Thursday, October 31, 2019

Sixth Amendment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Sixth Amendment - Essay Example al differences and that each system has its own strengths that make them superior to each other; in particular, American proceedings are superior to the Chinese system, because it allows the masses to hear and to decide cases and it is less open to corruption, although the Chinese proceedings do have the advantage of expertise analysis. Cultural differences impact how the criminal justice system is perceived and executed. Western courts, like the American courts, believe that justice is for the victim; the individual has rights that the state must defend and protect (Deflem & Swygart, 2001). As a result, the American proceedings use jury trials to ensure that a group of individuals protect their fellow individual’s civil rights. The Chinese criminal system, on the contrary, is a communist system and it believes that the criminal justice system should serve the interests of the state (Deflem & Swygart, 2001). It has no jury trials, unlike the American system, and it uses a panel of judges (Dammer & Albanese, 2011, p.131). The Chinese system also emphasizes the confession of the defendant than the testimony of the witnesses (Dammer & Albanese, 2011, p.131). This essay believes that there is no superior court system, since people have cultural differences that would make them prefer one system to another; however, the American and Chinese court procedures have advantages that make them superior to each other. American proceedings are superior to the Chinese system, because it allows the masses to hear and to decide on cases. Unlike the Chinese court system, only judges hear the cases and if they come from the upper or middle class, they may be biased toward their own social classes. The American system is also less vulnerable to corruption. The Chinese government appoints the judges for its criminal justice courts and it can easily select judges who are partial to their interests. Still, the Chinese proceedings do have the advantage of expertise analysis. The

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Outline current policies and legislation relating to children and how these affect your practice Essay Example for Free

Outline current policies and legislation relating to children and how these affect your practice Essay First of all what is the difference between â€Å"policy and legislation†. â€Å"A policy is a document that outlines what a government is going to do and what it can achieve for the society as a whole. It also outlines any and all methods and principles that the government or any entity, for that matter, will use to achieve its directive. Legislation is another term meaning statutory law. These laws have been enacted by a legislature or the governing body of a country. Legislation can also mean the process of making the law.† Before being able to take a position held in a school I would have to be DBS Disclosure and Barring Services which are replaced the CRB check**. This is a regulation within the law which will be looking at an individuals criminal history ranging from convictions, cautions down to warnings. In the Protection of Children Act 1999 it states that all adults working with children must be DBS checked. Any person who is found to have their name on this list with a criminal offense regarding children will not be allowed to work within this area. I would have to work under the law of the Children Act 2004 which is there to make sure the welfare and health of the child is protected, this also includes the Every Child Matters in which all children deserve and should expect the levels of care and adhere to this. This also includes in this green paper allowing all services to share information on children that they have concerns over, this is to help all the services have a better understanding and have the knowledge of that particular childs risk history so to evaluate what the next appropriate step is to take for this particular child.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Child And Young Person Development

Child And Young Person Development Physical development is usually very rapid early on in the childs development. Within weeks of being born a baby will start to smile and respond to sounds and environments around them. By 6 months as their muscles begin to develop they will reach for and hold objects which they will also put into their mouths. By one year old they are beginning to crawl or shuffle, pulling or pushing on furniture to stand and then explore using furniture or adults for support. Sitting has progressed to unaided and they are rolling from their front to their back. They are beginning to be curious with objects, passing them between hands, handling them in different ways and looking for things that are hiding. Their hand to eye co-ordination improves as items are passed from hand to hand. Their first teeth may start to appear and solid foods may start to be introduced. Between one and two years walking will begin and toys will start to be pulled/pushed along whilst walking. Objects will be picked up and banged together or built to make a small tower. A preference for one hand may start to appear as they begin to hold crayons etc when mark making on paper. They enjoy trying to feed themselves both with finger foods and with a spoon, and will drink from a cup with both hands. Waving goodbye becomes fun, they will begin to point to what they want and shake their head to mean no. Between the ages of 2 and 3 mark making on paper will progress to scribbles as they begin to use pencils etc. Balls start to be kicked and thrown. Bricks will be built into larger towers than before, and they will start to experiment with liquids in play by pouring. At 3 years children begin to gain more independence. Their mobility and climbing skills will be advancing as they run, jump, catch, walk up and down stairs etc. Dexterity increases with small objects like puzzles, threading beads etc. Dressing and undressing will be assisted but more cooperative. At 4 years boys gross motor skills tend to be more developed when it comes to throwing and aiming, building, climbing, pedalling etc, whereas girls fine motor skills tend to be more developed with the use of scissors, holding a pencil to draw and colour threading small beads sewing stitches etc. At 5 years children will have more pencil control and will begin to copy letters and shapes, and draw people. Ball games will develop more structure as they begin to kick with aim. They will begin to learn to hop on one foot, then the other and also to skip. At 6 years dressing becomes independent at they learn to do buttons, laces etc. Writing becomes more fluent as copying letter shapes has progressed to words and sentences with greater pencil control. Confidence has increased when playing outside in climbing, jumping from heights and riding a bike. At 7 years children begin to enjoy playing team games as they are now hitting a ball, running, jumping, skipping, swinging. However until around the age of 9 they may misjudge their ability. The age between 12 and 19, between childhood and adulthood is referred to as adolescence. Physical development during this period is very different in each child. As some may be just beginning to mature physically, others may have already reached full physical maturity. Sequence is the order that development happens in. Rate is the speed that it happens for example: sequence = a babys physical development may begin with rolling over then sit up, crawl, walk, run. Another may sit up, walk, run missing out rolling over crawling. Even though elements are missed the development still proceeds in whats viewed as an expected pattern. rate = where one baby may achieve walking unaided at 10 months another may accomplish it at 12 months another at 16 months. This is important because sequence is needed in order to plan effectively for children, looking at rate of development is also essential to help us to know weather a childs rate of development is at the correct stage for their age group. Task 2 There is a range of external and personal factors that influence the development in children and young peoples lifes: Personal factors such as, health and disability. Health is determined by our genes , diet, environment and stress. Some children may be born with a condition that will automatically effect their lifes, such as a blood disorder. Disability can also effect a childs development, for example if a child has a hearing impairment they may not be able to learn properly in school unless they have help from an adult. External factors can also influence a childs development such as, poverty and diet. Poverty affects children and their families in many different ways. Families living in poverty may not be able to afford good food which leads to poor diet. Having a poor diet can affect a childs growth, behaviour and development. Current practice is influenced by theories of development, such as: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Cognitive (e.g. Piaget) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Psychoanalytic (e.g Freud) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Humanist (e.g. Maslow) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Social Learning (e.g.Bandura) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Operant conditioning (e.g. Skinner) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Behaviourist (e.g. Watson) Cognitive Vygotsky like piaget posited children learn from hand on experiences. However unlike piaget he claimed that timely and sensitive invention by adults when children are learning a new task (zone of proximal development) could help children to learn new tasks. Vygotsky also stressed the importance of social interaction he felt other children can guide each others development as well as adults. Vygotsky also thought that children needed to be active in their own learning and that play is important for holistic learning. Humanist Abraham Maslow hierarchy of needs need to be met for a child to reach full potential take anything away from that and child might never reach their potential. This is taken into account daily with the child centred care and holistic approach to child care and well being. Practitioners need to look at the environmental factors such as warmth, food clothes as well as the psychological needs like promoting self esteem, and love. Behaviourist Bandura Showed that children learnt through copying and observing, this can be applied today as if an early years worker with demonstrates an activity the child can learn to do it through copying. Or if a child has a good role model then they are likely to copy the behaviour. But if they see bad behaviour then they will copy the bad behaviour. Behaviourist Skinner Skinners operant conditioning negative and positive reinforcement, this theory can be applied though stickers praise and reward for good behaviour and through disapproval, time out and ignoring unwanted behaviour. Psychoanalytical Freud Freuds work may not be proven but Freuds work with unconscious actions and peoples mind skills are still used like when a child tells a lie they smile or put their hand over their mouths as if to stop the lie. John Bowlby Worked on attachment theories which are used in the day to day practice in education and social care at all stages they are given key workers who they build strong attachments to this helps children make transitions in their lives and to be able to make lasting friendships. Frameworks support development including à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Social pedagogy Social pedagogy Is a practice concerned with human beings learning, well being and inclusion to society treating children in a child centred way and a holistic way making sure that every childs needs are met especially those who are in need. Task 3 There are many ways to monitor children and young peoples development, for example: Observation: Observations can be taken during lessons or in the playground. They record what the child is doing in a subjective way. Its most appropriate to use this method when childs development is causing concern. Assessment framework: It is the way in which child is assessed to decide whether they have any particular needs and what these needs may be. It is useful in deciding whether the child is reaching expected milestones of development in different areas. The assessment framework is how children are assessed in school, for example when a child reads; we write it in their reading records. Information from colleagues and carers: Parents/carers who know the child and colleagues expertise are invaluable, especially when planning for social and academic success for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. If we are concerned about childs development its good to ask/share information. Disability can affect several areas of development at the same time but early support might help minimise the effects of the disability. Emotional reasons, if a child is not settled and having good attachments they are more likely to have low confidence and self esteem they might not try new tasks and have a lack of motivation. Physical development might be effected by genetics this can mean physical growth difficulties or may be the child might be a slower learner. Environmental, there are many reasons that can effect child development like poverty, where a child lives, education and their family structure can effect a childs development. Culturally how people bring up their children can differ vastly like in china a girl is deemed second class to a boy. Other cultures have restrictions on childrens freedoms this can adversely affect the childs development. Social reasons are that for children born into poverty and families whose parents are separated are likely to have negative effects of childrens development or if a family might give less time to activities which aid childrens developments like a lack of play this can also effect child development. Learning difficulties children might have these due to genetic diseases, birth difficulties, and cognitive difficulties or might just have difficulties with writing or reading. Communication may be affected by medical reasons such as hearing impairment or being tongue tied. These can cause communication problems, children who have communication needs find it hard to express themselves and can show aggressive behaviour when frustrated. Children who experience communication needs might have problems with reading and writing. Speech and language can help children overcome most of their problems. By helping children gain the ability to use language they can help children gain confidence and self esteem I have seen this in my setting with children who have had communication and language needs. These children have gained confidence and their language is now at a level that they can interact with other children and not show frustration. This is because they can now express themselves. The Senco in an educational setting give support to children and families with special needs this person/s is also responsible for identification of special needs. Additional learning support staff works within and outside schools providing a range of services to help children who have certain specific educational needs. This might include people like teaching assistants or advisors to provide support and train staff. Youth justice this is based on children with behavioural problems these people will work with them and social workers to help them. Social workers are there to help vulnerable children and young people and their families this might include children on the child protection register or disabled children. Psychologist is a professional who helps support children who have learning or behavioural difficulties. They provide teachers and practitioners with aimed support programmes for that child once they have identified the childs needs. A specialist nurse provides support for the family and child especially if that child suffers from medical conditions that need specialist care Also health visitors come under this title for measuring and assessing a childs development . A psychiatrist is a doctor who is trained in mental health problems this person works alongside other professionals to help diagnose or support children and young people with mental health problems. Physiotherapist this professional help children with their movement especially those who have little or no movement they are trained to get the maximum movement and skill level. Referrals can take the shape of common assessment form which are filled in then in my setting passed upstairs to the health visitor, speech therapist or other health professionals that are required after being checked by the senco in the room. Speech and language also have their own referral forms which will be filled in and checked by the senco before being passed to the speech and language therapists. Early years action plans and plus plans are filled out and passed to the senco who will then speak to an education psychologist. With primary and secondary schools they also have school action plans which will be run through their senco and the school run individual learning plans. Task 4 All young Childrens brains are still developing as they grow. Early identification can change the impact of any difficulty if support is provided early enough. Finding ways for children to communicate is vital for their emotional well-being as some children who have language and communication difficulties can become isolated or may develop antisocial behaviours. once parents and carers have identified that a child needs additional support, a multi-agency approach may be used. If the parent/carer goes to see their health visitor or gp they will then help to make an appropriate referral, this may just be to help rule out hearing or visual impairments. In some cases the gp might refer the child directly to a speech and language service. Some children may need to be assessed by an educational psychologist. Once it is established what kind of support a child needs the right approach can then be carried out in order for parents and the setting to work together. Children learn their language and communication skills by being around adults and other children especially whilst they are having fun. When children are playing and doing activities that interest them they are usually used to help support their development, language and speech because theyre being motivated; for example singing a nursery rhyme with children this will encourage speech movements and will be more engaging for the child instead of just having to repeat the movements in isolation. Task 5 There are different types of transitions that can affect children and young people such as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Emotional personal experiences such as parents separating, bereavement, begining or leaveing a place of care. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Physical change in environments à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Intellectual moving from one educational establishment to another. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Physiological puberty or medical conditions An example of a transition that could affect a child could be starting a before or afterschool club, this could affect a child because they may not know any other children at the setting and also may not know any of the staff, there for it could lead to the child being anxious and scared about meeting new people. A way to resolve this is to make sure the child is entering a friendly environment and be sure to introduce them to the other children and adults so that they feel more comfortable in the setting and also maybe ask another child to show them around and be their buddy to help them settle in. Also the child may be given a key person to help form a positive relationship with. The idea behind a key person is so that a child has that one person who they should feel they can go to and feel secure within their company. The key person should have a warm relationship with the child and be able to reassure them should they need to, also the key person will monitor the childs reactions in their new situation as this can provide a warning in some cases where this transition is not temporary.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Case Study Analysis: Union Carbide Corporation And Bhopal Essay

