Unicef Unesco And Education For All In Cambodia Education Essay

United Nations International Children ‘s Emergency Fund ( UNICEF ) was established on December 11, 1946. He was created in the intent to assist kids and adult females that faced up many jobs in life. He works with 190 states through state plan to get the better of the obstructions such as poorness, force, diseases, and favoritism which are affected to kids in day-to-day life. He does work really active in planetary administration in footings of supplying educational system, assisting kids from injury, force, and advancing information by utilizing engineering. Furthermore, he besides works with many people barely in order to protect kids from environmental jobs because he does non desire the kids suffer from those activities. However, he believes that kids are still threatened by those jobs because he can non vouch kids from being out those jobs. Meanwhile, he besides works really difficult to happen the schemes to forestall the spread of HIV/AIDS among immature people because h e wants to maintain them from injury and enable to protect them. However, non merely kids but besides adult females he besides promote misss ‘ instruction because he wants to promote misss have a really deep thought, better citizens in society every bit good as a good female parent for her ain kids. UNESCO ( United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization ) was created on November 4, 1946. He was established in order to work out jobs that related to wellness, poorness, and instruction that provide installations throughout the universe. In a nut shell, he is responsible for advancing peace, societal justness, human rights, and international security through international cooperation on educational scientific discipline and cultural plans. He has 193 member provinces and 7 associate member provinces ; hence, we trust that we will success in footings of covering with those jobs that we work manus in manus together. More of import than this, we play a critical function in United Nations in footings of cut downing utmost poorness in developing states, extinguishing gender inequalities in primary and secondary instruction, advancing sustainable development and particularly he wants to accomplish the end by 2015. As a consequence, he besides has his ain intent for futur e that he will seek to advance instruction every bit much as possible, societal justness and planetary peace and cooperation. MDG ( Millennium Development Goal ) was adopted by UN Millennium Summit in September 2000. He was established for ASEAN as a whole in order to do all the states in ASEAN obtain the end by 2015 successfully which is ASEAN Community. Furthermore, today he non merely has the fiscal resources to stop utmost poorness but besides has technological cognition to forestall this job in order to avoid this job go on once more and once more. Therefore, MDG has put eight chief schemes for ASEAN states to follow in order to develop the state such as: 1/ Eliminate utmost hungriness and poorness 2/ Achieve cosmopolitan primary instruction 3/ Promote gender equality and empower adult females 4/ Reduce kid mortality 5/ Improve maternal wellness 6/ Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases 7/ Ensure environmental sustainability 8/ Develop a planetary partnership for development. Education was offered by the WATS ( pagoda ) in Cambodia that provided merely male population to larn, in the yesteryear. Female were prohibited. That ‘s why Cambodia remains a batch of uneducated misss that had no activities or action which involve in societal work after Pot Pot government. Furthermore, during that period, the figure of qualified people such as instructors, research workers, and technicians, physicians were died. More significantly, that government led to get rid of instruction, consistently destructing learning stuffs, and so on. Schools and universities were closed. Not for long clip, this government was collapsed. The new authorities came up and had responsibility to retrace the instruction system since these substructures were to a great extent destroyed and besides many educated people were killed. However, he was rather hard to retrace the instruction system because our authorities did non hold ability to put in all the stuffs instantly since we merely w oke up from war. Actually, he can did it unless taking for long times.MC # 2: Function of UNICEF, UNESCO, the MDG, and Education for All in CambodiaUNICEF plays a critical function in Cambodia in footings of assisting hapless people and uneducated people particularly people populating in urban or rural country. Beside this job, UNICEF besides provides gender equality in Cambodia. There is no favoritism in this society. Furthermore, all kids have an equal chance to have an instruction and they can anticipate what they will acquire for their future life. They have a really strong committedness for their future life. UNESCO plays an of import function in Cambodia in footings of sharing cognition. Knowledge can do or take people to hold a really bright hereafter because when people have knowledge, people can protect themselves from something go on around them. However, UNESOC besides has another intent that desiring to construe to Cambodia is peace and security by advancing coaction among the states through instruction, scientific discipline, and civilization in order to foster cosmopolitan regard for justness, for the regulation of jurisprudence, and for the human rights and cardinal freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the universe, without differentiation of race, sex, linguistic communication or faith. These are sensible that Cambodia demand because after woke up from war, Cambodia still non stay peace. MDG is one portion of organisation. He besides has map to develop since Cambodia remains a batch of poorness after war. In the existent state of affairs that MDG was practiced in Camb odia about how to extinguish poorness. Cambodia needs to set up a mechanism for periodic reappraisals of advancement made towards bettering policy coordination at all degrees. However, it ‘s rather hard for Cambodia to make so because Cambodia is considered as a developing state which has no adequate natural stuffs, fiscal, human resources and so on. Nonetheless, in order to accomplish MDGs, non merely Cambodia but besides other states need to develop appropriate roadmaps suited to local demands and conditions. Education for all is really of import for Cambodia. Education is the primary vehicle by which economically and socially marginalized grownups and kids can raise themselves out of poorness. Besides, instruction has a critical function in authorising adult females, safeguarding kids from exploitative the environment, and commanding population growing. Education is the great thing that Cambodia need because Cambodia needs human resources to develop state to go comfortable state.MC # 3: The advantages of UNICEF, UNESCO, the MDG, and Education for All in CambodiaUNICEF has a batch of advantages that UNICEF provides to the hapless states particularly Cambodia. UNICEF working with many organisations in order to cover with some issues such as poorness, force, disease, and favoritism in a kid ‘s way that many states is confronting. This organisation works really hard in order to get the better of those jobs. Notwithstanding, he tries to advance misss instruction for guaranting that miss s can finish primary instruction as a lower limit in order to protect themselves from force, foolish, and so no. Furthermore, he works to support the spread of HIV/AID among immature people because it is right to maintain them from injury. However, from my point of position, I can state that the activities that UNICEF act is really right for Cambodia because after Pol Pot government ( race murder ) , Cambodia remains many people who burden HIV/AID virus, orphaned, poorness, and uneducated people. Therefore, the manner that UNICEF performs provides a batch of advantages to Cambodia to extinguish those diseases and all issues that happened in Cambodia from the past until now. Nevertheless, UNICEF does non hold ability to assist Cambodia what he has met presents but he can assist Cambodia to cut down those issues at least from 0 % to 50 % . UNESCO is besides help hapless states to avoid those jobs, but he concentrates much on instruction since this organisation wants people all over the universe to go knowing individual that society need in order to divert from force, poorness, and so on. This organisation has his map similar to UNICEF. Hence, I can state that since this organisation takes topographic point in Cambodia, now there are many people understood much on instruction particularly in university and besides many adult females working in ministries and companies. Since I described briefly about rubric of the end MDG before, now I will state them more clearly. Of class, there are eight ends for accomplishing the MDG by 2015. However, he is really difficult to make so since some states can non pattern its. First, eradicate extreme poorness and hungriness which steps by utilizing poorness spread ratio, portion of poorest quintile in national ingestion, prevalence of scraggy kids under-five old ages of age, and proportion of own-account and lending household workers in entire employment to do certain that there is lower poorness or hungriness occur in the state. Second, achieve cosmopolitan primary instruction which will be guarantee that by 2015, kids everyplace, male childs and misss likewise, will be able to finish a full class of primary schooling for guaranting that miss can obtain knowledge every bit to work forces without favoritism. This is a really of import point that Cambodia needs. Third, promote gender equality and empower adult fema les which is the intent of eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary instruction, sooner by 2005, and in all degrees of instruction no subsequently than 2015 by sharing the adult females in pay employment in the non-agricultural sector. Fourth, cut down kid mortality is the mark to cut down by two tierces, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate to do certain that there is a low of infant mortality rate. Fifth, better maternal wellness by utilizing the maternal mortality ratio, and utilizing prophylactic prevalence rate. Sixth, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases in order to do certain that those disease will be reduced by 2015 which utilizing the ratio of school attending of orphans to school attending o non-orphans aged 10-14 old ages. Seventh, guarantee environmental sustainability in the mark that integrate the rules of sustainable development into state policies and plans and change by reversal the loss of environmental resources. Eighth, develop a planetary partnership for development in the arm of developing farther an unfastened, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and fiscal system and turn to the particular demands of the least developed states. Education for all is utile for everyone without favoritism both male childs and misss in this universe. Learning is the most powerful tool because the more we know the better we get along in the universe. If we do non hold cognition, we are really hard to populate in this universe since this universe is traveling to seek modern engineering, Furthermore, we have knowledge, we are certainly to acquire a better occupation with a high paid.MC # 4: The impact of UNICEF, UNESCO, the MDG, and Education for All in CambodiaFor positive point of UNICEF, he starts his cooperation in Cambodia in 1952 as a portion of its planetary and Asia-wide regional plan to better kid wellness and wellbeing. UNICEF was helped Cambodia a batch in footings of instruction system, wellness attention service, so on and so away. He helps Cambodia in the intent of forcing Cambodia to go a strong state that full of human resources that would be helped Kampuchean citizens in the following hereafter since the state can develop or non develop based upon on human resources. Positive point of UNESCO, it is non much impact since it is non play in a major function in Cambodia. It merely shows us merely about the negative point. UNESCO provides disadvantages more than advantages. For illustration, in instance PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE, harmonizing to the web site of one of the celebrated Thai English Newspaper called THE NATION REPORT which announce on Thursday 21, May 2009, said that the UNESCO is unjust because the occupation of UNESCO is to guarantee that this heritage is good conserved. Why UNESCO has to inquire for permission from Thailand if they are merely visit Cambodia? Is Thailand Cambodia ‘s parent? Actually, for this statement, it depicts really clear that UNESCO is unjust in footings of judging the universe heritage. MDG, really MDG play a really of import function in Cambodia in footings of assisting Cambodia to cut down poorness in the state chiefly. A few month ago, in Phnom Penh metropolis ( in forepart of BO TUM VATEY pagoda ) , many official authorities ran this plan for advancing by gather together many people include high school pupils, workers, motor cab, and so on came to speak in order to portion some information which relate to poorness to do certain that these sorts of people understand good what is poorness and where does it come from. Conversely, it is rather difficult to make so since our state deficiency of human resources. Education for All, Cambodia is increasing a batch of schools from the lower grade to the higher grade at everyplace in the state to do certain that all people can hold opportunity to derive cognition in order to better themselves to back up populating criterion. Besides, I think that it is non much influence to Cambodia because now many people are educated so they understand good before they decide to make anything. We can see that most of people are be givening to travel to school.MC # 5: Future position of UNICEF, UNESCO, the MDG, and Education for All in CambodiaUNICEF plays a really of import function in Cambodia in footings of supplying instruction, assisting kids from force, advancing on the utilizations of engineering. Besides, UNICEF works on five issues of kids such as instruction, safety of kids and growing, preparation of kids in their early age, mistreatment and maltreatment guard the kids from maltreatment, and HIV/AIDS. Furthermore, UNICEF works really difficult to happ en the schemes to forestall the spread of HIV/AIDS among immature people since he wants to keep kids from injury and enable them to protect others. In add-on, UNICEF is working with many organisations in order to cover with some issues such as poorness, force, diseases, and favoritism. He works much on developing state. Additionally, he is besides holding a position since he works really difficult for assisting hapless states. The policy model covers all those who are deemed excluded, consisting handicapped kids, working kids, street kids, those with disablements, those with larning troubles, the really hapless, those in geographically distant countries, those from lingual, cultural or cultural minorities, those with parents who have stigmatized occupations, those with HIV or whose parents have HIV, those displaced by struggle or natural catastrophe, but non accomplishing in school and those that drop out of school. Integrated schooling systems consisting of all denominations, are t o be considered, to further societal coherence and better apprehension among communities. UNESCO is besides play a really indispensable manner to assist Cambodia. It helps Cambodia in the intent of forcing Cambodia to go a good state that full of human resources that would be help Cambodia in the following hereafter. Besides, it might believe that state can develop based upon on human resource. Furthermore, UNESCO is besides help hapless states to avoid those jobs, but he concentrates much on instruction since this organisation wants people all over the universe have instruction to divert from force, poorness, and so on. However, UNESCO is still weak that can non happen the right thing to the victim since the victim demand for aid like Cambodia. This organisation has his map similar to UNICEF. Hence, I can state that since this organisation takes topographic point in Cambodia, now there are many people understood much on instruction particularly in rural country. Besides, people who live in countryside let their girls to travel to school. Of class, now it shows us really exactly that there are many adult females pupils who are analyzing in university and besides many adult females working in ministries and companies. The MDG is besides plays a major function in footings of assisting hapless provinces for covering with some issues that those states are confronting. Harmonizing to my point of position, I can reason that the MDG is really difficult to accomplish the end by 2015 since the status of MDG for hapless provinces are rather difficult for them to follow. For the existent illustration of Cambodia, Cambodia is really difficult to obtain those standards since Cambodia deficiency of natural stuffs, human resources, so on and so forth. However, I trust that by 2020, the MDG can derive these aims since the hapless provinces are traveling to modernization provinces. Finally, the Education for All, I believe that it will obtain its end since it provides tonss about instruction system to hapless states since the hapless provinces deficiency of scheme to learn to pupils and no criterion for Cambodia pupils as a whole.

