Current Event Analysis Essay

JCPenny has just launched its new marketing strategy on Feb 1, 2012, which include improving its brands, refreshing its new stores, and the most important part—the new pricing model. The new pricing model is so called â€Å"Fair and Square† pricing strategy. This new pricing strategy includes three parts. The first one is â€Å"everyday† regular pricing, which is about 40% off 2011’s retail price without discount or promotion. The second one is the â€Å"month-long value† pricing, which offers even better price on specific merchandise. The final one is the â€Å"best price† pricing, which are clearance deals on the first and third Fridays of each month. In my point of view, I think JCPenny’s new marketing strategy is necessary for their further development in such tough competitive environment. According to Martis-Olivo, a retail analyst for Thomson Reuters, JCPennt’s sale performance is poor compared to Macy’s in 2011. Although Macy’s offers less discount and promotion, it posted a much stronger same-store sales average. Consumers now think department stores usually offering items at high prices, then offering discounts or coupons, so use such discount or coupon promotion to attract sales is not as much efficient as before. Furthermore, internet sales are jump up significantly in recent years due to the lower price and more convenience. So JCPenny’s new marketing strategy is launched in time to tackle these challenges. The â€Å"everyday† pricing is about 40% off 2011’s retail price without discount or promotion, which will give the consumers better value products to increase the chances that consumers will visit more and purchase more because of the lower prices. The â€Å"month-long values† on specific items, which will also keep the customer mentality from waiting for additional price drops, and this will also attract consumers come to the store more frequently, instead of only come into the stores when promotion. Finally, the â€Å"best price† pricing on the first and third Fridays of each month will help the stores to clean up their piled up inventories to avoid additional carrying cost. JCPenny’s new marketing strategy actually coincides with the marketing mix, which we usually called 4 Ps: Price, Promotion, Product and Place. As we discussed above, the important role of the JCPenny new marketing strategy is the new pricing model, which give the lower everyday price and month-long values to the consumers. So their new pricing position is focusing on better price-value relationship. Also, they hold promotion on the first and third Fridays of each month, which is the new name for clearance, or the lowest price you’ll ever see for a particular item. Secondly, brands are actually the products to department stores like JCPenny. The improvement of brands is refer to improve their products, as Wahlstrom described, J. C.  Penney has put its focus on fewer, â€Å"more relevant† brands, and less on private brands that are â€Å"less efficient,† such as Arizona and Worthington. These will provide consumer with quality instead of quantity. The final P is referring place, as we mention at the beginning, JCPenny is refreshing its new stores, which may give consumers more convenient accessibility. Furthermore, the new marketing strategy is also coincides with what we just learned from the class– Acquiring & Retaining customers. The lower price is to change consumers’ perceived cost and then will change the perceived value. The lower price acquiring new customers and retain customers to come to the store more frequently. Also, new brand marketing is to improve their products and service, which change the perceived benefits and again will change the perceived value, and change the customers’ preference. These combinations of quality, service and price are called â€Å"customer value triad, as value increases with quality and service and decreases with price. These aim to coagulate JCPenney’s relationship with its loyal customers and attract new ones.

Should Laptops Be Banned from the Classroom.

