Principles of Responsible Commerce

Most businesses operate to make profit in the society. Apart from the profit-making objective, businesses should ensure that their operations bring positive changes in the society. The positive changes can be through job creation and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Principles of Responsible Commerce specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The latter does not exclude non-corporate businesses since any act on the environment affect all businesses irrespective of size (Supporting Corporate Social Responsibility 2012). A business that creates wealth, offer products that satisfy the needs of customers and employs members of a society is dubbed a responsible business. Moreover, a responsible business strives to uphold the principle of equity and fairness to its entire stakeholders and the local community in general. The essay will analyze the principles of responsible commerce in light t o the utilitarianism theory and the learning trend that I have experienced in this course. In addition, the essay will analyse the Hewlett Packard Case Study and compare it to the theory of utilitarianism in an ethical dimension. In CSR, businesses have to align their objectives with the societal requirements. For example, businesses can engage in ethical practices through participating in environmental protection in the community, which they operate. Companies always engage in CSR as an ethical practice and not a legal requirement (Supporting Corporate Social Responsibility 2012). On the other hand, organizations can decide not to engage in CSR, but does not imply that they have gone against a legal requirement. In the journey of learning this course, I have learnt that not all ethical practices are lawful. In essence, principles of responsible commerce involve engaging in ethical activities that may affect the stakeholders.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Another example involves a situation where a driver may notice an accident while driving and decides to drive away from the scene. Ethically, he should have stopped and offered help to the victims; however, his/her action has not violated the law. Again, if a business decides to take care of the poor in the community by offering educational scholarship programmes, it becomes an ethical practice. Conversely, a business that has the capability of supporting a local community, but decides not to do so has not violated the law, but its negligence results to an unethical practice. It becomes unethical since it has the potential to do so but opts to avoid it. An ethical practice involves what is right or wrong while law deals with what is unlawful or lawful (Njoka 2012). The two terms do not have direct implications on each other. In business perspectives, businesses outline their acceptable conducts that they consider fit to guide their operations. Responsible businesses consider the needs of all participants hence they lay their foundation on trust and confidence that forms the core of ethical practices (Njoka 2012). Social enterprises are the main practitioners of these principles as their goals and objectives gear towards social responsibility. However, business enterprises that are profit making in nature ought to understand that their ethical practices directly affect human needs. For instance, if there are lapses in integrity on the employer or employees side, the consumers are the final group that bear the consequences. According to Njoka 2012, such incidences of integrity lapses lower consumers’ trust and confidence in the business. Businesses should realize that the consumers that they feel should purchase their products in order to maximize profit require due attention, which only come from ethical engagements.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Principles of Responsible Commerce specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More If businesses neglect the interests and needs of their customers, the market can become unsustainable hence leading to business failure. Noticeably, organizations that desire to survive in this global and competitive market should instil ethical leadership in their management systems in order to attract and maintain their customers (Njoka 2012). Therefore, it is the role of the Human Resource Management (HRM) to ensure that the employees adhere to the set out ethical procedures. Moreover, business survival in the competitive market requires a high level of morality and responsibility. This aspect touches on giving back to the community in order to improve their living standards. Some of the activities that support ethical behaviours include offering sponsorship programmes for needy and bright students, training the local community how to engage in agricultural practi ces and even subsidising the cost of farming. Businesses that participate in these activities acquire high societal approval for their services (Corrales 2011). Even though other businesses may view CSR as an additional expense, the benefits that arise after the process are numerous; they include increased profitability hence assurance on continuity and the sustainable economic development.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More For example, activities like environmental conservation programmes assist businesses to minimize their costs of production since they can mitigate the effects of climate change. An effect of climate change like drought has a direct impact on the costs of production for organizations that rely on agricultural products. In addition, the consumers will experience a low standard of living, which results to low purchases of goods and services that businesses offer. Moreover, environmental conservation will give the businesses opportunities to exploit their potentials in the present and even assure them of the same in future. Sustainable economic development offers businesses potentials both at present and in the future; therefore, it ensures that businesses survive into the future (Corrales 2011). Notably, businesses are only assured of sustainable economic development if they inculcate ethical practices in their operations. Distinctly, a responsible business should engage in CSR since t he major beneficiary is the business and not the surrounding community. The utilitarianism theory conceives that an act is moral if the results create a positive impact to several individuals (Moreland 2009). It believes that no moral act or regulation is right or wrong; one can only determine their rightness or wrongness of an act by studying the consequences. This theory deals with the philosophy of the end justify the means. This theory analyzes all the courses of action that are available and the possible effects that can occur owing to the action before deciding on a course that is morally right and the situation that one may find himself. The possible effects include the benefits and harms that may result from such an action. In the final part, a course of action that presents highest benefits is chosen after considering the costs (Andre Velasquez 2010). It does not matter whether the means that one uses is right or wrong provided the results are beneficial to many people. Fo r example, a person can break into a chemist and steal a drug that can assist a patient to recover if they cannot afford to purchase the drug. According to the utilitarianism theory, the whole process is ethical since the drug helped in saving life. Clearly, the theory oversees the unethical behaviour of stealing. In this aspect, the theory may encourage some acts, which are unethical in the business environment since they may result to positive feedbacks. As a result, the theory analyzes the morality of any effect. If the effect is good, the process is acceptable. From the above scenario, stealing produced a good and not an evil effect-rescuing life. The theory supports some acts that the societal norms consider as unethical practices. However, the theory does not consider whether the doctor has received justice for the act that made him lose his drug and experience destruction of property or not. In the business point of view, the benefits that the utilitarianism theory defines ar e the satisfaction levels and the number of stakeholders that will receive the benefits. The theory expects managers to make decisions that have greatest benefits to the majority of the stakeholders in order to ensure their satisfaction. Human Resource Managers should treat consumers as ends not as means; they should not involve consumers in the whole process of management, but must ensure that the results of the management process benefit a majority of them (Andre Velasquez 2010). From the above example of rescuing life, responsible businesses should consider the life of a human being as the most important parameter. For instance, if a business realizes that it will spend heavily in order to produce healthy products, it should do so since unhealthy products will negatively affect the lives of consumers. Even if the action of producing healthy products will result into losses, human dignity still overrides it. It is the responsibility of a business to provide high quality products to its customers and not for purposes of making profit. A responsible business will view apt employees’ remuneration as its responsibility and not a means of attracting skilful employees (Moreland 2009). The Hewlett Packard Case involved pretexting where a person pretended to be the owner of some information. This action made the private investigator access phone records of different individuals within the company. The act reveals information leakage to third parties, which were putting the company at risk of stakeholders’ withdrawal hence creating low trade values for their shares. Moreover, other drivers were leaking vital personal information to the press. Some board members could access data of the company’s customers at will. The company after investigating the issue had to reconstitute the Board of Directors in order to salvage the company’s reputation from other stakeholders (Sebastian 2011). In this manner, the company made a risky decision, which proved to be best alternative after analysing the overall costs and benefits of the consequences. This incident saw most board members resign from their posts as others tarnished their reputations. On the issue of legality, the issue of pretexting was presumed not illegal (Sebastian 2011). However, this does not imply that the act is ethical. The board members presumed that the legality of pretexting was all that could affect the operations of the company hence neglecting the ethical dimension. Despite the fact that the board members did not break any law, their acts could have affected the entire group of shareholders, stakeholders, and employees. In this dimension, the board members failed to analyse the effects of this deceptive practice in relation to the interests of the stakeholders. The pretexting ethical dilemma discloses a management system that is short-sighted, unprofessional, and egocentric in their operations. In relating the HP case and the utilitarianism theory, the decision by the company to lay-off some board members was an option that saved the reputation of the company as it considered the majority beneficiaries in the whole aspect. The interests of the stakeholders, shareholders, and employees overrode that of the few board members. The consequences of the company’s action on the pretexting incident affected the few board members negatively but benefited the stakeholders of the company. Hewlett Packard was experiencing organisational challenges at the time when the incident took place thereby giving loopholes on the ethical practices. During this time, the company’s shares had fluctuated in the market. Therefore, the case study supports the need for applying the principles of responsible commerce in all business operations irrespective of the legality. Businesses ought to act ethically when making decisions on their course of actions since the consequences may either protect or destroy the image of the businesses. This reflec tive essay has revealed that businesses that adhere to their ethical practices in order to improve their reputation among their stakeholders and shareholders hence obtaining the survival assurance in the present dynamic market. Businesses have to consider their decisions in a longsighted and humane manner. For example, they must include the interests of the local community since the community offers both social and operational security to the business (Corrales 2011). A responsible business should strive to prevent pollution and use proper waste disposal techniques. The Hewlett Packard case study and the utilitarianism theory have also analysed the need for businesses to make professional and long-sighted decisions that benefit the majority in the mix. References Andre, C. Velasquez, M. 2010, Calculating Consequences: The Utilitarian Approach to Ethics, Santa Clara University -Welcome.  Web Corrales, M. E. 2011, Caux Round Table – Principles for Responsible Business, Slide share.  Web. Moreland, J. 2009, Ethics Theories: Utilitarianism Vs. Deontological Ethics, Christian Research Institute.  Web. Njoka, F. 2012, Principles of Business, Scribd.  Web. Sebastian, E. R. 2011, The Ethical Problem of Pretexting: The Hewlett Packard Case Study, Yahoo Voices.  Web. Supporting Corporate Social Responsibility 2012, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC).  Web. This essay on Principles of Responsible Commerce was written and submitted by user Farrah J. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Hitlers Remilitarization essays