Nau company

Ana Innovating for Social Consciousness By Alex Claws Can a for-profit enterprise succeed if its main innovation is valuing social consciousness as much as shareholder returns? The question is particularly relevant in a time of high gas prices and a growing sense that our current consumption of natural resources is simply unsustainable. The founders of Ana, a fledgling retail outerwear company, believed the answer to this question to be a resounding mimes. Built with an unprecedented level of environmental, social, and human-rights unconsciousness, by April 2008 Ana was an underground success on the West Coast, opening five stores and a website selling critically acclaimed clothing collections. Then, at the beginning of May, Nan's board of directors voted to shut down the company. Viewed through Insight's lenses, Nan's promise becomes clear-?along with the perils that led to its downfall. Ana had a reasonable business model built around a well-defined Job-to-be-done. But as will beco me clear, Ana didn't follow an emergent strategy.And Nan's management discovered that a business model that looks good on paper doesn't always translate into immediate profits. Ultimately, a lack of careful execution and a push for quick expansion doomed Nan's first incarnation. But the story of Ana is still unfolding. Ana 2. 0 is currently underway, and that venture appears to have a better chance of success. The Launch Ana (Maori for â€Å"welcome†) began with the dream of Eric Reynolds, an outdoor enthusiast entrepreneur, co-founder (in 1974) of outerwear brand Marmot, and subscriber to the belief that a single individual can have an impact on the world.In the summer of 2003, Reynolds conceived of Ana, a sustainable clothing company that would donate a significant portion of its revenue to nonprofit organizations. Specifically, Reynolds envisioned customers presented with a unique question at point-of-sale: â€Å"To which organization should ‘my five percent' go? â €  By giving five percent of its revenue to nonprofits, Ana would break new ground. (For comparison, the most generous corporations give away one percent of revenue, with the average corporation giving less than . 05 percent. ) In the summer of 2004, Reynolds began recruiting a management team.In 2005, he hired a number of individuals away from Patagonia, a firm commonly considered a leader in outerwear, social consciousness, ND charitable giving. Chris Van Dyke (son of actor Dick Van Dyke), an ex-Nikkei employee 1 and ex-Patagonia vice president of branding and marketing, was hired as CEO. Mark Calibrating, a successful Patagonia designer, Joined Ana as lead designer. Patagonians director of marketing, Ian Yells, Joined as vice president of marketing. Nan's commitment to sustainability framed the constraints within which Calibrating worked as he designed Nan's clothing collection.Calibrating avoided any materials that weren't renewable or recyclable while seeking a balance betwe en performance, sustainability, and style. As a result, nearly all of the 30 fabrics utilized in Nan's clothing collection were custom materials developed specifically for Ana. The fabrics -?made from corn, recycled plastic bottles, 100 percent organic wool, and recycled synthetics-?set a new standard for sustainability. Nan's clothing creation process led to a number of innovations, including the elimination of solvent-based adhesives.The efforts of Calibrating and his team were rewarded-?Nan's first collection received critical praise from such disparate sources as Men's Vogue and Rock and Ice magazines. One downside: The fabric choices greatly constrained the range of colors possible, resulting in mostly drab hues. Nan's custom fabrics also required that customers pay a substantial premium for their clothing, but Nan's management team did not see this as a problem for its target customer segments: the affluent â€Å"multidimensional outdoor athlete,† the â€Å"new activis t,† and â€Å"creative. The Ana team expected that their customers' passion for sustainability would overcome any price resistance. Nan's commitment to sustainability was enforced as carefully in its stores as in its clothing. The company eschewed traditional 4,000-square-foot retail stores for a 2,000-square-foot â€Å"Webfoot† concept. The store spaces were long and narrow, designed purposefully with limited space for inventory that would be restocked twice weekly. Ana also offered customers a 10 percent discount and free shipping if they were willing to try clothing in the store, and then purchase it online.Assembled from a modular, prefabricated design, each store featured energy-saving lighting and leveraged materials such as reclaimed timber, toxin-free fiberboard, and recycled resin (for mannequins). Customers were offered a choice of 12 carefully selected environmental, social, and humanitarian nonprofit organizations, and five percent of the purchase price was donated to the chosen group. Nan's values extended to its real estate leasing strategy as well-?Ana only leased store space that was LED-certified (LED certification indicates environmental- and health-consciousness standards).The company also set a minimum age limit for the workers at its overseas material suppliers. Nan's principles included the constraint that the highest-paid worker within the company could only earn a maximum of 12 mimes the lowest-paid employee's salary. Finally, Ana did not invest in marketing or public relations beyond a series of websites, choosing instead to rely on word-of- mouth, a more â€Å"sustainable† form of marketing in the eyes of Yells and his team.While Ana managed to be remarkably consistent in the infusion of its values into its processes, one of the key factors in its eventual downfall was that the company had a difficult time securing financing. At least one investor's legal counsel balked at a contract clause that placed the â€Å" needs of society' equal to the â€Å"needs of shareholders,† but Ana held firm. 2 Nan's business plan called for it to earn more than $250 million in revenue in 2010 and to achieve profitability in 2009 or 2010, figures based on opening four stores in 2007, 20 stores in 2008, and 150 stores by 2010.To build the necessary momentum toward these goals, Ana needed at least $51 million in funding. By the end of 2006, Ana had raised $24 million, largely from â€Å"super angels,† individual investors who included the chairman of Seagate Technology, Steve Lucid, and Stephen Gomez, Nan's chairman and a former Nikkei corporate vice president. Despite the fact that Ana had only reached half of its funding goal, the first Ana store penned in Boulder, Colorado, in January 2007, with three more successful store openings following during the year in Adulating, Oregon; Chicago; and Bellevue, Washington.Ana completed its first year of operation in 2007 with 92 employees, four clothing collections, and four stores. In March 2008, Ana donated $223,000 to its 12 nonprofit organizations, implying 2007 sales of around $4. 5 million. In mid-April, Ana opened its fifth store in Los Angels. In late April 2008, despite raising an additional $10 million in funding, Ana announced that it would scale back its store- peeing plans to a total of five in 2008, down from an already-reduced projection of 10.Finally, on May 1, Nan's board of directors voted to â€Å"wind down its business operations,† citing â€Å"insurmountable financial obstacles. † All inventory was liquidated at 50 percent off and the stores were closed. Post-mortem interviews with Nan's executives suggest that the company was approximately $5 million to $10 million short of the funds needed to sustain its operations and open additional stores towards its goal of profitability.In the days following the decision, many customers commented on Nan's blob, expressing sadness, frustration, and anger and questioning why Ana had failed. Ana: The Post-Mortem Looking at Ana through Insight's business model innovation framework and a number of Insight lenses offers insight into how Ana developed such a devoted following as well as how the management team might have been able to ensure a brighter future for their company. Insight believes that business model innovation is one of the most powerful ways for organizations to achieve new growth.By carefully adjusting business model components-?the customer value proposition (the offering itself), the profit system (how the company creates value for itself), key resources (the critical things required to deliver on the value proposition), and key processes (how the company organizes and acts to deliver on the value proposition) -?organizations can build the type of competitive advantage necessary to create truly transformation growth. Nan's business model looked good-?on paper, at least.But Nan's impatient push for profits made it hard to re ally validate whether the business model would in fact work, and shut all opportunities for learning. Ana pulled the customer value proposition lever expertly. The company created potently positive solutions to a number of emotional, social, and functional Jobs-to- be-done. The sustainability of Nan's operations and products set a new standard of satisfaction for the emotional Job â€Å"Feel good about 3 the environmental and social consciousness of my clothing. Nan's clothing also satisfied the social Job â€Å"Convey to others that I prioritize the sustainability of my clothing over its color and flash. † And, as lauded by Rock and Ice magazine, Nan's clothing also satisfied myriad functional Jobs related to comfort and technical performance. Since its sustainable materials carried up to a 20-percent price premium over more commercially available materials, Ana had to pass the premium along to customers.But Nan's management team was correct in assuming that the high qualit y and the redeeming social and environmental value of its clothing Justified that premium in the eyes of customers -?as long as the economy was robust enough that sufficient customers could afford it. And Ana broke new ground with its â€Å"Webfoot† stores by implementing a retail business model that required lower capital and operational expenditures than a traditional retail store model. But there was a significant downside to Nan's profit-system choices.Insight recommends that new ventures â€Å"be patient for growth, impatient for profit. † Nan's management expected the company to have 150 stores in operation by 2010, but did not expect profitability until 2009 at the earliest. Growth was thus essential to profitability, creating a significant risk of failure if the company could not reach its early-stage funding goals. Insight also recommends that new ventures pursue an emergent strategy, to take small steps by conducting inexpensive tests of its key assumptions a bout the new racket.When the test results are in, the venture can analyze the results, adjust its strategy accordingly, and then conduct additional tests. This careful approach helps new ventures optimize for success while avoiding huge, potentially fatal resource commitments. In Nan's case, an emergent strategy might have enabled the firm to consume its funding more slowly while developing an optimal strategy. Instead, the team decided to go straight to launching full Webfoot's rather than testing the clothing line in a department store or opening a single, test-store concept.The root cause for the failure of Ana 1. 0 seems to have been that Nan's business strategy and some of its business model decisions proved questionable. By following a more careful, emergent strategy and by focusing on profitability before growth, Nan's executives might have been able to strike a better balance between vision and execution. Ana 2. 0: On June 24, 2008, Nan's fortunes turned around. Horny Toad A ctivities, a Santa Barbara-based lifestyle clothing company, stepped in to buy Nan's assets with the goal of re-launching a modified version of Ana by late summer. While â€Å"Ana 2. † Is gust beginning to emerge, early signs suggest that the re-launch will follow a strategy more closely aligned to that which Insight would recommend for success. Horny Toad creates and sells men's and women's lifestyle and outerwear clothing. Horny Toad's tagging, â€Å"every day is an adventure,† introduces a humorous, irreverent, socially-conscious approach that lies at the core of everything the company does. Indeed, Horny Toad and Ana have much in common. Horny Toad's stated commitment to â€Å"lightening its environmental footprint† and to 4 supporting both the community and organizations that improve the world immediately suggest synergies.Much as Ana showcased the organizations chosen for customer contributions, the Horny Toad website highlights its support for causes rang ing from helping adults with developmental disabilities to supporting clean energy, with a wide range of other environmental and community-activist organizations in between. However, in contrast to Nan's commitment to sell its clothing solely through a growing number of its own stores, Horny Toad has only two stores and sells its clothing in a wide variety of online and brick-and-mortar retailers. In addition to a store inFreeport, Maine, Horny Toad runs the â€Å"Lizard Lounge† in Portland, Oregon, complete with music, wireless access, coffee, and ping-pong. Horny Toad clothing has been lauded for its hip funkiness by print publications and blobs alike. Recognizing the similarities between Ana and Horny Toad, Horny Toad felt that it would support its motto â€Å"do well by doing good† by purchasing Nan's assets and hiring its leadership to help re-launch the clothing line. In addition to providing financial support, Horny Toad will sell Ana clothing in the Lizard Loun ge and, in a break from Nan's original treated, through other retailers as well.And, with Horny Toad's support, a percentage of Ana sales will continue to go to worthy non-profits. According to Nan's â€Å"Thought Kitchen† blob, shortly after the relationship was finalized Ana leadership began working to resurrect relationships with company partners and to put together a Fall/Holiday clothing collection in time for October availability. While the Ana clothing line will continue to deliver on the â€Å"Beauty, Performance, and Sustainability' commitment through the use of environmentally friendly and socially conscious trials and methods, a quote from Nan's website gets to the heart of why Ana 2. May very well succeed while 1. 