The world is rapidly progressing to a more technologically advanced era. Information and Communication Technology has influenced individual’s behavior, thinking skills and ability to fulfill daily tasks and responsibilities. As a result, the education system has incorporated technological tools into the curriculum. These tools include: radio broadcasting, computers, audio visual systems, the Internet, virtual learning centers, networks, instructional software, and projectors. Thus, the Ministry of Education’s philosophy (2005, p. 0) states that â€Å"Applying technology in education would enhance human capacity, dynamize the teaching/learning environment, promote creativity, innovation, critical thinking, decision making and lifelong learning. † This predominant point suggests that laptops should not be banned in the classroom at the University level. Reasons are distribution, media, productivity, Internet, software, virtuality, management and environment. From t he inception of the People’s Partnership government in 2010, an innovative approach has been implemented to endorse literacy, numeracy and critical thinking skills.The People’s Partnership (2010) acknowledged that, â€Å"Information Technology based learning will be infused in education at primary and secondary levels to support and complement other forms of teaching, learning and basic research. † As a result, The Prime Minister declared that, â€Å"Every child going on to secondary school from the Secondary Entrance Assessment will be provided with a laptop to begin their secondary school education. † (2010) With reference to this statement, I deem it necessary for laptops to be used at the University level.Students spend majority of their time doing research, completing assignments, downloading notes from e-mails or the internet and most importantly, engaging in computer aided instruction at classes. A Laptop is an effective tool that facilitates learn ing to all students in and out of the classroom. The previously mentioned effective tool aims to change teaching to a student-centered process and make education more relevant. Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society (2010). Laptops allow students the individual attention that fosters learning and provides effective feedback. Apart from this, lesson content are delivered through media in classes.Projectors, speakers and laptops are some of the technological tools that promote teaching and learning. With regards to this, the Ministry of Education (2005) states that, The Ministry of Education recognizes the importance of locally produced ICT curriculum resources to support education reform in this digital era. As such, digital resources shall play a central role in integrating ICT into the curriculum, developing innovative practices and transforming the way students learn. To promote more effective use of ICT in the classroom, the MOE shall develop and supply quality digital education re sources for teaching, learning and testing.All digital content shall be relevant to the local curriculum and directed toward curriculum outcomes. (p. 26) Students are more motivated to learn and teaching is enthusiastic as students participate in lifelong learning. Additionally, students naturally gravitate to the most attractive mode of content delivery. The implementation of technological tools such as the laptop increases productivity. Students will develop a more positive attitude towards school and a more organized learning environment. Furthermore, students would be able to complete their work in a shorter period more effectively and efficiently.The laptop enables students to use productivity tools such as Microsoft office which includes word processors, spreadsheets, databases and power point presentations. â€Å"At institutions where technology are fully integrated into the teaching and learning process all students are able to create output using a word processor, spreadsh eet and presentation software. † according to the (Ministry of Education, 2005, p. 19) This essential program aids students in their assignments and teachers in their lesson planning. With the use of the laptop, they can construct and create documents in meetings or anywhere convenient.Productivity tools better prepare students for the workplace and foster creativity and innovation to benefit society. According to the (Minister of Education, the Honorable Hazel Manning 2007), â€Å"Let us seize this opportunity to use ICT across the curriculum. Utilize it for your lessons planning, utilize it for the delivery of your lessons. † Simulations are software that enhances learning and allows students to experience real world systems. This makes learning safe and provides students the opportunity to experience the impossible. The Ministry of Education has received funding from the World Bank to support education, but that ICT are not funded. A 2006 IDB grant of US$67,000 was m atched by US$45,000 from the government to jumpstart development of the country’s IT sector by increasing capacity in software development. † (Gaible & Trucano 2009 p. 66). Courses at the University level use simulations and other software to enhance the lesson and learning. If students are equipped with laptops in the classroom, they can utilize this software while the lesson is being delivered.Understanding of content is increased when students have access to this software. It compresses time, is cost effective and allows