Hitler's Remilitarization essays Hitlers Remilitarization of the Rhineland In March 1936, Adolf Hitler remilitarized the Rhineland. Hitlers decision to remilitarize the Rhineland was brilliant for four reasons. First, Hitler was able to predict that no nation would try to stop him from remilitarizing the Rhineland. Second, by remilitarizing the Rhineland, Hitler gained a better military position both offensively and defensively against France. Third, Hitler also increased the support of the German people for the government and for himself. Finally, Hitler was able to safeguard his control over the natural resources in the Rhineland, where a large majority of Germanys coal supply was located. Without that supply, Germany would likely have fallen right back into the Depression, taking away its main advantage over all other major powers. Perhaps the most critical reason that Hitlers decision to remilitarize the Rhineland was brilliant was that Hitler was able to predict that no nation would act against him. The only powerful nations that would have cared about the remilitarization of the Rhineland were the United States, Great Britain, and France. The United States simply did not care enough to act. It would have taken too long and would have been too costly for the United States to pose a threat to Germany. The United States had also previously showed that it lacked interest in Germanys breaches of the Treaties of Versailles and Locarno. When Germany had stopped paying its debt to France, as required by the Treaty of Versailles, the United States did nothing. Similarly, when Germany started to rearm itself in defiance of both the Versailles Treaty and the Locarno Pact, again the United States had no reaction except for a statement of protest. Great Britain with respect to Germanys defiance of the Versailles Treaty and Locarno pact followed suit and did nothing. Great Britain had even gone behind the backs of th...

