Nightmare Cover Art Essay

Avenged Sevenfold is an American heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California. The band was formed in 1999. Presently, they consist of Matt Shadows(Vocalist), Johnny Christ(Bassist), Zacky Vengeance(Rhythm Guitarist) and Synyster Gates(Lead guitarist). Matt Sanders(M. Shadows); the lead singer of the band is one of the original founding members. He came up with the band name on being inspired by the fourth chapter in the Book of Genesis. It involves God asking Cain where his brother, Abel was. Cain answered that he didn’t know, when in fact, he had killed Abel. â€Å"†¦ whoever kills you will suffer seven times the vengeance.† (Genesis 4:15, International Standard Version). Jonathan Seward(Johnny Christ) is the fourth bassist, and joined the band while he was still in High School in the year 2003. He is the youngest and shortest in the band. Zack Baker(Zacky Vengeance) is the band’s left-handed rhythm guitarist and backup vocalist. Zacky was a self-taught guitarist and would play his dad’s right-handed guitar upside-down by watching his favourite bands play and other people he knew that played, and practised as much as he could. Brian Haner Jr.(Synyster Gates) plays the lead guitar, and does backup vocals for the band. His father is Brian Haner. He also plays in some Avenged Sevenfold tracks. He mostly plays acoustic guitar solos that duel back and forth with Synyster’s electric guitar and also helped his son write â€Å"So Far Away†, a track on the band’s latest album that Brian had finished writing in memory of his late best friend and band-mate, Jimmy â€Å"The Rev† Sullivan. The Rev was known to the world as one of the greatest drummers of all time. He passed away on 28th December 2009, due to an accidental overdose of prescription drugs. Avenged Sevenfold kicked off with a metalcore sound on their first album ‘Sounding the Seventh Trumpet’, which included a lot of screaming vocals and heavy-metal guitar riffs. They then changed their style on their third release, ‘City of Evil’, which featured more of a mainstream hard rock style. They have still retained their heavy metal feel by using blazing guitar solos and blistering double-bass drumming patterns, while keeping their musical aggression at a minimum level compared to their earlier work which makes their music all the more appealing to the larger crowd. â€Å"The Rev ‘Seized the Day’ to conquer the ‘City of Evil’ in ‘Bat Country’, and forced the ‘Beast and the Harlot’ to ‘Scream’ their ‘Unholy Confessions’. He left them ‘Trashed and Scattered’ and ‘Blinded In Chains’ with the ‘Strength of the World’. He found it ‘Almost Easy’ and became a ‘Sidewinder’ and slithered to ‘A Little Piece of Heaven’ in his ‘Afterlife’, now he is ‘M.I.A.’ and his ‘Nightmare’ has come to pass. RIP Jimmy â€Å"The Rev† Sullivan, you’re gone but NEVER forgotten!† Sevenfold, A. (n.d.). Quote by Avenged Sevenfold. Retrieved December 10th, 2012 from http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/308559-the-rev-seized-the-day-to-conquer-the-city-of This meaningful quote is a tribute to the late legend and also uses quite a few of Avenged Sevenfold’s track names as characteristics of the quote to convey a very important message about The Rev’s personality. Avenged Sevenfold has released five studio albums, fifteen singles, and one live album/compilation. The album artwork of their latest album ‘Nightmare’ deeply reflects on the music and the band’s life without their beloved friend, The Rev. The musicality has advanced since their emergence and this is their most technically advance album yet. At first glance, it’s no doubt that the band is Avenged Sevenfold. Not just because of the text stating the obvious, but because of their signature symbol that they have made known all over the world as the â€Å"Deathbat†. It was originally designed by their high school friend named Micah Montague. The Deathbat is the key element in almost any Avenged Sevenfold image or poster and has also appeared on every album cover, many of which were done by Cameron Rackam, a close acquaintance of the band. Another key element in this album’s artwork is the noticeable highlighting of the alphabets ‘REV’ in the word ‘Forever’ on the tombstone. There is a pretty deep connection through whic h emotions play a major role as to how the overall message is being conveyed, which in this case is the fact that The Rev; who was by no doubt a great person and who was loved by the whole world; has moved on into his afterlife and that his memories will be treasured in everyone’s hearts and minds ‘foREVer’. With regard to color theory, it’s safe to say that Nightmare’s album art is analogous in nature. Ranging from the green(dark; leaves) end to the blue end of the color spectrum wheel. In terms of temperature, this artwork has been designed to incline more towards the cooler half of the spectrum as it can be easily inferred because of its blue sky, especially at the point where the smoke is lighter in colour, in turn providing a chilled and cold effect. The girl’s pale skin is also a sign of fear which is a marvellous combination of taking the word ‘cold’ both, literally as well as metaphorically. The fonts used are pretty spooky too. The frequent uneven thickness in certain parts of different letters in ‘Avenged Sevenfold’ makes it the most noticeable component of the art. Also, as it is white in colour, it stands out from the rest of the contrasting colours. The red ‘Nightmare’ is the only warm colour used in the entire cover. It must be so because the artist was trying to convey feelings of passion and love towards their late friend. But also since the font has more edgy feel to it, it could have slight traces of anger and anxiety too. The deathbat here is no longer just a floating skull with small wings. The symbolism used here shows that the band has grown in maturity as well as musically; hence the large deathbat with a cloak covering its presently unknown body. The album is titled ‘Nightmare’ as it is a dark word that sends shivers down one’s spine. They’ve used a good combination of the cold environment in the picture along with the hot portrayal of the album-name(red in colour). It is called so because on the day they completed writing the record’s lyrics, The Rev admitted that he was totally excited and eager to record this album. But sadly, he passed away three days after that. This came as a shock to everyone and was a nightmare to the band. Hence they dedicated this album to him. Every time I look at the cover while listening to any of this album’s songs, it feels as though a story is being told. Every song is a reminder of The Rev and that was another reason why this album topped the billboard charts, standing at #1 in the first week itself. This album really connected to all Avenged Sevenfold fans.

Criminal Law Foundations Essay

The United States Constitution has been amended since its origination. These amendments are meant to help our Nation adjust to the ever changing times. Our Bill of Rights is contended in the first ten amendments. The Bill of Rights is instilled into our constitution to protect the citizens of the United States from unfair and unjust treatment by their own government. Our government is protected and enforced through local police departments and our Bill of Rights gives certain freedoms to the citizens and suspect of the police prior to and during prosecution by the criminal justice system. From arrest to sentencing, the Bill of Rights protects us. This paper will specifically discuss the fourth, fifth, and sixth amendments of the Bill of Rights and how they pertain to both juvenile and adult court proceedings. The Bill of Rights also governs the government by placing limits to the extent of their reach, or power, and how that power is used against its own citizens. The Bill of Rights, or ten amendments, took adoption into our Constitution in 1789 by the efforts of James Madison. Fourth Amendment Our Fourth Amendment guarantees protection from unreasonable or unlawful search and seizure. This particular amendment is a component of the Bill of Rights that gives citizens the right to secure their persons, belongings and homes; each of which are protected under the Fourth Amendment from any unreasonable or unlawful search and seizure. The bill strongly states that this right shall never be violated as well no warrants shall be issued, unless there is a probable cause, which has approval by an oath of affirmation and the description of the place under inspection, the affected person or the possessions to be seized. In both juvenile and adult courts, the constitutional safeguard is applied (Emanuel 2009). Both juvenile and  adults are afforded this right by our Constitution to be free from harassment that is not been approved by the law with stated warrants specifying the desire and description of objects to be seized. If this right is violated in any way it is most likely the v iolator would face criminal charges or consequences due to their actions for denying citizens their Fourth Amendment right. Fifth Amendment Our Fifth Amendment discusses due process, self-incrimination, double jeopardy and eminent domain. Consider this Amendment as a safeguard stating no person shall be under pressure to answer for any crime, unless he or she is under the indictment of a grand jury (Abadinsky, 2008). The only exception to the Fifth Amendment would be the cases involving any military or militia presently servicing or during war times. Our Fifth Amendment also states; No person shall be put in jeopardy of limb or life twice. No one shall be put under pressure to testify against himself. No one shall face depletion of liberty, life or property, unless the same has approval by the law. No private property shall be in for public use, unless the owner gets due compensation. This is the so called Miranda bill. In adult and juvenile courts, persons have the right to stay silent and not to plead guilty of any offence. No one is free to make the suspect reveal anything, unless in front of a jury and within the pro tection of a counsel. The juveniles are immature and may not know their rights. Owing to this law the minors have constitutional protection from any illegal exploitation (Hartley & Rabe, 2008). Sixth Amendment Our sixth amendment discusses the right of trial by jury, the rights of the accused, the right to a speedy trial, the right to an attorney, and the right to a public trial. The Sixth Amendment states that any subject suspected of criminal activity resulting in prosecution will have the absolute right to a speedy trial by public and of a jury of their peers (Abadinsky, 2008). All subjects or suspects shall be informed of the charges against him/her regarding any arrest of criminal activity, witnesses are also available to testify for and against the accused according to the Sixth Amendment and the accused will be given witnesses prior to jury trial,  this right is afforded to citizens under the Sixth Amendment of our Constitution. The suspect will have the right to have his/her own witness as well as a presentation of defense by his/her attorney in order to conflict with prosecutor evidence given against him/her. Our constitution affords the right to be given a fair, speedy and public trial in both juvenile and adult criminal court proceedings. Not only do they have the right to a fair, speedy, and public trial; but they are afforded the right to legal representation for any offense brought to the criminal justice system. This ensures the rights of the accused to place defense upon any mistaken identities or statements of the facts regarding the crime in which they have been charged. The right to a speedy trial gives the accused the ability to precede with his/her normal life without undergoing a long drawn out process of the court system inflicting undue influence on their lives. Delay of justice may bring a lot of frustrations to the accused, thus, the speedy and public trial is a great variant (Wilkerson 1973). Impacts of the Safeguards on day to day Operations in the Court All of the Amendments that have been added to our Constitution have guaranteed a well needed transformation of our criminal justice system. The Amendments allow the citizens of the United States to be informed of their rights. By doing so a better understanding is gained between the relationship of our government and our citizenship accordingly, thus harmonizing the relationship between government and citizenship bringing a sense of understanding and relief for individuals. Having the right to an attorney gives the accused an equal stance in the courtroom to defend against an accusation of criminal activity with a fair and just trial. This ensures that the citizens of the United States involved with criminal activity or accused of criminal activity have proper representation and rebuilds trust that the government cannot abuse their power against them (Champion, 2010). Imagine a juvenile without these rights, they would h ave no way to argue their innocence without legal knowledge, thus falling to the will of the government. The hiring of an attorney can come through private methods or be available through the state with no charge, at any rate, ensuring counsel for defense. The inclusion of the Miranda warnings protects all accused of criminal activity from self-incrimination due to pressure or undue  influence. Law enforcement adjusts their tactics by moderating their power to gather information through unwarranted measures, deceit, and playing subjects against each other is a common method to gain a voluntary confession. With the Miranda warnings, subjects can have the right to remain silent and refrain from stating incriminating statements against themselves (Abadinsky, 2008). They are afforded an attorney who can guide them with legal knowledge the extent of the statements they should make. This protects the accused from unfair and illegal questioning in interrogation from unwarranted authority figures. The right to a fair and speedy trial allows justice to come at a reasonable pace, delivering a sense of comfort to the accused by eliminating long drawn out trials that may play on their ability to remain a sane in normal life experiences. Delaying the justice system is often expensive and comes with stress that plays into the accused everyday lives thus, creating more chaos than is due for the circumstance. Our Constitutional rights ensure fair treatment and the rights of citizens to know their course of action is readily available. The safeguards against unlawful search and seizure ensures citizens their dignity and privacy is not disregarded and their lives are protected affording a sense of stability and comfort against the force of the Nation’s government (Hartley & Rabe, 2008). This changes the view of law enforcement and the communities they serve and opens the door for acceptance of their position and an understanding of the job they are doing through community actions and other theoretical methods of law enforcement. Conclusion Thus the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments of the Bill of Rights are in place to secure the rights of the citizens of the United States. Following these Amendments can afford our Nation the right to boast of fairness and justice being served without conflicting with personal rights giving our government an admirable placement regarding the criminal justice process. It is the hope of our Constitution, and the Amendments that every citizen of the United States is educated to their rights and utilizes the Constitution to protect themselves from unfair treatment and prevents the government from exerting their brute force to bully a conviction of an innocent citizen, or placing improper sentencing on a guilty party. All these laws and rights are a product of the people for the people and therefore should work in  favor of the people, with all do influence of the government it is nice to know they are governed as well. References Hartley, R. D., & Rabe, G. A. (2008). Criminal Courts: Structures, Process, and Issues (2nd ed.). : Prentice Hall Inc.. Champion, D. J. (2010). The Juvenile Justice System: Delinquency, Processing, and the Law (6th ed.). : Prentice Hall Inc.. Abadinsky, H. (2008). Law and Justice: An Introduction to the American Legal System (6th ed.). : Prentice Hall Inc..

