My Personal Statement On My Experience - 891 Words

Eager to see my SOL scores, I tore open the letter, as if an excited tiger would to its prey. My name was clearly written on the top of the letter. Below my name, my SOL score, printed in black and white ink glared at me. Blackly staring at the letter, I rolled my eye back up to double check that the score was mine. It sure said my name on the paper and below my name was a category for my 6th grade math SOL. Still unconvinced that it was correctly mailed, I checked to see if my house address was correctly printed. Unsurprisingly, the mailman accurately delivered the mail to the correct house. All my information was correct. Unwillingly, I went back to my letter, which read ‘Pass Proficient.’ I was a few points away from ‘pass advanced’†¦show more content†¦The only audible sound was my thumping heart and my hard-breathing mouth, trying to keep me alive. In this hall, the dim lights didn’t conceal my blushing cheeks, for my face was glowing, like Halloween pumpkin lanterns. Finally I whispered, â€Å"I got a Pass Proficient on my math SOL.† Just as I had expected, their white teeth peeked out from their mouth, which instantly became a mocking laughter. My other friends peacefully conversed in the classroom at the end of the hall, until they heard elephants rumbling down the hall. There were no elephants in my church; it was William and Grace racing to the classroom, like marathon runners who see the finish line. Even before they reached the double door, they already grabbed everyone’s attention. William, known for his loud mouth, informed them about my math SOL score. Afterwards, I noticed that my peers looked at me differently, each commenting and laughing. The first time I wanted to run away from this world was 4 years ago when I was publicly humiliated by Grace and William. I never felt that bad about myself. I couldn’t manage my thoughts. Why are people judged by a grade? I knew all the materials and I was fully capable of getting a perfect score on the SOL; I just felt tired and exhausted that particular test day. This incident aroused many interesting questions in my mind. But the real question is why does this grade really matter to me? It is not because my parents would be upset; certainly not because I

Bio 169 Free Essays

Urinary System: Anatomy Review 1. Name the organs in the urinary system: 1. 2 kidneys 2. We will write a custom essay sample on Bio 169 or any similar topic only for you Order Now 2 ureters 3. bladder 4. uethra 2. The kidneys are retroperitoneal (behind the peritoneum), lying against the dorsal body wall in the upper abdomen. 3. The adrenal gland sits atop the kidneys. Blood vessels enter and leave the kidney at the renal cortex. 4. The functional units of the kidney are the nephrons. They are called renal pyramids if they are located mainly in the cortex. They are called renal pyramids if they are located in both the cortex and the medulla. 5. Blood enters the kidney through the hilus artery. The artery branches into smaller and smaller arteries and arterioles. Complete the sequence below: ______________ arteriole ______________ capillaries ______________ arteriole ______________ capillaries and vasa recta 6. Complete the sequence below showing all parts of the nephron: Glomerular (Bowman’s) capsule proximal convoluted tubule loop of henle (both descending and ascending limb) distal convoluted tubule collecting duct (both cortical and medullary sections) 7. The renal corpuscle consists of two parts: glomerular capillaries and the Bownan’s capsule. A portion of the plasma is filtered into the capsular space due to the hydrostatic pressure of the blood. 8. The filtration membrane consists of fenestrated capillary endothelium, porous basementmembrane, and the photocyte (which contain filtration slits). This filtration membrane permits (large or small) molecules to be filtered. 9. Proximal tubule: The simple cuboidal cells of the proximal tubule are called brush border cells because they contain numerous microvilli. The microvilli increase the surface area for reabsorption. The proximal tubule cells are highly permeable to water and many solutes. The tight junctions permit the movement of water between the cells. 10. Loop of Henle: The thin descending limb of the loop of Henle is highly permeable to water but not to solutes. The thick ascending limb of the loop of Henle is highly permeable to ___________________ but not to ___________________. 11. The thick ascending limb of the loop of Henle runs back between the afferent and efferent arterioles as they enter and leave the glomerular (Bowman’s) capsule. The juxtaglomerular apparatus consists of the macular densa cells of the tubule and the granular (modified smooth muscle) cells of the afferent arteriole. Granulerutal cells serve as baroreceptors sensitive to blood pressure within the arteriole. Macular densa cells monitor and respond to changes in the osmolarity (or electrolyte composition) of the filtrate in the tubule. 12. After the juxtaglomerular apparatus, the tubule becomes the distal tubule, which merges with the cortical collecting duct. The cortical collecting duct contains two functional types of cells: Principal cells—hormones regulate their permeability to water and solutes. Intercalated cells—secrete hydrogen ions for acid-base regulation. 13. The medullary collecting duct is composed of principal cells. Their permeability to urea and water is hormonally regulated. Urinary System: Glomerular Filtration 1. What force drives filtration at the glomerulus? Blood pressure 2. Glomerular filtration is a process of bulk flow driven by the hydrostatic pressure of the blood. 3. Common components of the filtrate are divided into four categories on the CD program. These include: 1. water 2. ions 3. notrogenous waste 4. organic molecules 4. Blood pressure in the glomerulus is about 60 mmHg. 5. What two pressures oppose filtration and what are their values? 1. hydrostatic 15mmHg 2. osmotic 28mm Hg 6. What is the normal net filtration pressure? 7 mmHg 7. With a glomerular filtration rate of 125 ml/min, how much plasma would be filtered per day? 180L In 24 hours? _____ 8. In an exercising individual the afferent arteriole will (dilate or constrict) to avoid excess fluid loss. 9. Two mechanisms that provide autoregulatory control over renal processes include: 1. myogenic 2. tubuloglomer 10. High osmolarity (or high Na+ and Cl–) in the ascending loop of Henle will cause afferent arterioles to (dilate or constrict) by releasing vasoconstrictor 11. In periods of extreme stress, the sympathetic nervous system will override autoregulation. An increase in sympathetic flow to the kidney will result in what two important effects that will aid maintenance of blood pressure? 1. vasocontriction 2. Urinary System: Early Filtrate Processing 1. What are the two reabsorption pathways through the tubular cell barrier? 1. transcellular 2. paracellular 2. How can we cause water to diffuse from the lumen into the interstitial space? An increase in the osmolarity of the interstitium 3. Transport of what ion could cause the diffusion in question 2? 4. Summarize reabsorption in the proximal tubule. 85% of reabsorption of all useful substances occur here 5. What percent of the filtrate is reabsorbed in the proximal tubule? 99% 6. The simple squamous cells of the thin descending loop are permeable to __________________ but impermeable to ________________. 7. The ascending limb of the loop of Henle is permeable to Water but impermeable to solutes. 8. What is the role of the loop of Henle? Facilitated diffusion 9. What is the role of the vasa recta? Blood capillary which collects the filtered blood capillary which collects the filtered blood from afferent arterriole 10. From the Quiz section, what does furosemide do? Increases your water output to decrease fluid retention through urination Urinary System: Late Filtrate Processing 1. Name the two types of cells in the cortical collecting ducts and describe their function. 1. principal 2. intercalated 2.a. Aldosterone is stimulated by an increase or decrease in what ions? 1. potassium 2. Sodium b. What does aldosterone increase in the basolateral membrane? 3. What does antidiuretic hormone (ADH) increase in the luminal membrane? Vasopressin 4. In dehydration and overhydration, what would be the levels of: a. ADH? v dehydration ___? ___ overhydration (? or ) b. Aldosterone? ___ v ___ dehydration __? ____ overhydration (? or ) 5. Describe what move(s) out of the tubule and what the osmolarity would be in the following nephron segments: a. Proximal tubule______ move(s) out______ mOsm b. Descending limb______ move(s)out______ mOsm c. Ascending limb______ move(s)out______ mOsm d. Late distal tubule______ move(s)out______ mOsm 6. a. By the medullary collecting duct, only _____% of the filtrate remains. b. Under the following conditions, report the levels of ADH and subsequent urine osmolarity and flow rate 7. a. Urine with a â€Å"high normal osmolarity† and containing RBCs and protein would indicate: _______________ b. Urine with a very high osmolartiy and glucose would indicate: _______________ c. Urine with a very low osmolarity and high volume would indicate: _______________ 8. An increase in plasma potassium levels would lead to what changes in the following? (? or ) a. _____aldosterone levels b. _____potassium excretion c. _____sodium excretion d. _____interstitial osmolarity e. _____urine volume How to cite Bio 169, Papers

