Synopsis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Synopsis - Essay Example If the fitness center is able to provide highly trained fitness staff, they will be able to charge higher fee. There is little or negligible impact of the size of the facility on the fee charged by the fitness center because customers experience higher satisfaction if other offerings such as fitness training staff are of higher quality. There is a major different in the designing of a particular service as compared to the designing of a particular product. There are even differences in the factors that need to be considered while designing services. First, service designers need to understand that service is intangible in nature so it should be designed while keeping those factors in mind that impacts the customer’s perception of the quality of a service. The customers’ perception of the quality of a particular service is dependent on the timeliness of the service provided. This means that the service should be available to the customers when they need it and any delays may make the customer perceive that the service is of low quality. Furthermore, the service designer should even take into consideration the physical setting in which the service is being provided. The safety, security and the overall environment of the setting is of utmost important in making the customer’s feel that the servic e is of high quality. This factor should be given importance when designing services that includes lower labor involvement. Another important factor is the service providing labor and the way through which they provide the service. This factor should be given importance when designing services that are labor intensive. The term mass customization is used to refer to the procedure of developing products and services based on the needs of individual customers but at the same time charging them prices that are set for

Why Did Revolutions Break Out in Germany and Italy in 1848 Essay Example for Free

Why Did Revolutions Break Out in Germany and Italy in 1848 Essay The Spring of Nations, which consisted in the popular uprisings and revolutions that occurred in 1848, was caused by a series of factors which included social, economical and government crisis. Although these problems were serious and well eradicated, the major factor that caused these revolts was the rise of nationalist and liberalist ideas. When in 1845 a combination of massive crop failure in a mainly agricultural subsistence economy and a overproduction followed by an underconsumption of goods typical of the early industrialization led to a destructive economic crisis and recession. That year the potato blight, which was a vegetal desire that affected tubers such as potatoes, struck Europe making entire countries which their whole agriculture, since the Spanish brought the potatoes in Europe in the late 1400s, was based on the growth of this crop. Because of this disease, countries such as Ireland and Germany faced a great lack of food. The following year also a grain failure made the situation, if possible, even worse. This lack of food caused the prices of aliments to rise incredibly to the point where the daily pay of a factory worker wasnt enough to buy food to feed his family, of corse supposing that the factory worker didnt get fired because of the fall in demand of industrial products. With such an economical situation riots and acts of violence soon broke out. In 1846 the peasants in the Austrian provence of Galicia revolted against their landlords burning the documents regarding their feudal dues and attacking wealthy people. Similar hunger-driven acts of violence occurred in all of Europe. Soon the Austrian army put down the revolt but no actions were taken by the government to solve the problems that made it happen. The combined effect of a agricultural lesser production and the industrial overproduction affected negatively trade. Exports and imports dropped in all of Europe, even in the tax free zones such as the Zollverein where in three years the cotton exports dropped by 40%, and this angered greatly the people who controlled commerce at that time: the middle class. Although the middle class didnt start to riot straight away, this tension due to the economic losses will drive them towards liberal ideas and off from supporting the traditional government. After Napoleons definitive defeat in 1815, the liberals and the other carriers of the French revolutions ideas lost the hope to see reform brought out directly from the government. In a absolute monarchic Europe where these ideas were suppressed there was no space for political opposition because the governments outlawed any right of speech or press. Because of this repressive situation, secret societies started rising. Both nationalistic and liberalistic driven, these societies had the goal to promote reform and patriotism thus inspiring the people, especially the middle