What Does It Take To Lead Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

What Does It Take To Lead Change - Essay Example It is the process of exploring one's own self-evaluation, thinking whether the way they acted in a particular situation is correct or not. Reflecting on one’s own actions is important for business development. It is a must to improve our communication style, clarify our expectations and put into practice the various theories learnt. In fact there are many programs like the Ignatius exercises which use role modelling to focus on various critical issues, kindle the emotions of a person, get a response and help them reflect on the same. These exercises give a person a chance to act with more maturity and calmness if they face the same problem in real life (Moberg & Calkins, 2001, p. 257 - 270). The project we selected to do was ‘Eliminating Job Satisfaction’. Our team believed it will help us to understand the work environment in the corporate industry better and enable us to act as better managers because we will get to know what different types of workers expect fr om their management and superiors. My group project enabled me to talk to various types of people. What we found out was that, nearly half of the people excelling in today's corporate world do so because they did not have a chance to excel in their field of choice. I realized the meaning of the word 'identity workspace' (Petriglieri & Petriglieri, 2010, p. 44 - 60) only by working in this project. The experience made me wonder if these people are so productive and capable in a field they have no like or dislike, how much they would contribute if they were only given a chance to work in their field of choice. Surely, the world would be a much better place with many more inventions then. The aim of our project was to reach out to at least a few people who are totally dissatisfied with their job and make them pursue their passion for their own happiness and the betterment of their passionate field. My team attended a workshop at the end of the project, which enabled us to reflect on wh at we have done so far. I got a chance to reflect on several incidents which took place throughout the project. The workshop instilled in me various reflections regarding the way I communicated to my peers, how I failed to make them understand some of my views and how I acted as a self-elected leader in some instances. The workshop did not teach us anything new, but helped us reflect on the way we acted throughout the project and question ourselves what would have been the outcome, if we have acted differently. There is a general notion that management studies will not be much useful, if a person does not have prior management experience. The idea was stressed by Mintzberg (2004) in his work. No matter how many hours you study volumes and volumes of management theories it isn’t equivalent to one day's experience of managing a team in the real world. Managing this project helped me understand this practically. I tried in every possible way to help my team but it only resulted in building more tension within the team. â€Å"Communication within a group deals with the spoken and the unspoken, the verbal and the non-verbal, the explicit and the implied messages that are conveyed and exchanged relating to information and ideas, and Feelings† (Group Dynamics, 2004). I understood where I went wrong and how communication was limited in our team while playing the reflective exercises in this workshop. I strongly felt the way I acted

Function of Storytelling Essay Example for Free

Function of Storytelling Essay The novel Atonement by Ian MCewan and the short story â€Å"The Things They Carried† by Tom OBrien both employ storytelling as a form of redemption. This is achieved in each text through the narrators freedom to manipulate the content and truth of the narrative in order to amend past wrongs and to imagine a more comforting, alternate reality. In Atonement, the narrator , Briony uses her literal imagination to alter the story of her life in hope to seek redemption for past actions with great consequence, while the narrator in Tim OBriens â€Å"The Things They Carried† tells and retells his version of the memory to help it become real. Both narratives show storytelling to be a possible healing process. P1-First step to redemption is to admit the reason for your deception. A novels allows narrator to confess the motive behind his/her sin. Briony initial stage towards redemption is by confessing the dangers of interpretation. quote- To herâ€Å"reading a sentence and understanding it were the same thing; as with the crooking of a finger, nothing between them. There was no gap during which symbols were unravelled†(37) -quote shows Brionys belief in the ease of interpretation which leads her to jump to conclusions she can never change. The blame for the tragedy is not only due to Brionys misinterpretation of events , but the misguided nature of interperation provided by books. â€Å"The Things They Carried† -The narrator describes the difficult conditions of war by describing the emotional and physical baggage they carry. Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carried the love letters from Martha. These horrible conditions forced Lieutenant cross to day dream about Martha which lead to Ted Lavenders death. -quote:told they carry â€Å"pocket knives, heat tabs, wristwatchesand two or three canteens of water† which weigh â€Å" between 15 and 20 pounds†(241). -quote allows the reader to feel the overwhelming weight of being a soldier, which words cant simply explain. The narrator demonstrates the reasoning for Lieutenant crosss daydreaming as a way to escape from chaos of Vietnam war. P2-Using storytelling another step towards redemption is taken by characters revealing repentance by punishing themselves for their wrong doing (reveal repentance/remorse) -briony becomes a nurse and turns away Cambridge. She writes about the hard work she does as a nurse. quote: â€Å"Whatever skivvying or humble nursing she did and however well or hard she did it, whatever illumination in tutorial she had relinquished ,or lifetime moment on a college lawn, she would never undo the damage. She was unforgivable† -Lieutenant Jimmy burns Marthas letter and pictures, thus destroying his distracting fantasy in order to become a true soldier -quote: â€Å"Lavender was dead. You couldnt burn the blame† -Something is missing in explanation. How can I tie in that acts of remorse both did not make amends. P3-Novel is attempt by narrators to erase the wrong he/she did. The outcome of redemption differs for each narrator. -Briony alters the ending of the ending of the story in hope to seek redemption but does not achieve it because quote: â€Å"The problem of these fifty-nine years has been this:how can a novelist achieve atonement when, with her absolute power of deciding outcomes, she is also God? There is no one , no entity of higher form that she can appeal to, or be reconciled with, or that can forgive her† -No matter how many times she rewrites the story she will never receive Robbie and Cecile’s forgiveness. She cant achieve self forgiveness because no alternate ending that she imagines will replace the true ending. -The only way Briony will end her guilt is when her memory fails and she dies. (disease) -Narrator for â€Å"The Things They Carried† achieves redemption for Ted Lavenders death because storytelling allows the memories of Ted Lavender to stay alive. -Storytelling enables the narrators memories to be shaped and rearranged in order to make sense of past events and make them real -The narrator achieves redemption for Ted Lavenders death by storytelling because each time the story is told or retold the soldiers in the Alpha Company are being given a new life each time by the reader. -quote:At first, we learn â€Å"he was shot and killed outside Than Khe† (OBrien 241) and gradually learn â€Å"Ted Lavender was shot in the head on his way back from peeing† (OBrien 246).