Current Development in Accounting Thought Accounting Global Market

Question: Discuss about the Current Development in Accounting Thought for Accounting Global Market. Answer: Introduction This paper intends to explain new accounting trends in the global market through the help of ideologies proposed by Australia Accounting Standard Board (AASB) and AUASB. It coins these new regulations with accounting theories that too contribute to defining the accounting scope. It dwells more on the new trends proposed by AASB and AUSB on 4th April 2016. It suggests how the trends can improve production and limit mistakes committed by auditors and accountants while making a financial statement for the periods of trade. Definition of Accounting Accounting is among the branches of business that operate to identify, measure and communicate information for judgments. It is organized in a way to allow for effective decision making by parties concerned in the statements of accounting. It outlines the financial status of an entity about both assets and liabilities inclusive of an entity equity (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). In most occasions, entities and other relevant users do rely on accounting components to determine how far the business has been operating in connection to profits, short term liabilities and long-term liabilities. Investors consult by accounting to make right decisions dictating a business to invest in and the ones not worth enough for investment. (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Thus it goes with no say that having standardized guidelines on the operation of accounting global can have a complimentary roles to other fields (Collins, McKeith, 2010). Considering the role accounting pl ays in the general business wide scope, it is in demand to define standardized regulations through which certainty of its application is assured. In Australia, drastic changes have been proposed by relevant bodies to ensure that accounting in the country tally with the global requirements projected through new era innovations. AASB and AUSB have proposed various strategies and policies that if well implemented can end the stalemate created by both accountants and auditors. Thus raises questions of reliability and faithfulness of accounts estimates done at every end periods of trade (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Emerging Trends Proposed by AASB and AUSB In Australia The two Boards have been consulting on how accounting department in the country can emulate global requirements. Among the guidelines deemed necessary are the area of expertise, the mandated roles, specific accounting areas that require attention, connection of stakeholders in the accommodative and coherent way and the challenges (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). To ensure implementation of the new trends, the Boards decided to maximize regulation over companies to ensure efficient and productive application outcome, provide consumers with access to information, lower costs of regulatory practices and appropriate use of new technology to identify risks (Peach, 2016). The new trends that got implemented as at 30th June 2016 are; A) Accounting for Acquisitions of Interests in Joint Operations is a new amendment which concentrates on the joint arrangement where the party acquiring an interest in an operation termed common is known as an inquirer (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016).. Transactions involved in the joint includes business. This joint business should adhere to the following conditions: Ensure use of all business combination accounting principles in Accounting for Acquisitions of Interest in Joint Operation trend (ASSB 3). It too should comply with Australia Accounting Standards apart from the principles conflicting with guidelines of AASB 11. The requirement considers the use of acquisition of additional interests in the joint business is hence giving an inquirer an opportunity to retain a common control of the joint operation. Also, the requirements in the joint operation do only apply to additional interest. Meaning, it does not value a current interest (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). The amendment provides business with disclosure as defined by ASSB 3 and according to Australian Accounting Standards. B) Classify acceptable depreciation and amortization methods. The amendment prevents or does not allow the use of a revenue-based method of depreciation on property, plant, and equipment (Peach, 2016). It offers guidelines for the use of diminishing balance method on property, plant, and equipment. However, according to AASB 138, a revenue-based method of amortization for intangible assets is not appropriate for use. Though it can apply to the situations: It shall apply if assets considered intangible are defined as a measure through which revenue is measured. This happens if an intangible asset has a contributable ability to achieve revenue threshold. It is too applicable when it can show a high correlation between revenue and economic benefits consumption. C) Agriculture: Bearer Plants. This amendment considers the definition of plants and expects such plants to be accounted for under property, plant, and equipment. This is an expectation that has relation with Property, Plant and Equipment amendment (ASSB 116). D) Equity Method in Separate Financial Statements has an amendment which coins the equity method of accounting with other methods within an entitys investment in subsidiaries, joint venture and associates in separate financial statements entry (CPA Australia, 2012). E) Annual Improvements to Australian Accounting Standards. The amendment in part of Annual Improvements to IFRS. It explains on an entity reclassifies of asset thus not being considered for sale but distribution or vice-versa (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). It outlines when an entity considers an asset is no longer for immediate distribution. It too illustrates when an assets probability of being distributed is not high. It is not appropriate for held for distribution accounting. F) Disclosure Initiative. Disclosure Initiative Amendment includes the following: It provides clarification on materiality requirements. These clarifications are about the potentiality of the detrimental effect of closed information considered useful with immaterial information. It provides clarification on the items to be included in the financial statements like comprehensive profit and loss statement, income statement, and the statement of financial position (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). It adds requirements based on the entitys presentation of subtotals in the financial statements deemed relevant. It provides clarification on entitys flexibility depending on how they present note. However, it emphasizes on the ability of an entity to understand and compare their orders. It eliminates guidelines of no importance to help in identification of significant accounting policy. G) Financial Requirements for Australia Group with a Foreign Parent. The policy amends Investment in Associates and Joint Ventures. It aligns its reporting requirements among Australian to align with foreign policies. It ensures that there is harmony between guidelines in Consolidated Financial Statement and Investment in Associates and Joint Venture for the groups involved. H) Application of Australian Accounting Standards. The country revised its AASB which contained IFRS concepts. It aimed at minimizing wording. IFRS lacked a sentence that identifies the entities and financial reports (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). I) Leases concept in accounting is another emerging trend that tries to force commitment by lessees on leases. This is to get demonstrated in the balance sheet. It has a possibility of affecting companies operating on leases. However, it exempts short-term and low-value leases. It will enhance recognition of leases in the balance sheet by lessees. The concept of lease liability is well demonstrated in the trend. Other accounting new trends are; Procedures of recognizing revenues Referral expenses Tax Accounting Policy judgments on estimates and accounting New revenue and financial instruments standards impact The arrangement of the off-balance sheet (CPA Australia, 2012). Theories of Accounting Theories guiding Accounting are defined and protected by bodies like American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AIPAC) International Accounting Standards (ASB) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The bodies prevent accountants and other users from exploiting accounting principles which work in collaboration with accounting theories. Accounting Principles International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) with other bodies like AICPA and IASB set standards of accounting. The standards among other guidelines defining accounting are operating under the dictation of principles. They include; Revenue recognition; outlines the need to earn revenue first is when it can get recorded in the books account. It is applied depending on the project value, period and methods applied to collect revenues. Recognition of gains and losses; it defines on how accountants should do their gain recordings after realizing loss or losses. Therefore, it prohibits recording of gains a head of loss realization. Cost principle; applicable when a transaction occurs between different parties. It can either be purchase or buying of a product. While recording, cost principle is applied. Full disclosure; different bodies are in tussle to effectively make this principle uniform, however, different opinions from different bodies controlling accounting do deter the objective. Through IFRS, accountants get advised not to disclose to any other person or party without confirmation on the intended investment need. It posits a contradiction in the field of accounting with some accounts providing misleading information or refuse to disclose appropriately (Collins McKeith, 2010. Positive theory of accounting Positive theory of accounting concentrates on what is being done or what has been done. Actual observation on what an entity is doing is the center of reasoning in positive theory of accounting. (Collins McKeith, 2010. It deems irrelevant an argument concentrating on what is supposed to be done or what an entity ought to do. Different stakeholders use positive theory concept to make decisions. Normative theory The theory values what ought to be done not what is being done nor has been. The theory contradicts positive theory reasoning and values accounting concepts by evaluating the need to do what ought to done (Angus, 2012). It is concerned with improvement in the field of accounting through supporting new accounting developments as well as identifying new relevant trends. The two theories are applied simultaneously to ensure that credibility of accounting techniques is maintained. To effectively achieve a dynamic and reliable accounting, the two theories should be applied depending on the market requirements and innovative exploration.. Considering that the market trend composed of innovation and technological changes, the different amendment is done to ensure reliability accounting figures. Major Issues in the New Accounting Trend The major issues in the new accounting trend demonstrated are dwelling around the cash flow. It clearly looks at the cash flow from the start to the end of accounting period (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Through a financial statement, change in cash is given priority as well as cash equivalents throughout accounting period. Restriction of cash and cash equivalent from the start date to end date is another vital point noted. Also, there is a point on reconciliation of cash and cash flow that are restricted. According to disclosure principle, the change portrayed in the essay contradict the concept of appropriate consideration of the restricted cash (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Disclosure principle enhances the consistency among other objectives deemed important by entities. Restricted cash and restricted cash equivalent concept in accounting promote consistency as well as creating benefits to users who do depend on such entry in the financial statements. Though, it has some challenges mostly to those who are fond of using cash and cash equivalent to reconcile their statements. In a nutshell, the concepts raised are closure principles which are important in exposing information to relevant users, reconciliation of financial statement and lastly, the cash and equivalent cash restrictions (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Different Views from Different Respondents Among the respondents I selected, there is no direct linkage on their views concerning new proposed trend on accounting. They differ slightly and concur in a way or other over some issues. To start with is the American Institute of CPA (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). It agrees with the policy restricting cash and cash equivalent. It fairly supports the need to disclose on the financial statement on cash flow from the start time to end time. At the same time, it fairly contradicts the idea of transition closure which argues that it should have classifications (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). It values restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents important in the disclosure principle compared to cash and cash equivalent. This will enhance effective and efficient communication of cash flow and outflow. It considers terminating the need to differentiate unrestricted cash and restricted cash. An idea that aims at creating uniformity in accounting process of mon ey. Funnily enough, it supports disclosure policy on the financial statement and amounts though rejects disclosure on gross transfer. It reiterates on the complexity of such disclosure in the system leading to irrelevancy on the financial statement. Such disclosure leads to confusion scenarios on sources of cash and non-sources of cash. The American Institute of CPA supports the use of retrospective transition in the disclosure principle (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). The company believes that its application enhances amendment effectiveness. However, it disagrees with the proposed dates if implementation, which it says is ambiguous to elaborate for other stakeholders to understand (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). The company accepts the need to modify clarification on the changes. Even though there is a proposal of updating changes on the system, it refutes and illustrates how worthless such actions are. About implementation, The American Institute of CPA criti cs the procedure; contradictory and unprecise (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). It suggests a one-year transition period to accommodate both private and private sectors. Time issuance is an important idea that can play huge in the implementation of the principle proposed. Therefore, there should be an integration period through which cash receipts and cash flows and statement cash flows are adjusted. Hence promote the need to adopt a new principle as early as possible (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). The Accounting Principles Committee of Illinois CPA Society do agree with new proposed policy. It expects the policy to enhance consistency and helps in decision making. Though, it considers reconciliation not well drafted on restricted cash and restricted cash equivalent. The Society appreciates the use of cash and cash equivalent with no restrictions. To its view, forced reconciliation on restricted concepts hinders ability to prepare a flexible and efficient statement. It therefore, advice for a separate entry of cash and cash equivalents from restricted cash and cash equivalent. The company negates the idea proposed concerning the disclosure principle with gross transfers. It believes that it is important to report the acquisition of cash and cash equivalent at end time (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Comparing the for companies of my survey, they have almost related ideologies towards the new principle and policies, though every company has a way in which it does not support even a single content in the policy. Assumptions under Public Interest Theory, Private Interest Theory, and Capture Theory. Public interest theory calls for a regulation of market operations (Graffikin, 2005). It considers a need to have a body that can step up to control market operations during crisis. Market crisis can happen due to customer exploitation or inequality in production possibilities. It illustrates that intervention prevents market ineffectiveness (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Private interest theory on other side assumes that market is self-driving. It argues that it is not only important for a market to have intervention from other bodies during crisis but always. Private theory deem firms responsible for their operations thus able to select favorable market situations for their products and services (Australia Accounting Standard Board, 2016). Capture theory assumes that control bodies of the government operates with the motive of helping the general public but not industries themselves. It provides deep analysis on the connection between a regulatory body and industries in operation. References Angus O. Unegbu. (2012). Theories of Accounting: Evolution and Developments, Income- Determination and Diversities in Use. Research Journal of Financial and Accounting. Vol. 5, No. 19 Armstrong, Mark Sappington, David (2006). Regulation, Competition and Liberalization, Journal of Economic Literature, 325-350. Australia Accounting Standard Board (2016). Application of Materiality to Financial Statement. ASIC calls for clarity in reports. (2016, June, 3). Accountants Daily. Baker, C. R (2005). What is the meaning of the public interest Examining the ideology of the American accounting profession, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal. Vol. Pp 690-700. CIMA (2009). Accounting trends in a borderless world. Clarke, F. G Dean K, Oliver (2003).Corporate Collapse, Accounting Regulatory and Ethical Failure, 2nd Ed. Cambridge, CUP. Collins, B. McKeith, J. (2010). Financial Accounting and Reporting. McGraw Hill. Connolly, C. 2008. International Financial Accounting and Reporting Institute of Chartered Accounts in Ireland. CPA Australia. (2012). Accounting Concepts and Principles. Publisher: BPP Learning Media Ltd. Craig D. 2011. Financial Accounting Theory. International Accounting (Part-2), 3rd Ed. Deegan, C. Unerman, J. (2007). Financial Accounting Theory. European edition, McGraw Hill Elliot B Elliot, J. 2007. Financial Accounting and Reporting. FT Prentice Hall, 12th Ed. Hermanson, Edwards and Maher (2010). Accounting Principles: A Business Perspective, Financial Accounting. Joskow, Paul L. 2007. Regulation of Natural Monopolies, in: A.M. Polinsky and S. Shavell (eds.), Handbook of Law and Economics, Amsterdam, Elsevier Science Publishing. Kalpana R. Gopinath R. (2013). Trends and Issues of Human Resource Accounting. Graffikin, (2005). Regulation as Accounting Theory. Accounting and Finance. Working Paper, University of Wollongong. Victor, M. Martin (2008). Sustainable Energy System. Theory of Regulation. MIT Portugal Ogus, Anthony I. 2007. The Relationship between Regulation and Tort Law, Tort and Regulatory Law, Springer, 371-379. Peach, K. (2016). Australia Accounting Standards Board Remi, A., (2006). Advanced Financial Accounting, Second Edition, Lagos Master Stroke Consulting