class, to revolt and embrace radical ideals. Major evidence of the popular will of independence and reform, was the burn ing of puppets which represented the leaders of the ancient regime. Particularly popular especially in the German Confederation, Italy and Hungary was the burning of puppets representing the maximum exponent of conservatism and reactionism: Prince Klemens von Metternich. The counter-liberalist policies carried out by the members of the holy alliance, Austria, Prussia and Russia, were ineffective. By censuring the press and removing the right of speech, the people didnt stop asking for change and reading about these ideas but they started to feel more repressed thus angering the people. Since the French revolution of 1789, Europe had been struck with innovative enlightened ideas such as the rights of man, the idea of universal suffrage (not including though women) and the idea of political liberalism. These ideas were mostly successful in the middle class which, over the past 250 years, became increasingly richer due to trade, banking and manufactory substituting de facto the nobility as most rich class. Although the middle class obtained economical power, the states offices were run by aristocrats and nobles appointed by the king. The middle class started growing resentment towards the monarchy and wanted their economical power to match their political power which, at the moment, they didnt have. Because of the repressive acts issued by the governments, especially the Austrian one, any kind of manifestation of liberal or nationalist ideas was to be punished (often with exile or prison), so secret societies started rising. These secret societies had the aim to promote liberalism and nationalism throughout actions against the governments. Mazzini, an italian radical, found Young Italy and Young Europe to promote the ideas spawned by the revolution. Although there were many secret societies, the most prominent was the italian Carbonari. The Carbonari were responsible and financed both the 1821 and 1848 uprisings in Italy. In conclusion all the factors that led to the Spring of Nations were important, especially the economic crisis and the famine because it angered the lower class making them too riot and revolt against the government, but without the nationalistic and liberal ideas that came along with the revolt made the difference. If it hasnt been for those ideals the Spring of Nations would have only been a mass of angry peasants rioting for the food shortages.

Data For A Given Business Problem Marketing Essay

Data For A Given Business Problem Marketing Essay Introduction In this assignment discuss about type of data, a methodology of gathering data from various sources, arranging them according to a system to get useful information which leads to take better decisions. Analysing data and information is very important to take efficient and effective business decisions. This will help the management to understand the industry status, can be a value addition tool and introduce new processors, rules and regulation to increase quality, quantity and productivity. Now a days organisations uses technology to arrange data and to get information according to their requirement. According to the scenario is about Halford group a product, service and expertise provider of motor, bicycle, and great getaway that means a transportation facilitator according to customers requirement. Halford has more than 402 superstores, 34 compact stores, 31 metro compact stores and 261 auto centres across in the United Kingdom and in the Republic of Ireland. They have introduced a Bike hut as a showcase to promote their bike brands. Where they want to increase their customer satisfaction level and need to clarify the feedback of the market about their products. Task 1 Requirement 1: P1.1 Create a plan for the collection of primary and secondary data for a given business problem Data are statistics, details, verses, photographs, charts, images and etc. There are two types of data, such as quantitative data and qualitative data. As per Pawar (2004) quantitative data means where data gathered from surveys, questionnaires, trials and etc. these data are much in number format. Qualitative datas are that has recorded in detail. It is very important to collect both types of data to get a great output. Primary data can be collected by interviews, research, or by observations. But for the given scenario it is important to gather customer feedback therefore interviews are important. The Even Halfords Group can use their site, e-commerce link as a resource to collect data by adding a short questionnaire. Secondary data are records which exist currently. Plan to collect primary data and secondary data for the given situation are, quick questionnaires, informal interviews, telephone surveys, observing the customers, analyse the previous company details, use the web site to get feedback from