0 failed: â€Å"As we move forward with the re-launch of Ana, you'll definitely recognize us, but we intend to do some things differently†¦ We're going to start small and grow the business organically in relationship to the demand for our product. We'll continue to sell our product at Ana. Com, but we're also going to partner with select retailers who share our common goals. We will not be operating our own retail stores, at least not in the near term†¦ So stay tuned. We're coming back. Smaller and a little wiser, our ambitions tempered a bit by the experience, but our passions most definitely intact. Ana 2. G's strategy will most likely enable the brand to focus more closely on identifying the product, marketing, and channel mix that appeals most to customers, without worrying about the pressures of rapid expansion. Particularly in a new venture, vision and passion tempered by patience and pragmatism is the way to go. This approach is also particularly appropriate in these tough economic times. Satisfying social and emotional Jobs-to-be-done around environmental friendliness ND social consciousness may be enough to earn significant premiums for clothing in a strong economy.However, during an economic downturn, financia l reality frequently wins out as consumers prioritize value over the satisfaction of some social and emotional Jobs. 5 For example, since the economy began to sour, Whole Foods Market has seen some of its consumers move their food spending to more budget-friendly alternatives. Whole Foods has responded by shifting its marketing strategy from a focus on quality and environmental friendliness to an emphasis on discounts, store brands, and reduce value as it attempts to keep its customers.Even if Ana 1. 0 had received enough funding earlier in 2008 to continue operations, economic conditions would likely have pushed the enterprise to the breaking point, as has happened with many other fledgling clothing boutiques. When Ana 1. 0 launched, its management team made an impressive commitment to the company's values, taking steps such as tracing the wool used in its clothing back to the sheep to ensure that they were well-treated and implementing a â€Å"sustainable† word-of-mouth mar keting strategy.To launch the new Ana, it is clear that the team as had to compromise on some of its values, such as the control provided by company-owned storefronts, a grassroots-only marketing effort, and potentially the level of contribution to nonprofits. In the end, however, the Ana 2. 0 strategy, with the help of Horny Toad, may be the key to enabling the company's sustainable operation. Making their operations as sustainable as their values will help ensure that Ana is able to be a force for good in the world for a long time to come. For more information: http://www. Ana. Com/coming-this-fall. HTML (Accessed 8/29/08, 1 :41 pm) http:// www. Gibbousness. Com/CGI-bin/magma/article. Pl? Articled=30412; http:// gratifiers. Com/content/fullest/? Acid=50781 6 Innovator's Insight In Need of an Innovation Fill-up By Stephen Hunker Recent news that Consulship's will be selling all 600 of its U. S. Service stations for $800 million comes as little surprise. Oil companies are facing ext raordinarily attractive investment opportunities in exploration and production, and the service station business has been tightly squeezed between rising wholesale costs, inability to pass along those cost increases, and falling demand as driving declines.Clearly the station's buyer-?closely held Peterson Fuel-?sees it differently. We do too. In our view, Peterson Fuel is buying cheap assets with lots of innovation headroom. While â€Å"stick to your knitting† is a popular business maxim, it is of course common to find diversified businesses. There are several reasons diversification can make sense: ; If the new business can share costs and customers with the core business-? in this case, owning both enterprises can provide scale economies, improve distribution, create a better buying experience, and other advantages.This is why many European parameters have service stations outside their doors, for example. ; If the new business provides a useful hedge against a core with vo latile returns but a need for consistent investment. This explains why many pharmaceutical firms own over-the-counter consumer healthcare brands. ; By diversifying, a firm can hold on to a seemingly unrelated business because it sees substantial headroom for growth and a right to triumph in that arena. This is one reason News Corporation bought Namespace. Historically, oil companies owned service stations for each of these reasons.The end nonuser drove demand, and having direct access to that consumer allowed firms to exercise some control over demand levels while also gaining precise information about what products were demanded where. Profits from service stations could offset volatility in exploration and production. Also, the advent of convenience stores at service stations created a new high-margin business. Each of these Justifications for integration now seems threatened by changes such as improved information technology, more efficient capital markets, and communication of t he service station experience.With supermarket-owned service stations now coming to the United States, oil companies face new competitors who may even sell gasoline at a loss in order to drive traffic into their stores. In the I-J, pressure from supermarkets is a factor leading to the net closure of 600 service stations per year. The service station business is looking much less attractive than it used to. So, what might Peterson Fuel be thinking? We imagine two major Justifications for the investment. First, if oil prices decline, the profit margins on service stations may rise, and Peterson will have bought valuable assets for a song.Second, there may be much more innovation headroom in this business than oil companies have traditionally assumed. For instance, Fullness Media International offers local news, weather, and sports on screens at pumps at a few hundred stations. Fullness pays the retailer and shows ads to this highly captive audience. Shell is experimenting with fuel pu mps that are activated simply by a swipe of a fingerprint. Dutch inventors have created a robotic arm that finds a car's fuel cap, unscrews it, and automatically pumps gas. Regional fuel retailer Sheets differentiates itself through premium coffee and made- o-order sandwiches.Another retailer, Valier, is piloting 5,000-square-foot convenience stores with fully nonwhite of the space dedicated to fresh food and other perishables. Oil companies would be well-served by thinking through how well the jobs of their customers are getting done, and whether they can De-commoditized the service station business through new propositions or re-definition of the competitive set. Looking through this lens, we can imagine how a mother could prefer a certain service station because it offers very fast, targeted entertainment for bored children n the back seat, or how a senior might prefer one with very brightly lit displays.The advent of electric- and fuel-cell-powered vehicles opens further possibi lities for using service station real estate in new ways. Look at how Best Buy reconciled what an electronics retailer could be, and how it escaped industry communication in the process. While Wall-Mart and others cut prices ruthlessly, Best Buy rolled out Geek Squad-?a service tightly integrated with its retailing business that addressed a wide swath of unsatisfied Jobs its customers faced post-sale. It also became a place to try new videotapes. The store is even trying to become a hub for musicians buying electric guitars and other gear.In the process, the company increased revenue 92 percent over five years, almost entirely through internally generated growth. It turned out that electronics retailing wasn't a commodity business at all. Sometimes a dog business is Just a dog business. MM spun off its floppy disk and magnetic tape business in 1996, and that turned out to be a smart move. But we find it hard to believe that there is little room for profitable innovation in a retail business that hundreds of millions consumers have to visit on a regular basis.When the finance people come knocking, looking to sell downtrodden assets and invest the proceeds in high-flying businesses, lock the doors for a bit. The business may indeed have few prospects. On the other hand, it may support the core business in many oblique but important ways, and it may have far more innovation headroom left to exploit. – â€Å"Consulship's Will Sell Its Company-owned Service Stations†, by Brett Clayton, Houston Chronicle, August 27, 2008 (http://www. Chronic. Com/disk/story. Ml/business/energy/5969574. HTML) 8 â€Å"Finding the Right Job for your Product†, by Clayton Christensen, Scott Anthony, Gerald Brewster and Denies Meetinghouse, Sloan Management Review, Spring 2007 (http://www. Insight. Com/innovation_resources/research. HTML? Id=167) 9 Innovators' Update A Good Start for Amazon AMP Amazon's digital music store keeps sailing on the winds of industry change s Insight #98 from October 2007, â€Å"Handicapping Amazon's Low-Cost Music Store,† suggested that Amazon might find the results of its then newly launched music download store disappointing. What has happened since?By Renee Hopkins Callahan When Amazon launched its Amazon AMP online music download store in September 007, we were skeptical. At the time, Apple had sold more than 100 million pods and tunes had a lock on the online music market. Amazon AMP planned to sell music free of Digital Rights Management (DORM) protection-?a limited supply, since at the time only one of the four major music labels had agreed to make its music available without DORM protection. Amazon AMP seemed unlikely to succeed with a business model focused on undercutting tunes on price, selling songs for 89 cents instead of 99 cents.We were right that the low-cost strategy would not put much of a dent in the popularity of Tunes. Yet circumstances in the year since its launch have helped Amazon refine its strategy and offer a preview of possible success. According to NYPD Group research released in late July, tunes remains on top of the music retail pack. It is the largest music retailer in the world and it sells at least 90 percent of digital downloads in the U. S. However, the same research showed that Amazon AMP has grown to be the fourth-largest retailer of music in the U. S. , behind tunes, Walter, and Best Buy.That puts Amazon AMP in second place for online music download sales. And while here's still a huge gap in volume between tunes and Amazon AMP-?with Amazon's share of the market in single digits-?Amazon is in the game. However, Amazon hasn't accomplished that by stealing tunes customers. Russ Cropping, an entertainment industry analyst for NYPD, said in an April 2008 report that only about 10 percent of Amazon AMP customers used to be tunes users, with the other 90 percent likely to be people who had been using other services or were new to digital downloading.Amazon AMP attracts young adults age 18 to 25, while tunes' strongest demographic is teens age 13 to 17, another April 2008 study said. Amazon has likely benefited from winds of change blowing in the music industry. A number of analysts have speculated that the industry sees Amazon as an ally in an effort to break Apple's dominance in digital music. It would seem counterintuitive that the music industry would want to bypass its richest retail channel. But some of Apple's practices cut profits for the major labels.In late August, the Wall Street Journal reported on a growing trend in the music business: labels deliberately withholding some of their music from tunes. The article cites several cases in which albums were either not made available on Tunes or were pulled. Why? While consumers strongly prefer purchasing music by song, music label executives, managers and even some artists dislike the tunes policy that requires that music be made available by the song as well 10 as by the album, because profit margins for single-song sales aren't nearly as good as the margins for album sales.Meanwhile, Amazon AMP lets labels sell music the way they want to. If a label wishes to make an artist's work available only by the album, Amazon AMP allows it. Some of the music that the labels have been withholding from tunes is ending up on Amazon AMP. The DORM issue has worked to Amazon's benefit as well. Apple's tunes has historically sold Deteriorated downloads. Such encoding means that songs downloaded on tunes cannot be played on other AMP devices. Apple has worked to persuade the major labels to drop DORM, though it still seeks to keep tunes the only source of song downloads for the pod.At the time that Amazon AMP launched, only MIME, one of the four major music labels, had announced it would drop DORM protection on its music. By early January 2008, a few months after Amazon AMP launched, the three other major labels-universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony BMW- dro pped DORM. That meant their music could be made available on Amazon AMP, which does not use DORM, and which features free software that delivers a customer's AMP file directly to their tunes library.Meanwhile, according to a May 30 Macdonald magazine story, â€Å"Sony, Universal, and Warner continue to withhold the unencumbered tracks from Apple, choosing instead to back tuner's rivals. † Amazon may have more surprises up its virtual sleeve. In late July, Fortune magazine reported that Amazon was in talks with Namespace about becoming the social networking giant's download store partner hen it rolls out its highly anticipated Joint venture with Universal, Warner Music and Sony BMW in September.If the deal goes through, it puts Amazon in a good position to continue nipping at Apple's heels. According to the Fortune report, Namespace plans to let its 120 million users stream entire songs before downloading them. That potentially changes the convenience trade-off for the Namespa ce customers in Amazon's favor, because they would be able to buy a song and get it into their computer's music manager, even tunes, with one click using Amazon's software. Those who wanted to use tunes would have to leave Namespace and physically go to Tunes to accomplish the same end.Clearly, we underestimated the desire of other companies to develop a reasonable Number Two to Apple, a position that Amazon AMP seems to have grown into in the last year. If Amazon can figure out more ways to capitalize on its toehold position in the digital music business,