Relevance of Standard Costing & Variance Analysis Essay - 1

Relevance of Standard Costing & Variance Analysis - Essay Example From this paper it is clear that  the standard cost is a predetermined unit cost i.e. the price and standard amount of each resource to be utilized in manufacturing a product and providing a service. A variance is the difference of actual cost incurred and expected standard cost. The variance analysis involves breakup of total variance to explain how much variance is caused by difference in use of resources from the standard usage quantity and how much variance is caused by the difference in prices of resources from the standard costs. The standard costing can be advantageous only if the cost standards are carefully established and prudently used. The use of standards solely for placing blame can have negative impact on management and employees. The major advantages include better management planning, promotes economy by making the employees understand importance of cost reduction, setting selling price, management control, highlights variances in management by exception and simpli fy the inventories’ costs reducing clerical costs.As the study stresses the standard costing is suited to the control of variable and direct costs but not fixed and indirect costs, the usefulness of standard costing has been questioned because the in recent times the overhead costs have become the relevant factory costs whereas the importance of direct labour costs has diminished.  JIT is an inventory system which works towards keeping zero inventories.

Public Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Public Policy - Essay Example It also helps in evaluating financial as well as non-financial data which helps to improve and enhance domestic performance of a country. They help a government to make critical decisions which may include processes efficiency, investing in new administrative functions, improvement of infrastructure etc. It is mostly intended towards public policies and it also utilizes the information which can help governmental organizations in making decisions which help them to achieve their goals and objectives. Only limitations which can be placed when emphasis is placed on public management is diversion from administrative functions. According to Lonsdale (1999), the role of Public management has been highly important in the growth and development of the public sector of the UK since the last few decades. It has helped to develop a very important way of re-arranging and re-organizing public and government sector bodies within the UK for and has integrated various important disciplines such as management, financial reporting, auditing etc. In a broader context, the concept of public managementfocuses on failures and incompetency of public sector management and evaluates the nature and process of public sector activity along with public administration. Several important public sector issues as Utilization of resources, waste management, accountability etc are related with public management. Public management in UK has certainly explored some extremely important and very influential expressions for the economic policies of the country and also the business related as well as public sector reforms of the UK governme nt which has occurred since 1979 (Pollitt, 1993).The impact of the Public management policy in the UK has been highly influential and this has resulted in some very important changes which the many political parties within the UK have left untouched. The government of UK implemented certain very

Vascular Dementia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Vascular Dementia - Research Paper Example The patient is undergoing transient ischemic attack commonly referred to as TIA, usually, lasts for twenty-four hours. It is a neurologic dysfunction which results from blood deprivation of one or more parts of the brain. It causes blurred or loss of vision, dysarthria, aphasia and mental confusion associated with loss of memory. The formation of thrombus or clot in the blood supply and alarming rate of vasoconstriction may lead to Ischemia. The patient was diagnosed with heart disease six months previously and presently with vascular dementia which is the loss of memory caused by many minor strokes.TIA and Vascular Dementia both are associated with diseases of the heart like hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. Males aged above 55 years of age and having a family history of stroke are at a greater risk.The cause should be diagnosed by the imaging of the brain and an electrocardiogram. Sometimes surgery endarterectomy is requisite for removing the plaque, thrombus or clot from the carotid arteries. However, a stroke can occur during the procedure. In case of emergency situations, medication such as anticoagulants is given. Heparin, warfarin or the antiplatelet medication such as aspirin are prominently used. These drugs help in thinning the blood thereby minimizing the probability of thrombus formation and the travel of clot towards the brain. The patient should take care and bring a clear change in their life styles by quitting smoking, eating a healthy diet with lots of fruits, weight loss, and regular exercise.

