Prosecuting Violators of International Humanitarian and Human Rights Essay

Prosecuting Violators of International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law; and The Merits and Limitations of the International Criminal Court (ICC) - Essay Example The researcher states that although international jurists may not agree entirely with this argument, an actual discontent should go with an examination of theoretical perspectives which are believed to offer answers to these stubborn issues. Apparently, humanitarian and human rights law do not provide simple solutions as to how to deal with violations of the fundamental human rights of people in times of crisis. They embody judicious efforts to implement norms which ideally will become unanimously recognized and support the international community in its assessment of, and response, to these crimes. The international community has been triumphant in establishing an agreement on numerous norms in the areas of humanitarian and human rights law. There is at present a solid set of laws, even though it evidently does not cater to every crisis or include every region. This code of rules will be raised to change as the problems confronting the international community assume new forms. Certa inly, the implementation of the Statute of the International Criminal Court is a sign of the pace at which several sectors of international law are evolving. ... The primary purpose of the formation of an international criminal court was to change a tradition of immunity for the perpetration of severe crimes, which has thrived and remains in existence significantly, with a tradition of liability. The formation of an international criminal court is in several contexts the finale of a chain of international attempts in such path. Nevertheless, those attempts have usually been unsuccessful for different causes, and, at any rate, have been greatly discriminating. The Tokyo and Nuremberg Tribunals, after the Second World War, expressed genuine confidence for the tradition of liability, but the facts of the cold war aftermath immediately surfaced. The idea that individuals and states perpetrating the most serious violations of human rights law should be prosecuted disappeared, and a tradi tion of immunity resurfaced. The discourse about the competence of international committees should be situated in a more enduring point of view. The influence of newly formed institutions like the informal committees cannot justly be weighed against that of established organizations like the International Court of Justice (ICG) and the Security Council (SC).

Market Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Market - Research Paper Example Other characteristics of free market economy are free trade fairs without subsidies or tariffs from the government. One of the most outstanding free market economies is that the government has very limited powers in a free market economy because marker powers regarding price control are set by buyers and sellers. Since the government lacks direct control of business operations regarding prices, sellers are likely to exhaust buyers through high prices (Chai 24). The government powers are restricted to providing law and order in the market operations and ensuring that only fair competition is charged. The government does not have control over participants’ entry to the market. This means that the government does not stipulate any rules regarding tariffs and subsides. Therefore, it is an economic system whereby only the fittest survive. In such economy, the government does not play any role that may favour or discourage business partners as only the involved parties regulate the transactions and prices. The government is restricted to making possible flow and functioning of the business environment through implementing policies and laws that guarantee people rights and freedoms to property. Therefore, the government is not a competitor or a market player but enhances business operations by creating a suitable business environment (Friedman 19). China is a mixed economy since the government and the private sector have an influence in the economy thus having both characteristics of both free market economies and controlled economy. Majority of mixed economies have strong government regulations as the government provides public goods and government run enterprises. In mixed economies like china, production of goods and services are mainly conducted by the private sector whereby markets are the major controllers and coordinators of economy. The driving forces within mixed markets are profit seeking enterprises and capital accumulation. Unlike pure free market e conomy in china, the government has larger indirect control over the economy by implementing monetary and fiscal policies and regulations. These policies counteract economic challenges and capitalisms’ influence towards financial crisis and challenges towards unemployment. The government has a central place in providing social welfare and making sure that public goods are available to the public (Chai 52). In general, the degree of freedom in a mixed economy against government regulations varies. The government is often responsible for providing environmental protection, maintaining unemployment standards, and controlling competition. China may not fit to be a free market economy since the government has strong control over inflation and rural spending (Friedman 35). China has been successful since its government is vibrant ion deficit funding programs since 1998 as well as endorsement of exports by tax rebates. When public demand is low due to anti-inflation, export promotio ns and monetary policies chip in to create a difference. When public demand is strong, the promotion of external export by government relaxes. Statistics show that the stock market activities are high because households and other enterprises prefer their funds in more liquid forms. Due to inflation surge, the government sets policies and regulations to correct the economic situation. Government policies in

