Science Lab

Purpose: To find out the densities and to find out the name of the unknown metals. (Based on the extensive and intensive properties) Check up the words mass, volume, density, extensive properties, and intensive properties. Where do the units for mass and volume) come from and what do they mean? What is the density of distilled water? What is Archimedes principle? Does temperature affect the density of a solid? Liquid? Gas? Materials: Safety glasses, 10, 25 or 50 mL graduated cylindersDistilled water Metal Samples W, X,Y & Z Procedure: 1. Class split into 5 groups. Every group will get data for four metals and tell it to the class 2. Choose a metal sample for every group then pass it around between groups. 3. Set a number of your metal sample and record the mass in the table. 4. Get a gradated cylinder with distilled water, but not to much to make it over flow when sample is put in. Record the amount of water in the cylinder accurately 5.Then tip the cylinder to about 45 degrees t hen put sample into it slowly, DON’T spill any water or have to restart. Make sure no air bubbles are clinging. Then take down final volume of water cylinder. 6. Dump the water out, then dry sample off. 7. Repeat this over with the other metal samples. * Hypothesis: * My hypothesis is that even though I will find the densities and names of the unknown metals its not going to be accurate because some water will spill out.Many people are going to come up with the different names because they aren’t care full enough. Mass of metal | | | | | | Initial volume of water | | | | | | Final volume | | | | | | Volume of metal | | | | | | ExperimentalDensity of metal | | | | | | Group Data| | | | | | | Metal W| Metal X| Metal Y| Metal Z| | Class Data: Mass and Volumes of each groups’ metal samples| Lab Group| Metal W| Metal X| Metal Y| Metal Z| 1| | | | | | | | | 2| | | | | | | | | 3| | | | | | | | | 4| | | | | | | | | 5| | | | | | | | | Total *| | | | | | | | | Class Exp.D ensity *| | | | | * 1. Show an example of how your group calculated the experimental densities of your group samples and the class samples. 1. Graph the class data using mass as the x axis and volume as the y axis, (title the graph and make a legend or key for the various metal samples). 1. Compare your group’s experimental density to that of the class’s experimental density from the graph and make comment as to their relative accuracies. 1.Research the possible identities of the metals based on their extensive properties (density, radioactivity, heat capacity, conductivity, lethal exposure/dosage, etc. ) and intensive properties (color, texture, luster, magnetism, reactivity, etc. ). 1. Make a claim as to the identity of the various metals based on their extensive and intensive properties. Calculate the % error for each of your claims for both your group’s experimental values and the class’s. Show an example of each type of calculation and make a table r epresenting the organized results. *

Language Analysis Essay

The piece titled ‘getting our future back on the rails – slowly’ is written by a member of The Grow Slow organisation who believes that the most convenient occupant for the land of the abandoned railway yards is a community garden. The author begins the article in a confined toned aiming to convince the reader that a community garden is the right choice and later transfers on to a more critical tone when talking about convenient foods. The author’s main arguments include firstly that community gardens are a global trend and that their community should be one to follow such a trend, secondly a community garden will be beneficial to everyone and is the most efficient option and lastly community gardening will bring the whole community together. Firstly the author asserts that a community gardening is a growing global trend and that the council should accept the chance to bring their community ‘up to date with the rest of the world,’ by stating this the author implies that their community is behind compared to the rest of the world and encourages the reader to feel the urge to catch up with the world and support the growing trend. The author re-establishes this effect when informing the reader of the productivity that city farms bring to ‘hundreds of millions across the globe.’ The author also acknowledges opposing arguments that community gardening is ‘just a passing fashion,’ and further rebuts those arguments by giving examples of community gardens which are still around from the time they were dug in World War 2. Using World War 2 as an example not only causes the reader to agree that community gardens are not just a trend but also can be beneficial in times of crisis; this is furth er supported by the first image which accompanies the article. Secondly the author contends that a community garden will be the most sustainable option and will benefit the whole community. This is when the audience faces the transition in tone which becomes more critical about convenience foods. The author appals to their readers hip pocket nerve when declaring the ‘hidden price tag’ that convenience foods carry because ‘a lot of it is wasted’, ‘ends up in landfill’ and adds to ‘environmental damage.’ Not only does this cause the reader to stray away from the idea of convenience foods, it also brings upon the realisation that growing their own food will benefit the planet as well as themselves. The author further convinces the reader of the negative economic impact that convenience foods have by providing a chart from the NSW environment protection authority  which provides that each year in just one state the cost of processed food waste is approximately $360 million is wasted on packaged f ood, $240 million on frozen food and $170 million on takeaway. In contrast of this the author communicates that if people grew their own food they would value it too much and hence there would be no waste. Lastly the author recommends community gardening as the best option because it will bring the community together. The author claims that the garden will be ‘a great way for children to learn,’ also that ‘kids spend far too much time inside’ and the garden will provide a healthy option for them to go outside and do some physical work in the fresh air. Referring to children as one of the main benefiters from the garden the author not only appeals to the council, because children are the future of their community but also appeals to parents as they want their community to be a healthy and sufficient place for their children. The author declares to the council that voting for the garden will be a ‘visionary’ step and invites the community to ‘join in’ to ‘dig for victory again.’ By using the word visionary the author applies a positive effect on council members who may be reading the article making them feel that if they vote for the garden they will have been a part of a revolutionary step for their community, and inviting the community to ‘dig for victory’ implies to community members that the community option is the right option and as it was successful in the past it should be successful today as well. In conclusion the author’s main purpose is to gain the support of community members and convince council members that the garden is the best option to vote for in the upcoming hearing. The author justifies this through her three main arguments including that community gardens are a global trend to be considerably followed, secondly the author criticizes those who rely on convience foods and provide them with evidence that community gardens are the better and more sustainable option and lastly the author asserts that community gardens wi ll unite the community.

Strategic Management in Barclays Bank Case Study

Strategic Management in Barclays Bank - Case Study Example The term future here implies a minimum of 20-years, implying the importance of long term thinking of where the firm wants to be. Mission: Hill (2006) states that a mission statement is rather the short term spot that the firm aims to achieve in the time of few years, generally a 5-year plan. Mission statement is generally derived from the vision, and is also assumed as a subset of the same. Goals & Objectives: Hunger (2006) states that goals and objectives are the further derived version, generally obtained from the mission statement defining the milestones that would ultimately lead to the achievement of mission. Corporate Strategy: Corporate strategy is defined by Lamb (1984) as the overall strategy of a diversified firm that is indulged in various businesses, and aims at creating synergy amongst all, moving ultimately towards the organizational vision. In accordance with Peterson (2006), the relationship between these six elements is fairly simple; Vision is the ultimate aim of the organization, around 20 years down the road, so to speak. Mission is the subset of vision, defining where the firm needs to be 5 years down the road, to achieve the vision in 15 years from then, and the goals and objectives are further short term in nature like annualized aims for a firm. Business strategy, at the same time, is the strategy that a single standalone unit deploys, while functional strategy is the grounds level strategy. This implies a strong relationship present amongst the 6 variables. For example, the vision of my organization is to be the market leader and be the first consumer preferred brand in the respective industry. Their mission is to attain a 20% market share by the end of the year 2012; this mission was established two years back and is expected to be revised. The goals and objectives are mainly to achieve customer satisfaction and provide the best quality of products and services. We only have a single unit operating to the business strategy is the corporate strategy i.e. product differentiation i.e. providing differentiated product for a price elastic consumer market. The functional policy is to retain good and competitive human resource that can lead the way for customer satisfaction. If critically analyzed, the sentences here clearly illustrate their inter connection with each other also showing how well these elements need to be tied up. Another example can be given of Barclays; their vision is to build a world-class organization - highly subjective in approach and very broad statement, capable of churning up any progress that they make towards becoming great. Their mission is to be innovative and customer-centric organization, contributing to people, their careers, and their lives.

International accounting in china Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

International accounting in china - Essay Example 1990 was a watershed year wherein the PRC laid out the basic general objectives for the accounting system reform which consisted of the fundamental and specific accounting standards against the background of the international accounting practices catering to the nation's requirements. (Accounting and Auditing Standards) The approach had the inclusion of a two-pronged one that had involved the makeover to an accounting system driven by market-economy from the existing planned economy accounting system. The first step led to the formation of the International Accounting Standard -- IAS based Basic Accounting Standards in the year 1992. This apart, a fresh package of uniform accounting system was being released for the purpose of the vital economic sectors. The second step will have a complete system of accounting standards which meant for businesses which would be built over the process of time bringing the Chinese accounting system on the similar lines along with the global practices. The espousing of the Basic Accounting Standard in the year 1992 standardised the financial operations of all businesses, public enterprises, as well as governmental bodies and dealt with several issues and problems connected with the old system. (Accounting and Auditing Standards) Background of China's economy (1980 to date: market economy): The year 1980 had set the conditions for the "Second Revolution" that marked the starting of the reforms in every arena of the Chinese society by the leaders who had ruled the country after Mao Zedong. The leadership of the PRC had turned over to economic reforms as the main instrument in order to realize the extensive objective of the conditions of modernizations in four principal sectors such as industry, agriculture, science and technology and defence and to make the nation join into the group of advanced industrial countries by the beginning of the new millennium. This reform approach was initiated during the 1980s and it has been credited generally to the initiatives as well as single-mindedness of the stalwart Deng Xiaoping, who was the most important leader in China after Mao Zedong under whose leadership had brought about comprehensive economic modernization as well as organizational reforms program. The progress of the industrial sector in China was being marked by the large -scale movement of the population towards the urban areas. The population had crossed over 1 billion by the year 1982 with an annual growth rate of about 1.4%. (The People's Republic of China V: Reforms, 1980-88) With the passage of time, overseas experts were being called in for a helping hand in the process of modernization and the JVs with foreign capitalists and the MNCs had increased. However the growth as well as the successful harnessing of the technological skills, which is the main crux of the Four Modernisation had required the necessity of huge investment and further needed extra labour by the Chinese people. In a partial departure from the goal of 'self-reliance', China started taking

Method and Meditations on First Philosophy Essay

Method and Meditations on First Philosophy - Essay Example This essay essay that God is not a receiver; human beings can attain the truth and thus the connection to nature. The idea of nature can be explored in two ways, firstly, there exists no doubt that every aspect that nature teaches people has some truth in it, and thus it is naturally general that God is the greatest as he is the creator of things. This implies that if human beings are careful, they can learn a lot of things from nature as nature were created by God. God plays in the attainment of positive knowledge, a reader can realize that, even though, the objectives of the Cartesian project remains to be credible, the existence of several ethical discrepancies and probable speculations destabilized its legitimacy beyond repair. This paper makes a conclusion that the presence of God and further significant role of God in the lives of human beings has remained an extensive and diverse topic all through the history of philosophy. Descartes’ epistemological influence to Western philosophy is the start of his attempt to create a coherent method of analysis on the knowledge concerning the world that can be acquired from the information in the Church or the Bible. Nevertheless, Descartes’ development was not to take away God from the lives of human beings. God’s Existence is consequential instantaneously from the pure and discrete idea of a totally perfect and great being. Oddly, the simplicity of this discussion has also created several misreading’s, aggravated in part by Descartes' catastrophe to articulate a sole version of this argument

Unique Properties of Money Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Unique Properties of Money - Case Study Example Pouches of mackerel acted as money in prisons after cigarettes were banned by the prison authorities Pouches of mackerel were easily transferable from one place to another meaning they were portable. Cans were banned by wardens as a means of exchange, so prisoners turned to plastic pouches of mackerel. These were easily transferable around prison walls. Just like ideal money, the pouches of mackerel, plastic or can, were durable. They could be used for a long period without diminishing in value and quality. The pouches of mackerel cost about $ 1 at the commissary. Rather than, eat them, prisoners preferred to use them as money for trade. This means that their opportunity cost is low just like ideal money. Instead of eating them, prisoners derived a greater satisfaction in using them as a means, to trade for goods and services they needed much more. Their uniform value also made them as the preferred means of exchange in prison where ideal money was not available (McEachern, 2012). Money is characterized by almost non-existent fluctuation in value. The pouches of mackerel acted simil arly as their value remained uniform over a length of time. Similar to ideal money, the pouches of mackerel did not wear out quickly, were easy to carry and move around. They could be exchanged easily to support a range of prices and had uniform quality. There were few resources tied in creating the pouches and people were willing to accept them in believe that they would hold their  value.  