David Pajcin Insider Trading Scandal

Ethical Scandal Analysis of: David Pajcin and Eugene Plotkin Insider Trading Case Presented In Partial Fulfillments of the Course Requirements for FIN 4615 International Banking Prepared for: Marcos A. Kerbel Adjunct Professor Department of Finance Florida International University Miami, Florida Prepared by: David Kevin Vargas 2899406 (954) 443-4973 November 24, 2009 [pic] | |Academic Honesty Policy | |Individual Assignment Cover Page | |Submitted to: | |   | |   Prof. Marcos A. Kerbel | | | | |Submitted by: | |   | |   David Kevin Vargas | | | |Your Phone Number: | |   | |(954) 443-4973 | | | |Your e-mail: | |   | |   [email  protected] du | | | |Date of Submission: | |   | |November 24, 2009 | | | |Title of Assignment: | |   | |   Ethical Scandal Analysis | | | |CERTIFICATION OF AUTHORSHIP: I certify that I am the author of this paper and that any assistance I received in its preparation is fully acknowledged| |and disclosed in the paper. I have also cited any sources from which I used data, ideas or words; either quoted directly or paraphrased I also | |certify that this paper was prepared by me specifically for this course. | | | |Signature | |____________________________________________________ | Ethical Scandal Paper David Pajcin and Eugene Plotkin Case What is the case about? This case is about two men, who along with many friends and relatives, elaborated intricate insider trading schemes. Their plans involved forklift operators at a Business Week printing plant, a mole at Merrill Lynch & Co. , a grand juror in a fraudulent accounting trial against Bristol-Myers Squibb, and several brokerage accounts in New York, California and Croatia. The duo and their friends would end up reaping profits of close to $7 million during the short time their operations were active. The group’s own mistakes and greed drove them overboard and the long-reaching arm of the law finally caught up with them ending their plans and ambitions. Who was involved? David Pajcin He was one of the masterminds behind the insider trading schemes. He was born in Clifton, N. J. o Croatian immigrants. He went to school in Jersey City and later attended Notre Dame University. He majored in economics and graduated cum laude. With an impressive academic history, Pajcin got a job at the commodities group at Goldman Sachs after he got out of university in 2000. However, he did not stay long. He left after five and a half months. Pajcin said he did not want to be stuck working on the trading floors like everyone else. He took a series of similar jobs in smaller firms in New York but he never stayed in one of them for more than a couple of months. Finally, in 2003, he stopped looking for jobs and started working for himself. Eugene Plotkin He was the other half of the operation and close friend of David Pajcin. Born in Russia, Plotkin moved to California and lived outside San Francisco as a child. He then went to the California Institute of Technology but transferred to Harvard after one year. Plotkin studied economics there and graduated in 2000. He went on to Goldman Sachs where he started working as a fixed-income research analyst before being promoted to associate. That is where he met his future partner-in-crime (Pajcin) and where he stayed working at until his arrest in 2006. At that time he had a six figure salary in one of the most prestigious companies in Wall Street, a good place to be by anyone’s standards. Stanislav Shpigelman A secondary character, Shpigelman was a 23 year-old University of New York graduate. He and Plotkin had met at a college recruiting drive where Goldman Sachs had sent Plotkin to. The two kept in touch and one day met at Spa 88 in New York where they struck a deal and started working together on an insider trading scheme. Shpigelman provided Pajcin and Plotkin with inside information about possible mergers and acquisitions his company, Merrill Lynch & Co. , was working on. The biggest tip he gave involved the acquisition of Reebok International by Germany’s Adidas, in which Pajcin and his group made $6 million. Sonja Anticevic She is a retired underwear seamstress, who lives in Croatia, she also happens to be David Pajcin’s aunt. Anticevic came into the scheme when she let her nephew use an account under her name to make his trades. Monika Vujovic She was an exotic dancer who worked in New York’s finest gentlemen’s clubs; she was also David Pajcin’s girlfriend. She became involved by letting her boyfriend use her accounts to make investments. Vujovic additionally tried to help Pajcin by getting important information from investment bankers who she danced for. That scheme never worked though. Jason Smith He was an old high school friend of David Pajcin and worked as a U. S. postal worker in New Jersey. Smith had been selected to be a part of a federal grand jury in Newark that was hearing a case about possible fraudulent accounting practices at Bristol-Myers Squibb. Pajcin got information from Smith about the possible outcomes of the case and started trading based on those tips. No profits were made from Smith’s information though. Nickolaus Shuster He was a 23 year-old New Jersey native whom David Pajcin recruited in New York to get information on stocks mentioned in Business Week’s column ‘Inside Wall Street’. He went to Wisconsin to get a job at the plant where the magazine was printed. Pajcin would pay him between $200 and $500 for each Business Week issue he stole. Juan Renteria Jr. He was the second man to be hired to get information from the Business Week printing plant. Nickolaus Shuster was fired for unknown reasons so Renteria was sent to replace him in mid 2005. In total, Pajcin and his group made 48 trades and $280,000 in gains using the information received from the Wisconsin plant. Scott Black The S. E. C. senior trial counsel who interrogated David Pajcin about the trades he made and the connection between the Business Week articles and his decision to buy certain stocks. Black spent more than 8 hours talking with Pajcin before his arrest and uncovered damning information he would later use against Pajcin to convince him to cooperate with the authorities. David Markowitz He was the Securities Exchange Commission (S. E. C. ) lawyer in charge of prosecuting David Pajcin and his accomplices. He led the investigation after the Market Surveillance Unit at the S. E. C. caught strange patterns and high volume of options trading the day before the Adidas-Reebok deal would hit the airwaves. When and where did it happen? The insider trading ring conducted their operations between the autumns of 2004 and 2005. In that short period of time Pajcin and Plotkin had devised about 4 schemes that would help them make huge profits in the short term. The main operations where done in New York where the two masterminds lived. However the people involved could be found as close as California and as far as Croatia. Eugene Plotkin’s father (Mikhail Plotkin) who traded on inside information provided by his son was in California. The plant where Business Week was printed was in Wisconsin. The case from which Pajcin got tips from one of the jurors was being heard in New Jersey. The account Pajcin used to trade under his aunt’s name was in Croatia. It was definitely a widespread ring of participants. Pajcin and his partner also had other accounts opened in Austria, Denmark and Germany according to S. E. C complaints. Why did it happen? Both David Pajcin and Eugene Plotkin were very bright and had promising careers in Wall Street. It was the temptation to make grand amounts of money that lured them into the wrong path. They thought they could deal on inside information and not be caught because they were using other people’s names to trade with. In the end their own greed is what called the attention of the government and what brought their operations down. The lack of supervision at the Wisconsin printing plant and at the brokerage companies where the accounts were opened also contributed to this scandal occurring. How can it have been avoided? The main driver for the actions taken by the masterminds was internal. Their will to become rich overnight pushed them into breaking the law. Nobody could have curtailed their desire to make more money at all costs, but the steps they took to make their ill-gotten profits could have likely been spotted and taken care of before they started generating so much money. Having better surveillance at the printing plant where Business Week was being made would have forestalled Shuster and Renteria from stealing copies to later relay the information in them to Pajcin and Plotkin. Knowing that the stocks mentioned in the column ‘Inside Wall Street’ were usually moved by either a good or bad review from the column’s author should have led the managers of that plant to enforce higher levels of surveillance. The brokerage firms where Pajcin and Plotkin had their accounts could have also been more meticulous about their surveillance. It was reported in July 2005 that a customer service representative from Ameritrade got a peculiar call asking to change the restrictions on an account. The account belonged to Monika Vujovic but it was David Pajcin on the other side of the line. The Ameritrade representative recalled there was something odd about that call but unfortunately the account in question went on without being investigated or much less frozen. The company should have at least taken steps to verify the identity of the true owner of the account after getting a call like that. Other ways that might have prevented, or helped prevent, the large-scale insider trading frauds would have been detecting the leak of information from Merrill Lynch (through Stanislav Shpigelman) earlier as well as the leak coming from Jason Smith, the juror in the Bristol-Myers Squibb case. What was the outcome? After the initial S. E. C. complaints against Sonja Anticevic, it was soon clear that the authorities were going to go after David Pajcin. So he fled to the Dominican Republic immediately to avoid getting caught. But even though the S. E. C. did not have the authority to keep him from leaving the country, they did have the authority to freeze his bank accounts. It was not long before Pajcin found himself in need of cash. The prosecutors sent Pajcin an e-mail where they told him the only way to get his money back was by going back to New York to give a deposition. The greed was strong enough in Pajcin to make him go back to the United States. Once there he was interrogated by Scott Black and later arrested for insider trading. He was quickly convinced to cooperate with the authorities to crack down on the remaining ring members. David Pajcin then started working with the S. E. C. to close all the gaps in the case. In the end six people were sentenced on January 2008. The men sentenced were; Jason Smith, Nickolaus Shuster, Juan Renteria Jr. Stanislav Shpigelman, Eugene Plotkin and David Pajcin. For sharing information about upcoming mergers, Shpigelman got 3 years in prison. For insider trading and conspiracy, Eugene Plotkin got 5 years in prison. Pajcin on the other hand, was sentenced to 2 years in prison because of his cooperation but was released the day of the sentencing because by 2008 he had already served 2 years while working with the S. E. C. Civil suits were presented against six other people who were involved in the scheme, including Monika Vujovic and Sonja Anticevic. The case looked closed until November 2008, when it was reported David Pajcin had violated the terms of his 3-year supervised release. Nobody knew where e was, it was presumed he was out of the country, but it was clear he was now going to face additional jail time for failing to report to his probation officer. What can be learned from it? Clearly the lessons from this scandal are the same everyone should have already known from past insider trading scandals. Even though the gains made by this group were not tremendously big, the law and regulators went after it with all the resources available to them. It should be noted that even the smartest and brightest graduates from the best schools in the country can be corrupt. Their careers, trainin g and hard work was so easily thrown away because of a major lapse in judgment. David Pajcin and Eugene Plotkin, as well as those who helped them, are clear examples of the effects of greed on young impressionable minds. ——————————— 0 ——————————— References Anderson, Jenny and Michael J. De La Merced. â€Å"An Insider-Trading Case With a B-Movie Plot. † New York Times. 30 April 2006. 08 November 2009. Gimbel, Barney. â€Å"Partners in Crime. † Fortune. 04 October 2006. 12 November 2009. Glovin, David. â€Å"Ex-Goldman Analyst May Have Fled After Cooperating. † Bloomberg. 04 November 2008. 30 October 2009. â€Å"Where is Fugitive David Pajcin?. † Securities Docket. 13 March 2009. 30 October 2009. â€Å"A Scam Exposed: Strippers and Insider Trading. † American Greed. Video. CNBC, 2009.