Promoting fashion brands through social media

Promoting fashion brands through social media The purpose of this study has been to research possibilities of promoting a fashion brand through social media, specifically Facebook. It would analyse its advantages as well as disadvantages towards fashion business. The social media is an Internet platform where people are free to discuss and communicate through different blogs and websites. The critical question is how consumer decisions are affected by other consumers recommendations. It is very important that businesses intending to join the online environment should thoroughly understand the online consumer market. For the marketing purposes, social networks represent unique opportunities of a constant contact with the consumers. Sales over the Internet have increased drastically over the last decade in both USA and Europe (Forrester Research, 2000). In December 2002, Europeans reportedly spent $ 15.8 billion in 2002, Whereas North Americans spent $15.7 billion. The rise in Internet sales was mostly effected by the sales of gar ments and toys (Blauw Research bv, 2003). Outlaw Freelancers is a small Amsterdam based fashion brand, and is a good example of the micro business. Their sales are done only through Internet, at their main web page (www.outlawfreelancers.com). Outlaws have decided to use new marketing ways, and advertise their brand through social network such as Facebook. In order to find out how the big brands on the market manage social media exposure, interview with NIKE and HM representatives was accomplished. From the interviews it can be seen that companies operate almost with the same structure, except geographically targeting consumers. In comparison with Outlaws, both NIKE and HM, have already established an image, and therefore in no need of a new one. The study has shown that social media power is not enough to push the brand on the market. After a 4 months observation of Outlaw Freelancers it was clear that social media was not enough to push the sales. However, it is crucial for established companies like NIKE and HM to use social media to communicate with its consumers. Due to the time limit, it was unfeasible to continue the Outlaws research of 4 months which could possibly lead to better results. The observation is relatively small and could have led to different outcome if the period was longer. The study has shown that for a new brand on the fashion market it is crucial to mix the use of traditional marketing as well as new Internet ways. Acknowledgements I would like to express my appreciation and thank to all those involved in accomplishing this thesis, including individuals and various organizations that will be mentions throughout the process. Thanks to my parents, Mr. And Mrs. Kaminskiy, for their unfailing support during the period of my entire course. Special thanks to my dear friend Louisa Chiejina, who stayed encouraging and positive through the whole process, and believed in me. 1.1Introduction Outlaw Freelancers is Amsterdam based fashion brand, which is represented by a collaboration of fashion and graphic designers who worked with the worlds largest fashion brands in previous. The brand was established in spring 2010, and represented by a simple but highly effective designs. The collection is entitled, Run, the old world is behind you! Inspired by the 1968 Paris student protests features a 12 piece line on mens t-shirts with the Outlaws signature bold, iconic imagery. At the moment the brand is concentrating only on online sales, which will follow by retail in the near future. The Vision of the brand can be refereed to as a glocal lifestyle and take inspiration from popular culture: art, music, design and modern European living. Outlaw Freelancers consumer are masculine, work and socialize in stylish fashionable cities. Their personal style is intuitive and daring, reflecting an independence of spirit. Creative provocative and rebellious, always modern. Being a new brand the company is trying to find a suitable marketing strategy. In the industry there are many marketing strategies that a company could use to promote its brand awareness such as: advertising, public relations, personal selling, direct marketing, sales promotion and word on mouth marketing, which all belong to the marketing communication mix, also known as a promotional mix. The six elements help companies to achieve customer loyalty and rise in sales. The marketing communication mix model was created Philip Kotler, whos knowledge is being used all around the world. Every element of the mix represents a different approach, which will be explained in the literature review. Outlaw Freelancers have adopted some of the strategies from the marketing mix, such as word of mouth, for its future success. Despite the use of marketing mix, the brand has decided to use the Internet also known as Web 2.0. Companies have widely recognised the power of the internet and broad scope it offers . The interactivity provide retailers with the potential to transform their customers shopping experience (Evanschitzky et al., 2004; Wol ¬Ã‚ nbarger and Gilly, 2003), and in so doing, strengthen their own competitive positions (Doherty and Ellis-Chadwick, 2009; Levenburg, 2005). The company uses the internet through social media sites like Facebook, to communicate with its consumers and prospective customers. Primarily, social networks were aimed to build communities on the Internet, of people with similar interests and/or activities. Social networking existed since 1995 and started up with www.Classmates.com. The project came out quite successful, and in the next few year there was a number of duplicates with the same content. But the official social networking success started in 2003-2004 with the networks such as: LinkedIn, Myspace and Facebook. The advantages of networking can also involve finding people with the same interest, finding the desired web page or any other information that can interest you related to your hobby or work. Usually, the web site allows you to post information about yourself (e.g. Date of birth, school or university you attended, hobbies etc.) from which other users can find you, and relate if needed. There are different types of profiles, you can either have your own private profile, or make a group which will be visible for everybody. As competition in the fashion markets intensifies globally, companys seek other and new strategies to capture both the interest and loyalty of consumers. Because the business environment is changing and is very dynamic in the fashion sector . Apparel companys would have to build their image and brand with supporting marketing strategies which will lead to growth in the long run and survival of the brand and what it represents (Marguerite Moore, 2003) For the marketing purposes, social networks represent unique opportunities of a constant contact with the consumers. It became a usual activity to talk about different companies and preferences, which either can break the companys reputation, or make it stronger. Social media marketing platform is growing extremely fast, therefore it attract spending more budget by the companies on advertisings that can be placed on these web pages. The major goal of Marketing is undoubtedly to satisfy the customers needs and make a profit along the way. Unfortunately, the needs of customers can differ tremendously from industry to industry. Therefore different approaches are required to meet all the different needs. Positioning the brand is about finding the right spot in customers minds in order to create the desired association. (Kotler, 2001, p.172) The thesis mostly concentrates Facebook as a form of social media network. It would analysis its advantages as well as disadvantages towards businesses and their marketing strategy. Nowadays news about Facebook appears very regularly, this is one of the fastest growing social networks and the most popular one. Launched 6 years ago, Facebook was a closed network for students only, allowed to sign in only with a student email address belonging to certain universities. Nowadays anybody around the world can join the network. The main advantage for marketing purposes, that ensured success of Facebook, is the transformation from the usual social network into a platform with web applications. Developers have created a program that allows anyone to create an addition to Facebook. Currently, there are more than 5000 web-based applications, among them games and promotions which are quite useful for enhancing the performance of services and advertising. After a convenient research Outlaw Freelancers have decided to use the social media website such as Facebook as a marketing strategy to take on helping promote the brand. (Salzer-Morling and Strannegard 2004) define the brand as the organisations principal asset and the core business activity. It is more than just a name or symbol and can be used to differentiate a retailer from its competitors . having a strong brand is a powerful marketing strategy to reduce uncertainty about evaluation of product and to increase the purchase intentions of online shoppers (Collins-Dodd and Lindley, 2003). Today more and more retailers use their websites and social media to establish their brand presence on the web and communicate with key audiences. The main purpose of this thesis is to find out whether social media, such as Facebook, can influence the Outlaw Freelancers brand awareness, and sales in a long run. There are a lot of surveys mentioning that traditional advertising methods are losing power, compare to the online word of mouth, therefore it is interesting to use a real life example such as Outlaw Freelancers, to observe whether Facebook can be effective. The remainder of this study/research is organised as follows. Chapter 2 looks at the literatures relative to the subject , while chapter 3 looks at the methods used to convey the research . Chapter 4 looks at the analysis gotten from the survey and finally chapter 5 will conclude the research. Aims and Objectives I. To find out if the social media such as Facebook can affect online sales of the small brand such as Outlaw Freelancers. Compare the use of Facebook of a big company like NIKE to a small brand such as Outlaw Freelancers. Find out what are the lessons that small business can apply. Analyze if it is effective to use only social media during the growth of the new brand. 1.2 Significance of study The purpose of this study is to explore how a small fashion brand tries to engage in the market using social media techniques. Upon completion of the study , the Researcher would have an additional knowledge in analysing how social media works and most especially in what kind of businesses. The study will identify problems that might occur using this form of marketing strategy. With research , interviews, sent out questionnaires and the presence of a focus group. The study will show in detail the impact of social media network such as Facebook on the business and its brand. The recommendation on findings made in the study will help Outlaw Freelancer, its owners and potential small businesses, more aware and knowledgeable on external factors out there that could endanger or improve their business future. Limitation of study Time constraints due to time it was unfeasible to have more personal interviews with managers of mostly fashion companies. Also questionnaire could be as extensive as the researcher would have preferred. Limited Research present research/survey available still represent a diminutive fraction of the individuals on social media site; Facebook and fashion companies that promote their brands through this medium. The sample is relatively small and might have a different outcome if the sample was larger. Limited response Some of the interviewees have busy lives hence are limited to a short time and would only be able to answer a restricted amount of questions. Data availability Some of the respondents were reluctant to provide some of the information. Chapter 2 Literature Review As the internet continues to grow more and more consumers organise their regular lives around the web. From education(online learning to shopping for groceries or in this context fashion goods. Over the years consumers have seem to increase their online purchase of fashion merchandises. That status has generated a body of research allied with fashion e-tailing. (Marchiniak, R. and Bruce, M. 2004) summarise in a chapter about e-tailing, they highlight that an ample amount of study done in the area shows cross channel shopping behaviour and issues with consumer behaviour. However further research show essentials like web site design , quality and fashion are most retailers approach to online strategy (Neil F. Doherty Fiona Ellis 2010). The aspect of web design is important to any fashion branding especially the Outlaws; a brand coming straight into the e-tailing market. In the terms of web site design, issues like the page design , interactivity level , and inconsistency across the si tes get consumers concerned and react ( Siddiqui, N., OMalley, A., McColl, J.C. and Birtwistle, G. 2003). In different literature , there are aspects that are needed for any company looking to promote its brand through the web or social media websites. Aspects like branding, promotions, and web design mentioned above. Branding is crucial to the final vision of any fashion company, whether big or small. Park and Stoel (2005) investigated the familiarity with brands on the internet alongside with previous experience of shopping. They suggest that this familiarity and knowledge about brands is likely to influence the way consumers react and most especially their purchasing power. It also influences their perceptions on the risk associated with shopping online. In other words there is some evidence that brand familiarity may stimulate engagement with online shopping (Jennifer Rowley 2009). In a research model by Park, he made up a hypotheses that, People who are exposed to a well-known brand name will perceive (a) higher value and (b) more positive store image, as compared to people who are exposed to a website with an unfamiliar brand name ( Minjung Park 2009) . The diagram in Appendix ( diagram from journal). goes on to show how Park describes the links between the brand, promotion, perceived value, purchase intention and store image. Although in the case of the Outlaw Freelancers there is not a store image. Moving on to promotions, which are very useful in cognitive evaluations when deciding on the product to purchase (Raghubir, P. 2004). They are important ways of keeping consumers informed about products and trends. They create a sort of awareness value to the retailer, let consumers know about their activities which might eventually lead to their loyalty and encourage them to revisit (Minjung Park 2009). Several research have shown and proven that promotions such as price promotions like discounts have a positive impact on the customers behaviour towards products.