Business Plan and Market Strategy - 1012 Words

Business plan Market Strategy The main objective and focus of our marketing strategy is to relay the information concerning the unique variety of products and services that we shall be offering to our customers. In that regard, our marketing strategies are established in view of the need to ensure customer satisfaction and ensure that they get the true value for their money. The strategy will also facilitate the communication of our core brand values and to ensure a tight and close working relationship with our suppliers and clients. At the core our strategies is the aspect of product differentiation and growth. Growth shall be ensured by the focusing on new markets both within and outside the local environment. Market differentiation becomes important in this industry considering the imperatives of quality and customer-centric nature with respect to attracting new guests to the hotel ADDIN EN.CITE Hallock2009161(Hallock, 2009)1611616Hallock, M.Hotel accounting2009Chandni Chowk, DelhiGlobal Media( HYPERLINK l _EN REF_4 o Hallock, 2009 #161 Hallock, 2009). The marketing strategy is further based on ensuring the business becomes the destination for many international students who come to the UK every year in pursuit of further studies. It will meet the demands of those who look for quality amid the need to minimise their costs. The Hotel will therefore use several media and avenues in order to advertise itself. The Yellow pages will be adequately used in marketingShow MoreRelatedCompany and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships1465 Words   |  6 Pagesstrategic planning in its four steps 2. Discuss how to design business portfolios and develop growth strategies 3. 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The demanding of consumer are continued to increase, so the operators must be careful to maintain the balance between capital spending for network and upgrades, technological choices, and evolving competitive data plans in order to navigate to the top as a market leader. This market has been great and active and the trends

How Sleep Can Help Your Sleep - 1324 Words

Sleep is one of the most important and essential parts of life. Learning why people need sleep can help individuals to understand the benefits of sleep, the effects that come from not getting enough sleep and why one needs to manage one s sleep. These three aspects of sleep can help one to get the adequate amount of sleep needed each night. â€Å"The National Sleep Foundation says that an individual spends one-third of one’s life asleep, and the overall state of one’s sleep health remains an essential question throughout our lifespan†(n.p.). This is a big majority of one’s life spent sleeping and individuals need to know how to sleep correctly so that this time is not wasted. There are many aspects that can affect the way one sleeps which in†¦show more content†¦Since sleep affects one s alertness it is beneficial to get adequate sleep while participating in sports to help avoid injury and be able to play at peak performance. These are just a few of the many benefits sleep has on a person s everyday activities. Sleep deprivation can affect a person s body in many ways both physically and mentally. Many people do not realize how important sleep really is. Just like one’s body needs nutrients to stay healthy one also needs adequate sleep. â€Å"Most of us know that getting a good night’s sleep is important, but too few of us actually make those eight or so hours between the sheets a priority† ( National Sleep Foundation n.p.). This quote shows that one is not often focused on the amount of sleep one gets each night. Days and nights flow together with all the â€Å" to dos† one feels they need to complete in a day and sleep tends to fall on the list of priorities. Depriving one s body of much needed sleep can lead to heart problems, memory problems, weakened immune system and even accidental death. â€Å"While you are sleeping, your body is busy tending to your physical and mental health and getting you ready for another day† (Pietrangelo n.p.). This quote is important because it helps people to understand what really goes on when a person is sleeping. However, a person s body never really rests, the human body works around the clock trying to keep a person healthy. When a person is deprivedShow MoreRelatedHow Much Sleep Is Enough1189 Words   |  5 Pages†¢ How Much Is Enough? †¢ The amount of sleep that a healthy individual needs is largely determined by two factors: genetics and age. Genetics plays a role in both the amount of sleep a person needs, as well as his or her preference for waking up early (these are the so-called larks, or morning-type individuals) or staying up late (these are the owls, or evening-type people). Our internal biological clock, which regulates the cycling of many functions including the sleep/wake cycle, can vary slightlyRead MoreInformative Sleep1721 Words   |  7 PagesTo inform the audience about what sleep is and how it helps the body. Central Idea: That sleep is good for you and you should get your eight hours of it! Introduction: I’m sure everyone likes sleep. Everyone needs sleep to keep the least bit active through out there day. Sleep is an important factor for your body to restore energy. Sleeping is a time to rest your body from all the hard work you have done. It is relaxing so deeply that you lose consciousness of your surroundings. Preview Statement:Read MoreThe Importance Of Sleep Hygiene733 Words   |  3 PagesGood quality sleep can make a big difference in your quality of life. Having healthy sleep habits is often referred to as having good  sleep hygiene, It involves  a variety of different practices and habits that are necessary to have good nighttime sleep quality and full daytime alertness. Why is it important to practice good sleep hygiene? Obtaining healthy sleep is essential for both physical and mental health. It can also improve productivity and overall quality of life. Everyone, from childrenRead MoreThe Effects Of Sleep On Our Bodies904 Words   |  4 Pagesafter a good night of sleep we feel recharged and happier, and if having gone without sleep for a while we may end up cranky and most likely cannot function correctly. But why do we feel better after waking up from a deep slumber and feel worse without sleep? Why do our bodies need to shut down for such a long period of time? Unfortunately scientists are still trying to find this answer themselves. Although through a sufficient amount of research, scientists have found out how sleep greatly impacts ourRead MoreSleep Deprivation Among College Students1146 Words   |  5 PagesTopic: Sleep deprivation among college students. Specific Purpose: To persuade my peers to get a sufficient amount of sleep. Central Idea: Sleep deprivation among college students can lead to poor performance and health problems, so finding ways to sleep more can help improve your sleeping habits. INTRODUCTION Attention-getter: Think of this scenario. It is Thursday night. You have an English paper due the next day at 9:00 in the morning and you have barely even thought about what your topic shouldRead MoreAnnotated Bibliography List : Ted Talk Essay1127 Words   |  5 Pageswatched was Why do we sleep by Russel Foster. This TED talk was about why we need sleep and how getting less than the suggested amount affects the brain. There are three main reasons why we need sleep; restoration, energy conservation, and brain function. Only certain genes are turned on when you sleep so you need to sleep in order for those genes to turn on and allow you other genes to be restored, while sleeping you save about 110 calories, sleep helps enhance creativity, and your brain is less likelyRead MoreSleep Is A Basic Need For Your Child s Body850 Words   |  4 PagesQuality Sleep, Pediatric Sleep is a basic need of every child. Children need more sleep than adults because they are constantly growing and developing. Between nighttime sleep and naps, children should sleep the following amount each day depending on their age: †¢ 0–3 months old: 14–17 hours. †¢ 4–11 months old: 12–15 hours. †¢ 1–2 years old: 11–14 hours. †¢ 3–5 years old: 10–13 hours. †¢ 6–13 years old: 9–11 hours. †¢ 14–17 years: 8–10 hours. Quality sleep is a critical part of your child’sRead MoreEssay on Unit 4222-234 Hsc 2030 Provide Support for Sleep1276 Words   |  6 PagesFOR SLEEP 1.1 Explain how sleep contributes to an individual’s well-being sleep  is essential for our  health and wellbeing. It allows our body to rejuvenate and restore itself. It helps the body to create new cells.  Sleep deprivation  is one of the biggest causes of premature aging. Tiredness can significantly affect your mood and how you feel. Sleep can help lower blood pressure and elevated levels of stress hormones. Your cardiovascular system is constantly under pressure and sleep helps to reduceRead MoreSleep On A Plane Business Travel Life846 Words   |  4 Pagessleeping on an airplane can be challenging. Whether you have a late night flight home or a red-eye to see a client, there is nothing more frustrating than feeling tired and not being able to get comfortable enough to sleep. The good news is that you can increase your chances of falling asleep during your next flight by planning ahead, packing some in-flight sleep essentials, setting up your seat area for sleep, and finding the best sleeping position for yourself. how to sleep on a plane business travelRead MoreBeing Sleep Deprived Is A Person That Is Constantly Tired1325 Words   |  6 PagesThe most obvious signs of someone being sleep deprived is a person that is constantly tired. However, being more drowsy and more prone to falling asleep during the day can put the person at a greater risk to have fatigue related accidents. Therefore, it would be a better and a more safe way to pay attention to the more subtle symptoms of fatigue rather than waiting for someone to start to nod back and forth between consciousness and the dream world. So instead it would prove effective to perform

What is the relationship between happiness and meaning Free Essays

The question of life’s meaning and the nature of man’s happiness is a philosophical question. The wish for meaning is a concern of every individual. Human drive and motivation are controlled by passion and the goal to achieve what they hope to conclude as success in order to be happy and contented in life. We will write a custom essay sample on What is the relationship between happiness and meaning? or any similar topic only for you Order Now One can never be happy in the absence of any sense of fulfillment and contentment from any results that may arise from that action. There are several kinds of people in this world if we must define drifters, the meaningless or the empty, and the selfless. Where then in this category do we understand life meaning and its impact to happiness? The philosophy of life lies on the determination of the meaning of life.   Man fully concedes to the level of happiness preset by his own definition of success and self fulfillment distinguished by acceptance on the limitations and coverage of the meanings of life (Hudson 1996). Man creates and walks in the path of his own destiny compact with the belief and knowledge of what one should strive for along with the practical organization of emotions and interest to the best purpose for self. The practical man may not be interested in the concept of doing good for the society whose context and meaning of friendship are purely material and commonplace. His interest may focus more on what people can do for him. So any event in his life not in line with his principles creates dissatisfaction and unrest. Philosophy makes man stand firm on principles and values that goes beyond normal understanding of life and the world where sometimes choices are not justified by their consequences. This is a matter of individual self fulfillment building meanings around belief creating a philosophy that serve to preprogram and structure life visions and values. The matters of philosophy, meaning, fulfillment and happiness always go hand in hand. Happiness therefore is a matter of participation on something that has worth and value for the person that can in turn give him his personal definition of sense of fulfillment. A lot of people are unhappy because they demanded too much of themselves which made them unable to savor their feelings of pleasure n small accomplishments. Happiness is a degree of fit between a person’s expectations and results towards its extended joy or peace. We note then that the well being of man comes from how one understand virtue and social implications of daily behavior. Happiness does not revolve around material possessions, good health or good relationships because you may or may not have that and still feel unhappy. Happiness sometimes comes with a life filled with purpose and meaning knowing the source of life and surrendering one’s purpose in living say for example the life of Mother Teresa of Calcutta (Jacobs 1991).   The pursuit of good life ultimately leads to happiness making life meanings a passion that drives one to work selflessly for the well being and happiness of other people. Sometimes in life people need to realize that losing control and understanding the meaning of it could make a person happy. When one learns to forego and try not to shape events and people into what he wants these people to be then he may see himself happy. The best way to achieve happiness is to stop its pursuit of the inevitable but work one’s way around it. Life’s meaning is derived from self expressions and identity necessary to make life worth living. The meaning of life is contingent on the circumstances of life and is the measure of the nature of happiness of an individual. Meaning is then is the component of man’s happiness. Losing life’s meaning makes a person feel like a dead man walking in the face of the earth with no goal or direction. Most of the time, people who feel emptiness in their hearts normally ends their life or commits crime hurting other people because they don’t see the value of life. One may wonder why rich people could very well donate large sums of money like millions of dollars to other people. Selfless giving and knowing true happiness are derived from the meanings that they have set on their lives. Take for example Brad Pitt who donated five million dollars to rebuild New Orleans. You might wonder how one could work so hard to achieve riches and then give it away for the happiness of others. The meaning of selfless giving is the true wisdom of happiness. We say then that happiness is based on the philosophy of life’s meaning. It is very individualistic and sometimes hard to comprehend but it is the true meaning of happiness. References Hudson, D. W. (1996). Happiness and the limits of satisfaction. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman Littlefield Publisher Inc. Jacobs, W. J. (1991). Mother Teresa: helping the poor. Brookfield, Connecticut: Millbrook Press.    How to cite What is the relationship between happiness and meaning?, Essay examples

