MARKETING Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

MARKETING - Assignment Example In sum the fortunes of the firm are dependent on how well its management deals with business opportunities and threats, while using the strengths of the firm to take advantage of the opportunities and minimize the effect of the threats through clever planning and strategic implementation of its vision for the company. This is what is called strategic management- or the planning and implementation to achieve its desired plans in the marketplace in the face of these internal and external forces. The legal, political, sociological, economic and other environments may pose a number of challenges that must be overcome by the business if it is to survive and prosper in the marketplace. Barclays Bank PLC is one of the key players in the worldwide banking industry as well as in the UK and this paper will discuss how successfully it has managed to meet the challenges faced by the banking sector in the UK. The Banking Sector in the UK The banking sector in the UK is one that is full of intense competition. Lately the banking sector which had been hit by the 2007-2008 economic recession has been in recovery mode and efforts are still being made to put the sector back on track and increase regulation which would prevent greed and excessive remunerations from wreaking havoc on our lives once again. Efforts are being made so that banking executives’ salaries, perks and other remunerations like bonuses and stock options will be reviewed by the Governor of the Bank of England and the Finance Secretary prior to payout. The Bank of England had committed a sum of around ?7 billion to bail out the banking sector in the UK but thankfully Barclays Bank PLC did not ask for assistance, rather it managed to raise the required capital through a number of share offerings in the equity market. Banking today can be characterized by the different products that are being dealt with, such as investment banking, asset management or debt management, or by the type of customer dealing, su ch as Wealth Management for high net worth clients and Retail Banking for all types of customers (Harrison, 1994). There are also a number of channels for service delivery, like online banking and ATM transactions, cash deposits and withdrawals, wire transfers etc. But never mind what classification you choose, it all deals with saving, lending, spending, deposits and investments and withdrawals. These are the primary functions of banking which we cannot deny (Lee, 2002). A Brief History of Barclays Bank The origins of Barclays Bank date back to the days of the goldsmiths who were acting as the earliest English bankers on London’s Lombard Street. A partnership was established between John Freame and Thomas Gould in 1690. In 1736, James Barclay, the son in law of John Freame became a partner in the business. In 1738, the business moved to 54 Lombard Street and at this time also began using the black spread eagle as an identifiable logo that is still associated with the bank to day. In 1896 two more banking businesses united with this operation under the name of Barclays & Co, by then converted into a joint stock banking company. During 1905-1916, Barclays further extended its network by acquiring other small banking operations in the UK. Amalgamations with other banks in 1916 and 1919 saw the Barclays name expand ever further. After World War II, Barclays UK established a US affiliate by

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 3

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS - Essay Example According to the case study, China was an attractive location for Motorola company due to its large size, as such the company set out to enter the Chinese market through establishing an office for its products before the advent of mobile handsets. As mobile handsets began to gain popularity, Motorola concentrated on manufacturing the handsets and selling them in the Chinese market. This became a huge success amid China’s difficult social and political environment. Motorola became a market leader in the Chinese handset market by early 2000s. This success can be owed to the company’s understanding of the market as well as the needs of the people. However, due to high demand of mobile phones, other companies started to manufacture and sell mobile phones and as such reduced Motorola’s market share. This is why analysts showed scepticism in the continued dominance of Motorola in the Chinese market. Globalisation is the inexorable integration of markets, nation-states, and technologies in a way that is enables individuals, corporations and nation-states to reach around the world further, faster, deeper, and cheaper than ever before (Griffin and Pustay, 2010). The main motivation behind Motorola’s entry in to the Chinese market in the late 1980’s was due to stiff competition the company was experiencing at home. There was need to look for business elsewhere other than America. The market had become saturated and the cost of production was going higher, therefore making less sales and profits. The best solution was to shift some of its manufacturing facility to China. This was an untapped market with a lot of potential for the products Motorola was manufacturing and selling. Motorola therefore established an office that represented its products in 1987 and employed over 600 people to sell the products. The case study says that later in early 1990’s, Motorola China electronics was opened as well