African exploration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

African exploration - Essay Example The article has got a number of issues discussed regarding the European and East Africans during the age of exploration. This has raised several important points which are of interest and need to be elaborated.The majority of the visitors coming to the African exploration were surprisingly not from the European explorers, in stead, they were the Africans, Arabs and Swahilis in particular. The changes taking place as a result of exploration were tremendous including various structural changes that were evident. All these things were clear and visible during and/or after the exploration by the Arabs and the Europeans. These points individually are explained below.The explorers coming to the east African exploration were composed of European explorers and the east Africans. The formation and the number of explorers were surprisingly strange. The majority of the explorers were east Africans, Arabs and Swahilis in particular. They had a huge adaptability to the culture of the African area . The explorers coming from Europe and other areas also relied on Arabs and other Africans for guidance and routes for help and support.They took detailed accounts of the societies they encountered as they planned to give a complete account of the regions they were traversing. The degree of satisfaction of the obtained knowledge depended upon the individual explorer's perspective and interests and tended to vary fro explorer to explorer.In the second period of exploration under discussion, 1856-70, the number of people with Indian backgrounds rose. In a taken sample, around 54 percent of the people joining in that period were of Indian background. The other segments of people in that period increased. Men with army connections increased as compared to those with naval men. Number of men with missionary activities increased. The number of administrators increased in the period whereas the number of scholars was relatively small. The practical, administrative and functional memberships seem to have become even more marked in that period. The composition of the people and their professions was changing with the changing time periods and particularly in this period. The creation of infrastructure and the relevant setup was to make the enforcement of law and order better. The people who were given to slavery were to be relieved from that and the civilization was to be established there. The east African cohesion was pretty much visible in the traversing of the European and other African voyagers. Besides the justification provided for the discovery and exploration of east Africa, the hidden motives were very much there with the British people. They were not disclosed as the justification was reasonably acceptable. The motives of the east India company and the British explorers were multifold with a focus on reaping the benefits from the east African products and produce. The exploration of course resulted in a direct contact of the British explorers and the Africans. The Arabs were an integral part of the exploration. They were adaptive to the changed culture of east Africa. The Arabs and the Swahilis adjusted themselves to African conditions, culture and the social and political norms in the African region, even when they were in dominating position. There was an implicit alliance between the Arabs and the Europeans. They helped each other in the exploration and Europeans heavily relied on the Arabs for support and guidance in the region. The British government advanced money for the cause of

Using appropriate conceptual support, critically evaluate the City of Case Study

Using appropriate conceptual support, critically evaluate the City of Pittsburgh approach to cloud adoption. Were they successful in their cloud implementation Why or why not - Case Study Example Data and software packages are permanently kept in servers on the internet. It allows an access to information anywhere anytime as long as one has electronic devices like; desktops, tablets, computers, hand-held sensors and many others (latimes.com). The basic requirement to retrieve information from cloud is the internet connection. One must establish the internet connection either through wired or wireless internet or mobile broadband connection. You can now access the same information using different devices in a different location at different time. That is why it is the best option to use in your business as anyone who is connected to the internet can work on documents anytime anywhere. There are different types of clouds that depend on what one needs. Public cloud –if you want anyone who is internet connected can access the cloud space. Private cloud-is for specific individuals or organization. It can limited public access as one may be required to use passwords to access this type of cloud. Community cloud- is shared amongst two or more organizations that share similar cloud necessities. Hybrid cloud is a combination of two or more types of clouds. It is a mixture of public, private or communal. In this essay we are going to evaluate on how the City of Pittsburgh approached the cloud connectivity and if they were successful (Markoff, 2010). City of Pittsburgh needed the cloud computing to operate its numerous social activities including schools and recreation centers like football pitches and state of art hospitals, economic activities like steel mining and political activities in governance and administration of the city. The city had started experiencing problems like; employees increasingly demanding to use the mail services and the increase in the cost of maintaining the servers, underfunded retirement funds, rising cost

Operational Definition and Model Building; Introduction to Scanning Assignment - 1

Operational Definition and Model Building; Introduction to Scanning - Assignment Example changes are those that are leading towards even more changes as has been seen in case of the entertainment industry as well as the ways in which the information is delivered. In this way not only the production of these packages is affected but also the ways in which they are produced and consumed. These are only some of the institutions that have been seen to be affected by the IT related innovations but here the point that needs to be emphasized is the changes in the social lives of the community citizens with an understanding towards the roles that are to be played in the society. Moreover the political lives and interactions on the political level have also changed. There have been many arguments in this regard as it has been said that with an addition in the technologies as emails, online discussions as well as the fact availability of information as these are the reason that will lead to the formation of a society that shall be more engaged, more informed as well as a participatory society in which the society members will be more inclined towards the computers as well as the internet. In this kind of society the human interest as well as beliefs is the ones that can be manipulated. These are all the changes that are to be argued in case of there pros and cons. In this case there has been no realization as to what can be the meaning deduced from these changes and if these are the positive changes or negative changes as they seem. With this it has to be seen that are the colligated changes as are seen in the community’s social lives are going to bring out any positive effect or any negative effect. As has been discussed there are some changes that are going to be shoeing there moderate effects as well as there are some changes that will have lesser effects on the social lives still there are many that can have dire consequences. In this very argument the main part of discussion can be the usage of these technologies especially the internet. The highest

Brand Promotion of Nestle Essay Example for Free

Brand Promotion of Nestle Essay Nestle has a wide market for infant food in India. Nestle India enjoys a monopolistic position in baby foods Nestle has about 80% of market share in the baby cereal segment alone – which is a promising segment in future. Some of the Infant foods of nestle includes: Lactogen, Cerelac, Good Start, NAN, Nido etc. And all the infant foods except Nido come in different and innovative tastes according to the stages and growth of the children. Sauces and Ketchups: Nestle India introduced versatile types of sauces and ketchups according to the taste buds of Indian consumers under the brand name â€Å"Maggi†. There are numerous varieties of sauces which range from usual Tomato sauces, tangy ones, sour ones, continental ones, to the recent tamarind sauce which is yet to be introduced in some of the localities in India. Breakfast cereals: Nestle International has already taken up the breakfast segments of the International consumers. There is no doubt that Nestle India would also take up the Indian markets in its hands by the wide range of breakfast cereals. Some of the cereals include Nesquik which is targeted towards the kids, Cheerios towards Adults and Cookie Crisp for all age groups. Milk and dairy products: Milk: The largest segment of nestle is Milk and Dairy products. Nestle India focused and involved closely in this sector for the last 3 decades, also in the process of developing strong relationship with more than 85,000 farmers country wide. As a result Nestle has the best quality milk in India. Dairy products: Nestle is known for its dairy products especially, â€Å"Milkmaid† which has an unbeatable taste and other dairy products of nestle includes fresh and natural curd, light curd, and fruit flavored curd Famous chocolates of nestle includes Nestle Milk Chocolate, Nestle Milky bar, Nestle Munch, Nestle Kitkat, Nestle Bar One, and Polo. All these chocolates come in different flavors. Instant Food and Cooking Aids: Noodles: Nestle India’s Instant noodles â€Å"Maggi† is preferred by 80% of the consumers around the nation and the brand Maggi provides lots of attractive and tasty noodle variety targeting the kids and the adults especially office going people. Maggi is the largest and the most loved brand of Nestle India presently Maggi comes in 9 different and innovative flavors. Cooking Aids: An Indian Masala powder for cooking for enhancing the taste of the food we cook. â€Å"Maggi Bhuna Masala† is the magical powder which increases the taste of Indian food. Bottled water: Nestle has launched its packaged drinking water â€Å"Pure Life† which is an upcoming water brand o nestle sure to hit the markets of India. Nestle India – Market Leader: Nestle India is the market leader of Infant food, Instant coffee, and Milk Maid, the greatest market leader in Instant noodles â€Å"Maggi’. Case Studies of Nestle India: Social Impact of Nestle Global: Water saving initiatives held in India: Nestle India conducted a water saving campaign in Moga, Punjab where the brand has the largest milk districts. The campaign was about the water scarce and how scarce in water affects the production of milk. Happy Day in New Papua Guinea: Joining hands with the ministry of health in New Papua Guinea, Nestle conducted a Personal hygiene program initiating the nutritive values and health ailments faced due to the nutrition deficiency. Awareness campaign in North Africa – Nido: Nestle in North Africa conducted an awareness program regarding their launch of Nido in the markets of North Africa. Focusing on feeding mothers and infants. Nestle also conducts various awareness programs in different regions instructing the importance of water and the benefits of the purity and innovation of Nestle’s Water. Products of Nestle in India: (Pictorial Representation) Infant Formula: Sauces and Ketchups:

