Balochistan is going to be the next Bangladesh.Despite the fact that the similarities remain, making it look like the same way nationalism and nationalist movememnts were a start towards the larger independence of Bangladesh, Balochistan remains a different situation. It’s safe to say that Balochistan is no Bangladesh. That statement lies on the fact that the problem of Balochistan is beyond that of unfair treatment by the government. Balochistan faces what is a severe case of lack of unity, unlike Bangladesh which w as always a lot more united in its attempt to gain independence.Balochistan is a case of crippled inner politics, encouraged by the Pakistani government that further weakens it towards not being able to gain anything substantial. BIBLIOGRAPHY: * http://www. chowrangi. com/why-balochistan-is-burning. html * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/History_of_Bangladesh#Creation_of_Pakistan * http://www. jstor. org/discover/10. 2307/2613440? uid=2129;uid=2;uid=70;uid=4;sid=21101363476631 * http://www. thedailystar. net/forum/2011/December/on. htm * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Bengali_Language_Movement http://bangladeshwatchdog. blogspot. com/2012/02/bangladesh-and-now-balochistan. html * http://idsa. in/idsacomments/BalochistanisnoBangladesh_ssareen_190110 * http://www. defence. pk/forums/strategic-geopolitical-issues/165565-balochistan-pakistan-s-second-bangladesh. html * http://blogs. thenews. com. pk/blogs/2012/02/saving-balochistan/ * http://www. nation. com. pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-d aily-english-online/columns/03-Oct-2012/the-balochistan-plan * http://www. bangladeshfirst. com/docdetails. php? cid=9;docid=1

Foundation and Empire 15. The Psychologist

There was reason to the fact that the element known as â€Å"pure science† was the freest form of life on the Foundation. In a Galaxy where the predominance – and even survival – of the Foundation still rested upon the superiority of its technology – even despite its large access of physical power in the last century and a half – a certain immunity adhered to The Scientist. He was needed, and he knew it. Likewise, there was reason to the fact that Ebling Mis – only those who did not know him added his titles to his name – was the freest form of life in the â€Å"pure science† of the Foundation. In a world where science was respected, he was The Scientist – with capital letters and no smile. He was needed, and he knew it. And so it happened, that when others bent their knee, he refused and added loudly that his ancestors in their time bowed no knee to any stinking mayor. And in his ancestors' time the mayor was elected anyhow, and kicked out at will, and that the only people that inherited anything by right of birth were the congenital idiots. So it also happened, that when Ebling Mis decided to allow Indbur to honor him with an audience, he did not wait for the usual rigid line of command to pass his request up and the favored reply down, but, having thrown the less disreputable of his two formal jackets over his shoulders and pounded an odd hat of impossible design on one side of his head, and lit a forbidden cigar into the bargain, he barged past two ineffectually bleating guards and into the mayor's palace. The first notice his excellence received of the intrusion was when from his garden he heard the gradually nearing uproar of expostulation and the answering bull-roar of inarticulate swearing. Slowly, Indbur lay down his trowel; slowly, he stood up; and slowly, he frowned. For Indbur allowed himself a daily vacation from work, and for two hours in the early afternoon, weather permitting, he was in his garden. There in his garden, the blooms grew in squares and triangles, interlaced in a severe order of red and yellow, with little dashes of violet at the apices, and greenery bordering the whole in rigid lines. There in his garden no one disturbed him – no one! Indbur peeled off his soil-stained gloves as he advanced toward the little garden door. Inevitably, he said, â€Å"What is the meaning of this?† It is the precise question and the precise wording thereof that has been put to the atmosphere on such occasions by an incredible variety of men since humanity was invented. It is not recorded that it has ever been asked for any purpose other than dignified effect. But the answer was literal this time, for Mis's body came plunging through with a bellow, and a shake of a fist at the ones who were still holding tatters of his cloak. Indbur motioned them away with a solemn, displeased frown, and Mis bent to pick up his ruin of a hat, shake about a quarter of the gathered dirt off it, thrust it under his armpit and say: â€Å"Look here, Indbur, those unprintable minions of yours will be charged for one good cloak. Lots of good wear left in this cloak.† He puffed and wiped his forehead with just a trace of theatricality. The mayor stood stiff with displeasure, and said haughtily from the peak of his five-foot-two, â€Å"It has not been brought to my attention, Mis, that you have requested an audience. You have certainly not been assigned one.† Ebling Mis looked down at his mayor with what was apparently shocked disbelief, â€Å"Ga-LAX-y, Indbur, didn't you get my note yesterday? I handed it to a flunky in purple uniform day before. I would have handed it to you direct, but I know how you like formality.† â€Å"Formality!† Indbur turned up exasperated eyes. Then, strenuously, â€Å"Have you ever heard of proper organization? At all future times you are to submit your request for an audience, properly made out in triplicate, at the government office intended for the purpose. You are then to wait until the ordinary course of events brings you notification of the time of audience to be granted. You are then to appear, properly clothed – properly clothed, do you understand – and with proper respect, too. You may leave.† â€Å"What's wrong with my clothes?† demanded Mis, hotly. â€Å"Best cloak I had till those unprintable fiends got their claws on it. I'll leave just as soon as I deliver what I came to deliver. â€Å"Ga-LAX-y, if it didn't involve a Seldon Crisis, I would leave right now.† â€Å"Seldon crisis!† Indbur exhibited first interest. Mis was a great psychologist – a democrat, boor, and rebel certainly, but a psychologist, too. In his uncertainty, the mayor even failed to put into words the inner pang that stabbed suddenly when Mis plucked a casual bloom, held it to his nostrils expectantly, then flipped it away with a wrinkled nose. Indbur said coldly, â€Å"Would you follow me? This garden wasn't made for serious conversation.† He felt better in his built-up chair behind his large desk from which he could look down on the few hairs that quite ineffectually hid Mis's pink scalp-skin. He felt much better when Mis cast a series of automatic glances about him for a non-existent chair and then remained standing in uneasy shifting fashion. He felt best of all when in response to a careful pressure of the correct contact, a liveried underling scurried in, bowed his way to the desk, and laid thereon a bulky, metal-bound volume. â€Å"Now, in order,† said Indbur, once more master of the situation, â€Å"to make this unauthorized interview as short as possible, make your statement in the fewest possible words.† Ebling Mis said unhurriedly, â€Å"You know what I'm doing these days?† â€Å"I have your reports here,† replied the mayor, with satisfaction, â€Å"together with authorized summaries of them. As I understand it, your investigations into the mathematics of psychohistory have been intended to duplicate Hari Seldon's work and, eventually, trace the projected course of future history, for the use of the Foundation.† â€Å"Exactly,† said Mis, dryly. â€Å"When Seldon first established the Foundation, he was wise enough to include no psychologists among the scientists placed here – so that the Foundation has always worked blindly along the course of historical necessity. In the course of my researches, I have based a good deal upon hints found at the Time Vault.