customers and etc. Figure 1: Data Cycle (Source: http://analyticalconsulting.info/services/) P1.2 Present the survey methodology and sampling frame used Survey methodology is a tool that use to gather data from a specific segment. In this scenario it is important to gather information mainly from cyclists about their requirements, their liking and dis-likings, value additions, knowledge about the product, ideas to improve the invention and etc. The survey question list can be made out of closed questions and open questions. According to Curwin and Slater (2008), surveys can be conducted mainly in two ways, that is interviews and questionnaires. This is also can be done by qualitative assessment or as a quantitative design methodology. On the other hand there are two sampling types, as probability and non probability sampling. Probability and non probability sampling has different techniques of sampling. For example probability sampling has simple random sampling method, cluster sampling, stratified sampling method and systematic sampling method. Where non probability sampling has snowball sample method, quota sampling and judgmental sample method. In this case it is appropriate to use questionnaires containing both open ended and close ended questions. And non probability sampling technique can be use as the sampling frame. Figure 2: Selecting a Sample (Source:http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~dfinnega/sw690/RBnotes_ch9_full.htm) P1.3 Design a questionnaire for a given business problem Halfords Product Awareness and Customer Satisfaction Evaluation Survey 2013 Dear Valued Customer, We Halfords group as the leader in cycles retailing market always looking forward to give more that our client expects. We have introduced Bikehut Stores where you can easily reach and access premium bike brands. To enhance more customer oriented service we would like to ask few questions. Many thanks in advance for your precious time taken to fill the below questionnaire. Looking forward to provide better service in future. Best regards, Manager, Halfords Group Name : à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Address : -à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Age :-à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. Gender :- Male  £ Female  £ Are you happy to deal with Halfords : Yes  £ No  £ If your answer is no please specify :- à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Are you aware of the new store chain called Bikehut : Yes  £ No  £ Please range the below from 1 5 (1-Unsatisfied, 2-Good, 3-Very Good, 4-Satisfied, 5-Exceed expectation) Question 1 2 3 4 5 Overall quality of the product  £  £  £  £  £ Overall satisfaction of the product  £  £  £  £  £ Service in the Bikehut  £  £  £  £  £ After sales services  £  £  £  £  £ Compared to other suppliers our product and services  £  £  £  £  £ Do you think the price of this product is reasonable : Yes  £ No  £ If your answer is no, please state why? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Do you recommend our products to another person : Yes  £ No  £ Your ideas are very important to us to provide an extravagantly personalised service and products to you. Please comment : à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Please use the envelope attached to send your valued ideas. Task 2 Requirement 2: P2.1 Relate information for decision making by summarising data using representative values Total Response is = 225 Product use age according to the gender Male 150 Female 75 Happy to deal with Halfords Yes (217) No (8) Awareness of the Bikehut stores Yes (185) No (40) Overall quality of the product 1-(4) 2-(23) 3-(68) 4-(120) 5-(10) Overall satisfaction of the product 1-(2) 2-(32) 3-(89) 4-(79) 5-(23) Service in the Bikehut 1-(0) 2-(93) 3-(102) 4-(23) 5-(7) After sales services 1-(3) 2-(42) 3-(88) 4-(80) 5-(12) Compared to other suppliers our product and services 1-(0) 2-(17) 3-(107) 4-(75) 5-(26) Price is reasonable Yes (157) No (68) Product recommendations Yes (210) No (15) (1-Unsatisfied, 2-Good, 3-Very Good, 4-Satisfied, 5-Exceed expectation) P2.2 Analyse the results draw valid conclusions in a business context. Total Response is = 225 Product use age according to the gender Male 150 Female 75 Male 66.67% Female 33.33% Happy to deal with Halfords Yes (217) 96.44% No (8) 3.56% Awareness of the Bikehut stores Yes (185) 82.22% No (40) 17.78% Overall quality of the product 1-(4) 1.78% 2-(23) 10.22% 3-(68) 30.22% 4-(120) 53.33% 5-(10) 4.44% Overall satisfaction of the product 1-(2) 0.89% 2-(32) 14.22% 3-(89) 39.56% 4-(79) 35.11% 5-(23) 10.22% Service in the Bikehut 1-(0) 0% 2-(93) 41.33% 3-(102) 45.33% 4-(23) 10.22% 5-(7) 3.11% After sales services 1-(3) 1.33% 2-(42) 18.67% 3-(88) 39.11% 4-(80) 35.56% 5-(12) 5.33% Compared to other suppliers our product and services 1-(0) 0% 2-(17) 7.56% 3-(107) 47.56% 4-(75) 33.33% 5-(26) 11.56% Price is reasonable Yes (157) 69.78% No (68) 30.22% Product recommendations Yes (210) 93.33% No (15) 6.67% (1-Unsatisfied, 2-Good, 3-Very Good, 4-Satisfied, 5-Exceed expectation) The customer base is at 66.67% of males and 33.33% female. The company should look forward to encourage more females to use the product. When advertising focus to touch famine market too. 96.44% customers are happy to deal with the establishment, 82.22% customer base is aware of the new store chain. 