Answer question Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Answer question - Coursework Example Moreover, his preference towards ‘Air Jordan’ sneakers may be biased given that the brand is associated with his name. This may be true. The appeal to authority is legitimate. Joe’s views regarding the movie are his own speculative views regarding the movie after watching it. Moreover, the opinion given is honest and non-biased given that there exists a level of trust between the two friends. This argument is fallacious. Even though the scientists have an expert authority regarding other planets, there has been no evidence to prove that life does exist on other planets. In this regard, this claim is rather speculative since the scientists are still hoping to find proof of existence of life on other planets. This is not true. The appeal to authority is fallacious given that the individual expressing this opinion does not have an expert authority regarding all beautiful women in America. Moreover, there is no proof that all women from America participated in the contest. In this regard, there is a possibility that there are far more beautiful women than Vanna in America. This claim may not be true. This argument is fallacious given that the appeal to authority, the opponents, may not be trustworthy and valid. In this regard, the opponents may have inflated the figures regarding the number of protestors at the rally. For each of the following arguments, indicate whether it is an appeal to popular opinion, an appeal to tradition, or an appeal to emotion. (The argument might fit into more than one of these categories. If so, explain why.) Then determine whether it is fallacious, and why. The statement is an appeal to popular opinion. The argument is fallacious given that the appeal to authority is biased in its own favor. In this regard, the residents of United States are biased in favoritism of their own country. Furthermore, the residents have not provided a basis for comparison on life in other countries to justify United

Lockheed Martin Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Lockheed Martin - Essay Example The willingness and determination of executive management has played a significant role in establishing future growth in the present and even in the years to come. In essence, Lockheed Martin Corporation has a strong management team, which for the past years has helped the company stay ahead of its competitors. The persistence and determination towards the fulfilment of its mission and visions rests in the management team. The company has a strong culture that boosts talent development on its skilled employees. This builds a strong team that understands the goals and objectives of the company and how they can attain them. The primary purpose of the company is to offer professional improvement in an appropriate way that meets the needs and expectations of clients and shareholders. Thus far, the aim of this paper is to discuss the management area of Lockheed Martin Company and in doing will discuss its mission statement, short term, long term goals. Mission Statements To Hartung (2011) , the company’s mission statement is straightforward, to be dynamic, ethical, and technology oriented in the global market. This corporation believes that innovation is the key to success. With this, the company helps the clients achieve the best products and services that suits the needs of the 21st technology world. The company provides the highest standards of ethical conducts in all they do, which as a result, helps in converting the first clients to frequent and potential clients. The company believes that integrity and honesty is the cornerstone of the business’s success. It recognizes that success can only be achieved if the business strives to abide by the laws implemented in the United States and other countries. The company recognizes that its success and growth as an enterprise depends on the skills, expertise, and talent of people and the ability to work as an integrated team. The company appreciates diversity and foster a positive relationship among the co lleagues, partners, clients, and the management team. Overall, the company understand the importance and its mission and creates a strong ground where employees understand it and work towards attaining the set goals and objectives. Lockheed strives to flourish in every aspect of its business with determination and perseverance to succeed regardless of any obstacle that comes the way. The company believes that it has what it takes to be competitive in the 21st century where technology has peaked well. As technology advance from one level to the other, the company intends to embrace every opportunity that would make the company succeed in the 21st world. The management team understand that innovation is the key aspect to growth. The management team understand the importance of its mission and strive to embrace ever challenge with right attitude and determination to succeed (Hartung, 2011), Short Terms Goals Some of the short-term goals include increasing in sales and revenues. On a mo nth basis, the company calculates the total sales and revenues and thereafter makes the judgement on whether the company has achieved its target sales and revenues. On a monthly basis, the corporation conducts an assessment, which helps the management team to access areas that need improvement. With this, one would argue that one of the Lockheed’s short term goals is to satisfy clients with best products and services, which satisfy their needs and wants. Still,

Claim Response Letter Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Claim Response Letter - Assignment Example We fail to understand because you arrived late for our services. It is indeed true that for the record, you came among the last people and favor was upon you when Mr. Ottawa, attended to you like among our first clients, which is not usually the case. In as much as you report Mr. Ottawa for been late, it is not justified. These are because you are the only one that wasted time, and so, even the first attendance was a favor. You claim to be paid back some cash. I bet we are not responsible for your misfortune. It has to our awareness of you claim, you as Mr. Carm, we deeply appreciate your raise of concern and how prompt you are. These have helped us keep track on all our employees and ensure they provide quality service at the required time to all our customers. We say these because we appreciate that without you, we lack work to do. These means that you are indeed our bosses and must put your interests first. From the time you came in packing to the time Doctor Ottawa attended to you, it is quite clear that one hour was indeed gone. And the fact that you got overcharged for the packing slot fee; it was truly not our fault as the hospital. We attend to our clients in a first come first serve basis. Those who arrive early are put first to be seen by our doctors, to our surprise, you came thirty-five minutes late and in turn, got lucky and served as among our first clients. Our big question to you is where were you by the time this half past the hour was clicking? And according to you, who is on the wrong side of the law? By these we mean, who could have made you pay these extra packing fees, is it the doctor’s fault or yours? The matter looks simple, but also our institution has a policy that must needs follow-up. First come first serve rule, and we fail to understand how you managed to cross the line before others and got the service among the first clients. It is, therefore, with humble request that we call upon you to