(fit it somewhere) However despite the increase in online sales of fashion apparel, research from scholars suggest that many individuals especially those in Europe are more reluctant to shop for garment over the internet. No doubt that issues like trying the apparel on and feeling the fabric hinges this process enormously . (Rene P. Spijkerman 2008) shows in details investigation from several resources (E buyersGuide.com, Kwon et al., 1991; Jasper and Quelette, 1994). He goes on to highlight the percentage and issues involving shopping on-line. In the same research conducted by Rene P. Spijkerman which intended to answer his main research question: How do Dutch fashion retailers use Internet sites (2004 2007) and if Dutch consumers appreciate web sites selling apparel? The research investigation includes the web presents of Dutch apparel retailers having at least up to 55 shops in the town/city. It was to no surprise that majority of the shops could be identified using the google search engine, althou gh others had to be searched through other websites or links. This highlighted a notable part to the researcher that the web presence of any retail business (fashion brands) and easy access was a crucial element, more over as companies like Outlaws intend to grow and be known, the ability to make its presence on the web would be a tough but promising challenge if successful. Finally at the end Rene comes to a conclusion that some Dutch retailers do sell on the Internet on their own site but the majority do not, despite the fact that they obviously put money and effort into their web sites. Others like Doherty et al. (1999) support Rene and suggest similar, proposing that the Internet adoption might not be a viable strategy for all retailers, as the likelihood of an organisation succeeding in their investment decision would be dependent upon the retailers specific internal and environmental inhibitors and facilitators. When all seems to fail, Word of mouth (WOM) is always another marketing strategy for firms to use. It has a greater impact on judgements and decision making than formal methods of marketing communications. Research has showed that this method helps attract new customers . even though others emphasis on branding and promotions Chapter 3 Methodology Research methodology A research process that includes a systematic set of steps and actions to answer certain questions, which usually include information from academic journals, books, different publications and web sites. A right set of methods will lead to the development of the answers. In this thesis few methods will be used to answer the main question. The most important field research is the actual observation and working with the firm Outlaw Freelancers a brand on the social media strategy, for the period of 4 month. It is crucial to observe the process as it goes, paying attention from the very start. The brand is a good example of micro business and it will be interesting to compare its use of the social media, to the big company like NIKE and HM, and the way they operate through Web 2.0. However, it needs to be taken into consideration that big companies already have an existing image, and in no need to build a new one. Their task is to represent the image in its best, and communicate with the consumers, making them a part of a social media building process. Small new brands, on the other hand, have an opportunity of building their image through social media and the word of mouth, which does not involve as much costs like marketing campaigns. An interview will be conducted with NIKE HM representatives, from the social media section, their answers are summarised in the analysis. The NIKE interview will be done in person, to increase the response of the interviewee. The questions will be very open and would be more like a conversation. The HM interview will consists of 7 questions, the questions will be set as an open questionnaire they will open questions with no fixed answers and seek to solicit opinions on particular issues. This questionnaire can be seen in Appendix. It will be interesting to find out how long the companies used social media, if they analyse the outcome and the reaction of users, if there are any costs involved in the process and how many people in the company are involved in the process of managing the Web pages. In order to find out if the users of Facebook pay attention to the fan pages of the fashion brands, another questionnaire will be conducted and sent to 50 users. The questionnaire is closed, with a set of questions in a fixed order, which generally requires the correspondence to respond by selection of one or more multiple choice options. The method ensures a rapid response, easy quantification, coding of data, and consequent comparability of response and guarantees coverage of the area of the interest to the research ( Brewerton et al, 2001. p.70) It will be interesting to see from the user prospective, if there is any attention paid to the updates and information that companies post. (See Appendix) After gathering responses from the following questionnaires, one might be able to compare the use of Facebook of a big company like NIKE to a small brand such as Outlaw Freelancers and find out if the social media such as Facebook can affect online sales of the small brand such as Outlaw Freelancers, which are the aims and objectives (I and II) of this project. All interviews, observations and questionnaires will help to examine and explore the links between the company, its branding and its promotions within social media context. All research, observation and scholars have shown that this elements are very essential ingredients to any company that wishes to participate in e-retailing and make its web presents. However, certain limitations may obstruct the collection data. The interviewees and recipients of the questionnaire are extraordinarily busy. They may not respond or complete the surveys independently. Chapter 4 Analysis 4.1 Analysis Outlaw Freelancers To answer the aims and objectives of this study, the observation was conducted with the Outlaw Freelancers brand. During the period of 4 months the researcher was given an opportunity to work on the social media strategy and advertise the Outlaws mainly through Facebook. Social media gives companies an opportunity of free marketing, the main difference between traditional media and social media are the costs of it. Traditional media have existed long before Internet took over. In a lot of cases it is still relevant, depending on the product and the company. It includes radio, television, newspapers, magazines, books and most print publications. Outlaw Freelancers is a good example of micro business, therefore it was interesting to observe the growth of it. Most of the main objectives that were created in the beginning of the observation were met. Creating a Facebook fan page was a first step. To attract the users to become fans came out as a difficult task, due to the lack of the name recognition. After some time mostly the friends of the brand started to notice, and adding the brand to their profiles. Another important trick that was used in order to grow fan base, was Facebook advertising on the right side of the page. Facebook advertising is meant to be paid for, and the price is depending on the location, occupation and ages that you are targeting, etc. The advertising helped the brand to grow up to 1300 online fans, targeting countries such as Netherlands, France, Belgium, USA and United Kingdom, people who are working in the fashion industry or are related to it by any means. To target different countries gives a brand an opportunity of the immediate international presents, which is important in the long run. Outlaw Freelancers Fan page: New posts of the brand are sent to the fans through the Facebook updates (the posts on the main wall) and message updates. The main web shop (www.outlawfreelancers.com) is linked with Facebook profile which is shown in the information box on the wall of the profile. The fans were constantly indulged in the conversations, which is an important part of the social media strategy. Facebook users like to feel important and noticed. The communication that is done by a brand needs to represents its tone. Preferably the selling part is better to leave to a costumer, which can decide for himself. The post were representing the Outlaws identity, they included different fashion and music events, art exhibitions, inspiring images as well as any kind of updates on the main web shop page. The right balance was accomplished from the beginning, therefore users felt comfortable to comment and take part in discussions. The calendar for updates was made in order to be more strategic, in this way users do not forget about the existence of the brand. To analyse the fan pages, Facebook created an overview graphs, which show the traffic that was drawn by users The main aim of the Facebook fan page is to draw more traffic to the main web-shop (www.outlawfreelancers.com) and increasing sales. The website analysis did not show much change in the first 2 month, where after that period traffic increased and t-shirts were selling, but in very small quantities. This 4 month observation has showed the first signs that the fan pages on Facebook might not be enough to advertise the brand, therefore traditional needs to also be used. Outlaw Freelancers SWOT analysis Strengths Individual networking Word of mouth communication Immediate Internet presence through social media Quality product Weaknesses Lack of name recognition Advertising only through social media Competition with established brands No guarantee of sale through social media Opportunities Rise in sales Brand expansion to wider range of products (e.g. pans, jumpers, ladies wear) Developing international presents Retail sales Threats Getting the right message across to the right target group Becoming price competitive Shifting trends 4.2 NIKE Field research: Interview with Lauren Jane McBridge who is working on Brand Communication within Northern Europe at NIKE, dealing with brand marketing through social media. Aim of the interview: In this interview researcher would like to find out the way big company like NIKE operates within the social media in comparison to a small company like Outlaw Freelancers. Lauren McBridge was contacted, who is being responsible for brand communication within Nothern Europe to find out the information the researcher was looking for. Social media at NIKE: At the NIKE headquarters in Hilversum, Brand communication department is responsible for social media in Europe, all the other parts of the world are covered in different headquarters such as United States of America and Russia. Lauren McBridge is mostly responsible for covering Northern part of Europe and countries such as: Denmark, Belgium, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands and Finland. NIKE uses few social media networks such as Twitter, Facebook and Hyves in Netherlands. The main network that is being frequently used is Facebook. Laurens main tasks include monitoring Facebook fan pages, analysing responses of the users, and overall looking at the success of different social media campaigns. The analysing process is made through graphs and responses on the fan pages, which calculate the number of visitors in the certain period, feedbacks and the highest ratings. After analysing the feedback the information is calculated and can be used in the next campaign, considering the information that have gotten the highest response. The success of the social media campaigns is also calculated through sales in stores as well as online. For example when a product is posted on a Facebook page, with a link to a web shop, NIKE is watching the response of the consumer online, as well as comparing it to the number of sales of that particular item. Taking into consideration that NIKE is a major publicly trade sportswear and the worlds leading supplier of athletic shoes and apparel, every country that NIKE is represented in needs a different approach in social media networks. Everything depends on the culture and sport events that are taking place. At NIKE there are usually one or two people who are involved in social media for each country, who update public profiles and give responses to the public when it is needed. This is relatively different approach that that of HM, where there is only one existing Facebook fan page. It contrast to NIKE here which admits on having various different fan pages, one for each country. NIKE Facebook pages can be updated quite frequently, sometimes even more then once a day, depending on the current situation with events. The content calendar is used in order to balance the posts. It is important not to be pushy or concentrating on sales as well as to keep the posts high quality, as every socia l media page carries the reputation of the global brand. Facebook users like to feel special, so the main task is to inform and generate interactions. Sometimes the response might come out negative, in which case it is important to reply in the right way, which will give the brand more credibility. A very similar method, is used by HM. It was demonstrated in the questionnaire, sent to the employee, when she was asked in question 5 about the companys reaction or response to negative comments. Her answer was as follow, If theres a need, we always do our best to respond. Facebook vs. Twitter and Hyves: The main social media website that NIKE is involved with is Facebook. It seems to be the most convenient network for the brand, with the biggest amount of users. Twitter, on the other hand, was used in the case of a big event (e.g. World Cup) which added the account a lot of followers, but did not come out as successful as Facebook. For the company the outcome is important, the attention of users, and Twitter did not show as much enthusiasm. Hyves, is the most popular social network site in the Netherlands, with mainly Dutch visitors, therefore it was essential to make a Hyves account for NIKE. Hyves is being used quite frequently and the content is different from Facebook, to keep the user interested. But then again, Facebook pages seems to draw more interest. A lot of countries all over the world have their own social networks, where they use mother tongue as the main language. The examples of those networks are Vkontakte in Russia and Mixi in Japan. Representatives of NIKE that work for social media for those countries monitoring the pages that are specially made for users of more localized networks. NIKE has few Facebook fan pages, depending on the audience they want to attract, for example male or female. The voice behind every post needs to be relating to the consumer. Therefore it is important to consider user differences in social network. Costs As much as social media can be considered a free of charge marketing, in the big companies like NIKE costs can be involved from time to time. There are special agencies that can be used to maintain Facebook fan pages, which includes clearing spam walls and any old tabs that are not used any more. It is important to include those agencies when the big events are coming up (e.g. Sponsoring Football games). Professional marketeers are able to figure out when is the best time to post certain information to get the best outcome. Most of the images that are used in the social media campaigns are sent from the global office in the United States, with the correct description. Here is the example of the new product post from NIKE Woman Facebook fan page : To summaries the post, it is clear that NIKE is trying to advertise the product, but after reading the information below the image, you become more informed where you can use the product, and relate to a sprinter like Allyson. Another marketing trick that NIKE used in this post is communication with the Facebook users. They are asking a question, and asking consumers to be creative with the ways to wear a product. By answering users feel important, and waiting curiously for the results, if their answer was the most creative one. This trick is used by a lot of companies who want to get on a more personal level with their consumers. Analysis 4.3 HM Following the interview of