The Political, Social, and Legal Environment of Business Case Study Analysis: Union Carbide Corporation and Bhopal A single slip in action may cause lasting sorrow. A slight mistake in operation at a Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal of India causes a lot of deaths and injuries. What a tragedy it is. Undoubtedly, there must be something wrong with the management of the plant. In addition to the plant, the governments related in India that issued permits and provided incentives for the plant, Bhopal community officials who permitted slum dwellers to move near the plant in illegal settlements, Indian environmental and safety inspectors should also be responsible for this. The governments related in India issued permits because people need jobs, or people would starve to death. This was one reason in my opinion. Soft money from Union Carbide plant may be another reason for issuing permits. It was clearly that the governments in America would not issue a permit to Union Carbide plant under such circumstances, which lacked of severe environmental standards and permitted slum dwellers to live near the plant and so on. Such actions were the fuses leading to more deaths. Before the major gas leakage from the MCI unit on December 3, 1984, some people were killed because of phosgene gas leakage. However, no one took it seriously in spite of the report by media. One of the reasons that people ignore this was because people didn ¡Ã‚ ¦t know the potential danger of the chemical plant. The other reason was that there are not enough environmental inspectors to cover so many plants in India. Besides, those inspectors had a record of loose enforcement. Consequently, danger emerged just as the saying goes  ¡Ã‚ §Nothing comes of nothing. ¡Ã‚ ¨ As for the management of Union Carbide ¡Ã‚ ¦s Bhopal plant, some steps indeed needed to be improved. Let us take a look at the whole process of the gas leak and see what actions can be improved. The first mistake in my opinion was that R. Khan, an operator in the MIC complex, neglected to insert a slip blind above the point of water entry. This omission violated instructions in the MIC processing manual, the technical manual that set forth procedures established by the chemical engineers who set up the plant. Obviously, the plant failed to emphasize the importance of obeying the processing manual and the danger of disobeying ... ...nk he should be responsible for the whole case. In other words, he should resign for the whole incident. Generally speaking, the legal system didn ¡Ã‚ ¦t play a very active role in this case. First of all, the India government could do more on digging the truth of the gas leak out and set a more strict standard to regulate such dangerous plants in case that another crisis. Second, I didn ¡Ã‚ ¦t see any one who worked in the Union Carbide ¡Ã‚ ¦s Bhopal plant should be responsible for that tragedy. Does it mean that all that the India court wanted was money or it just wanted to reduce trial and subsequent appeals because it might have taken more than twenty years? To sum up, Union Carbide handled the crisis cleverly but not well enough because it knew what would the India government and court react to this incident. Union Carbide controlled the whole situation and took lead of the lawsuits itself. The India government and court didn ¡Ã‚ ¦t help those victims as much as they needed instead. The function of government, designed to protect its people, disappeared in this case. BIBLIOGRAPHY  ¡Ã‚ §Union Carbide Corporation And Bhopal, ¡Ã‚ ¨ in Steiner and Steiner, pp.147-161.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Lord of the Flies Essay

Statement Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the prosecution will prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that the defendant, Jack Merridew, is guilty of two counts of murder. We will show that Mr. Merridew was fully responsible for the deaths of Simon and Piggy when the boys were stranded on an island without adult supervision. We will show that Jack quickly became a sadistic savage who believed that the rules and laws of civilization did not apply to him. He constantly fought against and disobeyed Ralph who was the democratically elected leader of the boys. He valued killing above all other activities and constantly tried to convince the other boys to follow him and not listen to Ralph. Although the circumstances surrounding Simon’s death were accidental, the prosecution will show that Jack’s behavior caused the boys to act as killers. Jack ruled his boys through fear and he made them follow him because they believed that he could protect them. We will show that Jack knew that the beast was not real but he pretended it was so that all the boys would continue to be afraid. One of Jack’s strategies to make the boys feel braver was that he created the death chant, â€Å"kill the beast, cut his throat, spill his blood. † Also Jack created the dance where a boy pretended to be a pig while all the other boys stood around him and pretended to spear him to death. It was in the middle of this crazed dance that Simon stumbled out from the jungle and all the boys fell upon him and killed him. The prosecution will also present evidence that shows that Jack was responsible for Piggy’s death. Shortly after the boys crashed, Jack broke Piggy’s glasses making Piggy even more helpless than he already was. Then Jack raided Ralph’s camp and stole Piggy’s glasses. This final act was a death sentence for Piggy because without his specs he could not see the rock tumbling down the mountain towards him that killed him. The prosecution will also show that from the very beginning Jack’s hatred of Piggy influenced all the boys. Jack hated Piggy because Piggy was fat and physically weak. Jack believed in the law of the jungle, which states that only the strong survive. Jack makes up the chant â€Å"kill the pig† and this chant always causes the boys to be frenzied, crazed, unthinking savages. â€Å"Kill the pig† could be seen as being close to â€Å"kill the piggy† so it’s not a surprise when Piggy is finally killed. Piggy wants Ralph to remain the leader because he knows that he is protected and won’t be hurt by Jack as long as Ralph is the leader. When Piggy is killed, Ralph is no longer the leader and after Piggy dies Jack screams â€Å"that’s what you’ll get† and he throws his spear at Ralph. Questions for Witnesses Ralph 1. When Jack threw his spear at you and then hunted you, did you think that he was going to kill you? 2. Were you afraid of Jack? 3. Was Jack a bully? Sam and Eric 1. Did Jack’s boys ever hurt you? 2. Were you afraid of Jack? 3. When Jack kidnapped you and tied you up did you want to be part of his tribe? Piggy’s Auntie 1. How well could Piggy see without his glasses? 2. If Piggy had been wearing his specs could he have seen the rock coming towards him and gotten out of the way? 3. Since Jack stole his glasses do you believe that Jack is responsible for Piggy’s death? Naval Officer 1. When you arrived on the beach what was Ralph doing? 2. How did all the boys look? 3. Do you think that they were playing a game or was the hunt real? Roger 1. What do you admire about Jack? 2. When you pushed the rock down the mountain and killed Piggy how did you feel? 3. When you were torturing Wilfred and Sam and Eric did you believe that this was wrong? Jack’s Parents 1. Did Jack ever get in trouble at school for being a bully? 2. When Jack played with other boys what kinds of games did he like to play? 3. Did Jack ever steal anything? Percival 1. Were you afraid of Jack? 2. Why did you choose to join Jack’s tribe? 3. Do you think that Ralph or Jack was the better leader? Maurice 1. Why did you choose to go with Jack to steal Piggy’s glasses? 2. Why didn’t you just ask Piggy if you could borrow his glasses? How did you feel when you knocked over the littluns’ sandcastles? Robert 1. When you pretended to be the pig, were you hurt? 2. Were you afraid during this activity? 3. Were you afraid of Jack? Closing Statement Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, we believe that the constitution has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that the defendant, Jack Merridew, is a sadistic bully without conscience or regard for the laws and appropriate behavior that are part of civilized society. Jack chose to be a savage criminal on this island. He disobeyed Ralph’s rules that provided structure and order. Ralph was the elected leader and Jack intentionally broke away from this group and formed his own tribe of savage hunters. He ruled this group through fear and physical violence. The boys of Jack’s tribe paid no attention to morals or good behavior. They simply did what they wanted to do and never stopped to say to themselves, â€Å"Is this a good way to behave? † or â€Å"is this right? † From the beginning Jack was a boy who was obsessed with hunting and killing pigs. Then he became a complete savage and the sport of hunting pigs became boring. He needed more excitement so he invented the sport of hunting and killing human beings. You the jury have the responsibility to render a verdict of guilty for two counts of murder. Jack is responsible for the deaths of Simon and Piggy. It is true that he did not push the rock down the mountain that killed Piggy. But he was responsible for creating a tribe of boys who no longer had good moral behavior and who didn’t value human life. It is true that Jack alone that Jack did not kill Simon. But he was responsible for creating the frenzied crazed behavior through his chant and dance that led to Simon’s death. Jack is guilty of murder. The prosecution rests.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Macro