Operations Management Of The Hard Rock Cafe

Operations Management Of The Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe is one of the worlds leading and well-known brands in restaurant industry. Hard Rock cafe is a chain of casual dining restaurant. First Hard Rock was opened in London, 1971. It was found by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton. The mission of Hard Rock is to provide their customers with unique experience and attract new clients. In the 1980s, Hard Rock Cafe was the most popular when some people engaged in the hobby of visiting as many locations as possible and collecting a Hard Rock t-shirt bearing the Cafe logo and the location name. The chain began global expansion in 1982 when Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton agreed to develop their own cafes across the world. At current date, it has 169 venues in 51 countries worldwide (Hard Rock, 2010). And it continues to grow with several more in the works. The question being raised here is how has a small Hard Rock restaurant that originated in London, England become one of the most well-known brands over the world? Differentiation Strategy The trick is not to play the game better than the competition, but to develop and play an altogether different game. -Professor C. Markides of the London Business School And, yes, Hard Rock has played a different game the experience game! Hard Rock Cafe is using differentiation strategy to achieve competitive advantage on the market. It is considered a smart strategy. They find the ways to differentiate that create value for customers and that are not easily matched or cheaply copied by competitors. Hard Rock sells meals and sells hotel rooms. Many others also do that. Even there are other music related restaurants. But what make the Hard Rock different from others is that it sells a full Rock Roll experience. There is an insatiable appetite for music as a reminder of the moments in ones life and music can generally bring peace in mind and happiness to people. A 20-year-old can come in there and see memorabilia from Godsmack or a 60-year-old can come in and see something from Buddy Holly or Elvis Presley. Music is the tie that binds, regardless of your age. It is also about creating a soundtrack to the brand that people recognise. When the customers go inside, it feels familiar and that is not just because of how it looks, it is the sound. Hard Rock is built on that concept. That is how a brand becomes multidimensional. And they are successful! Hard Rock products are highly valued by customers. Customers develop loyalty to brand and it helps to beat competitors in the marketplace. 10 Operations Management decision making Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long-term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of resources and competences with the aim of fulfilling stakeholders expectations. The main target of any firm is to create competitive advantage over competitors. To create this advantage, firm has to find a right strategy. Hard Rocks strategy is to provide not only a custom meal from the menu, but the whole experience with a unique visual and sound experience. The customers can find this experience at nowhere else in the world but Hard Rock. And it can be achieved when managers make effective decisions in 10 Areas of Operations Management. They are collectively known as operations decisions. Goods services design: Hard Rock Cafà © provides a unique experience with their goods and services offered at the restaurants. Hard Rock gives many amenities from cafes, to hotels to casinos, to live music and to huge Rock fest concerts. Furthermore, when Hard Rock expanded to global, it specified its menu for local taste due to the social norms. For example, when they expanded their chains to the Unites Stated, they modified their menu with Classic American foods such as hamburgers, chicken wings, and include higher-end items such as stuffed veal chops and lobster tails. And as for the menu of Hard Rock Cafà ©s in British, they focuses more on fish and lobster and less on hamburgers and beef (Heizer Render, p.83). Hard Rock also keeps continuing upgrade their menu to meet the customers requirement. One of the special things about Hard Rock is its music memorabilia collection. Throughout the years, Hard Rock has collected a collection of items which are part of the Rock history. They not only solicit donations of music memorabilia, but they also go around the world and purchase a number of items at auctions. Nowadays, Hard Rock becomes the worlds largest collection of such items. Another key that contribute to the success of Hard Rock Cafà © is the inclusion of its own brand merchandise. About 48% annual revenue of Hard Rock comes from merchandise sales (Heizer Render, p.83). The classic Hard Rock t-shirt was created when the original cafà © sponsored a local football team. The shirts became a popular item and lead to the creation of the line of merchandise that is an important part of Hard Rocks business today. Besides the classic tee, there are many different styles of shirts, hats, jackets, glassware, shot glasses, etc. Many of these items are considered to be collectibles and the customers can generally purchase at Hard Rocks cafà ©, hotel, and casino specific or from its website. Quality: Hard Rock Cafà © defines quality within their properties by conducting numerous surveys to get an honest evaluation from its customers. They pride themselves on quality from the music, food and atmosphere. Their survey is on a scale from 1-7, and anything less than a 7 is considered a failure (Heizer Render, p.56). It means that they want to reach to the customers highest satisfaction. Base on customer surveys and feedback, their menu will be changed with the times to fulfill customer recommendations accordingly. In addition, Hard Rock Cafà © not only focuses on the actual quality of food and merchandise, but also focuses on the visual and auditoria quality as the quality of the unique experience. The experience itself is their product. The employees at Hard Rock Cafà © are responsible for giving the best quality of their services and products to its customers. The waiters, chefs and crews give their effort by means of their services through catering customers and providing them also the best food which meet their taste and preferences. Process capacity design: The process and capacity design is what drives the decision of the locations of their facilities. Hard Rock Cafà © creates products in an efficient manner, by analyzing them for cost effectiveness and by labor requirements. Location selection: Understand that location is a major long-time, and can make or break business strategy; Hard Rock has to choose the right locations strategy to expand its cafe chains. Because of Hard Rocks customers are those who not only patronize the foods they offer, but also love music, Hard Rock Cafà © chains need to choose places which is convenient to its valued customers. In addition, they also should be place in the areas that are fewer competitors as to their line of business. Another important that needed to be concerned is the location decision also needs to be concerned with some challenges such as: political risk, currency risk, and social norms. Hard Rock Cafà © has expanded to more than 157 locations throughout the world. And approximately a 70% of Hard Rock customers are tourists. This is good as far as the best tourist regions are traditionally good markets; however, this strategy also makes Hard Rock to depend on the tourism. For example, when the economy goes downturn, there would be less people who spend their money for travel, it will effect to the productive of Hard Rock. Seeing this disadvantage, Hard Rock develops another strategy is signing a long-term lease for cities that are not standard tourist destination such as Manchester and Birmingham. This is a good move for Hard Rock because it can make Hard Rock less dependent on the tourists (Heizer Render, p.83). Layout design: Hard Rock cafà © exist for 39 years and it expand its business to a global power managing 129 cafes, 12 hotels, casinos, live music venues and a huge Rockfest concert (Heizer Render, p.56). Each cafe is a museum in the environment of a bar-restaurant. The company also added new layouts and memorabilia to its place in order to capture more customers. Lighting, sound, screens, contemporary music and circulation plans are designed to show memorabilia and expose merchandise to customers. Human resource and job design: The layout, memorabilia, music, and videos are important elements in the Hard Rock experience but it falls on the waiters and waitresses to make the experience come alive (Heizer Render, p.445). Hard Rocks philosophy is to hire only candidates who are best qualified. The human resource department supports the overall theme restaurant strategy by giving aggressive screening, including an evaluation of how the