High Interest Rates on the Australian Stock Market

Question: Discuss about theHigh Interest Rates on the Australian Stock Market. Answer: Introduction The topic of research that was under examination was to investigate "the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market." To unearth the research issue, the researcher resolved to carry out an in-depth analysis of the existing literature. It was carried out with the consideration of assessing the impact of interest rates on the stock market, examining the relationship between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of stocks and the challenges that are faced by Australian companies due to volatile interest rates. As a result of the changes in the economy, the competitive market is proving to be so difficult for organizations as well as investors. The fluctuation in the inflation that affects interest rates and the borrowing cost causes organizations and investors to retard growth and investment. Therefore, there was the need to examine the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market. The investigation focuses on the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market. According to Pimentel, and Choudhry (2014), as a result of the fluctuations in interest rates, stock market gets affected, and in return, many organizations face challenges in their strategic planning. The research will be essential to all the stakeholders since it unearths the relationship that exists between the interest rates and the stock markets, the challenges that organizations experiences owing to interest rate volatility and created the relationship that exists between interest rates, return on the stock, and cash flow. Therefore, it will aid organizations and individual in decision making on investments. Research Objectives The aim of the study was: To assess the impact of interest rates on the stock market. To establish the relationship between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of stocks. To find out the challenges faced by Australian companies due to volatile interest rates. Research Questions What were the impacts of interest rates on the stock market? What relationship exists between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of stocks? What are the challenges faced by Australian companies due to volatile interest rates? Research Hypothesis Ho1: Does interest rates negatively affects the stock market by impacting on returns and stock prices. Ho 2: Is there a negative relationship that exists among interest rates, return on the stock, and cash flow. Ho 3: Volatile interest rate creates several challenges for the companies. The Report Structure The report get structured in chapters with chapter one introducing the report, the following chapter is the literature review where past discoveries get illustrated, the chapter three illustrate the methodology that the researcher adapted for the investigation. Chapter four give the findings based on the three hypotheses. The chapter five present the discussion based on the research questions and conclusion is given in chapter 6. Literature Review Introduction The chapter highlight in detail the literature done on past research concerning the impact of high interest rates in the Australian stock market. It begins with examination of the impact of interest rates on the stock market, followed by examining relationship exists between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of stocks and the challenges faced by Australian companies due to volatile interest rates. Impact of Interest Rate of the Stock Market The term interest rate is defined by Jha (2011), as a cost and expenditure incurred by an enterprise for borrowing fund. It is an important element of borrowing costs. Borrowing costs include different charges, and interest on borrowing money and bank overdrafts as an adjustment of interest cost in accounting. The borrowing cost or interest rate are fluctuated and depends on the demand of money in the market and on Federal Reserve monetary policy. If the demand of loan and money increased then it will prompt banks to increase the charges on borrowing money that will raise the borrowing cost of money. Here, the loan or borrowed money assumed as a product and the interest rate known as its price, where the price of a product depends on the demand of that product. It is also depicted by Reifner and Schroder (2012), that the interest on long term debts and short term debts are included in borrowing cost as incurred cost by an individual and an organisation. If, an organisation is incurri ng additional costs such as commission, brokerage, charges of stamp duties, and any other related costs for the arrangement or collection of required capital, then this part of cost will be calculated as a fraction of borrowing cost. Interest rate is the important element of borrowing cost. Therefore, if the interest rate increases then borrowing cost will also increase. Interest rate directly affects stock market because the stock price depends on the companys profitability and performance. In contrast to this, Rooij et al (2011) said that company pays its borrowing cost from its profitability which affects its returns. Therefore, if the interest rate increases then it will directly affect the companys profitability as a result of high borrowing cost. In other words, when interest increases then the company needs to pay more for borrowed money, which will lead to low profitability. In this situation, the stock price of the company may also drop. On the other hand, if interest rate declines then the borrowing money for companies will be cheaper in result of low borrowing cost. The lower borrowing cost can influence the stock price of the company as a rise in stock price. In addition, Osborne (2014) notified that there is a significant relation between interest rate and stock market which is not simple to illustrate. The interest rate works as strength for the stock market as well as weakness. Usually, a person seeks to safety and good return. At the time, when interest rates go down then people are unwilling to put their money in banks and more likely they are willing to invest in other obsession like gold or stock market for better return. The lower interest rates makes cheaper to borrowing money. Due to this reason, the investors pay less for borrowing money that increased profits. Therefore, the lower interest rate influences stock market and works as a strength to increase the performance of stock market and nations currency. On the other hand, if the interest rate increases then it reflects theory of economics as cash become more expensive and the prices of stocks may go down. The higher interest may reduce the flow of cash in market and increas e the borrowing costs for companies. As a result of this, the profitability of the company as well as performance will decrease. Moreover, the decreased performance will determine that the higher interest rate is a weakness for stock market. At the same time, it is evaluated from the study by Nissim and Penman (2003) that the changes in the interest rates are related with the stock returns negatively. They also argued that the negative impact is mainly associated with the changes in the discount rate as an impact of the interest rate consequently affecting stock market. Furthermore, the authors also contended that although the interest rate changes are related to subsequent earnings in a positive manner, however the changes in the earnings are not adequate to compensate the changes in the required return. It is the reason that the net impact of interest rates changes on the stock market is negative Concurrently, Madura (2008) also supports the views of the above authors by stating that the risk-free interest rate is one of the most important economic forces driving prices of the stock market. The author also contended that the relationship between stock prices and interest rates is not constant over time, however when the interest rates increased significantly, there can be seen a decline in the most of the biggest stock markets. Additionally, the author also illustrated that in the late 1990s, the rise in the stock market was partly assigned to the low rates of interest during that period. It shows that the rising interest rates have a negative impact on the stock market or vice versa. Thus, on the basis of above authors' views, it can be discussed that interest rates negatively impact on the stock prices due to reduction in the total earnings and firm's profitability position. At the same time, the study by Liu, Di Iorio and De Silva (2014) also suggests that the short term and long term investment rate can create the significant impact on the stock market in Australia. It is because it affects the growth of cash flows and earnings as well as required return on the investment. Thus, it is clear that interests rates have an impact on the Australian stock market as well as stock markets in other countries. Moreover, on the basis of above discussion, it is analyzed that the hypothesis-1 is true as the interest rates negatively impacts on the stock market. It is because it is evaluated that the interest rates have an effect on the behavior of investors and consumers as well as stock market. It can be discussed that the price of a share fluctuated as a result of expectations of people about the company. For instance, if the company is going back in cutting its growth and generating less profits with high debt expenses due to higher interest rates then the future cash flow of the company will drop. This will lead to lower stock price of the company and lower returns on investments. It can also be analyzed that if most of the companies are facing a declining phase in their share prices then the index of stock market will go downward. At the same time, if an investor gets financial expansion at cheaper interest rate with high returns on investments it will lead to higher stock prices and upw ard market index. Thus, it can be concluded that the interest rate has a great impact on the stock market by impacting on return of investment and stock prices. Evaluation of the Relationship Exists among Interest Rates, Return On The Stock, and Cash Flow In the views of Reilly and Brown (2011) there is not a direct and uniform relationship exists among interest rates, cash flows and the stock prices. They argued the reason behind this is that along with the changes in the interest rates, the likely cash flows from stocks can change and it is difficult to determine that whether the changes in the cash flows will offset or increase the interest rates' changes. The authors explained three potential scenario by considering an increase in the inflation rate in order to determine the relationship among all these variable. The Positive Scenario: As discussed by Reilly and Brown (2011), due to rising inflation, interest rate increases and concurrently business earnings experienced growth as to cover the increased cost, companies are able to increase prices. In this situation, prices of the stock are likely to be fairly stable as the negative effect of rising required rate of return can be offset completely or partially by the increase in the dividends and earnings resulting in the increase in the stock value. Mildly Negative Case: In this scenario, due to inflation, required return and interest rates increase but at the prior rate, it is expected that cash flows continue to grow with the assumption of small increases in the price as compared to increase in the interest rates and the inflation (Reilly and Brown, 2011). This would cause to the decrease in the stock price due to increase in the required return, and constant growth rate of dividend. Negative Scenario: As a result of inflation, the required return and interest rates increase, while the cash flows' growth decreases because during the inflation period, the production cost increases, but many companies are not able to enhance prices at all resulting in major decrease in profit margins. Further, stock prices will decrease significantly because required return will increase and growth will decrease (Reilly and Brown, 2011). It is clear from the above discussion that the changes in the rate of interest affects cash flow position, required return, and earnings that further affects stock market. It also indicates that relationship between stock price and interest rates is not direct. Moreover, the authors also argued that the impact of changes in the interest rate on stock prices depends on what caused the interest rate changes and this event's impact on the alternative common stocks' expected cash flows (Reilly and Brown, 2011). Overall, it can be stated that between interest rates and return on stocks, generally there has been a negative relationship exists. Additionally, it can also be stated that although negative relationship can be true in the context of overall market, however, there can be some industries, which may have positive earnings and cash flow against the changes in the interest rates (Reilly and Brown, 2012). Concurrently, to define the relationship among all these variables, Tas (2008) stated that a negative relationship can be expected between stock prices and interest rates as per the theory of arbitrage. It is because the present value of firms' future cash flows decreases due to higher real interest rates that further causes reduction in the stock prices. The study by Oxelheim and Wihlborg (2008) supports the views of Tas (2008) by stating that there are three reasons due to which changes in the economic value and cash flows occur. In this, the first reason is that changes in the interest rate affect the cost of capital of firms and therefore, impact on the discount rate applied to future cash flows and current interest costs. Secondly, many companies' products' demand depends on the interest rates because the cost of credit impacts on the demand. Lastly, there are also other macroeconomic variables such as inflation, exchange rate, etc, that also tend to be correlated with the inter est rates. Thus, it can be stated that all the three terms are related with each-other. In contrast, Madura (2008) argued that there are three kinds of factors including economic, firm-specific, and market oriented that affect the stock price. In this, the economic