International trade is an economic phenomenon is a strategy that has taken the experiences of many countries in the world.   Between joining and not joining globalization that promotes international trade few will disagree that joining is the better option. This paper seeks to analyze and discuss the manner that greater international trade benefit or hurt the US economy, by identifying likely sectors which will benefit or suffer from expanded international trade, the good or bad reasons for expanding the NAFTA to into the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and finally to make a conclusion in sum, whether   expanded international trade is really to be a good or a bad thing for the United States. In so discussing the to topics, the paper incorporates in detail, five of the concepts from Economic Concepts section. Analysis and Discussion: Expanded international trade aims to promote free trade among nations. For the USA, having the NAFTA and CAFTA as just examples of more definite agreement between or among nations to promoted the trade between or among them.   The WTO is actually a bigger organization that promotes the same purpose. The seeming aim therefore of free trade agreements and America under the NAFTA and CAFTA may have other reasons that US has in mind but for the purpose of this paper, the economic benefits for the US as simply undeniable. The greater international trade and the US economy: Greater international benefit rather than hurt will go to the United States because the United States could produce more than it consumes.   It is being net producer should have been reflected in its trade balance which should have reflected a Surplus Trade Balance but over the years the United the states have always bee in trade deficit†¦ What makes in interesting for America is that despite the trade deficits over the years since it has imported more than it has exported, its gross domestic products over the years have still been increasing over the years. Viewed from the whether its people have benefited from the high GDP over the years, it could be argued that whether the trade balance is surplus or deficit, it is favorable to the United States. As how does this happen, could still be explained   the fact that many countries make investment in US dollars in term of US stocks and bonds and even in currency.   This reaction of countries seems to put the US almost always in a better position. The net effect for the US despite the trade deficit is the gains from as translated in terms of better foreign exchange as against other countries. Again on this angle, although strong dollar as against other foreign currencies would have made US in a better position, devaluating the same could still result to the US still winning the net effect of things. On this note, Samuelson (2004) said that a sliding dollar would have three possibilities:   The first one is that the United States wins and no one else loses if a falling dollar incites the â€Å"U.S. economy by increasing exports and restraining imports.† This will have the effect of Surplus industrial capacity which will keep the inflation low. Samuelson however believes that under this scenario, Europe and Japan don't suffer much, because the ongoing global economic recovery gathers strength and cushions export losses The second possibility is for the second, the United States and China to win while Europe and Japan lose. This happens because China keeps its currency, the renminbi, fixed to the dollar, and that it also gains competitive advantage when the dollar drops. This is further supported by the fact that China stabilizes the renminbi by investing surplus dollars in U.S. Treasury securities rather than selling them for local currency.). This however will depress exports of Europe and Japan and destroys their economic recovery and then protectionism rises.   The third although possible to happen be remote to happen that is the dollar â€Å"crashes† and that everyone loses. This happens when foreign investors dispose of their U.S. stocks and bonds, as values weaken in terms of their currencies which will trigger massive selling (Samuelson. 2004) As to how the US does it depends on it monetary policy. The US government through the Federal Reserve Bank can influence the foreign exchange market in the world because of the bigness. Using the power of the Reserve Bank, it can increase interest rates hence attracting many holders of other currencies to buy the US dollar and this will again put the value of the US the dollar stronger despite fact that the US has have may trade deficits in terms of more imports as against its exports. The sectors that will get affected by expanded international trade: There are sectors that benefit and some which will suffer from the expanded international trade. To prove such effects, it is was reported that thousands of US jobs were lost due to NAFTA. Scott and Ratner (2005) blamed the rise in the U.S. trade deficit with Canada and Mexico through 2004 for the lost of more than a million since NAFTA was signed in 1993. Jobs displacement occurred in every state and major industry in the United States and that more than half those lost jobs were in manufacturing industries.† The US may have lost in terms of jobs but it may have won in terms of more investments made in the US and in terms of cheaper goods that have entered and the US where its citizens benefited. Expanding the NAFTA to into the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA): The issue of whether I would be in favor of expanding the NAFTA into the CAFTA appears to depend on what is the purpose of this organization.   The main issue is whether free trade is better for America.   Again on the basis that America produced more than it consumers it is always better to for America to expand NAFTA to CAFTA. Zoellick (2005) said that if CAFTA is voted down, the region's poor in Central will not improve their lot but instead, a door to upward mobility will be slammed shut. The US is doing not only free on economic reasons but also for political reasons since it believes that by generating employment it lessens problems to society. In sum, expanded international trade is a good for the United States: Boyes, et. al (2003)   said that the US need to be the leader in strengthening the world trading system to promote freer, fairer trade and consequent efficiency gains. Most urgent is for the U.S. to improve its diplomacy within the Doha Round of the ongoing World Trade Organization talks. They even recommended that the U.S. should make concessions to developing countries in agriculture and in intellectual property relief for critical medicines so as to successfully extend and improve the more important multilateral system under a free trade. By so adopting and other public policy actions, Boyes, et. al (2003) believes that US will maintain its long-term strength in its economy.   By so adopting freer trade as a rule for the US, it necessary has to turn its back against protectionism and this is the antidote to freer trade.   Boyes, et. al (2003)   explained that â€Å"protectionism and isolationism aim to maintain advantage in particular industries and professions, but other nations can and have emulated and bested the U.S. in selected and targeted areas, and they will continue to do so.† They also believe that â€Å"the strength of the U.S. is not to found in isolation from globalization. The nation's strengths are instead its ability to adapt to change, its ability to attract foreign capital, and its ability to attract the best and brightest from across the globe.† Conclusion: We have found that the US will benefit more from greater international trade than not joining than not joining. The simple of joining international trade is the fact that it produces more than it consumes.   There is however some sectors that will likely benefit and some which will suffer from expanded international trade because it could not be that America monopolizes all the knowledge in the world.   As it opens its economy, there are industry sectors where America is not good at but it employs so many people. When we say, America is not good at certain industries, we are saying that America is simply not efficient economically that other nations are simply better than it that America could acquire it at a lower cost, hence it should leave America to source the industry outside and instead concentrate on industry where it is good or in industries where is has potential for growth. The industries that it is good are on agriculture while an industry where it is not good at is on services of some professional like those of nurses. Since free trade is better to America as a rule, expanding the NAFTA to into the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) must be deemed to be a better option. In sum, I believed that expanded international trade is to be a good thing for America. Protectionism is no place in America. Its democratic government would be inconsistent to adopt the same since democracy means freedom and freedom means freedom not only to vote in elections but also freedom to excel where its people have the capacity. The US is very reach to lose many things in free trade if one would look at it. Hence it is difficult to see why other developing nations like those in Central America would fail to see the benefits of free trade. References: Boyes, et. al. (2003) Lessons From the Past: History Says the Future of U.S. Industrial Competitiveness Is Brighter Than We Think, {www} document URL, http://www.ernestmorgan.com/macro/essay3/boyes120103.html, Accessed June, 2007 Samuelson, R. (2004) A Global Glut of Greenbacks, Newsweek January 5, 2004,   {www} document URL, http://www.ernestmorgan.com/macro/essay3/samuelson010504.html, Accessed June, 2007 Scott and Ratner (2005) Issue Brief #214, NAFTA's cautionary tale Recent history suggests CAFTA could lead to further U.S. job displacement, , {www} document URL http://www.epinet.org/content.cfm/ib214, Accessed June, 2007 Zoellick, R.   (2005), CAFTA Is a Win-Win, The Washington Post,   , {www} document URL http://www.ernestmorgan.com/macro/essay3/zoellick052405.html, Accessed June, 2007      