Tourism And Hospitality Management In Bangladesh Tourism Essay

Tourism And Hospitality Management In Bangladesh Tourism Essay Tourism and hospitality management business is one of the booming sectors of todays business world. It contributes a great amount in every national economy. Sheraton hotel is the first renowned five-star hotel in Bangladesh which is related in tourism and hospitality business. They are successfully operating their business for many years. Hospitality and tourism industry needs smart and efficient employee Dhaka Sheraton Hotel has these kind of employee. And they are pretty much efficient to Human Resource Management. Companys performance is highly depended on the performance of their employees. If they perform their duties perfectly companys performance will be greater. Beside these Dhaka Sheraton Hotel developed new strategies for their employees by which they will be satisfied with the organization. To step ahead Sheraton hotel has to nurture and practice few core competencies in the hospitality and tourism industry. The initial steps of fundamental activities of HRM is recruiting labor and it work forces. If organizations hire individual labor haphazardly without any employment planning they would not be able to serve their customer perfectly. Dhaka Sheraton hotel is efficient in employment planning. Job satisfaction is highly depending on the employee and the fulfillment of their expectations. If they are satisfy with the returns which are given by the organizations. Dhaka Sheraton Hotel keeps in mind to serve their employee with benefit and compensation by which they can turn into loyal employee. PART -A 2. Setting new strategies: It has been two decades that manager is learning to play by a new set of rules. Companies must have flexibility to respond quickly to be competitive and market changes. (Porter, 1996). To step ahead Sheraton hotel has to nurture and practice few core competencies in the hospitality and tourism industry. Dhaka Sheraton Hotel currently developed new strategies are given below: High allowance: Companys performance is highly depends on the employees who work for the organization. If they are satisfied with their allowance they will be serious in their work. Understanding this fact Dhaka Sheraton Hotel provides their employee with high allowance. Package tour: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel offer their permanent employee package tour according to their performance and their qualities Commission: They also provide commission to their employee on the basis of their capacity of the guest handling. Besides the salary commission has a great motivational thing to enhance their performance. Bonus: Yearly bonus and the occasional bonus are provided by the Dhaka Sheraton Hotel to their employees. These bonuses make the salary higher than any other organization regarding this sector. So employees become satisfy with this bonus. Transportation facilities: They have transportation facilities for their employees so that the employees have safe journey to their work place without any hazards. Lunch and dinner: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel provides lunch to their employees. So that they can get their meal in their work place. It reduces the waste of time and increase the capacity of doing work. They can have a get together in the lunch period and able to discuss many other issues between them. Housing: They also offer their employee housing facilities according to their position in the job sector. Proper housing can remove the frustration and tension of being safe. 3. Evaluate new strategies: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel set new strategies for the employees which make them satisfied in their workplace. For ensuring these managers take many steps and they are careful about the labor recruitment, high turnover rate and satisfaction issue. Organization must be careful about the labor recruitment process. Through this process organizations work force is hired for accomplishing many tasks. To satisfy the work force company needs to build healthy relationships between them. Labor recruitment: Organizations performance depends on the human resource management. The initial steps of fundamental activities of HRM is recruiting labor and it work forces. If organizations hire individual labor haphazardly without any employment planning they would not be able to serve their customer perfectly. Turn over: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel knows how to satisfy their customer. If the customers are more satisfied than their expectations with the service of Dhaka Sheraton Hotel they will be the loyal customer group. And Dhaka Sheraton Hotel has loyal customer group. Their exclusive services are attracted many customer by which they always prefer this hotel which helps to make a smart turnover every year. Satisfaction: job satisfaction is very important for the employees. If they are not satisfied to work with the organization they will not concentrate to their work properly. Their work environment should be satisfactory to them so that they can work properly and ultimately the organization will be benefited for it. 3.1 Labor recruitment: The labor recruitment is the fundamental step of HRM. In the recruiting process organization should have some considerations in their mind for their labor. The last few years there is a number of studies have seen with international contrasts in the history of work and managerial and recruiting strategies. (Lorenz, 1990) Employee selection: Every organization prefers good people to work with them. For this reason hiring good people is very much essential for the organization. To work in the hospitality and tourism industry employees must be smart and able to survive in the changing situation. (David A.Decanzo nd Stephen P.Robbins) Efficient employee: hospitality and tourism industry is totally different from the other industry. For this reason they need efficient people to conduct their activities properly. Dhaka Sheraton Hotel always searching for efficient employee who will be able to work in the challenging environment. High skilled: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel also prefer high skilled employee. They have unique technology to serve their customer and their targeted area which needs high skilled labor. Better environment: Better environment needs better people. Dhaka Sheraton Hotel believes this statement for this reason they try to hire those people who are able to cope with the environment and are able to survive with the changing environment. 3.2 Turn over: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel knows how to satisfy their customer. If the customers are more satisfied than their expectations with the service of Dhaka Sheraton Hotel they will be the loyal customer group. And Dhaka Sheraton Hotel has loyal customer group. Their exclusive services are attracted many customer by which they always prefer this hotel which helps to make a smart turnover every year. Loyal customer group: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel knows how to satisfy their customer. If the customers are more satisfied than their expectations with the service of Dhaka Sheraton Hotel they will be the loyal customer group. And Dhaka Sheraton Hotel has loyal customer group. Their exclusive services are attracted many customer by which they always prefer this hotel which helps to make a smart turnover every year. High rate of customer loyalty: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel has many loyal customer and it also have high rate of customer loyalty with the best service of this country. It also makes a great turnover. Best use of capital: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel knows the way of best use of their capital. Their service and the other facilities is world class. Which make them a international hotel. It has all facilities of the five star hotels. Thats why it is known as international hotel. High charge: They charges high in some service which are not available in other hotels in Bangladesh. They charges high because they are expert in that area. This high charge brings out high turn over at every financial year. Price skimming: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel charges high in some area which is exclusive. When they introduce new services they follow the market skimming pricing. 3.3 Satisfaction: Job satisfaction is highly depending on the employee and the fulfillment of their expectations. If they are satisfy with the returns which are given by the organizations. Dhaka Sheraton Hotel keeps in mind to serve their employee with benefit and compensation by which they can turn into loyal employee. Better satisfaction: working capacity is depending on the employee satisfaction. If the employee of an organizations are satisfied with the organization they will try to work hard for the organization. Dhaka Sheraton hotel offers better satisfaction than the other organizations. Secured life: if an employee is satisfy with the organization then they need a secured life. Dhaka Sheraton hotel gives their employee some unique offer which helps them to secure their life. They are: generosity pension transportation housing health insurance Financial satisfaction: Dhaka Sheraton hotel offers high salary then the other hotel to their employee for this reason the employees are satisfied and they are interested to work with them for long time. Social satisfaction: Dhaka Sheraton hotel organizes different types of social functions which makes the employees life happier than before. In the special days they organize special events for their employee and their customers. They are : Pitha uthshob Eid mela Ice cream festival Educational fair. 3.3.5 Family collaboration: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel organizes different types of gatherings which enhance the family collaboration. Dhaka Seraton Hotel always try to make the bond as like a family among their employees which helps to increase the ability to work. PART B 4. Exploring the HR related problem that affect Sheraton hotel: Human resource management is not an easy task. It must be ensured by the HR manager that the right person is placed in the right situation to do the right task within a right time (Sushan and Rundall, 1990). If these things are not perfectly done problems occur in workplace. For this reason Dhaka Sheraton Hotel some times has to face HR related problems. And these problems are given below: 4.1 Frequent interchange: Switching job is a common scenario of todays business world. Employees are always searching for extra benefit and greater remuneration and other reason. Frequent interchange of the employee causes problem in every organization. Dhaka Sheraton hotel faces many problems for the frequent interchange of the employee. To fill the empty post they need to arrange another recruitment process. High demand of employee: In the tourism and hospitality industry the employee demand is high in Bangladesh. Dhaka Sheraton hotel always prefer the smart and efficient employee to work with them. Employee sometimes demands high for their job which causes several problems to them. Unreasonable demand: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel pays perfectly to their employee as they deserve. Sometimes employees are not satisfied with it they demand high salary which is unreasonable. Bonus demand: Employees demanded high bonus which is not right in the sense of management. Dhaka Sheraton hotel offer bonus to its employee in every occasion but their employee demand high bonus in some occasion. Personality conflict: In every workplace sometimes personality conflict happens. In Dhaka Sheraton hotel it also occurred. HR manager has to face many problem for personality conflict 5. Option to improve relationship: HR manager should have the interpersonal skills like communication, caring, encouragement and giving feedback.(FCCLA) They must ensure decentralized worksites, friendly environment and so on which are given below Decentralized work sites: HR manager can improve relation through establishing decentralized work site. They can plan their work in a decentralized way by reorganized them. Managers must know how to establish and ensure appropriate work quality and on time completion. Decentralized work sites remove traditional working system and mangers need to change the work.(DeCenzo. and Robbins, 2008) Friendly environment: HR manager should improve the environment and make a healthy friendly environment. This makes the employee to do their work easily and perfectly. Suggestion box: HR manager can offer suggestion box where employee can give suggestion. This makes them to feel that they are important for the organization and HR manger. Complain box: This type of box can be offered by the HR manager to make complain to anybody to the top management. These can help them to work perfectly for the organization. Cross functional team: In every department there should be flow of information regarding their work. It could be helpful for the organization and for the employee. If they have the information which are related to the other department of the Dhaka Sheraton Hotel their work would be easier to accomplish. Frequent information flow: HR manager should ensure to the frequent flow of relevant information. From the upper level o the lower level frequent flow of relevant information is needed it will be helpful for the employee to make decision regarding their work. Training and development: To maximize the employees potentialities training and development is needed. HR manager can organize different types of training which are related to maintain relationships and develop their career. Motivation: To give the employees proper motivation can be enhance the relationship between the HR manager and the employees. HR manager is responsible for the identification of the employees need and want and according to them they have to use the motivational tools. (Themduangkhae W,2002) Feedback: Feedback is important for the HR manger and the employees. By this they can share what they understand by accomplishing any new task. And what would be the further steps to make the task easier than before. 5.10 Communications: HR manager can improve the relationship with the employees by communicating directly. They can communicate with the employee directly to know about their progress of their and their condition. They can also communicate to know about the problem that employees are facing to do their tasks. Establishing rewards and pay plans: HR manager can establish rewards and pay plans. According to the employees performance HR manger can give them performance based rewards. Performance based rewards can be : Commissions Piecework pay plans Incentives system Group bonus Merit pay Performance may not be the only determinant to give the rewards. It can be the high motivational tools for the employees. 6. Conclusion: Hospitality and tourism industry is a very profitable sector where HRM is very much important. Clients are being served by the employees of the organization. If the employees are not satisfied they will not work properly. If their work environment is not suitable for them they will not stay in that organization. So HR manager should keep in mind about the employees satisfaction and motivation to accomplish their goals and objectives to gain a high turn over every year.

Political Repression of the Black Panther Party Essay -- essays resear

Charles E. Jones documents the overwhelming causes that brought an end to the Black Panther Party. He notes that the key reason which led to the demise of this black nationalists party as being political repression. If the reader is to thoroughly understand the message Jones is trying to convey, they must first understand what he means by repression. By repression Jones means government action which discriminates against a person and/or organization viewed as presenting a fundamental challenge to existing governmental policies. In this critique I plan to demonstrate how the misunderstood Black Panther party was systematically destroyed through the following covert techniques, Political repression, legal repression, and violent repression. Upon reading Jones' article the first form of repression the reader noticed is that of a political stance. Political repression is a three fold offense. One of the key attributes of political oppression is that it is subtle, sometimes even indictable. The federal government implemented techniques that were subtle, unnoticeable to the majority of ...