† â€Å"I am aware of that, Mis. It is a waste of time to repeat.† â€Å"I'm not repeating,† blared Mis, â€Å"because what I'm going to tell you isn't in any of those reports.† â€Å"How do you mean, not in the reports?† said Indbur, stupidly. â€Å"How could-â€Å" â€Å"Ga-LAX-y, Let me tell this my own way, you offensive little creature. Stop putting words into my mouth and questioning my every statement or I'll tramp out of here and let everything crumble around you. Remember, you unprintable fool, the Foundation will come through because it must, but if I walk out of here now – you won't.† Dashing his hat on the floor, so that clods of earth scattered, he sprang up the stairs of the dais on which the wide desk stood and shoving papers violently, sat down upon a comer of it. Indbur thought frantically of summoning the guard, or using the built-in blasters of his desk. But Mis's face was glaring down upon him and there was nothing to do but cringe the best face upon it. â€Å"Dr. Mis,† he began, with weak formality, â€Å"you must-â€Å" â€Å"Shut up,† said Mis, ferociously, â€Å"and listen. If this thing here,† and his palm came down heavily on the metal of the bound data, â€Å"is a mess of my reports – throw it out. Any report I write goes up through some twenty-odd officials, gets to you, and then sort of winds down through twenty more. That's fine if there's nothing you don't want kept secret. Well, I've got something confidential here. It's so confidential, even the boys working for me haven't got wind of it. They did the work, of course, but each just a little unconnected piece – and I put it together. You know what the Time Vault is?† Indbur nodded his head, but Mis went on with loud enjoyment of the situation, â€Å"Well, I'll tell you anyhow because I've been sort of imagining this unprintable situation for a â€Å"Ga-LAX-y, of a long time; I can read your mind, you puny fraud. You've got your hand right near a little knob that'll call in about five hundred or so armed men to finish me off, but you're afraid of what I know – you're afraid of a Seldon Crisis. Besides which, if you touch anything on your desk, I'll knock your unprintable head off before anyone gets here. You and your bandit father and pirate grandfather have been blood-sucking the Foundation long enough anyway.† â€Å"This is treason,† gabbled Indbur. â€Å"It certainly is,† gloated Mis, â€Å"but what are you going to do about it? Let me tell you about the Time Vault. That Time Vault is what Hari Seldon placed here at the beginning to help us over the rough spots. For every crisis, Seldon has prepared a personal simulacrum to help – and explain. Four crises so far – four appearances. The first time he appeared at the height of the first crisis. The second time, he appeared at the moment just after the successful evolution of the second crisis. Our ancestors were there to listen to him both times. At the third and fourth crises, he was ignored – probably because he was not needed, but recent investigations – not included in those reports you have – indicate that he appeared anyway, and at the proper times. Get it?† He did not wait for any answer. His cigar, a tattered, dead ruin was finally disposed of, a new cigar groped for, and lit. The smoke puffed out violently. He said, â€Å"Officially I've been trying to rebuild the science of psychohistory. Well, no one man is going to do that, and it won't get done in any one century, either. But I've made advances in the more simple elements and I've been able to use it as an excuse to meddle with the Time Vault. What I have done, involves the determination, to a pretty fair kind of certainty, of the exact date of the next appearance of Hari Seldon. I can give you the exact day, in other words, that the coming Seldon Crisis, the fifth, will reach its climax. â€Å" â€Å"How far off?† demanded Indbur, tensely. And Mis exploded his bomb with cheerful nonchalance, â€Å"Four months,† he said. â€Å"Four unprintable months, less two days.† â€Å"Four months,† said Indbur, with uncharacteristic vehemence. â€Å"Impossible.† â€Å"Impossible, my unprintable eye.† â€Å"Four months? Do you understand what that means? For a crisis to come to a head in four months would mean that it has been preparing for years.† â€Å"And why not? Is there a law of Nature that requires the process to mature in the full light of day?† â€Å"But nothing impends. Nothing hangs over us.† Indbur almost wrung his hands for anxiety. With a sudden spasmodic recrudescence of ferocity, he screamed, â€Å"Will you get off my desk and let me put it in order? How do you expect me to think?† Mis, startled, lifted heavily and moved aside. Indbur replaced objects in their appropriate niches with a feverish motion. He was speaking quickly, â€Å"You have no right to come here like this. If you had presented your theory-â€Å" â€Å"It is not a theory.† â€Å"I say it is a theory. If you had presented it together with your evidence and arguments, in appropriate fashion, it would have gone to the Bureau of Historical Sciences. There it could have been properly treated, the resulting analyses submitted to me, and then, of course, proper action would have been taken. As it is, you've vexed me to no purpose. Ah, here it is.† He had a sheet of transparent, silvery paper in his hand which he shook at the bulbous psychologist beside him. â€Å"This is a short summary I prepare myself – weekly – of foreign matters in progress. Listen – we have completed negotiations for a commercial treaty with Mores, continue negotiations for one with Lyonesse, sent a delegation to some celebration or other on Bonde, received some complaint or other from Kalgan and we've promised to look into it, protested some sharp trade practices in Asperta and they've promised to look into it – and so on and so on.† The mayor's eyes swarmed down the list of coded notations, and then he carefully placed the sheet in its proper place in the proper folder in the proper pigeonhole. I tell you, Mis, there's not a thing there that breathes anything but order and peace-â€Å" The door at the far, long end opened, and, in far too dramatically coincident a fashion to suggest anything but real life, a plainly-costumed notable stepped in. Indbur half-rose. He had the curiously swirling sensation of unreality that comes upon those days when too much happens. After Mis's intrusion and wild fumings there now came the equally improper, hence disturbing, intrusion unannounced, of his secretary, who at least knew the rules. The secretary kneeled low. Indbur said, sharply, â€Å"Well!† The secretary addressed the floor, â€Å"Excellence, Captain Han Pritcher of Information, returning from Kalgan, in disobedience to your orders, has according to prior instructions – your order X20-513 – been imprisoned, and awaits execution. Those accompanying him are being held for questioning. A full report has been filed.† Indbur, in agony, said, â€Å"A full report has been received. Well!† â€Å"Excellence, Captain Pritcher has reported, vaguely, dangerous designs on the part of the new warlord of Kalgan. He has been given, according to prior instructions – your order X20-651 – no formal hearing, but his remarks have been recorded and a full report filed.† Indbur screamed, â€Å"A full report has been received. Well!† â€Å"Excellence, reports have within the quarter-hour been received from the Salinnian frontier. Ships identified as Kalganian have been entering Foundation territory, unauthorized. The ships are armed. Fighting has occurred.† The secretary was bent nearly double. Indbur remained standing. Ebling Mis shook himself, clumped up to the secretary, and tapped him sharply on the shoulder. â€Å"Here, you'd better have them release this Captain Pritcher, and have him sent here. Get out.† The secretary left, and Mis turned to the mayor, â€Å"Hadn't you better get the machinery moving, Indbur? Four months, you know.† Indbur remained standing, glaze-eyed. Only one finger seemed alive – and it traced rapid jerky triangles on the smooth desk top before him.