Monday, October 21, 2019

Consumption and Production of Culture The WritePass Journal

Consumption and Production of Culture Introduction Consumption and Production of Culture IntroductionReferencesRelated Introduction The centre for Contemporary cultural studies (CCCS) has been criticised heavily about how it talks about youth subcultures. I will show how youth subcultures have been perceived by theorists and then show why it has been criticised through those theorists. Each subculture joined together form the whole community and brings their individual uniqueness into it. A person’s subculture is also known as their parent subculture, which is the culture they belong to through what style they associate with. Cohen suggests that working class youth subcultures, â€Å"live out a kind of symbolic or magical occupationtheir parents had once called their own†. He also puts the idea across that the subculture a youth is in is a â€Å"compromise†. Each subculture is the making of what youth’s parents subcultures were. They take two other subcultures for example â€Å"mods† and â€Å"rockers† and a new subculture can be formed. As this new subculture would take the same beliefs and interests as the other two so the youth could still be associated from that of the origins of what their parent’s subcultures were. The dominant culture is the general consensus, in which most people within a community accept the subculture and adopt the norms and values within. All these ideas are taken from Gelder, 2005. Subcultures can be taken as a form of resistance as some can be used as an act of rebellion. I believe that some youths want to act and dress differently to what their parents want them to do, so they do the complete opposite. A subculture can eventually be incorporated into mainstream, everyday life once it is known and accepted by the dominant culture and is then taken into everyday life. â€Å" Eventually, the mods, the punks, the glitter rockers can be incorporated, brought back into line, located on the preferred ‘map of problematic social reality’ ( Geertz 1964) at the point where boys in lipstick are ‘just kids dressing up’, where girls in rubber dresses are ‘daughters just like yours’† (Hebdige).   This shows that even though when it starts out, it might be seen as not part of the norm, but it can eventually be incorporated into the norm and is eventually accepted by the society. Hebdige (1988) ideas are along the same line as Marxists ideas. They have the ideas that each subculture takes an item or object and can change the meaning of it, by how they make it look. He looks at the meaning of the styles each subculture wears.   To find out the meaning of the British youth subcultures before the war he used semiotics to understand them. The meanings of the signs were interpreted using this method. Each word or object within a culture has a specific meaning in it. Hebdige was able to know what each object meant to each individual group of people. Hebdige believes a subculture in two forms can take a process of recuperation. One being that of the signs in which are involved in the subculture and making them into objects which are mass produced and can help make the subculture more popular. Also there is the ideological form which any deviant behaviour is labelled and redefined by the dominant groups. Within a subculture Hebdige believes there must be two questions asked, which must be answered once the meaning of style is known better. One being â€Å"how does a subculture make sense of its members?† and the next being â€Å"how is it made to signify disorder?† Both of these questions are answered to show how a subculture can be communicated between its self and the media. Material goods can be important to certain groups as they are symbolic to their own subcultures. They have specific meanings for different items and they are sentimental for them. Within a subculture it is not just the material goods associated with it that make it, it is also the language that specific group uses. Between some subcultures there can be different languages emerging between them. Also different words can mean different things for each subculture. When subcultures merge together whatever the meanings of their symbols merge together and create new meanings and build on what was there before. Different subcultures can be over emphasised by the media. The media can expose them and bring them into the public eye more. They can bring across the idea on what a subculture is; can speak about them positively or negatively. They can influence everyone else in the community just by what they think. The media though mostly always tend to bring things across negatively, which I think is shocking as I believe everyone has a right to what they think is right. Some subcultures are not always put across as friendly groups. Some are put across negatively and that is the only side that is shown of them. Soccer hooligans are put across as being bad and sometimes associated with being animals. I think these sorts of groups do one thing bad and they always get seen negatively. No one ever looks for the positives within them. Tony Jefferson (1976) also looked into the area of youth subculture. He mainly looks into Teddy boys or Teds, which were associated with attempting to recreate the working class community.   They joined together to fight for their own territory and built a sense of loyalty between each other. Jefferson viewed what was happening as a sense of them buying their own status. They started wearing items which were worn by classes higher up, in the hope that with them now wearing them, they get seen as a higher status. From this it looks like they could not accept who they had become due to their area being under threat and felt they had to do whatever they could to buy their status back. This all happened because their own territory had become under threat from urban planners. Each subculture tends to be very short lived and will only be around for as long as it stays in fashion, which is until the next new thing, which happens all the time. So in terms of political potential, it is very low as they do not stick around long enough to make a big enough impact to get power generated. Though a subculture’s profile is easily lifted by the help of the media, this helps get a particular culture started and make a name for them. Particularly in the 50s, the time of punks, rockers, the high profile subcultures, the Government tried to get subcultures thrown away, by strongly saying the trade unions would be taken away. Instead they wanted the nuclear family promoted and did not want anyone having their own uniqueness. The problem with each subculture is that production companies have to cater for each individual style. They produce whatever is in fashion and change it whenever the subculture changes. Each subculture is always changing and building on what it already has. Some subcultures even end up merging to form a new culture, which again has its own uniqueness about it. As said before, the CCCS is criticised, one is that they tend to go towards ‘rigidly vertical models’ (Stahl 2004). They often don’t take into account factors like age, race and gender. Also class universally is used singularly to explain the youth subcultures. Hebdige does use working class to mainly describe the subcultures in his reports. He also uses the influences of race to observe how some British subcultures, such as punks, have emerged over the years. Another area which is criticised is that of the fact in which the male writers work, such as Willis and Hebdige, are invisible of girls.   Angela McRobbie has written about the fact they ignore females in their explanation of youth subcultures. The male writer’s always focus mainly on the males within a subculture. The females just get ignored and don’t have any influence on the rising of how they see a subculture. Angela McRobbie and Jenny Garber focus on female youths within a subculture. They focus on females because all the other theorists just focus on the male population. From that though you cannot get a full representation of what a subculture is, as it does not look at the whole population. McRobbie looks at the reasons why they do not look at females. That they might be viewed as separate and not be seen as much. They might have a subculture which is not seen by the community and the media. Although both of them did think that girls did play less of a part in a subculture, but believed this was down to the fact that during this time it was mainly male dominance and the girls did not have a big role at this time. They believe that structurally those young girls are different to young boys. That is why they believe that hidden somewhere is subcultures for those females. I believe that the male subcultures were just highlighted as it was male theorists conducting it and they mainly looke d between the male dominance sides. There were probably female subcultures just as big, but they were not as influential or highlighted by the media as much. The media did not pick them up. This is a big downfall in the area of subcultures, as it does not show the big picture. The theories that are put across from the CCCS and Hebdige are not always on the same levels as Marxists. They tend not to agree with them and disregard them. They believe they don’t take into account of how important the economic base is and the fact it shapes our culture. Another problem with Hebdige’s work was there was no evidence that suggests that what he puts forward is actually how the people within those subcultures interpret it themselves. He doesn’t have any research which backs up his idea, which means it’s only what he believes. The people within those subcultures could interpret those objects completely differently. He didn’t talk to the members within to get their views; he could have conducted an interview. This though shows that his view lacks validity and other sociologists could respond to it as being subjective. Andy Bennett and Keith Kahn-Harris (2004) see the CCCS as failing to show that subcultures are class based. They show that the CCCS only look at subcultures as being working class only and that there are not different classes in between. Other sociologists to Hebdige believe that the whole idea of consumerism is not built up through class, but rather the taste of different people. They believe that through people having different views on things they can see what is in style and respond accurately. This efficiently took away the boundaries between classes and brought different groups together. Throughout the CCCS there is not much highlighted about the ethics or locality within subcultures. They believed that throughout the UK a subculture was the same where ever it was, but other researchers have discovered that there are some which are just based locally. There is not a lot said about any of the youths which do not follow into a subculture. Even though these youths make up most of them they do not get talked about. The CCCS does not mention anywhere a reason for why one youth follows into a subculture, but another one does not, even though they are from the same working class background. Throughout pieces written on subcultures, there tends to be an over emphasis on resistance. They tend to talk about how each subculture is an act of resistance over something rather than being someone’s way of life and not wanting to get back at others. Some subcultures are seen as if they are resisting against something they do not want to do. They act as if they are opposing against what people believe to be the right way of life and what is seen as the norm. The CCCS intently put the idea across that each subculture is only about being the opposite to mainstream. Also suggest that there is only one type of norm and if you’re not like that then you are part of an oppositional subculture. They do not put across that there could be several mainstream as not everyone likes the same thing. They do not know what a subculture is actually about they have only put out theories. For all they know a subculture could just be about having good fun. The theorists that criticise the CCCS and Hebdige the most is the Postmodernists. They claim that class does not play a big part in subcultures, but they also say that there might not even be subcultures. They think that they do not exist as they cannot be defined very well. They do not think that youth culture can really be described through the subculture concept. Even though there is many negative, there is positives about subcultures. Subcultures are very influential on showing the differences between everyone in society. If you did not have those differences between subcultures, everyone would be the exact same, no one would have their own ideas and uniqueness about them. In society now, it is still visible that subcultures still exist. You can see different subcultures within society and everyone belongs to their own group. Subcultures are probably more visible now than before, but the difference is every subculture is accepted widely as existing, though there is some difference between subcultures. Some do not like each other and tend not to get along. As shown the CCCS has been criticised a lot. There is no firm research evidence to confirm what these theorists say. Even though there are negatives associated with the CCCS, you can see where some of the ideas about subcultures have come from and how they show how subcultures have grown and can influence culture as a whole. Though there are the positives, I agree with that of McRobbie as when all the other theorists were talking about subcultures, they should have incorporated what they were saying towards females as that would show the whole society. References Hebdige, D. 1976. Subculture: The meaning of Style. In: Haralambos and Holburn. Subculture and style. Hammersmith, Collins Education. pp 772. Hebdige, D. 1988. Subculture: The meaning of Style, Routledge, London. Hebdige, D. 1979. Subculture: The meaning of Style. In Gelder, K. Ed. The subcultures reader. 2nd ed., pp 121-131. Jefferson, T. 1976. Youth Subculture. In Haralambos and Holburn. Teddy Boys. Hammersmith, Collins Education. pp 772. McRobbie, A. And   Garber, J. 1978. Gender and youth subcultures. In Haralambos and Holburn. The neglect of gender? Hammersmith, Collins Education. pp 774. McRobbie, A. 1977. Girls and Subcultures. [online] available from: gold.ac.uk/media-communications/staff/mcrobbie/   [accessed on: 1st May 2011]

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Big Changes at Playboy Magazine