Reincarnation Essay examples -- Law of Karma Papers

Reincarnation I suppose in the world, today, there are really three approaches to the idea of reincarnation. A two-fold one in the West, where the idea itself is almost non-existent, either a belief in the transmigration of souls - that you could be a human being in one life and an animal in the next, and therefore that there is great danger in swiping flies and treading on ants because it could be your grandmother -- or simply an interest in past lives. That is almost the sole interest in the concept of rebirth in the West. In the East, broadly speaking, people do believe in reincarnation and, correctly, in relation to the Law of Karma. Unfortunately, even in the East, the Law of Karma is seen from an erroneous point of view. Of course, here and there, both in East and West, there is a correct interpretation and approach to the idea of rebirth, and its close connection with the Law of Action and Reaction, Cause and Effect. In the Orient, most people believing in the Law of Karma accept that they are who and where they are because of their actions in a previous life, which is true; but, unfortunately, they think they can do nothing about changing their particular situation, which is not true. In the West, we tend to think that we are totally in control of our destiny, which we are to some extent, but that there is no greater law governing our destiny, which is not true. The Westerner tends to reject the idea of a future life. It is an idea which is only just beginning to engage people's minds. If he thinks about it at all, he really thinks about it in terms of: If I have a future life, I must have had a past life; and if I had a past life it is interesting to know w... ...ally artificial and man-made. The poverty, the squalor, the degradation and the misery of people in the Third World is not necessary, it is not a result of karma, but of our greed. And we have the major responsibility to help them change these conditions and enter true living. People think of karma as always from the past life, but what about yesterday's karma, or the day before, last week's, last month's karma? It is this succession of moments of action and reaction which today we are coping with, which tomorrow and in our next life we will cope with. Until we come into right relationship with each other and with the whole of which we are a part, we will go on making bad karma. It is more important, more useful, to realize the benefit of right relationship, thus handling the Laws of Karma and Rebirth correctly, than to know our past lives.

The persistence Of Memory Salvador Dali

The movement began in the ass's in Paris by a man named Sigmund Freud. Surrealism is used in contemporary society with a lot of advertisement. It is used to influence someone even more in purchasing a product. Salvador Dali (5. 11 . 1904 – 1. 23. 1989) was born in Figures, Spain. He is a Spanish artist that was best known for his painting, â€Å"The Persistence of Memory. † His striking and bizarre images are what caught peoples eye. Many of his paintings reflect his love of Port Light in Spain.He as never limited to a specific style or media. The Persistence of Memory is a very popular and special piece of art. It was Dalais theory of softness† and hardness. † The strange monster that lies on the floor is used in many of his artworks. It has one eye closed with several eyelashes, suggesting that the monster is also in a dream like state. The clocks symbolize the passing of time in a dream. The orange clock is covered by ants. Dali used ants often to represe nt decay.In this portrait Dali uses indeed techniques for shaping and building objects. Warm and cool colors are used in this portrait. This also brings out the tones. The texture is quite smooth and clean. There are circles, rectangles, triangles, and many shapes throughout this painting. It has a nice feeling of space and balance which helps bring out the contrast, rhythm and harmony by sharing it around. There isn't really a focal point since there are things all over the place. The Persistence of memory has many interpretations.In act, Dali would actually purposely create his paintings to make it difficult for people to criticize. Maybe the meaning was simply making people imagine there in a dream when they experience this artwork. Salvador Dali painted in a way to capture the human mind into an illusion or dream like situation. According to today's society, he is relevant in the way of his ideas and creations, however irrelevant in his style and mind. His ideas and creations ar e very mind, his style and mind is quite old fashioned however still extraordinary. By shenanigan

Lama Surya Das and the American Dharma

Buddhism is gaining popularity and acceptance with the American public. This could be credited to the immigrants to the USA wherein some of them brought with them their culture and religion and influenced the Americans to follow them. According to Lama Surya Das, there are many factors that influenced the acceptance of Buddhism in the western countries and this acceptance lead to a unique American Buddhism. His article â€Å"Ten Emerging Trends of Western Dharma† details the characteristics of the American Buddhism that sets its identity and tells how and why Buddhism was accepted by the American community.According to Das, American Buddhism is unique since it is meditation-based such that understanding of life and personal growth is attained. It is made it more accessible to the masses and gender equality is promoted. Some of the ways of the traditional Buddhism are also omitted to make it simpler and other meditation practices are accepted to make it more appealing. Spiritua l development is also focused to promote good psychological and emotional welfare. Exploring beyond the doctrines of Buddhism is also promoted to allow independence and self development.Spiritual communities are also encouraged to strengthen the links with each other and to develop a sense of moral and social obligation. These premises can depict the American Buddhism as different from other forms of Buddhism. This difference could then be attributed to the fact that the Americans have a different cultural background and environment such that they accepted and did only those components of Buddhism that fits them. However, Das’ premises contain some vague ideas that are insufficient to say that there is a unique American Buddhism.Some forms of Buddhism are also meditation-based, some also observe gender equality, some are also focused on the spiritual development of a person and some are also promoting spiritual communities to inculcate a sense of moral and social obligation. Omission of a component and focusing on other components doesn’t always mean that it is already a new thing. It is still patterned from the original and the difference was just due to the attitude of the people accepting it.It’s like in the revival of a classic song into a different genre, the song could have a slightly different tune or tempo, but that doesn’t make the song a new song. It was just revived and remodeled to fit the preference of the listening public. Nevertheless, Das stressed that those are just trends he observed and the existence of a genuine American Buddhism has a long way to go. But still, if his trends would be more unambiguous, it is possible that a new form of Buddhism could really take form in America.It is important to note that the acceptance of Buddhism in America is slow. This could be attributed to the fact that America is largely a Christian country, with teachings different from that of Buddhism. However, if Das’ trends ar e accurate, such that American Buddhism is non-sectarian and is open to anyone, it is possible that the American public’s reaction could shift and accept it for the meditation and the other benefits. It is most likely to happen nowadays since American life is a very busy and stressful life.If the practices of the American Buddhism could fit in with the lifestyle of the Americans, more people could be influenced to follow its teachings and practices. It will then be a few steps closer to achieving a genuine American Buddhism. Nonetheless, if the openness of the American Buddhism to other traditions and Das’ argument about Buddhism being not a religion would be pointed out, it will appear that American Buddhism would not materialize as a different religion. This means that the American Dharma would just look like a program or routine that will fit in the lifestyle of the Americans.This is because the people who would practice the Dharma would not need to convert themselv es and retain their former religion. They would follow the Dharma just for the meditation and the enlightenment it brings. This would then make it very appealing to the American Public and make it recruit more followers since it would easily fit in their lives. To sum it all up, I can say that genuine American Buddhism still has a long away to reality. But still, the efforts those people who brought Buddhism to America will not be a waste, and they would be able to harvest the fruit of their labors.