Micromax Market Mix Essay Example

Micromax Market Mix Essay The mobile phone market in India is worth 130 million handsets annually. While the big boys like Nokia, Samsung, LG, Motorola and Sony Ericsson make up for 70% share, the market has of late seen a slew of domestic firms such as Micromax, Karbonn and Intex making large inroads and new established brands like Videocon and Onida entering the field. Among the domestic firms, one of the most promising brand is Micromax. Micromax is known to be one of the leading Indian Telecom companies that have 23 domestic offices located all over the county along with International offices. With a futuristic vision and an exhaustive RD at its helm, Micromax has successfully generated innovative technologies that have revolutionized the telecom consumer space. Though the company made its humble beginning by introducing Micromax Mobiles in the year 1991 but at present it is giving a tough competition to all its competitors in the field. The company is known to be a leading provider in the country for wireless technology solutions. Latest technological advancements are used by the company to bring landmark solutions for the users in the mobile world and to create a niche for itself. There are many â€Å"first† to the credit list of Micromax. The company’s vision is to develop path-breaking technologies and efficient processes that incubate newer markets, enliven customer aspirations and to make Micromax a trusted market leader amongst people. A Brief History of the Company We will write a custom essay sample on Micromax Market Mix specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Micromax Market Mix specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Micromax Market Mix specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Few years ago, when Vikas Jain’s firm was delivering computer printers and monitors across India, he saw first-hand how pervasive Nokia had become and also observed that When Nokia or Samsung roll out a new model they do so from its global portfolio rather than launching something specifically for India and Despite Nokia’s dominance, the Indian mobile-phone market was far from being saturated. Jain saw his chance, who set up the company in 1990s along with three friends from engineering collegeRahul Sharma, Rajesh Agarwal and Sumeet Kumar, all of whom are in their mid-30s to early 40s. Micromax, started operations in 1991 as an embedded software design firm, but was incorporated as a company in 1998, when it branched out as a distributor of computer peripherals such as printers, monitors, scanners from manufacturers such as LG, Sony Inc. , Dell Corp. Though Micromax made its debut in 1991 but it presence has been felt majorly in few previous years. Serious developments and rise was seen in the year of 2008 when the company entered Indian Cell phone handsets market. Company entered market in March 2008 in which it had a market share of meager 0. 59% average. Though the company made its humble beginning by introducing Micromax Mobiles in the year 1991 but at present it is giving a tough competition to all its competitors in the field. Company overview Micromax is a telecommunications company based in Gurgaon, Haryana, India. It is a manufacturer of wireless telephone handsets. Micromax has 23 domestic offices across the country and international offices in Hong Kong, USA, Dubai and now in Nepal. Micromax is the largest Indian domestic mobile handsets company in terms of units shipped during the quarter ended March 31, 2010 and the third largest mobile handset seller in India as at March 31, 2010 after Nokia and Samsung. Micromax, as they claim on the company’s website, is on a mission to successfully overcome the technological barriers and constantly engender â€Å"life enhancing solutions†. The company’s vision is to develop path-breaking technologies and efficient processes that incubate newer markets, enliven customer aspirations and to make Micromax a trusted market leader amongst people. With a 360 degree advertising and marketing strategy sketched out, the company has an optimistic outlook for the telecom consumer space. Currently present in more than 40,000 stores across the country, the company plans to have an aggressive market incursion to reach out to its customers through 70,000 operational stores in the coming year With young enthusiasts as its anchor, Micromax Informatics Limited has created a niche for itself in the telecommunication industry. Micromax ventured into the telecommunication industry with an end-to-end solution of Fixed Wireless Devices and Wireless Data Cards. In the year 2008, after delivering upon the technology of fixed wireless-powering desired products, the company forayed into one of the most predominant genres of telecommunication Mobile handsets. Since then Micromax has received commendable response for its unique and interesting handsets. Today Micromax has become a brand which people relate and look up to for realizing their individual device preferences and other out-of- the-box solutions. The Marketing Mix for the company Marketing is one of the most important part in any company’s growth. The growth of Micromax is due to the strong marketing strategy of the company. Micromax Inc. has seen some serious rise in market share in few years. Micromax is the largest Indian domestic mobile handsets company in terms of units shipped during the quarter ended March 31, 2010 and the third largest mobile handset seller in India as at March 31, 2010. On March 31, 2010 the company registered the market share of 6. 24% for that quarter, which grew from 0. 59% in September, 2008. Micromax became the fastest growing mobile brand in India for the fiscal year 2009-10. Handset sales have grown by 123. 48% from 1. 5 million units in the quarter ended June 30, 2009 to 2. 57 million units in the quarter ended March 31, 2010. Micromax also sells data cards to service providers in India which includes Indias leading operators like AirTel and BSNL. Recently Micromax has launched their first Android mobile Micromax Andro A60 in India for a cheaper price tag than the competing models. The major m arketing management decisions can be classified in one of the following four categories: †¢ Product, †¢ Price, †¢ Place (distribution), †¢ Promotion. These variables are known as the marketing mix or the 4 Ps of marketing. They are the variables that marketing managers can control in order to best satisfy customers in the target market and the firm attempted to generate a positive response in the target market by blending these four marketing mix variables in an optimal manner Product The product is the physical product or service offered to the consumer. In the case of physical products, it also refers to any services or conveniences that are part of the offering. Product decisions include aspects such as function, appearance, packaging, service, warranty, etc. Unlike many challenger brands, Micromax was careful in its product strategy. Although all Micromax products were towards the lower end of the pricing spectrum, the brand was focusing on adding more features at a reasonable price. Micromax has currently around 75 mobile sets in the market. The focus was more on value than price, that value orientation with a clear differentiation was a significant factor that aided the significant growth of this brand in Indian market. The company in their website claims to have invested heavily in the product development. The brand boasts of launching many firsts in the market like †¢ Handsets with 30 days battery backup †¢ Handsets with Dual SIM / Dual Standby Handsets Switching Networks (GSM CDMA) using gravity sensors †¢ Aspiration Qwerty Keypad Handsets †¢ Operator Branded 3G Handsets †¢ OMH CDMA Handsets, etc. Micromax recently ventured into the telecommunication industry with an end-to-end solution of Fixed Wireless Devices and Wireless Data Cards. In the year 2008, after delivering upon the te chnology of fixed wireless-powering desired products, the company forayed into one of the most predominant genres of telecommunication – Mobile handsets. Since then Micromax has received commendable response for its unique and interesting handsets. Innovation, Cost-Effective, Credible and an Insightful RD are given high emphasis at Micromax in the telecom vertical. Price The product and price go hand in hand for any company, that mean if there is a product there must be price and vice versa. Pricing decisions should take into account profit margins and the probable pricing response of competitors. Pricing includes not only the list price, but also discounts, financing, and other options such as leasing. All Micromax products were towards the lower end of the pricing spectrum . These mobile phones generally good features in an affordable price that mean value for price. Some of the mobile sets are noted below. The new Micromax X414 is a large 2. 8-inch Touch Screen mobile phone 2. 0 MP Camera FM Radio/Recorder/Scheduler Multi Format Audio and video Player Expandable Memory (upto 4GB) Bluetooth with A2DP Theft Tracker GPRS/WAP/MMS Price: The new Micromax X414 touch screen mobile phone price in India us Rs. 5, 500 Micromax X117 key features: †¢ Dual SIM GSM (GSM+GSM) †¢ FM Radio †¢ Up to 15 hours talk-time †¢ Up to 30 days standby time †¢ expandable memory up to 8GB †¢ Color TFT display screen The new Micromax X117 mobile phone is available in India at price of Rs. ,490 Price of Micromax Q1 mobile is Rs. 2550/- Price of Micromax C112 mobile is Rs. 1,600/- Micromax H360 The price in India of the new Micromax H360 3G mobile phone is Rs. 5, 500 . It will only be available with the MTNL connection. Micromax x800. †¢ 2. 8-inch Touch-Screen †¢ 8MP Camera(Auto Focus) †¢ Xenon Flash †¢ Smile Detect †¢ 262 K Colors †¢ GPRS/WAP/MMS †¢ MP3 Player †¢ Theft Tracker †¢ Bluetooth with A2DP †¢ Expandable Memory †¢ Pict-Bridge †¢ PHB Import/Export †¢ TV Out †¢ Price and availability: The new Micromax X800 mobile phone is available in India at price of around Rs. 3,000. From the above data it is clear that Micromax is clearly providing value for money. All its products are having high feature in a comparatively low and affordable price. How did Micromax, which started off barely three years ago, grow to be the third-largest handset maker? Analysts say Indian firms have benefited from the price sensitivity of the market. Most Micromax models cost less than Rs 5,000. â€Å"Lower price points with similar features as that of a Nokia or a Samsung are driving Micromax’s growth,† says Anubhuti Belgaonkar, telecom managing analyst at Ovum India. Place (distribution) Place (or placement) decisions are those associated with channels of distribution that serve as the means for getting the product to the target customers. The distribution system performs transactional, logistical, and facilitating functions. Distribution decisions include market coverage, channel member selection, logistics, and levels of service. It was in 2008 that Micromax ventured into the mobile handset market. The brand wanted to create a base before taking on the large players. Hence as a go-to- market strategy, Micromax concentrated on the rural market first. It was a different move altogether since most of the marketers tend to concentrate on the urban markets then move to the rural markets. One of the major aspects that contribute towards the substantial monthly growth of Micromax is its 80% sales in the rural areas. Micromax launched its first phone in the rural market with a very unique USP- 30 days battery standby time. The brand was launched from a consumer insight that most of the rural households do not get enough electricity to recharge phones on a daily basis. Hence a phone with a 30 day battery standby would be a worthwhile differentiation. The first product was a big success. The first product Micromax X1i priced at Rs 2150 was lapped up by rural market. The success of X1i encouraged the company to go aggressively into the market. But tapping the rural market is not an easy task. There is severe logistics pressure in servicing these markets. One of the first things that Micromax did was to establish the distribution network. According to a report in Forbes India (March 5, 2010), Micromax created a distribution network comprising of 34 super distributors, 450 distributors and around 55,000 retailers. The brand could also take advantage of the inroads made by other brands into advantage. One of the highlight of their distribution strategy was that Micromax managed to make these dealers pay in advance by offering them more margins. Marketers will vouch that the most difficult part in managing distribution is the payment collection part. According to the news report, Micromax managed this hurdle through this strategy of more margins for advance payment. It is not a new strategy to offer such kind of discounts for advance payments (cash discounts), but to make a retailer accept such an offer is indeed a remarkable feat. One of The distribution strategies for long-term dominance adopted by the company is expansion into international markets. In fact, Micromax has already set up shops in Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, and is looking forward to launch operations in the Middle-East in August 2010. As company officials say, Africa and Latin America will then follow. Many are aware that Micromax entered the handset market only two years back, but many dont know that it had already ventured into the distribution business six years before it even thought of betting big on handsets. They already had a B2B business in place, which gave them an automatic exposure to market truths and psychology of the consumers. This helped them understand what the market would desire in their handset. Developing an edge on the distribution front is also what the top honchos at Micromax worked on to succeed in India. The prime reason for this was to reach out to the non-connected rural and smaller locations, which were still untouched by rivals. The company also paid great attention to keep their channel partners pleased, up and running. With the system in place, it was not long when the company entered in the urban market through phones like the Q2, which marked Micromaxs entry into the QWERTY category. With an attractive price tag of just Rs. 4,000, it became a runaway hit (as at that time Nokia’s QWERTY range started at a price point of Rs. 12,000). By changing the rules of the game, Micromax has indeed developed a short term sustainable competitive advantage. In January, TA Associates, a mid-market private equity firm, invested $45 million (Rs 208 crore) to buy a minority stake in the firm. â€Å"As a fast-growing, profitable company in a growth industry, Micromax fits TA’s investment profile,† says Naveen Wadhera, director at TA Associates. Jain and Sharma plan to use this fund as a war chest to beat off competition as Micromax grows. The company is already present in Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and it plans to have footprints in Nigeria by the end of April, and in Brazil by the second week of May. Currently present in more than 40,000 stores across the country, the company plans to have an aggressive market incursion to reach out to its customers through 70,000 operational stores in the coming year and the company also plans to open around 100 exclusive stores in coming years. Promotion Promotion decisions are those related to communicating and selling to potential consumers. Since these costs can be large in proportion to the product price, a break- even analysis should be performed when making promotion decisions. It is useful to know the value of a customer in order to determine whether additional customers are worth the cost of acquiring them. Promotion decisions involve advertising, public relations, media types, etc Advertising is the one of the biggest tool to development of integrated marketing communication. So the Micromax uses IMC tools to promote the product and build the strong image of the brand in the consumers mind. Integrated Marketing Communication ( IMC) is the practice of unifying all marketing communication tools so the send a consist, persuasive massage promoting company goals. The following tools of IMC are being used by Micromax: Events and experiences For marketing of its products the company is riding on two enduring Indian obsessions–sports and films–to build its brand. Following up on its association with the popular Twenty20 cricket Indian Premier League (IPL), Micromax, a brand that is less than three years old, has become the title sponsor of almost all tournaments and series of which India is a p art, including the recently concluded Asia Cup. The objective behind the cricket â€Å"roadblock†, as such behavior is termed in advertising, is to drive brand awareness and recall. The company believes that while cricket may boost a brand instantly, viewers may still not remember the brand after the match or the tournament. Even if consumers remember a series, they may not remember the advertisers. That’s when they thought of a roadblock and decided to sponsor all cricketing properties post IPL. It was one of the principal sponsors of the South Africa VS India ODI series in 2010. According to a survey the company has shown a makeable growth in its business after sponsoring the recent India and southafrica match (refer the fig) Bollywood is also a major platform for the brand, which is targeting consumers between 18 and 27 years. Bollywood’s most bankable star Akshay Kumar was signed on as the brand ambassador six months ago. More recently, his wife Twinkle Khanna was engaged to promote Micromax’s bling phone that comes with Swarovski crystals and a vanity mirror. To push its association with films, the firm also sponsored the IIFA (International Indian Film Academy) Awards held in Sri Lanka, where Micromax recently launched its phones. The brand is now ready to enter Bangladesh and West Asia. Advertising Broadcast media Micromax use television to broadcast their advertisements. Apart from using cricket, films, celebrity Micromax also advertise through news papers. They also utilize hoarding and bill boards to advertise their products. Prime site recently kicked off a month-long campaign for Micromax mobile phones in Delhi, executed mostly through hoardings. Going further, this promotion will be extended to the other regions of northern India as well. The city of launch was Delhi to start with, and post which they did the launch in Patna and Jaipur. Indore is next in line. There are more cities where the campaign will be launched in the near future for which we would be briefed accordingly. All the Medias used by Micromax are very carefully selected as to reach its target audience and through each medium the innovative aspect of the product is portrayed. Besides the focus on product development, Micromax has invested heavily in brand building. The following table shows the companies spending in media for FY. 09-10 Handset Companies: Media Spends (Apr 09- Mar’10) | |Handset marquees | |Spends Rs Cr | | | | | |TV | |Radio | |Print | |Total | | | |  Ã‚  Nokia Corporation | |266 |10 | |126 | |401 | | | |  Ã‚  Samsung India Electronics Ltd | |162 | |0 | |50 | |212 | | | |  Ã‚  LG Electronics India Ltd | |74 | |4 | |28 | |106 | | | |  Ã‚  Spice Mobiles Ltd | |63 | |1 | |37 | |101 | | | |  Ã‚  Micromax Informatics Ltd | |35 | |1 | |12 | |48 | | |   Ã‚  Karbonn Mobiles | |16 | |0 | |25 | |40 | | | |  Ã‚  Videocon Industries Ltd | |21 | |0 | |14 | |34 | | | |  Ã‚  Sony Ericsson (India) | |13 | |2 | |15 | |30 | | | |  Ã‚  Lava International Ltd | |20 | |1 | |7 | |28 | | | |  Ã‚  Maxx Mobile Communications | |13 | |0 | |14 | |27 | | | |Total handsets category | |766 | |22 | |402 | |1190 | | | | | Source http://www. draftfcbulkacomstrat. com/about_comstrat2010. html Most of the brand promotion for Micromax is centered on products. The ads are for individual products highlighting the product features and USPs. With a 360 degree advertising and marketing strategy sketched out, the company has an optimistic outlook for the telecom consumer space. Micromax is currently the third-largest GSM vendor in the Indian market, with a share of 8. 1%, perhaps just a few notches behind Samsung who at the second position has 10. 4% control, as per market reports. [Nokia with 52. 7% share is the number 1 vendor]. Micromax has been selling anywhere around a million handsets every month, for the past year, and as company officials state, it has earned about Rs. 15 billion in revenues during the past year. So here’s something to digest – going by the numbers, the Indian handset market is estimated to have sold about 130 million handsets units in the last calendar year alone, which implies, that if we were to consider just the sales during the past 12 months, Micromax has a market share of 9. 3%, much closer (as compared to the previously stated 8. 1%) to the 10. 4% share of Samsung! And there is a lot more to be had from a handset market that currently, only has a tele-density of 49. 5% and has supposedly clocked a turnover of over Rs. 200 billion over last year. Little wonder, that many global bigwigs like Nokia, Samsung, LG Sony Ericsson have time and again referred to India as one of their key markets. But with great opportunities, come greater challenges, and the same is true for the Once, Micromax was a challenger; today it is also being challenged by many entrants like Karbonn, Lava, Maxx, Intex, Lemon, Gee Pee, Videocon, Usha Lexus, Orpat, Airfone and many more. Consumers’ feedback analysis As per the study conducted in the market taking a random sample of around 40 people the following points are found regarding the acceptance of Micromax mobile in the market. †¢ More than 70% people are interested to buy Micromax due to its cheap price. †¢ While 65-70 % are happy with the value for price of the mobile, 25-30 % still need some more additional feature like torch, additional ear phone etc. †¢ Around 25% are still unaware of the brand. And 20-30% still believes the brand is not good as compare to Nokia or Samsung may be due to no advertisement by the company regarding brand. †¢ More than 40% people are not happy with the information provided with the mobile at the time of purchase. †¢ Many people complain about the reach ability (coverage) of the mobile, as per them they have to move around 30 to 40 Km in order to get a mobile of Micromax. †¢ But the most and very important accept of the survey that almost all the customers are not happy with the post sales service provided by the company. †¢ And many of the people are quite confused with the meaning of the tag line of the company i. e. Nothing like anything. Distributors’ feedback analysis From another survey that had been conducted over 10 dealers/retailers regarding the acceptance of the mobile in the market as pre the selling point of view, the following points were being founded. †¢ All most all dealers/retailers are happy to sell Micromax mobile due to its increasing demand †¢ Many dealers/retailers are happy with the margin rate in the product. †¢ While many of the dealers/retailers are ok with the offers and promotion of the product almost all complain about the unavailability of the product to meet the demand in time. †¢ Some of the dealers/retailers want to have some extra commotion or margin to be applied by the company who used to sell some more no of unit as compare to other. Though they agree that it is steel behind from companies like nokia and Samsung in terms of brand name and post sales service still they appreciate the way the company is growing and trying to solve the issues SWOT analysis The SWOT analysis of the company is as fol low: Strengths The following are the strengths of the company ? Latest technological advancements ? Innovative technologies. ? Mobiles having 30 day battery life ? Affordable QWERTY phones ? Affordable Double Sims phones ? Has 23 domestic offices ? More than 40,000 stores of Micromax all over the country ? a 360 degree advertising and marketing strategy ? High penetration into rural market ? Mobiles specially designed according to Indian market Weaknesses’ No corporate brand building campaign. ? Confusing tagline. ? Low brand image as compare to nokia. ? Poor after sales service with just 450 service centers in the country. ? Fewer products targeting high end customers. Opportunities There is a huge opportunity there in the market for the company as the Indian mobile market is quit price sensitive and growing in a grate pace. The company with its new and innovative ideas and with value for price strategy can really do well in this market having heavy potential Threats Though there is a huge potential in the Indian market for mobile phone the competition is also getting tougher day by day new player entering the market. Earlier there were fewer companies like Nokia, Samsung, and LG etc but now there are around 72 companies which provide mobiles in the countries among them some are also have good brand image like Onida, Spice, i-ball etc Beside this low priced chinies sets are also a main threat for the company and big boys’ like Nokia and Samsung are also coming with low end phones with good features and there brand name can help them to get benefit from this also. Finding and suggestions From the above study the finding can be pointed as mentioned below: ? The company is the 3rd largest in the company after nokia and Samsung ? The company is first to invent some new features. ? The company has a high presence in the rural market. The company strategy is to give value for money with its cheap mobiles with compare to its competitors. ? The company’s distribution marketing is impressive. ? The company has already made its presence in abroad. ? The company has currently 23 domestic offic es, 40000 retailers and around 450 service stations across India. ? The company is going to increase its business with some tie up with international telecom companies as well wants to increase its market share to become second largest company in the country. Suggestions ? The company needs to increase its no of service centers in the country. ? Need to provide good after sales service to customers ? Need to be more informative regarding the product features. Need to maintain the current growth rate. ? Need to promote the brand to create brand awareness among the people ? Need to more innovative with new players coming to the market. Conclusion Till very recently, Micromax was seen as a second grade brand with hardly any brand value. But with the recent reports listing the figures in the company’s favor as well as the huge branding done by the company itself along with the interesting product portfolio has taken the brand to a respect position. And the position is still is ve ry promising for the future. For a company which still has not been listed on any exchange, a turnover of about 1500 Cr. can be termed as huge. Certainly the company has the potential to be a threat to the foreign giant as it has been successful in studying the Indian mindset better. But still there is log way to go for the company due heavy change in demand and due to the innovation of new technologies day by day. References Books and journals ? Marketing research project â€Å"Content analysis Brand recall of Ad’s in IPL-3 by Group-J (09-11)†. ? Marketing fundamentals by Kottler. ? Nielsen Info. From the official website of The Nielsen Company. ? Economic Times ? Business Economics ? Business world (9th Dec 2010) Web sites like ? www. micromaxinfo. com ? www. google. com ? www. yahooanswers. com ? www. draftfcbulkacomstrat. com ? http://en. wikipedia. org ? www. 2dix. com