Big Changes at Playboy Magazine For decades Playboy magazine has been known for its titillating nude photo spreads and centerfolds. However, a new era is upon us. The magazine will no longer include nude photos as of March 2016 issue.   The U.S. print edition of Playboy will be modernized to look more like men’s magazines, such as Esquire or GQ, which currently carry more PG-13-type pictures. However, Playboy’s international editions will still publish nude photos. A New Era In a letter to readers on Playboy.com, the magazine addressed the momentous change: â€Å"The question everyone will likely be asking is, â€Å"Why?†Ã‚  Playboy  has been a friend to nudity, and nudity has been a friend to  Playboy, for decades. The short answer is: times change. When Hef created  Playboy, he set out to champion personal freedom and sexual liberty at a time when America was painfully conservative. See: any popular movie, TV show or song from that era. Nudity played a role in the conversation about our sexual liberties, and over 62 years the country made great strides politically and culturally. We like to think we had something to do with that.† Playboy, like other forms of print media, has also seen a marked decrease in readership. In its heyday, Playboy had a circulation of 5.6 million in 1975.     According to the Alliance for Audited Media, its circular is a mere  800,000 now. Last year Playboy launched a safe-for-work website that can be viewed any where without fear of pornographic images popping up, which has resulted in younger viewers and more readership overall- quadrupling from 4 million to 16 million visitors. The ubiquity of nudity in today’s world- versus when Playboy launched in 1953- has forced the magazine to get with the times. Pay-per-view soft core porn images have a very limited audience in a world where one can view full-length hardcore films for free in a matter of a few keystrokes. What does this mean for women? For one, the magazine will feature a new sex columnist, one that Playboy’s chief content officer Corey Jones has said will be a â€Å"sex-positive† woman who will write enthusiastically about sex. This particular change is not insignificant and suggests that discussions of sex in the magazine have the potential to be transgressive. Playboy, which calls itself a cultural arbiter of beauty, taste, opinion, humor and style, will also continue its tradition of investigative journalism, in-depth interviews, and fiction. They are hoping that the de-emphasis on nudity will court big name stars and writers that were previously put off by the magazine’s racy content. Since the magazine is no longer relying on nude photos to draw in readers, their choices for future cover girls are reflecting the shift in focus. According to the Hollywood Reporter, openly feminist pop songstress Taylor Swift is Playboy’s first choice for the inaugural non-nude edition in April 2016. It remains to be seen if Swift will agree to the cover. Nevertheless, opponents of pornography, whether hard or soft core  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹and those who believe that media outlets like Playboy exploit women are unlikely to be swayed by Playboy’s move away from nude pictures.   And, indeed, considering that the magazine’s target demographic is young men, one can imagine that the magazine’s impact will be not unlike other men’s magazines such as Maxim, GQ, or Esquire- none of which are known for woman-friendly content and entertainment.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Final Exam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Final Exam - Essay Example The focus shall be on the relationship between the eating of French fries and weight gain. Many organizations and governments in the world are concerned with the scourge of weight gain which has increased the health risks among the youths and the population in general (Reed 67). Besides tremendously increasing the medical bills towards the caring for this group of individuals, weight gain also reduces the overall productivity of the same individuals which is another reason it is detrimental to the economy. Excessive weight also puts the individual at a higher risk of contracting other diseases that come about due to the individual’s poor health. It is thus of great concern to the various parties that such findings as the one from this experiment be availed to enable them draw the right conclusions about the disease besides formulating the required steps aimed at reducing the negative effects of the disease (Keown 12). This paper shall thus outline the procedure for the carryin g out of an experiment to determine the impact of eating French fries on the rate of gaining weight in kids aged 14 years of age. Methodology The methodology for this experiment shall first of all involve the division of the sample made of 14 year-old kids into two groups. The first group shall be made up of children who eat French fries strictly two times in a week while the second one shall contain those who strictly eat French fries three times each week (Rahman 90). The two groups shall each have separate records whereby each child’s weight shall be taken at the start and end of every week for three months. The period chosen upon is long enough to smoothen out the changes that may occur in a single week or for a few days. The days for the measurements shall be on every Monday and Friday of each week. For each child, two columns shall be drawn; one for the Monday readings while the other one shall be for the Friday readings. While the record books for the group of children who eat French fries twice a week shall be colored blue, those for the group of children who eat French fries three times a week shall be colored red to allow a distinction between the two groups (Froding 34). Other factors shall be put into consideration to allow consistency in the recordings. These factors include the harmonization of the two groups’ diets to eliminate disparities that may come about due to other factors from outside of the experiment. Weight gain may result from other types of food eaten by the children and invalidate the data collected for the two groups. Also, health factors shall be put into consideration to eliminate differences in weight that could be the result of health disorders. Independent Variable The independent variable in this experiment shall be the number of days the recordings shall be taken since they shall not be determined be anything else besides the normal counting of days. On average, there shall be 24 of these days for each child o ver the three months set aside for the experiment (Jackson 78). Dependent Variable The dependent variable in this experiment shall be the weight readings taken from the kids on the two days of the weeks. On average, there shall be twenty four recordings for each child over the three months period set aside for this experiment. Data Analysis The analysis of the data shall be carried out after the three months

Friday, October 18, 2019

A simple convenient DNA collection and storage method for GWAS Essay

A simple convenient DNA collection and storage method for GWAS analysis using FTA - Essay Example Fujita (2006). It comprises of a cellulose-based matrix containing chemicals for cell lysis and nucleic acid preservation.   The chemicals are activated when a biological fluid contacts the surface.   An additional feature of this chemical treatment is bacterial and viral inactivation.   Not only are the biosamples protected from microbial growth contamination, but the user is also protected from any potential biohazards present in the biosample.   These features make FTA paper an ideal medium for transporting bioamples at room temperature without the requirement of a biohazard shipping label. FTA paper is a commonly used substrate for DNA storage in a number of industries such as pharmaceutics, law enforcement, agriculture and governmental regulatory agencies.   This medium has been available commercially for a number of years by Whatman Inc., who have demonstrated that DNA stored on FTA paper has a long, useful lifetime.   In fact, suitability for use of DNA recovered from up to seventeen year-old biosamples in human identification assays has been demonstrated, inarguably. and aniline dyes; or liver tumours and vinyl chloride). The high prevalence of limb malformations in newborns in the late 1950s was ultimately found to be due to the mothers’ ingestion of thalidomide during pregnancy. German National Ethics Council (2004). However genetic epidemiology studies not individuals but population groups. Biobanks serve as large molecular repositories where a large amount of data in the form of DNA from diverse sources can be compared. For example, the United Kingdom BioBank intends to archive the genetic material of 5,00,000 individuals as mentioned in UK Biobank literature. Large series of samples from donors (several hundred to several thousand) with a given multifactorial hereditary condition – such as hypertension, cancer, diabetes, asthma or epilepsy – are compared with corresponding series from healthy donors. The

The impact of sales promotion by 'Nike Golf' in Thailand on the Essay

The impact of sales promotion by 'Nike Golf' in Thailand on the Strength of the Brand - Essay Example The importance of price in purchase decisions puts an emphasis on the relationship between the price of a purchased item and its quality (Mesak, 1979). Among the most attention-grabbing is the sales promotion of Nike golf Thailand used for their Driver and golf clubs. This was also the event Driver SQ series was introduced in 2006. The approach was to reduce the cost of the item in a short period of time. For demonstration, when the company promotes new product, which is done once every year, the price that kicks off at roughly four hundred dollars ($400) to six hundred dollars ($600), which is about 13, 000-20, 000 Thai Baht will hold a price of just about $250 (approximately 8, 000 Thai Baht) six months later. Then towards the end of the promotion, it will fasten to a price of $120 at the least, which is around 5, 000 Thai Baht. January 2002 came into the vastly competitive golf club industry of $1.5 billion. Nike is relying on its sound brand image as well as its deep pockets to vie in commerce where companies are inclusive of rigorous technologies (Gabrielle et al, 2002) when golf became popular and demands begin to escalate. Companies subsequently changed mode of production to mass production by means of shifting production processes to China with the intention of decreasing the costs (Anderson, 2008). Owing to the formidable marketing strategy as well as the production mode which is being used by Nike golf in promoting their merchandise, items of Nike golf are virtually offered in all golf shops throughout the world. They are able to distribute merchandises through dealers on every country and that particular dealer ought to employ their own strategy or technique in advertising their products. Hence, the Thailand Nike golf sales promotion which is being applied for their SQ driver series is distinctive from other sales promotion used by dealers from other countries

Economic policies of the UK on overcoming global financial crisis of Essay

Economic policies of the UK on overcoming global financial crisis of 2008 - Essay Example Every crisis has a unique cause, as well as characteristics; however, the following are typical amongst the factors responsible for generating this disaster: overshooting of markets; rise in credit; excessive debt leveraging; incorrect view of dangers; a country’s capital flight; off-balance sheet procedures by banks; macroeconomic policies that are non-sustainable; deregulation with no appropriate system of supervision; and latest financial instruments utilized in an inappropriate manner. The distinctiveness of the current disaster is that it happens to be a combination of a financial crisis coming from one of the largest world economy, i.e. the USA, with a universal downturn. The present financial crisis got triggered by the replete of the housing bubble, together with the consequent sub-prime mortgage crisis within the USA. Although the crisis has not yet been thoroughly analyzed, there are suggestions by experts that a number of causes explaining the reasons for the sub-pr ime crisis, which exploded in August 2007 in the USA ( Hansjorg & Milka 2011, p.36). There are two significant trends in the years resulting in the crisis; firstly, interest rates had been dropping since the 1980s, secondly, following the financial crisis in Asia during 1997–1998, countries began accumulating foreign exchange reserves, aided by the current account deficit of the US. The majority of countries diverted part of their reserves to sovereign wealth funds put into higher-yielding assets compared to the US Treasury, in addition to other government securities, streaming into high technology stocks and, following the â€Å"dot.com Bubble† spout in 2000, to housing markets within the USA and countries such as the UK. The continuous falling of interest rates, along with the large...This paper clearly outlines the effectiveness of the economic response of the UK to the global financial crisis challenges. Every crisis has a unique cause, as well as characteristics; however, the following are typical factors responsible for their origination: overshooting of markets; rise in credit; excessive debt leveraging; incorrect view of dangers; a country’s capital flight; off-balance sheet procedures by banks; macroeconomic policies that are non-sustainable; deregulation with no appropriate system of supervision; and latest financial instruments utilized in an inappropriate manner. In March 2011, the Government published its â€Å"Plan for Growth† This plan had four ambitions: creating the most competitive system of tax within the G20 group of key economies; making the UK the best place within Europe for starting, financing and growing business; encouraging investment, as well as exports as a key to a more balanced economy; and finally creating a more educated workforce that happens to be the most flexible within Europe. Amongst the measures announced were a lessening in the tax rate on the profits of businesses; an internationally competitive tax rule governing multinational organizations; tax enticement for company investment; an embalm of deregulation particularly for helping small businesses; additional investment within infrastructure, science, vocational training, research and development. In 2009, the international leadership of the UK through its chairmanship of the G20 assisted the world in taming the worst economic crisis. It succeeded in drawing the leaders of the world's main economies at the G20 Summit thereby agreeing on strongly coordinated action of stabilizing the world economy.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