TEP Theory Analysis Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

TEP Theory Analysis - Coursework Example Theory Description Scope of the theory The scope of Orlando’s Nursing Theory is low-to-medium level, and is consistent with the medium range theories, which are narrow than the grand theories. Purpose of Theory The purpose of the theory is to define the nursing process, with a focus on the systematic process of delivering care to patients that is goal driven and patient-centered (Kennedy & Lee, 2008). Origin of Theory Orlando’s Nursing Theory (1961), was developed from deliberative research Jean Orlando was undertaking as an associate professor at the Yale School of Nursing, regarding the integration of the mental health concepts in the basic curriculum for teaching nursing (Potter, 2004). She deliberated on the correct nature of the relationship between patients and nurses, and eventually developed the theory, which was published in her book, The Dynamic Nurse-Patient Relationship in 1961 (Faust, 2002). She focused on the nursing process that should be applied when giv ing patients medical care. Jean Orlando concluded that the nursing process should follow a systematic process, which is patient focused and achievement oriented. She held that nurses, as opposed to other medical professionals, should give patients a range of care services (Kennedy & Lee, 2008). ... All these concepts make up the nursing care process, and are elaborated under Orlando’s Nursing Theory. Major Theoretical Propositions 1. The role of a nurse extends beyond that of a mere medical professional. A nurse should find out, understand and comprehensively evaluate a patient’s need. The evaluation should go beyond the health needs of the patient, to include their mental, physical, emotional and psychological state (Kennedy & Lee, 2008). Thus, a nurse should focus on accurately assessing the situation of the patient, with a view to understanding the causative factors of a patient’s health condition and the relevant interventions that can mitigate the condition, besides medication (Potter, 2004). 2. A patient’s need is not superficial. While the patient may seem to require certain kind of help, it could be just a symptom indicating the underlying interventions that are necessary to help the patient recover fully (Faust, 2002). Therefore, a nurse sho uld go an extra mile and assess the needs of a patient accurately, since deteriorated health state could be an indication of the mental, emotional and psychological suffering that the patient has been experiencing (Kennedy & Lee, 2008). Thus, the assessment of a patient’s condition requires a nurse to be concerned and focused on the holistic welfare of the patient. 3. Accurate assessment of a patient’s condition calls for a nurse’s full integration into the patient condition. Thus, nurses need to use all the informative tips available, including their perception and thoughts on such perceptions, to diagnose fully a patient’s situation (Faust, 2002). Therefore, nurses should engage their feelings and perceptions about a patient condition to

Government Regulation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Government Regulation - Essay Example For example, the constitution allows a person the freedom of speech or expression yet in the case of media houses and broadcasting stations the government comes in the regulate the news content permissible for them to air in their radio or TV stations, or to post in their websites (Rasmussen 47). Operation Regulation Regulations tend to develop at numerous levels of government as time passes by and commissions end up gaining greater power with respect to the operations of regulations. It is now so involving for government departments and agencies to take part in the design and final implementation of regulations. It is noteworthy that government agencies constituted by either the executive or the legislative branches are highly responsible for actual implementation of various regulations issued by the government department in charge. For instance, in the United States, the Food and Drug Association (FDA) and Environment Protection Agency (EPA) are responsible promoting laws that ensu re safe food and drug products are in the market while as well as laws that cut down on pollution effect in the country respectively (Rasmussen 47). Government agencies have become powerful institutions over the recent past owing to the delegate roles they extended by the government. For instance, the legislative arm of the government may formulate or enact laws and establish guiding principles and agencies leave to make follow-ups and final implementation. The operations of these agencies are highly influenced by their independence and as such, there are certain agencies that free from the control of the executive and other department of the government. The government department as well as agencies do not... Government Regulation The activities usually regulated by the government or such legal statutes of law include behaviours of people, actions of a person or groups of people, authority of office holders, and the rights upheld by the constitution to individual citizens. It the role of all branches of the government, i.e. the judiciary, the legislative and the executive to make and implement policies and rules that help in maintenance of law and order throughout the country. The deliberate attempt by governments to set up legal barriers to control and restrict certain activities by individuals and corporate entities in the society is government regulation. This is not a contemporary issue but began several centuries ago where community elders and leaders engaged in attempts that would advance their interests. Consequently, governments make use of regulations as a way of protecting and controlling important matters of the government and the civilians. Poor information is another reason for market failure. Market failure often arise when business enterprises fail to supply sufficient information to consumers and other parties such as creditors or workers to allow them make informed choices. For this reasons government regulations come in handy to correct this market failure. A clear example is the disclosure requirement by pharmaceutical companies as well as lending institutions, as they are required advice their clients on the possible side effects of the drug and interest rates respectively

Critical Article Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Critical Review - Article Example In order to understand this to a more effective and complete degree, the following analysis will discuss the means through which the public school system within the United States experiences what is known as fiscall limitation with regards to the provision of local education. This limitation necessarily refers to the way in which secondary education within the United States is overly reliant upon regional funding; thereby evoking a situation in which disparity is more readily reflected within the educational system as compared to how it would be in a situation in which the federal government itself was responsible for funding the process (Clemings, 2006). Through such analysis, it is the hope of this author that the reader will gain a more informed understanding of how the educational system work in the United States, what determinant factors constrain it, and how improvements with regards to the shortcomings that have been previously mentioned might be affected within the future. Th e particular piece in question first references the fact that a case study which will be performed is concentric upon the state of California. Naturally, this choice of tests case analysis is especially important and useful due to the fact that California is the largest state by population and represents perhaps the greatest level of regional diversity that any state within the system has to offer. As such, the article itself increases the level of believability and relevance due to the fact that it has chosen to analyze the most diverse and populous state as a means of proving the fact that regional and state funding alone is ultimately a limitation to the way through which education can be provided to the end student (Wassmer & Fisher, 1996). Accordingly, the first main argument that is made is with regards to the limitations upon maximum and minimum millage rates with regards to property taxes (Winkler, 2009). Such an in-depth primary approach has to do with the fact that the Uni ted States education system disproportionately targets as one of its main funding streams property taxes. In such a way, the authors reference the fact that disparity is innate within the system due to the fact that income from property taxes is a direct means through which the poorest regions will have inordinately less funding to allocate as compared to the richer regions. Although the casual observer might be quick to point out that millage rates within the poorest regions merely be increased as a way of generating further revenue for the school systems, this does not reflect a level of fairness and ultimately punishes the poorest property holders within a given region (Ellis, 1976). Similarly, the authors target the fact that the poorer regions within California, the state in question, reflect a greatly increased percentage of renters as compared to other regions throughout the state. The increased percentage of renting families means that this funding stream ultimately begins t o dry up and disappear with respect to an ever increasing percentage of poverty that may be exhibited. Further focusing upon the issue of property tax, the authors discuss the minimum and maximum limits on the property tax rate with respect to what is deemed as a â€Å"per pupil limit† many individuals outside the education system are wholly unaware of the fact that such

Literature Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Literature - Research Paper Example † For many African-Americans, America is their home, their mistress, and yet it is also a place of slavery and pain. Garvey-esque escapes to Africa or Jamaica were the province of some, but for most others, the hope was that the promise of America would, like a check marked â€Å"Insufficient Funds†, ultimately be paid them. America was both a land of freedom and a source of oppression and segregation; a land of prosperity and opportunity, and the source of their dreadful poverty; a place of great knowledge, and also of great ignorance. Thematic elements such as Blake's tiger and the bread, a Biblical reference, ground the theme in classical Black cultural traditions such as usage of the imagery of the Bible both to represent the oppressors and liberation from the oppressors (Levine, 1978). Indeed, there is an understanding in McKay's poem that the very sources of oppression could themselves provide the seeds of liberation, the very ideologies that presently kept the Neg ro down being able to be deployed to make clear the necessity for and justice of their liberation. â€Å"Her vigor flows like tides into my blood, /Giving me strength erect against her hate†. The same entity hurting him also gives him vital strength and inspiration, providing a philosophy of freedom, equality, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. McKay makes clear that he does not hate America, despite its oppression. â€Å"Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood. / Yet as a rebel fronts a king in state, /I stand within her walls with not a shred / Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer†. By lifting revolutionary imagery, McKay reminds the reader that America was not always a counter-revolutionary actor that served to oppress, a conservative place, but was the home of rebellion. The use of the word â€Å"bigness† implies not only sheer size and power, but also magnanimity. McKay finally offers a warning much like the warning offered by Ozymandias. â€Å"Darkly I gaze into the days ahead, /And see her might and granite wonders there, /Beneath the touch of Time's unerring hand, / Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand†. McKay predicts that the days ahead will be a time of decline, a warning that if America cannot provide a dream of justice, Time will strike it down. Thus, imagery, language, metaphor, symbolism, and references to culture makes the sonnet form that McKay uses pregnant with liberatory meaning. Langston Hughes was one of the most gifted poets of his generation and certainly stands the test of time among the great poets of any generation. Like many great poets, adversity and need shaped and channeled his writing: He was discussing poverty, racism, oppression, segregation, discrimination, dehumanization, and daily assaults on dignity and humanity, as well as hoping to provide a vision forward. His use of language was essential to combine all these tasks. â€Å"Harlem†, one of his most seminal poems, opens, â⠂¬Å"What happens to a dream deferred?† The poem is so short that every single stanza and word deserves careful attention and commentary. Hughes is using both

Psychology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Psychology - Assignment Example For her, it was Mr. Cotton who raped her and she believed that with all of her conviction. Our schema is such that once we think something, that memory has a tendency to remain unchanged. Jennifer made her choice, and in the subsequent trial, was so sure Mr. Cotton was the rapist that she exhibited physiological symptoms that further accentuated her belief that he was the one. I believe that Mr. Cotton was wrongly accused as well because his face was one from which Jennifer got to choose. As our schema influences what we look for in any given situation, Mr. Cotton just having a mug shot for her to look at must mean he was a criminal and therefore the one who attacked her. This only furthered her belief that he was the right choice. I think this story shows that no matter how hard we try to get it right, our brain may have different ideas. We have a preconceived idea of how things should work and how things interact with each other in our world, and once we make a decision, we tend to believe in it, no matter who tries to change our mind. Unfortunately for Mr. Cotton, the jury having been told that Jennifer had positively identified him as her attacker was a further nail in his coffin. They believed that she hadn’t made any mistakes, and so their memory when they got back to the jury room was that he must be the one, he was identified as such.