Sustainable Urban Development In India Environmental Sciences Essay

Sustainable Urban Development In India Environmental Sciences Essay India is the worlds largest democracy and second most populous country and is emerging as a major power. Since 1991, India has seen a far-reaching, rapid and successful transformation of its economic order, making the country one of the most dynamic in the world. This process was driven by high levels of productivity in services and manufacturing. According to the commonly used development indicators, India is progressing at a rapid pace, second only to China. The incidence rate of poverty has declined. However, India is still tackling huge social, economic and environmental problems. With rapid expansion of urban population around the world there is an increasing awareness about minimizing the environmental costs of urbanization. Concerns are raised at environmental damages and depletion of nonrenewable resources and rising levels of pollution in urban areas. In recent times urban centres have become places of urban environmental degradation and wasteful use of resources, which is proving to be costly to generations present and future. Sustainable urban development is achieving a fine balance between growth, development of the urban areas and protection of the environment with an eye to equity in employment, shelter, basic services, social infrastructure and transportation in the urban areas. Brundtland Commission (1983) describes sustainable development as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The UN Conference on Environment and Development (also known as Earth Summit) held at Rio-de Janeiro in 1992 adopted an action plan, popularly known as Agenda 21. The agenda 21 promised to reduce poverty, provide clean water and health care, and protect the natural resources for sustainable development. The Millennium Declaration by the General Assembly of the United Nations in September 2000 reaffirmed its commitment to the right to development, peace, security and gender equality, for overall sustainable development. Countries were expected to take efforts in the fight against poverty, illiteracy, hunger, lack of education, gender inequality, infant and maternal mortality, disease and environmental degradation. Millennium Development Goals have urged for ensuring environmental sustainability and reduction of the percentage of the population under extreme poverty. Thus all the initiatives taken so far on environment and development have stressed on economically viable development, socially equitable development and protection of the environment .Attaining sustainable development requires addressing social and environmental equity in development in ways that are socially, economically and politically acceptable. STATUS OF URBANISATION IN INDIA India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world today. Economic growth rate of 5.5 per cent per annum during 1981-2001, accelerated to 7.7 per cent per annum during 2001-02 and further to 8-9 per cent per annum GDP growth in 2010-11Economic development also leads to rapid urbanization .As an economy grows, its towns and urban centres expand in size and volume and the contribution of the urban sector to the national economy increases. The contribution of urban sector to Indias GDP has increased from 29% in 1950-51 to 47% in 1980-81. The urban sector presently contributes about 62%-63% of the GDP and this is expected to increase to 75% by 2021 . According to census of India, the urban population in the country as on 1st March 2001, was 286 million. This constituted 27.8% of the total population of 1028 millions. The rapid pace of urbanization has resulted in explosive growth of urban centres, This phenomenon has led to tremendous pressure on civic infrastructure systems, water supply, sewerage and drainage, uncollected solid waste, parks and open spaces, transport, etc. It has also led to deterioration in the quality of city environments. In several urban centres, the problems of traffic congestion, pollution, poverty, inadequate housing, crime, and social unrest are assuming alarming proportions. As per Census of India 2001 has grown upto 23.5 per cent of the total urban population and projections for 2011 indicate that this percentage is likely to go up to 30 per cent .In some urban centres, the proportion is 40-50 per cent. The proliferation of slums in metropolitan urban centres has become so extensive that as of 2001, 54 per cent of the total population of Mumbai lives in slums. Slums generally lack basic infrastructure, housing, social amenities and this has implications on health and productivity of the people living in such areas. This also has serious implications for future generation of people residing in such areas.In some urban centres, the proportion is 40-50 per cent. The proliferation of slums in metropolitan urban centres has become so extensive that as of 2001, 54 per cent of the total population of Mumbai lives in slums. Slums generally lack basic infrastructure, housing, social amenities and this has implications on health and productivity of the people liv ing in such areas. This also has serious implications for future generation of people residing in such areas. The trends of urbanization in India in the recent decades indicate the following key features: The degree of urbanization in India is one of the lowest in the world. With about 27.8% of the total population living in the urban areas, India is less urbanized compared to many countries of Asia, viz., China (32%), Indonesia (37%), Japan (78%), South Korea (83%), and Pakistan (35%). There is a continued concentration of the urban population in large urban centres and existing city agglomerations (Class I urban centres with population over one lakh) account for 68.9% of the urban population and this proportion has been growing. The growth of rural settlements which are acquiring urban characteristic is very slow and there is reluctance on the part of the States to notify the rural settlements as a town. There are large variations in the spatial patterns of urbanization across the States and urban centres. The pattern of population concentration in large urban centres reflects spatial polarization of the employment opportunities. Urban India is thus undergoing a transition in terms of physical form, demographic profile and socio-economic diversity. The important role of urban centres in national economic process and their global linkages demand more attention for their development, Urban centres are expected to perform efficiently in keeping with emerging demands for employment, commerce, trade, industry and other services. Urban centres have to attract investments for improving their efficiencies by way of upto date infrastructure, improved governance and affordable housing/ living with modern amenities. The urban centres of India need to be prepared for playing their new role of hosting rapid growth and providing services for an inclusive society. Not only do urban centres need much more by way of basic infrastructure but systems have to be put in place so that A socio-economic environment can be created, Affordable and Effective delivery of public services for all Affordable housing for the poor. This would require more public financial resources and more public goods, bringing the delivery of services to standard norms for all, greater willingness on the part of citizens and businesses to pay taxes and user charges for services, and a process of complementary urban-rural development. It is a challenge for policymakers, planners, intellectuals, officials, administrators and city manager and leaders to re-engineer urban planning especially settlements for better living conditions and better quality of life of all the citizens, especially the urban poor INSTITUTIONAL SET UP India is a federal polity with division of powers between centre and states. In the Federal structure of the Indian polity, the matters pertaining to the housing and urban development have been assigned by the Constitution of India to the State Governments. The Constitutions (74th Amendment) Act have further delegated many of these functions to the urban local bodies. State Legislatures also authorize the Union Parliament to legislate. Government of India plays a pivotal role and exercises influence to shape the policies and programmes of the country as a whole. The National Policy issues are decided by the Government of India which also allocates resources to the State Governments through various Centrally Sponsored schemes, provides finances through national financial institutions and supports various external assistance programmes for housing and urban development in the country as a whole. Policies and programme contents are decided at the time of formulation of Five Year Plans. The indirect effect of the fiscal, economic and industrial location decisions of the Government of India exercise a dominant influence on the pattern of urbanisation and real estate investment in the country. The Ministry of Urban Employment Poverty Alleviation is the apex authority of Government of India at the national level to formulate policies, sponsor and support programme, coordinate the activities of various Central Ministries, State Governments and other nodal authorities and monitor the The Ministry was constituted on 13th May, 1952 when it was known as the Ministry of Works, Housing Supply. Subsequently it was renamed as Ministry of Works Housing when a separate Ministry of Supplies came up. The name of the Ministry was changed to Ministry of Urban Development in September, 1985 in recognition of the importance of urban issues. With the creation of a separate Department of Urban Employment Poverty Alleviation on 8th March, 1995, the Ministry came to be known as the Ministry of Urban Affairs Employment. The Ministry had two Departments: Department of Urban Development Department of Urban Employment Poverty Alleviation. The two Departments were again merged on 9th April, 1 999 and in consequence thereto, the name has also been restored to The Ministry of Urban Development. The Ministry has again been bifurcated into two ministries viz : (i) Ministry of Urban Development; and (ii) Ministry of Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation. The Ministry of Urban Development is responsible for formulating policies, supporting programs, monitoring programs and coordinate the activities of various Central Ministries, State Governments and other nodal authorities in so far as the relate to urban development concerning all the issues in the country. programmes concerning all the issues of urban employment, poverty  and housing in the country. HOUSING Housing, besides being a very basic requirement, holds the key to accelerate the pace of development. Investments in housing like any other industry have a multiplier effect on income and employment. It is estimated that overall employment generation in the economy due to additional investment in the housing/construction is eight times the direct employment1. The construction sector provides employment to 16% of the work force .Housing also has a direct impact on steel and cement industry, which accounts for considerable contributions to the national economy. Housing also contributes substantially to the services sector of the economy, which leads to generation of employment. Other significant aspect of housing development is its potential to generate employment for a wide section of population with varying degrees of skills and education. Housing Shortage and fund Requirement Urbanisation factors are coupled with housing shortage and insecure housing conditions, inadequate infrastructure transportation leading to a diminished quality of urban life in urban centers in majority of developing countries. In India ,according to the report of the Technical Group on estimation of housing shortage constituted in the context of formulation of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan, housing shortage is estimated to be around 24.71 million. As per Planning Commission earlier estimates for the 10th Plan beginning in 2002, the urban housing backlog was 8.8 million dwelling units and the total requirement was 22.44 million dwelling units. The overall housing shortage thus during the plan period (2007-2012) including the backlog was estimated as 26.53 million. About 99% of such households are from EWS and low income groups (LIG). For estimating the investment requirements for the Eleventh Plan, the Working Group on Urban Housing made different assumptions on unit cost of construc tion of houses in million plus urban centres and other urban areas. The total investment requirement for meeting the housing requirement would be of the order of Rs 361318.10 crore consisting of Rs 147195 crore required for mitigating housing shortage at the beginning of the Eleventh Plan and Rs 214123.10 crore for new additions to be made during the Eleventh Plan period This includes pucca ,upgradation of semi-pucca, and kutcha housing units and investments in housing by individuals and corporates. POLICY INITIATIVES The National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy provide the basic framework for achieving the objective of shelter for all. The policy was evolved in 1998 with the long-term goal of eradicating houselessness, improving the housing conditions of the inadequately housed, and providing a minimum level of basic services and amenities to all. It was formulated to address the issues of sustainable development, infrastructure development, and for strong PPPs for shelter delivery with the objective of creating surpluses in housing stock and facilitating construction of two million dwelling units each year in pursuance of the National Agenda for Governance. However, the housing sector has witnessed several changes since then. The 1998 National Housing Policy has been replaced by a National Habitat and Housing Policy, 2007 with land and the development of civic amenities to make land habitable as its two critical elements. In order to improve the quality of life in urban areas, it is of critical significance that the housing stock is improved through urban renewal, in situ slum improvement, and development of new housing stock in existing urban centres as well as new townships. However, despite many policy measures and initiatives, the coverage of urban poor with these intended benefits has not been achieved to the desired extent. Expanding equitable access The 11th Five Year Plan adopts inclusive growth as the theme for planning. An inclusive city requires all marginalized sections of urban society to function affectively in their social, economic, political and cultural domains and also needs to preserve its cultural identity absorbing dynamic population growth. It is important to integrate urban poor, women, destitutes, widows and children and old-age people in the city life and fabric. Developing inclusive urban centres of Slum-free Urban India is the challenge. In order to improve upon the living conditions in slums, the Government of India had launched The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).JNNURM is the largest initiative ever launched by the Government of India to address the problems of infrastructure and basic services to the poor in urban centres and towns in a holistic manner. The Mission is being implemented over a period of 7 years (2005-2012) with Central Assistance to States to the tune of Rs.50,000 crores. The objective of the Mission was to give focused attention to integrate development of infrastructure services, establishment of linkages between asset-creation and asset-management through reforms, ensuring adequate funds to meet the deficiencies in urban infrastructural services, planned development of identified urban centres including peri-urban areas, outgrowths and urban corridors leading to dispersed urbanization, provision of basic services to the urban poor including security of tenure at afforda ble prices, improved housing, water supply and sanitation, and ensuring delivery of other existing universal services of the Govt. for education, health and social security. Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) provides a new paradigm for inclusive city building inclusive urban communities based on holistic approach. It envisages reform-driven, fast-track and planned development of urban centres, with focus on efficiency in urban infrastructure/ service delivery mechanism, community participation and accountability of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) towards citizens.The Mission covered both components from core infrastructure as well as last mile services to the urban poor, ensuring convergence with the sectors of human development as well. The two sub-missions for 63 identified urban centres are: Urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) The Ministry of Urban Development is dealing urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) and Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme in Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT). The Ministry of Housing Urban Poverty Alleviation is dealing with BSUP IHSDP especially the slum dwellers. JNNURM contemplates that urban centres develop planned urban perspective frameworks for a period of 20-25 years (with 5-yearly updates) indicating policies, programmes and strategies of meeting fund requirements. This perspective plan is to be followed by preparation of Development Plans integrating land use with services, urban transport and environment management for every five-year plan period. Access to land and legal security of tenure are strategic prerequisites for the provision of adequate shelter for all and for the development of sustainable human settlements affecting both urban and rural areas. The major challenges facing is the scarcity of land for planning of housing for slum redevelopment projects for urban poor. This has been accentuated due to high cost of prime land where the slum dwellers reside. The present policy of the Central Government lays stress on an enabling approach. While recognizing the existence of different national laws and/or systems of land tenure, governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, are striving to remove obstacles that may hamper equitable access to land and ensure that equal rights of women and men related to land and property are protected under the law. The Jawahar Lal Nehru Mission and Rajiv Awas Yojana gives an institutional framework by focusing on 7 point charter and creating tenurial rights for slum household especially women as joint ownership. This has been further strengthened in the Rajiv Awas Yojana wherein each state has been requested to create legislative and enabling environment for slum free India. JNNURM with its focus on important aspects like urban reforms, pro-poor infrastructure investments, inclusive urban planning, integrated management of urban infrastructure, slum rehabilitation including affordable housing and tenure security is a very positive step towards achieving the goal of inclusive and sustainable urban centers. However, challenges facing urban local bodies needs to be seen in the emerging scenarios of urbanization, inclusion and financial challenges. Sustainable urban development in INDIA therefore requires holistic and integrated planning with optimum use of resources within a good governance FRAMEWORK for creating sustainable human environment. This requires paradigm shift in the existing institutions and the institutional framework for implementation. The decision making needs to be decentralized and resources financial and manpower needs to be devolved to the urban local bodies i.e. urban centres (urban local bodies) with replicable, scalable, flexible institutional format.