CW4 - Peter Drucker Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

CW4 - Peter Drucker - Essay Example Peter’s era was the twentieth century where his career regarding management consultant grew from 1942.Peter Drucker had led a bright career in teaching phycology, sociology and management. Ultimately he pioneered in offering an executive MBA program for working professionals in Claremont Graduate University. His writing and critical thinking regarding the improvement of the organization as to adopt the human resource and benefit the human race urged him to write several books and articles. Although being the management consultant he was not much inspired by the numbers but he was focused upon improving the organizational cultures and relations so that the human resource management can be done more effectively and beneficially. Peter Drucker’s writing regarding society and politics led him to work in the high level management of one of the biggest company around the world at that time, General Motors. Peter taught the management of liberal art where the relation regardin g the suppliers, customers, employees and other companies were given much value than crunching of the numbers. With his workings and phycology Peter earned links in the top management of the many of the big bulls of that time including General Electric, IBM, Sears and many more especially in Japan as Japanese where really inspired with his works. Main Thought From the start Peter Drucker was more inspired and exaggerated the relationship between the people then from the valuation of numbers. The main focus of Peter was upon improving the relation between the employees and enhancing the capabilities of the human resource. He was much inspired by those who work with minds rather than those who work with hands. Most of the works of Peter Drucker is upon the betterment of the management in the organizations as he believed that private organizations play a vital role for the betterment of the society. Peter’s belief of making organization better to better serve the society led to many ideas in reforming the organizational cultures and norms so that the private sectors serve the economy and enhance the human lives. The Wall Street Journal called Drucker â€Å"the most influential management thinker of the past century,† who â€Å"developed a loyal following among many of the world’s most-famous corporate chieftains, and became the model of the modern management guru, a craft he plied far more modestly than many of his successors† (Thurm & Lublin, 2005). Peter believed that the human resource is one of the most important assets to the company and the management should value the employees and train them accordingly so that the employees would bring out their talent and benefit the organization and the society. it is this thought of Peter Drucker that realized the worth of human resource in the organizations and ultimately leaded to the enhancements in the human capabilities. Peter Drucker idealized the importance of the private sector as th e organizations and their relation with the better society by providing human resource that are more benefiting for the society as a whole. According to him the works of the workers should be appraised and appreciated. By appreciation the motivation level of the individuals increase and thus improves the potential of the individual ultimately resulting in the enhancement of knowledge within the individual and then spreading in the social circle and thus benefiting for the whole society. The appreciations of the works of the workforce is the main reason that the workforce devotion

The Significant Level of Success of Marks and Spencer Stores Research Paper

The Significant Level of Success of Marks and Spencer Stores - Research Paper Example In viewing the resources of the company, it is important to determine the assets that Marks and Spencer have at present. Although the data only provides consolidated assets, it is sufficient to define the capacity of the company to improve its performance. Overall, the assets of the company are higher than the total liabilities. The net assets of the company have increased from 2005 to 2006. This shows that the company continues to acquire resources that are vital for the company. The figures may its entirety, but the impact in the food retail sector is expected to be felt (Marks and Spencer, 2006). One significant observation that can be made is that the company has a wide range of quality food sources. This is in references to the responsible food sourcing that the company adopts. The supplies of the company are considered as one of its valuable resources. Because of its outstanding food production materials, the quality of the finished products has improved. Boosting the food with the finest inputs allow the company to effectively satisfy the needs of the consumers. Subsequently, quality sources also make the company more cost-effective. Another important resource of the company is its identity. This is established through the brand name of Marks and Spencer. Despite some criticisms, the brand has gained the distinction of being the most trusted retailer in the UK. Over the years, the brand name has been embraced in different areas of the world. The credibility of the company is one of its intangible resources that deserved to be recognised.

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Economic policies of the UK on overcoming global financial crisis of Essay

Economic policies of the UK on overcoming global financial crisis of 2008 - Essay Example Every crisis has a unique cause, as well as characteristics; however, the following are typical amongst the factors responsible for generating this disaster: overshooting of markets; rise in credit; excessive debt leveraging; incorrect view of dangers; a country’s capital flight; off-balance sheet procedures by banks; macroeconomic policies that are non-sustainable; deregulation with no appropriate system of supervision; and latest financial instruments utilized in an inappropriate manner. The distinctiveness of the current disaster is that it happens to be a combination of a financial crisis coming from one of the largest world economy, i.e. the USA, with a universal downturn. The present financial crisis got triggered by the replete of the housing bubble, together with the consequent sub-prime mortgage crisis within the USA. Although the crisis has not yet been thoroughly analyzed, there are suggestions by experts that a number of causes explaining the reasons for the sub-pr ime crisis, which exploded in August 2007 in the USA ( Hansjorg & Milka 2011, p.36). There are two significant trends in the years resulting in the crisis; firstly, interest rates had been dropping since the 1980s, secondly, following the financial crisis in Asia during 1997–1998, countries began accumulating foreign exchange reserves, aided by the current account deficit of the US. The majority of countries diverted part of their reserves to sovereign wealth funds put into higher-yielding assets compared to the US Treasury, in addition to other government securities, streaming into high technology stocks and, following the â€Å"dot.com Bubble† spout in 2000, to housing markets within the USA and countries such as the UK. The continuous falling of interest rates, along with the large...This paper clearly outlines the effectiveness of the economic response of the UK to the global financial crisis challenges. Every crisis has a unique cause, as well as characteristics; however, the following are typical factors responsible for their origination: overshooting of markets; rise in credit; excessive debt leveraging; incorrect view of dangers; a country’s capital flight; off-balance sheet procedures by banks; macroeconomic policies that are non-sustainable; deregulation with no appropriate system of supervision; and latest financial instruments utilized in an inappropriate manner. In March 2011, the Government published its â€Å"Plan for Growth† This plan had four ambitions: creating the most competitive system of tax within the G20 group of key economies; making the UK the best place within Europe for starting, financing and growing business; encouraging investment, as well as exports as a key to a more balanced economy; and finally creating a more educated workforce that happens to be the most flexible within Europe. Amongst the measures announced were a lessening in the tax rate on the profits of businesses; an internationally competitive tax rule governing multinational organizations; tax enticement for company investment; an embalm of deregulation particularly for helping small businesses; additional investment within infrastructure, science, vocational training, research and development. In 2009, the international leadership of the UK through its chairmanship of the G20 assisted the world in taming the worst economic crisis. It succeeded in drawing the leaders of the world's main economies at the G20 Summit thereby agreeing on strongly coordinated action of stabilizing the world economy.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

The Significant Level of Success of Marks and Spencer Stores Research Paper

The Significant Level of Success of Marks and Spencer Stores - Research Paper Example In viewing the resources of the company, it is important to determine the assets that Marks and Spencer have at present. Although the data only provides consolidated assets, it is sufficient to define the capacity of the company to improve its performance. Overall, the assets of the company are higher than the total liabilities. The net assets of the company have increased from 2005 to 2006. This shows that the company continues to acquire resources that are vital for the company. The figures may its entirety, but the impact in the food retail sector is expected to be felt (Marks and Spencer, 2006). One significant observation that can be made is that the company has a wide range of quality food sources. This is in references to the responsible food sourcing that the company adopts. The supplies of the company are considered as one of its valuable resources. Because of its outstanding food production materials, the quality of the finished products has improved. Boosting the food with the finest inputs allow the company to effectively satisfy the needs of the consumers. Subsequently, quality sources also make the company more cost-effective. Another important resource of the company is its identity. This is established through the brand name of Marks and Spencer. Despite some criticisms, the brand has gained the distinction of being the most trusted retailer in the UK. Over the years, the brand name has been embraced in different areas of the world. The credibility of the company is one of its intangible resources that deserved to be recognised.