factors include economic growth, interest rates, and exchange rate that affect stock prices due to impact on the cash flows of the firms. Thus, it shows that all the three terms such as interest rate, stock prices and cash flows are related to each-other and changes in the one variable significantly impacts on the other variables. Overall, based on the above authors' views, it can be analyzed that the second hypothesis "there is a negative relationship exists among interest rates, return on the stock, and cash flow" is true. It is because it is assessed that continuous increase in the interest rates negatively affects future cash flows that further cause a decrease in the stock prices due to the decrease in the investors' trust. Additionally, based on the above discussion, it can also be concluded that interest rate is an important variable that affects both companies and consumers ability to take credit from the market. Moreover, it can also be discussed that interest rates have the potential to affect firms' cash flow as well as stock prices. Challenges faced by Australian Companies due to Volatile Interest Rates The volatility of interest rates creates several challenges for the companies around the world. At the same time, it is also a key indicator for the stock market and performance of the company. In the words of Homer and Sylla (2011), the word volatility may be defined as a measure of variability over a particular time of period. The volatility in interest rate can be measured in different ways like how much the rate of interest moves down or up on an average basis, measure through standard deviation, and variance. But essentially, measure through: how the interest rate tends to down and up on an average basis over a specific time period is widely used to calculate the interest rate. Mclnerney and Zastawniak (2015) depicted that due to volatile interest rates in the economy, it is difficult to make financial planning for business entities. It is because due to continuous changes in the interest rates, companies faces many financial issues related to borrowing capital or maintain a sus tained capital structure that further affect on the business profitability. The main reason is that it becomes hard to plan and predict profits if the rate of interest on borrowed capital is variable. In Australia, volatility in interest rates is used through many business cycles and boom which resulted in rapid inflation in the economy. Thus, in relation to the third hypothesis, it is analyzed that the companies face many challenges due to volatility interest rates. It is because interest rates directly affect the financial position and financial stability of the company. The challenges such as pricing products, maintain growth rate, manage borrowing costs and cost of capital are generally faced by the companies in the situation of volatile interest rates. According to Malley (2014), in the situation of volatility, it becomes difficult to maintain growth of the company and return on investment. For the reason, the companies face different borrowing costs and operating costs which affect the profitability of the company. Additionally, due to unnecessary volatility of interest rates the companies face challenge about planning to adopt a more vigilant approach for their hiring policies in a significant way. It makes difficult to take decisions related to financial investments. Furthermore, a volatile interest rate incr eases the volatility in economy and in a volatile economy a business faces many risks related to its operational activities. The business firm faces risk of long term uncertainties that make strategic planning complicated. The stable and low interest rates are helpful for the companies to increase their leverage. But, in the situation of volatility, many corporate left susceptible and faced a challenge to manag their financial risks. Moreover, Chadha and Holly (2011), depicted that if the interest rate increases it will make companies less price competitive in the global market. It is because due to the increase in the interest rates, companies cannot make an appropriate pricing strategy because it affects the companys profitability and balance sheet. It may be illustrated as diminished export orders, fewer jobs, and lower profits of the company. For example, the decline in export orders creates the challenge of managing business certainty in the competitive market. Thus, it can be concluded that the volatile interest rate is not good for companies because it affects the cost of capital and the financial stability of companies and leads to an unstable capital structure. It can also be stated that many challenges are faced by companies due to the interest rate changes resulting on impacting their profitability position and long-term survivability. Methodology Introduction The section begins by giving the techniques that the researcher used in the investigation of "the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market. The chapter examine the adopted design, philosophy, method employed, data collection techniques and the ethical concerns. Research Method The methodology that was adopted in the investigation was the qualitative method of research. The method was selected because it entails the use of secondary data in the investigation were past experiences and observation recorded get analyzed. The researcher used journals and literature books to get data. In the research literature, the researcher examined the impact of interest rate on the stock market, evaluated the relationship that exists between interest rates, return on the stock, and cash flow and the challenges faced by Australian companies due to volatile interest rates (Taylor, Bogdan and DeVault, 2015). Research Design The research design used was qualitative as it employs post-positivist affirmations in data collection and that it utilizes variables as well as testing of hypothesis. Also, it permits collection of data as well as evaluation with the use of research instruments which allows the researcher to get quantifiable facts. Therefore the qualitative strategy design was appropriate as it relates to the fact that discoveries in research are best achieved via precise investigation. Also, since the researcher utilizes secondary data, the method was most appropriate at there is room for the use of secondary data in getting facts, ideas and past discoveries that relate to the impact of the high-interest rates on the stock market in Australia (Zikmund et al., 2013). Research Philosophy As per the study by Easterby-Smith et al., (2009), philosophy in research relates to the assumptions relating to the topic of research. In the investigation on the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market, the researcher utilized positivism and intepretivism as the philosophical positions. In looking at the positivism paradigm, the research assumed that the information that relates to the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market can be obtained and analyzed scientifically. Therefore the approach used by the researcher augments very well with the philosophy as it points out that if the belief is stable, then it can be analyzed in an objective manner. Also, the interpretivism philosophical aspect assisted the researcher in obtaining efficacy opinions on the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market and particularly on the analysis of hypothesis 2-the relationship between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of in ventory. Research Approach The qualitative data concerning the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market was analyzed with the use of secondary data. A deductive approach was employed in the review of literature of past discoveries on the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market. The researcher analyzed journals, articles and literature books. The obtained data was employed to accept or reject hypothesis. In most cases in the three hypotheses, the data obtained permitted the researcher to accept the hypotheses as true. The deductive approach assisted in the researcher to come up with facts in relation to the observation made. Research Strategy The investigation relied on observation and scrutiny of past discoveries on the impact of the high-interest rates on the Australian stock market. The selection of the observation technique was because of a number of factors. One, is the type of research topic selected by the researcher was such that it was necessary to involve huge volume of secondary data and this element deemed sufficiently adequate with the method selected. Secondly, the use of secondary data was to permit the researcher to get qualitative data so that objective conclusion could be made as well as assessing the consistency level of studies done in the past. The observation method entails the gathering of information with the use of past facts and ideas. The method was employed as it was in line with the top under investigation since the topic requires that the researcher evaluates large volume of secondary data. Large amount of secondary data was sufficient so that the results obtained become valid and reliable. Ethical Concerns With the view of the objectives of the research, the research sought authority from relevant sections from the university where one was issued with a letter indicating the researchers research topic and permission to conduct research. It is espoused that ethics are necessary in that it give the sources of information consent that the research is doing research based on permission. With this in mind, the researcher ensured that there is good relationship between the people approached to assist in getting secondary data in libraries and journals. The relationship was created with the production of assent form indicating what I am doing together with the authorized signatories from the university. Since the researcher employed secondary data, there was no need to conceal the sources of information but rather the researcher acknowledged every source of information for the purpose of academic integrity. Findings Introduction The chapter entails reporting the findings obtained in the analysis of secondary data. The section is divided according to the three research hypothesis. Analysis of Hypothesis 1 The hypothesis 1-does interest rates negatively affect the stock market by impacting on returns and stock prices. Concerning hypothesis 1, it is clear that interest rates impact on the stock market in a negative manner. The reason is that the interest rates influence the behaviour of the investors, customer as well as the stock market. Also, the price of a share gets fluctuating over time affecting the organizations business and hence peoples expectation about the company gets affected. It is evident from the literature that when organizations are experiencing declining phase in stocks, the stock market gets affected and goes downward. It leads to increased stock prices and rises in the market index. Hence the interest rates have the impact largely on the stock exchange by influencing on the return on investment as well as the prices of stock. Organization pays borrowing cost through its profits which in turn affect the returns and hence when there is an increase in interest rates, t hen there is a direct impact on the companys profitability. Analysis of Hypothesis 2 The hypothesis 1-is there a negative relationship that exists among interest rates, return on the stock, and cash flow. Based on hypothesis 2, it is apparent that the fluctuation in interest rates has the direct influence on cash flow, return; earnings and these will, in turn, affect the stock prices. It is noted that there is no direct relationship between stock prices and interest rates. The dependent components on the changes in interest rates are the factors that led to the changes in interest rates. It is these factors that impact on the stock prices as well, as the expected cash flows. There existed the negative relationship between the return on stock and interest rates. However, even though there the existence of negative connection in the market, there is organization which gets positive earnings and cash flow with the changes in the interest rates. When the interest rates gets anticipated to increase as a result of inflation because cash flow keeps on growing when assumed t hat there is the small increase in price as contrasted with interest rates. The result is a decrease in stock prices because of needed return in growth and dividend Analysis of Hypothesis 3 The hypothesis 1-Volatile interest rate creates several challenges for the companies. In hypothesis 3, it is established that organizations experience volatility challenges owing to volatile interest rates because the interest rates have the direct impact on the financial stand and stability of the organization. These pose challenges of product pricing, maintaining of growth rate, and the management of borrowing costs. Also, companies experiences difficulties in keeping the growth of the organization steady for the steady return on investment. It results in the organization experiencing different costs of borrowing and has a direct impact on the companys proceeds. Also, as a result of unnecessary interest rates volatility, organizations experiences difficulties in their policies for hiring processes thus creating difficulties in the decision making. Additionally, in a volatile economy, organizations experiences operational difficulties as business faces challenges of long-term uncert ainties and complicates further the strategic planning of the organization Based on the analysis, all the three hypothesis, the hypotheses were proved. It is established in hypothesis one that there is a negative impact on the changes in interest rates that affect stock market negatively by impacting on the prices of stock and returns. In hypothesis two, it is proved that there is a negative relationship that exists between cash flow, interest rates, and the stock market. In the third hypothesis, it is proved that changes in interest rates pose greatest challenges to organizations as it gives organizations difficulties in strategic planning. Discussion Introduction The chapter give the discussion of the finding obtained from chapter 4. The section is structured such that