Cheating Essay

Cheating is cheating yourself Cheating on school work is never justifiable. Students are responsible for their own work, and it is unfair to cheat in any form. Teachers grade students on their own academic ability and if a student is covertly or openly cheating that is considered infringement of being a student. Being a student requires personal interpretation, and analysis. Copying someone else’s work is disadvantageous. If cheating becomes a regular practice to someone it can be harmful to their future. Plagiarism is a major form of cheating that is distinctly forbidden. If students are not accountable for their own work, then they should be punished for it. The purpose of going to school is to learn and be able to consume new information. Copying someone else’s work does not serve this purpose and is useless regards to learning new material. For example, if a student is assigned to take notes on a certain reading, and hand in the same worded notes as another student it is possible that one student copied the other. If they worked on the notes together, and spent time to word it in the same way, this would not be considered cheating. However, if this was the case then the students should clarify with their teacher that the notes were worked on together. If this was not the case, this would be considered cheating and it should not be tolerated. From experience, I once allowed one of my friends to look over my class notes. As I graciously gave them the paper, I didn’t think that my friend would copy the notes word for word. A few days later, after handing in the notes, we got them back. I looked down at my paper and saw on th e top a zero written in red marker. I looked over at my friends paper which read the same grade. The teacher had both of us stay after class, and told us that he didn’t know who was responsible for taking the notes, and that either way it was cheating. As the year proceeded, I could tell my teacher was always skeptical of work that my friend and I would hand in following this incident. Cheating can lose values of trust, which I felt it did between my teacher and I. Since that day, I have not willingly handed out any of my papers. Since school in beneficial to an individual, cheating defeats this purpose. One of my teachers in high school would continuously repeat the saying â€Å"When you cheat, you cheat yourself.† I have seen people cheat their way through high school which does not better themselves in any way. For example, someone in my graduating class had the advantage of being one of the best football players in our conference, and was praised for it by my school and town. When ivy league schools started to recruit him, he figured he had to step his academic game up. How he did this was unfair because he regularly would copy other people’s work. Students would have no problem handing over papers to him, oblivious to what would happen to him in the long run. This phenomenal football player committed to Brown, I knew he had it coming. Since cheating became a regular practice to him, he would not be able to keep up with the academic work load at Brown. When asking a friend how he was doing, I heard that he was considering to transfer after the first semester. I assu med that this was because he did not feel like he could handle the school work since cheating had become part of his nature. In addition to cheating to yourself, this practice also includes false accomplishment. This football player had the privilege of attending Brown University, but his actions of getting there were unfair. He was a fully qualified football player for the University, but his academic level was a fraud. He might feel proud of this accomplishment for getting into and attending Brown, but really he is lying to himself. Cheating should never be tolerated, let alone regularly done because it results in negative effects such as what happened to this football player. Plagiarism is a major form of cheating that is frowned upon. Plagiarism is intolerable at colleges, and has detrimental consequences. In every one of my syllabus’s for my college course, plagiarism is addressed. It is clearly stated that if students are caught for plagiarizing, they will be penalized and consequences may even result in expulsion of the course. Plagiarism is defined as the practice of taking someone else’s work or ideas and passing them off as one’s own. It is unfair for one to claim that their work is someone else’s which is why a student is punished for it if they are caught. I have always been taught to make sure that I cite my sources if I have copied or taken information from another source. I am aware of the consequences of plagiarism so I am always careful when taking information  from other sources. I have had a friend in high school that got caught for plagiarism. There was no way for her to defend herself for the action, so she received a zero on this paper. There are no excuses for plagiarism which is why it is never justifiable. Cheating in relationships usually results in break ups. This is significant and similar to cheating on school work because as you could conclude from reading this paper, there are no advantages of cheating. One might feel that they will never get caught for such an action, but they themselves cannot feel satisfied for their work since it is not their own. My experience of handing out my paper to my friend made me more aware of the outcomes which could occur due to this action. This is why I have never cheated since this has happened. My observation of the football player at Brown demonstrated the false representation he played in regards to his academic achievements. The severe repercussions plagiarism creates are enforced at schools and universities throughout the world. Cheating is never acceptable on school work since there is nothing good that comes out of it.