employee will contribute to the Hard Rock experience. Their hiring decision is not only on experiences and qualifications, but also on the candidates passionate about music, their ability to tell a story, and convey the experience to customers. These decision criteria ensure that their employees interests and right fit with the company. And that can avoid the hiring mistake, thus reduce the turnover. They give great benefit package and effective indoctrination and training, empowerment. They also accept culture of diversity and focus on team world and even outside volunteer work. Hard Rock also creates a dynamic working environment so that employees want to be a part of a team. They know that as long as they can make the employees feel important and be a part of that team, the employees would want to stay with their employer. Using flexible schedules are also great strategy and could be the difference between employees staying and leaving the restaurant. The human resource department of Hard Rock recognizes that they responsible for a critical element in Hard Rocks strategy. So they must recruit and retain the human capital that is necessary to fulfill that mission and strategy. Supply-chain management: Hard Rock work with qualified suppliers to ensure fresh, quality meals. Menu item selection depends on supplying right amount of ingredients from qualified suppliers on time Inventory: Their inventory consists of unique objects related to rock history, the memorabilia, special decorations and a special menu. The collection includes 1,000s of pieces, worthed at $40 million valued memorabilia are catalogued, each piece is known where to be. Memorabilia of all cafes around the world are renewed each 5-6 years Scheduling: Understanding that scheduling plays an important role to the succesful of Hard Rock. A good scheduling can bring to the organization more effectively by serving customers promtly, and more efficiently by lowering cost (Heizer Render, 647). To have an effective schedulings strategy, Hard Rock Cafe used the scheduling software, and sales forecast. When forecasting sales in service industry, business must consider several factors related to their business. For Hard Rock Cafà ©, they need to take into these considerations: community events in the area, seasonality, holidays, time of day, day of week, sales trend in last couple weeks, and meals served is necessary for effective forecasting of sales. Events happening in the area, and using historical data for the year prior is also an effective way to the sales forecast. Hard Rock Cafà © must understand these factors directly affect sales in the restaurant because by accurate forecasting and giving the customer what they want, they can achieve successful in their business Considering seniority is important in staff scheduling. The employees who have worked for the company for a long time are more experience and more comfortable about the work. Thus, strategically scheduling each of them in each shift will distribute the experience and expertise. Also be noted that 70 % of their guests are tourists so this means that they have to have flexible schedules in their restaurants in order to provide services adapted to different cultures and demands. Maintenance: Hard Rock Cafe is redesigning its restaurant to accommodate the changing its tastes. Kitchen, bar, retail shop layout and equipment maintenance and maintenance of memorabilia. The menu review and surveys are also need to be maintenanced to meet the customers requirement. Expansion into Hanoi As we critically above, by using effectively operations management strategy, The Hard Rock Cafe has become such a successful business. Since the first Hard Rock Cafe opened in 1971, and its name has continued to expand and succeed. Nowadays, The Hard Rock Cafe has become a well-known brand in the world. Considering an expansion of its business into Hanoi, Vietnam there are operations management opportunities and challenges for Hard Rock to be considered. Vietnam is a developing country with a land of opportunities. It is a new emerging market, and is a potential investment destination. The potential for franchise in Vietnam is huge. According to global franchisers, Vietnam is a not place for franchises: a young consumer market, high economic growth and stable politics. The rise of the middle class in Vietnam also presents a growing market opportunity. Opportunities: Products and services design and quality: Vietnamese economy is among the most rapidly growing in Southeast Asia. The economy has been growing steadily at 7-8 percent in recent years. Growing economy point to accelerating poverty reduction, and is seeing living standards rise as disposable income increase. Moreover, Vietnam has a population of more than 80 million, and about two-thirds of Vietnamese aged below 30 years, who are brand-conscious, trendy and adore the Western lifestyle (Vietnam News, 2010). Particularly in the urban areas, consumers demand is surging for higher quality products and services. And the local production cannot satisfy them. Thus, franchising businesses that introduce high-end products and services with a Western lifestyle could help meet that growing demand. Therefore, as for products and services design and quality, Hard Rock is doing extremely well if they expand their business in Hanoi. Hard Rock brand name is well received by local customers who associate them with superior quality, excellent customers service, and a Western life style. Location: Vietnam is definitely a safe place to enter because of the politically stable. Understanding that franchises can create jobs for locals, and that they can help drive its economy, Vietnamese Government boost economic development and stimulus package in the Vietnamese market by using flexible policies, and welcomes foreign investment. In addition, Hanoi is a capital of Vietnam and is also a destination of tourism from many countries. And that is a good fix for Hard Rock because its main target customers are the tourists. Human resource: One of the advantage for Hard Rock open its cafà © in Vietnam is the low cost of labor. Also, there are many young Vietnamese nowadays are really passionate about Rock Roll music, and have the ability to convey the experience to the customer. So its totally not hard for the restaurant to find the right employees that fix to the image of Hard Rock Cafà ©. Supply-chain management: As for the supply-chain management, in Hanoi, Hard Rock can easily find the qualified suppliers to purchase raw materials with a cheap price but still ensure its fresh, quality meals to serve the customers. Challenges: Considering an expansion of its business into Hanoi, and to be successful in Vietnam, Hard Rock Cafà © should take the following concerns into account: Products service design: Hard Rock needs to aware of the cultural differences. They should take local culture, habits, and tastes into consideration and adjusts their market strategy accordingly to be successful in this market. They also have to be sensitive to product pricing and franchising fees for expansion in Hanoi. Vietnamese are very price-conscious and local incomes are substantially lower than many other countries in the region. Moreover, local investors may not be familiar with and are reluctant to invest millions of dollars in a new business concept. This specific of the market will require a flexible approach. Human resource: Another challenge for Hard Rocks human resource when it comes to decision expansion into Hanoi is picking the right master franchisees. This is the most difficult and time-consuming task of all in the global development of Hard Rock franchise. They need to take time to find, evaluate and conduct diligence on master-franchise candidates. They also need to consider the added cost of training and support across many times zones. Conclusion The strategy of Hard Rock has been led by the differentiation. The Hard Rock has made unique its products and its services. Hard Rock Cafà © has brought the concept of the experience economy to its cafe operation. At Hard Rock, the experience concept is not only to offer a custom meal from the menu, but also spread the spirit of rockn roll to its customers. It is successful by using this experience strategy, and Hard Rock Cafà © became a highly recognized brand throughout the world because of its operations management. After carefully evaluated the operations management strategy of Hard Rock Cafà © and considered all the opportunities and challenges for Hard Rock Cafà © when considering an expansion of its business into Hanoi, I strongly believe that the business will be going successful on this market. With a large young consumers market, growing disposable income, stable politic, and also as the locals are becoming more receptive to international brands; Vietnam is definitely a good destination and a perfect time for Hard Rock Cafà © to enter to the market and franchise its brand.