all the three research questions get evaluated based on the hypotheses. The discussion on the impacts of interest rates on the stock market, relationship exists between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of stocks as well as the challenges faced by Australian companies due to volatile interest rates gets discussed. The Impacts of Interest Rates on Stock Market In relation to the research question one, the investigation established that when an organization reduces on growth and generate fewer proceeds as a result of high debts resulting from high-interest rates, then the consequences are that cash flow of the organization drops thus leading to low stock price as well as lower returns of the group. It is evident from the literature that when organizations are experiencing declining phase in stocks, the stock market gets affected and goes downward (Apergis and Lau, 2015). It leads to increased stock prices and rises in the market index. Hence the interest rates have the impact largely on the stock exchange by influencing on the return on investment as well as the prices of stock (Byrne, 2014). The interest rates have a direct impact on the stock market since the stock price relies on the profitability as well as the performance of the organization. Organization pays borrowing cost through its profits which in turn affect the returns and hence when there is an increase in interest rates, then there is a direct impact on the companys profitability and hence causes the cost of borrowing to rise. It implies that an increase in interest rates result to the organization paying more of interest on the amount of money borrowed and hence low proceeds in the long run. In this instance, the stock price of the organization will decrease. Consequently, when there is s decrease on interests rates, then the companies will enjoy since the cost of borrowing money will be cheaper due to the decreased cost of borrowing. The results are that the stock price of the organization gets affected in a positive manner since it is going to rise. The relationship between stock market and interest rate exist. The interest rates work in a manner that acts as the strength of the stock market and at the same time as weakness. When there is a decline in banks interest rates, people are not willing to invest their monies in the bank but instead they seek to invest in other investments where there is the possibility of getting good returns such as the stock market or gold for better proceeds. On the other hand and based on the economic theory, as the interest rate increases, money become expensive and it implies that the prices of stock will decrease. The result is that the flow of cash will be reduced as a result of high-interest rates and hence leading to increased cost of borrowing for organizations. The impact is that profits and performance of the organization declines and the stock price also become weaker in the stock market. Also, the changes in the interest rates have a negative relationship with stock returns whereby the negative impacts get linked to the changes in the discount rates which are an impact of the interest rates that affect the stock market. Additionally, they contend that even though the changes in interest rates get associated positively with earnings, the changes in earnings are not adequate to the needed returns changes, which is the reason of the negative stock market impacted by the changes in the interest rates. Liu, Di Iorio and De Silva (2014), suggest that the rate of long-term, as well as short-term investment can create an influence in the stock market in Australia as it affects the flow of cash, earnings as well as return on investment. Therefore, it is apparent that there is an impact on the stock market in Australia which gets influenced by the interest rate changes. The Relationship between Interest Rate, Cash Flow and Value of Stocks It is the research question two where it examines where there is a relationship existing between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of stocks. In the examination of the relationship between the interest rate, cash flow, and value of inventory, it gets established that there existed the negative correlation between the return on stock and interest rates. The interest rates, cash flows and the stock prices have no relationship that is direct because there are changes in the interest rates, and the cash flow as well will likely change. It's hard to determine the variations in the cash flow will offset or increases that change in interest rates. As a result of inflation, the rates of interest increases and thus the proceeds gained by business increases so that they are capable of increasing prices. The prices of stock under these circumstances are fairly stable since the adverse effect of the rate of return gets offset partially or wholly by the rise in dividend as well as earning t hat result in increased stock (Reilly and Brown, 2011). The interest rates get anticipated to increase as a result of inflation because cash flow keeps on growing when assumed that there is the small increase in price as contrasted with interest rates. The result is a decrease in stock prices because of needed return in growth and dividend (Reilly and Brown, 2011). Owing to inflation, the expected returns and interest rates go up whereas the cash flow decrease leading to the cost of production going up. Under these, organizations are not in a position to enhance prices and the outcome is the decrease in profit margins. Therefore the stock prices decrease tremendously because growth is affected and is probable to decrease (Reilly and Brown, 2011). According to Tas (2008), the negative relationship based on the theory of arbitrage get expected because the present value of organizations cash flow decreases as a result of higher interest rates that lead to the reduction in stock. Oxelheim and Wihlborg (2008), augment these by stating that there are three causes of changes in economic value as well as cash flow. First, interest rates fluctuation affects the cost of capital resulting in influencing on future applied discount rate to cash flow as well as current interest cost. Secondly, the demand for products depend on interest rates since the cost of credit influences demand and lastly, other microeconomic variables like exchange rate, inflation in related to interest rates. Therefore, the three components have a relationship to one another. Hence it is evident that the three factors interest rate, stock prices, and cash flows are related to each other. Any change in one of the factors will significantly affect the other variables (Valadkhani, Chen and Kotey, 2014). Therefore, there exist a negative relationship between interest rates, returns, and cash flow. Any increase in interest rates affects future cash flow causing a decrease in stock prices and hence investors trust dwindles. The interest rate, therefore, affects companies and clients capability of taking credit from the market and stock prices (Berument and Froyen, 2015). Challenges Faced by Australian Companies due to Volatile Interest Rates When examining the challenges faced by Australian companies due to volatile interest rates, it was found out that volatility causes an adverse impact on the cost of capital, financial stability and unstable capital structure of the organization. Interest rates for organizations posses challenge globally, and it is an indicator of the companys performance and the stock market. Based on Mclnerney and Zastawniak (2015), volatility creates difficulties in doing business because the continued changes in interest rates affected the financial planning of organizations. Hence borrowing becomes difficult as it may affect the business profitability. In Australia, the volatility of interest rates get employed by organizations for business and result in sharp inflation in the economy. As per Malley (2014), companies experiences difficulties in keeping the growth of the organization steady for the steady return on investment. It results in the organization experiencing different costs of borrowing and has a direct impact on the companys proceeds. Also, as a result of unnecessary interest rates volatility, organizations experiences difficulties in their policies for hiring processes thus creating difficulties in the decision making. Additionally, in a volatile economy, organizations experiences operational difficulties as business faces challenges of long-term uncertainties and complicates further the strategic planning of the organization (Van Deventer, Imai and Mesler, 2013). It is illustrated by Chadha and Holly (2011) that increases in interest rates makes teams less competitive regarding price given the competitive global market. The net outcome is that there is a creation of fewer jobs, fewer export orders, and little proceeds to the organization. The volatili ty of interest rates is not useful for organizations since it causes an adverse impact on the cost of capital, financial stability and unstable capital structure of the organization. The impact is that the profitability of the organization as well as the long term survivability. Conclusion After examining the literature on impact of the interest rates on the stock market, it can be concluded that both terms are associated with each-other. It can be concluded that the changes in the interest rates negatively impacts on the stock market. It is because the interest rate changes affect the required rate of return, future cash flows, and firm's profitability and earning position consequently affecting the stock market. For example, it can be stated that the increase in the interest rate reduces the cash flows' growth, and increase the required return causing a decline in the stock market. In addition, it can also be concluded that the changes in the interest rates create several challenges such as unstable capital structure, difficult to pricing the product, and preserve the growth rate. Thus, it becomes essential to maintain stable interest rate in an economy to ensure the success of the companies as well as the stock market. Additionally, it can also be concluded that all the hypothesis are proved. It is because it is found in relation to the first hypothesis that the interest rates changes affect negatively the stock market by impacting on the prices of the stock as well as returns. Similarly, second hypothesis can also be proven as it is found that a negative relationship exists among the variables namely cash flow, interest rates, and the stock market. Lastly, the third hypothesis can also be proven as it is found that companies face various challenges due to the changes in the interest rate. References Agrippino, S.M. and Rey, H., 2013 Funding Flows and Credit in Carry TradeEconomies.Liquidity Funding Markets, p.211. Apergis, N. and Lau, M.C.K., 2015 Structural breaks and electricity prices: Further evidence onthe role of climate policy uncertainties in the Australian electricity market.Energy Economics,52, pp.176-182. Berument, H. and Froyen, R.T., 2015 Monetary policy and interest rates under inflation targetingin Australia and New Zealand.New Zealand Economic Papers,49(2), pp.171-188. Byrne, P.J., 2014 Economic agenda: Fixing the distorted high Australian dollar.News Weekly,(2920), p.5. Chadha, J. and Holly, S. (2011) Interest Rates, Prices and Liquidity: Lessons from the FinancialCrisis. Melbourne: Cambridge University Press. Homer, S. and Sylla, R. (2011) A History of Interest Rates. Sydney: John Wiley Sons. Jha, S. (2011) Interest Rate Markets: A Practical Approach to Fixed Income. Australia: JohnWiley Sons. Liu, B., Di Iorio, A. and De Silva, A., 2014 Do stock fundamentals explain idiosyncraticvolatility? Evidence for Australian stock market. InEuropean Financial Management Association 2014 Annual Meetings, Rome, ITALY. Lusardi, A. and Mitchell, O.S., 2014 The economic importance of financial literacy: Theory andevidence.Journal of Economic Literature,52(1), pp.5-44. Lustig, H. and Verdelhan, A., 2016Does Incomplete Spanning in International FinancialMarkets Help to Explain Exchange Rates?(No. w22023). National Bureau of Economic Research. Madura, J. (2008) Financial Institutions and Markets. USA: Cengage Learning EMEA. Malley, C. (2014) Bonds without Borders: A History of the Eurobond Market. Sydney: JohnWiley Sons. Mancini, L., Ranaldo, A. and Wrampelmeyer, J., 2013 Liquidity in the foreign exchange market:Measurement, commonality, and risk premiums.The Journal of Finance,68(5), pp.1805-1841. McInerney, D. and Zastawniak, T. (2015) Stochastic Interest Rates. Melbourne: CambridgeUniversity Press. Nissim, D. and Peman, S. H. (2003) The Association between Changes in Interest Rates, Earnings, and Equity Values. Contemporary Accounting Research, 20(4), pp. 775804. Osborne, M. (2014) Multiple Interest Rate Analysis: Theory and Applications. Sydney: Springer. Oxelheim, L. and Wihlborg, C. (2008) Corporate Decision-Making with MacroeconomicUncertainty: Performance and Risk Management. Oxford University Press. Pimentel, R.C. and Choudhry, T., 2014 Stock Returns Under High Inflation and Interest Rates:Evidence from the Brazilian Market.Emerging Markets Finance and Trade,50(1), pp.71-92. Reifner, U. and Schroder, M. (2012) Usury Laws: A Legal and Economic Evaluation of Interest Rate Restrictions in the European Union. Australia: Books on Demand. Reilly, F. K. and Brown, K. C. (2011) Investment Analysis and Portfolio Management. USA:Cengage Learning. Tas (2008) Essays on Exchange Rate Risk, Asset Returns and Trade Flows in East AsianEmerging Market Economies. USA: ProQuest. Taylor, S.J., Bogdan, R. and DeVault, M., 2015.Introduction to qualitative research methods: Aguidebook and resource. John Wiley Sons. Valadkhani, A., Chen, G. and Kotey, B., 2014 Asymmetric changes in Australias small businessloan rate.Small Business Economics,43(4), pp.945-957. Van Deventer, D.R., Imai, K. and Mesler, M., 2013Advanced financial risk management: toolsand techniques for integrated credit risk and interest rate risk management. John Wiley Sons. Van Rooij, M., Lusardi, A., and Alessie, R. (2011) Financial literacy and stock marketparticipation, Journal of Financial Economics, 101(2), pp. 449-472. Zikmund, W.G., Babin, B.J., Carr, J.C. and Griffin, M., 2013.Business research methods.Cengage Learning.