Drug Legalization in the United States Essay Example for Free

Drug Legalization in the United States Essay Abstract This paper will explore four websites and one online newspaper addressing the subject of drug trafficking in the United States and why legalization is a profitable alternative. The various ways drugs are bought into the country, information on how and why drug trafficking has increased in the United States, statistics on the number of people that are addicts, and the problems related to foreign countries on this issue. The reasons why illicit drugs should be legalized and what the income from the taxation from them could do to better our health care reform and our economy. Keywords: drug trafficking, economy, legalization Drug Legalization in the United States Illegal drugs are exports and deported out if our country everyday by different groups such as high profile criminal gangs or groups such as the cartel. Law enforcement has yet found a suitable way in controlling the war on drugs and have in past years, up until now, have made and passed bills and policies within the government that has made it worse. The legalization of illicit drugs, such as marijuana, would dramatically save, if not make our country more money.The Department of Justice reports the trafficking of drugs has increased in the United States (2012). Criminal groups from other countries, such as Mexican, Cuban, and Asian, including the groups in our country, grow, manufacturer, and distribute marijuana and other illicit drugs. Meth being in such high demand, leads to the growing number of addicts. Domestic cannabis growers and producers provide marijuana as easy completion for such drugs such as cocaine, LSD, and heroine. Since the price of the final product increases to abnormally high values, because of the black market status, this together with the powerful effects of drug addiction causes users to commit crimes in order to fund their addiction. The ways that illicit drugs are brought in to the country are by passenger ships at United States ports and shipping containers, criminal groups operating from South America smuggling cocaine and heroin in the United States. Self-propelled semisubmersible vessels are maritime vessels used by traffickers to transport illicit drugs. These vessels typically protrude only a few inches above the surface of the water, making them very difficult to detect visually. SPSS’s typically have a four-man crew and are capable of carrying multiton quantities of cocaine. The primary threat from drug smuggling via private vessels is from Caribbean-based traffickers exploiting the Puerto Rico and Florida coastlines. Traffickers transported mostly cocaine from the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico, although they smuggled lesser amounts of heroin, sometimes combined with cocaine loads. Caribbean traffickers also smuggled cocaine, heroin, and marijuana from the Bahamas to areas of South Florida bet ween Miami and Palm Beach. Seizure totals and routes remained relatively constant compared with those of previous years. These routes have been opened and used frequently since the 1970’s. Traffickers used private maritime vessels to smuggle drugs into the United States during 2009 through Puerto Rico, South Florida, South Texas, and southern California, and Mexican DTOs sometimes smuggle drugs by maritime means to avoid law enforcement scrutiny along the Southwest Border. According to Drug Addiction Facts and Statistics, the statistics on the number of addicts that we have in the United States are also growing rapidly. These numbers are solely based on the harsher illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine. â€Å"2010 estimated 22.6 million Americans over the age of 12 that were currently or formally illicit drug users are equivalent to about 8.9% of the population† Over 6 million children in the United States live with at least one parent with a drug problem. Since the 1980’s the numbers of people that used illicit drugs that ended death either by overdose or some other type of reaction has risen to over 540%. A 1996 U.S. government study claims that heavy marijuana use may impair learning ability. The key words are heavy use and may. This claim is based on studying people who use marijuana daily–a sample that represents less than 1 percent of all marijuana users. This study concluded: 1) Learning impairments cited were subtle, minimal, and may be temporary. In other words, there is little evidence that such learning impairments even exist. 2) Long-term memory was not affected by heavy marijuana use. 3) Casual marijuana users showed no signs of impaired learning. 4) Heavy alcohol use was cited as being more detrimental to the thought and learning process than heavy marijuana use. (2012). Drug raids in the United States happen on the average of hundreds of times a day. The policies are a lot more dangerous and dramatic then public use of drugs. These policies harm not just families of the users and dealers, but the neighbors and general public that surround them. It has been known that law enforcement has gotten wrong addresses, and bad leads to help them follow through enforcement. Drug task force units have their equipment such as big guns and bullet proof amour, for their defense, but to a child of the suspect, it can seem very intimidating and scary. This also has been known as traumatizing to the youth and families involved. It has also been classified as terrorizing. This is not what these policies were set out to do. Prohibition on illicit drugs brings more gang violence, murder, and violence from dealers, users, children, families, and law enforcement made to enforce policies. There are approximately 17.4 million users of marijuana between 2007 through to 2010 . The numbers increased to 6.9% up from 5.8% or 14.4 million to 17.4 million users. â€Å"To allow policy experimentation, the federal government should permit states to legalize the production, sales, taxation, and consumption of marijuana. While testing this policy shift, authorities should redirect scarce law enforcement resources to focus on the more damaging and socially unacceptable drugs such as heroin, cocaine and meth. From which Mexican drug trafficking organizations derive more than 70% of their proceeds (Moffat, 2012). Replacing marijuana prohibition with a system of taxation and regulation similar to that used for alcoholic beverages would produce combined savings and tax revenues of between $10 billion and $14 billion per year. The revenue from marijuana sales after legalizing for the government could be lucrative. If the tax of marijuana cigarettes was substituted for equal to the difference between the local production cost and the street price currently paid, transfer the revenue from the crime groups to the government, we would have revenue of abo ut $7 per unit. This adds up to over $2 billion on the Canadian sales and even more on an export tax then we can forgo the cost of enforcement and deploy our policy assets elsewhere. By providing legal supplies of currently illegal drugs the price will fall, leading to a collapse in the illegal drug industry, and a reduction in crimes committed by both drug suppliers and users. Some could also argue that the reduction in the price will lead to little, if any, growth in drug addiction, due to the inelasticity of demand. In a strictly regulated market, drug use may fall overall, by removing the marketing activities of the illegal drug industry. There are a growing number of law enforcement professionals speaking out for legalization. LEAP (Law Enforcement against Prohibition) is an international organization founded in 2002 made up of current and former members of the law enforcement and criminal justice communities who are speaking out about the failures of our existing drug policies. According to Betty Taylor, former Chief of Police of Winfield, MO and a speaker for LEAP (Law Enforcement against Prohibition) â€Å"If you can’t control the problem then regulate it. Regardless of law enforcement expenditures, the negative effects of prohibition include violence and other criminal activity† (Bozarth, 2012). The prohibition of marijuana is taking away from our economy in many different ways, such as financially. It is also taking our law enforcement officials away from being able to enforce the more dangerous crimes such as murder and enforce the policies of the more dangerous drugs such as cocaine and heroin. Taxes from the product can bring in more revenue and create another cash crop for farmers to contribute to the economy and also help with drug care reform in making a prescription drug that is affordable and easily acquired. These things are beneficiary to our country as long as it is monitored and maintained by its own policies put in place by ou r government. References DEA Briefs Background, Drugs and Drug Abuse, Drug Descriptions, Drug Trafficking in the United States. (n.d.). Welcome to the United States Department of Justice. Retrieved March 5, 2012, from http://www.justice.gov/dea/concern/drug_trafficking.html Drug Addiction Facts and Statistics. (n.d.). http://www.michaelshouse.com. Retrieved March 5, 2012, from http://www.michaelshouse.com/drug-addiction/drug-addiction-statistics/ Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. (n.d.). Retrieved March 5, 2012, from www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com Moffatt, M. (n.d.). Should Governments Legalize and Tax Marijuana?. About.com. Retrieved March 5, 2012, from http://economics.about.com/od/incometaxestaxcuts/a/marijuana.htm Bozarth, M. (2012, 02 23). LEAP Helps Launch Marijuana Initiative. http://stjtelegraph.org/. Retrieved March 5, 2012, from stjtelegraph.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/stjtelegraph-23-08_all.pdf