GRADUATE SCHOOL INFORMATION Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

GRADUATE SCHOOL INFORMATION - Essay Example I told her that I’m more inclined in pursuing further studies related to public health (major) and art such as painting and interior design (minor). I was planning on going into community health, be an integral part of community organizing while combining my knowledge in the arts through designing. However, I was still confused on how and in what way I would have to direct myself in order to combine these two conflicting interests. Upon hearing this, she immediately suggested that I can consider the following masters degree programs in community health, social and community development, social work, public health planning, community health, public administration, and business administration. The career advisor further emphasized that I need to really look into what I really like and I know (what my field of specialization is) and from there I can get a degree program that best suits me. First, she suggested that I use books that list names of degree programs and what universit y they are being offered. Second, she also suggested that I go online (such as google, Petersons, US News and World Report) for universities that have a detailed course outline of the courses they offer.

Skull Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Skull - Essay Example The prosthion is the lowermost point on the maxilla, between the two front incisors. The inion is the place on the back of the skull that is the grates t distance away from the front of the skull. Indices calculated are the index of supraorbital height, index of nuchal area height and the index of condylar conditions. The index of supraorbital height is the relationship between the distance of the Frankfort plane to the highest point of the skull and the distance of the top of the eye orbit to the top of the skull; a high number indicates a high forehead or a tall head while a low number indicates a slanted skull. The index of nuchal area is the relationship between the distance of the Frankfort plane to where the inion lies on the back of the skull and the distance of the Frankfort to the highest point on the skull; a high number indicates a short nuchal area while a low number indicates a tall nuchal area. The index of the condylar position is the relationship between the porion and the back of the skull and porion and the front of the skull; a high number indicates the foramen magnum is at the center of the skull while a low number indicates the foramen is closer to the back of the skull. The marked locations were then connected with fine lines using a sharp pencil. A line was drawn to intersect the porion and the lowest point on the lower margin of the eye orbit. A line was also drawn to from the inion, perpendicular to the line drawn above (Frankfort Plane) and the point of intersection labeled as Y. Another line was drawn from the occipital condyles perpendicular to the Frankfurt Plane and the point of intersection labeled X. Another line was drawn from the prosthion perpendicular to the Frankfort plane and the point of intersection labeled Z. Another line was drawn from the Frankfort plane to the highest point of the upper margin of the eye and the point labeled V and U. The lengths of the line were then measured,

Fraud detection in accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Fraud detection in accounting - Essay Example While the company grew rapidly through the 1990s, some of the worst manifestations of its culture -- obsessions with bonuses, the stock price and exotic accounting -- were also growing, and out of controlThough the corporation's character flaws can be traced to its earliest days, they flourished under top executive Jeff Skilling. He didn't act in a vacuum. Enron had a distracted, hands-off chairman, a compliant board of directors and an impotent staff of accountants, auditors and lawyers. But it was Skilling's relentless push for creativity and competitiveness that fostered a growth-at-any-cost culture, drowning out voices of caution and overriding all checks and balances." (Fowler, 2005) Enron has developed into becoming a part of America's top ten companies in the span of nearly two decades. Their sudden rise to power seemed impossible to many industries in the financial world. However, the scam which brought upon Enron success was discovered.The controversy involving powerful institutions has made an immense impact in the corporate world leading to their downfall and the implementation of stringent laws of the government. Enron and Arthur Andersen faced the collapse of their careers which affected the industry and the birth of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.The largest bankruptcy in history marked the existence of fraudulent accounting procedures by Enron and Arthur Andersen in 2001. the once blue chip stock ended up to be valued for small meager amounts. Most of Enron's profits were from transactions with controlled limited partnerships which turned into debts that were not reported on its financial statements. The issue or problem that led to the (alleged) violation. Deception was the name of the game for Enron. They concealed their controversial and suspicious dealings and transaction with their growing debt so that they appear debt-free and admirable to stockholders and the public. At last, every lie and cover up was made known to many when the company suddenly and unexpectedly filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. That was their last resort. Not even company partnerships and affiliations could save the money and the glory of Enron. When the news of bankruptcy of Enron was revealed, the reasons behind Enron's downfall remained unclear and uncertain. There were mixed reactions among businessmen, politicians, stockholders and others. Most of them were enraged while some felt concerned. There were those who were not surprise that the discrepancies with the financial statements could actually happen. It was as if it was the common habit among those who wish to decrease their debt. Questions such as the reason behind the downfall as well as the possible ways and means for preventing bankruptcy rose among the interested public. What hindered the company or the government from foreseeing the end of Enron Was there money laundering or fraud behind the scandal If there was, has the laws implemented by the government sufficient to verify the financial records of Enron Management's involvement in the alleged violation. To shed light on the Enron controversy, a whistleblower, Sherron Watkins, decided to confess all the financial secrets of the company. The government took its role by initiating an investigation powered up by some of the congressional committees. Aside from Watkins, other key players admitted their involvement and decided to testify while some still pleads not guilty. The involvement of an accounting firm as reputable as Arthur Andersen with the controversy, heightened the interest of the public as well as legislators, economists and politicians. The firm also experienced a great loss even though the verdict has not yet been announced. Their clients retracted their loyalty and shifted to other competitive firms. Some employees resigned and sought other jobs from other companies. The accounting firm did a great job on the falsification and manipulation of Enron's financial statements that the discrepa