98% of customers are satisfied about the product quality, where 99% are overall satisfied about the product. 100% customers are happy about the service provided at Bikehut. 97% of customers are delighted about after sales services. 70% of clients say that the product price is reasonable. 93.33% of customers will help to bring business by recommending the product to others. This is a free advertising for the company. When considering the overall information the company is performing well. Customers are satisfied with the establishment and as well as the product and the service. P2.3 Analyse data using measures of dispersion into inform a given business scenario. As per the deliberation by Francis (2008), measures of dispersion means when scattering data how the statistics are comparable individually. There are three ways to measure dispersion, namely as the range, the semi interquartile range (SIR) and variance / standard deviation.In range dispersion uses the lowest value and the highest value in the given data set and the difference is taken as ranges. 1 2 3 4 5 Overall quality of the product 4 1.78% 23 10.22% 68 30.22% 120 53.33% 10 4.44% Overall satisfaction of the product 2 0.89% 32 14.22% 89 39.56% 79 35.11% 23 10.22% Service in the Bikehut 0 0.00% 93 41.33% 102 45.33% 23 10.22% 7 3.11% After sales services 3 1.33% 42 18.67% 88 39.11% 80 35.56% 12 5.33% Compared to other suppliers our product and services 0 0.00% 17 7.56% 107 47.56% 75 33.33% 26 11.56% Question Highest Value Lowest Value The Range Overall quality of the product 120 4 116 Overall satisfaction of the product 89 2 87 Service in the Bikehut 102 0 102 After sales services 88 3 85 Compared to other suppliers our product and services 107 0 107 Semi interquartile range (SIR) = (Q3-Q1) /2 Q3 Q1 Q3-Q1 (Q3-Q1)/2 Overall quality of the product 68 4 64 32 Overall satisfaction of the product 89 2 87 43.5 Service in the Bikehut 102 0 102 51 After sales services 88 3 85 42.5 Compared to other suppliers our product and services 107 0 107 53.5 Standard Deviation 1 2 3 4 5 Std. Div. Overall quality of the product 4 23 68 120 10 49 Overall satisfaction of the product 2 32 89 79 23 37 Service in the Bikehut 0 93 102 23 7 49 After sales services 3 42 88 80 12 39 Compared to other suppliers our product and services 0 17 107 75 26 44 P2.4 Explain how quartiles, percentiles and the correlation coefficient are used to draw useful conclusions in a business context. According to Anderson et al (2012), quartile use to separate data in two quarters. Percentiles are where the observed data are similar or larger than the percentile figure. The correlation coefficient is the tool that uses to interpret the linear relationship between two variables. M1. Apply quartiles, percentiles and the correlation coefficient in your data set. 1 2 3 4 5 Overall quality of the product 4 23 68 120 10 Overall satisfaction of the product 2 32 89 79 23 Service in the Bikehut 0 93 102 23 7 After sales services 3 42 88 80 12 Compared to other suppliers our product and services 0 17 107 75 26 QUARTILE 0 1 2 3 4 4 10 23 68 120 2 23 32 79 89 0 7 23 93 102 3 12 42 80 88 0 17 26 75 107 Correlation coefficient Overall quality of the product 4 23 68 120 10 Overall satisfaction of the product 2 32 89 79 23 87% Service in the Bikehut 0 93 102 23 7 After sales services 3 42 88 80 12 62% Overall quality of the product 4 23 68 120 10 Compared to other suppliers our product and services 0 17 107 75 26 78% Task 3 Requirement 3: P3.1 Produce graphs using spread-sheets and draw valid conclusions based on the information derived Main customer sector can be identified from the above chart. This graph will indicate the satisfaction level of customers. This graph shows the correlations of the overall product and quality satisfaction. P3.2 Create trend lines in spread-sheet graphs to assist in forecasting for specified business information The customers are highly satisfied about the overall quality of the product but it is important to improve product satisfaction and after sales services. Quartile forcast. Almost every purchaser likes to deal with the company. More than 50% of the clients agrees that the product price is reasonable. Therefore no need to do price change. Has to advertise more about Bikehut for customer awareness. M2 Critically analyse the findings in 3.4 P3.3 Prepare a business presentation using suitable software and techniques to disseminate information effectively P3_3- Halfords Group.pptx P3.4 Produce a formal business report, M3 Present and communicate the results in 3.4 Subject : The customer satisfaction and Bikehut awareness survey To : The Management From : The Market Research Team Date : 12th March 2013 This is about the awareness and a satisfaction survey about our products and services. In addition to that verify the new outlet chain status. As per the management request our team conducted a questionnaire survey and interview to collect the required data. We have got 225 feedback forms from customers. According to the collected data after sampling and analysing them, we recognise that the males are using our product greater than the females. Overall the customers are happy to deal with our establishment. 