Cost Leadership Strategy For Tune Hotels Tourism Essay

Cost Leadership Strategy For Tune Hotels Tourism Essay As a business development manager of Tune hotel, I have been requested to propose and justify the implementation of an overall cost leadership strategy for Tune hotels.com. this proposal is consists of preparing a strategic service vision for Tune hotels.com by taking few aspects as a consideration into account, such as the target market segment, service concept, operating strategy and also the service delivery system as well. Besides that, I have been asked to identify what are the service dimensions in setting the benchmark for service qualifiers, service winners and service losers as well. Hotel overview Air Asia is a low cost carrier (LCC) airline, with the image of making flying feasible for everybody, where it is well known for the largest low fare and no frills airline, and Tune hotel is one of another luminous thought invented by the air Asias Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and also the founder of Air Asia as well, Datuk Tony Fernandes. Tune hotels have open its first no frills hotel branch in Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman,Kuala Lumpur on 9th april 2007. Tune Hotel is currently operating in places such as Malaysia, Downtown Penang, Kota Damansara, Kuala Lumpur, KLIA LCCT Airport, Johor, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Indonesia and United Kingdom and London as well. Question 1 Target market segment As in the context of a business, target market segment is an essential element which is needed to be considered and it is important in facilitating and directing the business path in the market. Target market segment, which is targeting the audience, is very important to sustain the survival of a business or industry as well. Tune hotel which has been categorized under the service industry and it can be considered as the market leader in the no frills budget hotel in Malaysia and South East Asia. Tune hotel has implemented a creative and innovative concept to be used in Malaysia, and they differ from their competitors since no any hotel or company has claims to be in the same market segment. Tune hotel has used the geographic segmentation dimensions to influence the market opportunity, for instance, tune hotel at Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, which is known as the budget hotel which has the similar concept of no frills Air Asia Airlines,tune hotel also adapt the same concept where it is also the first no frills hotel in Asia as well. Tune hotel Kuala Lumpur are strategically located at the central of Kuala Lumpur in Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, whereby it is close to major shopping, food and beverage outlets and entertainment areas. Moreover, the location is also convenient and facilities such as LRT and bused as well. (Anonmous, n.d) Swot analysis of tune hotel Strength Tune hotel has a great strength whereby they have a reward system to those customers who have done an advance booking service through internet with them. By introducing this system, tune hotel will be able to attract more customers and maintain those loyal customers in future as well. Besides that, Tune hotel have a great central location with facilities such as LRT and buses and it is nearby shopping areas, entertainment areas, and food and beverage areas as well. This attracts and encourages those customers, especially foreigners to choose Tune hotel as well. Moreover, Tune hotel are attractive with their pricing strategies as well, in situation where most of the Air Asia customers are those tune hotels loyal customers. Weakness Tune hotel has a very limited number of customers in the region who are conscious of the Tune hotel. This could be one of the weaknesses faced by Tune hotel. Tune hotel should be able to work on their advertising method and emphasis more on their service provided. Opportunity In order to gain the competitive market and be the first market leader in service industry, Tune hotel can be able to attract more customers by improving their marketing strategy effectively to gain the customers satisfaction and their support as well in future. Threat Tune hotel receives a high competition in the service industry since it has been unique in the industry. High Competition among competitors is one the biggest threat to tune hotel to sustain in the market in the future. Outsourcing is also one of the threat to Tune Hotel since other Hotels do provide facilities which tune Hotel doesnt provide, for instance other hotels have basis necessities of customer such as the boiler, drinking water and many more, meanwhile Tune hotel does not provide all this. Service concept Source: http://www.xm-msia.com/xm/tunehotels/facilities.asp Tune hotel is unique in providing their service, compared to their competitors, and they operate a limited service concept, where they only offer single and double room for its customers. They have 5 star beds provided in each rooms feature high quality spring mattress beds with basic needs such as pillows, pillowcase and bed sheets. Each of the room consists of attached private bathrooms together with heated power showers with the minimal room rates. Tune hotel are have a central and convenient and strategic location which is nearby to shopping areas, ATM services to withdrawal purposes, food and beverage such as kopitiam outlets and entertainment as well. Moreover, Tune hotel has 24-hour security facilities as well whereby it is secure and safe to be in the surroundings of the hotel. Operating strategy Tune hotel makes use of the outsourcing as their operating strategy to save the operation cost and to improve and get better output and efficiency of the hotel. For instance, Tune Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, the maintenance, Kopitiam, 7 eleven which is available for 24 hours, money changer kiosk, fast food outlets such as Subway, and CIMB ATM and bureau the change are certainly part of outsourcing. By implementing this operating strategy effectively, Tune Hotel have be able to save a huge amount of their cost and this eventually helped Tune Hotel to improve on better production and productivity effectively and efficiently of their hotel. ( Batcha, 2007). Service delivery system Source: http://www.scribd.com/doc/4089502/Tune-Hotel The service delivery system in Tune Hotel is overwhelming, and core and supplementary services provided are identified through the flower of service model. The service are divided into 2 main sections, where the information, order taking, billing and payment are categorized under the facilitating services, meanwhile consultation, housekeeping, hospitality and exception are categorized under the second section named as enhancing services. TUNE HOTELS STAKEHOLDERS Source: http://www.xm-msia.com/xm/tunehotels/about_us_3.asp Tune hotels sdn.bhd is 40% owned by Datuk Tony Fernandes, 30% by Dato Kamarudin Meranun, 25% by Dennis Melka and the rest 5% by Tune Strategic Investments Limited. Tune Ventures Sdn Bhd owns 72.19% stake in tune hotels, followed by Dato Kalimullah Hassan which now the chairman of ECM avenue which is one of the listed Malaysian investment bank owns 12.03% stake in tune hotels, Lim Kian Onn the chairman of ECM avenue, also owns the same percentage as Dato Kalimullah Hassan 12.03%, and lastly followed by tune hotels employee holding sdn bhd where the company is formely owned by the key employees of tune hotel owns 3.75% stake in tune hotels as well. Question 2 Service qualifiers Tune hotel is classified to be the service qualifier since it is providing a good service which meets the requirements of a consumer. For instance, tune hotel has a clean environment around, whereby they provide housekeeping services to make sure the consumers feels safe and clean with the surrounding environment. Moreover, Tune hotel are concerned with the safety as well, where they have the 24 hour security system applied, whereby they uses electronic key card to access into rooms, CCTV cameras services, round- the- clock on duty reception staff and no access to the main lobby without a keycard pass midnight.(anonymous, 2007) Moreover, tune hotel also has introduced tune hotel insurance only in Malaysia, and said to be globally soon. Those insurance are not only responsible for the lost of travel documents, but also has take the responsibilities of being cautious of guests personal accident, medical expenses and also delayed check in as well.(anonymous, n.d). Service winners Service winners are those competitive dimensions used to make the final choice among competitors, for instance is the price. The pricing strategy of Tune hotel is from the range of RM 9.90. Tune hotels price will be different during peak seasons, promotion seasons and also a different price range for the advance booking as well. Service loser When tune hotel fails to deliver the needs and wants of the customer, they might entitle to be the service loser. Service loser occurs when there is a failure to meet the expectations of what customer actually wants. Tune hotel should be able to implement new marketing strategy as Tune Hotel is having a high competition among its competitors which is a threat to them. Question 3 Porters generic strategies Source: http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml Tune hotel has adopt the cost leadership strategy overall. This cost leadership strategy mainly emphasis on the low cost producer in the industry. Setting price low sometimes might influence the way of thinking of a customer, where low price may give a negative perception of the quality and the brand image of the company itself. For instance, there are not many out there are aware about Tune hotel and its services, since it is new in the market. This is mainly because the strategy used to representation about Tune hotel is done ineffectively. Tune hotel should come up with an effective strategy to expose their brand name by having advertisement about its service and facilities provided to attract not only the Air Asias customers, but also to the locals and foreigners who travel frequently. Placing Tune hotel in a strategic location with the lower price is valuable, but it should also be a place where customers feel flexible and convenient with the environment as well. Tune hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman where it is a location which is popular with prohibited immigrations and place where they gather together. The place is nearer to the place where most of the time it is famous with prostitution, drugs and offense are indivisible. This might not guarantee the safety at times and it could be one of the main problem customers will have a choice to choose other hotels as their choice. Tune hotel can improve this by making a deep study and research about those place and plan the location as well to avoid those circumstances occur. Moreover, Tune hotel has limited services where they dont provide the basis necessities such as boiler, drinking water and so on. Tune hotel save cost on this, but yet it should not be limited in providing the services since its known as the budget hotel. Tune hotel can improve on their service provided to enhance the satisfaction of the customers and maintain its competitive advantage than its competitors. Conclusion Overall, Tune hotel has been taking the efforts to reach the audience by implementing the no frills concept hotel. Since it is still new in the market, Tune hotel should implement new ideas to expose its brand name and win the local consumers perception as well to adopt their name as well.