My Family Analysis free essay sample

My family shows signs of being a healthy family for the most part with a few exceptions. The biggest exception is that the individuals are not assigned to particular roles. This means that our roles as individuals provide organized chaos as we rotate from situation to situation. These role rotations allow my family to experience both enmeshment and disengagement. An example of this would be when a family member ends a romantic relationship the family tends to become disengaged and experiences differentiation. However, in the event of a family tragedy the family experiences higher levels of enmeshment and lower levels of differentiation. However, neither of these ever reached a significant extreme, which in my opinion, allows the family to be highly adaptive and mange high level of anxiety. A couple of years ago my father experienced sharp pains throughout his chest and was hospitalized for several days. The medical staff instructed him not to exert himself, consequently the rest of my immediate family came together to help with my father’s obligations. We will write a custom essay sample on My Family Analysis or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The individual who was impacted the most was my mother. Structurally my mother has to take on roles such as financier and outdoor maintenance, which was normally filled by my father. Our normally highly differentiated family had to lower that aspect of our family structure in order to compensate and fill in the leadership role of my father. Although this was a temporary situation (about one month), I believe this situation had little long-term effect on family roles. However, this situation increased our family’s enmeshment and lowered our differentiation permanently. Family Roles: In bouts of normal family anxiety, the family shows signs of clear and defined roles. My parents tend to share the roles of family Hero and child Enabler. I believe that this occurs because my parents believe in relying on family and being responsible during times of anxiety thusly emphasizing these aspects when anxiety occurs. My brother and I tend to bounce between all of the other roles (Lost Child, Mascot, Scapegoat, and Chemically Dependant Person) depending on each specific scenario. One major exception to this structure is when one of my parents cannot fill the role of the family Hero, such as the example of my father’s chest pains, my brother and I will help to fill the void that is left behind. During times of non-anxiety, roles tend to have little significance in our family structure. This is due to high levels of differentiation. The rotational roles we play today have been true since I was a child and continues today. If I were forced into choosing a single role, I would prefer Mascot. To provide a sense of fun, excitement, and laughter to a family structure would be a role that I would be able to handle. Togetherness and Triangulation: Typically, I do not feel a high level of pressure for togetherness when the family is experiencing anxiety. Calling it â€Å"pressure† is an inaccurate statement regarding my family but a better word would be a â€Å"need† for togetherness. This may be simply a semantic argument, but the difference to me is that under pressure one feels a sense of obligation for togetherness, whereas a need is simply an instinctive reaction to anxiety. The only time I can recall ever feeling pressure for togetherness is when my grandfather died. It was clear that during this time any lack of participation in togetherness would end badly for any non-participant. This example caused a clear sense of pressure for togetherness. Triangulation is the biggest way the family alleviates anxiety. In fact, it is the only way the family deals with anxiety. My mother seems to be the centerpiece to all the triangulation that exists. This is largely because in early childhood, my father was working extremely hard to provide for the family and my mother, working only part time, was physically more available. My mother typically passed the tension from on outsider to another. This happened constantly, if one of the children had a problem the tension was passed or expressed to mother then passed to father and mother and father would resolve the tension in the best possible manner. However, if there was a problem between father and mother, mother would pass this on to one of the children. This is what is meant by mother constantly passing the tension; she is literally at the center of all the triangles that exist within a family. However, because of the high level of differentiation the tension usually stopped there. As children, we are taught that â€Å"adult problems† were between adults no matter how much mother involved the children with the situation. I find myself willing to go to any extreme to bring balance to enmeshment or differentiation. In the case of a severe imbalance of enmeshment, I would be willing to give up all of my individuality to bring balance. On the other hand, in a severe violation of my individuality I would be willing to sacrifice all enmeshment to regain my individuality. This is in part because of the level of comfort I have experienced with enmeshment and differentiation in the family throughout my life. This long term stability of enmeshment and differentiation would call for something so severe to cause an imbalance that such extremes would be necessary to bring back balance. Conclusion: I believe that my family analysis is my cultural upbringing. Both of my parents came from dysfunctional and abusive families. In order to break this cycle of abuse they essentially created their own culture in which to raise their children. This was beneficial in the long-term because it allowed both children to explore other cultural upbringings in a more positive environment and stops any cycle of dysfunction and abuse. When reflecting on my family and this paper I realized that in many ways my family is unique and highly adaptive. I began to understand how other families function and why I now have a greater appreciation of other families’ anxiety. Analyzing my family has brought to light the positive and negative affects of the family structure which allows me to continue the traits of a healthy family system.

Biography of Walt Disney, Animator and Film Producer

Biography of Walt Disney, Animator and Film Producer Walt Disney (born Walter Elias Disney; December 5, 1901–December 15, 1966) was a cartoonist and entrepreneur who developed a multibillion-dollar family entertainment empire. Disney was the renowned creator of Mickey Mouse, the first sound cartoon, the first Technicolor cartoon, and the first feature-length cartoon. In addition to winning 22 Academy Awards in his lifetime, Disney also created the first major theme park: Disneyland in Anaheim, California. Fast Facts: Walt Disney Known For: Disney was a pioneering animator and film producer who won 22 Academy Awards and built one of the largest media empires in the world.Born: December 5, 1901 in Chicago, IllinoisParents: Elias and Flora DisneyDied: December 15, 1966 in Burbank, CaliforniaAwards and Honors: 22 Academy Awards, Cecil B. DeMille Award, Hollywood Walk of Fame, Presidential Medal of Freedom, Congressional Gold MedalSpouse: Lillian Bounds (m. 1925-1966)Children: Diane, Sharon Early Life Walt Disney was born the fourth son of Elias Disney and Flora Disney (nà ©e Call) in Chicago, Illinois, on December 5, 1901. By 1903, Elias, a handyman and carpenter, had grown weary of crime in Chicago; thus, he moved his family to a 45-acre farm he purchased in Marceline, Missouri. Elias was a stern man who administered â€Å"corrective† beatings to his five children; Flora soothed the children with nightly readings of fairy tales. After the two eldest sons grew up and left home, Walt Disney and his older brother Roy worked on the farm with their father. In his free time, Disney made up games and sketched the farm animals. In 1909, Elias sold the farm and purchased an established newspaper route in Kansas City, where he moved his remaining family. It was in Kansas City that Disney developed a love for an amusement park called Electric Park, which featured 100,000 electric lights illuminating a roller coaster, a dime museum, penny arcade, swimming pool, and a colorful fountain light show. Rising at 3:30 a.m. seven days a week, 8-year-old Walt Disney and brother Roy delivered the newspapers, taking quick naps in alleyways before heading to Benton Grammar School. In school, Disney excelled in reading; his favorite authors were Mark Twain and Charles Dickens. Love of Drawing In art class, Disney surprised his teacher with original sketches of flowers with human hands and faces. After stepping on a nail on his newspaper route, Disney had to spend two weeks in bed recuperating. He spent his time reading and drawing newspaper-style cartoons. Elias sold the newspaper route in 1917 and bought a partnership in the O-Zell Jelly factory in Chicago, moving Flora and Walt with him (Roy had enlisted in the U.S. Navy). Sixteen-year-old Walt Disney attended McKinley High School, where he became the school newspaper’s junior art editor. To pay for evening art classes at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, he washed jars in his father’s jelly factory. Wanting to join Roy, who was fighting in World War I, Disney tried to join the Army but at age 16 he was too young. Undeterred, he joined the Red Cross’ Ambulance Corps, which took him to France and Germany. Animation After spending 10 months in Europe, Disney returned to the U.S. In October 1919, he got a job as a commercial artist at the Pressman-Rubin Studio in Kansas City. Disney met and became friends with fellow artist Ub Iwerks at the studio. When Disney and Iwerks were laid off in January 1920, they formed Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artists. Due to a lack of clients, however, the duo only survived for about a month. After getting jobs at the Kansas City Film Ad Company as cartoonists, Disney and Iwerks began making commercials for movie theaters. Disney borrowed a camera from the studio and began experimenting with stop-action animation in his garage. He shot footage of his animal drawings using different techniques until the pictures actually â€Å"moved† in fast and slow motion. His cartoons (which he called Laugh-O-Grams) eventually became superior to the ones he was working on at the studio; he even figured out a way to merge live action with animation. Disney suggested to his boss that they make cartoons, but his boss flatly turned down the idea, content with making commercials. Laugh-O-Gram Films In 1922, Disney quit the Kansas City Film Ad Company and opened a studio in Kansas City called Laugh-O-Gram Films. He hired a few employees, including Iwerks, and sold a series of fairy tale cartoons to Pictorial Films in Tennessee. Disney and his staff began work on six cartoons, each one a seven-minute fairy tale that combined live action and animation. Unfortunately, Pictorial Films went bankrupt in July 1923; as a result,  so did Laugh-O-Gram Films. Next, Disney decided he would try his luck at working in a Hollywood studio as a director and joined his brother Roy in Los Angeles, where Roy was recovering from tuberculosis. Having no luck getting a job at any of the studios, Disney sent a letter to Margaret J. Winkler, a New York cartoon distributor, to see if she had any interest in distributing his Laugh-O-Grams. After Winkler viewed the cartoons, she and Disney signed a contract. On October 16, 1923, Disney and Roy rented a room at the back of a real estate office in Hollywood. Roy took on the role of accountant and cameraman of the live action; a little girl was hired to act in the cartoons; two women were hired to ink and paint the celluloid, and Disney wrote the stories and drew and filmed the animation. By February 1924, Disney had hired his first animator, Rollin Hamilton, and moved into a small storefront with a window bearing the sign â€Å"Disney Bros. Studio.† Disney’s Alice in Cartoonland reached theaters in June 1924. Mickey Mouse In early 1925, Disney moved his growing staff to a one-story, stucco building and renamed his business â€Å"Walt Disney Studio.† Disney hired Lillian Bounds, an ink artist, and began dating her. On July 13, 1925, the couple married in her hometown of Spalding, Idaho. Disney was 24; Lillian was 26. Meanwhile, Margaret Winkler also married, and her new husband, Charles Mintz, took over her cartoon distribution business. In 1927, Mintz asked Disney to rival the popular â€Å"Felix the Cat† series. Mintz suggested the name â€Å"Oswald the Lucky Rabbit† and Disney created the character and made the series. In 1928, when costs became increasingly high, Disney and Lillian took a train trip to New York to renegotiate the contract for the popular Oswald series. Mintz countered with even less money than he was currently paying, informing Disney that he owned the rights to Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and that he had lured most of Disney’s animators to come work for him. Shocked, shaken, and saddened, Disney boarded the train for the long ride back. In a depressed state, he sketched a character and named him Mortimer Mouse. Lillian suggested the name Mickey Mouse instead. Back in Los Angeles, Disney copyrighted Mickey Mouse and, along with Iwerks, created new cartoons with Mickey Mouse as the star. Without a distributor, though, Disney could not sell the silent Mickey Mouse cartoons. Sound and Color In 1928, sound became the latest in film technology. Disney pursued several New York film companies to record his cartoons with this new novelty. He struck a deal with Pat Powers of Cinephone. Disney provided the voice of Mickey Mouse and Powers added sound effects and music. Powers became the distributor of the cartoons and on November 18, 1928, Steamboat Willie opened at the Colon Theater in New York. It was Disney’s (and the world’s) first cartoon with sound. Steamboat Willie received rave reviews and audiences everywhere adored Mickey Mouse. In 1929, Disney began making â€Å"Silly Symphonies,† a series of cartoons that included dancing skeletons, the Three Little Pigs, and characters other than Mickey Mouse, including Donald Duck, Goofy, and Pluto. In 1931, a new film-coloring technique known as Technicolor became the latest in film technology. Until then, everything had been filmed in black and white. To hold off the competition, Disney paid to hold the rights to Technicolor for two years. He filmed a Silly Symphony titled Flowers and Trees in Technicolor, showing colorful nature with human faces, and the film won the Academy Award for Best Cartoon of 1932. On December 18, 1933, Lillian gave birth to Diane Marie Disney, and on December 21, 1936, Lillian and Walt Disney adopted Sharon Mae Disney. Feature-Length Cartoons Disney decided to add dramatic storytelling to his cartoons, but making a feature-length cartoon had everyone (including Roy and Lillian) saying it would never work; they believed audiences just wouldn’t sit that long through a dramatic cartoon. Despite the naysayers, Disney, ever the experimenter, went to work on the feature-length fairy tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Production of the cartoon cost $1.4 million (a massive sum in 1937) and was soon dubbed â€Å"Disney’s Folly.† When it premiered in theaters on December 21, 1937, though, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was a box office sensation. Despite the Great Depression, it earned $416 million. A notable achievement in cinema, the movie won Disney an Honorary Academy Award. The citation read, For Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, recognized as a significant screen innovation which has charmed millions and pioneered a great new entertainment field. Union Strikes After the success of Snow White, Disney constructed his state-of-the-art Burbank Studio, deemed a worker’s paradise for a staff of about 1,000 workers. The studio, with animation buildings, sound stages, and recording rooms, produced Pinocchio (1940), Fantasia (1940), Dumbo (1941), and Bambi (1942). Unfortunately, these feature-length cartoons lost money worldwide due to the start of World War II. Along with the cost of the new studio, Disney found himself in debt. He offered 600,000 shares of common stock, sold at five dollars apiece. The stock offerings sold out quickly and erased the debt. Between 1940 and 1941, movie studios began unionizing; it wasn’t long before Disney’s workers wanted to unionize as well. While his workers demanded better pay and working conditions, Disney believed that his company had been infiltrated by communists. After numerous and heated meetings, strikes, and lengthy negotiations, Disney finally became unionized. However, the whole process left Disney feeling disillusioned and discouraged. World War II With the union question finally settled, Disney was able to turn his attention back to his cartoons; this time for the U.S. government. The United States had joined World War II after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and it was sending millions of young men overseas to fight. The U.S. government wanted Disney to produce training films using his popular characters; Disney obliged, creating more than 400,000 feet of film (about 68 hours). More Movies After the war, Disney returned to his own agenda and made Song of the South (1946), a movie that was 30 percent animation and 70 percent live action. Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah was named the best movie song of 1946 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts Sciences, while James Baskett, who played the character of Uncle Remus in the movie, won an Oscar. In 1947, Disney decided to make a documentary about Alaskan seals titled Seal Island (1948). It won an Academy Award for best two-reel documentary. Disney then assigned his top talent to make Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951), and Peter Pan (1953). Plans for Disneyland After building a train to ride his two daughters around his new home in Holmby Hills, California, Disney began formulating a dream in 1948 to build Mickey Mouse Amusement Park across the street from his studio. He visited fairs, carnivals, and parks around the world to study the choreography of people and attractions. Disney borrowed on his life insurance policy and created WED Enterprises to organize his amusement park idea, which he was now referring to as Disneyland. Disney and Herb Ryman drew out the plans for the park in one weekend. The plan included an entrance gate to Main Street that would lead to Cinderella’s Castle and off to different lands of interest, including Frontier Land, Fantasy Land, Tomorrow Land, and Adventure Land. The park would be clean and innovative, a place where parents and children could have fun together on rides and attractions; they would be entertained by Disney characters in the â€Å"happiest place on earth.† Roy visited New York to seek a contract with a television network. Roy and Leonard Goldman reached an agreement where ABC would give Disney a $500,000 investment in Disneyland in exchange for a weekly Disney television series. ABC became a 35 percent owner of Disneyland and guaranteed loans up to $4.5 million. In July 1953, Disney commissioned the Stanford Research Institute to find a location for his (and the world’s) first major theme park. Anaheim, California, was selected since it could easily be reached by freeway from Los Angeles. Previous movie profits were not enough to cover the cost of building Disneyland, which took about a year to build at a cost of $17 million. Roy made numerous visits to the Bank of Americas headquarters to secure more funding. Disneyland Opens On July 13, 1955, Disney sent out 6,000 exclusive guest invitations, including to Hollywood movie stars, to enjoy the opening of Disneyland.  ABC sent cameramen to film the opening. However, many tickets were counterfeited and 28,000 people showed up. Rides broke down, food stands ran out of food, a heat wave caused freshly poured asphalt to capture shoes, and a gas leak caused temporary closings in a few themed areas. Despite the newspapers referring to this cartoon-ish day as Black Sunday, guests from all over the world loved it and the park became a major success. Ninety days later, the one-millionth guest passed through the parks turnstile. Plans for Walt Disney World, Florida In 1964, Disney’s Mary Poppins premiered; the film was nominated for 13 Academy Awards. With this success, Disney sent Roy and a few other Disney executives to Florida in 1965 to purchase land for another theme park. In October 1966, Disney gave a press conference to describe his plans for building an Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT) in Florida. The new park would be five times the size of Disneyland, and it would include shopping, entertainment venues, and hotels. The new Disney World development would not be completed, however, until five years after Disney’s death. The new Magic Kingdom (which included Main Street USA; Cinderellas Castle leading to Adventureland, Frontierland, Fantasyland, and Tomorrowland) opened on October 1, 1971, along with Disneys Contemporary Resort, Disneys Polynesian Resort, and Disneys Fort Wilderness Resort Campground. EPCOT, Walt Disney’s second theme park vision, which featured a future world of innovation and a showcase of other countries, opened in 1982. Death In 1966, doctors informed Disney that he had lung cancer. After having a lung removed and several chemotherapy sessions, Disney collapsed in his home and was admitted to St. Joseph’s Hospital on December 15, 1966. He died at 9:35 a.m. from an acute circulatory collapse and was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Legacy Disney left behind one of the largest media empires in the world. Since his death, the Walt Disney Company has only grown; today, it employs more than 200,000 people and generates billions in revenue each year. For his artistic achievements, Disney amassed 22 Oscars and numerous other honors. In 1960, he was given two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (one for his film and one for his television work). Sources David, Erica, and Bill Robinson.  Disney. Random House, 2015.The Disneyland Story. Walt Disney Productions, 1985.