repetition so students can maximize learning. â€Å"Educational simulations have a number of advantages over other instructional methodologies and media. Students often find active participation in simulations to be more interesting, intrinsically motivating and closer to real world experiences than other learning modalities. † (Alessi, & Trollip, as cited in Lunce, 2006). The internet is another technological tool that fosters learning and is a predominant tool in classrooms.Laptops are equipped with Wi-Fi capabilities, which is a wireless function to connect to the internet. The internet is accessible in all educational institutions and is used in the classroom. Access to a pool of resources, use of course management systems (Blackboard), and e-mail are all primary reasons for internet connections especially for university students. The curriculum has been upgraded and assignments can be submitted online. â€Å"Internet Access will provide for further content. It makes available the vast knowledge and materials on the World Wide Web.Where possible and necessary, the Ministry of Education shall provide high speed Internet access to all its institutions. †(Ministry of Education, 2005, p. 31) If students are engaged in activities that requires research, they can access the internet from their laptops. Another predominant factor is that a student’s personal computer enables them to have their work at hand ins tead of using the school’s computer. Hence, any extra work that is done at school or during classes can be used when necessary at home. New information is presented every day and further research can always be done to better our understanding.Tons of books and numerous handouts are usual tedious tasks for University students. Not only do you look studious, nerds are your best competition as you move around fully loaded. Luckily, the introduction of laptops has diminished this challenging capacity to store and manage information. According to Carter (2006 p. 10), â€Å"The technology is used to help students think and communicate effectively. The computer is a tool. † Moreover, the University of Trinidad and Tobago has created a mission to â€Å"Go Green†, thus saving paper. This allows students to use online books and resources attainable from the features of a laptop.Random access memory allows for this convenient ability for students to move around with everyt hing at hand. Information can be added, modified or updated and even deleted. As time goes by, this collection of information can become frustrating since files may not be usable as it gets old or even misplaced. However, the laptop enables its users to data or information by naming each document or file and selecting its storage space for quick, easy retrieval. Students can store their notes for each class and retrieve them quickly when the teacher requests or mentions it.According to Dr. Abshire (as cited in Lewin, 2009), At Cienega High School, students who own laptops can register for digital sections of several English, history and science classes. They don’t engage with textbooks that are finite, linear and rote. Teachers need digital resources to find those documents, those blogs, those wikis that get them beyond the plain vanilla curriculum in the textbooks. In conclusion, â€Å"As the Ministry of Education becomes more students centered and ICT driven, we know that greater use must be made of the global currency of information. (Minister of Education, Senator the Honorable Hazel Manning, 2007) Students develop higher cognitive skills and improve collaborative skills with the introduction of ICT in the curriculum. At the university level, students are being educated and prepared for the workplace. Thus, an effective and efficient technological tool is the laptop. If students are allowed to laptops in the classroom, school would be more interesting and motivating as lifelong learning and training cannot be confined to the traditional classroom. References Gaible, E. ,& Trucano, M. (Eds. ). 2009). Survey of ICT and education in the Caribbean Volume II:Country reports. Washington, DC. Lewin, T. (2009 August 8). In a digital future, textbooks are history. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www. nytimes. com/2009/08/09/education/09textbook. html? _r=1&pagewanted=all Lunce, L. (2006). Simulations: Bringing the benefits of situated learning to the traditional classroom. Journal of Applied Educational Technology, 3(1), 38. Manning, S. (2007). Ministry of Education, Illuminant and Hewlett Packard: Increasing the use of ICT in education.Newsday,p. A. 25 Ministry of Education. (2005, September). Draft policy for Information and Communications Technology in Education. Retrieved from http://www. moe. gov. tt/general_pdfs/moe_ict_policy. pdf The People’s Partnership. (2010, April), Prosperity for all manifesto. Retrieved from http://www. coptnt. com/ver03/media/peoples-manifesto-2010. pdf Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society. (2010). Laptops in schools programme. Retrieved from http://www. ttcsweb. org/articles/Laptops_in_Schools_Programme. pdf

“How Should Posco-Ippc Increase Its Footprint in the Automobile Segment?