185 customers out of 225 were aware about the Bikehut store. 70% of clients are pleased with our product prices. As per the information our products quality and services satisfies customers where the company has built a very good reputation. Therefore we have a 93% of word of mouth promotion via the satisfied customers. Conferring as per the data gathered the organisation performs incredibly well than the industry competitors. We recommend that the after sales service should improve. Most of the feedback has rated very well, but the organisational goal should be to give an extravagantly personalised service to get more rates on exceeding expectation. The customer service manager is responsible to introduce customer oriented training. It is the human resource managers duty to implement appreciation programme and reward the employees as a motivation factor. Production has to innovate appropriate cycle designs for females. Advertising team should attract feminine market and promote Bikehut stores as well as Halfords products Task 4 Requirement 4: P4.1 Use appropriate information processing tools As interpreted by Bajic and Wee (2005), information processing tools are the processors and tangible and non tangible equipment that use to arrange data, such as database, servers, computers, transmitters, ATMs as well as softwares, methodologies, internet, networks, websites and etc. By using the correct methods and equipment the organisation can be benefited. The output will be accurate to take effective and efficient decisions. In an organisation, budgets, project plans, cash flow statements, investment appraisals are used as information tools. Figure 2: Data Processing Tools (Source: http://www.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/SB-EETD-tuning-buildings.html) P4.2 Prepare a project plan for an activity and determine the critical path P4.3 Use financial tools for decision making. To evaluate a project in the main financial tool which use as a decision making technique is calculated net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR). Organisation invests in projects expecting an upright return in long time span. By using NPV the management can decide the surplus or the shortage of the cash flow. IRR calculation mainly considers about the discount rate only. The discount rate may change over the time period. Therefore the IRR rate will also change accordingly. Using the internal rate of return is not rational to evaluate a project. Discount Rate 12% Period Sum 0 (50,000.00) 1 12,000.00 2 15,000.00 3 15,000.00 4 18,000.00 5 10,000.00 NPV 462.49 IRR 12.371% D1 Explain the results of NPV and IRR Since this has a positive NPV, it is worth to invest in this project. It will recover the initial investment and can earn a better return. Net present value is the difference that occurs when evaluating the project market value and its cost. In addition to the NPV the internal rate of return (IRR) is 12.37%. When the internal rate of return is higher than the discount percentage then it will indicate a continuation of the project. Though investors calculate net present value and internal rate of return, they mainly consider on the net present value. D2 Use Critical reflection to evaluate and justify your overall valid conclusion Conclusion

Alternative Building Materials and Methods Essay -- Exploratory Essays

Alternative Building Materials and Methods The buildup of past construction techniques up to our present point in time has denoted wood as being the first and foremost material used to build houses in the United States. Building codes prescribe wood to build homes, because of both its structural benefits and because it is ingrained in the industry as the material of choice. Because wood has been used for so long, it is the material that builders know best and are the most comfortable with. However, the world’s forests are rapidly disappearing, as wood is used inefficiently and excessively in building – both the quantity of houses and the amount of wood used within a single house helps to quickly deplete our natural wood supply. Because of this, alternatives to wood building are being sought out by environmental organizations, with the aims of increasing awareness of the state