The public needs to know Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The public needs to know - Research Proposal Example Its management is also costly and leaves most families poor besides the fact that available management strategies only slows down the disease’s effects. I, in this paper, present a proposal for a business of developing a new drug for cancer patients in order to reduce cancer’s currently experienced effects. Economic situation The new drug development is expected to cost about one billion U.S. dollars, inclusive of involved tax and miscellaneous expenses. Most of the projected cost will be invested in research and will be used to purchase research facilities and to offer remunerations and incentives to researchers, research assistants, and research participants. Some donors, research agencies, government institutions, and nongovernmental organizations have pledged their support for the initiative, and received and pledged donations amount to $ 400 million. This is, however, 60 percent short of the total required amount. As a result, the next phase of the drug development project that was scheduled to kick off in four months time may be delayed. Being a social initiative, the drug development program is not profit oriented and will rely on donations from well-wishers. We therefore appeal for further donations from people and organizations to facilitate the project that will develop a low cost drug for managing cancer (Neidle, 2011). Special needs of the target population The project seeks to meet diversified social needs. The overall benefit of the drug in suppressing cancerous growths and involved consequences on patients and the society will serve these needs. One of the special needs is the preservation of cancer victims’ lives. Even though the developed drug does not offer treatment to the disease, preliminary research indicates that it will greatly suppress cancerous growths, at any stage, and therefore sustain victims’ lives. The suppressed growth will further minimize and possibly mitigate pain among cancer patients to achieve h igh quality of life. Retention of a cancer patient’s cognitive ability is another special need that the developed drug will meet. This will be derived from the drug’s potential to suppress further growth and to subsequently control realized symptoms among patients. Preliminary tests have also indicated the drug’s milder side effects, as compared to those of the currently applied cancer management techniques such as chemotherapy, which will meet the need for more effective drugs with less significant side effects (Livestrong, n.d.). Process The proposed drug development project will follow the laid down guidelines for developing and testing a new drug. The first involved step, preclinical research, has been done. This involved scientific research into development of cancerous cells, involved factors into such growth and proposed drug components for countering the growths. The next stage of the development process will involve a multi staged set of trials with inc reasing number of test participants at each advanced stage. Each of the trial stages will involve evaluation of effects of the drug on cancerous growth and possible effects on the volunteers. The process will involve three trials in which 50 volunteers will participate in the first trial, 200 participants will be involved in the second trial and 2000 in the third trial. The drug, upon successful tests, will then be filed with the responsible national drug agency for approval. The remaining stages of the

Lifes Dream to Be a Teacher Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Lifes Dream to Be a Teacher - Essay Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that deciding to become a teacher was difficult and an inspirational move, but much insight was gained into one’s personality as a result. Perhaps now-President Barack Obama said it best.   In today’s society,   â€Å"...what's troubling is†¦our chronic avoidance of tough decisions, our seeming inability to build a working consensus to tackle any big problem.†Ã‚   Deciding to become a teacher, for many reasons, was definitely a struggle.   Many times, this author pondered the significance of the impact that could be had on children's lives-all because a career in teaching would be the ultimate choice. Deciding to become a teacher was a personal inspiration-not only to this author but to this author's family, friends, and co-workers. Many people derived happiness from knowing this. Some of the most important people in my life have been teachers who inspired me. Deciding to become a teacher gave this author insig ht into one's personality. This author's life was about more than the act of teaching. This was the job of a lifetime which would require this author to work at a depth scarcely imaginable-which was a welcome challenge.