The Gross Clinic :: essays research papers

In 1874, Thomas Eakins took a second course in anatomy at Jefferson Medical College. He attended surgical lectures and clinics presided over by Professor Samuel D. Gross. Eakins painted â€Å"The Gross Clinic,† to show the emotion involved in medical procedures. It appears as if the doctors performing the surgery have emotionally removed themselves from the situation at hand. By removing themselves from the emotional aspects of the surgery, the doctors can complete the task much easier than they would have been able to do if they had become emotionally attached to the patient. Had the doctors been emotionally involved in the surgery, they would have become more prone to making errors while operating on the patient because they would be thinking more of their feelings than they would about the surgery in progress. Although emotions are great and necessary things, sometimes trying to remove them is for the best. Another thing noticed by the viewer is the veiled woman crying next to the doctor. She is very involved in this operation by letting her emotions freely show themselves. This woman could be the mother or siblings of the patient, and while she knows that the surgery was necessary to save or improve the life of her beloved, it is difficult to watch. By putting emotions out into the open, as the woman has done, makes them easier to deal with. Keeping feelings bottled up inside can cause breakdowns and emotional instability. This adds another layer of complexity to the surgery. Performing the task would require enough of the doctor's skill, but mix emotion into the equation, and the work, mentally as well as physically, is doubled. In the painting, Gross appears to be feeling a various assortment of emotions. He has paused his surgery and lecture, to deeply think about something. While he must keep his feelings in check, he also needs to by sincere for the sake of the patient’s mother and the students in the surgical amphitheatre. The head of the doctor is placed against a dark background, making it stand out. This creates a dividing layer of emotions. This â€Å"emotion layer† divides the onlookers, who have no real intentions other than to observe the lecture, from the actual participants involved in the surgery. The people in the foreground, whether fighting to get rid of them or choosing to let them to flow out, are dealing with some sort of feelings.