of our forests and providing information and access to wood alternatives in building and upkeep of houses and other structures. Though it may be a slow process to change building codes and norms, there are other alternatives available. There are two main ways to decrease wood consumption: alternative building materials and alternative building methods. Alternative building materials include concrete, flyash, cob, earth, and straw/bale. All of these materials have been used in both the United States and in different countries to build houses, and have proven to be viable replacements for wood in construction. However, efforts to mostly or entirely supplant the use of wood with these wood substitutes have not yet been successful. Alternative methods for building range from sustainable practices in acquiring materials to the developmen... ...y, there are many barriers to this change that will be very difficult to overcome. As a global environmental issue, however, it is important to strive for the widespread use of alternative options. I believe that if the use of alternatives becomes economically viable, ad campaigns are instituted to promote their use, and government subsidies are allotted differently, then alternative materials and methods will definitely start to be used, to the benefit of the environment and world in general. Works Cited Daly, Ned. Demanding change in the wood and paper markets. Multinational Monitor, v19 n4 p13(4), April 1998. Fowler, Stacey. Building the future: Sustainable building materials come of age. Environmental News Network. September 25, 2001. www.enn.com. Use of Alternative Building Materials Could Save India 25% Cost. AsiaPulse News, Feb 24, 2003; p7044.

Mattel’s China Experience

In 1945, the Mattel brand was born. Ruth and Elliot Handler and Harold â€Å"Matt† Matson launched Mattel out of a garage workshop in Southern California. The first Mattel products were actually picture frames, but Elliot soon started using those picture frames to create dollhouse furniture. Harold Matson eventually sold out to his partner, Ruth and Elliot Handler. The Handler’s, encouraged by the success of the doll furniture and turned the emphasis of the company to toys. By 1955 Mattel was advertising toys through the popular show â€Å"Mickey Mouse Club†; this revolutionized the way toys were marketed. By 1959 Mattel had introduced Barbie, named after their daughter Barbara’s nickname. Barbie would soon lead Mattel to the forefront of the toy industry and fascinate girls all over the world for decades. In 1960, Mattel became a publicly owned company, stock was listed was listed on the New York and Pacific Coast Stock Exchanges in 1963. By 1965, sales topped $100 million and the company joined the Fortune 500. In the years to come Mattel would enter the ever growing electronics industry, they would also enter several joint ventures and licensing agreements that would earn them more profit (Mattel History, www. Mattel. com). In 2010, Mattel posted profit of $24. 8 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with a loss of $51 million, or 14 cents a share in the previous period. Sales totaled $880. 1 million, an increase of 12% compared with $785. 6 million a year earlier (Chang, 2010). A host of external factors can influence a firm’s decision of direction and action. Influencing Mattel’s decisions are economic factors, social factors, political factors, technological factors and ecological factors. Mattel must lso understand the globalization strategy as it will allow them to pursue opportunities anywhere in the world and enable them to optimize business functions in the countries in which it operates (Pearce & Robinson, 2011). Companies such as Mattel, seeking lower prices have benefited from the â€Å"China price† which was 30 to 50 percent cheaper than the cost to make the equivalent product in the U. S. Companies choose China for a variety of reasons including lower business costs, cheaper labor, facilities, plant and equipment and raw materials. There were also differences in regulatory oversight between China and many other countries, including the U. S. The U. S. banned lead toys in 1978; China only signed an agreement to do so in September of 2007 (Pearce & Robinson, 2011). Being a global company, Mattel faces multiple political, economic, legal, social and cultural environments as well as various changes within each of them. Other issues arise in geographic separation, cultural and national differences and variations of business practices which all tend to make control and communication efforts between headquarters and the overseas affiliates difficult. Global companies like Mattel also face intense competition due to the differences in industry structures within countries. External factors such as technological change force Mattel to promote innovation to remain competitive. Mattel must be aware of technological changes that might influence its