| Business Management IA| â€Å"How should POSCO-IPPC increase its footprint in the Automobile segment? | Candidate Name: Amrit Shah Session no. 002798011 School: Symbiosis International School Research Proposal: Executive Summary: 199 words Word Count: 1977| | Acknowledgements: I would like to acknowledge and thank: * Mrs. Vaishali Phatak for her support and assistance in helping me with this report * Mr. Bharat Indu Bhattacharya- Electric Steel Dept. Manager of POSCO-IPPC, Pvt. Limited, Pune – for his contribution to the report and his time for the interview. * Mr. Joseph Joe- Automobile Steel Dept. Manager of POSCO-IPPC, Pvt. Limited, Pune- for his contribution to the report and his time for the interview. * Mr. Jacy Kim- General Manager of POSCO-IPPC, Pvt. Limited, Pune- for allowing me to do this report on the company and for providing guidance and help throughout. Executive Summary POSCO-IPPC, a steel distributor for the Korean company POSCO have plans about establishing themselves firmly in the Indian Steel Industry given that they are facing consumer problems from their customers in the Automobile sector. As such this paper analyzes the question, â€Å"â€Å"How should POSCO-IPPC increase its footprint in the Automobile segment? † Primarily, a research question highlights the rationale, theoretical framework, action plan and methodology applied and possible constraints in answering the question. An Introduction enlightens us about the background and basic history related to the company itself and of relevance to the question. Findings and analysis is written on the basis of primary research inclusive of multiple interviews conducted with different managers and secondary research inclusive of mails concerning their expenses over the future prospects by the automobile sector manager that acted as a catalyst in evaluating using both financial (capacity utilization and decision tree) and non-financial methods(SWOT & PEST). The report mainly focuses on the problem of raw material which POSCO-IPPC is currently facing due to which they are not able to meet the increasing demand. Based on the research conducted, it is found that POSCO-IPPC has two options to overcome this problem. One that it could ask POSCO, Korea to supply them with greater raw material and the other that it could ask POSCO, Orissa, a manufacturing unit to supply them with raw material. These options have been evaluated keeping in mind the conditions to find out the most feasible option to give a strong conclusion. Possible solutions are discussed and the conclusion suggests that POSCO-IPPC in order to sustain itself in the Indian Steel Market needs to increase its output and using the financial and non-financial techniques discussed and the best viab1e option would be to increase its raw material supply from POSCO, Korea. Contents Acknowledgements†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦2 Executive Summary†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 3 Research Proposal†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â ‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 8 Procedure/ Methodology†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 9 Main Results and Finding †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦ 10 Analysis/Evaluation†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 12 Conclusions and Recommendations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 16 Bibliogr aphy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 17 Appendix†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 18 Research Proposal Research Question How to increase POSCO-IPPC footprint in the Automobile segment? Rationale POSCO-IPPC, a distribution centre of Korea’s POSCO Steel Company, is a newbie in the Indian Steel market; they have a monopoly in the Electric steel market and they are undergoing problems in the Automobile sector so they should work on capturing more consumers in the Automobile sector so that they are able to stabilize themselves. The research question focuses on the ways POSCO-IPPC should apply to set its footprint in the automobile segment. Theoretical Framework My plan is to utilize both financial and non-financial techniques to evaluate the problems incurred by the management so that they are able to firmly establish themselves in the automobile sector. The report will analyse the problems faced, thus it will try to solve it using the financial techniques of Capacity Utilisation and Decision Tree and non-financial techniques of SWOT and PEST which will analyse the other problems, opportunities and threats. Key Areas of Syllabus Unit 4 – Operations management Decisions * Introducing Operations Management Improving operational efficiency: Capacity, Scale of production Unit 6 – Numerate techniques for business studies * Information for decision making Primary Research: * Interview with Electronic Steel manager Mr. Sharad Indu Bhattacharya regarding the company history, company status, market and other general aspects about the company’s working. * Interview with Automobile Steel manager Mr. Joseph Joe regarding the market stats in Automobile sector, drawbacks, problems and possible implications so as to understand their market in the Automobile sector. Secondary Research: * Some Information and the list of customers of POSCO-IPPC, Pune, India received through mail from Mr. Joseph. * Other background history of POSCO, Korea used and other facts and figures were taken from the internet. Possible Problems:| Solutions:| Managers were not able to understand the true purpose of the interview resulting in very compact answers. | Managers were asked questions in a very narrow perspective which narrowed down to minute