Color of Water essays

Color of Water essays Before I read "The Color of Water," by James McBride, I saw his appearance on 20/20, discussing his quest to discover the background of his mysterious, marvelous mother. McBride said he didn't even know his mother's maiden name, much less about her Orthodox Jewish background, until he prodded it from her because he needed it for school records. "Shilsky," she told him, impatiently, offering no further details. McBride, who is now about 42 years old, said he asked no more questions of her, but added when he was "bonding" in Black Pride with his college friends, playing bongo drums and jazz music, he'd think: "Shilsky. Shilsky. Something's funny here...". Watching him on television, such a fascinating, articulate and yet entertaining man, made me want to know more about his amazing mother. I received a copy of the book as a gift. None of Ruth McBride's 12 children knew anything of substance about her background. When they asked what color she was, she would answer, "I am no color" and say that God is "the color of water." Ruth Shilsky, whose father was an abusive Orthodox Jewish Rabbi, treated her and her mother extremely cruelly when she was a young girl in Suffolk, Virginia. Jews were discriminated against second only to blacks. But Ruth fell in love with a young black man, became pregnant by him, and was sent to live with an aunt in New York city. She never went home again. She felt much more at home in 1940s Harlem, ...

6 traits of great managers

6 traits of great managers Want to be boss at being a boss? It’s not as simple as just being a good listener and making sure everyone shows up on time. Truly great managers attract the best workers. If you’re good at being in charge, you  hold onto star employees and advance their careers right along with yours. Managing is not an easy skill, but it is possible to build. Even if you think you’re pretty great already, take a look at these tips and see whether you can improve in any particular area. Your employees will thank you, and so will your boss.1. Have your employees’ backs.Bad bosses throw their employees under the bus. Don’t be that boss. When your team exists within a bubble of trust and has faith in its leader, all the members will want to work together to meet professional goals. Show off your employees’ successes and provide cover for them when you need to. When you build an environment of respect, your job will be so much easier.2. Be generous with your t ime.Even if you see the people who report to you directly all the time in the hall or during casual drop-ins, it’s still important to devote some of your weekly schedule to one-on-one meetings with your team. Even just 15-30 minutes of dedicated check-in time per person lets your employees know you’re there to address concerns and check in on their progress.3. Give productive feedback.Giving feedback is important, but go out of your way to make sure you give great feedback. Don’t just tell someone they did a â€Å"great job,† tell them why what they did was so great. If you receive work that’s sub-par, speak up- don’t just hope things improve the next time. Constructive criticism along the way for the small stuff helps employees reach their professional goals. When your employees know you’re invested in them doing well, they’ll step up their game for every task.4. Empower employees to reach for the stars.Push your team to do st ellar work (and letting them know you think they’re capable of it)- don’t let them settle for merely okay. Not only will this lead to results you and your team can flaunt, but it also will instill confidence that makes employees want to go above and beyond all the time. Expect top notch work, and people will adjust to meet your expectations.5. Build trust.Having a genuine relationship with your employees is a great thing. You definitely don’t have to be too casual and buddy-buddy- your style can remain strictly professional and still be built on trust. Create a rapport so people feel they can come to you with problems and mistakes- or great ideas! Don’t wall yourself off in some boss turret and forget to build relationships with the people you’re tasked to lead.6. Stay humble.Remember, even if you’ve climbed high up on the ladder you’re still paying your dues. You’re still learning too- about your industry and about the art of managing people. Don’t just sit back on your laurels. Figure out how your team can help you learn and build your career, and then help them in return.