Key Practices of Performance Management Essay

The requirement for effective performance management: The performance management acts as a key measure to ensure that the goals and objectives are being consistently met that too in an effective and efficient manner. The management of performance focuses on the performance of the overall enterprise, all departments, employees and even the products or services. However, it does not just stop here as with performance management companies can align their resources, systems and employees which will help them attain their objectives and priorities. The goals of performance management programs: Only when the employee and the system align with one another can they ensure the delivery of strategic and operational goals. Some skeptics argue that there exists a relation between the use of performance management programs or software with improved organizational results. When considering the public sector, the performance managers changes from negative to positive which suggests that the difference in the characteristics of the system, and the different context that they are implemented play an important role in success or failure of the performance management. Sometimes using an integrated software rather than a spreadsheet based recording system will help in delivering a significant return of investments through the range of direct and indirect sales benefits. Measuring the operational efficiency will help in unlocking the latent potential of the employees that work. The benefits will include everything from the direct financial gain to a motivated workforce to the improved management. For the financial gains, it will grow sales, stop the overrunning of projects, and align the enterprise in direct manner to the CEO’s objectives. For the motivated workforce, it simply means optimization of incentive plans that defines the objective even for the over achievement and not for just the business as usual. Lastly, in the improved management control, the employees become more flexible and open to the management needs. They also display data relationships and helps audit to comply with the legislative requirement. Lastly, the process enables careful documentation and scenario planning. Types of performance management implementation Erica Olsen noted that in many businesses, even the ones with well made plans actually failed to implement appropriate strategy. For most, the issue lay in the ineffective management of the employees even with a business plan in place. Of course, they have conducted the necessary survey and collected the data, and also ensured management retreats to decide their organizational direction, but even with an expensive software in place, their plan can fail. Most of the time, their performance management and appraisals overlap and three types have been so far identified: Long cycle performance management: Usually done on a annual or a biannual or quarterly basis, from implementing this management, this the area that has received the most attention. These techniques predate the use of computers and therefore do not need any expensive software. Short cycle management performance: This overlaps with the principles of the agile software development which is mainly done on a week, monthly or bi-weekly basis. Usually this kind is industry specific. Reference: http://classof1.com/homework-help/human-resource-management-homework-help

College tuition

College tuition College tuition soars, but aid grows along with it, students are paying up to 9% more to attend school. It is said that the lifetime earnings of a college graduate is at 1 million more than the overall earnings of someone with only a high school diploma. So in the end something good is coming out of spending the money to graduate from college. How are the students affected and how may it affect schools, why is tuition increasing, and what are the colleges doing with the revenues they receive.Students are affected by this increase because they are forced to take out larger loans, work full time or may even have to take fewer classes. They face opportunity costs because they are willing to sacrifice working for school hoping that school will help them more in the end. This increase not only affects the student, but the parents as well, that means that taxpayers are subsidizing a smaller share of the cost of their state universities, while students and their parents are paying an even l arger slice.English: Table 3 from the August 4, 2010 GAO repor...State funding now accounts for about 36% of revenues at public colleges, down from 45% in 1980, while tuition accounts for 19% of state university revenue, up from 13% twenty years ago.Tuition, room and board, plus the cost of books transportation and other expenses have all increased. States have been warned for months of big tuition increases because falling state revenues have forced them to cut the subsidies they provide their public universities. Colleges both public and private attribute rising tuition because of increase in faculty salaries and rising technology also construction costs. Students want better computer labs, high speed internet connections, lavish dormitories, and high tech fitness centers somebody has to pay for these accommodations after all there is "no...