Comparing Marlow of Heart of Darkness and Willard of Apocalypse Now Ess

Comparing Marlow of Heart of Darkness and Willard of Apocalypse Now      Whenever books are adapted for film, changes inevitably have to be made. The medium of film offers several advantages and disadvantages over the book: it is not as adept at exploring the inner workings of people - it cannot explore their minds so easily; however, the added visual and audio capabilities of film open whole new areas of the imagination which, in the hands of a competent writer-director, can more than compensate. Heart of Darkness relies heavily on lengthy philosophical and expository passages, as well as some very unusual and complex imagery; â€Å"not the easiest material to rewrite as a screenplay† (Canby, 18). However, rewrite it Francis Ford Coppola did, altering the time and place of the novel from 19th century Congo to 20th century Vietnam. Coppola made an original film, with concepts and ideas taken from Heart of Darkness, rather than making a straight film version of the book. Consequently, there are many similarities and differences between the film and the book. The character of Marlow is renamed Willard in Apocalypse Now. This is noteworthy; the character of Kurtz has the same name in both the text and the film, so why not Marlow? â€Å"This is probably because the character of Kurtz in the film is almost identical to that in the book, whereas Willard is very different from Marlow† (Benner, 34). Kurtz is the person who has disconnected himself from society; he is not tied to any particular era, so his character works just as effectively in the 20th century as in the 19th. However, Marlow is the ordinary person in Heart of Darkness - the one ordinary man in the entire book, more-or-less; he is what ties the book into the society of ... ...tif/Symbol/Metaphor http://164.116.90.3/public/jarvinen/an.html (accessed 23 Jan. 2000). Benner, Ralph Heart of Darkness: A film review by Ralph Benner http://uk.imdb.com/Reviews/57/5777 created 1996 (accessed 26 Jan. 2000). Canby, Vincent. "Apocalypse Now." The New York Times Film Reviews. New York: The New York Times & Arno Press, 1981. Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness & The Secret Sharer. New York: Penguin Books, 1978. Fortmeyer, Russell. 'Apocalypse' cast filled with rage http://collegian.ksu.edu/issues/v099B/fa/n022/a-e-apocalypse-fortmeyer.html created 1994 (accessed 23 Jan. 2000). Heart of Darkness: Theme/Symbol/Allusion/Foreshadow http://164.116.90.3/public/jarvinen/hod.html (accessed 23 Jan. 2000). Urch, Martin. Apocalypse Now: A film review by Martin Urch http://us.imdb.com/Reviews/30/3030 created 1994 (accessed 23 Jan. 2000).

Gothic Art and Architecture

Gothic art and architecture played a very important role in the appearance of medieval times. The approximate time frame of the Gothic stage began in 1125, preceding the Romanesque period. Gothic art was first considered very ugly and was believed that barbarians were only capable of making such pieces. So, the name gothic meaning ghost was given to this time period. Now in the 20th century people think Gothic art is beautiful and admire it greatly. The First Methodist church in Notate by Red Barrel is a Gothic church.While looking at the church you take note of the pointed arches. This is a feature that began in the Gothic time period, and replaced rounded arches of the Romanesque period. Pointed arches are on every window and on the frame of the door. Inside you can see a simple barrel vaulting system. Another feature of Gothic art that The First Methodist Church has is the wonderful stain glass windows. They were very long and told a religious story. The stain glass allows the wal ls to be thinner and let a nice color filled light in.This light fills the church, and back then would be one of the only systems of light. The most dominant feature of Gothic architecture is the size, or height of the church. They believed that the higher the church the better, because they were closer to heaven. Some even contained towers so they could be closer to heaven. The one in Notate is very tall and has a very high ceiling. The ground plan for the church is in a cross, Just like medieval times. Inside the church is very complex along with the high ceilings.There are no painting, but the columns are highly decorated and complex. The First Methodist Church in Notate has many Gothic features, but is missing some characteristics. It does not have flying buttresses, or a rose window, which were strong Gothic traits. Also there were no windows on the east end where the sun rises. Alters were mainly put on the eat end, so when the sun rose it would fill the alter with light. Goth ic architecture is very beautiful, and the town of Notate is very lucky to have such a marvelous Gothic church in its town.

John Keats

Expressing how little time he has left and how he Is afraid he wont get the massive amounts of Ideas â€Å"letters of the alphabet† written down before he dies at his young age. In the second section he starts with the romantic element of the poem relating to his fiance and expresses sadness that he wont experience the full power of love and life.Towards the end of he sestets he concludes that everything he has done and will do will fall to nothingness and he will be alone no matter what. Therefore the sections are life, work and romance, love. Question 2 The type of affliction shown In the poem Include: The poet has a fear of dying and shows negatively towards writing about death â€Å"when I have fears that I might cease to be† he knows he Is sick with tuberculosis and that he will die at his young age and he fears he wont do and experience all he could f in a full life time.He wants to express and write as many poems as possible which en cradles slung ten metaphor AT â€Å"null plea Dodos, In contrary' He wants to experience love and romance as much as possible with his fiance â€Å"relish in the farer power of unreflective love† he is expressing sorrow and loneness, and how he will â€Å"stand alone† and â€Å"nothingness do I sink† Question 3 The imagery used in the first line is that of a metaphor. The storehouses full grain represents books full of letters.The image of a farm with kilometers of grain to be â€Å"harvested† is all of his ideas over flowing the â€Å"storehouses†, his mind and he wants to express and put down onto paper in the short time he has left. Question 4 Keats has personified the night sky and stars as having a face â€Å"nights starred face† His inevitable demise is contrasted with the infinite starry night sky. He also personifies chance as having a magic hand, which could indicate hope that his fate is not inevitable. Question 5

Free Essays on Sterling Brown

Sterling Allan Brown was one of the most unheralded poets of his time. For Many Years he went unheard of until the later years of his career. His poetry and literary works were also one of the most profound of his day. Brown was born in May of 1901 in the black middle class of Washington, D.C. His parents were Adelaide Allen and Sterling Nelson Brown. His father was a famous pastor, theologian, and social activist who was friends with other such activists as John Mercer Langston and Blanche K. Bruce. Growing up in the genteel circumstances of Washington, D.C., Sterling went to the prestigious Dunbar High School in Washington. He graduated from Dunbar as his class valedictorian in 1918 and earned a scholarship set aside for minority students to Williams College. Brown studied at Williams for four years before graduating with his B.A. in English with honors. He was also elected to the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity and won the Graves Prize for his essay â€Å"The Comic Spirit in Shakespeare and Moliere† which earned him a Clark Fellowship to Harvard for graduate work. At Harvard, Brown received an M.A. degree in English and during this second period of study he developed a sensitive creative writi ng through formal and folk training. After college Brown began a career of teaching starting out at Virginia Seminary College then Fisk University in Tennessee and Lincoln University in Missouri. Then in 1929 he settled down and began teaching at Howard University where he remained for almost sixty years. At Harvard he worked with and taught some later emerging artists such as actor and playwright Ossie Davis, political activist Stokley Carmichael, and Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison. During his duration at Harvard, Brown wrote many of his literary pieces. Sterling Brown’s poetry was influenced by jazz, the blues, work songs and spirituals like many other poets during the Harlem Renaissance. Like Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Jean Toomer ,and... Free Essays on Sterling Brown Free Essays on Sterling Brown Sterling Allan Brown was one of the most unheralded poets of his time. For Many Years he went unheard of until the later years of his career. His poetry and literary works were also one of the most profound of his day. Brown was born in May of 1901 in the black middle class of Washington, D.C. His parents were Adelaide Allen and Sterling Nelson Brown. His father was a famous pastor, theologian, and social activist who was friends with other such activists as John Mercer Langston and Blanche K. Bruce. Growing up in the genteel circumstances of Washington, D.C., Sterling went to the prestigious Dunbar High School in Washington. He graduated from Dunbar as his class valedictorian in 1918 and earned a scholarship set aside for minority students to Williams College. Brown studied at Williams for four years before graduating with his B.A. in English with honors. He was also elected to the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity and won the Graves Prize for his essay â€Å"The Comic Spirit in Shakespeare and Moliere† which earned him a Clark Fellowship to Harvard for graduate work. At Harvard, Brown received an M.A. degree in English and during this second period of study he developed a sensitive creative writi ng through formal and folk training. After college Brown began a career of teaching starting out at Virginia Seminary College then Fisk University in Tennessee and Lincoln University in Missouri. Then in 1929 he settled down and began teaching at Howard University where he remained for almost sixty years. At Harvard he worked with and taught some later emerging artists such as actor and playwright Ossie Davis, political activist Stokley Carmichael, and Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison. During his duration at Harvard, Brown wrote many of his literary pieces. Sterling Brown’s poetry was influenced by jazz, the blues, work songs and spirituals like many other poets during the Harlem Renaissance. Like Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Jean Toomer ,and...