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

HOMEWORK - Essay Example Q1 (II): considering that the ratio of trade is 1:1 and that north is more efficient in producing both left and right shoes as compared to the south, the north will consume 70 pairs of shoes. That is, the north would rather not trade. On the other hand, with no increase in the number of workers in the south, they can only consume one pair of shoes if they give up one-left shoes for one right shoe (Miles & Scott 15-72). Q1 (III): assuming that there still are 10 workers in the North, the new exchange rate will be (300:3000), (100:1000) = 1:10. Therefore, the North could decide to exchange 30 left shoes for 300 right shoes. In this case, the number of pairs of shoes consumed will be 300 (Miles & Scott 15-72). Q2: the Federal reserve governor meant that in the year 2005, the payment made by the U.S for importing services and other visible and invisible goods were more than those received; leading to a current account deficit. In the process, the value of US currency decreased making U.S products cheaper in the international market. A decreased U.S currency means an increase in the value of foreign currencies leading to low foreign prices, thus low interest rate in the long-run (Arize 35-67). Q3: when the Government’s purchases increase during a war, consumption is concentrated on ammunitions. The country will heavily import the war machines than exports. This will lead to a deficit in trade account (a negative balance). To pay for the imported machines, more local currency will be supplied in the foreign exchange market than is demanded. Due to more supply than demand, the local currency will lose its value. The decreased value will be reflected in the exchange rate. Therefore, the real exchange rate will be lower. That is, the real price of the local currency against foreign currencies will be lower. The aforementioned effects would take place, whether a local or a

Personal factors Essay Example for Free

Personal factors Essay Factors that affect the personal influences will be the age and stage at the life cycle, lifestyle, occupation, economic status, and personality (Bowens,et al, 2003). Marketers usually target a certain lifecycle stage or a certain age bracket for their products. Like Disney movies, merchandise, television shows which are usually targeting children and teenagers. However as the individual mature so are the buying preferences. Once a person acquires a job some purchases are shaped by that job like clothing, personal articles like bags and shoes. Also these purchases will be further fashioned by the income the person gets from the job. Some companies make their product income-sensitive by offering the same product in a different packaging or smaller size budget packs to be able to fit in certain income brackets (Marketing – Consumer 2008). Marketers are also concerned with how money and time are used by consumers or their lifestyle. This is to be able to know how to favorably present their product to their target consumers. Moreover, the personality of the person also comes into play in purchasing products. Usually, personality is how others perceive the person in socialization with them. However individuas also have their own version of personality called self-concept. This self-concept could be the same or different from the opinion of others. Advertisers use this idea in selling high-end cars to middle class consumers who wanted to project luxury (Principles of Marketing 2008). 2. 5. 4 Psychological Factors Motivation, perception, learning and attitude are the psychological factors that marketers look into to be able to develop better advertisements for their target consumers. Every person has needs that need to be fulfilled. These needs will transform into motives when the need becomes a powerful force that will compel a person to act (Consumer Behavior 2008). There are several theories about human needs but the most common is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Figure 3. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Source: Chapman, 1995 According to this theory each need is hierarchical. One must fulfill the lower need before moving to the higher level. In addition if the reason for fulfillment of the lower need is gone the individual will not have the reason to satisfy the higher needs. For instance, a worker who is sick (safety needs) is not expected to perform well (esteem needs) (Chapman 1995). Now that the consumer is motivated to act upon the need his/her perception how he/she will act. Through perception a person creates an image of the world in his/her mind. This concept is essential to face-face transactions (Bowens, et al. 2003). Take for instance a salesman who speaks slowly and stutter, he could be perceive by the customer as someone is not an authority to the product and could lose the sale. Through our actions we experience the world and through these actions we learn. A person learns from past experiences or through thinking and things that we learn could modify our behavior or actions (Consumer Behavior 2008). Actions with positive outcome are usually repeated – repeat purchases – while actions with negative outcome are not (Marketing – Consumer). As this process cycle, doing and learning, individuals develop beliefs and attitudes. Beliefs are ideas about something that an individual holds as the truth (Marketing – Consumer 2008). While attitude is the constant position of an individual about a certain object or idea (Bowens, et al 2003). Companies use these concepts to be able to develop brand images based on consumers’ beliefs toward the company. Then try to fit the product to the consumer’s attitude rather than changing it.