details. | Responses from the managers were related to only their departments, unable to give a general view. Requested them to get information from other managers as well. Small interview with a employee and the production manager. | Limited access to detailed information on the customers and the company as the locations are very far and detail information is confidential. | Acknowledged in the conclusion. | Financial Data was limited to a great extent as it was a new company and Data was yet not published. | Estimates have b een taken and where estimates could not be taken, it has been described in words. | | | Action Plan: Date| Task | 18th August, 2008. | Talked on phone with Mr. Jacy Kim who agreed to let me do my project on the company. | 20th August, 2008. | Will take an Interview with Mr. Bharat Indu BhattacharyaWill take an interview of Mr. Joseph Joe Research Question formulated. | 22nd August, 2008. | Planning will be done as to the way this essay needs to go about. Introduction and Research Proposal will be written. | 30th August, 2008. | Data Collection should be done. | 5th September, 2009. | Main results and findings will be written down based on the information gathered from Mr. Bharat Indu Bhattacharya and Mr. Joseph Joe over the days. 13th September, 2009. | Analysis of the data will be done. | 14th September, 2009. | Techniques of Capacity Utilization and Decision Tree will be applied. Will make a SWOT and PEST analysis. Analysis to be completed. | 15th January, 2009. | Recommendations written. Appendices made and attached. | 16th January, 2009. | Executive summary, content page, Action plan| Introduction: POSCO-India Pune Processing Centre Co. Ltd. , established in August 2006 but started its commercial distribution in 2006, and is a highly recognized by all the major companies of India for its great quality of its steel. Although being a newcomer in the Indian Steel Market, it has set its footprint as a Quality and principle based company. POSCO-IPPC is a coil centre for the Korean Steel giant POSCO Steel Limited which is a global producer of crude steel and finished steel goods. POSCO-IPPC involved an investment of 15 million dollars. It is an independent company of its own as it is a joint venture of POSCO (holding 65% of shares. ) and LG (holding 35% of shares. ) POSCO-IPPC is a processing unit which is locally managed. It is a processor-cum-distributor of steel in the electronic and automobile segment. It only plays a small role of slitting and shearing of the raw material as a processor. Its output is 10,000 metric tons per month with an annual turnover of 320 Crores in the previous financial year. It employs 120 people as its working staff out of which 60 are employed as payroll workers and other 60 are in contract. With the import prices and duties of steel and being a newbie in the Indian Steel market, it is facing competition from other distributors like ESSAR, TATA STEEL, JINDAL and other Chinese and Russian companies. In the Automobile sector, there are many problems created due to its high price and lack of output compared to that in the electronic steel sector for it holds monopoly in the sector for many of its products. As the management is highly equipped in its factors of production, it is researching on ways to exploit the Automobile market in order to firmly establish itself in the country. Therefore this report focuses on- â€Å"How should POSCO-IPPC increase its footprint in the Automobile segment? † Procedure/Methodology The Initial research included a detailed interview about the company and its standings with Mr. Bhattacharya-Electronic Steel manager. Another interview was with the Automobile Steel manager- Mr. Joseph Joe about the Automobile sector inclusive of the discussion over the problem mentioned in the research question. Underlining the major aspects in the interview, the questions focused on POSCO-IPPC’s strength, standings in the market, internal and external factors involved for and against production (which created the PEST, SWOT analysis and information for the analysis), and financial status and estimations advising financial techniques to be applied ( Capacity utilization and Decision Tree. The secondary research resulted in analyzing of POSCO Steel’s information and accessing other reports, industry statistics, market information and data via numerous internet sites. This helped in the results and findings, in strengthening the information available and recommendations and conclusions. It should be noted however, that financial data collected is based upon both à ¢â‚¬Ëœactual’ and ‘estimates’, which need further validation. In addition, the validity of this report may be influenced by the apparent subjectivity of some financial data given confidentially issues. Main results and Findings POSCO-IPPC Private Limited is a subsidiary of POSCO, the world's  fourth largest steel producer and one of the most competitive steel companies (World Steel Dynamics 2006) whose products are shipped to over 60 countries around the globe. Aside from this unit, POSCO has also invested 12 billion USD in Orissa which is proposed to produce an output of 12 million ton per annum by 2010. Since 1990, more than Rs 19,000 crores (US$ 4470. 58 million) has been invested in the steel industry of India and there is an increasing trend in its production. See Figure 1) The auto component sector has also posted significant growth of 20 per cent in 2003-04, to achieve a sales turnover of Rs. 30,640 crore (US$ 6. 