Alexamara Marine Group Case database management - Smart Custom Writing Samples

Alexamara Marine Group Case database management - Smart Custom Writing Globalization and Information Technology on the Computer IndustryAbstract The benefits of the effects of globalization have been tremendous over the last thirty years. The emergence of new technologies has brought about efficiency in the research process, production and the distribution of goods and services. Globalization has reduced the cost of communication and interactions between businesses have been made possible. This paper will look into the effects of globalisation in relation to the motor vehicle industry in Japan.   Central to the focus of this paper are the changes that have taken place in the automobile industry in Japan and their underlying causes.   Focus will also be given to how information communication technology has contributed to the restructuring of automobile industry in Japan, and how the industry has over the years responded to globalisation to reach the current position of leadership in the auto industry, bringing immense benefits to society through innovation of quality and affordable automobiles. The paper will address the c hallenges faced in the process of realizing globalization and the possible solutions are recommended. Attention will also be give to the role of government and civil society organizations in the process of globalization. Introduction Globalization refers to is the reduction in the autonomy pf individual states due to the gradual increase in the global interdependence among states, individuals and social economic organizations. The advent of the era of information technology has gradually integrated the nations of the world into the global economy. The rise in globalization is attributable to the spread in the use of information technology networks. The current globalization is driven by knowledge and technology, unlike earlier ones which were based on ideology.   In reference to James (2002), the influence of information technology on globalization takes into account not only the numerous forms of information technology, but also the embodiment of globalization in several dimensions, the most outstanding of which concerns the volume of international trade as a percentage of world output and the extent to which that trade is a component of foreign direct investment, FDI (p.1).   The flow of capital to poorer n ations implies creation of employment and elevation of the standards of living. Before looking at the benefits that society has gained as a result of globalisation, it is imperative that the areas that globalisation has affected the most and the ways in which these effects are manifested be looked into. Kenney and Florida (2004) on the effects of globalisation, state that globalisation can be divided into four major dynamics which include: the globalisation of markets; the globalisation of production; the globalisation of ownership and the globalisation of products (p.55). The globalization of markets refers to access to market that are beyond a corporation’s country of origin, while globalization of production refers to the establishment of production units in other countries other that the country of origin. Globalization of ownership is the ownership of corporations by shareholders from various nations. This is made possible through mergers, acquisitions or takeovers. Globalization fosters the development and spread of technologies, especially information and telecommunication technologies that allow for the free flow of information all over the world. Apparently, globalisation is closely intertwined with international and migration resulting in the transformation of economic relations and structures among and within countries. This interconnection is promoted chiefly by the expansion, rapid spread and use of information technology. According to James (2002), information technology influences international trade and foreign direct investments by reducing the transactional costs, thus leading to the increase in the volume of international transactions, between independent buyers and seller as well as large multinational corporations (p.1). In reference to a World Bank report on globalisation (2009), closely linked globalisation to the spread of democracy and democratic institutions in the world (p.7).   This means that the most competitive shall win. The globalization of market opens doors for competition top set in. those companies that will have superior products can effectively compete with other companies beyond their national boundaries. According to Richard and Florida (2004), the Japanese automakers to penetration of the United States market in the 1960s and 1970s through exports, which coincided with the short-lived rise in gasoline prices, was a remarkable success compared with the low quality Ford’s Pinto and General Motors Vega (p.56). As a result of the new found market I n the United States, motor vehicle production in Japan rose from an insignificant 300, 000 units in 1960 to about eleven million units in 1982, which besides the strengthening Japan’s largely protected domestic market of about 5 million units and exports of about 6 million units, elevated Japan to dominate in world finished vehicle exports by a wide margin (p.57). Japan maintains the lead in the automobile industry due to heavy investme nt in research and development. The quest for global competitiveness will drive corporations to conduct research therefore coming up with superior technologies and innovations that can improve society.   Research Findings and Discussion The Japanese automobile industry became globally competitive due to focus on lean manufacturing and rapid development which producers to achieve high standards of quality with low defects and high output per worker.  Ã‚   The success of Japanese motor vehicles purely rested on their competitive productive system and their attention to quality improvements that involve lower inventories, timely part deliveries, high performance work organization and continuous improvement programs for enhanced quality and productivity. The mass production of quality motor vehicles by Japanese automakers ensured that the society enjoys the availability and use of quality motor vehicles. The transformation of Japanese automobile industry led to the rise in employment opportunities as well as the product output and the subsequent reinforcement of Japanese national economy. Without globalisation, access to quality vehicles by American society could not have been possible. Competition by manufacturers gives the consumers opportunities to make the best choice of the goods that best meet their needs at a price that they can afford. According to Wagner (2002), globalization required that producers and employees globally were to increasingly compete on globally integrated markets (p.166). As noted earlier one of the ways in which globalization occurs is when multinational companies establish production units outside their countries of origin. Following the three year domestic sales slump that the Japanese automobile market experienced in the early 1990s, the industry had to come up with a new strategic response through restructuring and rationalization. This scenario presented a striking contrast, since the Japanese industry was known to be competitive and had posted a continued rise in profits from the 1980s. According to shimokawa (2010) the profits had fallen by half in most of the firms and others recorded even lower profits. Additionally, one of the factors that contributed to the shrinkage in Japanese exports and apparently a setback to globalization is the heightened trade friction with competitors. This was even compounded by the strengthening of the yen, which led to the deterioration in export earnings. The new strategy that the industry considered imperativ e was the internationalization of the automobile industry. Taking advantage of the timely diffusion of the use of advanced technology in the lean system of automobile production, Japanese automobile manufactures stayed ahead of the competition.   Information technology in Japan permeates other sectors that are supportive of the auto industry such as the financial sector which avails money for investment, as well as the steel industry which uses IT both for processing and for product innovation. According to OECD (1998), Japanese automobile manufacturing firms took measures to gradually replace simple automated devices with numerically controlled tools, industrial robots and flexible transfer machines (p.148). The adoption of this technology afforded the flexibility needed for cost effective production of small volumes while at the same time not compromising on quality. The concept of electronification is rapidly changing product technology. Product and development of new strategies coupled with the direction of research and development. Be sides some micro-electronics and IT-based innovation, these new technologies were also used outside Japan in  Ã‚   the United States and Europe and other component firms. Different from the United States though, the diffusion of this technology was faster in Japan and was gradually upgraded as the demand for product variety arose.   The use of the lean and the integrated system in retailing is one of the best innovations. According to OECD (1998) the use of computer integrated production systems has made production engineering capable of assembling sub-assembled components from suppliers with minimum adjustment to robots (p.144). Being ‘lean’, and having a microelectronics and IT-based system, the performance of the automotive industry changed radically, due to increased productivity,   lowered cost of production influenced by reduced labor requirements,   the improvement of the product quality and increased flexibility of automobile production. The Japanese competitive advantage also lay in their completely different system of producing and organizing automobile production, a system termed as lean production. The success of Japan was deemed as a second revolution, due to the fact that they replicated mass production which was introduced by Henry Ford. The kaizen principles, or the principles of constant improvement by employees at work, were deemed to be equally universal.   According top Hook and Hasegawa (2001), owing to the universalistic view that implied that any firm in the car industry could and should learn from the Japanese way in order to survive, drove the some German managers who were seeking to regain profitability to learn from the Japanese model (p.132). It has been noted that rationalization and restructuring efforts from early 1990s not only focused on introducing Japanese style management and organization practices, but it also became radical and far reaching and tended to monopolize restructuring discussions. Japanese organization model organizes the workforce into teams who are the subjected to intense training, and they have to change tasks as frequently as possible on the factory floor hence ensuring that they are flexible and versatile. The training and experience for multiple skills and greater in the labor force as OECD (1998) indicates, improves the motivation of the worker and tends to reduce absenteeism (p.149).   The difference in the approach to research and development between Japanese corporations and other firms is that worker suggestions are valued and workers contribute greatly to research and development. Hook and Hasegawa (2001) conclude Japanese economic success was vital in that it gave a decisive push for reform and served as an important instrument in the implementation of reforms in the German industry (p.136). The Japanese model of management was also adopted in other countries that Japan had out competed in the auto industry such as the United States and the United Kingdom. Many other emerging auto makers such as India, china, Russia, and other European and Asiatic countries are demonstrating the importance of successful globalization by adopting the Japanese production and management model. For Japan the 1970s were the height of the country’s economic upturn, with the high rise in exports to the rest of the then American-dominated free world. It is during these years that Japan ceased to be a debtor nation, and the balance of payments favored Japan due to manufacture of cars and electronic equipment such as radios. Shokinawa (2010) elaborates that the globalization effort occurred twofold: firstly it involved the expansion of local production capacity in industrialized nations of North America and Europe and secondly the extension of local production initiatives and cooperative division of labor to serve the populous china and south East Asian markets (p.59). The number of locally produced cars could soon rise to overtake the rate of production in the firms at home. The establishment of a production unit in the largest of Japan’s overseas automotive market was meant to not only supplement exports, but also a strategic environment where strategically import ant model types needed in America could be produced .the establishment of local production units in the United states is beneficial in that a new deal to increase the procurement of United states-made parts by Japanese auto makers has been signed. In reference to Shimokawa (2010), the strategy of globalization in North America has taken three dimensions: firstly   the localization of management at factory level, especially those that pertain to human resources development, training, evaluation and quality control activities, secondly the expansion of procurement to broaden   the relationship with local suppliers in order to increase the level of local content (p.60).   In addition, the localization of the research and development related activities, giving the hosting country’s experts the opportunity to be involved in the design and development of the auto mobiles. The globalization of the Japanese automobile industry in this context has resulted in the creation of job opportunities in the United States, and apparently, many United States employees are assuming an increasingly central role in the areas of production at the Japanese transplant operations. The standard of living is also elevated by the availability of quality and affordable automobiles which can be used to create more value in other sector of the economy. The purpose of moving production to a new location is to tap the advantages of cheap labor. This is a strategy employed to enter into new markets and market segments, while taking advantage to reduce the cost of key success factors. The impact of internalization of Japanese automobile industry has not been without challenges. Shimokawa (2010), shows that while the United States automobile industry deteriorated markedly in the 1980s in response to the effects of the first and second oil shocks in of 1973 and 1979 respectively, the Japanese automobile industry production levels reached 100 million units per year and became a strong international competitor, and as a consequence, there was increased protectionism in the United states and Europe (p.8).   