Agreements in the Package Holiday Industry and Market Opportunities Essay

Agreements in the Package Holiday Industry and Market Opportunities - Essay Example Package holidays are normally organized and structured by tour operators. These are the individuals or groups of people who put together different holiday elements into one package (Ryan, 1989). They then sell these packages directly to members of the public or indirectly through travel agents. Different holiday packages have different costs, depending on how they are structured. A normal package holiday may include the following: †¢ Accommodation †¢ Flights †¢ Meals †¢ Transfers Other elements of a package holiday can include: in-flight tickets, park tickets, ferry crossings and ski passes. Accommodation is normally offered by hotels or hostels in various tourism destinations. Transport is normally offered either by chartered or scheduled flight services. In the package industry, meals are normally offered on a board basis. This means that the tourist is offered meals depending on the type of board he takes up. Different types of board offered by package tour services include: †¢ Room only where there are no meals available †¢ Bed and breakfast where only breakfast is provided †¢ Half board where breakfast and an evening meal are the only meals provided †¢ Full board where the tourists can get three meals in a day: breakfast, lunch and an evening meal †¢ All or fully inclusive which normally includes three meals a day, soft drinks, snacks and locally available alcoholic drinks.

How the Global Finacial Crisis impacted Egypt Term Paper

How the Global Finacial Crisis impacted Egypt - Term Paper Example One effect of the challenges was a disruption of the reforms that were later resumed in 2004. This paper will discuss how Egypt’s economy was impacted by the crisis, what the government’s response was in terms of policies, and the nation’s current economic status. An understanding of Egypt’s economy before the 2008 crisis helps in understanding and analyzing how the economy was impacted. The economic reform policies that had run from 1991 to 2007 met most of the terms set by international institutions, donors and lenders and included broader incentives to the private sector’s role in all monetary activities. The greatest negative impact was felt, rather than by the banking sector, on the real economy (Altintzis 1). This was occasioned by the fact that among the reforms that preceded the financial crisis, the government had put limits to the level of integrating the banking subdivision into the global financial system. Instead, banks had been consoli dated into larger corporations with restructured management as the government did away with toxic debts, reducing the impact of the crisis on the sector, while the economy’s growth rate and the stock market suffered the most. According to a report by the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, the losses by commercial and production sectors alone due to the crisis were estimated at US$4 billion for the year 2008/2009 (Altintzis 1). The greatest negative impacts on the real economy can be listed as the decline of GDP between 2007/8 and 2008/9 from 7.2% to 4%; a drop in domestic investment; a decline in the flow of foreign direct investment (FDI); an increase in the rate of return migration accompanied by reduced remittances; collapse of the capital market; a pronounced strain on payments balances; volatile oil prices; and reduced tolls from the Suez Canal that previously generated 70% of the nation’s foreign exchange (Altintzis 1). The implication is that the economy was impacted in a complex manner, with the nation being exposed to true economic shocks and the government remaining relatively protected in terms of financial shocks. The worst hit portion of the population was the lower and middle income earners, who spend 45% of the earnings on food. The government was soon faced with the need for an urgent response to the financial crises as from mid 2008 to 2011, food prices became unaffordable to 40% of Egypt’s population that was below the poverty line (Radwan 40). The slight improvement in annual growth rate did not reach the poor as only the wealthy benefited from it, increasing the poverty percentage to 50. The result was a socioeconomic instability that was politicized leading to the 2011 revolution. Among the policy changes to alleviate the effects of the crises, a bill was endorsed into law by parliament with the intention of protecting the 40% citizens below the poverty level as well as the lower and middle income groups. The bill reflected a fiscally and socially neutral package characterized by a decrease in energy subsidies as well as increased fees on the registration and licensing of automobiles and using cement raw materials. There was also an increase on cigarette sales tax with various income tax exemptions abolished. In particular, the

S6W3Dqs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

S6W3Dqs - Essay Example The same applies to President Eisenhower’s in his farewell address. In this respect, Henry Kissinger’s remark that â€Å"Morality has nothing to do with foreign policy† is totally misplaced and uncalled for. Morality should, as a matter of fact, be part and parcel of the overall national strategy. Morality has to do with the distinction of good from bad or right from wrong. On the other hand, foreign policy is concerned with the beliefs, attitudes and actions of America towards other countries. Mr. Y (2011), in A National Strategic Narrative clearly articulates the American dream as regards to foreign policy. For instance, the narrative calls upon the United States to pursue it domestic and foreign policies with a unified effort that reflect constancy of purpose (The National Strategy Forum Review, 2010). It further goes on to state that US should pursue her national interest while at the same time allow others to pursue theirs. However, this is pegged on condition that American values are not betrayed. Finally, Mr. Y says that America should seek fair competition and should not hesitate to deter bad behavior. This in itself is a moral position in foreign policy. Based on personal reflection, the National Strategic Narrative, and a recollection of values enshrined in American constitution, the role of morality in national security strategy cannot be downplayed. Other nations will only respect the position of USA on various matters based on her moral standards. The involvement of multinationals such as NATO in America national security has greatly boosted the collective power to promote security, curb incumbent threats, as well as protect the American citizens. Such is the case with which NATO and its 27 member states work to promote ideas and peace of the member countries. America is part and parcel of these efforts done by NATO. Secondly, multinationals work with the American government to advance the

Foreign Direct Investment in the Case of Iran Dissertation

Foreign Direct Investment in the Case of Iran - Dissertation Example 3.2.3 FDI in Iran - 1988 to 1995 60 3.2.4 FDI in Iran 1996 to 2003 66 3.2.5 FDI in Iran - 2004 to 2007 to present 73 4.0 Analysis of Findings 83 5.0 Conclusion 103 Bibliography 106 TABLES / CHARTS AND FIGURES FIGURES Figure 1 - Map of Iran 16 Figure 2 - GDP Growth Rate, Iran, 1960 - 2002 39 Figure 3 - Iran Sources of Economic Growth (Raw Labour) 39 Figure 4 - FDI in Iran, Selected Countries and the World 1971 through 1979 43 Figure 5 - FDI in Iran, 1971 through 1979 44 Figure 6 - FDI in Iran, and Neighbouring Countries for Comparison 1971 through 1979 45 Figure 7 - Iran FDI 56 Figure 8 - FDI for Iran and Comparative Nations 1980 to 1987 57 Figure 9 - FDI for... This study seeks to delve into and analyze the flow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) with respect to Iran from an historical as well as present day perspective, looking at how the impact of sanctions have affected this area. In addition to the foregoing, this examination shall look at the FDI inflows of neighbouring countries as a comparative analysis to equate the FDI inflows to Iran as a gauge on its receipts. Foreign Direct Investment has larger implications for developing economies and economies in transition as these funds, as well as expertise aid in heightening and improving the production and efficiency performance of industry sectors that aids in economic growth. This study will look at the preceding, incorporating facts and figures dating back to 1971 that shall be broken up into periods that correspond to political developments and or major periods of economic sanctions that thus would impact FDI inflows. The global economy, in today’s terms, has more meaning and applicability than ever before as demonstrated by the recent sub-prime mortgage meltdown that has seen every economy suffer reversals as a result of the impact of tightened credit, the ripple effect of bank failures, massive slowdowns in production and consumer spending. The study concludes that Iran has managed to survive long enough, meaning the first three examined period reviewed, so that since 1996 it not longer is concerned with, if it ever was, sanctions. The economic performance of Iran reflects the impact of sanctions between 1980 through 1994, but as shown, the economy has begun its upward direction again.

Salem society Essay Example for Free

Salem society Essay Salem, a small town in Massachusetts consisted of puritans whose lives were strongly based around religion. They were all afraid of being accused of heresy and were suspicious of other religious sects. Their religious fanaticism ruined innocent lives. The story is set in 1692 and starts with all the young girls in the town creeping into the forest one night and dancing and casting spells. Dancing was related to the Devil and therefore was designated a crime. Two of the youngest girls were taken ill the next day. They were Betty, the reverend Parris daughter as described in the introduction i. e. Betty Parris, aged ten, is lying on the bed, inert. , and Ruth, Mrs Putnams only child, described by Parris when he says: Your Ruth sick? The girls were spotted dancing and were declared witches. To clear their names and protect their familys reputation which was very important, the girls accused innocent women in the village, of compacting with the Devil and these accusations were believed. All the villagers were expected to conform to a strict code of belief. They were expected to attend Church every Sunday and if they didnt it was considered a crime against God. For example, Hale says to John Proctor: In the book of record that Mr Parris keeps, I note that you are rarely in the Church on Sabbath Day. This illustrates that records of Church attendance were kept and scrutinised. The villagers were also expected to know the Ten Commandments from memory. Hale asks Elizabeth Proctor: Do you know your Commandments, Elizabeth? People believed in these laws so strongly that they were very willing to believe the girls stories which provides some insight into the society of Salem. People were not allowed to have different beliefs. The villagers belief in the Devil was as strong as it was in God. Parris talked about the Devil and sins in Church far more frequently than he spoke about God. Proctor says to Parris: There are many others who stay away from Church these days because you hardly ever mention God anymore. But John Proctor did not like Parris; his opinion of Parris was low so this statement may not be completely true and biased. Parris was supposed to be a leader in the town but someone left a dagger stuck in his door Tonight, when I open my door to leave my housea dagger clattered to the ground There is danger for me. People were getting misled so much that he was not always believed.