Waste Management Practices in Malta

Waste Management Practices in Malta Chapter 1 Introduction Context As time gone by, the world as we know it evolved and also with it do did the waste management practices. Through the global widespread epidemic outbreaks, back in early nineteenth century, waste management had shifted from the dilute and disperse and repair and reuse to the new concept of collect and remove in order to protect the general public from unhealthy living conditions. This approach gave birth to what we know now a day as landfills. The latter saw the introduction of new practices such as waste collection from cities being carted away and discarded openly somewhere else away from the same cities. The first dump sites (landfills) were not engineered in any form which essentially entailed finding a place where one could dispose of unwanted material outside its habitable boundary/territory. Since the beginning of the term sustainable living, many individuals famous to societies or also not known, along with other organisations had given definitions to waste. While every country around the globe has its own definition, other countries had moved forward, in particular the EU, and its 28 member states. Thus, the EU block has harmonised and has a synergy amongst all its 28 member states for defining waste. Waste has various definitions such as Waste is what is left behind when imagination fails (Ekberg 2009 as published by Linnenkopper in magazine Recycling International issue August 2016, para 1). However, within the EU, a synchronized definition of waste has been in use in its current wording for over three decades now and is embedded in the 2008, Waste Framework Directive (Directive 2008/98/EC). The legal analysis of Article 3(1) which defines waste as: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦any substance or object which the holder discards or intends or is required to discardà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Again, within the EU and its 28 member states, the Landfill Directive, municipal solid waste is defined as waste from households, as well as other waste which, because of its nature or composition, is similar to waste from households (EU, 1999). With lots of emphasis on waste management and waste becoming a problem, many took the advantage of this potential time bomb situation and came up with waste as a resource. The new concept of circular economy was born and introduced across the globe. Regretfully to say, there is no documentation when actually the term was born, but it is believed that it gained momentum in the late 1970s, and it was led by a small number of academics, thought-leaders and businesses. In smaller industries, where modern technology is usually less prevalent, a common tendency is to process waste through source separation (Berg, 1993:182). Hence, there is thus a considerable risk for sub-optimising solutions without an all-embracing perspective covering all kinds of waste (Tiberg, 1995 as cited in Stenis ,2005:22). As Mutavchi (2012:5) had stated in his Doctoral dissertation titled Solid Waste Management Based on Cost-Benefit Analysis using the Wamed Model The emphasis on waste continue to be problematic is more evident particularly in Europe. This can be confirmed by the European Commission investing in many innovative projects to control the waste issue. The latter are a wide range of initiatives ranging from reducing to reusing of wastes. The notion of municipal waste collection what we know today as Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) was introduced in Malta towards the late 20th century, and the first for dirty materials Materials Recovery Facility ( MRF) was established in Marsascala in 1993. The practice of recycling had been introduced in Malta many years later and as the National Statistics Office (NSO) proves by its available data, recycling locally is immensely low in numbers. In Malta, the sustainable discussions when it comes to waste were initiated with the application of Malta to enter the EU block back in the 1990, of which the latter missed the 1995 accession and again application was frozen back in 1996 when there was a change in Government from the Nationalist party (PN) pioneer to accession to the EU block to the Labour party (MLP) anti EU accession but in favour of special agreements e.g. Switzerland. Malta Eventually joined the EU as a full member in 2004 when after a short-lived Labour government of just eighteen months, the PN were re-elected and negotiations to reactivate the application had taken place intensely by 2000 in order for Malta to catch up with the other candidates awaiting to join the EU block which took place in May 2004. Only to join the block in 2004 after national turmoil on accession. Waste management was one of the issues that Malta had to cover during the EU negotiations and this gave birth to the first national waste management plan for the Maltese islands document back in 2001 of which its updated version is enforced via the Waste Management Plan for the Maltese Islands 2014-2020. The researcher concurs with the vision of the Waste Management Plan for the Maltese islands 2014-2020 (MSDEC 2014) that of realizing the link between environmental objectives and human wellbeing will lead to sustainable waste management. In order for the National Waste Management plan to be successfully implemented, there must be a full societal commitment. Unless the Maltese citizens commence mutually to adopt the 3 pillars of zero waste (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) within their daily lives, there will be little to no improvement. Furthermore, such commitment calls for every citizen to change their current behaviour. However, the latter can only be made if only proper dissemination of information is made for better choices to be made in order for the stimulation of the involved stakeholders to improve. 