The promotion and assistance of private manufacturers by the Japanese ministry of international trade and industry,   (MITI), attracted criticism from American businessmen, especially those involved in the stagnant and bloated American automobile industry claiming that Japan was employing monopolistic and other unfair trading practices. The promotion of local industries b the Japanese government was through the liberalization of the financial markets so that investors in the auto industry could access loans or could raise capital through the capital markets. In addition, the Japanese government imposed restrictive tariffs on imported products that competed with what Japan produced. Of primary significance was the accusation that Japan was restricting its markets, making foreign imports too costly to compete with Japanese domestic products, the main discontent being about agricultural products. Japan had subjected imports to overly restrictive inspections, quarantines and tariffs that were discriminative of foreign firms. Shimokowa (2010) argues that Japan employed the strategy of subsidizing its products with a view to  Ã‚   capturing the market share, and not to drive foreign manufacturers to bankruptcy as had been alleged (p.65). The prices of Japanese products abroad were cheaper than those of competing companies, the consequence of which was the accusation of Japan as having had intentions to destroy competition. Interestingly according to law (1991), the rise in demand in the United States and Europe for Japanese cars due to their high energy efficiency caused trade friction between the United Kingdom and France and Japanese companies. Subsequently, Britain asked Japanese companies to limit their share in the UK market to below 10 percent, while France requested them to maintain below 3 percent (p.104).   This move motivated Japan to establish car making units in these countries, since producing from within them will not attract criticism like when the cars are exported to these countries. In addition, despite the employees being union-free, Japanese transplants occasionally face the challenges of resolving disputes and handling complaints from local employees. The pre-dominant view point was that Japan achieved superior labor productivity as a result of lower wages despite the subsidized land cots. Shokinawa (2010) indicates that the corporation has embraced the challenge though, and conducts major annual surveys and three smaller surveys in order to find out the potential sources of dissatisfaction (p.63).Besides minimizing disputes in the corporation such initiatives will boost the morale and pride of the employees, hence will feel valued and appreciated by their employer. This approach can be used as a model in employee management in other corporations. International migration has also been a great challenge to globalization since illegal migrations erode the sovereignty of states.   According to Hook and Hasegawa (2001) with the rising globalization, there has been interplay among private market forces and Japanese society’s tolerance or otherwise of immigration and the governments efforts to regulate immigration to accord with or resist the forces of globalization (p.12). The free movement of goods and services is imperative for the process of globalization to be smooth. Even of more critical necessity for globalization is the flow of labor across political boundaries. The movement of people from one nation to another will facilitate the transfer of technology and expertise thus the host community has a long term benefit of gaining technological know-how.   In addition, the local community will benefit from the corporate social responsibility initiatives that the companies will be engaged with. The companies have also established programs through which employees can record their complaints anonymously by phone with the company pledging to respond to them. The use of third party to listen to employees’ complaints and implementation of the recommendations made, coupled with occasional roundtable meeting between employees and the management and the use of democratic avenues to involve employees in decision making activities in the company are helpful unbiased approaches in dispute resolution. At the same time, suggestion activities and quality controls have been used in other automobile firms, such as Honda. The quality control are incorporated into comprehensive efforts called voluntary improvement program, the objective of which is to find out how and why certain problems occur and to build strong foundations and disciplines that will act as models in solving problems of the same nature in future. Shokinawa (2010) iterates that companies also target to create a kind o f environment in which quality control becomes a natural and consistently used element of corporate culture (p.64). The negation of the lean production practices with a view to meeting the demands of the growing market through creation of new models and mass production of existing ones, worked against the industry evidenced by the sharp rise in fixed costs. This means that much investment was done on research and development. These advanced methods of dispute resolution in firms are the products of globalization and the quest for sustainable competitive advantage and developing a global brand name. In the process, the highest quality products are manufactured and the best customer care services are offered thus boosting the quality of life. The disadvantage with this though is that infant industries that may not have reached levels of competing favorably with multi nationals will be phased out of the market, or will be merger, acquired or taken over by multinational companies. In view of protecting infant industries, a country may be forced to enforce protectionism laws, scuttling the efforts to p romote globalization. Part of the challenges that auto makers face and have had to restructure in order to mitigate the growing adverse effect is global warming. Most affected are the developing countries that have experienced the adverse effects of droughts, famines, heat waves, rising sea levels and floods, all these attributable to global warming. According to Ijioui, Emmerich and Ceyp (2009), the fear of global warming in the year 2008 coupled with the drastic rise in raw material and oil prices triggered the response of the automobile industry (p.187).   The consumption of oil products began to change and preference shifted to more ecologically intelligent products. According to law (1991), the passing of the energy plan and bill rendering illegal the sale and manufacture of cars with energy efficiency under the stipulated standard, stimulated commercial demand for Japanese cars with high efficiency (p.104). Auto makers that seek sustainability in the global market have to comply with the green ene rgy requirements. Interestingly, due to the challenges of global warming in the recent years, the responsibility of automobile companies has expanded to include ways of controlling green house gas emissions. In reference to shimokawa (2010), the twenty- first century automobile industry faces challenges that go beyond the confines of automotive technology such as the prevention of global warming and commitment to zero emission as part of the collective effort on issues that pertain to global environment, eliminate wasted resources and environmental degradation through mass production, sales, disposal and the provision of safe transport system (p.4).   The emergence of these new challenges in the world and the commitment of the players in the automotive industry to curb their devastating effect on the global environment through corporate social responsibility are beneficial to society. Multinational companies in rich and developed nations take huge amounts of capital. Climate change conventions and the Kyoto protocol requires that companies in industrialized nations, which cannot cut the emission of green house gases, should establish clean energy projects in developing countries that a re suffering the devastating effects of climate change.   Government and civil society as well are responsible for mounting pressure on the companies that emit green house gases to take responsibility for their actions, failure to which punitive measures will be taken. Civil society in Japan has played a great role in highlighting the problems that crises in corporations can bring. Civil society can actively challenge crises that arise from corporate or government activities since it is independent of both the state and the market.   In reference to Schwartz and Pharr (2003), civil society in industrialized democratic nations, like Japan, are concerned with such issues as straight forward purchasing of goods and services in the market (p.13).   The civil society has always been involved in the political and social reinvigoration of Japan. The globalization of the automotive industry in Japan brought along with it relative weaknesses upon consumers and citizens. According to Bunker and cicantell (2007), the relative power of corporations over citizens and consumers as far as crises are concerned such as pollution are dictated by Japan’s political economy. This weakness of consumers and citizens resulted in high prices in domestic markets, formal and informal limitation on imports and the operation of cartels that restricted competition. They also protected inefficient firms and state agencies at the cost of the consumers. The existence of some sort of civil society groups acted to oppose unfair trade and to lobby for the promotion of fair trade both locally and globally. The work of civil society is to ensure that corporations are following the laid down business procedures and that they carry out their business in a manner that is ethical. Conclusion In summation, globalization is a means through which the world can realize high standards of production. As companies grow to the level of competing globally, focus on research and development is imperative if the products are to be competitive. Having looked at the case of Japanese automobile industry, it is evident that internal control and effective management and not the availability of low cost employees are what counts in the realization of efficiency and competitiveness. It is noteworthy that globalization presents a platform for leading and competitive firms to set standards that other firm in the same industry can emulate, thus raising not only the quality of the goods produced, but also the standard of living of the consumers. This is made possible since globalization breaks international boundaries and allows customers to access goods and services of their own choice. Globalization makes easier the process of technology transfer. Information technology is an agent of efficiency in almost every industry as its use results in the cutting of transactional costs. Use of robots in car making for example saves on manpower expenses and promotes efficiency as well. That a global company must be competitive means that the employees it absorbs must globally competitive. This means that globalization promotes the transfer of expertise through cross border establishment of production units. Exceptions though exist, in circumstances when a company may pay very low wages.   Although the setback of diminishing domestic industries exists, the flow of FDIs from rich nations to developing nations means that jobs are created for the citizens of the host country, thus elevating their standards of living. The removal of international trade barriers implies a wider market and hence a larger volume of trade for competitive companies. Therefore, the bottlenecks such as sour labor relations, industry protectionism, and unfair competition through limiting access to markets, hoarding of technology for the purposes of exploitation and limited access to some market due to limited technology should addressed. Policies and laws should be put in place to ensure that access to the benefits of globalization is a reality for, if possible, all nations. Civil society, which acts as an unbiased party in trade and government should be involved in making laws that will govern globalization. The presence of civil society in the context of globalization will help lobbying for the removal of oppressive labor laws, besides generally acting to ensure that fairness is observed.   For highly globalized companies, the creation of products and international operations should take place in autonomous organizational units, with specific market, legislative and technical know-how. The combined effect of a strong corporate culture, values, and eagerness to learn new things and flexibility are the preconditions for a globally competitive organization in the future. References Bunker, S. Ciccantell, P. (2007). East Asia and the global economy: Japan's ascent, with implications for China's future. Baltimore: JHU Press. Hook, G. Hasegawa, H. (2001). The political economy of Japanese globalization. London: Routledge. Ijioui, et al. (2009).Globalization 2.0: A Roadmap to the Future from Leading Minds. Heidelberg: Springer. Kenney, M Florida, R. (2004). Locating global advantage: industry dynamics in the international economy.   Stanford CA:   Stanford University Press.James, W. (2007). Driving from Japan: Japanese Cars in America. Jefferson, NC:   McFarland. Law, C. (1991). Restructuring the global automobile industry: national and regional impacts. London: Routledge. OECD. (1998). Science, Technology and Industry Outlook. OECD Publishing. Schwartz, F. Pharr, S. (2003). The state of civil society in Japan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Shimokawa, K. (2010). Japan and the Global Automotive Industry. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. Wagner, H. (2000). Globalization and unemployment. Heidelberg:   Springer.