Journeys Of Dante And St Augustine In Confessions Religion Essay

Journeys Of Dante And St Augustine In Confessions Religion Essay St. Augustine and Dante made a great contribution to the development of world cultures. The impact of these great leaders had a powerful force the next centuries. Comparing the spiritual journeys of Dante and St. Augustine in the Confessions, it is possible to mention that the poem The Divine Comedy is a real masterpiece of a famous Italian poet. Dante saw the other world and talked about his journey through hell. This poem embodies an allegorical vision of the afterlife, moral and religious thoughts with instructive purposes. Numerous tales of ghostly wanderings, visions of heaven and hell found its highest artistic expression in the Divine Comedy. Dante has made a system in a discordant mix of images. This system is inspired by the teachings of the church and the teachings of Aristotle and Cicero. Dantes guide through hell was a Roman poet Virgil, who being the voice of reason, instructed Dantes spiritual life and helped him to form a moral conscience, necessary for life in harmony with Gods will. In comparison, the Confession is a central literary work of St. Augustine. The name of this work entirely corresponds to its real content: a sinne r, opening his own soul to the readers, in the face of God and people repents of his sins and gives thanks to God for His mercy. During his life, Augustine traveled a lot, learning and perceiving the Orthodox faith. The contrast between the spiritual journeys of Dante and St. Augustine is that Augustines journey is more confessionary, but Dantes one is more psychological. St. Augustine and Dante as the lovers of beauty, both literary and physical, share the same need for its ransom. However, no one would state that beauty is harm or evil. The Divine Comedy and The Confessions disclosed that beauty is good and it is from God. One of the main concepts is that both poets stated that in order to feel the completeness of salvation, it is necessary to remember that beauty have to be loved as a means of Gods grace and recognized as coming from Him. Comparing Dante and St. Augustine, it is possible to add that, according to their points of views, the main key to feel this salvation is grace. Dante perceived the ideas of St. Augustine through multiple layers and thus the link between Dante and St. Augustine is mediate. The main point of contact: an absolute supremacy of spiritual values over secular ones, a fierce denunciation of peoples insatiable desire to possess a sin of lust. The similarities between their autobiographical accounts are that Augustine and Dante cannot imagine any other way of existence, except within the framework of the Christian ideal. Augustine taught Dante how to succeed in the art of medieval confession a son of the Century. This confession of youthful sonnets and The New Life is the most powerful words in the lyrics of Dante, which makes it ageless. In addition, Dante borrowed Augustines psychological analysis oriented not only on the readers minds, but also on the readers souls. Dante was attracted by the ideas and artistic methods of Augustine. He often addressed to The Confessions, which indirectly indicated the ratio of influences on his art and theology. This is a widespread fact that Virgil played a big role in Dantes account. Virgil, as a representative of the most profound human wisdom, became Dantes leader and guide through the circles of hell. For Dante, Virgil is the highest poet, honor and torch of the singers all over the world, my teacher, my favorite example, and a forerunner of a new era in the history of mankind. For Dante, the Aeneid was a constant source of inspiration, from which he derived the idea and style of Comedy, as well as his poetry: a combination of mysticism, fantasy, reality and prophecy. Although there are some differences between Dantes Inferno and Virgils Inferno (Dantes Inferno was inhabited by enemies and friends), he borrowed Virgils legends of the Golden Age and Cretan old man, hellish dog, images of Reef and Plantman, etc. Some scholars emphasized a polyphonic character of St. Augustines Confessions, specifically his usage of various biblical quotations, allusions, and Virgils Aeneid. If we remember the main geographical movements of St. Augustine, we can see that these movements reflect Aeneas journeys. For instance, Augustine comes to Carthage, which is one of the most well-known and central cities of the Roman Empire, in order to continue and then finish his studying. St. Augustines usage of some Virgils text is a mix of an old tradition of taking up different narratives, topics from the previous works and after that re-writing them for your own purposes. Thus, Virgil played an important role in Augustines account. Taking the above-stated information into consideration, it is possible to draw a conclusion that St. Augustines work is a powerful force that separates one historical era from another one the end of ancient Christianity from the early medieval Christianity. In turn, Dantes creativity had a tremendous impact on the development of Italian literature and European culture as a whole.

Essay --

After the financial crisis of 2008 there has been a dramatic decrease of foreign direct investment (FDI) around the world. Particularly the rapid decline in inflows has affected the recovery speed of FDI around the world. Inflows into Europe contracted by 42% and to North America by 21%, inflows to Australia and New Zealand together declined by 14% 1. However there are few exceptions to the trend, such as the United Kingdom who have managed to keep its FDI attraction. UNCTAD has confirmed that FDI inflows into the UK have risen by 22% 2 over the past year. Inward FDI into the UK In the last 30 years the UK has put in a lot of effort to dramatically increase the inflows of FDI into the country. The strategy succeeded due to the rich and diverse ecosystem of the UK and ease of doing business. The inflow FDI has shown constant growth until 2000, which peaked to $118.8 billion. The IT bubble burst in 2000 caused a dramatic fall in IFDI which can be illustrated in Figure 1. The downfall resulted in the UK attracting only $16.8 billion in 2003. The data shows that the FDI inflows boosted in the period of 2004-2007, and that Mergers and Acquisitions that the Multinational Corporations used to enter the UK, as well as the reduced interest rate, can explain this. Due to the sudden collapse of the world’s economy in 2008 M&A became an unfavourable method of FDI and in just one year IFDI into UK shrank by 50%. The trend continued up to 2011, as the FDI pattern moved towards investments into third world countries and developing nations. This enormous change in the FDI graph after the financial crisis is mainly due to a decline in investments from transnational corporations that are located in the European Union. As the world’s economy has... ...T and communications sector in the UK is likely to stay attractive and to increase its share of IFDI. The plans for UK network companies to move to 4G speed only open opportunities for foreign investors. Overall, I believe that foreign direct investment is going to increase within the next 5 years. Even though the manufacturing sector is likely to shrink, IT and business services will make up for the losses. Due to the nature of the UK economy and a high diversity and educated pool of labour, the IT and Business industries are going to expand. UK is already one of the most favourable countries in the world for IT and financial services due to its ease of doing business, the attractive corporate and personal tax environment, the preferred use of both the English language and English law in business operations, and the UK’s involvement in the European Single Market7.

Ford Motor Company Essay -- Ford Transportation Vehicles Automobiles E

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company, a large United States automotive corporation, strives for success each and every year. The success of Ford Motor Company, as well as other corporations, can be measured by analyzing the two most important goals of management, maintaining adequate liquidity and achieving satisfactory profitability. Liquidity can be defined as having enough money on hand to pay bills when they are due and to take care of unexpected needs for cash, while profitability refers to the ability of business to earn a satisfactory income. To enable investors and creditors to analyze these goals, Ford Motor Company distributes annual financial statements. With these financial statements, liquidity of Ford Motor Company is measured by analyzing factors such as working capitol, current ratio, quick ratio, receivable turnover, average days' sales uncollected, inventory turnover and average days' inventory on hand; whereas profitability analyzes the profit margin, asset turnover, return on assets, debt to equity, and return on equity factors. LIQUIDITY Working Capital Ford Motor Company's working capital fluctuated significantly in the years 1991-1995. This phenomenon is directly attributable to the fact that Financial Services current assets and current liabilities are not included in the total company current asset and current liability accounts. For example, the fluctuation from 1994 ($1.4 billion) to 1995 (-$1.5 billion) of $2.5 billion would suggest that Ford would be unable to pay liabilities during the current period. However, examination of the Financial Services side of the business reveals that surpluses of $13.6 billion existed in both 1994 and 1995, convincingly mitigating the figures indicating negative working capital. Current Ratio & Quick Ratio The current ratio in the years 1991-1995 has remained stable, fluctuating between 0.9 and 1.1. The quick ratio has also remained stable, fluctuating between 0.5 and 0.6. The larger fluctuation in the current ratio versus the quick ratio is caused by inventories being included in the asset side of the equation. Although inventories were significantly higher in both 1994 and 1995, current liabilities were also higher. In addition, marketable securities decreased substantially in 1994 and 1995. These factors resulted in the stability of both the curren... ...company APPENDIX DESCRIPTION PAGE Consolidated Income Statements...................................Appendix 1-2 Spreadsheets..................................................Appendix 1 Graphical Representation......................................Appendix 2 Consolidated Balance Sheets......................................Appendix 3-5 Spreadsheets.................................................Appendix 3-4 Graphical Representation.....................................Appendix 5 Consolidated Retained Earnings Statement.........................Appendix 6-7 Spreadsheets.................................................Appendix 6 Graphical Representation.....................................Appendix 7 Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows.............................Appendix 8-9 Spreadsheets.................................................Appendix 8 Graphical Representation.....................................Appendix 9 Evaluation of Liquidity..........................................Appendix 10-11 Evaluation of Profitability......................................Appendix 12-13 Liquidity & Profitability Formulas...............................Appendix 14