Hematology Report Essay Example for Free

Hematology Report Essay The term comes from a Greek word â€Å"glukus† which means sweet. It is an organic compound, a simple sugar (monosaccharide) with a chemical formula C6H12O6, which occurs widely in most tissues of plants and animals. A major source of energy in the body, glucose is the principal circulating sugar. It is also knows as D-glucose, D-glucopyranose, grape sugar, corn sugar, dextrose, and cerelose. Glucose, whether in free or combined form, is the most common of the sugars and the most abundant organic compound in nature. Grapes, figs, and other sweet fruits and honey had been found to have considerably high concentration content. It is also found, although in lesser concentrations, in animal body fluids such as in the blood and lymph. Urine of diabetic patients usually contains 3-5 %. Absorbed into the bloodstream through the small intestine, it is carried through the portal vein to the liver wherein it is stored as glycogen. The rest reenters to the circulatory system. Glycogen is also stored in the muscle tissue (See â€Å"Glucose†) †¢ Catalyst for: a major contributor in metabolism. †¢ Disorders/Diseases: 1. High Levels: diabetes mellitus ? It is characterized by high levels of blood sugar (glucose), caused from defects in insulin secretion or action, or even both. In normal conditions, blood glucose levels are highly controlled by insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. Insulin helps lower the glucose level in the blood. In diabetic patients, the absence or insufficient production of insulin causes hyperglycemia. Although diabetes can be controlled, it is a chronic medical condition, which lasts a lifetime (See â€Å"What is diabetes? †) 2. Low Levels: hypoglycemia ? This disorder occurs when glucose levels falls too low resulting in the malfunction of cells. Symptoms develop such as cool skin, nervousness, headache, confusion, convulsion or even coma. Control of its level and metabolism is greatly important. 2. ) Urea Nitrogen (BUN) †¢ Definition: Urea is formed in the liver. It is a nitrogen-containing substance, which is normally cleared into the urine from the blood by the kidney. This was the first organic chemical compound that was synthesized. Friedrich Wohler, a German chemist, who accidentally made urea while in the process of attempting to make ammonium cyanate from silver cyanide and ammonium chloride (See â€Å"Definition of Urea†). It is a small organic molecule composed of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen and is formed from ammonia in the kidney and liver (See â€Å"What is Urea†). †¢ BUN: stands for Blood Urea Nitrogen This is a test that is used to measure the levels of urea in the blood. When diseases occur in the kidney, which comprises its function will frequently lead to increased level in the blood. The BUN level in the blood can also rise among patients who are dehydrated. Urea nitrogen is a waste product of protein metabolism in the blood. This is a test that measures how much urea nitrogen remains in the blood that can be used as a test of renal function. Nevertheless, there are many factors aside from renal disease that can cause BUN alterations, including protein breakdown, hydration status and liver failure. Reference values of BUN: Adult: 7-20 mg/100 ml (men may have slightly higher values than women) Newborn: values slightly lower than adult ranges Elderly: value slightly increase due to lack of renal concentration Pregnancy: values decrease about 25% *Values differ slightly from laboratory to laboratory for all tests †¢ Catalyst for: the breakdown of protein during tissue metabolism †¢ Disorders/Diseases: Diseases or malfunction concerning the kidney often lead to increased blood levels of urea. 1. High Levels: azotemia ? Possible causes: o Dehydration o Impaired renal function o Stress o Shock o Congestive heart failure as a result of poor renal perfusion o Excessive protein intake o Hemorrhage into the gastrointestinal tract 2. Low Levels: A low BUN may have little significance but can cause liver problems. A decreased BUN may be caused by over hydration. A person with â€Å"syndrome of inappropriate anti-diuretic secretion (SIADH), an anti-diuretic hormone responsible for stimulating the kidney to conserve water causes high level of water retention in the bloodstream rather than excreted into the urine. SIADH can raise the BUN level, while important substances decrease because of the significant increase of fluid in the bloodstream. A decrease BUN level may be seen in: malnutrition, liver failure, over hydration, impaired nutrient absorption, anabolic steroid use (See â€Å"Blood Urea Nitrogen BUN†). Urea itself is non-toxic. 3). Creatinine †¢ Definition: A creatine anhydride with chemical formula of C4H7N3O, is formed by the metabolism of creatine. Creatine is found in muscle tissue and blood; it is excreted as a metabolic waste in the urine (See â€Å"Creatinine†). A small amount is actively secreted and mainly filtered by the kidney. There is tubular reabsorption of creatinine but compensated by almost the same degree of tubular secretion. Creatinine is a chemical waste molecule, generated from muscle metabolism. About 2% of the body’s creatine is converted to creatinine every day. It is transported through the bloodstream to the kidneys. It is produced at a steady rate. Diet or normal physical activities have little effect on creatinine level. A malfunction of the kidney can decrease its level in the urine while raising its level in the blood (See â€Å"Creatinine and Creatinine Clearance†). †¢ Catalyst for: despite of being a waste, creatinine is vital for diagnostic function It is a reliable indicator of kidney function. †¢ Disorder/Diseases: 1. High Levels: This indicates a possible malfunction or failure of the kidneys. As the kidneys become impaired, creatinine level will rise. A high level suggests the following conditions of the kidney: -damage or swelling of the blood vessels in the kidneys known as glomerulonephritis. Prostate disease, kidney stone or urinary tract obstruction Reduced blood flow to the kidney 2. Low Levels: It is a rare occurrence that low level of creatinine would appear, and are not usually a cause for concern. Low levels of creatinine can be seen with conditions that results in decreased muscle mass (See â€Å"Creatinine: The Test†). Low creatinine is seen in some severe liver diseases as it is also seen in debilitation (See â€Å"Low Protein Diet Information for People with Kidney Diseases†) Normal level for: Adult males: approximately 0. 6 to 1. 2 milligrams (mg) per deciliter (dl) Adult females: 0. 5 to 1. 1 milligrams per deciliter Elderly: may have less creatinine in their blood than the norm Infants: 0. 2 or more depending on their muscle development Person w/ one kidney: 1. 8 or 1. 9 Creatinine levels that reach 2. 0 or more in babies and 10. 0 or more in adults may need to use a dialysis machine in order to remove wastes from the blood (See â€Å"Definition of Creatinine†). References: 1. â€Å"Glucose†. http://www. answers. com/topic/glucose 2. â€Å"What is diabetes? †. http://www. medicinenet. com/diabetes_mellitus/article. htm 3. â€Å"Definition of Urea†. http://www. medterms. com/script/main/art. asp? articlekey=5905 4. â€Å"What is Urea†. http://cahpwww. vet. upenn. edu/mun/mun_info. html 5. â€Å"Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN). http://www. rnceus. com/renal/renalbun. html 6. â€Å"Creatinine†. American Heritage dictionaries. http://www. answers. com/topic/creatinine 7. â€Å"Creatinine and Creatinine Clearance†. http://www. webmd. com/hw/lab_tests/hw4322. asp 8. â€Å"Creatinine: The Test†. http://www. labtestsonline. org/understanding/analytes/creatinine/test. html 9. â€Å"Low Protein Diet Information for People with Kidney Diseases†. http://www. geocities. com/HotSprings/Spa/3265/lowp. html 10. See â€Å"Definition of Creatinine†. http://www. medterms. com/script/main/art. asp? articlekey=12550 4. ) BUN/Creatinin ratio: †¢ Definition: BUN-to-creatinine ratio= 10:1-201 (over 12 months of age) =Up to 30:1 (infants less than 12 months of age) (See â€Å"Blood Urea Nitrogen†) http://www. bchealthguide. org/kbase/topic/medtest/aa36271/results. htm †¢ Disorder/Diseases: High Level: High ratios occur with acute kidney failure, which could be caused by conditions such as shock or severe dehydration Low Level: Can be associated with a diet low in protein, and severe muscle injury called rhabdomyolysis, pregnancy, cirrhosis, inadequate antidiuretic hormone secretion. (See â€Å"BUN/Creatinine ratio) http://www. thedoctorslounge. net/nephrology/forums/backup/topic-6481. html 5. ) Sodium: †¢ Definition: Sodium is deposited largely in the blood and in the fluid in the space surrounding the cells in our body. It is important in maintaining a normal fluid balance by all cells. †¢ Catalyst for: plays a key role in normal nerve and muscle function. †¢ Disorder/Disease: Healthy kidneys must have a consistent amount of sodium in the body. Excess amount is excreted in the urine. When the amount of sodium intake and loss are not in balance, the amount of water in the blood is affected.