How closely management and leadership are connected for maintaining Essay

How closely management and leadership are connected for maintaining the normal flow of an organization - Essay Example The concepts management and leadership differ greatly in terms of organising people, but the two are closely linked as they both maintain the normal flow of the organization. They entail setting what needs to be acted upon, mobilize individuals to achieve a certain goal, and lastly ensure that individuals perform their duties. Leadership is often about setting a direction for individuals to follow, but on a complementary perspective management directs these individuals based on established principles or values. As stated by Lopez (2014) leadership involves realizing potential in oneself and others. Above all, managing has planning and budgeting, this means that managers create appropriate plans that will contribute to the success of the organization, and leaders ensure that they direct their followers to the right direction that will enable them to work towards achieving the goals of the organization. In addition, while managing deals with organizing and staffing to help in achieving organizational goals, this is as clarified by Ratcliffe (2013) â€Å"†¦ management is a set of processes that keep an organization functioning†. On the same note, leading is all about aligning individuals in a more effective manner in order to achieve the goals of the organization, this indicate how these two concepts aims at maintaining the normal flow of the organization. Furthermore, management and leadership are linked in ensuring that organizational activities flow normally is based on the nature of their functions. For instance, a leader creates the organizational vision and it is the manager’s duty to accomplish it (Gillikin, no date). Management is about establishing specific functions and assigning them to specific individuals. Moreover, it involves leading and regulating individuals and assisting them to move toward a common purpose in coordination. As clarified by Maccoby (2000 pp.57-59) â€Å"The functions of management include

Article critique Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Article critique - Assignment Example The paper lacks a step by step flow of research write-up. It has also left out certain critical elements found in an abstract such as relevance of the study as well as research methodology and conclusion. However, its inclusion of keywords is remarkable as those words are relevant to the study. The study is inspired by the observations made concerning the emotional turmoil that the working members of the society go through whenever certain change that would require a transition from one regular habit to another is introduced. The economic sectors have witnessed a lot of psychological problems caused when upheavals are experienced in the society. Transformative learning has been therefore identified to be one of the ways that can best go about this problem. It is this problem that the research seeks to explore. The paper begins by exploring the status quo of the problem at hand. It describes several studies have been done in trying to understand the essence and relationship between critical transformative learning and the welfare of workers. This is explored in reference to previous studies that had been conducted to understand the same. From this discussion, a knowledge gap is created which demonstrates that not so much has been done to determine exactly the effectiveness of transformative learning as opposed to together modes/forms of learning in shielding the workers from the shock of rapid social changes. This revelation renders the research relevant for that particular study as there is a wide lacuna that needs to be studied. However, it becomes ambiguous when it states that it seeks to broaden the knowledge and understanding of transformative learning ‘through describing restorative leaning’. This purpose is not easily understood as one may be left wondering what variables influences what or how does the variables correlate in case they actually are. A precise and clear purpose of the study

The Invasions of Europe Essay Example for Free

The Invasions of Europe Essay On the later stage of the dark ages or the Middle Ages, Europe experienced loses from barbaric attacks by Vikings, Magyars and Moslem invaders which ranged from early 9th century up to 11th century. These invasions had made Roman Empire lost most of its land area as well as the trust of people to the Christian leaders. Vikings started their attack because of overpopulation in their homeland. They came first to England then to Iona, Ireland and the rest of the north and western part, destroying the most civilized part of the region and plundering the rich trading centers and monasteries. As each attack became successful, they would return in more numbers. Their invasions had become easier on them because they had their sail ships compared to their earlier invasions which was by foot. People started fearing to live in the coastal region. While some of the Vikings battle in the western half of Mediterranean, some began settling in the northwest of France and the others came to Moslem Spain and Great Britain. Chieftains would bribe them in order for Vikings not to attack their villages. Some groups such as Danes began the resistance and successfully defended England. As Normans settled down, they began to decrease in number. They became civilized and were converted to Christianity. They had lost their lust in plundering. During that period, in the other part of Europe, the Moslems had gone invading Spain, threatening Italy, droving out Byzantines in Sicily and southern Italy. They almost got into Rome. While Moslems continued their attack in the Mediterranean, Magyars began invading the east. These groups of invaders which simultaneously attacked from all sides had surrounded the European continent. Magyars invaded Germany each year. They had passed through Germany, France, Burgundy, all the way to Italy. While some of them continued to pursue their attacks at France, others left for Spain. Until the Magyar armies were annihilated by a German king Otto I, Europe became safe from invasions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   All of these invasions had contributed to the downfall of the rich Holy Roman Empire. But they experienced the worst attack from the Magyars mainly because during that time that they attacked, Europe was already suffering from attacks of Vikings and Moslems. There were almost no civilized regions left during that time and areas became less populated. They invasion became so damaging as they suffered simultaneous attacks from all sides.   As the Roman Empire tends to collapse, they failed to resist these attacks earlier because they had fewer warriors.   Some locals burn their fields not letting the barbarians have it. Most of the richest parts were prone to attack while monasteries were heavily subjected to being destroyed. People suffered heavily. They lost their lands, livelihood and their wealth. As they mourn, they ran to the church for comfort but they were disappointed as there were anomalies in the leader of the churches.   Some of them became robbers, adulterers, and murderers and converged into realms of politics. There were numerous replacements of popes. At a time there were â€Å"illegal doings† in the papal palaces. Some must have lost their trust in their belief. Yet, Christianity did not end there. It was reformed by Benedictine monks in France. As the Magyars were defeated during that time, they became converts to Christianity and settled at Hungary. Vikings were also converted to Christianity but one of the main reasons is that Christians didn’t want to trade with and marry non-Christians. During the latter course of Dark Ages, Europe gradually recovered from the invasion. Leaders were crowned but had conflicts with Christian leaders. There were tensions between them about who had the greatest power. And so the Dark Ages ended. References Kimball, C. (2001). Chapter 7: The Viking Era. A History of Europe. Retrieved December 7,   Ã‚  Ã‚   2007, from http://xenohistorian.faithweb.com/europe/eu07.html. Knight, J. (2001). The Carolingan Age. Middle Ages: Almanac, 39-45. Retrieved December 7,    2007, from http://www.4shared.com/file/28008239/b4f1dc89/Gale_- _Middle_Ages_Reference_Library_Vols1-5.html [database].

Essay --

Pump Up that Seawater! A Remix of Traditional Freshwater Hydro Systems Hydroelectricity is a super clean energy source that emits minimal pollution. However most dams and structures used to gather hydroelectricity can be placed in limited locations. This is because hydroelectricity today requires two reservoirs of fresh water. It is well known that freshwater is very limited while we have an abundance of seawater, which many scientists believe is supposedly a waste and can’t be used for anything. To harness hydroelectricity to its fullest so that it can provide an abundant source of energy, a hydro system that is much less site-specific is required. Hydroelectric plants can be placed in only so few places, because there are few sources of freshwater. Although hydroelectricity uses renewable resources and releases little to no pollutants, existing hydroelectric plants in total give very little energy and are site specific compared to other sources of energy, it not cost effective and usable in limited areas. We can tackle the problem of limited areas for hydroelectric energy plants by using seawater instead of freshwater. We actually have an infinite amount of ocean water, unfortunately we don’t have an infinite amount of freshwater. Like traditional freshwater hydro systems a seawater pumped-storage hydro would work very similar. Extra electrical energy from nuclear energy, fossil fuels, or renewable energy power plants are used during times of low power demand to push water uphill to be deposited in reservoirs as potential energy. Then, when demand peaks, the reservoirs are opened, permitting water to pass through hydroe lectric turbines to produce the electricity needed to meet power demand. The key modification for saltwa... ...ean, where World watch is currently working with three governments to produce Sustainable Energy Roadmaps, it could be a practical solution to consider. With limited supplies of fresh water, tremendous renewable energy potential on and just off its coasts, and limited energy storage capability, seawater pumped-storage hydro could provide the Caribbean with tremendous benefits. Protecting the environment is crucial for this generation and future generations. My idea may make green energy more popular and benefit the environment. Using blah, blah, blah would blah, blah, blahs. Reducing costs and blah, blah, blah, the simple, efficient, and blah, blah, blah that I developed should encourage more people to switch to renewable resources and support this and my cause. Such a change would make the environment cleaner, healthier, and more enjoyable for generations to come.

Wiz Khalifa Bibliography

Kylee Jade Whitaker. (: Mr. Knight’s language arts Second hour Wiz Khalifa Most of you probably know him from his songs â€Å"Black and yellow† or â€Å"no sleep†. Here is a look into the life of Cameron Jibril Thomaz or better known as his stage name Wiz Khalifa. Khalifa was born on September 8, 1987 in Minot, North Dakota, to a mother and a father serving in the military. His parents divorced when he was about three years old. His parents' military service caused him to move regularly: Khalifa Over the next thirteen years, he would move between Pittsburgh and South Carolina, Georgia, Oklahoma, Germany, Japan, and England as his parents were reassigned to different posts. In October of 1990, Wiz was separated from his mother, who left him in the hands of her sister while she served in Operation Desert Storm. During his travels, Wiz was forced to mature quicker than his peers did. He was constantly faced with new surroundings, new schools, and new sets of friends, and he found it difficult to become attached to anyone outside his family roots. This nomadic life gave Wiz an opportunity, though, to broaden his mind and offered him many experiences from which to draw inspiration. He began to perceive the world differently than most kids, and he would write his thoughts down every day. These thoughts would become the foundation for his future recordings. He ended up settling in Pittsburgh where he went to Taylor Allderdice High School. His stage name is taken from khalifa, an Arabic word meaning â€Å"successor†, and wisdom, which was shortened to Wiz when Khalifa was fifteen. Khalifa stated to spinner. om that the name also came from being called â€Å"young Wiz 'cause I was good at everything I did, and my granddad is Muslim, so he gave me that name; he felt like that's what I was doing with my music. † He got his stage name tattooed on his 17th birthday. He says Camp Lo, The Notorious B. I. G. and Bone Thugs-n-Harmony are some of his influences. Khalifa released his first mix tape, Prince of the City: Welcome to Pistolvania, in 2005. The mix tape led to his first full-length album entitled Show and Prove in 2006. Khalifa was declared an â€Å"artist to watch† that year in Rolling Stone magazine. This year, XXLmag. com ran a feature on Wiz stating that â€Å"his buzz has officially started to outgrow the streets. † After rave reviews from his first debut single â€Å"Youngin On His Grind,† Wiz premiered his follow up â€Å"Say Yeah† on AllHipHop. com. According to yahoo. com, He was just eight years old when he decided he wanted to become a rapper, and has been on his current career path since he was just 15. He describes his music, as well as the music of Pittsburgh, as being a â€Å"worldwide sound†. This is due in part to his own travels and the fact Pittsburgh is made up of a diverse set of people and thus tastes. The same could be said of his own musical tastes, as he likes more than just rap music. The popular song Black and Yellow was written about the Pittsburgh Steelers and is now the anthem for the Super Bowl bound football team. Black and yellow are the Steelers' colors. Music isn’t the only thing the breakthrough MC is not just working to build upon. He also is working on covering his whole body in tattoos. He turned down a chance to open up for Drake on tour before he was signed by a record label. Wiz doesn’t like subway and his favorite color is green. : He has some quotes and some of my favorites are: 3 things I want in a relationship: Eyes that wont cry, lips than won’t lie, and love that won’t die. Girls fall in love with what they hear. Boys fall in love with what they see. That's why girls wear make-up; and boys lie. Some people make your life better by walking into it. But some people make your life better by simply walking out. Taylor gang or die. H ated by many wanted by plenty disliked by some confronted by none. Sometimes we waste too much time thinking about those who don’t think about us for a second. I love everything you hate about yourself. Why do we ignore those who adore us, adore those who ignore us, love the ones who hurt us and hurt the ones who love us? â€Å"Don't date the most beautiful person in the world. Date the person that makes your world the most beautiful† – Wiz Khalifa  ¦ ? Works Cited http://www. spinner. com/2010/03/12/wiz-khalifa-interview-sxsw-2010/ http://www. xxlmag. com/old-freshmen-2010/2010/03/wiz-khalifa-most-charismatic/ http://allhiphop. com/2011/12/12/the-2011-playback-allhiphop-coms-top-50-hottest-songs-of-2011-50-to-26/ http://voices. yahoo. com/fun-facts-wiz-khalifa-7759700. html