Physical Disability And Mental Health Problems Social Work Essay Essay Example

Physical Disability And Mental Health Problems Social Work Essay Essay Example Physical Disability And Mental Health Problems Social Work Essay Essay Physical Disability And Mental Health Problems Social Work Essay Essay I have chosen the function as Rhian s societal worker. I will research the appraisal needs that could be considered to assist Rhian get the better of her state of affairs. First, I will explicate general attacks, accomplishments and rules in the appraisal procedure. This includes specifying appraisal and explicating nucleus rules used to measure grownups in the Welshman context. This will so associate into the 2nd subdivision of suitably using these attacks to Rhian s state of affairs. Legislation that is relevant to Rhian s state of affairs will be considered in the Welshman context and discussed to how it is appropriate for her. Third, will discourse the codification of pattern associating to ethical and anti-oppressive pattern, whilst sing all countries in the Welshman context. This subdivision will discourse the general attacks taken in an appraisal of demands with person who is involved with societal services. The intent of appraisal is to place the service user s demands. It has been described as a tool to help the planning of future work, the beginning of assisting another individual to place countries for growing and alteration ( Devine, 1993 in Wilson et Al: 271 ) . This means appraisal is the footing for service users understanding their demands and how they can assist themselves. The Unified Assessment Process was published in October 2001 and created to supply a incorporate and just system for measuring and pull offing attention ( Anonymous, 2005 ) . The incorporate appraisal procedure involves fiting the possible service user s demands to the right type of appraisal. There are legion people who can transport out the appraisal such as a Doctor, Nurse, Therapist or any other suitably qualified professional. In this context I will be concentrating on the societal workers function in making an appraisal. Depending on the service user s demands this will find which of the one or mixture of the four appraisals they will have. These are the contact appraisal, overview appraisal, specialist appraisal and comprehensive appraisal. A contact appraisal collects personal information and inquiries the jobs the service user is confronting that led to a petition for services. It besides considers relevant solutions, including whether referrals need to be made to other professionals, this includes unpaid carers such as household members that may be involved in the persons attention. The overview appraisal decides whether specializer aid is needed such as, Doctor, Nurse or Therapist. A specialist appraisal is completed by one or more specializers ; this might be for a disablement for case deteriorating seeing. A comprehensive appraisal consist of an mixture of professionals working in partnership to do certain the service user s attention p rogram covers all wellness demands they may be sing. These can go on in any order the assessor feels suited. All these appraisals will take to a determination being made on whether the person s demands are eligible for a attention program and how the professional can run into these demands ( Anonymous, 2005 ) . An of import portion of appraisal is authorising people which means concentrating on the person s strengths non failings. This can be done utilizing the strengths theoretical account ( Doel and Shardlow, 2005 ) . The first a societal worker hears about a service user is because of the troubles they are confronting in day-to-day life, so this would do it easy for the societal worker to concentrate on this. The strengths theoretical account physiques on the persons strengths to assist with recovery ; it focuses on altering the service user s frame of head so they can ever see the best in a bad state of affairs. A service user should be treated as a individual non their unwellness or labelled in this manner, for illustration, a individual with schizophrenic disorder continually being described as schizophrenic can be oppressive ( Doel and Shardlow, 2005 ) . This links in with the person centred attack which focuses on how the individual would see themselves and what their aspirations are. Part of the Social Worker s occupation is to authorise the service user to portion their dispositions for the hereafter. The societal worker needs cardinal accomplishments to put to death the appraisal in manner that will profit the service user in the best manner possible. This includes communicating accomplishments which involve linguistic communication, listening, organic structure linguistic communication and facial looks, the service user should neer experience intimidated. The societal worker should ever be self-conscious of their actions so they are relatable. Other accomplishments needed is being able to manage peoples feelings and being sensitive to their state of affairs. Some of the most of import accomplishments in appraisal are partnership working with the service user and with other professionals which may be used as referrals for the s ervice user s demands. Partnership working will do the service user feel involved in work outing their ain state of affairs and cognizing the procedure. Partnership with other professionals involves trust and equal regard towards each other s engagement with the service user ( Koprowska, 2006 ) . This subdivision will use the appraisal procedure to Rhian s state of affairs and expression at legion methods that could be used to measure Rhian s demands. Rhian has assorted issues that need to be considered during her appraisal. The incorporate appraisal procedure will be used to place the problem she is holding on a day-to-day footing physically and mentally. With Rhian I would get down with a contact appraisal to roll up basic information and discuss why she feels she may necessitate assist whether this is from societal services or her household. To understand Rhian s household moral force I would make a genogram ( shown in appendix 1 ) which is basically a household tree, and by making this I would inquire Rhian to explicate each household members function in her life. This is to acquire an apprehension of the support system she already may hold in topographic point. The unpaid carers ( household members ) may necessitate aid with Rhian s attention because of their ain demand s for case her hubby has to supply for their household so can non be on manus all the clip. Her sister, who helps every bit much as possible, is neglecting college because she wants to assist Rhian. I need to take this into consideration along with Rhian s wants and needs so no 1 feels pushed out of the determination making/ state of affairs or took advantage of. Rob has been known to acquire angry with Rhian and on juncture agitate her out of defeat. This could be a instance for Protection of Vulnerable Adults ( POVA ) a policy that safeguards vulnerable grownups that are enduring maltreatment. The Welshman policy In safe custodies clarifies the functions and responsibility of attention that carers have for back uping and looking after vulnerable grownups. A cardinal portion of this policy is interagency working between wellness, societal attention, constabulary and the attention and societal services inspectorate Wales ( CSSIW ) . It protects but besides aims to advance good pattern and bar ( WAG, 2000 ) . The Social services ( Wales ) measure has built on this to make better statute law for Adults at hazard so it is up to the same criterion of kid protection. One of the proposals is to halt utilizing the word vulnerable as a description because it may be seen as disempowering, but to alternatively utilize Adults at hazard . The Bill take s on a human rights attack, intending the service user is the best individual to make up ones mind what is best for their ain wellbeing. The Bill will supply appropriate bureaus one time person is said to be an grownup at hazard to protect this individual from injury ( WG, 2012 ) . Harmonizing to the definition of grownups at hazard Rhian would be entitled to these services because of her physical disablement and mental wellness jobs. An overview appraisal means utilizing collaborative working with other professionals. Rhian has shown marks of depression so I may see mentioning Rhian to a head-shrinker, who is a qualified physician that has had farther preparation in mental wellness ( NHS, 2011 ) . Mentioning Rhian could ensue in an independent appraisal of her demands. I would work closely with the head-shrinker to acquire an apprehension of her mental wellness and acquire a medical sentiment of what aid she may necessitate in footings of services the head-shrinker or I can supply. Collaborative working can be defined as an confederation between persons, groups or administrations where they work together to take on a specific undertaking ( Sullivan and Sketcher, 2002 ) . It allows us as professionals to utilize both our strengths together to acquire the best solution for Rhian s demands. The most of import portion of collaborative working is affecting the service user with the appraisal and explicating to them th e procedure of the appraisal. This allows societal workers to construct a relationship with the service user. They should be involved so they feel they are assisting themselves every bit much as the professionals are, so they do non go dependant on the professionals and so they feel empowered ( Thompson, 2006 ) . The societal theoretical account takes a more holistic attack to caring for people. This means looking at the individual s environment non merely the initial state of affairs they feel is the job. This is because you can repair the job but if the cause is non investigated the job can ever come back. Harmonizing to the NHS ( 2010 ) the holistic appraisal is divided into five subdivisions, background information, physical demands, societal and occupational demands, psychological well-being and religious well-being and life ends ( NHS, 2010 ) . For illustration, Rhian may look down because of her hurt disenabling her abilities but by merely assisting her mobility and memory that will non repair her statements with Rob or her feeling of being entirely so she may take a measure backwards. Rhian will necessitate support to assist her realise her life ends to do her more positive about where her life is and want to work to acquire back on path with her household in footings of being able to take attention of her kids on her ain. The codification of pattern ( CCW, 2002 ) is underpinned by traditional values such as being non-judgemental, confidentiality, self-respect and regard ( Biestek, 1961 ) . This links with the person-centred attack, which was mentioned in the first subdivision, this holds the footing of every service user being different and neer comparing two different instances. Traditional values involve individualization in the nucleus significance of the codification of pattern ( Biestek, 1961 ) . The more modern extremist values get the service users more involved with their ain job resolution. For illustration, empowerment gives them the assurance to construct a partnership with societal workers and assist do the determinations in their ain program ( Thompson, 2000 ) . By linking all these attacks including the strengths theoretical account, individual centred attack, collaborative working and utilizing the codification of pattern is all lending to anti-oppressive pattern. It is my duty as a societal worker to authorise Rhian by utilizing these techniques, and utilizing my power as a professional to take the stigma from mental wellness in society ( Dominelli, 2002 ) . Ethical motives shows me as a societal worker how to esteem my service user s human rights and promote societal justness at the same time to supply a quality service ( BASW, 2012 ) . Ethical issues may originate because Rhian expressed that she does non desire aid from aliens with her kids but alternatively wants Rob to discontinue his occupation. I must esteem her determination but intelligibly Rob does non desire to complete working, with Wales s economic province being in a recession he may non be able to acquire a occupation once more for a long clip. This would do more emphasis for the whole household. Negotiations have to be made with Rhian to come up with a solution that will delight both Rhian and Rob. Appraisal is at the nucleus of societal work and demands to be executed in a specific manner, taking into consideration every item of people s lives. In decision, the treatment in this essay has shown the great deepness that is included in appraisal and the considerations that need to be made with statute law and societal accomplishments. Social skills includes moralss and anti-oppressive pattern but besides how the societal worker carries out theoretical accounts when working in partnership with the service user. It explains how without appraisal and holistic attacks a batch of item in service user s state of affairss would non be realised and resolved, so would non assist them to the best of their ability. Sing Rhian s state of affairs throughout I have shown how these accomplishments and policies need to be put in topographic point during appraisal.

Assignment 2 Database Modeling and Normalization

It really depends on the person style, specifications they are looking for, trust in the brand, and the depth of their pockets, how much a person is willing to spend for example on a that high definition led plasma television that is 52 inches. No matter the cost, businesses want to keep a track of the sales of their employees and how much they are getting paid. In this case a high-end electronics store wants to streamline data processing to enable them to help determine the commissions paid to employees. Assignment 2- Database Modeling and Normalization Streamlining processes allows information to be available to users across the system. In order for the finance department to be able to find the commission paid to employee’s information that maybe held by other departments such as human resources will be needed. Once the database is complete and has all the information such as: employee first and last name, employee ID, yearly salary, commission rate, department, etc, the finance department can then being to generate that information. In this case a query is designed to allow the finance department to determine commissions paid to employees of specific departments. That code will be compared to the code that would show how much total compensation is paid to each employee monthly. Lastly it will be described how Big Data could be used to assist in productivity and forecasting of organizations product and resources. Methods After information is gathered about the employee; most of what was mentioned before, and input into the system a query can be designed to pull that information from the tables. In order to pull information from tables the SELECT function is used to determine the information that is needed and the FROM function tells from what tables to pull it (Coronel, Morris Rob, 2012). The coding that was used to find information on commissions paid to employees was: SELECT Employee. * FROM Employee, Invoice WHERE (DepartmentID =2); The asterisk next to employees indicates that all the information under the employee table was used to generate the search. In this query information was pulled from the employee and invoice tables. The WHERE function more specifically states the department which can be changed and it would generate new information. The query currently only shows employee commission information for employees who work in department two (see attachment). If the finance department wanted to find the total compensation paid to each employee in the same month as the first query a slightly different query would be run to generate that information. The first code simply pulled the information and did not include and computation because the finance department only requested to be able to determine as in pull up the record for employee’s commission paid. The second code will include computation which will divide the yearly salary by twelve months then multiples the commission rate by the total amount of product sold and lastly add those two numbers together to get the total compensation for that month. Unfortunately the coding that I am using is not generating a proper result. However, it should look something like this: SELECT Employee. EmpNumber, Employee. EmpFirstName, Employee. EmpLastName, Employee. YrlySalary, Invoice. InvAmount, Invoice. InvDate, Employee. CommissionRate FROM Employee INNER JOIN Invoice ON Employee. EmpNumber = Invoice. EmpNumber WHERE (DepartmentID=2);, it is missing the computation part. Big Data could be used to assist in productivity and forecasting of organizations product and resources because it takes â€Å"large pools of data that can be brought together and analyzed to discern patterns and make better decisions†. It â€Å"enhanc[es] productivity and creat[es] significant value for the world economy by reducing waste and increasing the quality of products and services (Mcguire, 2012). Additionally, Big Data adds â€Å"value by making information transparent†¦ â€Å"store more transactional data in digital form†, and develop the next generation of products and services† (Mcguire, 2012). That last aspect of Big Data allows â€Å"manufacturers are using data obtained from sensors embedded in products to create innovative after-sales service offerings such as proactive maintenance to avoid failures in new products (Mcguire, 2012). References Coronel, C. , Morris, S. , Rob, P. (2012). Database systems. (10th ed. ). Independence, KY: Cengage. Mcguire, T. (2012, July). Why big data is the new competitive advantage. Retrieved from http://www. iveybusinessjournal. com/topics/strategy/why-big-data-is-the-new-competitive-advantage Appendix A Appendix B | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