Nuclear Energy Essay example -- essays research papers

Nuclear Energy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nuclear energy-This is energy that binds together components of an atomic nucleus. This is made by the process of nuclear fission. Nuclear fission is produced when an atomic atom is split. The way nuclear pore is made is in a nuclear reactor, this is most likely located in a nuclear power plant. the fission that is produced is when a heavy element splits in half or is halved into two smaller nuclei, the power of the fission is located by the rate of the splitting of the nuclei at once which causes watts of electricity to be forced into the energy type.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Energy that is released by the nuclear fission matches almost completely to that of the properties of kinetic fission particles, only that the properties of the nuclear energies nucleus are radioactive. These radioactive nucleuses can be contained and used as fuel for the power. Most of this power is fueled by uranium isotopes. These isotopes are highly radioactive. The isotope catches the fast moving neutrons created by the splitting atoms, it repels the slower moving protons and electrons, then gathers the neutrons and pulls them inward. While all these atoms are flying about they smash together then split many of many times, this is when the reactor grabs and pulls in the frictional energy to be processed into electrical watts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This usually causes heat or thermal energy, this must be removed by some kind of a coolant. Most power plants use water or another type of liquid based formula. these coolants are always base related, never acidic. Very few use gas related coolants in there reactors, these are known as thermal reactor based power plants. Another nuclear reactor type is a type that runs off of uranium oxide, the uranium oxide is a gas form of the solid uranium. These fuels which cause the radioactive particles usually are always highly radioactive themselves. Because of this all the power plants take high safety standards and use special shields to prevent leakage. Usually the leakage can cause nuclear contamination. This means they must take high safety standards.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After nuclear fission has occurred many of the thermal neutrons are moving at thermal neutrons are moving at thermal velocities which are harder to be absorbed, so they rely on constructional details. Usu... ...afety was renewed following an accident at a facility in the Soviet Union in April 1986. The Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which is located 80 miles northwest of Kiev in Ukraine suffered a castrophic meltdown of its nuclear fuel. A radioactive cloud spread from the plant over most of Europe, this contaminated a very large amount of crops, and livestock. Lesser amounts of this radiation showed up.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  These are some reasons why people and the community are very cautious against nuclear power, I hope that this report can better inform people on this issue, even though nuclear energy is the cleanest, and supposedly the safest I still lay undecided. Here are some pictures on the topic.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nuclear energy-This is energy that binds together components of an atomic nucleus. This is made by the process of nuclear fission. Nuclear fission is produced when an atomic atom is split. The way nuclear pore is made is in a nuclear reactor, this is most likely located in a nuclear power plant. the fission that is produced is when a heavy element splits in half or is halved into two smaller nuclei, the power of the fission is located by the rate.

Literature Review Celebrity Chef Essay

This review should bring all relevant facts about the subject and facilitate practitioners and highlight areas for further research. In short celebrity endorsement is about endorsing products with the help from a celebrity. Consumer association towards a celebrity endorsed produced increases their purchase intention as many see the celebrity as a role model. However, it is important that the consumer can identify with the celebrity and that the celebrity? s image fits with the produced he or she endorses, only then will celebrity backing be an effective advertising strategy. . 2. Background and Definition Nowadays, celebrities are used in advertising in almost every context. Athletes such as Michael Ballack (Adidas) or Tiger Woods (Rolex) or models such as Cindy Crawford (Omega) or Heidi Klum (Katjes) endorse several products. These celebrities act as a spokesperson in order to advertise and promote products (Kambitsis et al. , 2002). Celebrities can create more positive responses to wards advertising and greater purchase intentions than non-celebrity endorsers (Byrne et al. , 2003). Using celebrity as an endorser for a given product can either be positive or negative for a company/brand. A campaign that turned out successfully was the campaign with Jamie Oliver as an endorser for the supermarket chain J. Sainsbury. The successful format of the TV production â€Å"The naked chef† provided an ideal platform to use for the advertising campaign within a context relevant for J. Sainsbury? s desire (Byrne, 2003). An example of a campaign that did not turn out successful was when J. Sainsbury used the actor John Cleese in the â€Å"value to shout about† campaign in 1998. Employees and customers alike felt that Cleese was not the right personality to personify the supermarket’s quality image (Whitehead, 2003). In the literature there are two different definitions of celebrity endorsers used. The definitions used are: â€Å"A celebrity endorser is an individual who is known to the public (actor, sports figure, entertainer, etc. ) for his or her achievements in areas other than that of the product class endorsed†. (Friedman, 1979, p. 63) â€Å"Any individual who enjoys public recognition and who uses the recognition on behalf of a consumer good by appearing with it in an advertisement†. McCracken, 1989, p. 310) In other words these definitions says that an individual who is known to the public in different ways. The individual is famous and utilizes his or her publicity to advertise a product that does not have anything to do with the individual fame. I consider McCracken? s definition as the most informative one as it is short and concise. The definition gives a clear view of what a celebrity endorser is. Previous studies have been done on consumers? response to celebrity endorsement in advertising. Results of these studies show that celebrities make advertising believable and enhance message recall. Furthermore, when celebrities are recognized with brand names, it creates a positive attitude toward the brand and a distinct personality for the endorsed brand. In the following chapter the method used for this review will be introduced. The chapter will start with how a literature review is defined, followed by the literature search, method problems and quality standards. 2. 1. Definition of literature review Conducting a literature review is about understanding a topic that has already been addressed, how it has been researched by other authors, and what the key issues are (Hart, 1998). According to the author Chris Hart (1998) the definition of a literature review is the selection of available documents; both published and unpublished (in my review I will only study published academic documents), on the topic, which contains information, ideas, data and evidence written from a particular standpoint. 2. 2. Literature search, methodology used When searching for articles I used the databases Emerald, Ebsco and ProQuest. These databases were used because of the highest ranked journals in the field of marketing were listed there. I used the article Journal quality list (2008) issued by Harzading. com, research in international and cross-cultural management. High ranked journals increase the validity of the thesis, as validity is defined as â€Å"The ability of a scale or measuring instruments to measure what is intended to be measured†(Zinkmund, 2000). I also tried to find books relevant to the topic by using the library here at Les Roches International School of Hotel management as well as the library database google. scholar. . 3. Description of sub-topics Purchase intentions: Describes what impact the celebrity endorser has on the consumers purchase intentions. A consumer is more likely to purchase complex or expensive products which are endorsed by celebrities rather than by non-celebrities. Daneshvary and Schwer (2000) point purchase intention as an environment of associations between endo rsement and consumer, depending if the consumer can identify with that association and purpose. Consumers? association to celebrity endorsement/endorser: How consumers associate/have a connection towards the celebrity endorsement/endorser. If a company want a consumer to associate to an endorsed product it is important to choose an endorser who uses the product and where that use is a reflection of professional expertise (Daneshvary and Schwer, 2000). A formula 1 driver endorsing helmets is good, while a tennis player endorsing car polish is less good (ibid). Consumers? attitudes towards the endorser: The consumers? often have a positive attitude towards the product and the celebrity, despite the fact, that it is well known, that the endorser earned a lot when promoting the product (Cronley et al. 1999). Effectiveness of celebrity endorsement/endorsers: How effective is the usage of celebrity endorsement. It is, most likely, more effective to use celebrity endorsement constantly to increase the strength of the link between the celebrity and the endorsed brand. It is also more effective to use a celebrity who is not associated with another product (Till, 1998). Positive/negative effects of celebrity endorsement: the usa ge of celebrity endorsement can be both positive and /or negative, which can influence the company / brand in the end. For example, using celebrities can be very costly; also, celebrities might switch to a competitor, which would then increase the risk of a negative impact (Agrawal and Kamakura, 1995). However, in can be said that celebrities in advertising are widely spread and persistent and the marketing executives continue to utilize celebrity endorsement as an advertising strategy (ibid). Profitability of celebrity endorsement: The use of celebrity endorsement will hopefully lead to increased profitability. A study indicates that there is a positive impact of celebrity endorsement on the expected future profits, which recommends marketing managers to use celebrity endorsers in their advertising campaigns (Agrawal and Kamakura, 1995). Friedman/Friedman (1979)Does effectiveness of celebrity endorsement depend on the product? Interviews with 360 house wives Celebrity endorsements are not effective for all products Till (1998)What are the effects of celebrities endorsing more than 1 product? Case study with 99 students, who were shown different advertisings using the same celebrity endorserThe use of the same celebrity endorser to advertise for various products has got a negative impact on the efficiency of the ad, the product and the endorser. Atkin / Block (1983)Is celebrity endorsement effective in advertising and how does it influence customer purchase intentionsExperiment with 196 test persons, where each participant was shown 3 versions of an ad. Each version featuring a celebrity endorser and a non-celebrity. Advertising using celebrity endorsement is under special conditions more effective than using non-celebrities. Choi et al. (2005)How can celebrities be used successfully in advertising? How effective is the recall-value and the emotional response to celebrity advertising? Experiment with different groups of test persons. Advertising with celebrities is more effective than using non-celebrities under special conditions. Sanbonmatsu / Kardes (1988)How does the credibility of a celebrity affect the consumer purchasing intention? Interviews with 542 persons. Consumer purchasing intentions are more effected using celebrities than using non-celebrities. Tripp et al. (1994) How do consumers judge the celebrity endorsement, the ad and the brand, if the celebrity endorses various products? What are the effects on purchasing behaviour? First Study: interviews with 461 students. Second Study: Interview with 10 test persons. Simultaneous advertising trough the same celebrity has a negative effect on the ad, the product and the celebrity. Agrawal/Kamakura (1996)Which economical effects on advertising are there when using celebrities? Event-Study in regards to the effects on share prices trough the announcement of celebrity endorsementCelebrity endorsement can have a positive and a negative effect on share prices. Agrawal/Kamakura (1995)Can a single celebrity have a positive effect on the company? s value? Analysis of the share price of a company after announcing a celebrity endorserCelebrity endorsement can have a positive and a negative effect on share prices. Charbonneau / Garland (2005)How does a company find the right celebrity endorser for its products? Which criteria should be considered? Questionnaires: 414 marketing managers at 148 advertising companies.

Ice Cream Lab

January 26, 2013 Ice Cream Lab Purpose The purpose of this experiment is to learn and investigate chemical and physical properties of food, such as flavor, texture and consistency while producing ice cream. Materials ? cup pasteurized egg 1 cup of sugar 1 cup whipping cream 2 cups half and half 1 tbsp mint extract ? cup of chocolate chips 1 cup table salt 1 bag of ice 1 whisk 1 measuring cup, 2 cups size 1 large bowl 1 medium bowl 1 empty coffee can Method In a medium bowl, whisk pasteurized egg. When thoroughly mixed, then add half and half, the whipping cream, sugar and mint extract. Mix thoroughly.In a large bowl add a two inch layer of ice, a layer of salt. Place the contents of the medium sized bowl in the coffee can and submerge the can in the ice. Fill in sides evenly with ice and the remaining salt. Spin the coffee can in the ice. In 15 minutes you will be able to feel the mixture hardening on the sides of the can. In one hour the entire mixture should be solidified enough fo r consumption. Results/Summary This was second attempt at this lab. Each time I had two little helpers, aged 11 and 7 in the kitchen that helped measure, mix and assemble. This time we had a can with a lid so they were able to help more this go around.Our mixture came up over the rim of the coffee can and when spinning, some of the mixture leaked out. The mixture was continuously moving this time in a metal can, which I think helped the freezing process happen more quickly. Once again, in the end, the kids liked it but I thought it thawed rather quickly again. I used sugar instead of honey this time and liked the flavor more. I forgot to add the chocolate chips so we sprinkled them on top instead. Always an improvement for the next time. So, if we do this again, next time, I will add the chips before spinning. Questions 1. Saltwater is a homogeneous mixture.A homogenous mixture is defined by our text as a solution with uniform composition throughout the sample. A heterogeneous mixtu re is defined by our text as mixture that does not have uniform composition. (Page 57) 2. The ice cream was a homogeneous mixture and each of the ingredients was uniform throughout. If I would have added the chocolate chips, it would not have been uniform and would have been considered a heterogeneous mixture. 3. The saltwater solution from my large bowl was unsaturated. This time as well, there was no undissolved salt remaining in the bowl and I could have added much more salt to the water.