Monday, October 14, 2019

The Origins Of Nike Commerce Essay

The Origins Of Nike Commerce Essay Nike was founded by Mr. Phil Knight and his past coach Bill Bowerman in 1964 and they started Blue Ribbon Sports. Knights first shoe was called Tiger and then began distribution of shoes. Blue Ribbon got great success in 1971 and Knight changes the company name Nike. In 1971 it introduced Nikes first brand line. Nike launched its product line in 1979. The new version of its Air shoe which was very successful and it was known as Air Jordan; introduced in 1985. Nike opened its first retail outlet in Portland, Oregon in 1990. In 1991 the company was very successful and its revenue reached USD $3 billion. In 1999 company started selling its products directly to customers from its website. Nike is the worlds leading sports and athletic shoes. Nike is the major manufacturer of sports equipment with $18.6 billion USD in the year of 2008. Nike has 30000 employees in worldwide. (Nikebiz:company overview, 2010) Nike had generated profits of $97.4 million and its profit dropped down by 50% in February 2001. Nike said that it was because of the failure of supply chain software produced by i2 technologies. Both companies blamed each other. This failure also effected Nikes reputation. The supply chain software was the first segment of NSC (Nike Supply Chain) project from SAP and also customer relationship management software from Siebel System. Analysts pointed out the fault of customization of the software and over demand forecasting. (Koah, 2004) Company successfully implemented (NSC) Nike Supply Chain project by 2004. The (NSC) Nike Supply Chain project is centralized planning moving and manufacturing. At last Nike got success in Implementing ERP and it became the desired approach for those who want to implement the ERP systems in their company. Christopher Koch (Editor of CIO Magazine) stated that If it was easy, everyone would just do it. In the late 1990, most companies avoided to adopt ERP because of the huge cost of ERP systems. (Koch, 2004) The lesson of Nikes failure and subsequent rebound lies in the fact that it had a sound business plan that was widely understood and accepted at every level of the company. Given that resiliency it afforded the company, in the end the i2 failure turned out to be just a speed bump. (Koah, 2004) Products Range Nike has wide range of sports equipment, running shoes, and jerseys and may other products as shown in figure 1. Figure Nike Products (nike, 2010) ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) ERP entitles a companys information system which can bring more closely the companys departments and functions like human resources, finance and inventories. It also creates the link between customers and producers. 1.1 Introduction of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) Enterprise Resource Planning is the enterprise system tool which manages demand and supply. It has the ability to make link between customers and suppliers. ERP also provides the high degree of integration between purchasing, manufacturing, marketing, sales, logistics and marketing. ERP is the tool which can provide high level of customer services and productivity and also lower the cost. (Wallace Kremzar, 2001) Enterprise Resource Planning is a company which increase it sales by 20% because of ERP. The vice president states that ERP has provided the key to becoming a truly global company. Design can be made with the accurate data and with the process that concretes demand and supply across border and oceans. This change is worth billion to us in sales worldwide. (Wallace Kremzar, 2001) The Director of ERP For the first time ever, we have a good handle on our future requirements for components raw and materials. When our customer demand changes, we-ourselves and our suppliers-can manage changes to our schedules on a very coordinated and controlled basis. I dont see how any company can do effective supply chain management without ERP. (Wallace Kremzar, 2001) 1.2 Origin of the Term ERP The Enterprise Resource Planning ERP developed from Manufacture Resource Planning (MRP). The ERP was introduced by an analytical firm Garner. Enterprise Resource Planning has all the functions of an enterprise except organisation business or charter. Many organisations like IBM, Dell and HP Microsoft, Intel and many other organisations are now using ERP systems. The ERP systems are typically for large and more broadly based applications although it is also used in small and medium sized businesses. The ERP systems provide standardization, lower maintenance and it can store all data in one database. So, we can say that it has greater reporting capabilities. ERP includes other applications like Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP), Financials Resource Management (FRM), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Human Resources Management (HRM). (Leon , 2008) Figure : Information integration through ERP (ERP, 2010) 1.3 Overview of ERP Many organisations choose to implement one part for ERP systems and stand-alone systems for the other ERP applications need to develop an external interface to the other ERP system. Because in an organisation one vendor choose to use human resource management system and the financial system choose another and integration between those systems. It is very common in midsized retailer and the retail sector will have a point of sale (POS) and financial application then they have a specialized application to handle other business requirements like logistics and merchandising. (Leon , 2008) The quality of ERP system is that it provides a single database which contains all the data for the software module also shown in figure 3: Manufacturing   Supply Chain Management   Financials   Projects   Human Resources Customer Relationship Management   (Leon , 2008) Figure ERP Database (google, 2010) 1.4 Reasons for Buying ERP Software In these days when the business environment is increasingly complex and highly competitive then the organisations need the IT system which is highly competitive with time management. The organisations need the outstanding performance in their business by utilizing the time in the correct way. Enterprise system utilize the company time correctly. Enterprise Resource Planning is the planning in which the business resources like material, employees and customers moved from one state to another state. An ERP system maintains the data which connects with the business functions like manufacturing, supply chain, Management, finance, human resource, customer relationship management. (Leon , 2008) 1.5 Reasons of ERP projects Failure Sometimes ERP projects fail if you do not implement them well. There are some of the reasons for the failure of ERP failure. The company selected the wrong software of ERP for the company. The training of employee is also very important and some organisations dont train well their employees. Some software is heavily customized and if these are not match with the companys IT infrastructure then there can be problem. If we do not implement the effective change management strategies then it can be the result of failure of the project. If the business merger leaves out the work in the process then it can be also a big loss.(Glenn, 2008) There are also some factors from where we can achieve the successful ERP projects by selecting the right software for the company. Give the right training to employees. For implementing the ERP we have to manage each approach and utilize the best practices for implementing ERP software. (Starinsky, 2001) I found some important realities about ERP are that there is no perfect ERP system exists. We cannot say that any ERP implementation is ever perfect. If two companies have the same ERP software but the implementation cannot be the same because every company has its own style of implementation. (Leon , 2008) SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT Supply Chain Management is a network that is involved buying, making, moving, selling and distribution. (Hugos, 2006) A supply chain is a network of facilities and distribution options that performs the functions of procurement of materials, transformation of materials into intermediate and finished products and the distribution of these finished products to customers. (Hugos, 2006) Buying Making Moving Ware housing Selling Selling Buying Making Movin Ware housing Figure Supply Chain (Supplychain, 2010) 2 Nikes Supply Chain Nikes supply chain theme is centralization. All products designs, making and delivery is centralized from Beaverton, Oregon in the US. Nike operations were divided into five regions USA, Middle East, Africa, Asia and America which included Canada, Mexico and Latin and American countries. In 1975, Nike launched one program which is known as future program for managing its footwear products. In this program Nikes retailers placed their orders before six months. Then these orders moved manufacturing units around the globe. The supply chain worked nicely at that time. Nike Company became spreading more and more globally. Nike felt that its supply chain needed rapid changes. The manufacturing process also became very complex because some models like Air Jordan Sneakers required 130 steps to manufacturing. In 1998 Nikes profit dropped down by 50% also shown in figure 5. Nike mentioned that they had problems with the existing supply chain systems. To overcome this problem Nike launched one project known as NSC (Nike Supply Chain) project. (Koch, 2004) Figure : Profit dropped down by 50% (investment, 2010) This was a massive project in which the global operations were operated centralization to implement ERP, supply chain and customer relationship management on a single SAP system as shown in Table 1. Many changes were made various times to fix the supply chain and these changes created serious problems and in the result Nike had to move a whole new system. (Royal, 2001) Table : ENTERPRISE APPLICATION IMPLEMENTATION AT NIKE (CGT, 2010) Company Solution SAP ERP i2 Planning Siebel CRM PeopleSoft Human Capital Management (HR Systems) PTC Product Data Management, Product Life Cycle management See Beyond Application Integration Marc Globe Warehouse Management Systems HP Unix Serves Supporting all supply chain systems IBM Systems integrators other professional services 2.1 i2s Software Implementation 2.1.1 Background Nikes supply chain theme is centralization. All products designs, making and delivery is centralized from Beaverton, Ore. The problem was that the supply chain was built for six months cycle which is also called future program. This future program was developed in 1975. At that time Nike made its market space because people at that time did not much care about the style or looks. Their attention was that they need technically advanced shoes which were steady and fit. (Koah, 2004) 2.1.2 Need the i2 software for better supply chain Nike got the global demand and its supply chain broken down because of the high demand from all over the globe. By 1998, Nike had 27 order management systems all over the globe which were poorly linked with Beaverton. Another problem with these systems was that these were highly customized. At that point Nike needed the ERP system which can handle the manufacturing cycle for up to six months. Nike also decided that the needed the systems which were centralized. For that reason the ERP software like SAPs R/3 software were better for the Nikes supply chain strategy. The software was included with i2 supply, demand and collaboration planner software applications. In the beginning of 1999 Nike decided to implement i2 software. I2 software implementation was the first part of NSC project. The cost of this project was US $40 million. (Koch, 2004) Table i2 SCM Proposed Benefits (Industrial Supply Chain management Solution -i2-Planning, 2010) Solution Objective Challenge Capability Benefit Strategic Planning Maximize profitability by optimally allocating resources Unclear parameters Optimization Long term profitability Demand management Anticipate and influence demand Accurate demand estimation is difficult Demand planning, channel collaboration Improved customer service Supply planning Determine what to make and when and how to profitably distribute supply Size and complexity of problem Collaboration, optimization, Speed Global visibility and coordination , fast reaction to changes Production Determine what to produce and when Managing material capacity tradeoffs is complex Fast finite material capacity planning scheduling Reduced inventory, Improved due date performance 2.1.3 Reasons of i2 software failure There were many reasons for i2 failure. Nike did not show patience during the implementation of the first part of its NSC (Nike Supply Chain) project. Nike decided to install its i2 software while Nike was using its legacy systems. The legacy systems were highly customized. The i2 software also needed to be highly customized because they have to be operated by Nikes Legacy systems. Even one entry took too much time to be recorded by the i2 software. This problem was the unexpected setback. The main fault was that the system ignored some orders and made duplicate the other orders. The ordered data was also deleted after six to eight weeks when it was entered. It was impossible for the company to recall the order had asked to produce. The complications of NSC project are also one of the reasons of the failure. The i2 software failed in demand forecast as shown in the figure 6. In some places Nike has excess inventory and in shortage of inventory in other places. Because of i2 software failure Nikes profit dropped down by 50% from USD $798 million to US $399 million. (Koah, 2004) Figure i2 software failure (Koah, 2004) 2.2 IMPLEMENTING SAP APPAREL AND FOOTWEAR SOLUTION (AFS) Nike had decided to implement the SAP Apparel and footwear solution. AFS is a part of SAP ERP project. This software is based on SAP r/3 and especially for footwear industry. Nike chose to implement other SAP applications like SCM and (B/W) Business information warehouse. Nike is also considering the SAP Net weaver platform in near future. Figure 7 shows the sample structure of SAP Net Weaver Implementation. (Koah, 2004) Figure SAP Net Weaver Implementation (Koah, 2004) Nike did not implement the first version of AFS although Nike had purchased SAP AFS in 1998. This new version of SAP AFS was the base of NSC Project. The SAP module implementations at Nikes were Financial Control (FICO), Sales Distribution (SD), Material Management (MM) and Production Planning (PP). These interfaced fully with Nikes i2 demand-planning and Siebel CRM software. (Koah, 2004) 2.2.1 Strategy for implementing ERP system Nike adopted the Big Bang approach for implementing ERP software by installing all SAP components like planning order entry financials etc. all at once. This task had a high degree of integration between its footwear and apparel sectors. Because of SAP (AFS) the company took full control on both area footwear and apparel of supply chain from raw material until delivery. (Sussman, May 2004) In 2000, Nike Canada became a company which implemented SAP (AFS) along i2 applications and Siebel CRM. The software was used multiple HP enterprise servers because on HP-UC (1) 11 operating environment. HP was chosen because it had experience in SAP and i2 applications. (Sussman, May 2004) 2.2.2 Benefits NSC Project allowed the company to make build-to-order supply chain. Before implementing NSC project Nike purchased products from manufacturers about 9 to 10 months before and on the other hand Nikes retailers ordered for only 6 months. The project enabled Nike to shorten the time for footwear products from nine to six months because of implementing this NSC project. Now Nike can buy from partner factories on the base of actual requirements rather than forecast alone. Another benefit of this project was that it had directly benefited on the financial management. This project gave better integration between departments. (Barrett, 2003) According to Shelley Dewey, Vice president, Nike Supply Checain, The transition of business team members into IT savvy individuals and IT team members into business process experts was an unexpected bonus of the project effort. We are a much stronger team for having done this work. (Clark, July 2004) Recommendations During late 1990 most companies avoided to implement ERP systems because of the huge cost and the project was time consume. But Nike has invested on ERP system and they proved that although they paid a huge cost for implementing ERP system but it worth a lot. We can also observe the complex of implementing ERP system from that if it was easy to implement ERP system then everybody did it at that time. Nike has implemented the NSC (Nike Supply Chain Project). But for this success Nike has paid a huge amount and time. Although the company has implemented SAP system but there was still problem that it did not accept direct point of sale (POS) data in integration with retailers data. The forecasting function is also less accurate because company knew only about the retailers buying and not have any information that what the customer buying. Nike has invested a lot on this project and now Nike has to make this system perfect because small bugs became a huge problem to fix. In the beginning of ERP implementation Nike had faced difficulties but now Nike has those approaches that many companies to follow that approach. But Nike has to aware consistently about the problem in ERP sectors and also makes changes its strategy in the future with market environment.