The Role of the Gods and Fate in Virgils The Aeneid Essay -- Aeneid V

The Role of the Gods and Fate in Virgil's The Aeneid Are the deeds of mortal characters in the Aeneid controlled by the gods or by fate? Aeneas must fulfill the will of the gods, while enduring the wrath of other gods, all the while being a worthy predecessor of Augustus and founder of the Roman people. Of course, the Trojan is successful because he gives himself up to these other obligations, while those who resist the will of the gods, Dido and Turnus, die sad deaths. Juno, the queen of gods, attempts to destroy Aeneas and his men in Book I of the Aeneid. The city of Carthage is Juno's favorite, and it has been prophesized that the race of the Trojans will one day destroy that city. This is too much for Juno to bear as another Trojan, Paris, has already scorned her. And so she calls on King Aeolus, the god of the winds, telling him to bring a great storm down upon Aeneas? fleet. Aeolus obeys and unleashes a fierce hurricane upon the battle-wearied Trojans. However, Neptune, the god of the sea, feels the storm over his dominion; he criticizes Aeolus for overstepping his bounds, and calms the waters just as Aeneas' fleet seems doomed. Seven ships are left, and they head for the nearest land in sight, the coast of Libya. Aeneas's mother, Venus sees the Trojans' poor state and pleads to Jupiter to end their suffering. Jupiter assures her that Aeneas will eventually find his promised home in Italy, and that two of his descendants, Romulus and Remus, w ill found the mightiest empire in the world. Then Jupiter sends a god down to the Phoenicians, the people of Carthage, to make sure they are welcoming to the Trojans. Juno hears that the Trojans are destined to found a city that will destroy her Carthage. That city is Rome, and ... ... and in an angry mob set fire to the fleet. The Trojan men see the smoke, rush up the beach and throw water on the ships, but the burning does not stop. Finally, Aeneas prays to Jupiter to save the fleet, and immediately a rainstorm comes, putting out the flames. The goddesses Juno and Venus continue their quarrel by further intervention in the journey of the Trojans. At this point it almost seems to be overdone: the gods are driving the plot, not the hero. Aeneas has been reduced to a reactionary role as the different factions on Olympus duke it out over his fate, and send either aid or abuse down to the Trojans. Incapable to stop the burning of his fleet, he pitifully begs Jupiter to either help or kill him, so disheartened is he at his arbitrary maltreatment by the gods. Works Cited: Gransden, Karl W. Virgil: The Aeneid. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1990.

Analysis of Jane Austin’s Pride And Prejudice Essay

Elizabeth’s and Darcy’s epithet (not literal but rather implied) of â€Å"Proud and Prejudiced† as the title of the book indicates, is clearly evident in the discourse and the use of pronouns found in extract â€Å"A† – chapter 10. Extract â€Å"B† – chapter 58, has an entirely different use of discourse and the â€Å"polarity of persons† is fundamentally different to that of extract â€Å"A†, the â€Å"I† and â€Å"you† of Elizabeth and Darcy become increasingly more like a metaphorical â€Å"we† or â€Å"us† as the book progresses, bring about a new implied epithet of â€Å"humble and accepting†. Benveniste refers to the use of pronouns as bringing one’s â€Å"ego† into reality through the â€Å"othering† of people. The culture of politeness at the time that Jane Austin wrote Pride and Prejudice dictated that a person had to be far more subtle in their approach to, amongst others, insults. This was predominantly done through the change in indexicals, in the same manner we as the reader are able to pick up on the transition from; repulsion between Elizabeth and Darcy through to attraction and ultimately love, all as an event of language. In extract â€Å"A† Mr. Darcy moves closer, â€Å"drawing near† – line 2, to Elizabeth , this is indicative of his affection towards her although it may be on a sub-conscious level. The reader can assume this as he moves his entire body towards her in a private manner. He then proceeds to â€Å"other† and mock her in line 4 by not including his own subjectivity in the discourse. â€Å"Do not you feel a great inclination, Miss Bennet, to seize such an opportunity of dancing a reel?† – In this â€Å"utterance† Mr. Darcy does not include himself in the discourse and refers to Elizabeth as â€Å"you†, this creates a distance between the two as the â€Å"you† is not linked to Mr. Darcy’s â€Å"I†. Mr. Darcy extenuates Elizabeth by referring to her as â€Å"Miss Bennet†, in this he creates more distance by the formal address. The word â€Å"seize† is a blatant attempt to incite a reaction from Elizabeth by emphasizing her family’s economic situation by insinuating that being poor, she would jump at the opportunity to let loose and revel in the opportunity to participate in, it is implied, this rare treat. In actuality Darcy is using an ironical tone to provoke a response and although othering Elizabeth is desperately seeking her attention. The same practice is performed by most young children, often mocking and behaving in a callous manner to the opposite sex in order simply to engage them. Elizabeth does not answer his question and he is forced to  repeat it. This indicates to the reader that although the two seem to be partaking in an argument, it is more than that and they are rather just trying to get attention from one another. It is important to note that at the time the novel was written it would be considered extremely rude to not answer a direct question and the fact that Elizabet h does this to Darcy shows us; that she is a head strong proud individual and that she feels comfortable enough with Mr. Darcy to be impolite. After having repeated the question Elizabeth answers him. The polarity of the subjectivity and deixis is well demonstrated in her response to him. â€Å"I heard you before†, she involves him as a â€Å"you† (the object) and rebukes him by making him aware that he knew she had heard and there was no need to repeat the question. She continues by re-iterating her intention of othering him by using â€Å"in reply† – line 9 opposed to â€Å"to you†. To illustrate his opinion and highlight his rudeness, she proceeds and turns him into the subject by placing the â€Å"you† at the beginning of the sentence in line 9, â€Å"You wanted me†. Elizabeth does this in order to embarrass Darcy and in doing so becomes a hypocrite, by using a tit for tat approach. She rebukes his poor cordiality but in doing so becomes just as malicious as Darcy. Elizabeth ‘s rebuttal reaches the crux with her proverbial â€Å"but† – line 10; after involving him she utterly removes him as a subject in her discourse and moves into a statement, â€Å"I delight in overthrowing those kind of schemes, and cheating a person of their premeditated contempt.† The reader can observe the â€Å"those† and â€Å"their† as a way of putting Darcy and his verbal banter in the same category as any other person she has encountered in her past. To enhance her point with dramatic effect she slows the tempo of her â€Å"utterances†; â€Å"I have, therefore, made up my mind to tell you, that I do not want to dance a reel at all – and now despise me if you dare.† Once again she makes herself the subject with the â€Å"I have† then a the series of pauses so that the reaffirmation of her subjectivity can occur distinctively three times; â€Å"I have†, â€Å"made up my mind†, â€Å"tha t I do not want†. In closing Elizabeth forces the polarity onto Darcy by using direct and powerful words â€Å"despise† and â€Å"dare†. It is thus impossible for Darcy to avoid discourse and resorts to a defence of his ego offered by the â€Å"I†. Extract â€Å"B† – chapter 58 begins with Darcy explaining to Elizabeth the circumstances of his youth that brought about the â€Å"selfish† – line 8 adult that he became. In this monologue Darcy’s use of pronouns from lines 1 through to 11 are all self involved and one can notice the repetition of â€Å"I† at the beginning of sentences and after conjunctions or the start of a new point. This is unlike the use of â€Å"I† found in earlier extracts as well as future extracts; this is due to Darcy’s explanation being of little importance to any â€Å"polarity of persons† but rather a brief description. Darcy has by this stage of the book evolved into almost an entirely different â€Å"I† or person. When he uses the â€Å"I† in this section of the extract he is in essence borrowing it from his old self in order to justify his â€Å"Prejudiced† actions towards not only Elizabeth but all people he perceived to be of an inferior class. The introduction of Darcy’s new self occurs in line 12 with his inclusion of â€Å"you† and the use of Elizabeth ‘s name, â€Å"but for you, dearest, loveliest Elizabeth!†. The surrender of all ego is done by attributing â€Å"dearest† and â€Å"loveliest† to the â€Å"you† of Elizabeth , importantly he uses the pinnacle of these attributes to raise her above all others. â€Å"By you I was properly humbled.† – line 14; this positioning of the â€Å"you† before the â€Å"I’ show that Darcy has completely surrendered himself over to Elizabeth by giving the â€Å"you† tenure of the â€Å"I†. Elizabeth, not surprisingly, also gives herself over to Darcy by reversing the order of pronouns in line 17 – â€Å"Had you then persuaded yourself that I should?†. The use of pronouns as Benviniste demonstrates is a direct representation and the only true representation of ones ego. Both Elizabeth and Darcy then proceed in a rather shameful manner to reverse the â€Å"polarity of persons† in order to apologise to one another. â€Å"How you must have hated me after that evening!† – line 22, the reader should take note of the utterance being formed as a question but made as a statement. Certainly Elizabeth is seeking a response but in a very passive manner! Darcy replies in an equally passive tone but hints of defensive tones can be observed in his response of â€Å"Hate you! I was angry, perhaps, at first, but my anger soon began to take a proper direction† – line 23. Darcy involuntarily reverts back to his old â€Å"I† as a means of defence and finding a comfort zone, correcting himself he introduces and Elizabeth and her â€Å"you† by implying  that she is the â€Å"proper direction†. The lines that follow are of the same passive nature as slowly the â€Å"I† and â€Å"you† of Darcy and Elizabeth become one. Benviniste tries to convey that our use of pronouns is in essentially the only way in which or utterances or communication can be of any importance. Pronouns are the gateway in which or ego’s can be transmitted into reality. These two extracts from â€Å"Pride and Prejudice† show wonderfully how this is done. Through the book we notice a clear change in the â€Å"polarity of persons† from that of egotistical to unselfish and relinquished pronouns. Bibliography:Jane Austin Pride and Prejudice

Attendance Requirement in College Essay

Attending college is supposed to signify freedom to make choices regarding education. However, many students who plans to continue their education realize that college does not give this freedom. In some countries, college students are expected to attend classes that they have register. However, should attendance be mandatory in college? Even though some believe that college attendance should be flexible, I believe that college attendance should be mandatory. The first reason why college attendance should be mandatory is the lack of understanding. For example, Students who attend regularly classes have better opportunity to understand the courses what are done in class, while students who do not attend classes will not understand. Also, because students who attend regularly the classes understand the courses, they have a better chance to have good grades during test. On the contrary, students who do not attend classes, and do not understand the courses; they get bad grades during test. Indeed, college attendance should be mandatory to help all the students understand the courses. Another reason why college attendance should be mandatory is it build relationships. College attendance build relation between students and students. In college, there is many ways to meet friends that you can count on in the future such as joining a club, or in class. Students who do not attend college classes will not have these opportunities. College also build relation between students and teachers. Students who attend classes have the opportunity to know their teachers. Teachers have the same opportunity to know their students, and that relation between them will help the teachers to know the students’ lacks and find ways to help them. On the other hand, students who do not attend school will be stuck with his lacks. Opponents believe that mandatory attendance policies does not go under life lesson categories. If students do not show up at the classes, they register that will not affect them in the real world. However, I believe it does go under life lesson categories. If students get into the habit of not showing at classes, they register that will affect them in the real world. For example, if you do not show at work, you will be fired. College attendance should be mandatory to avoid that habit. In conclusion, College attendance should be mandatory to help students understand their course, to build relationship between students/ students and students/ teacher and to avoid bad habit. Nowadays, many students are skipping classes. In my opinion, college attendance should be mandatory.