Organizational Behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 12

Organizational Behavior - Essay Example One of the coping mechanisms that I use to deal with stress is being honest with others and expressing to them that I have troubles speaking English. People at school are always nice and they help me along when talking to them. When a person knows that the other has troubles with English they speak slower and use simpler language. They also listen more carefully when I talk. In the classroom when I am taking notes sometimes I have trouble understanding the English the teacher speaks. The coping mechanism I use to deal with this situation is recording all my classes in a digital recorder. I then look back at the tape recorder and play back the part I did not understand. Whenever I need extra help a friend of mine listens to the recording and helps me out with an explanation. Sometimes at school I feel stress for other reasons such as a tough project with short deadlines or a difficult test coming up. Some of the things that help me deal with stress are listening to music, playing a cl assic Seinfeld episode on Hulu.com or going out with friends to watch a good movie at the theater. In my life I feel both powerful and powerless at times. Thankfully the powerful situations outweigh the powerless. As a college student I am in a privileged situation in society because I have the opportunity to earn an education which will help me a lot in the tough and competitive labor environment of today. I live a free life without any concerns or external worries associated with being the head of a family or work related pressures. I have the opportunity to choose a college curriculum and degree that I like. I spend my weeks going to stimulating classes that I like, while being surrounded by great people all around the university. I have met a lot of tremendous persons in school that have helped me mature as a person by interacting with me in college. I enjoy a lot my social life in college as well as my

Proposal Letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Proposal Letter - Essay Example As a result, both the instructors and students face insurmountable difficulties (Quian 2204-2205). Although English is taught from the primary level, I believe mastery of the language requires patience and practice. The students have a feeling that achieving fluency for an international language is impossible. Their main goal of learning the language is passing exams while disregarding its value in the learning process, as well as, dealing with life issues. I also believe that besides difficulties in speaking fluent English, foreign students can hardly write a complete sentence without making a grammatical mistake. There seems to be no appropriate environment for them to thrive. They encounter a new society and culture that hinders their success (Herold 124). When compared to the native students, the internationals require extra time to learn and comprehend a foreign language. In an effort to unravel to this mystery, the essay will investigate the difficulties faced by foreign students in learning a second language. It will also provide several useful strategies to second language learners and instructors. It will conclude by calling for researchers to give attention to the problem. All readers, as well as, well wishers can contribute their views on the

The Settling of the Frontier (US History) Assignment

The Settling of the Frontier (US History) - Assignment Example He fought well during the American Civil War and also helped win the Battle of Washita over the Cheyenne. Six years later, in the year 1874, he helped tap gold in the Black Hills and two years later led a force against the Sioux uprising. By the age of 23, he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-general. â€Å"He was a brave warrior and died a brave man.† (Low Dog, a Sioux warrior). The frontier period was one of the most important phases of American history that lead to the westward expansion of the country through the colonization of the Great West and ended in a war between the states. â€Å"We are great, and rapidly, I was about to say fearfully growing!† (Calhoun, 1817). Hollywood has chosen to glorify and thus distort this period from 1862-1900 as this most â€Å"rapid and effective period Americanization was also the meeting point between savagery and civilization.† (Frederick J. Turner, 2006). To portray the rejection of England in a new light and glorify the victory of America and its success in the double transformation of the society, Hollywood decided who the heroes and who the villains were and projected the frontier period as a pseudo reality. Its nature and mentality is akin to that of the frontier

Sector Matrix Framework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Sector Matrix Framework - Essay Example This paper aims to evaluate â€Å"Sector Matrix Framework† for its usefulness in analyzing demand and supply linkage. This evaluation will compare Froud’s Sector Matrix Framework with Porter Value Chain concept and Gereffi’s Global Commodity Chain Framework. Value Chain Approach Concept Michael Porter in his 1985 book â€Å"Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance† gave the management concept of the value chain. A value chain is a firm’s chain of activities to produce its output. It focuses on the organization’s process view. Porter classified the hundreds of activity of converting input in to output in two categories. Particularly, primary activities, which include â€Å"inbound Logistics, Operations, Outbound Logistics, Marketing and Sales, Service† (Porter, 1998). These activities are â€Å"Involved in the physical creation of the product and it sale and transfer to the buyer as well as after sales assist ance† (Porter, 1998). The other category is of Support activities, which includes â€Å"Procurement, Human Resource management, Technological Development, and Infrastructure† (Porter, 1998). ... Porter believes that a firm to achieve competitive advantage should focus on its discrete activities in â€Å"designing, producing, marketing, delivering, and supporting its products† (Porter, 1998, p.33). That is why he introduced value chain as a valuable tool for systematically analysing these activities. Analysis of Demand and Supply Porter value chain approach analyse demand and supply on the bases of value adding procedure and the industry structure. Porter believed that the interdependent processes of the value chain adds value to the product and, as a result, finally generate demand. He was further of the believe that as value chain delivers value to the customer with firms obtaining competitive advantage for the production of the product it helps to determine the supply (Sople, 2012, pp. 37-41). According to Porter, the demand and supply balance is very much dependent upon the structure of the industry. As the industry structure plays a vital role in determining an or ganizations profit, it has a significant role in achieving and maintains demand and supply balance of a product. Evaluation Although, chain concept is one of the most applicable and successful concept for achieving competitive advantage it is not without drawbacks. Chain concept is not of much help for a diversified firm operationally defined as one sells related and unrelated products thus compete in different industries. It works for commodities, which do not need infrastructure and complementary services before there usage. The chain value analysis of Ford would evaluate that the company due it to it being involved in more than one generic strategy suffers from lack of competitive advantage and exhibits below average performance. There may be some

The Entire Revamped E-Marketing Effort Through the Linked Term Paper

The Entire Revamped E-Marketing Effort Through the Linked - Term Paper Example PR Smith (2006) puts the marketing plan and the SOSTAC model in the strategic perspective when it states the following, â€Å"Finally, one question that commonly arises: Where would you put Target Markets, Marketing Mix and Positioning in SOSTAC? The answer is that Target Markets pop up almost everywhere. Target Markets are so important that once you have identified them in the objectives, they pop up all over a marketing plan - in the situation analysis, objectives, strategy, tactics and so on. A summary of the current marketing mix and positioning will appear in the Situation Analysis under a 'review' section. The future mix and positioning and target markets are often summarized under Strategy and explained in detail under Tactics†. Literature has been predicting healthy growth rates for the home furniture markets. Healthy growth rates imply that such rates are neither spectacular nor very low. â€Å"With an estimated value of over  £210 million in 2005, the home office furniture market is forecast to maintain reasonably healthy growth rates in the short-medium term, depending on external economic and other micro market factors. (Home,2006) In terms of looking at the trends in the demand for the products; the trends that have emerged from early 2000 have been consolidating and repeating themselves over the years. While the last 7 years trends have indicated that the customers preferred elegance combined with simplicity and space and cost-effectiveness; a newer refinement has been in terms of modern designs that are durable and long lasting. â€Å"In terms of NPD, stylishness is likely to be big.

The Settling of the Frontier (US History) Assignment

The Settling of the Frontier (US History) - Assignment Example He fought well during the American Civil War and also helped win the Battle of Washita over the Cheyenne. Six years later, in the year 1874, he helped tap gold in the Black Hills and two years later led a force against the Sioux uprising. By the age of 23, he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-general. â€Å"He was a brave warrior and died a brave man.† (Low Dog, a Sioux warrior). The frontier period was one of the most important phases of American history that lead to the westward expansion of the country through the colonization of the Great West and ended in a war between the states. â€Å"We are great, and rapidly, I was about to say fearfully growing!† (Calhoun, 1817). Hollywood has chosen to glorify and thus distort this period from 1862-1900 as this most â€Å"rapid and effective period Americanization was also the meeting point between savagery and civilization.† (Frederick J. Turner, 2006). To portray the rejection of England in a new light and glorify the victory of America and its success in the double transformation of the society, Hollywood decided who the heroes and who the villains were and projected the frontier period as a pseudo reality. Its nature and mentality is akin to that of the frontier

The Entire Revamped E-Marketing Effort Through the Linked Term Paper

The Entire Revamped E-Marketing Effort Through the Linked - Term Paper Example PR Smith (2006) puts the marketing plan and the SOSTAC model in the strategic perspective when it states the following, â€Å"Finally, one question that commonly arises: Where would you put Target Markets, Marketing Mix and Positioning in SOSTAC? The answer is that Target Markets pop up almost everywhere. Target Markets are so important that once you have identified them in the objectives, they pop up all over a marketing plan - in the situation analysis, objectives, strategy, tactics and so on. A summary of the current marketing mix and positioning will appear in the Situation Analysis under a 'review' section. The future mix and positioning and target markets are often summarized under Strategy and explained in detail under Tactics†. Literature has been predicting healthy growth rates for the home furniture markets. Healthy growth rates imply that such rates are neither spectacular nor very low. â€Å"With an estimated value of over  £210 million in 2005, the home office furniture market is forecast to maintain reasonably healthy growth rates in the short-medium term, depending on external economic and other micro market factors. (Home,2006) In terms of looking at the trends in the demand for the products; the trends that have emerged from early 2000 have been consolidating and repeating themselves over the years. While the last 7 years trends have indicated that the customers preferred elegance combined with simplicity and space and cost-effectiveness; a newer refinement has been in terms of modern designs that are durable and long lasting. â€Å"In terms of NPD, stylishness is likely to be big.