A case study of the retail chain NEXT Essay

Introduction In 1864 Hepworth & Son, a Gentleman’s Tailors store was established in Leeds. Hepworth then went on to buy the chain of Kendalls rainwear shops in order to develop a group of Womenswear shops which was called NEXT. Since 1982, NEXT has expanded in a variety of different ways, whether it has been by expanding on existing products or clothing ranges or by expanding into different areas, for example home interior ranges. On February the 12th, 1982,the first NEXT women’s wear store was opened. It introduced an exclusive and co-ordinated collection of stylised clothing as well as shoes and women’s accessories. By the end of July, NEXT had expanded greatly, forming seventy new shops. The collection ranges for men, children and home followed the opening of the women’s collection. In August 1984, NEXT launched their clothing range for men, and by December there had developed 52 shops. The same year, the first â€Å"mini† department store was opened in Edinburgh. This incorporated a cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ as well as Womenswear, menswear, and shoes. When NEXT launched their interior range of soft furnishings for the home in August 1985, the first department store, which had, Womenswear, menswear and interiors, was opened in Regent Street, in London. Between 1987 and 1988, NEXT launched both their Children’s wear collection as well as their directory, so that their customers were able to buy their products in the comfort in their home, with time to spare and look at the products carefully. In 1993, NEXT then announced the brand strategy of â€Å"One Brand Two Ways of Shopping†, which brought together the common ranges across both retail and home shopping formats. To further develop this strategy, in 1999 there was a launch of shopping on the Internet from the NEXT Directory at www.next.co.uk. NEXT is now trading from over 330 stores in the UK, in 16 countries worldwide, such as: Bahrain Cyprus, Czech Republic, Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait and Qatar, and has 49 stores overseas. It recently opened several larger stores in the UK in areas such as Bluewater Park and Liverpool. Methodology I have chosen to base my report on NEXT. I will be considering different aspects of the business, for example: objectives, organisation, culture, structure and communication channels within the business. I will then be examining how these factors are affecting the success of the business. As I am currently employed at NEXT, I can use this to my advantage in order to find out the information I will require in order to carry out my project. Being an employee at NEXT, I am involved in team talks which are carried out each morning, in order to discuss ideas and for the manager to notify all the staff the objectives and targets for the day, which are mainly involved with the amount of sales required in order to reach profit targets. Staff are also notified how much profit each division of the business (home, women’s wear, men’s wear and children’s wear) is making each day. This enables all the employees to discover how well the business is doing. I will also be using the Internet to visit the NEXT website in order to collect general information about the business, as well what they offer to customers. I will also be using certain websites ion order to further my knowledge in the areas I will be discussing within my report. In order to collect more specific and detailed information, I will be having a meeting with the store manager so that I can find out about how the business is doing financially, and how the managers ensure that objectives are met within the business. Business Ownership In 1986 Parent company, J Hepworth & Son changed its name to NEXT plc. NEXT is a public limited company (plc). A public limited company is an organisation, which has limited liability, which means that the responsibility for the debts of the company is limited to the amount of capital invested in the company. A public limited company sells shares to the general public on the stock exchange. Both private and public limited companies operate within the private sector. To set up a public limited company, application must be made to the Registrar of Companies in Cardiff. This application is accompanied by: – a statutory declaration. – a Memorandum of Association. – the Articles of Association. In addition to this, after receipt of a Certificate of Incorporation, a public company has to offer a prospectus to the public as well as share certificates to those who purchase shares. There are two types of shares, ordinary and preference Authorised share capital is the maximum number of each type of share that can be issued, as laid down in the memorandum of association. Issued share capital is the actual number of shares of each type that have been purchased and share premium is the difference between the nominal price of the share and its market price. The ownership of the public limited company rests with the shareholders. Control of the company is in the hands of the directors. Sight must never be lost of the fact that in many companies, major shareholders may choose directors and in turn directors may be shareholders. Both of these situations could prove to be detrimental to the interests of the remaining shareholders/directors. There are many advantages to be had from forming a public company compared with the formation of a sole trader or partnership. A few of these advantages are: * Limited liability. * Larger capital base, through the purchase of shares. * Separate legal identity ensures continuity of the business independent of the personal circumstances of the individual shareholder. Annual accounts and reports of a public limited company are subject to external review, therefore verifying the truth and accuracy of the financial control of the company. Disadvantages associated with this type of ownership are: * there are many legal formalities that must be complied with before the company can be set up. * activities are closely controlled by company law and the running of the company is subject to legal constraints. * accounts are public and this means a lack of privacy. * the company has to pay for an auditor to independently check the accounts. * the company is accountable to its shareholders and its creditors. * divorce of ownership from control can lead to a conflict of interest, as the aims of the shareholders, directors and management may not be the same, eg directors may want to grow the business over the long term, shareholders may be expecting a quick, high return on their money. * the performance of the company may not be reflected correctly in its share price. If the industry as a whole comes under pressure, then the firm, through no fault of its own, may suffer. * if the company is too large, it may lose its efficiency and become tied down in red tape â€Å"diseconomies of scale†. * they are subject to takeover bids. There is no way of stopping other companies buying big blocks of shares. * in practice, the small shareholder can do very little to influence the way the company is run. Culture and Objectives One of NEXT’s most important objectives is to profitably expand their selling space, as they believe that new space would continue growth of sales and profits in the years ahead, as it would enable them to offer customers a greater choice of product in a more comfortable shopping environment. They are continuing to develop and expand their product ranges, as they believe an understanding of their customers, combined with their design skills, can genuinely add value. The business is innovative as they are able to come up with new ideas to match changes in the business environment as well as changes within the markets, yet they still keep a high quality image of brand. The style, quality and value of their ranges remain their highest priority. They believe that it is important for the product to make the brand successful. They continue to pass benefits of better buying, by offering the same quality product at lower prices or better product at the same price. This effort will ensure that the business continues to go forward. Within the store team, team talks are held every morning so that the employees have time to talk to the managers within a group about ideas and suggestions that could be made within the business. This way the employees feel as if they have a greater involvement with what goes on. This relates to task culture. The managers have to encourage teams and listen to them rather than just telling than what to do. They think that everyone should be involved, so ideas can be shared and everyone feels involved. This way people feel committed to the changes that may be made to the culture of an organisation rather than seeking to resist it. Objectives and targets are set each morning for the day to ensure that aims are met and that they meet their profit targets for the day. The drive to profitability helps shape the attitudes, values and beliefs in the organisation. In this business organisation their role culture involves the objectives of maximising sales and making profit. All members of staff have a defined role to carry out which is determined by their job description. Role culture is normally split up into a number of functions that are organized in a hierarchical way, for example Next divide themselves into various functions like accounts, marketing and production. This type of culture works by logic and rationality. Role culture is mainly used in large organization. In this culture position in the main source of power and rules and procedures are the main source of influence. NEXT takes social, environmental and ethical matters seriously. They are committed to corporate social