industry. Political factors are also considered external and are designed to benefit and protect firms like Mattel. Political constraints are placed on firms through actions like fair trade decisions, antitrust laws, tax programs, minimum wage legislation, pricing and polluting, many of these aimed at protecting employee’s (Pearce & Robinson, 2011). Outsourcing to China also creates concerns in quality control as in the case of the 2007 recall for Mattel. In July of 2007, Mattel announced it would be voluntarily recalling some of its products from a contract manufacturer in China that was utilizing non-approved paint containing lead. Mattel requires that their manufacturing partners use paint from approved and certified suppliers and have procedures in place that test and verify but in this particular instance, procedures were not followed. Of the 19 million plus Mattel toys recalled, 2. 2 million were because of lead paint. Toys were pulled from the shelves of retailers, media frenzy ensued and public pressure was mounting. By the time the dust had settled from the recall, Mattel had recalled over 19 million toys that were produced in China. Their stock price had declined as they took a $40 million charge for the recalls and their cost increased. Customers were threatening to boycott Mattel and all toys that were made in China. When it appeared nothing could get worse for Mattel, congress sent a letter in 2008 charging that Robert was not honoring the commitment he made to the public during the initial recall incident (Pearce & Robinson, 2011). Mattel had to determine what next steps they would take to recover from such a crisis and move quickly in order to protect their brand. Mattel had to identify an approach to the recalls that would enable them to protect the Mattel brand and their reputation while not undermining their intent to be the â€Å"World’s Premiere Toy Brand – Today and Tomorrow† (Pearce & Robinson, 2011). Moving forward a solution this type of dilemma should include increased quality control efforts in all areas, increased audits and inspections to retain compliance with industry standards. Chinese policy makers would also need to review their policies and change the countries practices to reduce such problems. In the months after the recall China announced high profile inspections and clampdowns on quality. Another solution would be for producers could subject individual shipments of toys to the same box-by-box inspection that is now applied to pet food additives. China could also force exporters to conform to foreign food and product safety standards, even if they exceed China’s own laws (Oneal, Callahan, & Osnos, N. D. ). Current safety checks in place, including independent audits would need to be reviewed as they did not prevent the chain of events leading to the recall (Story, 2007). There are many different solutions mentioned above that could work together to minimize the likelihood of such massive recalls in the future. Mattel should increase its quality controls for the toy industry, especially for product produced in China. The company and its subsidiaries should comply with the suggested standards of the CPSC Toy Safety Standards which can inspect, monitor, prosecute and even fine for defects. Mattel should report a defect or recall within 24 hours of discovery which did not happen in this case and lead to many distraught consumers that had lost faith in the Mattel brand. Instead of shifting blame to producers in China, Mattel needs to realize that it was their choice to produce in China and therefore the producers are not completely at fault. Mattel also needs to determine the root cause of the problem in order to perform corrective action and prevent it from happening again. Increased quality control and testing should be implemented immediately after a recall of this magnitude. Investigations should take place immediately and continue ongoing until it is deemed that all quality control issues have been addressed. Mattel should take appropriate actions with its producers if it finds that their safety procedures were knowingly ignored. In this case Mattel worked to intercept incoming shipments to keep potentially hazardous problems from being placed on store shelves. Mattel should continue to focus on protecting children from lead-tainted imports (Pearce & Robinson, 2011). In conclusion, in preparation for another scenario similar to the toy recall, Mattel could incorporate the following objectives into their action plan. Objective 1: Get all pertinent information about the recall to the public accurately, efficiently and quickly. Objective 2: Reassure consumers, parents especially, that Mattel is committed to making the safest toys, fixing the problem and being honest and open. Objective 3: Take responsibility for the recall, Mattel should solve the problem while maintaining a stable relationship with producers in China (Mattel Toy Recall, 2007).