Comparison between Japanese and Canadian Central Bank Policies Essay Example for Free

Comparison between Japanese and Canadian Central Bank Policies Essay The present paper is an investigation of the central bank policies in the countries of Japan and Canada. The paper takes into examination Bank of Japan and Bank of Canada and explores the grounds on which similarities and differences, if any, can be noted. This study is a comparison between the central banks’ policies of both the countries. The structure of the paper overviews the banking system of both the countries then furthers with individual analysis only to bring a major comparison at the second last section. The paper discusses findings in the conclusion section and makes recommendations for future policy making and development. 2- Overview This section overviews the past, present of the two banks in the concerned countries. This is in the attempt of creating a base of the later sections that would be dealing with specific policy issues of the two banks. 2.1- Japanese Banking System Today Japanese banking system finds its foundational roots in the aftermaths of World War II and is still continuing to grow support for the financial and industrial organizations of the country. Ever since World War II, Japanese banking system has gone through a number of changes and adaptations in corporate behavior as well as in the shaping of economic and regulatory policies. The period that can be said to be the golden time for the development of the Japanese banking system is regarded to be from the early 1950s to the early 1970s. This was the time when Japanese firms were growing rapidly and needed financial backing and monetary assessment to hold solid on the corporate grounds. However, from the 1970s, some changes were experienced by this banking system and that solid position was shaken. Of the major reasons, international paradigm change in financial transactions, corporate behavior with regard to investment of funds both internal and external, (firms started issuing securities rather than borrowing from banks) and other such reasons can be said to be the causes for the shaking of such a strong banking system as was in Japan once especial up to the early 1970s. Up to the present day, in the Japanese financial system, bank loans still possess the dominant place as the external financing source for the corporate sector which is non-financial – until 1986 the borrowings done from private institutions were recorded to be more than seventy percent. Other such common services as issuance of bonds, client monitoring, cost monitoring for different services, and so forth are also found to be in practice in the Japanese banking system. As such, there is much more that is needed to be examined in this country’s banking system that makes it notable on the international horizon (Aoki, Patrick, Sheard, pp. 1-15, 1994). 2.2 – Canadian Banking System The central banking system of Canada is also with its typical issues and challenges and up to the present time, these challenges have been multiplying for a number of factors. For example, nowhere in history general public was so much conscious about the evil unemployment and is now showing a hyper attitude which simply put the government and its financial institutions up front to the criticism. As such, the challenges are to make such financial policies as can help confront these challenges and move over them. Although the central bank of Canada did go through a long period of adjustments, say the depression period of the 1930s and later, Neufeld (1958) notes that â€Å"The constitutional adjustments experienced by the Bank of Canada were not as great as those of some older central banks† (p. 4). There are noteworthy reasons for this observation. For instance, beginning in the market, the bank was sponsored by the government leading to a stable position. However, political interventions and the bank’s responsibilities to cater for the needs or demands of the political party government continued to exist. The bank went through war crisis, financial instability, and social pressures like unemployment, all along its birth becoming an adult from an immature youth. At present the Bank is in a more favorable position to serve for the purposes of the government and perform its multifarious purposes with regard to financial activities along with the challenges. Some of the challenges that the bank faced during its stability periods were â€Å"serious foreign exchange outflows and phenomenal capital inflows† (212). The three areas, back in the stability phase, i.e., bond market, stock exchanges, and foreign exchange markets, have been tactfully established by the bank to create a positive picture of the overall economic situation of the country. Presently, the Bank holds a primary position in the decision making process of these three areas. Today, as a successful bank, the expert opinion about this bank is that it has dealt in the time of difficulty more with technique which was versatile than conservatism (213). The banking system of Canada is in a constant process of up gradation for better output; one such instance is the use of geographic information systems (GIS) technology â€Å"for a wide range of applications† (Macdonald, 2001, p. 419). Therefore, it is important to have a deep examination of the policies and practices of this bank so that the insider’s view can help others form such a system in any other country. 3-Policies of the Bank of Japan There are a number of policy issues that need to be revisited but for the limited space of the paper, only a few major are discussed. First of all, policies of the Bank of Japan (BOJ) have been central to critics’ attention due to a number of reasons but the most important is that it is one of the three G-3 central banks that have been reviewed in the past decades. The special features of BOJ are numerous. The most apparent, however, is its stance on deflation. Although BOJ was forced to take â€Å"a highly leveraged position† in local financial environment, it has taken no risk to fight the challenge. Moreover, it might have been possible for the bank to give in to a number of challenges that were created by deflation, however, the bank continued to survive with a number of different policies and measures (Cargill, 2005, p. 311). BOJ’s approach to monetary policy is pragmatic. The overall focus of this monetary policy is to maintain stability in price and encourage economic development. To meet these ends, the Bank monitors such areas as exchange rates, the aggregates of money, the indices of consumer and wholesale rates, growth of the GDP, production taking place in the industry, on-going interest rate in the market, prices of assets, and a number of other factors. It is also notable that in the functions of the Bank, international policy association and coordination can also play a role in the Bank’s domestic policy making. It is important to note that throughout its existence the BOJ has never come to stand as hardcore monetarist. Instead of this, the Bank has been treating the policy making of money more like a form of art. There are a number of methods by which the Bank lets its policies become public. The implementation of policies also takes a number of forms, for instance, â€Å"discoun t window† guides other financial institutions through loans etc. (Miller, 1996, pp. 1-47). By the late 1980s, BOJ held its position as positive in the eyes of the critics due to a number of policy making issues since WWII. Up to then the bank had gone through a number of remarkably shaky times coping up with such challenges as industrialization and establishment of it. By that time major characteristics of BOJ were its commitment to price stability and positive outcomes that came out of its policies. The most important point is that since its establishment, its legal position did not go through a change. Then it was the only bank rated as the most dependent of all the central banks in the world. Hence the notable feature is its keeping price stability instead of being a dependent bank. It also contradicted the widely acclaimed view that the more independent a central bank, the more price stability would be extended (Cargill, 2005, p. 311).   May 1989 is the period called the low point policy period of BOJ which continued through the year 2004. Here the bank increased the rate of discount in a number of steps that included historically low rate of 2.5 percent to 6.0 in the first stage of 1991. It was sternly a reaction against the asset inflation of the 1980s. However, the sharp recession and diminishing asset rate backed the bank to move for ease of policy in 1991 and the call and discount rates came down to 0.05 percent by the early 1995. Until it obtained the first â€Å"0 rate of interest† policy in 1999, the bank went on lowering call rate discount. It was drawn to a close in 2000. It came back to zero rate policy again in 2000 and moved on to a statistical easing down of policy in 2001 because declining economy alerted the authorities; moreover, it needed to adopt a different framework of operation for short-term rates on interest which had to be fundamentally zero (Cargill, 2005, p. 311). Although internationally, it is the reputation of the Bank of Japan that it has been moving too gradually in terms of the formation of monetary policy, fiscal policies, and resolving the issues present to it, there are important areas where this criticism becomes void. For example, Japan is often compared with the USA without considering the fact that former faced a great many more problems than the latter. Additionally, there are such instances as Japan’s tighter economic policy in 1996 that has much to discard this criticism (Browne, 2001, p. 3). 4- Policies of the Bank of Canada The Bank of Canada (BOC) is often criticized for influencing the level of price, jobs, and the development of its country’s economy. However, in the recent years the Bank has acquired a reputation that it is very concerned with keeping the inflation rate low so that it can make other ends meet for broader goals of economy. The Bank has also been charged with its acute concerns to inflation rate only and looking over such challenges as unemployment and economic growth. However, there are proponents of the Bank’s policies who come forward to defend the policies of the bank as they are presently in practice stating that if the focus of the Bank shift to the vice versa perspective, there would be no growth in economy and inflation rate will increase causing devaluation of the dollar. Vanderhart (2003) conducted an in-depth analysis of BOC’s response to inflation rate and other such concerns as unemployment, growth of economy, and other factors. The author found that there is insufficient evidence to suggest that the Bank of Canada’s response to economic data available on inflation is direct, â€Å"inflationary precursors as raw materials and intermediate goods prices are only significant when other important factors are omitted† (p. 357). But the author does not make it a remark that the Bank does not follow the procedures to pursue anti-inflationary policy. What the BOC has successfully achieved with regard to keeping control over inflation is that it responds to those factors which are other than â€Å"the releases of price level data†. Moreover, the recent policies also prompt to the suggestion that the Bank is taking measure to fight the challenge of unemployment. Two factors also came up to the author’s analysis that determined the actions and responses of the BOC. These are exchange rates and federal fund rate. The bottom line that the author draws is the there is little doubt about the health of the Canadian economy and the BOC is actively involved in the process of keeping this health stable. However, if some out-of-Canada issues are present, there may be some criticism on the Bank for example, its interconnection with the U.S. monetary policy because there are voices that might want a Canada which is independent of U.S. related economic policies (Vanderhart, 2003). If we review comparative analysis of Canadian economic growth with other countries (say Australia), there is sufficient evidence to mark the above observation that the Canadian economy has grown stronger than before and that such challenges as labor utilization has been carefully handled in the favor of the country. Harchaoui, et al. tell us that the growth of Canada’s real average income has large credit to a magnificent improvement in the way labor has been utilized, i.e. â€Å"the combination of high average hours worked and a high rate of employment in the total population†. In addition to this, capital deepening effect has also played an important role in the present stability of the Canadian financial outlook (Harchaoui, et al., 2005, p. 36). 5- Bank of Japan and Bank of Canada Comparing the policies of the central banks of Japan and Canada each gives us more insight. There are a few studies that have been done on the comparative analysis. In one such study, Tomljanovich (2007) informs that the central banks of these two countries (including banks of other countries, as well) are on a constant pursuit of having open dialogue with the general public and this is in the efforts of increasing efficiency and reducing volatility in financial markets. In the case of Canada, which comes in the category of a majority of interest rate maturities, it is found that there is greater predictability in terms of market functions because there is a high flow of information to Canada and this flow coincides with sub-periods simultaneously to lower interest volatility rate. However, Japan (as well as Germany in this study) appears to be the only country in which there is no such evidence of lower interest volatility. Moreover the study shows that the central Bank of Japan and the central Bank of Canada both moved to greater transparency measures in the 1990s which shows that both these banks want to progress on the modern lines (p. 791). As for the policies of Canadian central bank, it is evident that there is inclination of these policies to those of the U.S. There is no doubt that Bank of Canada has greater interests in keeping these ties with the financial environment of the U.S. monetary and fiscal policies. However, Bank of Japan has stood on a very different turf that is of independence with dependence and of unique regulatory framework of all policies handled ever since World War II. There is no doubt that government like Canada and Quebec recognize China and Japan for their strategic partnership in the region of Asia. For this the credit goes to Japanese ever-growing economic curve which in turn holds credit for the policies that the central banking system of Japan for a long time formulated, ran, and implemented successfully (Inomata, 2002, p. 259). 6- Conclusion Examination of the policies of central Bank of Japan and the central Bank of Canada in detail reveal that both countries have to face challenges that emerge from their specific environment. There are similarities and differences in the approaches of the Banks of both the countries. One acute similarity is that both countries have moved to greater transparency and are considered successful banks on the international horizon. Another is that Banks of both these countries are focusing more on interest rate and inflation level stability. For this purpose, however, the approaches of the two banks are different; both are putting efforts to fight the challenge of unemployment. As for the differences, Japanese bank is legally dependent, whereas, Canadian bank is independent; yet there is this sharp observation that Bank of Canada looks at the U.S. financial environment for policy making, whereas, Japanese Bank looks at its own typical challenges that need to be tackled on the international f ront. Another important thing which comes out from this study of the two banking systems in two different countries is that both function in their own environment and that it is not possible to find acute similarities in both the systems because of different financial and social outlook of the countries. This is important to look into more details in these central banks and banks of other countries as well so that a sound analysis about policy making and other measure against present and upcoming challenges can be met.