responsibility from Board level and throughout their teams and group. The Group has taken actions to contribute to ethical trade and, within commercial constraints, sustainable development. The Board has identified and assessed the key business risks, issues and opportunities that have come about due to social, environmental and ethical matters. An executive director has responsibility for these matters and considers all aspects of the Group’s behaviour. NEXT’s efforts to improve development will continue to focus on waste and climate change. They have taken steps to reduce waste and in particular have reduced use of energy and CO 2 release per square meter over last year. The Group will continue these ideas where commercially possible. NEXT’s social policy involves the diversity of its workforce, and safety and ethical requirements for suppliers. People are a key asset to the business, so treatment towards them is very important. They have developed policies for recruitment, training and development of personnel, which are contained in staff handbooks. The business is committed to achieving excellence in the areas of health, safety, welfare, fire prevention and protection of the working environment and has therefore taken up policies aimed at minimizing risks in the Group’s activities in order to make sure that they do not harm employees, customers or the general public, all of whose interests are regarded as critical to business success. NEXT believes that employees have equal opportunities, and will continue to make sure that they offer career opportunities without discrimination. The Group continues to improve the health, safety and well being of its employees. A major health and safety programme has been applied throughout the Group, with increased training in NEXT Distribution and improved communication between staff and management. Increased resources have been dedicated to the promotion of health and safety matters during the year and the Board has reviewed the resulting policy. The Group’s ethical policy is extended to its suppliers. NEXT Brand introduced a supplier Code of Practice in 1998 in respect of working conditions, including ‘minimum compliance standards’ for child labour, environmental protection, wages and other issues. A team of dedicated auditors, based in the UK and overseas, work to inform, monitor and improve supplier fulfillment to the Code of Practice. In 2002 the Group became a member of the Ethical Trading Initiative in addition to its commitment to its own Code of Practice. NEXT has a well-established corporate charity and sponsorship programme, donating time, funding and resources to a wide group of local and national charities. A committee made up of employee representatives have regular meetings to ensure that varied ranges of charitable causes are supported. FINANCIAL OBJECTIVE The financial objective of the NEXT is to maximize long-term growth in earnings per share. Over the last five years their earnings per share has increased by 86%. They aim to grow their earnings per share by continuing to progress the main operating profit of the NEXT Group. This will mainly be achieved through the development of product ranges, expansion of their selling space and the growth of their home shopping business. It will also be achieved by continuing to enhance growth in earnings per share through the buying back of shares for cancellation as and when it is in the interests of shareholders. DEVELOPING THE NEXT DIRECTORY NEXT have two main objectives in NEXT Directory. These are to increase the number of people using the Directory by increasing their customer base and also by increasing the size of offer available to order from home through increasing the number of pages. The Board sets objectives and annual targets for the Chief Executive to achieve. The Board is responsible for general policy on how these objectives are achieved and gives the achievement of that policy to the Chief Executive. The Chief Executive is required to report to the Board at each meeting all material matters affecting the Group and its performance. NEXT also aims to expand sizes of their stores. The drive for new space is decided by strict financial criteria. Every new store aims to pay back the net capital invested in less than 24 months and to achieve at least 15% store profit on sales before distribution and central costs. When appraising new stores the store must achieve its investment criteria on the basis of its expected first year sales. FUNCTIONAL AREAS Within Next, the functional areas have been categorised into three main sectors. These function areas in the business help Next meet their objectives in different ways. The management team give directions to the staff so they are able to meet objectives They have the management team, which are in charge of all the subdivisions of the functional areas, the operational area which involves marketing, administration, finance and accounts, human resources and marketing. These sections then branch off into smaller areas such as: Delivery and Replenishment- where all the products delivered to the store from the warehouse are unpacked, checked off, and then prepared to be taken down to the shop floor, or to be stored within the stock rooms. In order to prepare the items of clothing, they are tagged, for security reasons, and then placed on a hanger with the correct cube indicating the size of the item. Delivery actions have to be carried out quickly and efficiently so that the stock can reach the shop floor ready for replenishment. This needs to be carried out in the correct sizes so that the stock levels are controlled Health and safety-Both the health and safety of the staff and the customers have to be considered. All members of staff have to sign in when entering the store and sign out when leaving. Also, visitors have to follow the same process in case of a fire or any other emergency, which may lead to people having to evacuate the building. This will enable the identification of whom, if anyone has not been able to evacuate the building so they can be brought to safety. Other health and safety regulations have to be followed, for example, and pin tags have to be picked off the floor to prevent injuries from people stepping on them. Health and safety ensures that everyone’s safety within the store, including the customer as well as the staff is maintained at all times. Space management and Best sellers- The best selling stock are placed in the best selling spaces, which is usually directly in front of the entrance where it is easily seen by the customer to attract more customers and therefore maximise profits. The third sector they have is the commercial area, which involves, till service, fitting room service, security, front cover, shoes and general customer service. A high level of customer service is provided on the shop floor so that customers feel welcome and make repeat purchases as they feel in a comfortable and friendly shopping environment. Finance and accounts Within Next, the financial area of the business is extremely important as it analyses how well Next is meeting its objective of maximising profits. This area within the business has to keep an exact and very detailed record of the money paid in and out. Also various financial records have to be produced at regular periods, for example balance sheets and profit and loss accounts. This is so that the amount if profit and income the company is getting can be analysed clearly to determine its success or any adjustments that need to be made if the income is low, in order to maximise profits that next is receiving. Next have subdivided their finance and accounts area into two further function areas. One area is the management accounting function. This provides the managers with figures, which will help them to make decisions, perhaps about pricing decisions, within the business that could help them better their financial position. This functional area has the capability and the responsibility to shift the company in specific directions by making decisions in relation to the analysis of figures, and enables them to use these figures to make predictions for the future. Improvements that Next may decide to make are based upon the information extracted from breaking down of the figures to display the performance of the business. If the performance is not satisfactory then targets are set for the business to achieve to better its performance. Also limitations of spending may be set for specific areas of the business, by using certain control systems such as budgeting. The cashiers department, within the accounting functional area, involves the collection of any cash or other payments from each till within the store so that the cash transactions can be analysed and the sum can be checked. Other payments to the store through cheques or payments through bank accounts are also handled in this department, and then these will be recorded in cashbooks or within the stores’ computer system. The wages department is in charge of managing the payrolls by calculating and paying the wages. The information needed to calculate these figures are obtained from the timetables of hours worked by the employees on each department within the store, so that the amount of pay they receive is accurate. The second subdivision within the finance and accounts area is the financial accounting function, which keep records of any financial events that may have occurred in order to keep summaries of financial dealings. Any debtor or creditor details must be recorded as well as accounts of the amount of money being paid into or out of the business. To ensure the company does not give out incorrect wages, factors such as national insure will need to be calculated and deducted from ones wage. Other