The History of Delphi

The History of Delphi This document provides concise descriptions of Delphi versions and its history, along with a brief list of features and notes. Find out how Delphi evolved from Pascal to a RAD tool that can help you solve complex development problems to deliver high-performance, highly scalable applications ranging from desktop and database applications to mobile and distributed applications for the Internet Ââ€" not only for Windows but also for Linux and the .NET. What is Delphi?Delphi is a high-level, compiled, strongly typed language that supports structured and object-oriented design. Delphi language is based on Object Pascal. Today, Delphi is much more than simply Object Pascal language. The roots: Pascal and its historyThe origin of Pascal owes much of its design to Algol - the first high-level language with a readable, structured, and systematically defined syntax. In the late sixties (196X), several proposals for an evolutionary successor to Algol were developed. The most successful one was Pascal, defined by Prof. Niklaus Wirth. Wirth published the original definition of Pascal in 1971. It was implemented in 1973 with some modifications. Many of the features of Pascal came from earlier languages. The case statement, and value-result parameter passing came from Algol, and the records structures were similar to Cobol and PL 1. Besides cleaning up or leaving out some of Algols more obscure features, Pascal added the capability to define new data types out of simpler existing ones. Pascal also supported dynamic data structures; i.e., data structures which can grow and shrink while a program is running. The language was designed to be a teaching tool for students of p rogramming classes. In 1975, Wirth and Jensen produced the ultimate Pascal reference book Pascal User Manual and Report. Wirth stopped its work on Pascal in 1977 to create a new language, Modula - the successor to Pascal. Borland PascalWith the release (November 1983) of Turbo Pascal 1.0, Borland started its journey into the world of development environments and tools. To create Turbo Pascal 1.0 Borland licensed the fast and inexpensive Pascal compiler core, written by Anders Hejlsberg. Turbo Pascal introduced an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) where you could edit the code, run the compiler, see the errors, and jump back to the lines containing those errors. Turbo Pascal compiler has been one of the best-selling series of compilers of all time, and made the language particularly popular on the PC platform. In 1995 Borland revived its version of Pascal when it introduced the rapid application development environment named Delphi - turning Pascal into a visual programming language. The strategic decision was to make database tools and connectivity a central part of the new Pascal product. The roots: DelphiAfter the release of Turbo Pascal 1, Anders joined the company as an employee and was the architect for all versions of the Turbo Pascal compiler and the first three versions of Delphi. As a chief architect at Borland, Hejlsberg secretly turned Turbo Pascal into an object-oriented application development language, complete with a truly visual environment and superb database-access features: Delphi. What follows on the next two pages, is a concise description of Delphi versions and its history, along with a brief list of features and notes. Now, that we know what Delphi is and where are its roots, its time to take a trip into the past... Why the name Delphi?As explained in the Delphi Museum article, project codenamed Delphi hatched in mid 1993. Why Delphi? It was simple: If you want to talk to [the] Oracle, go to Delphi. When it came time to pick a retail product name, after an article in Windows Tech Journal about a product that will change the life of programmers, the proposed (final) name was AppBuilder. Since Novell released its Visual AppBuilder, the guys at Borland needed to pick another name; it became a bit of a comedy: the harder people tried to dismiss Delphi for the product name, the more it gained support. Once touted as the VB killer Delphi has remained a cornerstone product for Borland. Note: some of the links below marked with an asterix (*), using the Internet Archive WayBackMachine, will take you several years in the past, showing how Delphi site looked long-ago.The rest of the links will point you to a more in-depth look at what each (new) technology is about, with tutorials and articles. Delphi 1 (1995)Delphi, Borlands powerful Windows programming development tool first appeared in 1995. Delphi 1 extended the Borland Pascal language by providing object-orientated and form-based approach, extremely fast native code compiler, visual two-way tools and great database support, close integration with Windows and the component technology. Heres the Visual Component Library First Draft Delphi 1* slogan:Delphi and Delphi Client/Server are the only development tools that provide the Rapid Application Development (RAD) benefits of visual component-based design, the power of an optimizing native code compiler and a scalable client/server solution. HereÂ’s what were the 7 Top Reasons to Buy Borland Delphi 1.0 Client/Server* Delphi 2 (1996)Delphi 2* is the only Rapid Application Development tool that combines the performance of the worlds fastest optimizing 32-bit native-code compiler, the productivity of visual component-based design, and the flexibility of scalable database architecture in a robust object-oriented environment. Delphi 2, beside being developed for the Win32 platform (full Windows 95 support and integration), brought improved database grid, OLE automation and variant data type support, the long string data type and Visual Form Inheritance. Delphi 2: the Ease of VB with the Power of C Delphi 3 (1997)The most comprehensive set of visual, high-performance, client and server development tools for creating distributed enterprise and Web-enabled applications. Delphi 3* introduced new features and enhancements in the following areas: the code insight technology, DLL debugging, component templates, the DecisionCube and TeeChart components, the WebBroker technology, ActiveForms, component packages, and integration with COM through interfaces. Delphi 4 (1998)Delphi 4* is a comprehensive set of professional and client/server development tools for building high productivity solutions for distributed computing. Delphi provides Java interoperability, high performance database drivers, CORBA development, and Microsoft BackOffice support. Youve never had a more productive way to customize, manage, visualize and update data. With Delphi, you deliver robust applications to production, on time and on budget. Delphi 4 introduced docking, anchoring and constraining components. New features included the AppBrowser, dynamic arrays, method overloading, Windows 98 support, improved OLE and COM support as well as extended database support. Delphi 5 (1999)High-productivity development for the Internet Delphi 5* introduced many new features and enhancements. Some, among many others, are: various desktop layouts, the concept of frames, parallel development, translation capabilities, enhanced integrated debugger, new Internet capabilities (XML), more database power (ADO support), etc. Then, in 2000, Delphi 6 was the first tool to fully supports new and emerging Web Services ... What follows is a concise description of most recent Delphi versions, along with a brief list of features and notes. Delphi 6 (2000)Borland Delphi is the first rapid application development environment for Windows that fully supports new and emerging Web Services. With Delphi, corporate or individual developers can create next-generation e-business applications quickly and easily. Delphi 6 introduced new features and enhancements in the following areas: IDE, Internet, XML, Compiler, COM/Active X, Database support...WhatÂ’s more, Delphi 6 added the support for cross-platform development Ââ€" thus enabling the same code to be compiled with Delphi (under Windows) and Kylix (under Linux). More enhancements included: support for Web Services, the DBExpress engine, new components and classes... Delphi 7 (2001)Borland Delphi 7 Studio provides the migration path to Microsoft .NET that developers have been waiting for. With Delphi, the choices are always yours: youre in control of a complete e-business development studio Ââ€" with the freedom to easily take your solutions cross-platform to Linux. Delphi 8For the 8th anniversary of Delphi, Borland prepared the most significant Delphi release: Delphi 8 continues to provide Visual Component Library (VCL) and Component Library for Cross-platform (CLX) development for Win32 (and Linux) as well as new features and continued framework, compiler, IDE, and design time enhancements. Delphi 2005 (part of Borland Developer Studio 2005)Diamondback is the code name of the next Delphi release. The new Delphi IDE supports multiple personalities. It supports Delphi for Win 32, Delphi for .NET and C#... Delphi 2006 (part of Borland Developer Studio 2006)BDS 2006 (code named DeXter) includes complete RAD support for C and C# in addition to Delphi for Win32 and Delphi for .NET programming languages. Turbo Delphi - for Win32 and .Net developmentTurbo Delphi line of products is a subset of the BDS 2006. CodeGear Delphi 2007Delphi 2007 released in March 2007. Delphi 2007 for Win32 is primarily targeted at Win32 developers wanting to upgrade their existing projects to include full Vista support - themed applications and VCL support for glassing, file dialogs, and Task Dialog components. Embarcadero Delphi 2009Embarcadero Delphi 2009. Support for .Net dropped. Delphi 2009 has unicode support, new language features like Generics and Anonymous methods, the Ribbon controls, DataSnap 2009... Embarcadero Delphi 2010Embarcadero Delphi 2010 released in 2009. Delphi 2010 allows you to create touch based user interfaces for tablet, touchpad and kiosk applications. Embarcadero Delphi XEEmbarcadero Delphi XE released in 2010. Delphi 2011, brings many new features and improvements: Built-in Source Code Management, Built-in Cloud Development (Windows Azure, Amazon EC2), Innovative expanded Tool Chest for optimized development, DataSnap Multi-tier Development, much more... Embarcadero Delphi XE 2Embarcadero Delphi XE 2 released in 2011. Delphi XE2 will allow you to: Build 64-bit Delphi applications, Use the same source code to target Windows and OS X, Create GPU-powered FireMonkey (HD and 3D business) application, Extend multi-tier DataSnap applications with new mobile and cloud connectivity in RAD Cloud, Use VCL styles to modernize the look of your applications...