Pharmaceutical Industry Analysis

Pharmaceutical Industry Analysis In this chapter a basic understanding of how the pharmaceutical industry will be defined and which models will be used to analyse it will be given to the reader. 1.1 Definition of Industry The most important definition of industry was given by Michael Porter in 1979: a group of competitors producing substitutes that are close enough that the behaviour of any firm affects each of the others either directly or indirectly. Later, Porter defined the term more precisely as a group of companies offering products or services that are close substitutes for each other, that is, products or services that satisfy the same basic customers needs. This new definition emphasizes the importance of industry borders and industrys role as a market supplier or producer of goods and services, as distinguished from a market, defined as a consumer of goods and services. Furthermore, inside every industry there are groups of companies that follow similar strategies, defined by Michael S. Hunt in his unpublished 1972 Ph.D. dissertation as strategic groups. Between these groups there are differences in entry barriers, bargaining power with buyers and suppliers and skills and resources . Strategic groups compete against each other within the industry as a result of these differences. 1.2 Models to Analyse the Industry and Its Environment The literature agrees that comprehension of the industry structure is essential to developing a firms strategy and has a greater effect on the firms performance than whether it is business-specific or corporate-parent. The comprehension of the structure requires analyses of the industrys life cycle. It also requires step-by-step political, legal, technological, social and economic analyses as well as the five driving forces of business, provided by Michael Porter. By utilizing these analysis techniques, it is also possible to anticipate changes in industry competition and profitability over time. 1.2.1 Industry Life Cycle Analysis There are different phases during the development of an industry. Every phases is characterized by a different environments which make competition assumes different the form. Through studying the life cycle, the industry realizes its stake in the market and its influence on consumers. The industry life cycle model includes four different phases: introduction, growth, maturity and decline. The first phase, called introduction, is characterized by a low demand, whereas prices are high as a consequence of firms inability to realize economies of scale. For this reason profits are low and losses are possible due to high amount of investments in new categories. Barriers to entry are primary based on technologies and competencies. Strategy is focused mainly on RD and production, with the goal of enhancing novelty and quality. Competitors, attracted by the rising demand, attempt to replicate the new product. In the second phase, growth, the use of the product is extended, demand grows, prices decline due to economies of scale, barriers to entry are lower and the threat of new entry is high. At this phase the technology is usually not exclusive property of one or more firms, and the primary reaction to competition is marketing expenditure and initiatives; profits are not very high because prices decline as competitors enter the market. There is a transition period, or shake-out, between the second and the third phases. The shake-out involves finding and using all investment opportunities, because the market is near saturation and demand grows more slowly. In the third phase, maturity, market growth is low or non-existent, and the focus shifts to gaining market share; demand is represented only by the substitution of products, investment in RD decreases and there is little innovation. In this phase firms seek cost reductions, and competition is based primarily on advertising and quality because of the low differentiation between products. Big firms acquire smaller players, while others are forced to exit. As a consequence of high barrier to entry, the threat of new entrants are low. The last phase is decline, so called because of the continued decline in demand. Industries arrive at this stage for a variety of reasons. These include a change in social behaviours, demographic changes, international competition, technological innovations and increased customer knowledge. The buying process is based primarily on price rather than innovation. As a result, profit and revenues decline, and the industry as a whole may be supplanted. 1.2.2 PEST Analysis The word PEST is an acronym of several aspects that influence business activities at any given moment. An industry operates under Political, Economic, Social and Technological conditions. These conditions are identify and analyzed using the PEST Analysis technique. Due to their independent influence on any industry, it is essential that each be considered individually. The political aspect of analysis encompasses various factors that influence business activities in a given country at several levels: national, sub-national and supranational levels. These include trade policies control imports, exports and international business partners, government ownership of industry, attitude toward monopolies and competition and trade policies. Hence, failure to consider these policies may result in loss of revenue due to taxes or penalty fees. Government stability is also very important, because it eradicates the risks associated with wars and conflicts. For an industry to thrive, political stability must be uncompromising; otherwise, sales and business activities will be uncertain, and investors will lose interest. The internal political issues in any country influence the running of industries. Politics based on race or religion may define the course for certain industries, especially if an industry falls short of political expectations. Elections and changes in leadership also influence an industrys strengths and opportunities and thus should be considered during the analysis. In addition to internal issues, international pressures and influences may affect some industries, such as environmental degradation or product safety. Another factor is terrorism. Though uncommon in many countries, poor or unstable governance may attract terrorist activities, vengeful or otherwise, which can have adverse effects on the industries operating in that country. All these issues may influence industry and firm expansion and industry attractiveness from stake holders point of view. The economic aspect of analysis includes many factors. The first factor to consider is the current economic situation and trends in the country in which the industry is based. Companies should note inflation and economic decline so that when it comes to investing, they can avoid being financially affected. Failure to do this results in an economically blind platform that may cause the industrys sudden collapse. Another factor to consider in analysis is taxation rates. When there are high taxation rates in a given country, price-based competition may affect a given industry in the international market. International economic trends are also very important, because they define currency exchange rates, imports and exports. Other factors to consider are consumer expenditure and disposable income and, finally, legal issues, including all trade legislation in a given country and other legal regulations that inhibit or encourage expansion of business activities. Also to be considered are consumer protection laws, employment laws, environmental protection laws and quality standardization regulations. Industrial laws regulating competition, market policies and guidelines also play an important role in influencing industrys stability and future expansion possibilities . When considering the social aspect, factors including demographic changes, shifts in values and culture and changes in lifestyle are important to note so as to strategize on expansion and growth . Certain factors, such as media and communities, influence an industrys growth and returns. Brand name and corporate image are also very important in influencing growth and returns since they shape customer loyalty and shareholder investment. The medias views on certain industrial products should be incorporated into the analysis, as should consumer attitudes and sensibility to green issues, that is, issues that affect the environment, energy consumption and waste and its disposal. A companys information systems and internal and external communications should also be analyzed to ensure that it keeps pace with its competitors. Other factors are the policies regulating education, health and distribution of income, all of which, in the long run, influence consumer use of products . The technological aspect of analysis encompasses a variety of factors. In addition to developing technologies, all associated technologies, along with their innovation potentials, speed of change and adoption of new technology, should be analyzed for a proper evaluation of the industry. Other technological factors are transportation, waste management and online business. The level of expenditure on RD should also be considered in order to secure the industrys competitive position to prevent losses and collapse . 1.2.3 Porters Five Competitive Forces Analysis Porters model, as described by Kay, is an evolution of the Structure-Conduct-Performance paradigm conceived by Edward Mason at Harvard University in the 1930s and detailed by Scherer in the 1980s. , The model aims to determine the intensity of industry competition, major issues in determining strategy and whether an industry is attractive or not. Porter identified five competitive forces that act on an industry and its environment: threat of entry, intensity of rivalry among existing competitors, threat of substitutes, bargaining power of buyers and bargaining power of suppliers. The first competitive force, threat of entry, refers to the threat of new entrants in an established industry or acquisition to gain market share. Reactions of participants and barriers to entry are the main factors used to establish whether the threat is high or low. Six major entry barriers have been identified: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ capital required to compete in the industry (especially in risky industry, such as advertising or RD) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ switching costs à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ access to distribution channels à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ economies of scale à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ cost disadvantages independent of scale, such as patents, access to know-how, access to limited resources, favourable locations, government subsidies or policies and learning or experience curves à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ product differentiation à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ expected retaliation from existing firms against the new entrants Strong barriers to the entry of new firms enable a few firms to dominate the market and thereby influence prices. The second force is intensity of rivalry among existing competitors. Rivalry takes place when one or more firms inside an industry try to improve their position using tactics such as price competition, new product introduction or new services. Rivalry depends on several factors: number and size of competitors, industry growth, product characteristics (which determine whether the rivalry is based on price or differentiation), cost structure, exit barriers, diverse competitors, operative capacity and high strategic stakes. If an industry is inhibited, then firms will experience difficulties when trying to expand. The growth of foreign competition and the corporate stakes should also be included in the analysis. Threat of substitutes is the third forces. Substitutes are those products manufactured by other industries but serving the same purposes as the initial product. These substitute products cause the demand to decline. The implications are reduced profits and reduced market command by the original capital investor. This is of particular importance when the buyer has no switching costs and can easily compare products in terms of price and efficiency. Bargaining power of buyers is the fourth force. High bargaining power positions weak firms inside the industry, forcing price down, enhancing competition between industry players and resulting in bargaining for higher quality or services. This power is particularly high under certain conditions, such as few and specific buyers, undifferentiated products, low switching costs, the possibility of backward integration and information about demand and the availability of market price to the buyers. Furthermore, bargaining power is high if product quality is not a crucial factor of decision-making and if what the buyer is acquiring is a modest fraction of his total costs. Bargaining power is even higher when the buyer is a retailer or a wholesaler able to influence the consumers purchasing decision. The fifth and last force is the bargaining power of suppliers. This can act on the industry in several ways: raising prices, lowering quality or privileging some buyers. Supplier power can be divided into several elements. One of these elements is supplier concentration. Suppliers are in a stronger position when there are few suppliers, switching costs are high, the industry they are serving account for a small fraction of their business or their products are an important part of the buyers business. The bargaining power of suppliers is low or non-existent when there are substitute products. Lastly, purchase volume and the suppliers influence on cost are very important. 