Free Essays on Description Of A Gorilla Diorama

like naturalist, intellect, and discovery are inscribed on the front as a reminder to those on the outside of entrance into a new world; a promise of new encounters. More then a decade ago, visits to The Museum of Natural History were a part of my everyday life. Despite the frequency of these trips, I found myself equally astounded each and every time I made the journey across town. Just three days ago as I climbed the steps nearing the thick metal doors, I caught myself taking that same deep breath as I had so many years before to prepare for entry. Immediately, I made my first new discovery. Assisted by three security guards, I was instructed to open my bag at which point they proceeded to search for twenty-first century paraphernalia in this atmosphere created to display the primitive. During the inspection, I glanced up at the dinosaur fossils that, years ago, appeared to tower beyond the sky. Though there have been no physical alterations made to these skeletons in recent years, my own growth and evolution have brought me to view them, and the rest of the exhibits, from a new angle. Perhaps, this new lens through which I see the world and my present surroundings provides me with a greater clarity from that of when I first observed the T-Rex; perhaps, now, I’m simply harder to convince. Upon completion of my inspection, I followed the path to the room of African mammals where I might be whisked away to a dessert in Zaire. I entered and was immediately confronted by a stampede of elephants surrounded by a room of dioram... Free Essays on Description Of A Gorilla Diorama Free Essays on Description Of A Gorilla Diorama My Encounter with â€Å"Gorillas† The facade of the museum stands before me massive in all of its grandeur. Its sheer size alone commands great presence while the pillars, both geometrically and strategically placed, support its immense stature. Before entering the building one cannot help but notice the huge bronze cast statue of past U.S. President, Theodore Roosevelt standing before it. Words like naturalist, intellect, and discovery are inscribed on the front as a reminder to those on the outside of entrance into a new world; a promise of new encounters. More then a decade ago, visits to The Museum of Natural History were a part of my everyday life. Despite the frequency of these trips, I found myself equally astounded each and every time I made the journey across town. Just three days ago as I climbed the steps nearing the thick metal doors, I caught myself taking that same deep breath as I had so many years before to prepare for entry. Immediately, I made my first new discovery. Assisted by three security guards, I was instructed to open my bag at which point they proceeded to search for twenty-first century paraphernalia in this atmosphere created to display the primitive. During the inspection, I glanced up at the dinosaur fossils that, years ago, appeared to tower beyond the sky. Though there have been no physical alterations made to these skeletons in recent years, my own growth and evolution have brought me to view them, and the rest of the exhibits, from a new angle. Perhaps, this new lens through which I see the world and my present surroundings provides me with a greater clarity from that of when I first observed the T-Rex; perhaps, now, I’m simply harder to convince. Upon completion of my inspection, I followed the path to the room of African mammals where I might be whisked away to a dessert in Zaire. I entered and was immediately confronted by a stampede of elephants surrounded by a room of dioram...

Professional statement Personal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Professional - Personal Statement Example During my third year in nursing school, in 2007, I became a patient care associate at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center on ACE Unit. After graduating from nursing school, I was employed as a Registered Nurse in 2008 on the same unit. I worked hard to become a charge nurse, a preceptor and later attained an ACLS certification on my Unit. I am an active member of the cultural diversity committee and an active member of the ambulation program initiation on my Unit. According to Barker (45), a nurse has to acquire knowledge through continuous learning. I took the Basic Arrhythmia Course, the Medical, Surgical nurse certification review course, and I am a board certified gerontological registered nurse. I have completed 34 credits at graduate level in my Adult Nurse Practitioner program at La sale University. In addition, I completed 250 hours clinical orientation as a NP student at three different sites: Einstein Medical Center, Park pleasant with the ACE Unit attending medical doctor and Philadelphia Prison system. I have worked with UPHS, which values patient safety. Patient safety goals are studies by safety officers within an organization and throughout the world. I plan to suggest to the patient safety committee to make it compulsory that pharmacists evaluate a patient’s

Critique of Academic Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critique of Academic Journal - Essay Example However, this diversity's gradual move into the normal corporate field has brought with it a few negative outcomes (Kelan 2009). It makes it harder to deal with instances of subtle discrimination against women (Calas and Smircich 2006). This diversity simply eliminates the more obvious types of gender discrimination while allowing the attitudes that support such practices to go unchallenged (Gill 2007). For instance, women are usually exempted from the networking that takes place among the men in the workplace, as well as from working on with the business’s most prominent lawyers (Nentwich 2006). When women are confronted with such situations in an era that has actually had laws passed to support their functioning in the workplace, they are likely to think that they are the ones who are either too arrogant, or cold, and thus are not easy to approach for workplace friendships (Johns, Schmader and Martens 2005). They are not likely to suppose that the reason for their being left out of things is because they are women (Crump, Logan and McIlroy 2007). Critique Gender fatigue is constructive because it alerts the society that even with the existing laws and regulations that encourage women to work; women are still not treated in the same way as men in the workplace (Lewis 2006). For instance, in a recent research conducted in a business environment, it was established that male workers ignore what might appear to be gender discrimination because they equate their calmness in such instances with showing tolerance or acceptance (Bailyn 2003). Female workers, on the other hand, feel that if they work harder, they will be able to change the minds of sexist employers (Blau, Brinton and Grusky 2006). In such cases, it can be pointed out that ‘gender fatigue’ is an appropriate explanation for such pusillanimous behavior on the part of workers (Ely, Meyerson and Davidson 2006).   Elizabeth Kelan’s article on gender fatigue appears to bring up a n authentic problem that might actually be one of the reasons contributing to the continuing inequality that women experience in the workplace. The fact that her survey participants indicated that they had heard of cases of discrimination showed that such cases still exist even in an era in which many people feel that the goals of women being permanently accepted in the workplace have been sufficiently addressed. The fact that the workers being surveyed mentioned that instances of gender discrimination usually happen in singular episodes and not as a whole also contributes toward the ‘gender fatigue’ theory. If the incidences of discrimination against women happened in bulk, the opposition would have been more vocal. However, instances where some women are discriminated against and not others are not as visible and can cause doubts to arise when reported.    On the other hand, gender fatigue the article by Elisabeth Kelan on gender fatigue states that the workers that she used in her study were not only convinced that their companies were gender neutral, and were examined on merit. These contributors also quoted statistics on sexism from the previous one or two decades. This means that the situation may have changed in the last few years; and that if gender inequalities still exist, the