Comparison of Quality Philosophies Research Paper - 1

Comparison of Quality Philosophies - Research Paper Example Quality involves meeting or exceeding customers’ expectations in products and provision of services. Generally, quality management is the process of directing the whole production process towards producing excellent and quality products and services that meet or exceed customers’ expectations. There are various quality philosophies that have been developed by various individuals and institutions (Hoyer and Hoyer, 2001). This focus paper will compare the quality philosophies of W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Moses Juran, Philip Bayard Crosby, and the Project Management Institute. Edwards Deming Philosophy Edwards Deming philosophy on quality asserted that quality is a process that uses statistical control techniques and that managers should intervene in the production process towards achieving the desired quality. His philosophy holds that quality should go beyond statistical quality control and that building quality of a product should be done at all stages. Apart from the r ole of management in promoting quality, Deming emphasized on the role of workers in improving quality by stating that workers should be proud and satisfied in order to meet the desired quality. ... Joseph Juran, his is considered as a total departure from Deming’s; Deming’s approach emphasizes on adopting new philosophy and throwing out the old system, but Juran’s approach emphasizes on working to improve the current system. Juran’s quality philosophy expressed the need to concentrate more on the â€Å"vital few† problems’ sources rather than be distracted by problems that are less important (Ross and Perry, 1999). In regard to approach to quality, performance standard, and quality measurement, Juran developed a trilogy that involves: quality improvement through infrastructure development and implementation of projects; quality control through performance assessment; and quality planning through determination of customer needs. He believed that management had a bigger role in quality compared to workers and that technical and management methods were more important than worker satisfaction (Mouradian, 2002). Philip Crosby Philosophy Qual ity philosophy of Philip Crosby emphasized that quality that meets customer requirements focuses more on prevention rather than correction. He believed that poor quality costs nearly 20 percent of the revenue; a cost that could be avoided if good quality practices is used. Crosby established the Absolutes of Quality Management which includes the only performance standard which makes sense are Zero Defects (Rose, 2005). His approach to quality and quality measurement involved defining quality as conformance to requirements, not goodness. His philosophy also states that prevention rather than appraisal as a system to achieve quality. The measure of quality according to this philosophy is the price of non-conformance, and not indexes. He acknowledged that both the management and workers have a role to play in improving

Interstate Banking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Interstate Banking - Essay Example Economies of scale are realized since loan activity is increased with the merging of assets brought about by expanded business in different states. Another advantage to interstate banking is the convenience it offers to its clients. With interstate banking, more branches are within the reach of the clients (Berry, 2011). The flow of bank activities are easily facilitated which makes it easier for the clients to do business. A smooth flow in bank activities may result in increased revenues because of the ease in doing business. Interstate banking makes it possible for banks to offer a wider range of banking services to its clients because of the interstate acquisitions and branches (Berry, 2011). Some of these services include more ATMs, electronic banking options and varied loan products. Financial security and stability is one of the major off-shoots of interstate banking. Since banking consolidation is allowed provided that the capital requirements are met, this means that the resources of the banks increase, making it more stable and secure. The liquidity and solvency of the banks improve with interstate banking. Bank clients benefit the most from interstate banking. The increased competition brought about by interstate banking makes banks think of strategies to capture a bigger market; thus, improving their services and developing new products which are attractive to the clients. Aside from bank clients, banks also benefit from interstate banking. Operating costs are greatly reduced as the bank subsidiaries are converted to bank branches. Geographic diversification will help improve the risk-return opportunities of banks (United States General Accounting Office, 1995). The most likely loser in interstate banking is the Federal Reserve (Berger & Humphrey, 1988). Since there will be an improvement in the efficiency of the payment system, multiple bank payments will decrease because most checks will be

Essentials Mangement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Essentials Mangement - Essay Example â€Å"Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant, they is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks† (Johann Gottfried Von Herder, n.d) Motivation is accepted as the driving force behind every human action and organizational principles; whether it is traditional or new, also give much importance to motivation in a business setup. Human actions are primarily for certain goals and anything which helps them to achieve these goals will motivate them. Organizations are spending a substantial period of time in researching about the possible methods or strategies which can motivate the employees. Traditional methods like the rewards and punishments are not enough at present and the employees are thinking something beyond that because of the changing culture, social norms and life styles. The question of a generalised theory of motivation is on card for long time and many business experts are divided in their opinions about the above issue. This paper crit ically analyses the possibility of a generalised theory of motivation at work place. From the above diagram it is clear that achievement, recognition, nature of work and responsibility are the key motivating factors whereas how the business is run, supervision, work conditions and pay scale are the main areas which can demoralize or prevent the workers from achieving job satisfaction. An employee will be definitely motivated, if his achievements are recognized and complemented by the organization. For example, a worker who completes a project efficiently, economically and before the schedule should be complemented by some rewards which will boost his energy for improving his productivity further and further. On the other hand, if the organization fails to respond such outstanding piece of works will definitely prevent the employees from making a conscious effort