Detailed Lesson Plan in Grade 6

A Detailed Lesson Plan in Biology I . Objectives At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to : 1. distinguish cellular structures; 2. distinguish the functions of each structures; 3. familiarize what the cell looks like and 4. compare the factory to a cell II . Topic: Cellular structures and functions Skill: describing, explaining, illustrating Materials: pictures, photocopied materials and video clip (cell biology) References: †¢Aquino, Jesunino R. et. al, Biology II. St. Augustine Publication Inc. †¢Capco, Carmelita M. Et. al, Biology Textbook, Phoenix Publishing House, Inc. Biology Sci. And Technology Textbook for second year, Book Press Inc. †¢Olivares, Maria et. al, Science and Technology for the Modern Worl Diwa Scholastic Press †¢Villamil, Aurora M. Sciance and Technology, Phoenix Publishing House †¢http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=zufaN_aetZI †¢http://www. google. com. ph III. Learning Activity A. Motivation Picture Analysis: I will divide the class into group, five members each. Assign a recorder You are going to do this in five(5) minutes. Show them the different pictures of cell tissues and some parts of cells ( e. g. Ribosomes, mitochondria, lysosomes ).Allow them to examine the pictures carefully and choose among them is the cell. But before the student give their answers, let them first read the situation below: B . Presentation Situation Analysis : Larry works in a forensic laboratory. His boss James instructed him to get a cell sample from the child victim that has run over by a truck. Which of the following is the cell that Larry should send to James? Teachers ActivityStudent’s Activity From the pictures i have given you, Student will select from the given choose what James should get from the child pictures of tissues, organs, parts of a cell victim. nd cell. (5)minutes. After hearing the student answers, let them explain why they think their answer is correct. Then allow for differences in an swer. Let’s find out if your choice is correct. Later on, since Larry is a part of forensic team, lets see what he actually choose. To find out which is the cell lets watch this video. C . Preparation: Film viewing: (cell organelles and their functions) NOTE: Take note of the important information about the cell especially its parts and functions. Follow up questions: ?What do you see? ?What do you call each of the structure? In which picture in the previous activity is it similar? ?What is your idea about the cell? Teachers ActivityStudent’s Activity What is your idea about the cell? The cell has many parts Ma’am and Yes Nica. they have their own functions. Definitely Nica. Now I will let the students give theirFrom the movie we have just watched answers on the situation analysis. Ma’am, we got it right. This is a cell ma’am (show the picture). Very good, you got it right group 2. So you are now familiar what a cell looks like. Now its time to kno w and distinguish he different structures of the cell and its function. D . Generalization You are going to compare the factory to a cell. This time I need five (5) groups, six (6) members each. Complete the table posted in front: you are given fifteen (15) minutes to answer . â€Å"CELL AS A FACTORY† JOB/PART OF THE FACTORYCELL PARTFUNCTION IV. Evaluation I will distribute each student a copy ( poem of a cell ). They are going to fill in the blanks with the corresponding parts of the cell with their functions as their clue. They are given ten (10) minutes to answer. Poem of a cell:I am a cell A structure of life I’ll tell you my components And what they all do First off I have ATP It and the ___________ Make energy The ________________ Is my buddy too It covers me To protect me and you Then theres a ___________ Which is much like clear jelly It fills me up Like food in your belly The ________ are passageways They’re close like good brothers Taking proteins From one part to the other There is a ____________ But despite its odd name It carries through mail Out of my membrane I have ________________ There aren’t many in plants It breaks down your foodWith much of a chance Ah then there’s my __________ My control center or brain It gives me chromatin From it, instructions i gain But the nucleus needs Protection too And this is what its membrane Is assigned to do Tiny structures Where proteins are made These are __________ They do that everyday A _______________ Is like a water balloon Holding in water Inside of you I also have ________ Honest I say They contain protein Along with DNA My fruits the plant cells Has parts to it too Now i’ll show these exclusives And what they all do The cellulose _____________ Is sturdy and strongAround a plant cell membrane It lasts very long There’s one more component Exclusive to plant cells Its the ___________________ Where photosynthesis happens so well This is a cell And all my parts Its like a puzzle In your body, like arts I’ll keep you feeling Oh, so great If bodily care You do demonstrate I am complex Through my twists and bends I hope you learned much Cause this is the end V . Assignment Research on the types of cell, its parts and functions. Pinili National High School Pinili, Ilocos Norte Detailed Lesson Plan In Biology s Shery-lyn Q. Agaran May 09, 2012