Nissan Report Essay

Company Overview Established in Yokohama, Kanagawa in 1933, Nissan Motors Co. Ltd currently manufactures vehicles in 20 countries and areas around the world, including Japan. Global unit sales in fiscal 2009 totalled 3.515 million vehicles. In addition to vehicles, Nissan also develops, manufactures and markets marine equipment. Nissan has a portfolio of two brands, NISSAN and INFINITI, worldwide. NISSAN vehicles are marketed in all major market worldwide. INFINITI was launched as a luxury car brand in North America in 1989. The INFINITI brand has since expanded to Middle East, Korea and Europe, and will continue to enter into new markets globally. Nissan builds high-quality cars that are safe and have the bold design and innovative technology to satisfy our customers’ needs. Vision Nissan: Enriching People’s Lives Mission statement Nissan provides unique and innovative automotive products and services that deliver superior measurable values to all stakeholders* in alliance with Renault. Long term goal Nissan wants to continue its quest to optimize product development and deliver highly innovative technology. Today, in various countries and regions around the world, they enjoy a stellar reputation for creating truly innovative vehicles and service programs. Short term goal The world is changing, and Nissan is adapting with it. Their short term goals are to harness the power that’s inside Nissan to prepare solutions that their customers will want and value, now and in the years to come. Solutions such as: electric and fuel cell vehicles that are attractive, fun-to-drive cars with the appealing benefit of zero emissions; global entry cars that make mobility more accessible and affordable for all; and Innovative technological advances that are good for the environment, enhance safety, improve dynamic performance or provide greater life-on-board satisfaction. Organisational structure Nissan places high value on transparency, both internally and externally, in its corporate management. They focus consistently on the implementation of efficient management for the purpose of achieving clear and quantifiable commitments. In line with this principle, and in accordance with Japan’s Company Law and its related regulations, the Board of Directors has decided on the Internal Control Systems to pursue these goals and on its own basic policy. The board continually monitors the implementation status of these systems and the policy, making adjustments and improvements as necessary. One board member has also been assigned to oversee the Internal Control Systems as a whole. Nissan has adopted a system under which the Board of Statutory Auditors oversees the Board of Directors. The Statutory Auditors attend board and other key meetings, and also carry out interviews with board members to audit their activities. The Statutory Auditors regularly receive reports on the results of inspections and plans for future audits from independent accounting auditors, as well as exchange information to confirm these reports. The Statutory Auditors also receive regular reports from the Japan Internal Audit Office, making use of this information for their own audits. The organisational structure could also be explained with the help of the following diagram Here the Board of Directors overlooks the working of the CEO and President who is Carlos Ghosn. The CEO overlooks the working of the branch managers in various locations. Each branch manager handles a groups o VP marketing, VP production, VP finance, VP Public Relations, and VP Human Resource. Organisational Behaviour Nissan is deploying various activities under the banner of Blue Citizenship, which encapsulates their desire to preserve the blue Earth and to be a corporate citizen in harmonious coexistence with people and society. Those activities range from such global issues as the environment to contributing to communities, promoting diversity and making personal mobility available to as many people as possible. SUSTAINABILITY Nissan Green Program The history of Nissan taking environmental measures goes as far back as 1947. Since 1992, abiding to our environmental philosophy â€Å"Symbiosis of People, Vehicle, and Nature†, we have as an enterprise, been accelerating the activities pertaining to the said philosophy. At present we are promoting our mid-term environmental plan â€Å"Nissan Green Program 2010†, identifying the 3 crucial issues, and setting the ultimate goals of â€Å"reducing CO2 emissions†, â€Å"cleaner (conservation of the atmosphere/water/earth) emissions†, and â€Å"resource circulation (the promoting of the 3 Rs: reduce, reuse, recycle)†. We are furthering our measures to achieve these goals. The 4 optimums, Nissan’s Powertrain Road Map In order to steadily reduce CO2 emissions, Nissan sees the total contribution of providing truthfully effective technology at an affordable price to its clients, while at the same time swiftly propagating these technologies, as crucial. That said, we believe the â€Å"4 optimums† – â€Å"Investment in the optimum technology that fits the market needs, at the opportune moment, at the best value for the clients†, as the basis of technology investment. Based on these 4 optimums, we will not only ultimately heighten the engine efficiency of petrol motor vehicles, but also proceed with the development and  investment of electrical vehicles which are zero-emission vehicles. Measures for a zero-emission vehicle For vehicle manufacturers, the best long-term policy that both creates demand and protects the environment, is to created a zero-emission vehicle that has no negative effects toward the environment. The Renault-Nissan Alliance sees the propagation and investment in electrical vehicles, which are zero-emission vehicles, as central to the corporate strategy, and committed to become a â€Å"leader through electrical vehicles†. The electrical vehicles that are being developed in Nissan will be introduced in the United States, Europe as well as in Japan in FY2010. By FY2012, there are plans to globally merchandise them. Lithium-ion Batteries Nissan had, at an early stage, taken interest in the development of motors, batteries, and inverters which are key technologies for electrical vehicles. Aiming to achieve the goals set forth in the â€Å"Nissan Green Program 2010†, we are striving to strengthen the developmental measures we have been taking up to this point. Additionally, we are working to develop technology for further practicability, and taking efforts in reducing their costs. In 2007, we established the Automotive Energy Supply Corporation (AESC) that deals with the production and sales of â€Å"compact lithium-ion batteries†. The batteries that are to be developed will be used within electrical vehicles, as well as hybrid vehicles and fuel cell vehicles. Quality At Nissan, we believe that the quality of our products allows us to build a relationship of mutual trust with our customers and is the foundation for continual growth. Product quality is far more than just the performance of Nissan vehicles. It means everything related to our car that brings satisfaction to our customers, from the moment of seeing and touching a Nissan car in the showroom to the support given by the sales staff and the post-purchase driving experience. Nissan quality also extends to after-sales inspections and repairs. We will continue to evaluate and improve all areas of our operations in order to provide the products and services that will constantly give satisfaction to our customers. Safety Shield Nissan aims to halve the number of fatal and serious injuries from accidents involving Nissan vehicles in Japan by 2015 compared with 1995. Based on analysis of real-world accidents, Nissan has been working progressively to design and engineer safer vehicles. Safety shield is an approach to provide continuous support against dangerous situations, by activating various barriers according to the circumstances, from normal driving to post-accident. We are advancing development based on even more sophisticated and proactive safety policy. PARTNERSHIP Yokohama mobility â€Å"Project ZERO† In March 2009, the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Yokohama City saw an agreement over the 5-year -plan, the `Yokohama Mobility â€Å"Project Zero†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ, which aims to realize the â€Å"environment model city† that is promoted by Yokohama City. In order to reduce CO2 emissions, this partnership will see cooperation in disseminating eco-drive, in addition to testing guidance routes that will contribute to reducing traffic, as well as propagating electrical cars. Additionally, Nissan is in works with Tokyo University in developing a joint industry-university research concerning vehicle transport that aims for the symbiosis of urban space and nature. In terms of the evaluation and the release of information concerning this time’s planned items, we are, in cooperation with Tokyo University, also furthering them. Yokohama City is planned to be one of the first markets where Nissan’s electrical vehicles will be supplied, similarly to the various regions throughout the world that have similar partnership agreements with the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Partnership regarding zero-emission mobility From January 2008, aiming for the realistic propagation of electrical vehicles, the Renault-Nissan Alliance concluded on the 40 cases (as of December 2009) of â€Å"Partnership regarding zero-emission mobility† along with governmental sectors, municipal sectors and other sectors. With this, we are working to prepare the social infrastructure such as by installing chargers, as well as taking into consideration benefit measures in times of purchasing the zero-emission vehicles. Through the cooperation with our partners throughout the world, we are contributing to a vehicle society that is both  people-friendly and considerate of the environment. Sky Project In Sky Project, which has been implemented since October 2006 in partnership with non-automobile industries and in cooperation with government agencies, Nissan, with the participation of customers, has been working to reduce the number of traffic accidents and alleviate traffic congestion by using intelligent transportation system (ITS). While providing information to cut the number of encounter head accidents and reduce driving speed in school zones and other areas, we investigate the potentiality for the alleviation of traffic congestion, realized through daily use of ITS, to improve effectiveness of energy use and reduce CO2 emissions. In Beijing, China, we have been implementing Star Wings, a project to develop new transportation information system, in cooperation with Beijing Traffic Information Center (BTIC), in order to alleviate traffic congestion and improve traffic conditions in Beijing and China. Wind power Beginning in 2007, Nissan became an active â€Å"Y-green partner† when it harnessed wind-power for use in its facilities in Japan. The company, through its Yokohma plant facility and the new Global Headquarters, seeks to utilize â€Å"green energy in its facilities and implement local green energy for local consumption. Since November 2005, Nissan Motor Manufacturing Ltd. (UK) has been using a wind-power facility at its Sunderland plant. Addressing the key issues of Nissan Green Program 2010, the company is reducing C02 emissions by utilizing wind derived power in its facilities worldwide. ACCESSIBILITY BUI-2 (Best usability interior-2) BUI-2 (Best Usability Interior-2) is a concept car, whose interior has been created with a focus to â€Å"design the way people feel† so that all the elements can smoothly appeal to people as they engage in cars. For Nissan, three types of design – interface design, colour and material design, and sensitivity quality design – are broadly defined as interaction design. Through various research activities, we are making efforts to realize even more convenient and attractive interior designs. Lifecare vehicles (LVs) Nissan lifecare vehicles (LVs) help bring mobility to the elderly or those with physical disabilities. We regard LVs as an essential part of our line-up of cars rather than specialty vehicles, and we are enhancing the products and services available to them. As of the end of January 2009, in Japan there were 401 certified dealerships with LVs on display and advisory staff with expert knowledge of the vehicles, and a total of 5,520 LV advisors. There are dealerships in every prefecture of the country meeting the needs of customers and offering the chance to test-drive these vehicles. Since 2003, we have also been carrying out an annual campaign of LV trial rides for people who have only limited opportunities to get out and about, so that they too can experience the joy of mobility. COMMUNITY Corporate citizenship activities distinctive of Nissan Nissan endeavours to fulfil its role as a corporate citizen toward the realization of a sustainable society, while providing attractive products and services globally, under the vision of â€Å"enriching people’s lives.† We are thus advancing corporate citizenship activities in fields centered on three priority areas – support for education, environmentally friendliness, and humanitarian assistance – in order to contribute to the sustainability of society. We share our vision globally with Nissan employees around the world and strive to strengthen our relations with local communities by conducting activities responsive to the circumstances and needs of each country and region. Corporate citizenship in education field (Japan) Nissan’s corporate citizenship initiatives have been always focusing on â€Å"Cultivating Future Generation†. In education field, we have many programs such as â€Å"Nissan Children’s Storybook and Picture Book Grand Prix† with its long history, and â€Å"Nissan Joyful Picture Book and Storybook Exhibition†, and in addition, we started the new programs such as â€Å"Nissan Monozukuri Caravan† and â€Å"Nissan Design Waku-Waku Studio†, which utilize Nissan’s strength for those original programs. Organisational culture The diversity of Nissan’s employees is the driving force enabling them to meet the varied needs of their customers and to maintain sustainable growth. The employees create greater value by sharing their knowledge, based on their individual experiences and different ways of thinking, in response to the various challenges they all face. For these reasons, Nissan have made diversity a corporate strategy and strive to create an environment where all their employees—who numbered 169,298 at Nissan and its affiliates as of March 2010—can extend their individual talents to the fullest. SUPPORTING CAREER DESIGN Continually Improving Human-Resource Systems A company’s employees are its most important resource. So that both Nissan and its employees can reach their full potential, they constantly work to improve our human-resource systems. The evaluation-based remuneration system used to accurately gauge employee contributions is structured in a way that motivates them to set and achieve high goals. An employee’s salary is determined through a combination of performance evaluations, which measure how well the employee achieved certain goals (commitments), and competency evaluations, which measure such intangible variables as technical skill, knowledge and attitude. Support for Self-Designed Careers Nissan believes that employees should â€Å"design their own careers† and actively assists their efforts to do so. Employees in Japan meet with their supervisors twice a year to discuss their performance and competency evaluations, as well as to express their ideas on how to proceed in their career path. Employees in Japan also have the chance to take on the challenge of a new position through the Shift Career System (SCS) and the Open Entry System (OES). The SCS enables employees to apply for positions in other departments and work areas that interest them regardless of whether there is a position immediately available. The OES allows them to apply for all openly advertised positions. Around 250 employees applied for approximately 100 open posts during fiscal 2009, and roughly 80 of them were successful in getting