Benefits and challenges of Big Data For Business And Customers

Big data is providing access to the data that are available. Due to expansion of big data into the platforms of business intelligence, the professionals can expand analytics. The use of information technology can reduce the healthcare cost while it improves the quality of the services (Mahajan, Gaba and Chauhan 2016). Lowering the cost as well as enabling the efficiencies is considered as critical goals of the healthcare service provider. Another benefit of the big data is that it optimizes clinical trials by preventing errors, reduction of cost and making sure for pliance. The data points are presented into analytic as well as reporting virtualizations that help the service provider to improve and develop their service quality (Ammu and Irfanuddin 2013). With use of the big data, the organization analyzes the root causes of both failures as well as issues in the real time. It also personalizes the experience of the customers and the risks are quickly identified. In some of the business organization, big data plays a significant role in security. The big data analytics are used in some areas of cyber security such as it allows the business to start play an offense against the attackers (Jakobik 2016). In this way, they can prevent the vulnerabilities. New and advanced technologies are increasing the use of big data in current era. The business organization is using of big data for purpose of business intelligence, predictive analytics as well as data mining tasks.    While the benefits of the big data are real, there are also some technical challenges of big data. One of the challenges is that there is difficulty in generating right metadata so that it can describe the data, how it is verified and measured. There is lack of coordination among the database systems (Michael and Miller 2013). The system can host of data and give query for the SQL. For large decades, management of large and high volume of big data b es a challenge. Large time is required to analyze the data set. However, there are some cases when the data required analyzing immediately, therefore that time it b es a problem. The biggest challenge of big data is privacy issues (Ammu and Irfanuddin 2013). The data which are stored within the database system are not handled properly and sometimes, they are accessed by any third party person. Therefore, the data are shared with an unauthorized person.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ammu, N. and Irfanuddin, M., 2013. Big Data Challenges.  International Journal of Advanced Trends in puter Science and Engineering,  2(1), pp.613-615. Jakà ³bik, A., 2016. Big Data Security. In  Resource Management for Big Data Platforms  (pp. 241-261). Springer International Publishing. Mahajan, P., Gaba, G. and Chauhan, N.S., 2016. Big Data Security.  IITM Journal of Management and IT,  7(1), pp.89-94. Michael, K. and Miller, K.W., 2013. Big data: New opportunities and new challenges [guest editors' introduction]. puter,  46(6), pp.22-24.

Analysis the tables of the SPSS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Analysis the tables of the SPSS - Essay Example This indeed was the case since only 202 of the returned questionnaires were found eligible for analysis. The standard questionnaires dispatched contained three sets of questions. Five broad features of service quality were recorded using the first 21 questions posed. These were tangible elements of service, reliability of service providers, responsiveness of the staff and management of the facility, assurance and action to ensure fulfilment of the same, and empathy towards the clients. The second set of questions was concerned with the importance with which the clients weighed each of the five features recorded in the preceding set of questions. The third set of questions was a measure of key characteristics of the respondents. The first set of data was recorded on a 5-point linker scale, which allowed the respondents to choose from extremely dissatisfied, dissatisfied, neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, satisfied to extremely satisfy. In addition, the second set comprised a choice for the respondents to choose the respective scores to accord each of the five broad features of the first set of questions. ... Main Element Q I. Using frequencies and descriptive statistics, comment on sample composition. Frequencies Statistics are you male or female how often do you use the centre What year at university are you currently in? 1st /2nd/ 3rd/ 4th/ masters/ other are you a member or do you pay each time subject area N Valid 201 202 202 190 202 Missing 1 0 0 12 0 The study comprised of 202 participants. 201 participants responded to the gender question while all the 202 participants responded to the question on their current year of study. The questions on the use of the Sports Centre and the subject area were answered by all the 202 participants while only 190 participants responded to the question on membership. Frequency Table Are you male or female Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid male 126 62.4 62.7 62.7 female 75 37.1 37.3 100.0 Total 201 99.5 100.0 Missing 9 1 .5 Total 202 100.0 The gender question was responded to by 126 male participants and 75 female participant s. 46 participants never used the centre, 39 participants used it once a week or less, and 47 participants used the centre twice a week. 34 and 25 participants used the centre 3 times a week and 4 times a week respectively. Out of those interviewed, only 11 participants used the centre 5 or more times a week. How often do you use the centre Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid never 46 22.8 22.8 22.8 once a week or less 39 19.3 19.3 42.1 twice a week 47 23.3 23.3 65.3 3 times a week 34 16.8 16.8 82.2 4 times a week or more 25 12.4 12.4 94.6 5 11 5.4 5.4 100.0 Total 202 100.0 100.0 Among the 202 participants who responded to the question on their current year of study, 68 were in first year, 84

Unclear Energy Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Unclear Energy - Assignment Example The geographical location of Jordan makes it hard to use water as a coolant and therefore need to find other means of cooling the reactors. The other difference is the availability of the relevant personnel to run the nuclear plants. Sophisticated and technical knowledge is required to manage a nuclear plant ensuring safety and efficiency. The use of nuclear energy in America started back in the 1940s, and therefore enough plans are set up to ensure enough individuals are trained for this job. Jordan is facing a challenge of personnel to operate the machines and maintain the nuclear power plants as it is something that has never been used before in this country. Environmental impact of the nuclear plants is the other difference. Nuclear energy production releases minimal amounts of greenhouse gases to the environment. However, the waste products from nuclear reactors contain radioactive elements that are harmful to human. Proper engineering techniques should be used and far away from human settlement. America has land that can be used for this while Jordan has limited land capacity and hence disposal of these wastes would be a problem. Also, Jordan still uses fuels and oil as a source of energy that highly contributes to the emission of greenhouse gases (Armaroli, 2013). Students contribution is highly required for the establishment of solutions on challenges faced in the energy sector. The first research on other cooling techniques to be used in nuclear plants located in areas where there is scarcity of water. The other is acquiring knowledge regarding operation and maintenance of nuclear power plants s it is a challenge faced in Jordan and other countries. The third is research and advice of disposal techniques of the radioactive wastes so as not to endanger human beings. The use of nuclear energy in America started a long time ago and therefore there is a big difference between the

Building design from Australia to the required standards of Article

Building design from Australia to the required standards of architectural design - Article Example From this research it is clear that the fore ground shows tall towers and a pylon, probably a memorial pillar or a communication booster mast. The middle ground shows an impression of a sophisticated transport system, with roads and a roundabout with people walking on foot. Perhaps this is an appropriate explanation of the title of the architecture, â€Å"Walking Melbourne†. The background shows a densely occupied city centre, full of tall buildings. It shows a curvature with a panoramic sky view on the background, giving an impression of a long distance towards the background. From the foreground to the background, a viewer can easily notice that the buildings are tilted. The architecture of Bayden Goddard Design provides a collection of uncountable buildings from the front to the background. Incidentally, all buildings use one colour. This does not present an elegant image of a city. The designer did not make a proper mixture of colours for one of the side shows of the build ing. From the use of colours, the image of the building architecture does not show natural colours but with the application of additional artificial light. The colour mix is especially difficult for a colour-blind person to judge. The side show displays the use of a dominant colour being black or probably dark blue. This is an impression of darkness from the background, and it makes a reader think that some features are hidden. Bayden Goddard Design shows one of the designs with skyscrapers on the background. It creates an impression of the back of a modern building. The back is a traditional structure that does not match the sophisticated view of the former picture. The colour grey here displays an old and worn out construction whose colour has probably faded away. The colours are not consistent in the various designs. For example, comparing a single feature such as the sky, shows different results, some are too dark, almost becoming black, while others are extremely too light, alm ost white (McCartney 23). Second Critique: Perspective The perspectives of the building in some of the pictures are difficult to analyse, owing to their tilted nature. It is difficult to make an accurate estimation of the dimensions of the construction from the angles of viewing. A viewer can easily think that the building is under demolition or under new development. From the perspective, a viewer cannot approximate the distances, or even identify the side that is longer than the other. He or she can not estimate the height of the building with accurate precision. A good architectural design should be able to present dimensions in a simple way with easily recognizable dimensions for the viewer to identify from the view the length, the width and the height of the construction. The tilt also cheats the eye about the exact shape of the construction, whether it is a cuboidal shape or a pyramid construction. Third Critique: Proportion One of the shows of the building shows the building of two storeys, comparing very closely to the tallest towers in the city centre. The architecture makes a viewer overstate the height of the architectural construction. Secondly, the buildings appear to be in contact with the sky. The height disappears into the sky however short the building is in reality. Proportionality is a critical feature for analysing an architectural design. In one of the design pictures, it is not easy to ascertain

Risk Management Week3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Risk Management Week3 - Essay Example on that ought to be proactively and effectively managed for a firm to identify and be able to react to new vulnerabilities, emerging threats, and a firm’s continuously changing enterprise operational and architecture atmosphere. Over the years, several security requirements and standards constructions have been developed in an effort to address enterprise systems together with important data inside them. Nonetheless most of these attempts have basically become exercises on just reporting on conformity and have in actuality redirected security programme supplies from the continuously changing attacks that must be dealt with. The Critical Security Control aims first on making it a main concern on security responsibilities that are efficient against the very latest Advanced Targeted Threats that has got a very tough emphasis on â€Å"what actually works†-security controls whereby processes, products, services and architecture are being used and have actually proved real world efficiency. Automation and standardisation is yet a further top main concern, to increase operational competences while at the same time improving efficiency (Hossein, 2006). There are several critical security controls that this paper seeks to address .Some of these include; inventory of unauthorised and authorised devices or software, making sure there is secure configurations for software and hardware on laptops, servers, mobile devices and workstations, continuous vulnerability assessment and remediation, application software security, malware defenses, wireless access control, appropriate training and security assessment to fill in gaps, data recovery capabilities and finally secure configurations for network tools such as routers, switches and firewalls. In the case of inventory of unauthorised and authorised devices, there should be active management (track, inventory and correction) of all hardware devices that are on the network so that it is the only authorised devices that are