financial accounts have to be provided such as annual reports so that figures can be easily obtained ready for discussion between the directors. Marketing Within this area of the business, it is important that customer requirements are identified, anticipated, and satisfied beneficially in terms of profit. This again links to Next’s main objective of maximising profit. Although marketing and sales is combined in Next, they both have distinctions between them. The marketing area have to persuade the company to produce what the customer wants, whereas the sales area have to persuade the customer to want whatever the company may be producing. The marketing department have to look into what the customers wants and needs are, therefore research, especially primary research, has to be carried out to find out details about the market for example, who is in it, what this particular market wants, where, how, and at what price one way of finding out this information through primary research is to carry out questionnaires. Although Next do not produce their own products, their marketing area has a close link with the producers of Next’s products to ensure the requirements of the customers are closely related to the development of the product. Other tasks carried out by the marketing area are pricing, distribution, advertising, packaging and promotion. All these factors must be considered carefully to ensure the success of the product. Human resources Within Next the human resources management area, also known as the Personnel debarment, is involved with recruitment, market share, liability, organisational structure, type of ownership, motivating workers and industrial relations. Research and development: Within Next, the research and development area is linked to the commercial department, as its functions are commercial, which are achieving and furthering the aims of the business. This is achieved by improving existing products or creating completely new ones, operational processes are also improved to ensure the products are also improved successfully. Advice is given to the company in order to lead them in the right direction throughout the course of improving their products and processes. If this flow of new and improved products were not carried out then Next would be unlikely to remain successful, as they would still have their unsuccessful products, which would bring no income into the company, therefore the profit will start to fall. Administration The administration area within next work towards provided the employees with any documents needed, communicating messages as well as dealing with any enquiries. MANAGEMENT STYLES The structure of an organization depends a lot on its management style. The main management style used in Next is Democratic this is a system based on equality of all members of their community. This allows the main managers to develop. The staff within Next are given a framework with which they are given more responsibility and the opportunity to make decisions. However, employees are still encouraged to take part in decision-making. Therefore these individuals are held responsible for any decisions that they may chose to make. This recognizes employees are stakeholders in the organization. The democratic leader listens to all staff and is willing to take suggestions on board. Advantages for this type of style is that it helps motivate employees well because it makes them feel like they are being appreciated. Also the employees are well informed about the organizations aims and future plans. However it can lead to disadvantages as well as it is difficult to apply. Autocratic styles are sometimes also used in next under certain circumstances. This is when one person has absolute power. The managers make all the decisions without consulting the employees. Employees can get unmotivated by this, therefore causing a negative atmosphere in the workplace. However there are some situations where harsh leadership is vital. Advantages of this are that quick decisions can be made and there is no time wasted on discussion resulting in the business saving time and money. Next only use this method when quick decision-making is vital, usually by the manager, for example; if there is a close deadline to be met, but it rarely has a negative effect on the staff, as it is not used to intentionally exclude members of staff. Consultative management also takes place within next and this develops their democratic style with which workers are asked opinion. Before any decisions are made, the manager consults their team. Employees discuss the problem and views taken into consideration. The decision is the managers but based on the conclusions of the group. The advantages of this are that it helps to motivate staff as they are aware that they have a say in the business to some extent as with the democratic style, but their decisions are not necessarily what the company goes by. The disadvantages of this are that it is time consuming and effort will be needed by a manager to do this. The Management encourages employees to set goals in line within the organization aims. This is management by objective. The employees are reviewed regularly in performance appraisals. The advantages of this style are that it will increase efficiency of individuals and help to motivate them and train them so they are productive. However, the disadvantages of this is that it needs to be well organized and will not work in highly structured jobs. The Democratic style is the management style that Next adopts in general. This sort of management style involves empowerment. With this type of management style it allows the manager to feel comfortable with other people in the organization making some of the decisions. Democratic managers will often want feed back from their employees on decisions being made. Democratic leaders therefore have to take time to listen and perhaps act on the opinions of the group. This type of management is good as it makes the employees happy and productivity is high. This is very good because employee’s thoughts and suggestions are listened to by the business. This makes the employees seem as if they are respected and that their thoughts are valid. Management delegation The Chief Executive has delegated authority for the day-to-day management of the business to operational management drawn from executive directors and other senior management who have responsibility for the particular areas. The most important management meeting is the weekly NEXT Brand trading meeting, which considers the performance and development of the NEXT Brand through its different distribution channels. It considers all business aspects of risk management in respect of the NEXT Brand including sales, property, product, systems, warehousing and personnel. Key performance indicators are monitored daily and weekly. Risk management The Board is responsible for the Group’s risk management process. It has given responsibility for achievement of the risk management process to the Chief Executive and senior management best qualified in each area of the business. The Board sets guidance on the general level of risk, which is acceptable and has a considered approach to evaluating risk and reward. The Board confirms that it has again carried out a review of the effectiveness of the Group’s system of internal control covering financial, operational, fulfillment and other controls and risk management. This includes identifying, evaluating, prioritizing and revising risks, determining a control strategy for each significant risk and consideration of how each risk might impact on the achievement of the business objectives. Risk management and internal control is a continuous process for the Board and has been considered on a regular basis during the year. The Board promotes the development of a strong control culture within the business. During the year the Board addresses the business risks that have been identified as vital, including a review of these risks that takes into account any changes in circumstances over the period. The Board considers that the Group’s hierarchical structure of management and continuous monitoring of key performance indicators provides the early warning mechanisms necessary to identify any areas of concern. Communication channels Communication with employees Team briefing/ team talks- internal and formal This is carried out each morning with all members of staff working that morning shift and all the mangers within the store. This gives an opportunity for suggestions to be made and opinions to be shared by members of staff. It gives them motivation as they feel part of a team, as they are able to discuss their views on certain areas. The manager also sets targets for the day and informs the employees of the success or failures which have been encountered. Training (Face to Face)- internal and formal This method of internal communication will result in successful communication with customers through an external channel. The employees at next need to be informed on how certain tasks are carried out before they start working at the store. This is to ensure that they are able to see to any queries the customer may have. Training the staff will ease the workload of the managers, as they are able to help with the tasks involving customers on the shop floor and therefore help achieve the business objectives. Also, incentives may be given to staff if their hard work is identified, this may motivate the employee to work hard in order to be rewarded. Performance Appraisals-internal and formal This form of communication occurs between the floor manager and the individual members of staff working on that particular floor. This process involves the evaluating of the performance of the individual