the positions they applied for. Fostering Specialized Skills Helping employees develop specialized skills over the medium to long term is vital for a company to achieve sustainable growth. They introduced the Nissan Expert Leader System as a means of strengthening and fostering further development of specialized skills in a wide range of technical and nontechnical areas like purchasing and accounting. In fiscal 2009, the system’s fourth year, they focused on 91 fields of specialization, designating 42 employees as Expert Leaders and 2 management-level employees as Nissan Fellows. The Expert Leaders and Fellows make use of their specialized knowledge to contribute to Nissan’s business endeavours overall. In addition to sharing their knowledge with others via our corporate intranet and other communication tools, they contribute to the fostering of the next generation of experts by passing on their specialized skills in seminars and training courses. CREATING A CULTURE FOR LEARNING A Variety of Learning Opportunities As an organization that continues to grow through constant learning, Nissan supports employees’ personal growth with a proactive, systematic approach to human-resource development. The act of learning is one in which people stretch themselves to develop skills that create value. They believe that a corporate culture of learning cannot exist without the motivation to take part in this value creation. The Learning Navigation system on their intranet is one means of providing employees with opportunities for learning. This system lets employees search for information whenever they wish to develop specialized skills, receive training in management techniques, participate in e-learning programs or take distance-learning courses. The site is updated regularly to provide information our employees need to increase their skills and build their careers, meeting their growing thirst for knowledge. Management Institute The Nissan Learning Center Management Institute in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture, was established with the aim of cultivating human resources with  the specialized skills and leadership qualities needed for future development. The institute contributes to the ongoing creation of Nissan value through a number of programs, including human-resource development seminars, which provide leadership training to pass on the company’s accumulated experience and knowledge to the next generation; cultural diversity workshops; and our Consortium Program, in which they invite other global companies to take part in cross-industry exchange. Moreover, the leaders of our business activities around the world who have taken part in such programs as our Nissan Way Workshops are now active in educating fellow employees in the Nissan Way—the crystallization of experience and knowledge gained through our company’s revival—demonstrating our commitment to promoting a corporate cult ure of learning. Global Training Centers With the globalization of production systems, manufacturers must ensure that all of their manufacturing sites maintain consistent standards of quality. Nissan established Global Training Centers (GTCs) at its Oppama and Yokohama Plants in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, and at its Sunderland Plant in the United Kingdom to educate trainers who share their knowledge at Nissan plants around the world. Trainees selected from among all employees at Nissan’s production facilities worldwide are brought to the GTCs to take part in the company’s Master Trainer Program. Upon finishing the program they are certified as Master Trainers and charged with instructing other employees at Regional Training Centers using a globally standardized curriculum and materials. As of the end of March 2010, 466 Master Trainers were hard at work passing on their technical skills to local employees at Nissan plants worldwide. Nissan’s accumulated know-how has been put into audio-visual form as an educational tool, available in five different languages, for global-standards training at GTCs. They also conduct â€Å"Nissan DNA† training seminars for all management-level employees at our production sites, working to strengthen skills that contribute to improved quality and lower costs and to foster the human resources that can carry out more efficient management of production operations. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION Employee Surveys Nissan carries out surveys to get employee input and suggestions for improvements, using the results to help improve the company’s management quality and employee motivation. From the results of these surveys, they identify the strengths of the company as a whole and those of individual divisions, as well as areas for improvement. They then work to make improvements that will lead to the creation of a better work environment for our employees and to continued growth for the company. The results of these efforts are analyzed for the company as a whole and for each region and department. Based on these analyses, each level of management formulates and carries out action plans tailored to specific needs. Enhancing Communication Tools Nissan introduced a corporate intranet system called WIN (Workforce Integration @ Nissan) in 2005 as a tool to promote communication and information sharing. Since then they have continued to update the system with new technologies while encouraging employees to make active use of this tool for internal communication and collaborative activities. They have expanded the WIN network beyond Japan, North America and Europe to include other markets and our major business partners. They also use internal newsletters and in-house video broadcasts to provide a variety of information to be shared by all employees at Nissan production sites around the world with no difference in time. Employee-Executive Exchange Nissan holds opinion-exchange meetings involving executives and employees as a means of building trust through clear communication between these two groups, as well as among employees themselves. These meetings, held at Nissan’s corporate headquarters in Japan as well as the company’s business offices in China, North America and other parts of the world, give executives a venue for informing employees of the current situation of the company and delivering management messages. They also provide employees with opportunities to ask questions and voice their concerns in a direct and open manner. They plan to continue these meetings as an important channel for active communication. Ethical Issues Global Educational Activities to Promote Compliance As a means of fostering compliance awareness throughout the company, Nissan has established groups and placed officers in charge of promoting compliance policy in each region where it operates. We place special emphasis on education to ensure that all employees have a correct understanding of the Code of Conduct and, as a result, make fair, transparent judgments in the course of their duties. To ensure full understanding of the code in Japan, all employees, including executives, take an elearning or video training course based on the Japanese version of the Nissan Code of Conduct—â€Å"Our Promises,† instituted in April 2004—after which they sign an agreement to abide by it. The revised parts of the code in fiscal 2010 were in response to legal amendments and retained all employees since fiscal 2010 to further strengthen the spirit of compliance within the company. Education programs to promote compliance are held regularly for all employees in North America, and a set of universal guidelines has been drawn up for each country in Europe. Compliance-related training is also being carried out in the General Overseas Markets based on guidelines that take into account conditions in each of those countries. Moreover, all group-affiliated companies have introduced their own codes based on the Nissan Code of Conduct. Additionally, they have created sets of internal regulations covering the global prevention of insider trading and the management of personal information. Nissan seeks to heighten awareness of compliance companywide through such measures as well as various education and training programs. Our Stance against Discrimination and Harassment Item 6 of Nissan’s Global Code of Conduct, â€Å"Value Diversity and Provide Equal Opportunity,† is our requirement to accept value and respect the diversity  to be found among our employees, business partners, customers and communities where we do business, and to reject discrimination and harassment in all their forms, no matter how minor they may be. Nissan executives and employees must respect the human rights of others, and may not discriminate against nor harass others based on race, nationality, gender, religion, physical capability, age, and place of origin or other reason; nor may they allow such a situation to go unchecked if discovered. We also work to ensure that all employees, both male and female, can work in an environment free from sexual and other forms of harassment. PEST analysis PEST analysis is a useful strategic tool for understanding market growth or decline, business position, potential and direction for operations. The use of PEST analysis can be seen effective for business and strategic planning, marketing planning, business and product development and research reports. PEST also ensures that company’s performance is aligned positively with the powerful forces of change that are affecting business environment. PEST is useful when a company decides to enter its business operation into new markets and new countries. The use of PEST, in this case helps to break free of unconscious assumptions, and help to effectively adapt to the realities of the new environment. Looking at the current condition of Japan, it is difficult to mention anything about its political, economical, technological or sociocultural since there is no stability in the country at the moment, due to the natural disaster crises they are facing. SWOT Analysis Strength: 1) Global Brand: According to business Week Global Brand Scorecard Nissan is the fastest growing automotive brand. Nissan’s brand equity was valued at $3,108 million in 2006. Some of the company’s passenger car models include Maxima, Sentra, Altima, Versa, Z Roadstar and Z Coupe. Some of its truck models are Quest, Armada, Pathfinder, Murand and Xterra. Brand strength provides competitive advantage that can offset the increasing competition. Over the last five years company has establish the global brand by focusing on the brand pyramid and dynamics that caters the silky design, the vibrant experience, the interplay between serenity and driving pleasure has reached a high level of alignment and consistency. That makes it easier to communicate about the brand and specific features of its model. 2) Renault-Nissan Alliance: The alliance has provided advantages to both companies. They can move into new markets faster and with lower costs because they don’t have to build new plants. (Renault builds cars in Nissan’s Mexico plants and Nissan uses Renault’s Brazil plant and distribution networks) The companies are collaborating on building common platforms, components and engines, and each company leads engine design in their area of expertise–Renault in diesel and Nissan in gasoline. And they have increased purchasing power because they buy components for six million cars not three as will be in the case of Nissan alone. The alliance has so far boosted the profitability, market capitalization and sales in 192 countries for both partners. CEO and president of Renault to his titles in 2005, says he’ll rely on the strengths of two distinct work forces: French innovation in concept stages and Japanese dedication to process in manufacturing. 3) Most fuel efficient car: Nissan is known to make the most fuel efficient cars over the years and this has become one of its major strengths in the competitive market. Due to its fuel efficient car, the demand for them has also increased over the past few years. Weakness: 1) Product Innovation time lag: Nissan launched two new or redesigned vehicles, in comparison to 14 in the three previous years. Nissan has misjudged its model strategy in the United States over the past few years. Like the other Japanese automakers, the company was a relative late-comer to the country’s high-profit margin and high-volume pick-up markets. Nissan’s late entry meant that it has suffered from the decline in the sector as a result of rising fuel prices in Japan, While Toyota and Nissan have been well placed to benefit from a shift in emphasis in Japan market towards compact sales as a result of the Scion and Civic models respectively, Nissan at the moment has no competitive offering in this segment. However, there  are a number of new models that should reinvigorate the company’s fortunes in the United States, including the Sentra and Altima mid-size sedans, as well as its luxury-brand Infiniti G35 sedan. The company also desperately needs new offe ring in key segments in the European market. The Almera C-segment hatchback and Primera D-segment sedan are hopelessly outmoded and largely ignored by European buyers, although the new Note small multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) should provide Nissan with a sales success in Europe. 2) Lack of Diesel Technology: In the Japanese market, diesel accounts for only 0.4% of vehicles sold (Rowley, 2006). In contrast, diesel is very popular and its share in overall sales has been increasing. In the year ending 1st January 2006 the number of diesel cars sold increased by 7.5%. Some analysts believe that the diesel market will account for more than 80% of total vehicle sales in Europe by the end of 2008. Diesel technology has been improving significantly over the past decade reducing emissions, fuel consumption and cost. As Nissan’s home country has a low demand for diesel engines, Nissan lacks the technology and experience to produce diesel engines of comparative quality. Opportunity: 1) Asia market: Lower penetration coupled with strong rise in income levels, led to continuous jumps in car sales in markets like china and India. In fact china, followed by India is estimated to be major growth driver in the next decade. Hence it is necessary for global player to be present in these countries. Therefore all global players either have products for these markets or planning to develop products to enter into these markets. In India in year 2004-05 domestic sales of car and utility vehicles has crossed the 1 million mark. 2) Relocate its manufacturing unit to reduce cost: The Japanese car maker has stepped up their policy of producing where demand exists. Car making is an industry situated at a forefront of globalization and major player is accelerating their cross border activities. Manufacturing units in America and Europe have huge capacities in line with their vast domestic automobile  output. While this offered them the benefits of scale, the continuous sluggish growth in their local market and their inflationary increase in production cost, especially wage cost. Adoption of cost reduction measure became imperative for players to survive. China, India and Thailand have been regarded as the Low Cost Production bases with their unique offering to the outsourcers. Low cost country will provide them the global clientele and technology and also have synergetic operation. Area of opportunity for India lies in the products which have high level of design and engineering requirements, low level of auto mation and significant assembly requirement. 3) Renault-Nissan Purchasing Organization (RNPO): The RNPO, which was established in 2001 in the early stages of the alliance, was one of the key ways in which Renault-Nissan would combine their resources to create a more efficient organization. Currently Nissan and Renault share 60% of the same part and raw material suppliers. This has led Nissan to achieve greater purchasing power and has served to reduce costs and reduce the bargaining power of suppliers. There still remains significant opportunity through the RNPO to decrease costs and provide increased competitive advantage. Threats: 1) Cross-Cultural Disharmony: As Nissan and Renault become further integrated with one another, the risk of cross-cultural disharmony increases. If disharmony occurs then, as occurred at DaimlerChrysler, overall company performance may be reduced and the current strengths that the Alliance provides may become instabilities. Nissan is currently working to reduce the likelihood through its ‘Business Way’ program but corporate and national culture takes a long time to change. 