Local Coffee Shops and Chain Coffee Shops Essay

Coffee shops have always been important for British people. When they want to read a book and newspapers ,meet new people, follow commodity prices, have knowledge of political issues, learn about what others think of a new book, be aware of the latest scientific and technological developments, have a chat with friends, they are going to coffee shops. In the past, there were only local coffee shops which are also named as high street coffee shops. Nevertheless, today, the number of coffee shop chains is increasing dramatically. Therefore, it becomes so difficult for the owners of the high street coffee shops to run their own businesses. This will be analyzed by comparing the upside and the downside of both shop types in this essay. First of all, giant companies have the advantage of a location which can be more convenient and also easier for locals, in particular students, to shop quickly. For instance, a big company can set up a coffee shop in such a good place like in a shopping park or a centre, in a train or a bus station, in an airport and in a popular street of a town centre, however, this is usually not possible for a local business person. Secondly, the latter has got the advantage of a popular brand name, but the former does not have this opportunity. Finally, giant corporations’ coffee shops are more modern and organized than local ones. On the other hand, there are some advantages of high street coffee shops. For example, a high street coffee shop has got a better atmosphere than a shop of a chain. The staff of local one is more friendly and hospitable. In addition, in a local coffee shop, most customers know each other and they can make new friends and discuss whatever they want with other customers. Thus, they feel more comfortable in these local shops. However, it is obviously difficult to provide a friendly environment in a giant corporation’s coffee shop because the personnel are more formal when they deal with customers. Also, people can get a delicious meal and a cup of coffee with a cheaper price in local shops compared to others. To sum up, even though there are some advantages of local coffee shops, particularly a kindly atmosphere of them, it is still challenging for them to compete with giant corporations. However, I believe that, in order to keep local coffee shops alive, there are some measures which can be taken. For instance, councils can reduce the amount of the rates and the rents for local businesses. Besides, all shopping centers should be outside of towns and local people should encouraged to go to local coffee shops.