employee. The manager then provides feedback to the employee on areas where adjustments may need to be made involving performance. This process acts as development experiences, which should enable the employee to improve knowledge and understanding in preparation for future responsibilities. Expectations and requirements are expresses by the manager so the employee is able to set targets to better his/her performance. Notice Board – informal and internal This method of communication is used within Next to inform employees about different subjects, for example; events that are due to occur, or perhaps reminders are highlighted to be remembered whilst working, for example customer service. Letters stating the progress and objectives of the business are also placed on the board so it is clear to the employees what they are aiming to achieve. Roster – formal and internal The rosters within next are held on the shop floor and ensure that all members of staff have a clear indication as to what tasks they will be carrying out throughout their shift. They are given set tasks every hour for example: till service, fitting room running, etc, this motivates the staff as they will not get bored by having to do the same thing all day (job rotation). Communication with customers Customer service Within Next customer service is essential within every task carried out be the employees. The person on front cover has ensure the customer is greeted on entering the store, and if there are any customers already in the store must be approached and asked if they require any help. Employees of next are taught to put the customer first in all circumstances, as they are the ones who are supporting next financially. When serving customers on either the till or fitting rooms, they should be greeted and ask if they require any help, in a polite and friendly manner. If a customer requires an item alternatives could be offered as well in order to increase sales. Internet Selling – external communication The Next directory has a link with the next website where customer are able to view and purchase clothes, through online shopping, from next in the comfort of their own homes. The website used is www.next.co.uk Special Offers – external communication This communication method is used to attract customers to buy products at reduced prices, however, after having entered the store customers usually decide to purchase other products they like which may be full priced, increasing Next’s profit. Window Displays Existing items that are in the store are arranged in an eye-catching mode and then put on display in the window, so any passers by are able to view items in the shop without having to enter. This may attract new customers who have not visited the store before. Quality assurance + adding value Next do not have a great deal to do with the production process however to ensure the quality of the products are the highest standard possible, the best quality manufacturers are used. The items are continuously checked within the warehouse as well as when they are received by the individual stores. If there are any faults in the garment when being checked in the circulation, then these items are withdrawn and renovated. This process is defined as quality control, and is involves with the detection and removal of any products that fall below the set standard after they have been produced. Quality assurance involved attempting to prevent any faults from occurring in the first place. All the returns are monitored and if a trend occurs in the fault of a garment, then the manufactures are contacted in case there is a fault within the production process. The products are tested to ensure they are highly durable, and therefore of o high quality. Value is added to Next’s products by its quality assurance and control. The way in which the marketing area of Next carries out its research ensures that sufficient information is obtained about the expectations of consumers so that quality standards required from the consumers is created. This adds value to the product, as the consumers will be more willing to pay for the product as it is at a high quality. Next have to accept the fact that their designs will not enable them to ‘get it right’ every year, so they have to take some risks. Small companies are able to do this and can go on touch; however, larger companies cannot and so therefore need to have systems. Any mistakes that next happen to make with any designs of their products do not last too long, as they have a short product cycle because they work in seasons. Each new season brings new products. This enables next to bring in new clothing designs and improve on the designs, which were not a success; this will mean further marketing research. However, any products which proved to be a success can be carried over to the next season so that Next can keep their income rate high as they already know the product is successful. Impact of ICT The retail systems used by Next are their own as they are packages that they wrote based on their models. They invented them themselves, however, they’ve outsourced their mainframe computers and payroll packages. The use of ICT allows the different functional areas within next to pass their information through from one to another. This enables them to work together more efficiently as each area has the same information to work with. For example, this can be used for means of administrative work so that any paperwork that concerns costumers can be passed out to the required functional areas within the business Internal ICT Communications used by Next use ICT to communicate both internally externally. This includes communication between managers for example faxing is used to contact each other because they have a fax machine located within their office, therefore they are able to keep a record of what has been communicated, for example, records or letters. If management need to be contacted by the employees from anywhere within the store then pagers would probably be the alternative to contact them, as it is heard throughout the store so they will receive it straight away, whereas with faxing, it may not be received straight away as they may not be in their office. At the till point customers are able to purchase their items, as well as order items in. This can be done as the till enables one to check what items are available to order from the warehouse, or whether any local stores have them, if so then the item can be sent to the store. The till keeps an account of what items have been sold so best sellers can be identified and the worst selling products can be improved on. It allows more information to be exchanged or to be researched within the store Internet selling is one main use of ICT within Next; it allows customers to shop and purchase whilst at home so they are able to take time to view products. Also it may appeal to more people who are often too busy to come out shopping. It is an effective way for next to maximise their profits. It also has informative areas on the website which show annual reports of the business to indicate how successful a year it has been. This idea of online shopping may not be such a good idea in some ways as the customer is unable to try products before purchase so if it doesn’t fit it will have to be returned. Within the financial area of the business the current accounts are stored as files on the computer, to keep it organised well and to ensure it is easily accessible. Also, with the use of specialised software, the procedures involved with accounting are simplified a great deal. Success of meeting objectives: PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Turnover and profit figures are set out in the table below: Turnover Profit Excluding VAT Before Tax 2003 2002 2003 2002 à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½m à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½m à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½m à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½m NEXT Retail 1,579.7 1,359.7 213.9 188.2 NEXT Directory 471.7 362.2 65.1 49.2 The NEXT Brand 2,051.4 1,721.9 279.0 237.4 NEXT Franchise 22.7 19.1 4.4 3.7 Ventura 97.4 101.9 11.2 13.0 Other activities 31.1 28.8 15.1 2.5 ESOP charge (8.2) (8.0) Turnover & operating profit 2,202.6 1,871.7 301.5 258.6 +17% Interest (expense)/income (0.3) 7.2 Profit before tax 301.2 265.8 Taxation (90.7) (76.0) Profit after tax 210.5 189.8 +11% Earnings per share 68.7p 58.1p +18% The profit and loss account above clearly indicates that Next has successfully met its objective of maximising profits as it has increased a further 11% since 2002. Next have continued to make good progress within the year 2003. Earnings per share rose by 18% to 68.7p and were improved by the useful effect of the share buybacks in the last two years. Next want to own fewer, bigger stores in order to take advantage of the economies of scale. This is a strategy in which they have been working on for the past few years. They are not interested in growing the number of stores in all areas, they have generally chosen to expand into towns, which they would prefer their stores to be in, and now they have stores in these areas chosen. Each store has to fit their model in terms of footfall and the time in which it will pay back their investment. Next currently have a 4-5% market share in the UK, but they hope to increase this up to about 8% in the next five years. However it is important that they do not dilute their management by diversifying the business or expanding into Europe. The Corporate strategy of next: From the early 1990’s Next have resisted all attempts to increase the number of clothing brands that they operate because they were convinced that expansion would lead to the failure of the