Focus Group

INTRODUCTION Focus group is a qualitative technique used mostly in marketing research and also other areas of research. This technique is used to collect primary data. This document consists of information about focus group. The main objective of this assignment was to investigate how focus groups techniques are used to collect primary data about the phenomenon at hand in the real world. The research method used was Google scholar for academic journals.The campus library database was also used for more academic journals and textbooks from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) different libraries. The main problem experienced in the completion of this document was that most textbooks about this studied topic were outdated in the author’s campus. Hence, different campuses of NMMU were visited and the right textbooks were found. This document presents a review of the literature on focus groups. It continues with an empirical study on organisational corruption in secon dary schools.Also included, is the reference list of all cited sources as well as an annexure. 2 FOCUS GROUPS In the collection of primary data there are two research methods that can be of use, quantitative and qualitative methods, which can both be subdivided into idiosyncratic primary data collection methods. Because the main focus of this document is on focus groups, therefore only qualitative techniques will be mentioned which are in-depth interviews, projective techniques and focus groups. Seymour (2004:04) defines focus groups (F.G) as â€Å"group of interacting individuals having some common interest or characteristics, brought together by a moderator, who uses the group and its interactions as a way to gain information about a specific or focused issue†. This technique has been utilised in many fields to collect primary data as mentioned above and its characteristics are discussed in the following section. 2. 1 CHARACTERISTICS OF FOCUS GROUPS When F. G are considered to be used in a certain research study then there are characteristics which have to be taken into account, which are: group size, group composition, physical setting, moderator, recording tools and length f group discussion. Below it is a detailed review on each of the above mentioned characteristics of F. G. 2. 1. 1 Group size When determining to embark on F. G one has to think about the size (number) of that certain F. G. Despite the confusion that can be created by different sources stating a different number of possible group sizes. The research of F. G can be undertaken with a group of 4- 12 people (Tong, Sainsbury & Craig 2007:351). Large F. G group size can jeopardise the discussion as it may be difficult to handle the discussion, even so the group size depends on the complexity of the research study. . 1. 2 Group composition After the group size had been decided then the group composition must be considered as well. All participants taking part in a F. G must be homogen eous in the interest of the studied phenomenon (Malhotra & Birks 2006:160). Participants with similar characteristics, which the study is about, make the discussion easier and nicely flowing. 2. 1. 3 Physical setting When choosing the venue to carry out a F. G it is imperative that the chosen venue must also meet the aspects of the phenomenon at hand and of the participants.Daymon and Holloway (2002:194) state that â€Å"choosing the right environment for traditional focus groups plays a vital role as it can attract freely expressed opinions from the participants†. 2. 1. 4 Moderator In the success of F. G moderators play a vital role. It is of crucial role that moderators in F. G keep the environment safe so participants can freely express their opinions and most importantly must use probe questions; such requires a great experience from the moderator (Hague, P. , Hague, N. & Morgan 2004:53).Therefore, the moderator ought to possess skills such as creating chemistry w ith the participants, keep the flow of the discussion and analysing the data collected. 2. 1. 5 Recording tools No person can be able to cram exactly a discussion of over 20 minutes by his head; some points will certainly be missed. Wiid & Diggines (2009:90) express that â€Å"sessions should preferably be recorded (both visual and audio) so that the researcher can review the sessions later in order to gain further insights†.These tools therefore, assist to keep the already realised needed data and the data that the moderator was unaware of during the discussion. 2. 1. 6 Length of group discussion When planning F. G it is essential to plan the duration precisely as it may play an impact on the data collected. However, just like group sizes, length of F. G depends on the complexity of the issue at hand. The more complex of the issue is the more the duration of the discussion is required, but if so then breaks must be taken in between to let the participants to enliven and produce successful F. G (Malhotra & Birks 2006:161).While on the hand, Seymour (2004:05) being unambiguous reveals that â€Å"most focus groups encompass 90 minutes to three hours of discussion†. With the above discussed characteristics of F. G considered, then one has to scrutinise the advantages and disadvantages of F. G. The following section discusses the advantages and disadvantages of F. G. 2. 2 ADVANTAGES F. G has its own advantages which can attract this technique to be used. These advantages are discussed individually beneath. Cost- because discussions are done simultaneously then it reduces the cost (Wiid & Diggines 2009:91).Speed- because a number of individuals are being interviewed at the same time, data collection and analysis proceeds speedily (Gerber-Nel, Nel & Kotze 2003:104). Synergy- a discussion with a number of participants can also be of help by generating more information than one-on-one interviews (University of Toronto [UT] 2002:02). Snowb all- Malhotra & Birks (2006:162) state that â€Å"a bandwagon effect often operates in a group discussion in that one person’s comment triggers a chain reaction from the other respondents†.In elaboration, a comment from one of the participants may reveal an idea to some other participant(s). Scientific scrutiny- because the moderator is also in the venue of discussion with participants, it also gives the moderator the opportunity to also observe (Malhotra & Birks 2006:162). However, disadvantages investigated by the author are more than the mentioned above but the above mentioned are those anticipated as most important. 2. 3 DISADVANTAGES Focus groups have advantages which can jeopardise the collected data or the data collection process itself.These advantages are explained below. Misjudgement- Gerber-Nel et al (2003:104) utter that â€Å"results are misinterpreted due to bias†. Non representative sample- because of the small number of participants in to tal as compared to quantitative, therefore participants in F. G cannot represent any population (Wiid & Diggines 2009:91). Inconclusive results- the results of F. G only retort to ‘what’ but not ‘why’ which can sometimes make the narrow and create a need for a quantitative research study (Gerber-Nel et al 2003:104).Difficulty in analysing- this method mostly consists of words which make it more difficult to analyse (Grudens-Schuck, Allen & Larson 2004: ¶9). 2. 4 WHEN TO USE FOCUS GROUPS With the above discussed sections it is also vital for one to know when to utilise F. G. Focus groups are mostly used to discover behaviour, perceptions, attitudes and processes (Hague et al 2004:50). These traits that F. G are used to discover which responds to the question of ‘when to use focus groups? ’, which in respond will be, F.G can be used in; stand alone method, supplementary to a survey and as a part of multi method design (Daymon & Holl ower 2002:188). The following section will discuss the use of F. G in the study of organisational corruption in secondary schools in Turkey and the information provided is based on annexure A. 3 FOCUS GROUP STUDY ON ORGANISATIONAL CORRUPTION IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN ANKARA In Turkey after it was seen that the level of corruption in secondary schools is high, it was then seen important that a study on this problem should be undertaken.The moderator and his assistant decided to use F. G study to identify the perceptions of teachers in Ankara (a city in Turkey). The group sizes of the study were eight and nine respectively, which in total consisted of 17 participants (12 males and 5 females). These participants were chosen due to homogeneous attributes meeting the studied problem, because this study is about secondary schools therefore the participants were critically recruited due to their profession of teaching. Thereafter, the moderator and his assistant held the F. G in a cosmopolit an city of Turkey known by the name Ankara.Apaydin & Balci (2011:821) state that in the study â€Å"audio and video recordings were taken informed consent†. Which helped to later on even realise information shared which the researchers were not aware of. The duration of each focus group was 90 minutes, which the researchers felt the time it was the right time, for each group discussion. The fact that F. G were held made it less costly for this study than any other possible study because a large number of people participated in this study at a time which also made it quite quicker.Some points in this study were raised up by addition or revealing of another idea by some other participant’s comment. On the other hand, the researchers also saw that because at first the participants were suppose to represent secondary schools of Turkey as a nation then later converted to the cosmopolitan city Ankara but still the researchers saw that the number of total participants is quite diminutive to represent such large population. On the findings of this study it was seen of importance that further study should be carried out on different groups so the findings can be generalised. CONCLUSION This study has been a great study which can be improvised in a way. Such way is that the researchers must carry on with the focus groups and compare findings, if even after several discussions same findings are gathered then it would be a point where the findings can be generalised for the secondary schools in Ankara. REFERENCE LIST Apaydin, C. & Balci, A. 2011. Education. Organizational Corruption in Secondary Schools: A Focus Group Study, 131(4):818-829. Daymon, C. & Holloway, I. 2002.Qualitative research methods in public relations andmarketing communications. London: Routledge. Gerber-Nel, C. , Nel, D. & Kotze, T. 2003. Marketing research. Claremont: New African Books. Grudens-Schuck, N. , Allen, B. L. & Larson, K. 2004. Focus group fundamentals. Met hodology Brief: 9. Hague, P. , Hague, N. & Morgan, C. 2004. Marketing research in practice: A guide to the basics. London: Kogan Page. Malhotra, N. K. & Birks, D. F. 2006. Marketing research: An applied approach. 2nd rev ed. Harlow: Prentice Hall.Seymour, A. 2004. Focus groups. An Important Tool for Strategic Planning:1-32. Tong, A. , Sainsbury, P. & Craig, J. 2007. International journal for quality in health care. Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ): a 32-item Checklist for Interviews and Focus Groups, 19(6):349-357. University of Toronto. 2002. The health communication unit. Using Focus Groups, 02:1-59. Wiid, J. & Diggines, C. 2009. Marketing research. Cape Town: Juta. ANNEXURE A: ORGANIZATIONAL CORRUPTION IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS: A FOCUS GROUP STUDY