2) Rising Commodity Prices: Due to the economic expansion of China, changes in commodity prices could affect the costs incurred by Nissan. Over the past 12 months, the price of steel used in car production has risen by nearly 30% (London Metal Exchange, 2006). Nissan has taken steps to reduce the effect of rising steel prices; in 2000, Nissan began using hot dip zinc coated steel and converted to less expensive steel in 2002, which saved about $16 million per year (Nissan Motor Co., 2004). This however, has done little to  reduce the upward pressure on vehicle costs and prices. As this increase in cost has been passed on to the consumer, demand for new vehicles has reduced. This threatens Nissan’s viability in the region. 3) Market saturation: With overall industry sales number stagnant, if not declining in key economies term, the overall automobile industry has been significantly impacted. Due to overall market saturation, the individual company new product development strategy towards market expansion is changing from iterative year on year model changes to drastic innovation. The emergence of SUV market few years back is an evidence of how product and market innovation has changed the very composition of US auto market. Marketing Strategies TARGET MARKET Nissan’s target market will be the low-level income group and middle class. Whereas Infiniti’s target market is people looking for luxury, great driving experience with unparallel appeal. With constant awareness and education about Nissan affordability and safety features, different type of group could be acquired resulting in increase of brand loyal consumers. People are more aware and therefore, they are constantly more particular when deciding which car to purchase. With strategic advertisement, consumers can be attracted with its latest features and a new image Nissan will provide to owners. NISSAN TARGET MARKET: GEOGRAPHIC SEGMENT The major concern of Nissan is to capture all the district headquarters of the country resulting in its coverage of almost all over the country. NISSAN TARGET MARKET: PSYCHOGRAPHICS With new image Nissan will provide to its buyers, owners will feel more confident and proud considering that Nissan is an international organization with strong background resulting driving Nissan a status symbol. Also safety and comfort are big factors of considerations in a consumers mind so Nissan by focusing on these factors will attract safety and comfort conscious people. Seeing its potential, consumers will most likely shift to Nissan. NISSAN TARGET MARKET: DEMOGRAPHICS Primary Target market belongs to middle class, upper middle class and low earning income people in society, falling in income bracket of below $ 2500. Also the target will be people from 25 – 60year old who are major automobile buyers. DISTRIBUTION STRATEGIES Basically there are two types of distribution channels available: Direct distribution and In-direct distribution PROMOTION STRATEGIES Promotion is one of the most important factors of marketing; it is done to affect the consumer behaviour in order to achieve sales and increase product image. In promotion the major task is to make consumers aware of the product and to attract consumer towards the product by highlighting the advantages of the product. Also it keeps consumers aware and well informed about product’s features and improvements. ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH An extensive market research will be conducted to have better idea about consumers’ perception about Nissan and its competitors. For this purpose Nissan will acquire services of marketing and research agencies to better analyze market environment. This will enable Nissan to learn about the consumers’ behaviour, how they perceive us and compare with the competitor. The media of the advertising a product is always chosen after the market environment research to get knowledge that if the target audience is interested in that mode of advertisement or not. ADVERTISING To advertise the product better and create awareness about product; Nissan will use different advertisement methods to approach the consumers. The diversity of advertisement channels will help in reaching the masses of different mindsets. Following Advertisement methods will be used: †¢ Nisan will use print and electronic media to introduce the product to consumers. †¢ Special events will be sponsored by Nissan. †¢ Use of Billboards, flex signs etc for massive introduction of car’s launch. †¢ Special road shows and displays will be set at dealers outlets. †¢ Prize contest will be conducted to attract people towards the car. Financial Review Net sales For fiscal year 2009, consolidated net revenues decreased 10.9%, to  ¥7.517 trillion, which reflected the strong yen offsetting the increase in sales volume. Operating profit Consolidated operating profit totalled  ¥311.6 billion, compared to a negative  ¥137.9 billion in fiscal year 2008. Net income Net non-operating expenses increased  ¥69.1 billion to  ¥103.9 billion from  ¥34.8 billion in fiscal 2008. Net income reached  ¥42.4 billion, an increase of  ¥276.1 billion from fiscal year 2008. Major competitors In Asia the 3 big of the automobile industry is Nissan, Toyota and Honda. But Nissan Motors major competitor is Toyota Motor Corporation. Toyota, much larger than Nissan and possessing deeper financial pockets, was better positioned to sustain the losses incurred from the global economic downturn. Consequently, Nissan entered its ninth decade of operation facing formidable obstacles. The first financial decline came in 1991, when the company’s consolidated operating profit plummeted 64.3 percent to  ¥125 billion (US$886 million). Six months later, Nissan registered its first pretax loss since becoming a publicly traded company in 1951– ¥14.2 billion during the first half of 1992. The losses mounted in the next two years, growing to  ¥108.1 billion in 1993 and  ¥202.4 billion by 1994, or nearly US$2 billion. To arrest the precipitous drop in company profits, Nissan’s management introduced various cost-cutting measures–such as reducing its materials and manufacturing costs–which saved the company roughly US$1.5 billion in 1993, with an additional US$1.2 billion savings realized in 1994. Nissan also became the first Japanese company to close a plant in Japan since World War II and cut nearly 12,000 workers in Japan, Spain, and the United States from its payroll. Nissan also was staggering under a debt load that reached as high as US$32 billion and threatened to bankrupt the company. Only intervention from Nissan’s lead lender, Industrial Bank of Japan, kept the company afloat. There were some positive signs in the early 1990s to inspire hope for the future. Nissan’s 1993 sales increased nearly 20 percent, vaulting the car maker past Honda Motor Co., Ltd. to reclaim the number two ranking in import sales to the all-important U.S. market. Much of this gain was attributable to robust sales of the Nissan Altima, a replacement for its Stanza model, which was introduced in 1992 and marketed in the United States as a small luxury sedan priced under $13,000. To the joy of Nissan’s management, however, the Altima typically was purchased with various options added on, giving the company an additional $2,000 to $3,000  per car. Nissan also was encouraged by strong sales of its Quest minivan, which was introduced in the United States in 1992 and had been developed jointly with Ford Motor, which marketed its own version, the Ford Windstar. Nissan’s losses continued through the fiscal year ending in March 1996, cumulating to US$3.2 billion over a four-year span. The company’s return to profitability in fiscal 1997 came about in part because of the cost-cutting program and in part from the yen’s dramatic depreciation against the dollar. Despite the return to the black, Nissan remained a troubled company. From its 1972 peak of 34 percent, the company’s share of the Japanese auto market had fallen to 20 percent by early 1997. Competition from the more financially stable Toyota and Honda played a factor in this decline, but Nissan also hurt itself by failing to keep pace with changing consumer tastes both in Japan and in overseas markets. For example, Nissan was behind its rivals in adding minivans and sport utility vehicles to its product line-up, having for years dismissed these sectors as passing fads. Meanwhile, minivans, sport utility vehicles, and station wagons accounted for half of all passenger car sales in Japan by early 1997, up from just more than ten percent in 1990. In the U.S. market, the Altima lost ground to two midsized rivals, the Honda Accord and the Toyota Camry, because Nissan’s model was smaller and thus less desirable. In the luxury car sector, Toyota’s Lexus line became the hot brand in the United States, triumphing over the Infiniti. Because of these and other factors, Nissan returned to the red for fiscal years 1998 and 1999. Although the losses were not as large as earlier in the decade, the company’s continued sky-high debt load–which stood at US$19.7 billion in late 1998–did not bode well for Nissan’s future. Business Strategies, Keeping Competitive Edge 1) Product Strategy To secure our profitability and sustainable growth based on our future product line up plan, in our product strategy developing process, we are monitoring the impacts of some different types of risk scenarios such as global market changes and demand deteriorations to our future profitability (COP) based on our plan. 1. Drastic decline of total global demand, past examples as reference case. 2. A demand shift between vehicle segments drastically faster than our assumptions in our mid-term planning. 3. A demand shift from the matured markets to the emerging markets drastically faster than our assumptions in our mid-term planning. We periodically monitor the impact of these scenarios to secure our future profitability and sustainable growth, and also update our future line-up plans periodically based on the results. To improve the robustness of our product line up against these risks, we take following countermeasures as our main direction when planning our product strategy. Expand availability of individual products across markets to mitigate the risk of single market demand fluctuations. Increase volume and efficiency per product through a consolidation and rationalization of the portfolio to lower the breakeven point and thereby reduce the profit risk of global Total Industry Volume declines. Prepare a more balanced product portfolio meeting needs in a broader range of markets and segments reducing reliance on specific large markets. 2) Quality of Products & Services Nissan is working on the corporate task named â€Å"Quality Leadership† which aims for achieving top level quality by FY2012. In this project, actions are carried out with numerical targets for following 4 areas. 1. Perceived quality & attractiveness: Customers’ impression on vehicle’s quality when customer looks it at a dealer’s show room 2. Product quality: Quality of product itself based on the experiences as an owner of the vehicle 3. Sales & service quality: Quality related to behaviour or attitude of sales staff or quality of service when inspection and maintenance 4. Quality of management: internal management quality to improve employees’ motivation which supports above 3 qualities For example, target of â€Å"Product quality† is to become top level at Most Influential Indicator (MII) of each region. In order to achieve the target, it is broken down to internal indicators by model which correlate with MII. Progress of all quality improvement activities are monitored with those  internal indicators. All the actions are taken based on rotating PDCA cycle, such as, the progress of activities are monthly reviewed by â€Å"Quality Committee† chaired by EVP and necessary actions are decided. Total picture of â€Å"Quality Leadership† on global base is monitored and discussed at the Global Quality Meeting chaired by COO annually. 2 years passed since this project started and it is going well. We are confident that we can achieve the target by FY2012. With respect to new model project, in order to achieve the quality target of each project, milestone meetings set at each key process of design, preparation for production and production, confirm key check points, such as achievement of quality targets, adoption of measures to prevent recurrence of past problem, adoption of measures for potential risks related to new technology / new mechanism / design change. Commercial production can be started after confirmation at â€Å"SOP (Start of Production) Judgment Meeting†, which confirms all issues are solved and quality target can be achieved. Final decision that the model can be sold is made at â€Å"Delivery Judgment Meeting†, after confirmation of quality of commercial production and preparedness for service / maintenance. As described above, Nissan is implementing thorough quality check before new model launch. Nissan is progressing quality improvement activities also after launch by gathering quality information from markets and prompt deployment of countermeasures. In case of occurrence of safety or compliance issues, necessary actions such as recall are implemented with close cooperation with market side team based on the decision by independent process from management. Occurred incidents are deeply investigated, analyzed and feed backed to models on the way of production or development for prevention of recurrence In addition to above described activities, such as quality assurance at new model project and quality improvement activities on daily basis, the â€Å"Quality Risk Management† framework has been newly developed from FY2009.  This is the high level system to ensure successful quality management for on-going and future projects. This includes assessment of quality related risks, evaluation of risk level, assignment of responsible person based on the level and to clarify organization for follow up. These processes are implemented at â€Å"Quality Risk Management Committee† chaired by EVP twice a year. 3) Compliance and Reputation As described above, Nissan produced the Nissan Global Code of Conduct for all employees of the Nissan group worldwide. To ensure thorough understanding of the code, training and education program such as e-learning is improved and compliant situation is monitored by Global Compliance Committee. Nissan has also adopted the internal whistle blowing system (Easy Voice System). This allows any employees to submit opinions, questions, requests or suspected compliance issue directly to Nissan’s management. Additionally, Nissan created sets of internal regulations covering the Global Prevention of Insider Trading and the management of personal information. Nissan keeps effort to prevent reputation risk to the company by continuous implementation of such measures as various education and training programs. Conclusion As the automobile industry is booming, It is necessary to keep up with the competition. The only way to compete with the competitors is to come out with innovative technology, fuel efficient cars, and luxury looking yet affordable cars. Nissan has not only concentrated on making cars but also provided their support to various stakeholders. Its working has benefited the environment by taking many environmental initiatives such as starting the Nissan Green Program 2010. The company also has worked towards effectively and efficiently developing their employees in terms of specialisation, or giving them a work-life balance. In line with its vision of Enriching People’s Lives, Nissan’s desire is to provide attractive products and services to customers worldwide while at the same time fulfilling its responsibility as a corporate citizen to help realize a sustainable society.