NEXT Brand. The success that they have achieved over many years as a result of product development, the progressive move to larger stores and the increase in the number of home shopping customers, shows that that it is right to continue with their strategies as it is obvious that they are being met successfully due to the success of the business. Although Next retail is what Next is most associated with, the Next Directory is also proving to be financially successful and has a turnover of almost à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½500m and is one of the few really profitable home-shopping companies in the UK. Next’s ability to generate cash enables them to continue to buy back their shares when it is in the interests of our shareholders. This is an important part of their aim to deliver long-term growth in earnings per share. The success of NEXT is due to the following factors: Their focus on providing their customers with the product they want. The strength and skills of a good, well motivated management team that is honest to recognize its mistakes and quick to put them right. The support of their suppliers with whom they work in partnership to achieve good quality and value for money products. Also, the enthusiasm and dedication of all their employees who take great pride in the success of their company. Next Retail Financial Performance YEAR 2003 2002 %Change SALES 1, 121.0 944.8 15.7 OPERATING PROFIT 130.4 113.6 12.9 PROFIT BEFORE TAX 123.2 115.8 6 PROFIT AFTER TAX 85. 7 81.1 5.4 EARNINGS PER SHARE 31.7p 25.5p 19.5 Next Directory Financial Performance 2003 2002 % change à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½m à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½m Sales (exc VAT) 247.1 215.3 +15% * Active customers 1.58m +17% * Printed pages 1, 246 +20% * Disappointing profit growth Next is expected to continue to maintain its solid operating performance and strong free cash flow generation, while carefully managing its maximum potential share buyback of up to à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½600 million during the financial year of 2004. In order to continue this solid operating performance, there needs to be flexibility within the company’s supply chain and stores. Next has to maintain its successfulness of the correct levels of inventory and the capability of being able to respond to changes in fashion with shorter lead times. They need to keep a disciplined and controlled and expansion strategy. Also a relatively simple company structure needs to me maintained to allow successful communication and to allow any problems to be solved together as a team. However, their organizational objectives may not be successful, as the profit growth is rather disappointing. A stronger relationship will need to be built with customers so that they are able to develop a better reputation for excellence and increase brand loyalty of the customers so that they carry out repeat purchases in next as they are familiar with their products and are satisfied with them. Organisational structure Although outside the individual next store the structure seems rather tall, in terms of individual Next stores the structure would most probably be classed as being a flat structure as the store manager is in charge of all of the smaller functional areas, which are then in charge of their own section and their staff. This ensures that the span of control is shared, so managers have a shared amount of people to supervise. This therefore results in equal distribution of workload, so the managers are able to carry out their duties effectively. Also with this flat structure, communication is not as limited as people are more accessible to communicate with, as there are more managers of different areas within the business. However, if there were fewer managers then this would mean that they would not be able to communicate with all members of staff as there would not be enough time available to do so, which may result in lowered motivation levels for the employees. Simplified representation of organisational structure: Chief executive Sales director Regional manager Area manager Store manager Administration Finance Human Research and Marketing Production Resources development Organisational Strength: Next plc’s strength is their adult fashion range, which is for people aged between 20 and 40; these items are sold under their own label. This is their main target group. Although some of Next’s competitors find it difficult to satisfy the needs of this particular segment within the market, however, Next has managed to achieve this successfully in the past by selling their products at relatively low prices. With their label, next associate their good quality of clothes used as well as good workmanship. Because next are using their own brand, they are able to react on consumer wishes very quickly and therefore have total control over the total quality management. Organisational Weaknesses: The e-commerce section can make further gains. Next sees the Internet as an extension of perhaps the telephone in which people can order their product online. It is a simple process, which only really requires the vehicle that will get the orders to the retailer. At present, it is uncertain whether e-commerce will be the future of shopping and if customers are satisfied just sitting on the computer to chose their clothes, however, if the trend in internet shopping goes further, then unfortunately Next would be in a bad situation in comparison to its competitors as its platform isn’t sufficient enough. Another weakness is the concentration of similar type of clothing retail companies on the UK market. This may damage the next if its competitors gain market share or if consumers change their habits and next cannot adapt to these changing trends quickly. To spread into foreign markets could perhaps balance any possible risk of decreasing sales. A policy such as this would strengthen Next’s position if the pound became weaker or if the government decided to join the monetary union. As Next uses democratic management styles, they highlight open communication, which is based on self-managing teams. These teams are able to share the workload of the managers therefore objectives can be met more quickly and efficiently, rather than the manager being left to carry out a load of work with a lack of communication with the staff. Also this high level of communication ensures all members of staff are aware of the task in hand so they are able to provide a high level of customer sevice and can help meet the requirements of the customer. Alternative approaches could be used in order for Next to meet its objectives better: The employees could be given more power and responsibility and make them feel more part of team. This would involve changing the culture, in order to make the staff more of a team. The structure will then be flatter, people will work in teams less of a hierarchy, less feeling of a division between staff and managers. Alternative or more motivation methods could be used so that the employees feel more sense of belonging and feel more included in the business so are happier working there, and this will be reflected in the way they work and come across to customers, which will probably be more enthusiastic and willing to help. Bonus incentives could be a form of motivation, as it will mean that the employees are more willing to work harder and at their best in order to achieve a bonus. Next could also carry out the process of share save, where they buy shares at reduced rates, and therefore have more money that could be spent on expansion of stores or developing new and developed products. Good quality and price This factor is key for success. One way to achieve this object is possibly to look for a supplier who is located in an emerging market to participate at low labour costs. However, this country should have a clothing manufacturing background, for example India, Turkey or Hong Kong, so that it is easy to recruit well-trained employees. Furthermore, the supplier should be a part of the production process, so that stock capacity can be reduced. A quality officer from Next should be at the suppliers at all times in order to guarantee the high quality of clothes. To lower the costs and to gain a better trade position, suppliers should be reduced to a minimum and therefore new price conditions negotiated. This can lead Next to low costs and high quality in the long run. Relationship between next and its environment The green issue is gaining greater importance and Next should aim to make further progress in this area. The production process should ensure that Next guarantees that plants are environmentally friendly. The factories should contain filters so that erosion is reduced and any used chemicals are biologically decomposed. Another area is labour force. Next and its supplies should try and aim their production to be carried out successfully and without child labour. This should be communicated to the customers of Next. Shopping as an event Value should be added for customers, customer care and service should be provided in general. Next should ain to expand their smaller branches into superstores, so that customers are offered special services, i.e. clothing consultancies, childcare. In order to attract more customers and help them enjoy their shopping experience small events should be held. Next could perhaps place a small cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ or resting area in the store for inactive people who are not engaged in the process of shopping. In order for the main aim of â€Å"double digit growth† to be achieved and for next plc to get a better position in the market, a strong brand and good service should help lead to this.