Global Organisational Environment Of IKEA

Global Organisational Environment Of IKEA In this topic, we learned about the pros and cons of different types of organizations and the main influences of the external and internal environment on these organizations. This subject also analyzes the expectation of the organizations major stakeholders. By using the stakeholder mapping power/interest matrix, the company can identify its major stakeholders, their expectations, and conflicts between the stakeholders. This is very important for decision-making process because if the company can understand thoroughly different stakeholders expectations conflicts, they can have the right strategy to deal with each stakeholder, and so gain the profit of the company. The concept that I found it is difficult is how to identify the correct stakeholders power and interest on the stakeholder mapping. When I did the example together with my classmates, we have different point of views. More or less power and interest of the stakeholder also depends on what view the companies are on. I should practice more from other big companies in the world to see how they identify the expectation of their stakeholders. I can also study from the websites http:www.stakeholdermap.com show us the important of the stakeholders to the growing of the company, and also how to analyze and map the stakeholders power and interest. The article Making Sense of Stakeholder Mapping of Ruth Murray and Peter Simon on 2006 provides us three basic important dimensions when considering stakeholders: power, interest and attitude Power: how much the stakeholders have the potential to influence in the organization Interest: how much they are interest in the projects of the organization Attitude: how they will back (support) or block (resist) to the organizations project. The article also states that if we only consider two out of three above dimensions, it just gives a partial and less than useful picture  [1]   Topic 2: International environment Organization and Institutions (Mark) Multinationals is the corporation that locates its management headquarter in one country (home country), and operates its business in other several countries (host countries). Through this topic, we see the good and bad sides of globalization. We learned the differences between the free trade and protectionism. The benefit of free trade is no longer tariff barriers, so there will be good prices for customer because of increasing competitions. However, the bad side of free trade is that it will create a big gap between rich and poor, harming the environment, and cultural convergence. On this chapter, we also learned more about the benefit of World Trade Organization such as promotes peace, constructive handling of disputes, free trade cuts costs of living, increase choice, raise income, and simulates economic growth. This chapter also includes types and level of integration as well as the effects of integration such as static effects and dynamic effects. The concept that I found it difficult to understand is the Krugmans objections. I do not really thoroughly understand what this concept is about. This is something that I need to spend more time to read more from the book or find more information from internet. It is obvious that the world today is becoming more global. Beside some advantages of free trade by globalization, there are still a number of criticisms that free trade brought to the worlds economic. The term free trade actually depends on the interest of powerful nations and corporations. For example, according to Criticisms of Current Forms of Free Trade article, there is the phenomena of brain drain. It means that some rich countries try to attract educated people from poor countries. Thus, increase bigger gap between rich and poor countries  [2]   Topic 3: Analysis of the Environment Understanding the Managerial Environment The topic, Analysis of the Environment Understanding the Managerial Environment is about learning the external and internal environment and how they are impact to the organizations. This session helps us to understand the different dimension of the environment such as complexity, stability, market diversity and hostility. It is very important for the company to understand the effect of the environment factors to the organization in the future so that they can have the right strategy to develop the company. We learn different types of the organization environment, and how to analyze the environment by using PESTEL framework (political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal). PESTEL is a useful tool for understanding the industry situation as a whole; it allows us to have in-depth analysis of the external factors impacting on the organization. This topic is straightforward and was explained very clear in class, so I did not find any concept that difficult in this topic Topic 4: The Macro-economic Environment the Economy and the Role of Government In this subject, we indentified the macro-economy and its objectives. Macro-economic Environment is the first step of a strategic analysis; it is also referred as an external analysis (PESTEL analysis). It helps us to identify what will affect the growth of our industry as a whole. Four essential measures that are used in the macro-economy are inflation, economic output, unemployment, and balance of payment. This topic also raises the impact of the government in the economic system. Government has an important role in economy. These objectives include: a low rate of inflation, a reasonable rate of economic growth, low rates of unemployment, and a balance of payments in equilibrium or surplus. The government uses the fiscal policy to stabilize the economy by controlling interest rates and the money supply. Topic 5: The macro-economic environment. Understanding the Global Environment (Mark) This topic helps us get more knowledge about globalization and the forces that drive globalization. Globalization is increasing global business activities and multinational companies. Globalization also means rising political and social connection between government and people. Globalization helps to improve communication and share information worldwide. Friedman (2007) supposed that globalization is a flattening process. In this book named The world is flat, he indicated ten forces that flatten the world as follow: collapse of Berlin wall, Netscape public offering, work flow software, open source or uploading, outsourcing, off-shoring, supply chain, in-sourcing, in-forming, and the steroids. In other words, globalization is affected by the key drivers namely political, technological, and economic, market drivers, and cost and competition drivers as well. For example, outsourcing and off-shoring in China and India help many multinational companies such as Toyota, Sony and others probably reduce production cost because of low material and labour cost. This results in increasing competitive advantages. However, it also creates more highly completive market in the world. In addition to globalizations advantages, there are some plausible disadvantages in global competitive environment. Particularly, globalization makes to increase the gap between rich and poor countries and people as well. Globalization also leads to cultural convergence. Moreover, it is true to confirm that globalization makes contribution to cause environmental pollution. International expansion of multinational companies has aroused increasingly environmental issues in which they operate. Therefore, in global competitive environment, business organizations today have to confront with some key challenges such as cross-culture management, competition, sustainability as well as global rules. This chapter is straightforward and well explained in class. Thus, I can easy to follow and understand, and I did not find any concept that is difficult to understand. The article Critical Challenges of Globalization to Vietnam  [3]  on CDI website (Center for Development and Integration) states that globalization challenges Vietnam in two ways: Challenges to the country competitiveness: under globalization, the demand for competiveness is much higher. Competition is not only about products but also about competing social settlement Challenges to Vietnams labor, migration, and womens right: women play an important role in growing the countrys economic; however, womens work and value are less recognized than men Topic 6: The global environment: Emerging economic in three continents This topic provides an overview of emerging economies mainly in Asia, America and Africa and especially BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). In addition to this, the author would like to compare the different economic, political and other developments between countries. Chapter 14 Contrasting developments in the Americas shows US economic development and its hegemony in international affairs as well. Moreover, this chapter helps me understand the reasons why the BRIC countries have possibly achieved increasingly importance in the eyes of Western economists, investors and politicians. BRIC countries in order to secure their development Chapter 15 Asias economic potential indicates in-depth analysis the major Asian economies and their historical development. Indeed, this chapter describes major characteristics such as geographical, political, economic and cultural diversity of Asia through major countries such as China, India, and tiger countries (Hong Kong, S.Korea, Singapore and Taiwan). For example, at the present, there is no doubt that with high level of education, high saving and investment, modern technology and others, tiger countries completely compete to other countries in the world. Chapter 16 Africas struggle for reform describes a big picture of political, economic and social developments in Africa and major barriers inhibiting Africas development. In particular, African countries have to face some social problems in relation to poor education, housing and sanitation, low standard of living, disease, and poor public health care. Moreover, poor governance and inability of politicians are impossible to maintain stability. Besides, heavy debts have also become an urgent problem to many countries. It is undeniable that poor productivity and strong dependence on other donation has led African nations at the mercy of world markets. Based on this analysis, the author is willing to discuss the potential solutions to Africas future development and prosperity. Topic 7: The micro-economic environment market structures and industry analysis (Mark) This topic provide knowledge about different types of market structures and describes the link between market structure and companies behaviours and performance through analysis of Porters five forces. To start with, there are three kinds of market structures including monopoly (diamond market), oligopoly and perfect competition market. Especially, in term of oligopoly, in order to avoid price war and compete by non price methods, many companies choose to collude. In addition to this, this topic also describes industry life cycle. In period of introduction, customers buy products regardless of price because of products uniqueness. It is called fragmented industry where no firm has large market share and each firm share small pieces of big market cake. As new competitors enter this industry, prices drop as a result of competition. Companies use experience curve and economic scale to reduce cost faster than competitors. By the time an industry enter maturity, this is a consolidated industry which dominated by a few larger firms struggling to differentiate their products from the competition. As an industry moves toward decline, its products growth of sale begins decreasing; therefore, firms will convert their facilities to alternate uses or sell them to another firm. Moreover, Michael Porter, the author of competitive strategy, has highlighted evidently affect of the level of competition to the level of the specific business unit. Hence, it will help me obtain insight about the organizations competitive environment such as the dominant forces in the industry including threat of entry, power of buyers and suppliers, substitutes, and competitive rivalry, and the factors influencing on these forces. However, Porters five forces have a plenty of shortcoming. For instance, the model is effective in static situation. It assumes that the companies interest and profit always come first. Moreover, the business environment is competitive, hostile and predictable. More importantly, it ignores one of the most significant factors called human resource. In addition to Porters five forces, in oligopoly market, Game theory is considered as a branch of mathematics often used by economics that analyzes situations in which players must make decisions and then receives and then receive payoffs. It is applied for members of an oligopoly because they always face to a prisoners dilemma which is a game in which the gains from cooperation are larger than the rewards from pursuing self-interest TASK 2: IKEA REPORT I. Introduction 1. History IKEA is a home-furnishing retailer founded by Ingvar Kamprad in 1943. The Swedish company that sells and designs flat pack furniture, appliances and home accessories through its stores around the world at affordable price. Since then, IKEA has grown up rapidly and now it becomes the largest furniture retailer in the world. Its mission is to offer a wide range of home furnishing items of good design and function, excellent quality and durability, at prices so low that the majority of people can afford to buy them (IKEA, 2010). 2. Vision IKEAs business idea: To support this vision by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them. And its vision is to create a better every day life for the many people (IKEA, 2010). To bring a better everyday life, IKEA are committed to provide well-designed, good quality and durable home furniture and keeps the low price for many people. Keeping low price is a cornerstone of IKEA; however, it does not mean that low price but not at any price. IKEA wants sustainability as a part of its business. In fact, it believes that taking about social and environmental responsibility of its customers, suppliers is a crucial for running good business. IKEA made decision for contribution to create a good world by providing products, service which are beneficial effect on people and environment. 3. Product range There are a wide range of products which inspired and developed based on the essential customers needs of home furnishing. In general, IKEAs product is a combination with three main characteristics: good design, function and low price. That means all IKEAs designers design goods with well designed and functional home furnishing available for everybody that at low price. 