7 billion)(See Figure 2). Such opportunities in the automobile sector and the Indian economy can help POSCO-IPPC to establish itself firmly. In terms of current market position, POSCO-IPPC brands itself as a leading provider of electric steel in some of the areas in India for not many of the companies have explored the electric steel market. Being a newcomer, it plans to inhabit the automobile steel market, where it still hasn’t managed to set its foot firmly. The company is based upon certain policies and factors which many of the customers are unable to comply with. POSCO is a global player and it supplies and manufactures steel all over the world. It exports steel from South Korea at an international price which is comparatively high in Indian currency so this difference between the prices, leads to a high price charged by the company. Due to the high price, POSCO decided to put a special price (Rs 49000-cold rolled steel) to fit in the market but in exchange for lower supply of steel so this reduces the supply power of POSCO-IPPC. POSCO-IPPC is only a distribution centre and does not manufacture. It is a market-oriented firm and follows the concept of mass customization for it creates the output maintaining to different customers need. It slits and shears steel depending upon the customer’s want. Its main customers are Crompton, LG and Suzlon in the electrics sector and Tata and Bajaj in the automobile sector. It uses batch production to produce an output of 10,000 metric tons per year where 1. 5% of the raw-material is wasted in slitting and shearing. The demand for their steel is a lot higher than their output and their capacity is also higher (35,000 metric tons/year) but the lack of raw-material limits them, due to the special price-low supply factor. Instead of creating more output, their machines are doing job work for other competitors like JINDAL, ESSAR, etc. of 5000 metric tons monthly. Highlighting the difficulty suffered in the case of TATA MOTORS Pvt. Limited Total Requirement of TATA | 30,000 (Demand going up by 7-10% annually) | TATA’s demand from POSCO (for high quality steel)| 5000-7000| POSCO-IPPC’s Supply to TATA| 2000-2500 (Rest to be supplied to other customers. )| POSCO-IPPC’s Cold Rolled Steel Price at the market | Rs. 53-55000| TATA’s pay price to POSCO | Rs. 48000| | | | | (All figures are in metric tons/month) Analysis/Evaluation: The evaluation of different problems which cause hindrances in trade with other companies will be done with the help of certain financial and non-financial techniques. Financial Analysis: I. Capacity Utilization With the purpose of utilizing its capital to the fullest, POSCO-IPPC has two pathways in order to supply more in the steel market and set its foot strongly: a) acquiring more raw-materials from POSCO, Korea. b) Purchasing of raw-material from POSCO manufacturing unit at Orissa, India. Thus, we will analyze the present scenario of capacity utilization in compared with the two options mentioned above. Present Capacity Utilization scenario: The capital utilization is calculated in percentage and the formulae used for it is given below: OutputMaximum capacity? 00 Current Output: 10000 metric tons/ month. Maximum Capacity: 11250 metric tons/ month. Capacity Utilization = 1000011250? 100 = 88. 89% Option a): acquiring more raw-materials from POSCO, Korea: Estimated output: 11250 metric tons/ month Maximum capacity: 11250 metric tons/ month Capacity Utilization = 1125011250? 100 = 100% Option b): Purchasing of raw-material from POSCO manufacturing branch at Orissa in India: Estimated Output: 11250 metric tons/ month Maximum Capacity: 11250 metric tons/ month Capacity Utilization = 1125011250? 100 = 100% II. Decision Tree: Utilizing this approach for both the options and other decisions to be made by the company are evaluated and financially viable decisions are suggested. (Figure 1) (All money values are in Indian Rupees) Key: Decision square Chance node Calculations: (611. 105mn ? 0. 6) + (466. 07mn ? 0. 4) – 500mn = 53. 091mn INR (572. 88 ? 0. 3) + (491. 04 ? 0. 7) – 500mn = 15. 592mn INR Non-financial analysis: India has gone through a considerable change in the production and consumption of Steel in the past 10 years. Driven a booming economy and concomitant demand levels, consumption of steel has grown by 12. 5 per cent during the last three years it has been forecast that the apparent steel use point in India will increase by 11. 8 per cent in 2008. POSCO-IPPC has great opportunities to set their foot firmly in the Automobile sector. The POSCO steel plant is India’s single largest foreign investment project ever. For its part, the Indian government is eager to boost its steel production and attract more foreign investment through such a lucrative partnership. But it also may lead to limiting of foreign ownership and application of protectionism to prevent foreign investment from exceeding its levels. Technology level in POSCO-IPPC is of high standards and helps them with maintaining the quality. The machines brought in are imported but India is a developing county and it has certain problems of electricity which results in regular power-cuts causing hindrances in processing of steel. These load-shedding periods are often covered by the use of generators but these generators prove to be expensive. The steel being imported is affected by any change in