Analyse The Factors Affecting The Strategic Plans

Analyse The Factors Affecting The Strategic Plans Tesco plc is a well-established and consistently growing food retailer global company operating in UK and many other countries like USA, Europe, Thailand, China, Japan and so on. It was established in 1919 by Jack Cohen, when he sold some groceries in the stall in East London and then it later lead to the opening of the first Tesco store in 1929 in North London. Using the well-researched and consistent strategy for growth, Tesco has been able to strengthen their core UK business and lead them to expand into new markets. Tesco has already been declared as the no.1 superstore in UK against its rivals Asda, Sainsbury and Morrison. Tesco is still aiming to broaden the scope of their business to enable it to deliver strong sustainable long-term growth by following the customers into the basic and the large expanding markets at cheaper price. Currently, Tesco has over 2200 stores in UK and has been able to reach every possible customer through its different types of outlets as superstore, metro, extra, express and by various means as online shopping through Tesco direct, Reserve and collect plus loyalty/club cards, insurance, clothing, banking and financial services, telecoms, insurance. So this report will be identifying Tescos vision, Mission, its current strategic objectives, evaluates them and analyses the factors that will be affecting strategic plan. The purpose of this case study is to review and determine the organizational strategic aims and objectives identify and analyse the progress towards organizational strategic aims and objectives and to determine and evaluate strategic options to support a revised strategic position. 1.1 Identify the current strategic aims and objectives TESCOS STRATEGY Our well-established and consistent strategy for growth has given the business momentum to grow through the downturn. (1) Long term Strategy According to Tescos official website it is clearly evident that Tesco has a well-established and consistent strategy for growth. The rationale for the strategy is to broaden the scope of the business to enable it to deliver strong, sustainable long-term growth by following customers into large expanding markets at home such as financial services, non-food and telecoms and new markets abroad, initially in Central Europe and Asia and more recently in the United States. Objectives:- The objectives of the strategy are: Successful global retailer Tesco aims to be one of the most successful global retailer organisation in the world. With this idea in mind they have opened stores in many other countries like Canada, USA, Europe, Thailand, China and Middle East. Growth in core UK business Tesco also aims on growing its business as the core UK business as it is originated here. It had 1500 stores in UK in 2007 whereas the number has reached to over 2000 by now. And it has diversified its market from only being a food retailer to selling fuel, clothes, housing, finance, banking, insurance, mobile broad band and electronics. Strong non food retailer As Tesco has been known for its food items and is the leader in food retailing, Tesco also aims to develop the rest of the retailing it has been doing. They are working hard to be as strong in non-food as they are in food. Developing banking and finance Tesco is also working for developing retailing services such as Tesco Personal Finance, Banking, Telecoms and Tesco.com. This is showing that Tesco is determined to help its customers even with the financial and banking services. As the name specifies, Tesco is all set to deliver Every little helps. Community friendly Approach Tesco is determined to put community at the heart of what they do and help maintain the natural balance. Values and aims According to the official website, Tesco feels that: No-one tries harder for customers than Tesco They have mentioned that they understand their customers needs and they want to be the first to meet their needs and at the same time they want to act responsibly to their community in order to avoid any kind of degradation in the environment and ethnicity. Tesco promises to treat people as we like to be treated: Work as a teamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Trust and respect each otherListen, support and say thank youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Share knowledge and experience.so we can enjoy our work. Tesco has been taking regular feedbacks from customers by asking them and the staff what can be done to make shopping with them and working with them better.(2) 1.2 Undertake an evaluation of the component parts of a strategic plan Tescos strategy to diversify the business in 1997 has been a very important landmark and the base to the success of the company. Product Diversification from being only food retailer to non-food retail was the best decision that has made Tesco to be the market leaders in many of their markets in and outside UK. According to Tescos official website (www.tescoplc.com), its vision and mission are: Vision- Every little helps. Tescos vision is very simple as it is stated. It simply focuses on providing every little helps to the customers. Tesco is willing to follow the customers and their basic needs and be the only retailer to help them out with every kind of help they need -small or big Mission Tesco aims to broaden the scope of their business to enable it to deliver strong long-term sustainable growth by following their customer into large expanding markets at home such as financial services, non-food and telecoms and new markets abroad, initially in Central Europe and Asia, and more recently in the United States Chairman s statement Over the past decade Tesco has transformed itself into a diverse international business- we are well-positioned for long-term growth. Tesco is scanning the external environment as much as possible in order to develop its mission and vision. All these efforts from Tesco is making them able to meet their strategic plan to be everywhere, to sell everything and sell to everyone . Managers are taking further actions to full fill their promise. They are satisfying and identifying customer needs through affordable prices, quality products, home delivery, 24 hrs service, recycling, business expansion and technological developments such as online shopping and home deliveries. These evidences shows that; there is a clear alignment between their mission. Vision and strategies. This helps tesco in being market leader in UK retail super markets. 1.3 Analyse the factors affecting the strategic plan For any business to run and meet its long-term strategic aims and objectives, there is a great involvement of the environment. The environment is divided into Macro/external and Micro/internal environment and there factors which are affecting the long-term organisational strategic planning. Some factors both external and internal for Tesco are discussed below: Internal factors are those factors which come from the business and affect it without any regards to the external factors like suppliers, customers, distributors and so on. Some examples are Research and Development, Employee Turnover/employee satisfaction, Physical assets, mission and objectives and so on. The internal environment consists of variables (Strength, Weakness, Threat and Opportunities) that are within the organization itself and are not usually within the short-run control of the Top management. This variables form the context in which work is done. They include the cooperations structure, culture and resources, Key strength form a set of core competencies which the organization can use to gain competitive advantage. (Thomas L. Wheelen, J. David Hunger (2000). Strategic Management Business Policy. p10) By analyzing PEST Analysis, it is observed that Tescos strategic plan is affected by various external factors. They are: 1. POLITICAL FACTORS Government interferes in the economy of every company. Factors such as tax policy, labour law, environmental law, trade restrictions, tariffs and political stability makes the major impact on the business and the society as well as the global market. This year the government has increased the tax from 17.5% to 20%. This has affected the profit of Tesco and is affecting the long-term aims, mission and vision of Tesco. 2. ECONOMICAL FACTORS Economic factors include economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates and the inflation HYPERLINK http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation_rate / Inflation raterate. These factors have major impacts on how businesses operate and make decisions. For example, interest rates affect a Tescos revenue and therefore to what extent a business grows and expands. Exchange rates affect the costs of exporting goods and the supply and price of imported goods in an economy. Example: increased fuel tax, impact of credit crunch on sales. SOCIAL FACTORS Social factor includes the cultural aspects and include growth rate of population, age distribution, health consciousness, career attitudes and health and safety. Changes in the social factors affect the demand for a companys products and how that company operates. For example, the new trend of health consciousness has resulted in Tesco to produce more organic and low fat foods such as skim milk, organic milk, organic vegetables, Lighter choices with nutritional value mentioned in the product and local charities and getting Thailand over fit- 3 million people involved in aerobics Tesco has changed various management strategies to adapt to the social trends such as recruiting older workers and long term unemployed people as a part of social responsibility; Regeneration: where people who are unemployed for more than 6 months had been trained for several weeks and were guaranteed jobs; Community Champions and many volunteers helping the community and local charities. (UK supporting canc er research with race for life to fight against cancer) (4) 4. TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS Technological factors include technological aspects such a Research and development activity, technology incentives and the rate of technological change. Technological changes in Tesco can affect costs, quality, and lead to innovation. Example: Use of self check out service, online shopping and reserve and collect service(new) has saved huge amount of labour cost, has avoided customers from being charged for same product more than one time plus has saved time of the customers. Or use of security system and CCTV cameras has prevented Tesco from having huge amount of stock variances and made the staff more work efficient with the fear of being caught while doing irresponsible activity during their duty hours. 5. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS Environmental factors are growing awareness of the potential impacts of climate change is affecting how tesco operates and the products they offer, both creating new markets and diminishing or destroying existing ones. Zero carbon foot prints, Recycling, sustainability are the areas of focus for tesco, so that the products have been labeled with the message of recycling. Using local resourced products is attracting customers towards the specific food products.Example: climate change affecting Tescos supply and transport. 6. LEGAL FACTORS Legal factors include discrimination law, consumer law, data protection law, antitrust law, employment law, and health and safety law. Assuring Health and safety in all the regions wherever it is expanded is one more challenging Legal responsibility of Tesco. These factors can affect how Tesco operates, its costs, and the demand for its products. Example: Tesco to avoid the legal opposition to expand on the high streets LO2: Evaluate alternative strategies to meet the desired future strategic position. 2.1 Apply a range of strategic analysis tools to audit progress towards strategic aims and objectives SWOT ANALYSIS FOR TESCO INTERNAL FACTORS Strength Weakness  · Giant Leader in superstores  · Financial stability  · Huge Brand name  · Bulk goods importers and sellers  · Product Diversification from being food retailer to non food plus electronics, telecom, insurance, banking and finance  · Competitive pricing-providing goods and services in low price  · Ensuring Health and Safety in different parts of the world  · Maintaining Quality issues as the goods are supplied from different suppliers abroad, out of which some are not very experienced with maintaining high quality.  · Stabilizing itself as a good non food retailer.  · Maintaining their presence and growing customer loyalty in the recently expanded countries  · Expansion in more developing c countries  · The competitors: Asda being competitively cheaper Sainsbury, Morrison being food retailers with comparative pricing  · Environmental issues and corporate Governance responsibility Opportunities Threats EXTERNAL FACTORS Strengths Giant leader in superstore and financial stability Tesco has over 2200 stores and Tesco holds more than 71% share in the UK retail market Its strategic capability explains that it will continue to grow share in food, while increasing space contribution from supermarket will allow it to drive a higher share in non-food. Tescos business growth shows no sign of failing. In the UK, Tescos late 2006 investment into West-midlands based convenience store group TS was billed as the most aggressive move into the neighbourhood market by a big-name retailer so far. They are aggressively expanding and going with acquisitions with the local food stores. The deal has turned Tesco into the countrys biggest convenience store chain, and the company also plans to open up 95 new stores PLC in the UK this year which includes 6 stores purely based on Regeneration Scheme. Tescos general growth shows no sign of failing. Health safety issues and maintaining quality Maintaining health and safety is a major challenge for Tesco. From the suppliers to warehouses and to the store, there is always a risk associated. Plus making sure that the stock is properly handled in the store by stacking them properly and the use of trolleys and their proper management is also the major responsibility of Tesco. They must make sure that every single person who is linked to Tesco should be safe while they operate their operations. Maintaining the quality and standard of goods they supply is also a major challenge to a bulk good retailer like Tesco as they have to get goods from their suppliers all around the world. They have been very fair to their suppliers and they want them to be decent to them by maintaining the standard of the goods they produce and supply. Opportunities Business growth and expansion in Europe is successful but it still has to work in some other parts of world. They have just started exploring Asia but being all over Asia and the rest part of the world is a strong opportunity. Being established as a non-food retailer is another very good opportunity for Tesco. Since the start of diversification, they are working to prove Tesco not only as a grocery store but a superstore providing customers with every little helps. Weaknesses 2.2 Review and assess the expectations of major stakeholders and their influence upon the organisational strategy Engagement with stakeholders is helping Tesco identify new risks and opportunities and to ensure that their long-term goal and strategy is sustainable. In some cases, they have found that working with stakeholders in partnership can help deliver shared goals. Tesco feels that they might not be able to satisfy all stakeholder concerns all the time but through proper engagement they can do their best to balance competing demands. Tesco is very committed to having a productive dialogue with its stakeholders inorder ensure that they understand what is important to them. This is allowing themselves the opportunity to maintain their position. Engaging with stakeholders includes customers, employees, suppliers, investors, government, regulators and non-governmental organisations.