4. Store In 2010, there are 316 IKEA stores in 38 countries, and most of them in Europe, North America, Australia and Asia (Swedish Furniture, 2011). IKEA store format is a single-story, large blue buildings with yellow company name. The large numbers stores of IKEA are located suburban because of land cost and traffic access. IKEAs stores open for long hours, normally, 24 hours per day. IKEA always encourages customer to visit its store in order to look inside, touch, try everything, even if walk away empty handed. By this way, IKEA hopes that after leaving its store, customer will have a full of fresh ideas for their own home. II. Stakeholders mapping Employees IKEA does not have its own factories; they give orders to different factories in low cost countries. Hence, it is acknowledged that majority of employees still has low power and interest to the company. Global society / Local community Environmental issue such as friendly, reduced packaging is being promoted by the Government and is concerned by community. However, it may impacts negatively on IKEAs social responsibility and total cost. Thus, local community has high power and low interest to IKEA. Customers The power of the buyers is moderately low because majority of customers are consumers. The company targets the customer who is looking for value and is willing to do a little bit of work serving them, transporting the items home and assembling the furniture for a better price. The typical IKEA customer is young low to middle income family. Competitors IKEA operates in a highly competitive industry, characterized by other low priced furniture producers such as Galiform of England and retailers such as Wal-Mart of the United States. Domestically, IKEA faces the threat of potential entrants; as the dominant firm, holding 25% of the market in its native Sweden for example, there is a very real possibility that others will enter the market to challenge IKEA directly. Hence, competitors have low power and high interest to IKEA. Suppliers IKEA does not only create competition among suppliers but also treats them as long-term business partners. As IKEA offers nearly the same products in its stores all over the world, they can order very high volumes and therefore get cheap prices. Moreover, its suppliers are usually located in low-cost nations, with close proximity to raw-materials and reliable access to distribution channels. These suppliers produce highly standardized products intended for the global market, which size provides the firm with the opportunity take the advantage of economies of scale factors. In fact, IKEA is using its size when dealing with subcontractors in two ways. The first is to put pressure on the subcontractors to become more and more efficient. Secondly, IKEA can use its size to get good discounts from the suppliers. This is done by placing itself as a large customer to the supplier, to get some power in price negotiations. Local government Local government has high power and low interest to many companies. The reason is that changes of laws, regulationns and policies influence the production, total cost and sale of IKEAs products. Shareholders This group can also be considered high power potentially. This is more important in recent years where shareholder activity has increased significantly in the boardroom, and management of firms has been scrutinised much more and even given threats if certain actions favoured by the shareholders were not pursued. Managers Managers play an important role in controlling business activities and improving IKEAs global competitiveness by promoting timely, decision-making for operational matters. In other words, they possess high power and interest from the company. III. PEST analysis The Pest analysis tool looks at political economic, social, technology changes which are likely to affect on the business (Robert, 2004). These varieties of external environment factors in 2010 which IKEA faces are: Political changes: Governments regulation and policy change: Generally, there were sorts of challenges and chances, which IKEA faced in 2010. For opportunities: These host countries changed policies to encourage foreigner companies invest in the country such as reducing procedure papers, exported tariff -exempt,. By contrast, the countries also tied up protectionism and subsidies for its products in order to compete to foreigner products for instants, launching policy of rising imported tariff. Economic factors: Economic growth: Although global economy recovered slowly, it helped IKEA has boosted its market share because of its low-price goods which can compete to expensive retailers in 2010. IKEA group still opened continue to expanse their stores in other countries and increasing sales in emerging economic market-Asia where leading the global economy recovery in 2010. Inflation: It is a true that inflation rising which let price of all commodities rose remarkably in 2010 such as raw materials which led increasing IKEA inputs purchasing cost. In addition to this, fuel price also rose rapidly in 2010 which impacted on IKEAs transportation cost. All of this, affected on IKEA business performance as well as customer purchasing needs. Furthermore, increasing price implicated that IKEA has less competitive advantage in the furniture market. Competition: IKEA is a Sweden giant furnishing company which has strong brand, therefore, there are few competitors running in the market. However, IKEA should not underestimate its competitors. The company should launch innovative and eco-design products at low price for meet a wide range of customers needs. Social factors: Lifestyle: Becoming a global company that means IKEA faces challenges as different culture, language barrier, and taste. Thus, before opening new stores, it should have concrete plans of research market. IKEA has expanded its stores in emerging market like China, India, and Pakistan which society is distinct compared to Western countries. Generally, Asian is savers who do not spend too much money on purchasing. They are willing to buy durable and high-quality products in conventional retailers which are expensive rather than low-price ones like IKEA, a reputation of self assembly. Population growth rate: This factor plays a role for IKEAs development as well as helps IKEA make decision for opening new stores in these regions. These largest populations countries as China and India, people have huge needs for buying low-price products of IKEA. Thus, expanding new stores in the markets bring benefits for IKEA such as increasing business sale, number of subcontractors and so on. Technology: Normally, technology plays an important role for almost companys success especially a global company. For IKEA, it used quality technology to implement better communication services and software modules that communicate to a home base, delivery service and selling online via the Internet. Technology helps company to increase production and employees productivity, improve its business performance, and gain competitive advantage. IV. Market position and segmentation Market position There is no doubt that IKEA is a well- known furniture company in the world. In spite of world economic recession in 2010, IKEA has been growing up and has a leading market position in the future. There are some evidences demonstrating for statement above: total sale rose by 7.7 % to 1.1 billion Europe (FY 2010 report) compared to 2009. In fiscal year 2010, Ikea group opened 12 stores in 8 countries. Figure 1: Annual Sale, Billion Euros (Source: http://issuu.com/interbrand/docs/bgb_report_us_version?viewMode=presentationmode=embed) According to Branding consultancy Inter-brands Best Global Brands 2010( Top 100 brands) released on the fifteenth September 2010, the Sweden giant furniture- IKEA was ranked at 28th place the most valuable brand with brand value is 12,487 ( dollar million) and changing branding value is 4% higher than last year. Figure 1: Best Global ranks 2010 (Source: http://www.interbrand.com) Market segmentation: Market segmentation IKEA uses various mixes of segmentation bases including geographic segmentation, demographic segmentation. Geographic segmentation: IKEA stores are located around the world, however, most stores of them based in at Europe where get the highest sales ( 79%), meanwhile Asia and North America account for 6(%), 15%, respectively. Figure 2: Ikea, sales per region (Source: welcome_inside_2010, IKEA report 2010) Demographic segmentation: According to IKEA, it wants to bring a better life to many people. This means that its customers are people all over the world who are low and middle- income. In addition to this, IKEAs customer target is focus in young people and family who are appealed by stores decoration as well as can take time working together IKEA to design their products. V. SWOT Swot is an acronym of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats which is a useful tool for helping organization to analyze current situation of the organization in order to solve its problems and take advantage to reach its objectives. Strength and weakness are internal environment such as management, operation, finance; meanwhile, opportunity and threat are external environment like economy, society, environment and technology (Andrew, page 7). Strengths: That is any resource advantage and capability of organization which gives competitive advantages in the market. Strengths are organization capabilities such as human resource, management, financial status, service, manufacturing and so on. Strength considers as a basic quality element for evaluating companys success. There are some IKEAs strengths below: Wide range product: IKEA is famous for its wide range of affordable and good-quality products which can meet almost customers needs. Furthermore, IKEA has restaurant, cafeteria, and children- playing room in the each IKEAs store in order to help their customer feel comfortable when shopping here. Less competition: IKEAs business model is quite unique, besides, IKEAs range product is wide that means it meets multi target markets. This leads to IKEA has little direct competition. Global brand: IKEA Company has strong brand reputation which appeals key customers. That also means it provides the same quality and a range of products. Advanced- technology and new materials: IKEA continues to introduce and apply new-technology as well as materials in its furniture industry in order to reduce cost and weight of its products for customers as well as eco-friendly environment. Low price strategy: Because of IKEAs business ideas is offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them. That is a priority strategy of IKEA which make the company as a well-known brand. Clear vision and strong concept: IKEA wants to create a better every day life for the many people by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them. Supplier-long-term partnership: Supplier plays an important role for IKEA Company. To maintain good-product quality as well low-cost, it creates long-term partnership with supplier. By this, IKEA can buy large volume with negotiable price over many years. Flag-pack furniture: Flag-pack furniture is becoming popular since it was launched by IKEA Company. The most crucial reason that makes flat-pack furniture popular is because of its saving-cost such as transportation and storage cost. In addition to this, flat-pack furniture is easy to carry for both customers and suppliers, assemble at home just following company instructions; minimize shipping damage, increasing inventory capability. Weaknesses: They are internal factors which make company cannot reach its success as well as its full of potential compared to others. Weaknesses can be controlled and eliminated. Each enterprise has to know its weaknesses in order to improve and manage its. IKEAs weaknesses including: Lack of customer service: Low-cost is the cornerstone of IKEA which may not attract customers who are used to go traditional furniture shopping. This lets the customers who feel that IKEA Company does not care about them. Furthermore, scale of company- a global company also makes it difficult to communicate with its customers. Lack of customer service will effect on IKEAs brand. Global company: As a global company, IKEA has encountered problems to control, operate and maintain its stores standard as well as quality of products through the stores chain in various regions. Difficult to balance between low cost and high quality: There is a said that, quality and price accomplish together. The fact that, it is easy to produce good- quality product for high price, but IKEA makes different ways. If it is too focus on cost-saving, it will effect negatively on products safety as well as user. Cost needs to be balanced against quality. Opportunities: They are chances in economy which helps businesses to gain competitiveness advantage, profitability and increasing production. In addition, opportunity arises suddenly, even if, these may arise from competitors, government policy, technology, thus organization should be careful and catch the chances whenever they arises. IKEAs opportunities include: Urban sprawl: IKEAs stores are located at outskirt of centers, because of land cost and traffic access. Nowadays, there is increasing number of people living in metropolitan areas to move far away center which places that are closed to IKEAs stores. In addition to this, most of them are young, educated and rich. IKEAs strategy meets new trends. Increasing demand of low-price products: Because of being effected by depressed global economy, citizens have trend for purchasing goods at low-price for saving their money. In order to meet rising customers demand as well as increasing its sales, the company may design new products, reviewing manufacturing process, materials or labour. This is a chance which IKEA should exploit. Selling online: Selling online is one of opportunities of IKEA. Online shopping makes a revolution to traditional shopping. For global company- IKEA, its online retailers have expanded all markets globally. Its customers in every region can shop just a click mouse and then waiting for goods delivered. This helps IKEA increasing sales, profits, and brand recognition. Expansion into emerging market: There are numerous countries of Asia which are potential markets for IKEA in the coming years. Meanwhile, the demand of citizens living in emerging markets focus on buying good-quality at low-price which is the IKEAs concept. Threats: Threats are used to external factors in environment which effect negatively for profitability, operation enterprise as well as growing new rivalries. Actually, if company is aware of external threats, it can plan to solve the problems. Threats of IKEA derived from: Increasing rivals: There is growing competitors entering low-cost furniture market which impact on IKEA Company such as Wal-mart, Ashley furniture, Howden. These competitors can copy low-cost value model. Therefore, IKEA needs to improve its product qualities to compete with other rivalries. Economic crisis: Businesse