the foreign exchange policies and any government/fiscal policies which may affect them. POSCO-IPPC being a new-comer may feel threatened by the presence of multi-national companies as it leads to greater competition and more exploitation of resources. Conclusions and Recommendations: Available management’s perception on the opportunities to establish themselves in the Steel Industry, it does appear that the management should research this further by the help of a market research and research on all of the customer needs. Analysing the written report on the basis of the data supplied, it appears that POSCO-IPPC’s only hindrance is its limitation of supply which if solved will solve many of their other problems. Using Capacity Utilisation and Decision tree, it was understood that if maximum capacity utilisation takes place, it will reduce the price; increase the output; increasing the output will lead to long term relationships with the customers; it will involve maximum utilisation of resources. Maximum capacity utilisation is only possible with the increase in output which can be only done by increase in the supply of steel. There had been two options discussed with the help of decision tree to look for the best and cheapest way to increase the supply by deciding upon the source. The analysis showed that purchasing from POSCO, Korea at the special price is more profitable (53. 091mn INR) but this is only possible if POSCO, Korea agrees to supply them at the special price. The second possible option was from purchasing steel from the other branch of POSCO at Orissa, India but this would prove less profitable (15. 592mn INR) as they would sell it at the selling price in order to save their profits. Other factors which tend to support POSCO-IPPC to set its foot in the Automobile sector include in the non-financial analysis: growing Indian economy and its Steel Industry; Government support; Great Quality Steel; modern technology used with strict disciplinary issues which makes them a good supplier. Recommendations: As such, my recommendations would be: * Undertake further research in terms of specific of customer requirements and problems, by performing a market research and research on the clients, as many of my findings are generic to the company’s knowledge. More accurately determine the precise nature of the costs and profits upon purchasing steel from the sources analyzed in the written report. * Embark upon extensive research as to search other ways to increase the output and also request POSCO, Korea to supply more at the special price. However, my analysis is limited; it does not cover all the aspects of this topic due to the restraints of the data supplied. The re search was not more extensive because the unit was far away and many meetings were not possible with the officials as this would interrupt in their work . With only two personnel interviewed, a wider perspective from other departments must also be obtained . The report is a reference material, the research can be more extensive and proper results can be achieved if access to more data was possible. The Report is still in progress; there are many issues which need to be solved which can be done with the help of the recommendations and more access. Bibliography Books: AS Level and A level Business Studies, Peter Simpson, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2002, Websites: http://www. stratfor. com/analysis/india_poscos_steel_investment_challenge Steel, India Brand Equity Fund, http://www. bef. org/industry/steel. aspx India Steel Industry, Economy Watch, http://www. economywatch. com/india-steel-industry/ India Automobile Industry, Economy Watch, http://www. economywatch. com/business-and-economy/automobile-industry. html Corporate overview, POSCO-INDIA, http://posco-india. com/website/company/corporate-overview. htm APPENDIX: * Appen dix 1: Interview Transcript with Mr. Bharat Indu BhattaCharya * Appendix 1: Interview Transcript with Mr. Joseph Joe * Appendix 3: SWOT Analysis * Appendix 4: PEST Analysis * Appendix 5: Graphs * Appendix 6: Mail from Mr. Joseph Joe Appendix 1: Interview Transcript with Mr. Bharat Indu Bhatta Charya, Electric Steel Dept. Manager of POSCO-IPPC, Pvt. Limited, Pune 1) Good Afternoon, Could you please enlighten us about your company? * Good Afternoon, POSCO-IPPC stands for POSCO – India Pune Processing Unit. We are situated in the Talegaon Horticulture and Industrial Park in the dist. Of Pune. POSCO-IPPC is a coil centre as known by its parent company POSCO, which is a steel manufacturer giant in South Korea. It is the fourth largest producer of steel in the world and its distributors and manufacturing units are spread all over the world. From the start of this company to the present date, POSCO has led to massive advancements in the socio-economic status of South Korea. Coming back to POSCO’s investment in India, this is POSCO’s third investment, the other two being in Delhi and Orissa. Although POSCO is POSCO-IPPC’s main investor but it is an independent company which is locally managed. POSCO entering in a new market planned to establish this processing unit as a joint venture with LG International, where POSCO has 65% of shares and LG international owns the rest 35%. A total 15 million $ was invested in this project and it commercial processing started in 2006. 