2. Pharmaceutical Industry Analysis A general overview of the pharmaceutical industry is the primary objective of this chapter. First, this chapter will define the industry in order to identify the main players in the pharmaceutical market. Second, using the instruments and models described in the first section, it will highlight the main characteristics of the industry and the factors that influence it. 2.1 Definition of Pharmaceutical Industry The pharmaceutical industry is composed of companies developing, manufacturing and marketing products licensed for use as medications. Their goal is to prevent, diagnose or treat diseases. A medicinal product, also called a pharmaceutical, according to the EU, is an exogenous substance or a combination of exogenous substances that can be organic or inorganic, natural or synthetic, and able, once inside the human or animal body, to modify physiological functions or to make a medical diagnosis through physical, chemical or physicochemical action. This industry is subdivided into two sub-industries characterized by different business models and players: prescription and OTC pharmaceuticals. Prescription pharmaceuticals, also referred to as Rx, are medicines that are available to the consumers for purchase in a pharmacy or drug store only with a prescription from a physician or administered only in hospitals. These medicines target specific diseases and, therefore, are prescribed for and used by one person only. OTC pharmaceuticals are instead used by more than one person which present the same symptoms in the same or in different time. These medicines are available to the consumer at every time and the consumer dont need any prescription from a physician for purchase. Furthermore, inside this industry there are two types of firms: Big Pharma and Biotech. These two types, despite being in the same business, vary in several ways: IP, drug methodology, expenditure and productivity of RD . The primary drug RD techniques used by Big Pharma firms are chemoinformatics and in silico screenings. Biotech firms are companies that use biotechnology in RD . Biotechnology, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, is the application of science and technology to living organisms, as well as parts, products and models thereof, to alter living or nonliving materials for the production of knowledge, goods and services. Generally, Biotech firms tend to have a strong academic culture, are more risk treatment and spend less than half what Big Pharma spends on R&D; in 2004, Biotech firms spent $20 billion, versus $50 billion spent by Big Pharma. Generally, a Biotech product has multiple IP covering manufacture, formulation and stability, as opposed to Big Pharma IP, which covers only the product, allowing generics to be produced quickly. While they may appear to have the same phenotype, their genotypes are distinct, so much so that they can be considered two industries, as stated by Arthur D. Levinson, Chairman and CEO of Genentech. Nevertheless, this distinction is not always clear, as many Biotech and Big Pharma firms are hybrids to varying degrees. The focus of this thesis are Big Pharma involved in the development of prescription pharmaceuticals to treat and prevent human diseases in the EU market. 2.2 Analysis of the Pharmaceutical Industry The purpose of this chapter is to provide a brief overview of the pharmaceutical industry lifecycle and investigate the major force acting inside it . 2.2.1 Industry Lifecycle Analysis People over the years have always tried to discover diseases causes and to find remedies against it. The most complete medical test, the Ebers Papyrus, is dated 1550 BC and it was written by Egyptians . However, the industrial production of drugs dates back to the year 1827 when Heinrich E Merck in Germany founded the first company for the production of cocaine and morphine . This event started the introduction phase of the pharmaceutical industry in Europe. In Europe, this industry was born in different way, reflecting the different strategic groups inside it. In the German-speaking countries, pharmaceutical companies were born as a branch of the chemical industry, with firms like Bayer and Hoechst in 1863, BASF in 1865 and Schering in 1871 in Germany, and CIBA in 1884 and Sandoz in 1886. Only Hoffman-La Roche in 1894 in Switzerland was originally a drug firm. On the other hand, in Italy, France and the UK companies were born from small shop pharmacies, such as Glaxo which traces its origins to a pharmacy in Plough Court in 1715 . During the 1800s many compounds were already being isolated, but none was being synthetically produced. The first synthetic drug was Phenacetin, produced by Bayer and commercialized in 1888 . Ten years later Bayer commercialized Aspirin, which marked a milestone in the pharmaceutical industry. Many firms rose to prominence in the 1920s-30s with these kinds of pharmaceuticals, but also with a new class of pharmaceuticals: vaccines and serums . During the Second World War II the demand for drugs increased and mass production started, primarily with drugs such as antibiotics (penicillin, streptomycin and neomycin) and sulphonamide . The availability of these drugs dramatically changed the quality and the average life-span of people. In this period the German pharmaceutical industry, a leader along with the Swiss in pre-war times, was taken over by American firms who came to Europe to taking advantage of the condition of the continent after the war. The period 1950-60 was the start of the industrys growth phase , and this saw a proliferation of new drugs and high return to drug discovery. New drugs included tranquilizers such as MAO inhibitors in 1952, anti-tuberculosis drugs such as Isoniazid in 1952 and oral contraceptives in 1956. Other discoveries included Librium in 1960 and Valium in 1960. The latter was sold from 1963 and later became one of the most prescribed medicines in history before controversy emerged over its link to habituation and dependency. In the 1950s, legislation was put in place to regulate the industry, mainly touching on labelling and approval by health authorities as well as drawing distinctions between non-prescription and prescription medicines. In this apparently unstoppable process of pharmaceutical progression and optimism the industry was stalled by a drama concerning one drug sold in Europe and Japan, Thalidomide. This drug, synthesized in Germany in 1954, was introduced to the market to treat the symptoms of morning sickness and nausea in pregnant women. Between 1954 and 1960, it caused around 5,000 and 10,000 severe deformities in infants. In fact, the drug had not been sufficiently tested on animals to assess its safety, and after this revelation, in an attempt to better regulate the industry, drug oversight authorities were established to exercise control over the industry. The World Medical Association met in Finland and issued the Declaration of Helsinki, setting the standards for clinical research. Among other things, the declaration stated that pharmaceutical companies must prove the efficacy of a new drug in clinical trials before releasing it to the market, and subjects must consent to experiments done to test the efficacy of drugs in clinical studies. The industry remained small up to the late 1970s . Two events characterized the 1970s. First, chemical production for raw materials and early intermediates shifted out of Europe to low cost destinations such as India and China which later began producing active pharmaceutical ingredients and finally non-patented pharmaceuticals . Second, there was the birth of biotechnology. This new science had its roots many years before with the discovery of the double helix in 1953 by Watson and Crick, which followed the advances in molecular genetics, recombinant DNA technology, and molecular biology. Until then, drugs in commerce were produced by extraction from natural substances or chemical synthesis. These new techniques of molecular biology marked the birth of a new industry which became a competitor to and a substitute of the pharmaceutical industry. This new industry was pioneered by firms like Genentech and Amgen which introduced revolutionary drugs such as Epogen and recombinant human insulin. In the 1980s, legislation was passed in most European countries requiring adherence to strong patents for both the pharmaceutical products and their production processes. There were also new regulations such as the introduction of the Good Clinical Practices, which were guidelines regulating ethics and the reliability of clinical studies. In Europe, several states also initiated health maintenance organizations and managed care in an effort to limit rising medical costs, and a preference for preventive rather that curative medication took root. As the industry entered the 1990s, new discoveries and projects, such as the Human Genome Project 1990, changed the business environment. Also, there was a huge wave of MA to build on synergies. This included Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz forming Novartis, Hoechst and Roussel-Rhone Poulenc-Rorer forming Aventis and Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline forming GlaxoSmithKline. In this way, the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals came to be concentrated in Western Europe and North America, with dominant firms and a few small companies that produced drugs in each country. The major European companies are still the dominant players not only in Europe but also in the global market. They include Novartis of Switzerland, Bayer of Germany, GlaxoSmithKline of the UK, Hoffman-la Roche of Switzerland and AstraZeneca of UK/Sweden. As the European pharmaceutical industry entered the 21st century, signs of the growth phase have become even more evident. This has been characterized by intense marketing to physicians and internet commerce. This, in part, has been facilitated by the liberalization of marketing rules requiring presentation of risks as well as the advertising message. Internet has enabled the direct purchase of raw materials by the manufacturers. The development of drugs has moved from the hit-and-miss approach to research and informed discovery. Alternative medicines and lifestyle medicines have presented new challenges and opportunities and have raised the level of competition in the industry. The ageing population in western European economies has increased opportunities for raising revenues. In fact, because of the ageing population in the developed economies, drug consumption will increase since the aged have a higher frequency of contracting diseases than younger people. New epidemics, such as the recent H1N1 flu outbreak, continue to batter the world population, and increased globalization makes them spread more quickly than ever. As the industry advances through the growth phase, companies are undertaking research and development initiatives both to develop new drugs and improve production processes. Further, the increased role of state-supported medical schemes across Europe, as well as other state-managed health programs around the world will greatly increase the reach of healthcare, extending it to more of the middle class and the poor who constitute the larger part of the population in most countries. As the medical programs continue to gain efficacy, the sales of pharmaceutical firms are expected to grow. In addition, the emerging economies like Brazil, Russia, India, China, Turkey, Mexico, and South Korea will add to potential consumer numbers in the industry for European manufacturers. Together, these countries constitute a huge percentuage of the worlds population, meaning that their entry into the high income category will no doubt present an enormous potential market for pharmaceutical products. In fact, the growth in these markets is expected to reach 14-17% by 2014, compared with only 3-6% growth in the developed markets. Thanks to agreements signed by the Asia-Pacific and Europe governments concerning liberalization of the Asia-Pacific pharmaceuticals and investments market, many companies have already started to establish relationships with emerging markets. An example is GlaxoSmithKline, who partnered in 2009 with Indias Dr. Reddy Laboratories. GlaxoSmithKline will distribute the drugs manufactured and supplied by Dr. Reddy in Africa, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. Even with these last considerations, the European pharmaceutical industry has only a limited chance of entering the maturity phase of the cycle. The barriers to entry are so great that they choke any new entrant in almost every facet of operation: in research and development, in product distribution, and in compliance with rules and regulations. In fact, this industry has complex manufacturing capabilities which are hard to replicate, and are protected by way of patent, as well as huge consumer attachment to preferred brands from specific companies, often informed by experience. Furthermore Europe generic penetration is very low (less than 10% in total). Thus the industry might remain in the growth phase for a considerable time.