Purchasing and supplies assignment Essay

ABC analysis In materials management, the ABC analysis (or Selective Inventory Control) is an inventory categorization technique. ABC analysis divides an inventory into three categories- â€Å"A items† with very tight control and accurate records, â€Å"B items† with less tightly controlled and good records, and â€Å"C items† with the simplest controls possible and minimal records. The ABC analysis provides a mechanism for identifying items that will have a significant impact on overall inventory cost, while also providing a mechanism for identifying different categories of stock that will require different management and controls. The ABC analysis suggests that inventories of an organization are not of equal value. Thus, the inventory is grouped into three categories (A, B, and C) in order of their estimated importance. ‘A’ items are very important for an organization. Because of the high value of these ‘A’ items, frequent value analysis is required. In addition to that, an organization needs to choose an appropriate order pattern (e.g. ‘Just- in- time’) to avoid excess capacity. ‘B’ items are  important, but of course less important than ‘A’ items and more important than ‘C’ items. Therefore ‘B’ items are intergroup items. ‘C’ items are marginally important. Advantages and Disadvantages of ABC Analysis Inventory Activity Based Costing, or ABC, is a method of allocating overhead and direct expenses related to the most important activities of the company first. This process allows business owners and managers an opportunity to better define the areas of manufacturing or sales that generate the most profit for the company. Inventory analyzed under the ABC method is classified in order of profitability to the company. Class A inventory accounts for 80 percent of revenue, class B inventory for 15 percent of revenue and class C inventory for 5 percent of revenue. Better Control of High-Priority Inventory ABC inventory analysis places tighter and more frequent controls on high-priority inventory. High-priority inventory, or class A inventory, is the class of inventory that customers request most often. In manufacturing, class A inventory also can include the items most often used in the production of goods. Because Class A inventory is directly linked to the success of the company, it is important to constantly monitor the demand for it and ensure stock levels match that demand. With ABC analysis, your company can use its resources to prioritize control of high-priority inventory over inventory that has a lower impact on your bottom line. More Efficient Cycle Counts Under the ABC inventory analysis method, you can allocate your resources more efficiently during cycle counts. A cycle count is the process of counting only certain items on scheduled dates. The frequency of your cycle counts and the items you choose to include depends on how often your inventory fluctuates. Once inventory is organized by class, you can focus regular cycle counts on class A inventory. Depending on your needs, it may be necessary to count class B inventory as infrequently as twice per year and class C inventory only once per year. The ABC analysis method saves time and  labor counting only the inventory required by the cycle for the class of inventory versus counting all inventory items each cycle Disadvantages Conflict with Other Cost Systems The ABC inventory analysis does not meet Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) requirements and also conflicts with traditional costing systems. Companies that use ABC methods must operate two costing systems, one for internal use under the ABC method and another for compliance with GAAP. Traditional costing systems generate the figures required by GAAP. Traditional costing systems allocate cost drivers by the actual unit cost, rather than by the activity percentage of the cost driver. As a result, ABC cost assignments often differ from traditional cost system assignments. Requires Substantial Resources The ABC method requires more resources to maintain than traditional costing systems. When cycle counts are performed, class A inventory must be routinely analyzed to determine if the inventory still consists of high-priority items. If an inventory piece is no longer used or demanded as frequently, it is moved to another inventory classification. This constant process requires much more data measurement and collection Just in time A strategy for inventory management in which raw materials and components are delivered from the vendor or supplier immediately before they are needed in the manufacturing process Advantages & Disadvantages of Just-in-Time Inventory Companies turnover significant inventory control to suppliers with just-in-time inventory. Just-in-time (JIT) inventory refers to an inventory management system with objectives of having inventory readily available to meet demand, but not to a point of excess where you must stockpile extra products. Maintaining inventory takes time and has costs, which is what motivates companies to implement JIT programs. Customer Needs Balancing the goals of avoiding stock outs while minimizing inventory costs is at the heart of just-in-time inventory. One of the main benefits of automated and efficient inventory replenishment systems is that you can quickly respond to reduced inventory levels. Companies are now equipped to pull back on stock in a given product category and ramp up inventory in another as customer needs and interests change. Inventory Costs Minimization of inventory management costs is a primary driver and benefit of just-in-time practices. Inventory management has costs, and when you reduce the amount of holding space and staff required with JIT, the company can invest the savings in business growth and other opportunities, points out the Accounting for Management website. You also have less likelihood of throwing out product that gets old or expires, meaning reduced waste. Coordination A disadvantage of managing a just-in-time inventory system is that it requires significant coordination between retailers and suppliers in the distribution channel. Retailers often put major trust in suppliers by syncing their computer systems with suppliers so they can more directly monitor inventory levels at stores or in distribution centers to initiate rapid response to low stock levels. This usually means build up of technology infrastructure, which is costly. This coordinated effort is more involving on the whole than less time intensive inventory management systems. Risks Just-in-time inventory is not without risks. By nature of what it is, companies using JIT intend to walk a fine line between having too much and too little inventory. If company buyers fail to adjust quickly to increased demand or if suppliers have distribution problems, the business risks upsetting customers with stock outs. If buyers over compensate and buy extra inventory to avoid stock outs, the company could experience higher inventory costs and the potential for waste. Vendor managed inventory Top of Form Bottom of Form Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) . Bottom of Form Vendor Managed Inventory or VMI is a process where the vendor creates orders for their customers based on demand information that they receive from the customer. The vendor and customer are bound by an agreement which determines inventory levels, fill rates and costs. This arrangement can improve supply chain performance but reducing inventories and eliminating stock-out situations. VMI, the vendor specifies delivery quantities sent to customers through the distribution channel using data obtained from Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). There are a number of EDI transactions that can form the basis of the VMI process, 852,855 and the 856. The first is the Product Activity Record, which is known as 852. This EDI transaction contains the sales and inventory information such as key product activity and forecast measures, such as Quantity sold ($) Quantity sold (units) Quantity on hand ($) Quantity on hand (units) Quantity on order ($) Quantity on order (units) Quantity received ($) Quantity received (units) The EDI 852 information can be sent from the customer to the vendor on a weekly basis or more frequently in high-volume industries. The vendor makes the order decision based on this data in the 852 transmission. The vendor reviews the information that has been received from the vendor and an order determination is made based on existing agreement between the vendor and customer. Many vendors use a VMI software package to assist them in determining order requirements. VMI software can be part of an ERP suite  such as SAP or be a standalone option such as products from Blue Habanero, LevelMonitor, NetVMI or others. The software will verify if the data as accurate and meaningful. It will calculate a reorder point for each item based on the data and any customer information such as promotions, seasonality or new items. The quantity of each item available at the customer is compared with the reorder point for each item at each location. This will determine if an order is needed and the quantities required. The second EDI transaction that is used in VMI is the purchase order acknowledgment, which is known as the 855. This EDI document sent to the customer contains a number of fields including; Purchase Order Number Purchase Order Date Purchase Order Line item Quantity Price Item Number Description of Item Freight Charge Ship Date Some vendors supply an advance ship notice (ASN) to their customers to inform them of an incoming order, which is know as EDI 856. The ASN differs from the purchase order acknowledgement in both timing and content. The 856 is sent to the customer after the shipment has been made instead of at the time of the purchase order. Advantages of vendor managed inventory One of the benefits of VMI is that the vendor is responsible for supplying the customer when the items are needed. This removes the need for the customer to have significant safety stock. Lower inventories for the customer can lead to significant cost savings. The customer also can benefit from reduced purchasing costs. Because the vendor receives data and not purchase orders, the purchasing department has to spend less time on calculating and producing purchase orders. In addition, the need for purchase order corrections and reconciliation is removed which further reduces purchasing costs. Cost saving can also be found in reduced warehouse costs. Lower inventories can reduce the need for warehouse space and  warehouse resources. When a business relies on vendor-managed inventory, it’s placing a big bet on that company’s ability to deliver. The vendor has to be able to determine when to send new stock, what specific products to send and in what quantities. This can be beyond the means of a supplier that doesn’t have the software, infrastructure or expertise in place to make that work. If just-in-time inventory turns into way-too-late shipments thanks to poor demand forecasts or a supply-chain breakdown, VMI isn’t going to work. Disadvantages of vendor managed inventory Unscrupulous Partners Even with return policies in effect, a business risks being taken advantage of by a supplier looking to make its numbers. For example, a vendor might ship an excessive amount of product at the end of the quarter and book it as revenue to boost its sales figures regardless of the customer’s needs. The customer may return the unneeded merchandise, but the vendor already has gotten what it wants out of the transaction. In addition, VMI may require a company to share sensitive information with the supplier, which can leave it in a delicate position should the relationship between the parties ever falter. Limited Options A vendor-managed inventory system can be bad for a business when it keeps the business from seeking better-suited or lower-cost options. Because VMI links the supply chain together so closely, it serves as a disincentive to make a change that necessitates changing the company’s inventory management system. As a result, a business may find its inventory savings negated by settling for higher-priced or inferior goods. Market Responsiveness Customer preferences can change in a heartbeat, with favorites falling out of style and new items becoming more in demand. If your vendor doesn’t supply a wide enough range of products and your contract prevents you from going to the competition, you may be stuck with items your customers don’t want and no way to fix the problem. Make sure your contract doesn’t bind you so tightly to your vendor that you both sink together when the market changes. The manufacturer can gain some benefits from vendor managed inventory as they can gain access to a customers point of sale (POS) data makes their forecasting somewhat easier. Manufacturers can also work their customers promotional plans into forecasting models, which means enough stock will be available when their promotions are running. As a manufacturer has more visibility to their customers inventory levels, it is easier to ensure that stock-outs will not occur as they can see when items need to be produced. INTRODUCTION TO MRP manufacturing resource planning (MRP II) is defined as a method for the effective planning of all resources of a manufacturing company. Ideally, it addresses operational planning in units, financial planning, and has a simulation capability to answer â€Å"what-if† questions and extension of closed-loop MRP. This is not exclusively a software function, but the management of people skills, requiring a dedication to database accuracy, and sufficient computer resources. It is a total company management concept for using human and company resources more productively. MRP is a comprehensive system used for planning and scheduling materials requirement. It assists in improving the materials handling capability of an organization. But it has certain disadvantages. Some of the advantages and disadvantages of MRP have been discussed below Advantages Some of the key benefits that can be derived from using an MRP system are: Reduced per unit cost of production thus enabling an organization to price its products competitively Low inventory levels, especially for in-process materials Better response to market demand Better customer service Reduced set-up and tear-down costs Comprehensive material tracking and optimized production scheduling Improvement in capacity allocation and planning Disadvantages Following are the disadvantages of an MRP system: High costs and technical complexities in implementation. In addition, organizations, which use an MRP system need to spend considerable effort on installing necessary equipment (computers), training personnel, modifying the software to serve their specific needs, validating, testing, and eliminating possible errors, and maintaining the software. The time required for planning and implementing an MRP system is generally very long. Data entry and file maintenance requires considerable inputs in the form of training and education of the personnel. Dependence on forecast values and estimated lead-time can sometimes be misleading. The implementation of an MRP system can be effective only when there is a high degree of accuracy in the organization’s operations. It requires high commitment from the top management of an organization. The management should educate its executives on the importance of MRP as a strategic planning tool. The success of an MRP system, like that of any other system depends on proper implementation and right application. Managers can derive more benefits if they use the MRP system as a management-planning tool. MRP needs enormous human efforts and care in continuously collecting the required information for the system. However, many organizations prefer to adopt MRP systems, as the advantages of the system outweigh its disadvantages. Are you searching Operations Management expert for help with Advantages and Disadvantages of an MRP system questions? Advantages and Disadvantages of an MRP system topic is not easier to learn without external help? We at www.expertsmind.com offer finest service of Operations Management assignment help and Operations Management homework help. Live tutors are available for 24Ãâ€"7 hours helping students in their Advantages and Disadvantages of an MRP system related problems. We provide step by step Advantages and Disadvantages of an MRP system question’s answers with 100% plagiarism free content. We prepare quality content and notes for Advantages and Disadvantages of an MRP system topic under Operations Management theory and study material. These are avail for subscribed users and they can get advantages anytime. Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) Economic order quantity (EOQ) is the order quantity of inventory that minimizes the total cost of inventory management. Two most important categories of inventory costs are ordering costs and carrying costs. Ordering costs are costs that are incurred on obtaining additional inventories. They include costs incurred on communicating the order, transportation cost, etc. Carrying costs represent the costs incurred on holding inventory in hand. They include the opportunity cost of money held up in inventories, storage costs, spoilage costs, etc. Ordering costs and carrying costs are quite opposite to each other. If we need to minimize carrying costs we have to place small order which increases the ordering costs. If we want minimize our ordering costs we have to place few orders in a year and this requires placing large orders which in turn increases the total carrying costs for the period. We need to minimize the total inventory costs and EOQ model helps us just do that. Total inventory costs = Ordering costs + Holding costs By taking the first derivative of the function we find the following equation for minimum cost EOQ = SQRT(2 Ãâ€" Quantity Ãâ€" Cost Per Order / Carrying Cost Per Order) Example ABC Ltd. is engaged in sale of footballs. Its cost per order is $400 and its carrying cost unit is $10 per unit per annum. The company has a demand for 20,000 units per year. Calculate the order size, total orders required during a year, total carrying cost and total ordering cost for the year. Solution EOQ = SQRT(2 Ãâ€" 20,000 Ãâ€" 400/10) = 1,265 units Annual demand is 20,000 units so the company will have to place 16 orders (= annual demand of 20,000 divided by order size of 1,265). Total ordering cost is hence $64,000 ($400 multiplied by 16). Average inventory held is 632.5 ((0+1,265)/2) which means total carrying costs of $6,325 (i.e. 632.5 Ãâ€" $10). businesses require an efficient inventory system to maximize profit. The Economic Order Quantity model is a commonly used element of a continuous review inventory system. It is based on a formula that calculates the most economical number of items a business should order to minimize costs and maximize value when re-stocking inventory. Small business owners should evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of this inventory model before implementing it. DISADVANTAGES Minimizes Storage and Holding Costs Storing inventory may be expensive for small business owners. The main advantage of the EOQ model is the customized recommendations provided regarding the most economical number of units per order. The model may suggest buying a larger quantity in fewer orders to take advantage of discount bulk buying and minimizing order costs. Alternatively, it may point to more orders of fewer items to minimize holding costs if they are high and ordering costs are relatively low. Specific to the Business Maintaining sufficient inventory levels to match customer demand is a balancing act for many small businesses. Another advantage of the EOQ model is that it provides specific numbers particular to the business regarding how much inventory to hold, when to re-order it and how many items to order. This smooths out the re-stocking process and results in better customer service as inventory is available when needed. Complicated Math Calculations The EOQ model requires a good understanding of algebra, a disadvantage for small business owners lacking math skills. Additionally, effective EOQ models require detailed data to calculate several figures. For example, the key formula of the model calculates the square root of 2DS/H, where D is the number of units purchased annually, S is the fixed ordering charge, and H is the holding cost per unit. Rent or mortgage payments, utility costs and property taxes are required just to calculate H. Based on Assumptions The EOQ model assumes steady demand of a business product and immediate  availability of items to be re-stocked. It does not account for seasonal or economic fluctuations. It assumes fixed costs of inventory units, ordering charges and holding charges. This inventory model requires continuous monitoring of inventory levels. The effectiveness of the basic EOQ model is most limited by the assumption of a one-product business, and the formula does not allow for combining several different products in the same . INTRODUCTION TO ERP What is ERP? It means enterprise resource planning, which itself means planning the resources in an enterprise (business). So, this abbreviation simply means, that this is a way of using the resources in a company more effectively. Notice, that this is not some kind of software, this is an ideology. Some companies build applications, that work according to this ideology, called ERP solutions. But there is something more there†¦ the developers of such solutions build their application implementing some best business practices in it, and this is one of the most valuable features of ERP systems. The so called know-how is the most common thing that many of the small businesses out there lack. And this could be the difference between the successful, fast flowing company and the average company. At some point of the life cycle of an enterprise, the need of such a system becomes inevitable. The earlier managers understand this, the better. As the company grows, its control becomes more and more difficult task. An integrated solution, like ERP software, could be really helpful in this situation. Every small company, that wants to grow big just needs to use an ERP system. Some big corporations even would not do business with you, if you hadn’t such a software implemented and working in your business. Such a solution is a proof for higher quality and that you are running your enterprise well and effectively. There are many many benefits coming from these systems, later we’ll talk about them more. ERP solutions are from the group of integrated systems, which means that they are built to integrate any part of your business. Initially the manager in a small company can coordinate the different departments relatively easy, but when the company starts to grow, the same happens with the size and number of departments. The coordination between them becomes really hard and expensive. At some point of time a crisis of control is inevitable. ERP systems can be  managers’ best friend then, because this is one of their main purpose – to integrate your business. Advantages & Disadvantages of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) Systems In order to understand computer networks better, it would be helpful to have an overview of the applications running on the network. ERP or Enterprise Resource Planning is an important enterprise application that integrates all the individual department functions into a single software application. ERP Systems make it easier to track the workflow across various departments. They reduce the operational costs involved in manually tracking and (perhaps) duplicating data using individual & disparate systems. In this article, let us have a look at the advantages and dis-advantages of implementing ERP (Enterprise Resource Management) Software Systems. Advantages of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) 1. Complete visibility into all the important processes, across various departments of an organization (especially for senior management personnel). 2. Automatic and coherent workflow from one department/function to another, to ensure a smooth transition and quicker completion of processes. This also ensures that all the inter-departmental activities are properly tracked and none of them is ‘missed out’. 3. A unified and single reporting system to analyze the statistics/status etc. in real-time, across all functions/departments. 4. Since same (ERP) software is now used across all departments, individual departments having to buy and maintain their own software systems is no longer necessary. 5. Certain ERP vendors can extend their ERP systems to provide Business Intelligence functionalities, that can give overall insights on business processes and identify potential areas of problems/improvements. 6. Advanced e-commerce integration is possible with ERP systems – m ost of them can handle web-based order tracking/ processing. 7. There are various modules in an ERP system like Finance/Accounts, Human Resource Management, Manufacturing, Marketing/Sales, Supply Chain/Warehouse Management, CRM, Project Management, etc. 8. Since ERP is a modular software system, its possible to implement either a few modules (or) many modules based on the requirements of an organization. If  more modules implemented, the integration between various departments may be better. 9. Since a Database system is implemented on the backend to store all the information required by the ERP system, it enables centralized storage/back-up of all enterprise data. 10. ERP systems are more secure as centralized security policies can be applied to them. All the transactions happening via the ERP systems can be tracked. 11. ERP systems provide better company-wide visibility and hence enable better/faster collaboration across all the departments. 12. It is possible to integrate other systems (like bar-code reader, for example) to the ERP system through an API (Application Programing Interface). 13. ERP systems make it easier for order tracking, inventory tracking, revenue tracking, sales forecasting and related activities. Disadvantages of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) 1. The cost of ERP Software, planning, customization, configuration, testing, implementation, etc. is too high. 2. ERP deployments are highly time-consuming – projects may take 1-3 years (or more) to get completed and fully functional. 3. Too little customization may not integrate the ERP system with the business process & too much customization may slow down the project and make it difficult to upgrade. 4. The cost savings/payback may not be realized immediately after the ERP implementation & it is quite difficult to measure the same. 5. The participation of users is very important for successful implementation of ERP projects – hence, exhaustive user training and simple user interface might be critical. But ERP systems are generally difficult to learn (and use). 6. There maybe additional indirect costs due to ERP implementation – like new IT infrastructure, upgrading the WAN links, etc. 7. Migration of existing data to the new ERP systems is difficult (or impossible) to achieve. Integrating ERP systems with other stand alone software systems is equally difficult (if possible). These activities may consume a lot of time, money & resources, if attempted. 8. ERP implementations are difficult to achieve in decentralized organizations with disparate business processes and systems. 9. Once an ERP systems is implemented it becomes a single vendor lock-in for further upgrades, customizations etc. Companies are at the discretion of a single vendor and may not be able to negotiate effectively for their services. 10. Evaluation prior to implementation of ERP system is critical. If this step  is not done properly and experienced technical/business resources are not available while evaluating, ERP implementations can (and have) become a failure ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF BARCODING Bar codes consist of bars and spaces that vary in width. The bars and spaces on a bar code correspond to numbers and letters that represent descriptive data. Scanners scan the bar code to find the corresponding description of the item, including the make and model of an item and its price. Many stores and shops commonly use bar code technology for stock inventory. It’s also used to scan when a customer wants to purchase it. There are advantages and disadvantages regarding the use of bar code technology. the Disadvantages of Barcodes disadvantages of Bar Codes Time In the blink of an eye, scanning a bar code instantly displays the product name, type of product and price. Bar codes also have a 12-digit product number that when entered also produces the same information. However, if a cashier has a long line of impatient customers, entering the product details of each item is time-consuming, especially in grocery stores where each customer usually purchases multiple items. Although bar codes are a huge advantage when it comes to time, it can also be a disadvantage if the bar code on the product doesn’t correspond to the right product, or the bar code scanner isn’t working Inventory Inventory is a huge component of any goods and services business. Keeping track of inventory can be a tedious, time-consuming and difficult task to do without a bar code scanner. With a bar code scanner, shop owners simply scan the bar code on the items and keep track of the store’s inventory that way. When an individual purchases an item, the scanner transmits this information to the computer and it’s calculated on the stock inventory via computer technology. The major disadvantage here is if the cashier sees a number of items that look or seem the same and scans one item multiple times to save  time. Each item and type of item has a unique bar code and must be scanned separately. As a result, this could affect inventory. Labels Labels make it easy for bar code scanners and computers to recognize the product item and vendor name. But when a label is damaged or non-existent, it poses problems. Damaged labels make it difficult for the cashier to scan. Even the 12-digit number on the label may be damaged to the point where it is not legible. When this occurs, the checkout process is significantly delayed while the same product is sought out and brought to the cashier for scanning. In addition, some products, such as fruits and vegetables at grocery stores, don’t have labels, which potentially cause delay. However, cashiers are usually trained to remember the 12-digit number corresponding to items without labels. Costs While bar code technology drastically reduces the time and energy spent on inventory and checkout procedures, it is costly. Businesses that want to implement bar code equipment and technology have to withstand the growing pains of doing so. This includes training employees, installing the equipment, expensive printers and the time spent entering codes for labels. However, despite the disadvantages with start-up, the bar code technology benefits businesses in the long run. CONCLUSION ON THE ABOVE INVENTORY MANAGEMENT TOOLS One should start by saying that inventory management is the active control program that facilitates the management of sales, purchases and disbursements. The inventory management is all about special software that would reduce the costs and human efforts required to create invoices, purchase orders, various receiving lists, or payment receipts. The inventory management attempts to coordinate all the efforts in the warehouse, retail and other product lines in order to develop better controls of the processes that go inside the organization. Speaking about a particular software, I would like to note that one of the many is available at http://www.advanceware.net/modules.asp. The software is said to provide all  the needed inventory management tools in just one package. The website provides a demo version of the software where one is able to explore the shipping module. The software allows the company to print serial numbers on an invoice, set a default tax rate, generate several types of reports, receive and process various customer/vendor returns, and place/process customer orders in various currencies. As for the inventory management in the workplace I would like to note that because I work in the hotel industry, the inventory management is different here than in other industries. The inventory that hotel manages is the room space available for rental. One should understand that because hotel industry sells services the improper inventory management might mean that the hotel will not fill up all the rooms. Thus, the inventory management for the hotel industry should focus on the timeliness with respect to room occupation and marketing. The inventory management should also account for the food, towels, bed sheets, and other items required for the daily hotel operations. The inventory management should assure that the hotel rooms are filled right after they are freed, otherwise, the hotel would lose out since unlike tangible inventory, the service hotel industry offers cannot be s References Harris, Ford W. (1990) [Reprint from 1913]. â€Å"How Many Parts to Make at Once†. Operations Research (INFORMS) 38 (6): 947–950. doi:10.1287/opre.38.6.947. JSTOR 170962. Retrieved Nov 21, 2012. edit Hax, AC and Candea, D. (1984), Production and Operations Management, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, p. 135 Grubbstrà ¶m, Robert W. (1995). â€Å"Modelling production opportunities — an historical overview†. International Journal of Production Economics 41: 1–14. doi:10.1016/0925-5273(95)00109-3. Nahmias, Steven (2005). Production and operations analysis. McGraw Hill Higher Education. edit Altintas, N.; Erhun, F.; Tayur, S. (2008). â€Å"Quantity Discounts Under Demand Uncertainty†. Management Science 54 (4): 777–792. doi:10.1287/mnsc.1070.0829. edit Andrew Caplin and John Leahy, â€Å"Economic