() (www.tesco.com/cr2010) The major stakeholders of Tesco plc.are: Customers Customers need to be able to trust tescos business and they will only trust only if they believe that there is appropriate engagement in regular basis with the stakeholders. Tesco has been using various strategies to able to win the trust of its stake holders by following various strategies such as Cost leadership, diversification, Tesco believes that if they can offer what the customer needs than surely they will come back and purchase again. This is helping to establish and gain lifetime loyalty of the customers. The launch of Club cards is helping customers satisfy their needs and quality services are the functional business strategy of Tecso. They have been innovating more than 2000 new products (food/non-food) every year depending upon the demand of the customers. Example: Launching organic, dietary and healthier food options, Nutritional values in the packaging and making sure that the quality of the food is maintained by doing mystery audits in the suppliers factories. And the new self check out system where customers can grab whatever they want and go has helped the customer to manage their time and made it simple to operate. According to the Tesco website, Tesco says No-one tries harder for customers: Understand customers. Be first to meet their needs. Act responsibly for our communities. Treat people as we like to be treated: Work as a team. Trust and respect each other. Listen, support and say thank you. Share knowledge and experience.so we can enjoy our work. We regularly ask our customers and our staff what we can do to make shopping with us and working with us that little bit better. This proves Tesco has been treating their customers as the core of their business and are providing every simple and small helps by being fair to them. (http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/about_us/values/) Employees Tesco employees 285,000 employees. Philip Clarke, Chief Executive from 2011 says If we dont look after our staff the chances are they will not look after our customer. (http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/media/board_announcement/) Tesco has been using the term A great place to work in which they include; Our staff have told us what is important to them to be treated with respect, having a manager who helps them, having an interesting job and an opportunity to get on. Helping achieve what is important to our staff will help us to deliver an Every Little Helps Shopping Trip for our customers. (http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/about_us/values/) The statement clearly states that they treat everyone with respect and dignity. At the same time they have great managers who are always ready to help the team and make their job interesting everyday and giving them good opportunities by job rotation, job enrichment and job enlargement. These activities take the employees off from the regular job pattern, motivates them to learn and do new things everyday. And staff are the basic point of contact to customers and it is very important to get them right to gain satisfaction and loyalty of all our customer. Employees are the most important and basic level of contact with customers. Every customer remembers his first experience when he visits the store and the way he had been assisted. A good and motivated employee always treats them very well. So Tesco has been very focused to make sure the employees do their duties in the right way and makes sure that every customer and even the employee is being treated in the right way. Rewards wise also Tesco is the only organization which has been giving bonuses to their staff on doing their regular jobs. For maintaining the accuracy of stock level they get 15% bonus, till accuracy 5% bonus and Mystery shoppers result 5% bonus. Apart from this there are more benefits and rewards the employees are getting like holiday pay, outstanding service award, discount in shopping, career breaks, free company shares. Tesco has recently given a huge amount of share profit to its employees (02/06/10). More than 216,000 Tesco staff, from checkout operators to drivers and managers found out that they will share a  £105 million bonus pot as the company announced details of its biggest ever Shares In Success scheme(http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/media/pr/pr2010/2010-06-02/). Supplier Tesco has been supplying goods from different parts of the world as the bulk retailer has to meet the demands of huge retail market segment like Kenya, South Africa, Spain, Scotland, Wales, and has high expectations of its suppliers. They have built a strong relationship with their suppliers, have given them the best value for their customers and given their customers the confidence of maintaining good standard through out their chain. They are very focused in treating the people in the right way so that they perform better and which will automatically helps in improving sustainability in their supply chain by encouraging suppliers to make proper investment in products and stable work. Due to their decent pricing, Tesco is confidient to keep the trading for longer period of time and is willing to get enough support from its supplier by being with them and helping them maintain their ethical and food standards. Tesco has been sourcing products from the countries which has cheaper good employment practices, cheap labour and less regulations to maintain the level of margin. (http://cr2010.tescoplc.com/en/buying-and-selling-our-products-responsibly.aspx) Tesco has been paying more for the diary suppliers. Kenayen suppliers had been supplying goods since long time. Tesco launched an awarding agenda where they had been launching surprise visits and evaluating the hard work done by the suppliers and rewarding them afterwards. Tesco has also been providing necessary training to the suppliers staff in Kenya, South Africa. The following diagram shows the competitive rivalry and shows the effect of stake holders in the business. 2.3 Analyse, interpret and produce a structured evaluation of the organisational strategic position Note: The challenges faced by the organisation may be identified, for example, competitive environment, external climate and globalisation (if applicable) may be examined. The knowledge gained by studying Porters three generic strategies and PESTAL analysis may be applied. Political view reflects that the economic downturn- credit crunch has lead to high number of unemployment. But Tesco has been able to help a number of people by providing them jobs. and therefore helping the unemployment. Regeneration: People who are unemployed for more than 6 months had been trained for several weeks and were guaranteed job. Three new stores were opened and 320 people were employed. 6 more stores will be opening this year. Community Champions: Tesco has Community Champions and many volunteers helping the community and local charities, Healthy living for customers: is one of key promise by Tesco and is celebrated by producing healthy products like lighter choices, nutritional value mentioned in the product, getting fit-Thailand over 3 million people involved in aerobics, UK supporting cancer research with race for life to fight against cancer. Tesco is also instrumental as a retailer in supporting carbon reductions and have also encouraged their customers to make low carbon choices .They created a  £100 million Sustainable Technology Fund for this purpose. At the same time they are maintaining the eco-friendly approach by helping reducing the pollution-they are passing the message to their customers to reuse and recycle the wastages. LO3: Decide upon a strategy and identify how, if required, you would justify your selection to meet the required future strategic position. 3.1 Identify and develop a range of alternative strategic options to meet strategic aims and objectives Note: This section requires the candidate to apply his/her own judgement so that a few alternate options are visualised and discussed,. For example the candidate may propose emphasis on alternate products, or increased after sale service, or following aggressive marketing strategy etc. During the 1980s Professor Michael Porter from Harvard Business School developed the model of generic competitive strategies. He called the strategies generics as they can be undertaken by businesses of any size or type, even if they are non-profit organisations (Hunger and Wheelen [2001]p82). He argued that companies only have three strategies to choose from: Cost leadership Differentiation Focus Porter also believed that before a company decides which strategy to adopt, it must know its competitive scope: the breadth of its target market, the range of products it wishes to produce, the distribution channels, the type of buyers and geographic areas it wants to serve and the related industries it will be competing in (Hunger and Wheelen [2001]p82).The cost leadership strategy is aimed at the broad mass market and requires actions like cost minimisation in research and development, services, sale forces, advertising and so on. By doing this the company will sell its product for smaller price than its competitors but still achieve reasonable profit. This also creates entry barrier for the new market entrants, as it would be difficult for them to match the low cost of the existing producer. (Hunger and Wheelen [2001] p83). The differentiation strategy is aimed at the broad mass market as well, but this time creating a product which must be perceived as unique by its customers, for example through design, The strategy aims to gain customer loyalty and therefore making the buyer insensitive image, technology, customer service, dealer network and so on to a higher price. This again will also make entry more difficult for new entrants (Hunger and Wheelen [2001] p83). (Hunger and Wheelen [2001] p83) argue, differentiation strategy generates high profits as it creates a better entry barrier. Low cost strategy however creates increase in market share. Focus strategy concentrates on serving only a certain niche market as either a cost leader or with a differentiation strategy. In cost focus a firm seeks a cost advantage in its target market only, in differentiation focus a firm seeks differentiation in its segment (Lynch [2000]p.568) The following diagram may illustrate Porters model in more detail: Fig: Porters Generic Model (http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml) Tesco has been implementing the cost leadership strategy since its establishment. And after going to non-food retail in 2004, it also applied the diversification strategy in their business to meet the customers every needs. Tesco launched its own broad band in 2004 followed by Home plus in 2005. Globalisation has been another important step taken by Tesco. Though Tescos Fresh n easy did not do very well in USA in the first 2 years of its establishment, now it is maintaining its grip among the customers, according to Sir Terry Leahy Chief Executive. Tesco has been very successful in Europe and in Asia. To flourish more of its business in South Asia, Tesco has an exclusive franchise agreement with Trent, the retail arm of Tata Group to support the development of their Star Bazaar format by the end of 2010 in India. Since Tesco has already used the first two strategies, it still has the Focus strategy in hand. Tesco can still aim on the niche markets and work on that segment of the market in order to gain more market share. Tesco has recently opened their first baby store in Manchester which provides all the necessary materials to the toddlers including clothes, push chairs, strollers, car seats, high chairs etc. Similarly, the start of DRIVE-THRU store has covered another segment of people who drive and have very strict time schedule. Apart from that Tesco should also work on its weaknesses. Maintaining Health and safety in all parts of the world with its globalisation and maintaining quality of goods upto the Tesco standard at all times is the major challenge. Tesco should make sure that their ware house, suppliers factories and even the shop floor should be Health and Safety approved and should have all kinds of equipments that helps in maintaining it such as use of helmets, gloves, safety goggles and also training the people with right procedures of lifting weight, handling chemicals and so on. Tesco must make sure that every product they sell is 100% hygienic to the customers and has the same quality and standard at all times. Because of having different suppliers all over the world and buying goods on bulk, Tesco might not be have been able to keep proper maintained standard at all times(as some issues were raised last year regarding the bread supplier) So focusing strategy is not only a good idea to get a grip over the niche market segments but also to maintain its brand value among the existing customers. 3.2 Determine and justify the strategic option that meets the revised strategic position Note: Out of the alternate options in 3.1 above, the one which is considered to be most suitable to meet the new strategic position, may be identified. Justification may be given as to how this selected option is likely to fit in the present position. Out of the various strategies suggested above in 3.1,Focus on maintaining quality and brand value at all times all over the world without a single compromise is the most important option which is most suitable to meet new strategic position and is likely to fit in the present position. Tesco has already been market leader in Cost leadership and has used Differentiation strategy to its limit by understanding the needs of people to the basic extent and providing them the services and satisfying them. They have already started working in the niche marketing strategy by starting DRIVE-THRU store and Kids store. Tesco is aiming to launch mortgages in the first half of 2011, followed by current accounts in the second half of 2011/2012 financial year.