1.2 Research Objectives The motivation behind this research project is to feel the pulse of the Maltese citizens and any one residing in the Maltese Islands when it comes to waste Management practices, in particular waste management educational and awareness campaigns, their effectiveness on the general public and whether the latter are leading to the desired success when it comes to alter the citizens behaviour towards the 3 Rs as well as reaching the EU set targets. This research project aims to identify issues pertaining to barriers and limitations when it comes to the citizen to execute the 3Rs as well as identifying the niches subjects that the citizens feel that are not giving enough importance during waste management educational and awareness campaigns. The latter information gathering will give insight to better assessment prior and after campaigns as well as evaluate feedback that will make such campaigns more interesting and gain the desired success. Nevertheless, the researchers previous experience within the social research field will be put into use and practice again, and previous experience within such research will help to guide and improve this research methodology even better by eliminating already known flaws from previous research experience. The proposed research is aimed at: Finding the barriers and limitations towards the 3Rs Identify the success and failures of education and awareness campaigns Identify whether the citizens differ between awareness and educational campaigns Finding whether the citizens are ready to sacrifice their lifestyle for the sake of sustainability Finding whether politicians and politics plays a role and have influence on citizens and waste management Finding whether character assimilations can help participation increase in campaigns Finding what else the citizens want to know from these campaigns Finding whether there is Fragmentation or unity amongst the key stakeholders when it comes to waste management Finding who the citizens look up to, to resolve waste issues Finding whether management by crisis is applied when it comes to waste management issues Finding whether more can be done such as fines, enforcement, monitoring etc. Evaluating previous waste awareness and educational campaigns success. Research Questions The main research questions that the undertaken research study will explore are the following: What are the barriers and limitations to the citizens of the Maltese islands when it comes to waste management adherence? Why are the waste awareness and educational campaigns not leaving the desired results? What is lacking? What other information and guidance the Maltese citizens want to receive when it comes to waste management issues and executing of the 3Rs? Where is, Malta failing when it comes to public involvement in reaching the EU set targets for waste management? Whether education is or can be the link to bridge the gap between the citizens and waste management issues and living sustainably Structure of Dissertation The dissertation is divided into 5 Main chapters and throughout these chapters the researcher will engage in finding answers to the research questions. Following the introduction to the main subject in Chapter 1. Chapter 2 provides an over view of the waste management in Malta and how it had evolved with time, along with other legislation and obligations that Malta have nationally and internationally. The same chapter also reviews past and current waste awareness and educational campaigns, along with other issues pertaining to waste management within the Maltese islands. The gathered literature review aims to give an overview of the current waste management scenario along with the attitude and behaviour of the citizens towards such subject. Chapter 3, will take the reader around the approach the researcher had concluded to use throughout the study. The chosen methodology will aim to identify the main issues pertaining to waste management from a citizens and main stakeholders point of view. This part also provides a detailed description of the tools used and applied to gain the required information in order to arrive to a conclusion. Chapter 4 explores the in-depth evaluation carried out via the one to one interviews with various stake holders as well the focus groups carried out with various citizens. The latter chapter discusses in details the findings while evaluating deeply the findings gathered during the above-mentioned sessions. The findings during the analysis will give insight and ideas along with food for thought to the researcher in order to come up with proposals of how local scenario can improve on the whole. The final Chapter is 5, which presents the findings throughout the whole of the study along with conclusions and recommendations made from this research. The chapter revisit the findings and concludes by calling for further research and actions and for the findings and suggestions to be taken on board for execution by the responsible authorities. Conclusion The citizen seems to be shifting from the laissez faire mentality to the social responsibility of living sustainable, both for oneself and family as well as for the environment as a whole. While one must conclude that social conscious towards the environment and sustainable living is on the increase, one must question whether the authorities are guiding the citizen correctly and helping in reducing and/or restricting its barriers to keep on moving towards the sustainable lifestyle that every nation desires.