British Petroleum

Takeover refers to the purchase of one company by the other and technically deals with acquisition of a listed company by one or more companies which are at better financial and economic position than the company being acquired. BP is on verge of a takeover and the following paper presents analysis of the company. The company is British owned and it has branches in various countries around the globe.The institution is found in energy industry and its one of the biggest and most valued energy supply and distribution institution in the world. Theoretically the history of the company is very complicated as it’s very rich, varied and unique status. The following paper gives complete analysis of problems facing the company especially the one involved before and after the drastic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and consists of references to various journals, business literature, and scholarly literature materials.This paper describes the activities and discusses the conventional rea sons for a takeover, their advantages and disadvantages, and strategic considerations that can be made to prevent a possible takeover. Introduction British petroleum (BP) company is an international energy production and supply company with its head quarters London, United Kingdom. By margin BP is the 3rd largest energy company and the 4th biggest company in the world (Datamonitor , 2009, p, 45).The company has operated in the energy sector for many years and it has gained reputation of being trustworthy thus it has instilled consumer loyalty across the spectrum. This company has experienced rapid changes and advancements in science and technology and presents numerous challenges to the company in relation to personal safety and quality management and also it entails issues like production costs, intellectual ownership of properties and products, competition and monopolies.The company is public held and its shares are traded in major stock exchanges globally including the London sto ck exchange, New York Stock Exchange and other stock exchanges in major cities all over the world with the trading symbol BP (Coffee, et al, 2000, p 98). The organizational original mission was to provide consumers with the right assortment of products, at the right quantities and price, and to provide excellent customer service through trained representatives.The organization current mission is guided by key core values: excellent customer service, care for people, entrepreneurial spirit, respect for all, building strong relationships, doing the right thing, giving back to communities, and creating shareholder value (Weston,2000 ,p ,87). BP success is based on mutually beneficial partnerships with diverse and competitive suppliers, allowing the company to deliver a wide assortment of superior, yet low-cost products and services, combined with superb customer service, and focused towards increasing shareholder value.The company employs over 210,000 employees and tends to serve more than a 300 million customers worldwide (Van & Schroeder, 1984, p 29). With the current problems facing British Petroleum in the Gulf of Mexico following the deepwater rig explosion which was caused by what has been described as the worst US ecological disaster ever, the Company's share price has fallen steeply and according to some commentators this could trigger a takeover of the business by one of its big competitors such as EXXON MOBIL, SHELL or even PETROCHINA (FINANCIAL TIMES, 2010, p 34).The catastrophe has plunged the company’s stock price as well as its reputation, and public image following the catastrophe have led to speculation regarding the company takeover due to the fact that the company is experiencing financial problems, huge losses as a result of oil spill and poor handling and management of the oil spill (Armstrong, 2003, p, 23). The above mentioned issues have been viewed by many to have been caused by poor leadership and decision making techniques in regar d to the way the management handled the oil spill.With the current troubles facing British Petroleum (BP) in the Gulf of Mexico, there is possibility of acquisition or takeover and hence a research paper which tries to come up with the relevant information in trying to establish some of the major factors that have been influencing the anticipated takeover (Ansell & Park, 2003, p 47), Identification of Industry and possible takeover Competitors The company is found in the energy industry and mainly concentrates in oil exploration, supply, and distribution.The industry deals with all assortments of energy products including oil, wind, solar, hydro power and other related energy products and services. This industry is one of the most contended ones with many rivals who produce similar products and services . The top competitors of BP include EXXON MOBIL . SHELL and PETROCHINA; with SHELL being the strongest rival of BP (Maxwell , 2002, p, 29). The company has a global presence and has assets in most areas of Africa especially central and western Africa, China and South American states like Venezuela and Uruguay, but the United States and Russia are its largest market.As mentioned earlier, BP is the third largest energy company in the world and the fourth largest company in the world (Kwon, 2008, p, 87). The possible competitor for the takeover has been indentified to be Exxon Mobil for the reason that the company is American owned and its operations and performance over the years have been above par compared to other rivals. Companies like Shell and Petro china though internationally recognized, their operations are not augmented like those of Exxon Mobil (Johnson, 2010, p 19). Description of the Organizational ProblemsDifferent organizations experience different problems depending on the nature of the organization, the economic situations, the political interruptions, and the human interference. Once these problems occur within a corporation, it tends to affects the organization core responsibility to extent of being unable to provide adequate and quality services to its clients and individuals relying on it. The occurrence of these problems can be a very damaging issue if they are hard to evaluate and solve (Kesler, 2008, p 49).With the British Petroleum (BP) company, there a number of issues and problems that has been constantly hounding it. Most of the organizations problems and causative agent for the possible takeover have possibly resulted from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and lack of teamwork and capacity building in relation to the employees during the fixing of the oil cap to reduce massive leakage. Due to this, there have been reduced prices of the company’s stocks all over the world due to market fears of possible losses and public loss of confidence in the company.The increased failed management in the corporation resulting from the management poor skills in handling crisis has sometimes been leading its operation s to the wrong direction. The poor handling of the oil spill by the company executives is one good example of the management laxity and the probable cause of the proposed takeover . It must be agreed that BP has been faced with lack of skilled and effective managers offering effective managerial services thus leading it into poor leadership and decision making processes (Lochhead, 2009, p 67).As we have noted, most of the problems faced in this organization have been caused by the oil spill and ongoing economic recession, and others are related to inability of workers to work together. Since there was poor handling of the oil spill, the company has been in bad relationship with the neighboring community and it has not been able to fulfill its social responsibility function due to constant bickering and interference from the American government (Snell & Dean, 1992, p 50).In conclusion, the major issues contributing to the proposed takeover of BP is the matter of financial problems re lating from the management of the oil spill, whereby the company has spent billions of shillings in controlling the spill and eventually the company has been forced to sell some of its assets in Russia to cover the costs, and this has not been going well with majority of shareholders due to fact Russia is one of its biggest market. Lack of trust from consumers and American government is another factor that has led the company to opt selling its assets to its competitors (Maxwell, 2002, p 98).BP Proposed Takeover Definitively, takeover refers to purchase of one company by the other and technically deals with acquisition of listed company by one or more companies which are at better financial and economic position than the company being acquired. Takeover occurs in situations where a company wants to save itself from financial problems and also happens in situations where the company wants to secure limited market, channels of distribution, consumers and supplies.In any kind of organi zation, takeover or acquisition are quite significant since they play a major role towards the overall achievement of the given business or organization. This has to be done in a delicate manner that ensures all areas and aspects of the organization have been greatly considered. When the issue of takeover is being discussed about in a given business or any other kind of organization, it is very important to think of the manner in which the operation will be coordinated and thus employ the necessary personnel and practices which shall promote the performance of the organization .It is important to note that, without managing the human aspect and all other resources being utilized in the business, it may not be possible to achieve the goals and missions of the organization (Stern & Chew, 2003, p 90). One of the major reasons for British petroleum proposed takeover is as a result of the financial and social problems resulting from the oil spill in the gulf Mexico. From â€Å"NEWSWEEK Journal of 04. 06.2010, the spill has costed the company sums of money to the tune of over 19 billion dollars covering both the cost of cleanup and compensation to individuals affected and penalties to the American government. The performance of the company has dwindled in the recent days and in the first quarter of the year; the company has made losses amounting to over 20 billion dollars. Since corporate takeover entails two key types that include hostile and friendly takeover, BP takeover assumes that of hostile nature for the reason that the company is unwilling to engage in any dialogue relating to acquisition of its major assets.Hostile takeovers generally occur in situations where the board of directors is unwilling to relinquish its position and the company, while the company is performing way below par in terms of operations and financial management. This is the case with BP since the company CEO Tony Hayward has not viewed it has a possibility and has publicly stated that on a number of media outlets. A takeover in ensuring there is such form of safety can basically include a number of one or more different components within the totality of the institutionalized system.Such safety provisions include change in an organization and necessary management, safety policies, organizational procedures, and other emergency procedures and responses which have been put in place (Liu, 2006, p, 65). Advantages of BP takeover 1. One major advantage of BP proposed takeover is that once realized, the firm which was poorly managed prior to the acquisition will undergo valuable management and performance rectification due to changes that will occur in its management structure .The changes in corporate structure including modification and replacements of executives and senior staff will guarantee and repair the organization dented reputation. For the reason that the organization acquisition will involve a moderate debt to equity ratio, the company will also negotiate th e acquisition deal since it poses a controlling stake in the global market (Van & Schroeder, 2008, p, 20).The company goodwill in the world is very highly rated and possible acquisition of the company assets will entail the purchase of this valuable non- tangible asset hence provide opportunities for making more funds from the sale. 2. The company shareholders will also benefit from the returns emerging from the acquisition due to fact the company has a positive capital value attributed from large shareholder base ,assets and properties it owns in the world.With immense global presence, the BP buyout will promote employees and shareholder interests as maintaining the company effectiveness, efficiency and loyalty (Fox, et al, 2008, p, 87). The company benefits from strong market share and sound economic position hence even after the buyout, the company products will still remain favorable in the global market due to the consumer confidence established before the oil spill. 3. The BP issue will only involve acquisition of the company shares and assets, and this will entail the concept referred to as strategic takeover.This concept is advantageous to the company and the company acquiring it since the firm will select and buy assets that are favorable to them and they will be able to negotiate the right price for the products without full approval of the shareholder and other regulatory bodies. When it comes to the takeover process, the approach is mainly aimed in ensuring that any forms of weaknesses and strengths have been disclosed, and especially the ones which might have diverse impacts on the process and operations being carried out.For the reason that the company has huge amount of liabilities and increased level of debt, takeover by its competitors will reduce its taxable income hence leading to reduced tax payments. The company taking over BP will acquire both its assets and liabilities, thus the company will be saved the burden of paying and compensating the victims of the accidents and penalties to the American government.BP take over will promote efficiency gains since it will be able to eliminate corporate value destroying effects that emerge from excessive diversification hence it will be able to reduce the organization debt ratio and increase its equity portion (Dunning, J 2004, and p. 97). Disadvantages of the Takeover There are a number of problems which have to be noted with the BP proposed takeover. To begin with, the acquisition tests to be administered in establishing whether the company is profitable will be very inaccurate.This might end up resulting in cases where a very strong company is bought using false benchmarks or current situations without the evaluating the overall organizational position and performance (Mok & Tillaart, 1990, 76). If implemented as proposed, the organization corporate restructuring will greatly affect employees and its shareholders. The company will be forced to downsize its operations and c urrent workforce hence this will result to increased levels unemployment due to possibilities of employees being laid off.Large number of unemployed individuals will impact on the overall community hence hindering its economic development and opulence (Liu, 2006, p 58). BP has a global presence and sudden acquisition of its assets in some African and Asian countries will not be taken well since majority of people have an intimate touch with its products and trademark hence transfer of its assets to other organizations will affect its social standard and responsibility to the community (Roger, 2008, p ,36). Another issue is that many companies won’t agree the bid for BP takeover due to the fear of huge liabilities owned by the company from the oil spill.Most of BP shareholders are large multinational institutions in Britain like insurance and pension funds and the takeover of the company will critically affect the United Kingdom economy thus affecting lives of many Britons and other shareholders all over the world. Proposed bid from its rivals especially Exxon which is an American company will cause diplomatic problems between the US and Britain. Coming from bitter criticism from president obama, the cold ties will eventually increase if there is a takeover of BP by an American company (Peter & Paulson, 2009, p ,56).Another problem that is likely to happen if the event of the takeover the UK political establishment will lose public confidence for the reason that it does not support operations of the company and form this their would be a likelihood of political problems in Britain, this is because majority of Britons are shareholders . With controversial handling of the case by American leadership, possible takeover of the company by an American company will be seen as a planned agenda since in many occasions the politicians have said the company could have performed better if it was owned by Americans.Many critics of the proposed takeover argue that tra nsactions between BP and its competitors will harm and dent the long term competitiveness of the company (Kwon, 2008, p, 56). British Petroleum (BP): Strategic Plans BP as one of the most reputable companies in the world ,though affected with the oil spill ,it has been conducting a number of business as well as marketing strategies which come up with strategic plans aimed at future performances so that they can prevent future events from happening (Ransom, 2000,p ,76).With the recent oil spill crisis, the organization strategic plans involves restructuring of the management ,employment of competent staff and instilling of concepts of teamwork and working together to both employees and the management. The company productivity and performance have been drastically affected and the institution sales have reduced significantly leading to a drop in its share prices by more than 40 % (NEWSWEEK, 2010, p, 23) . The crisis has reduced its current customer base and at the same time it has red uced the company sales by more 35% .With this issue of underperformance in mind, the company so far is aimed at increasing the its social reputation and sales and at the very time being in a position of formulating major marketing strategies which are applicable and can help it reach all the customers around the world in which the corporation has been delivering its services (Sapienza & Grimm, 1997. p 87). The marketing strategy for the corporation that entails use of economies of scale and wide distribution networks, and the company is anticipating offering some of the lowest prices in the industry.Moreover, the company is promising to offer a low-price guarantee which will ultimately beat any competitor’s price or match their retail value (Dennet, 2009, p, 154). BP is trying to enlarge their customer base through various marketing venues that include Television advertisements which are aimed to increase brand awareness. Radio advertisements, Digital media (for example e-mai l subscriptions and the Internet) which will provide efficient ways to disseminate information, coupons, and free expert advice and product demonstrationsWithin the business, the strategic plan will be done by incorporating all stakeholders and engaging in appropriate decisions which will promote performance (Johnnson, 2010, p, 46). This proposed strategic marketing plan will entail analysis of the company’s strengths, their weaknesses, and measure the amounts of resources at disposal, and then come up with adequate strategic missions which ensure better performance (Madura, 2008, p, 45).When effected, such strategies will have long term effects and will make the company realize its goals within the stipulated time period. Effective leadership and decision making skills, and communication have also been emphasized as a key element towards realization from the oil spill catastrophe. Basically to avoid the proposed idea of takeover, it should be noted that, it is through proper coordination and employment of such long term strategic plans that the corporation will be able to emerge on top of its business operations (Armstrong, 2003, p 29).Recommended alternatives to avoid possible takeover The current oil spill crisis calls for innovative product and development especially in light of the growing negative publicity that is associated with environmental pollution and loss of jobs (Robbins, 2008, p, 76). Therefore, the option that should be pursued by BP is for them to implement and initiate strategic development and management strategies that will make them remain viable in the energy market.As BP proceeds into the future, they must be vigilant to avoid poor decision making processes which will hinder them in handling major crisis since catastrophes are some times inevitable (Laura & Torrington, 2005, p ,98). BP’s biggest risk exposure includes: unpredictable economic and political conditions, increased prices in fuel and other supplies, customer re tention, and relations with foreign countries. In order to be prepared and least effected, BP must develop strategies that will allow them to remain profitable in an unsteady market.Suggestions would be for BP to remain current on the risks of oil spill and aware of the current and future relations with foreign countries. Another suggestion would be for BP to try and negotiate compensations and government penalties. (Brodie, 2010, p 78). BP has been one of today’s most respected corporations in the history of the world because it has the highest degree of business culture as well as ethics. Generally, this organization has been able to create highly rated performance when it comes to organizational effectiveness.The creation of more and more new management groups can be a good approach which can enable handling of the key problems which have been faced within the company and its eventual operations (Sorrow, 2009, p, 89). Also, there should be the presence of a dynamic and div erse workforce which can effectively ensure that this company is able to perform better within all its key operations because different ideas shall end up being brought together from people with development experience backgrounds thus improving its performance drastically.Another important thing that can lead to a great deal effectiveness at the BP shall be in the use of newer forms of technology thus being able to come up with better and intelligent products and services which can enhance all means product and social development thus increasing the customer base for the company (Robbins, 2008. p 56). If they are able to do so, they will be able to avoid risks resulting from takeovers.BP must devise strategies to offset problems resulting from ineffective management and lack of teamwork in part of employees to avoid occurrence of similar problems which have been recorded to be detrimental in its history of existence (Jeffrey & Bratton, 2001, p, 59). The rapid advancement of technolo gy along with the growth of robotics provides many opportunities for BP.If the company continues to focus on and improve their performance management, they have every bit of potential to gain a competitive edge in the industry . Social trends are moving towards a holistic and humble approach in all areas of life, BP does not want to get caught playing catch-up to its competitors. By following this strategy, BP will have the opportunity to gain revenue and increase market share regardless of the recent crisis (Auerbach & Alan, 1991, p 36). ConclusionTakeover is a very important approach which has to be keenly considered by BP so as to improve their performance by engaging all the individuals in the organization in acting and working in a manner which shall guarantee better performance with the organization This process is what holds the key towards the future performance of the business or organization and making it possible for it to achieve its goals within the stated time period. In that case, while adopting these patterns, managers should be aware of the functions and the tasks which have to done and achieved during the management process (Fox & Marcus.2008, p, 34). Generally after takeover, there are no winners or losers. In this kind environment, people normally appreciate and accept as true that thinking and decisions making are better when done cooperatively and individuals are able to show professionalism and discipline in workplaces ,and provide essential considerations that can help the work environment run efficiently. Also if a problem emerge or arise in the workplaces, employees should not hesitate to talk up on the issue. Individuals and organizations should understand what takeover means so that they can be guided by it and function diligently.Similarly workers and employers should be turned on by the strategy so that they can tap resources and establish a successful business entity. In conclusion we can say that takeover is a very important con cept in business and it encourages competition in the global market and promote common respect for each market leaders opinions and capabilities, Promoting takeovers in a firm is creating a good work culture that values collaboration (Brodie, 2010, p ,98). Bibliography Auerbach, Alan J. 1991. Corporate Takeovers: Causes and Consequences. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Ansell, S. , & Park, J. 2003. ‘BP Tech Trends.’ Education Week, 22(35), 43. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.