2) Can you emphasize more on your commercial processing and the working of this unit? * POSCO-IPPC processes the raw material which comes from POSCO, South Korea and distributes it to the customers. By processing, we mean the steel which comes from POSCO is slatted and sheared according to the customers need. We receive our steel in the form of coils, this is one reason for our being known as coil centre, then the coil is put in a machine which slits and shears it based on the dimensions set. This is then packed and sent to the respective customers. Our major customers are Crompton, LG, Suzlon, TATA and Bajaj. Our company produces output for electric steel as well as automobile steel. Although in the electric steel market, we hold a monopoly but in automobile, we are yet to expand our approach. These are the different types of steel we produce: Electric Steel * CRGNO- Cold Rolled Grain Oriented Steel * CRNO- Cold Rolled Non-Grained Steel Automobile Steel * HR ; PO- Hot Rolled and Pickled ; Oiled Steel Cold Rolled Steel * Stainless Steel White Goods * Electro-Galvanised Steel We have 120 people as staff, out of which 60 are on payroll and 60 are on contract. We follow the batch production for our processing unit. Our output is 10,000 metric tons / month with an annual turnover of 320 Crores as of last year. The raw material which comes to us, we add a value addition of 10% and sell it in the market. Our capacity to produce is 135,000 metric tons per annum where as its outp ut is low because of the lack of raw material so the capacity utilization is not up to the mark. So to involve our other machinery, we do job work for other companies of 5000 metric tons. 3) Can you please tell me about the managers of this company? * The managers at all the leading posts in the company are all from South Korea and they have been assigned by POSCO for a fixed period of years for a perfect start in the Indian Steel market. These are very experienced and are strict followers of discipline and quality. The work at POSCO-IPPC is efficient and advancing due to these managers. These are: * Gil Ho Bang – Managing Director Jongyeol Her – General Manager * Jung Chule Kim – General Manager * Woon Tae Jung – General Manager 4) Can you please tell us about the difficulties you are facing as a new company in the Indian Steel market? * We have a monopoly many in the market for Electric steel so we don’t have any problems in that sector but in the automobile sector, our competitors are well established and they have a far greater market share than POSCO-IPPC in the market so it creates pressure on us to create our product better than theirs to stay in the market. Our competitors: TATA STEEL, JINDAL, ESSAR, ISPAT and other Chinese and Russian companies. The two main difficulties which our company is facing are: * There has been a Star Rating which the Indian Government has started on the electric appliances. This effect of BAE Star Rating on the consumption of Electric Steel. * The Automobile sector in India is booming and has a lot of scope so POSCO-IPPC is trying to increase its footprint in the Automobile steel segment. There is a lot of demand for POSCO’s quality steel in the Automobile sector. 5) What is your SWOT? SWOT Strength * Any downfalls can be supported by POSCO-Distribution of quality steel – Inherits a quality name in the market from POSCO- Maintains strict disciplinary levels- Market leader in Electric Steel- Demand for its quality steel in the Automobile sector-Machinery is very advanced and the labour employed are few but skilled. Weaknesses * Not enough raw materials-Is not yet able to firm its stand in the Ste el market-The high price of their product due to the currency of Korea being more powerful – Language/ Cultural gap between India and Korea. Opportunities To increase its output and meet the high demand – Lack of high quality steel in the Automobile market gives them a big opportunity – India encouraging foreign investments- Increasing International trade between the countries- Rate of high economic and the country's economy gradually increasing- Special Reduced Price for the steel. Threats * Price of the raw material is highly dependent on the foreign exchange – POSCO holding a small share in the market is comparatively smaller than its multi-national counterparts -Low output due to lack of raw materials which may result in the loss of customers and a long term relationship. Appendix 2: Interview Transcript with Mr. Joseph Joe, Automobile Steel Dept. Manager of POSCO-IPPC, Pvt. Limited, Pune 1) Good Afternoon, What can you tell me about POSCO-IPPC in relevance to the Automobile market? Good Afternoon, POSCO-IPPC is a subsidiary of POSCO which as you know is a global producer and distributor of high quality steel. So as its parent company, POSCO-IPPC is also known for its high quality in the Indian Steel market. Automobile Company requires high quality steel for the chassis parts of the automobile, usually such parts are imported or substitute quality steel is bought so due to the lack of high quality steel producers in India, there is a lot of demand for the emerging POSCO-IPPC’s Steel. Though POSCO-IPPC has so many opportunities to set itself firmly in the market, it has many hindrances preventing it from doing so. 2) Can you pleases talk about the hindrances in little more detail? * There are many factors which sum up to conclude as a hindrance for POSCO-IPPC. The major ones are: * High cost of POSCO-IPPC’s Steel leads to a discouragement to the Indian customers. * POSCO-IPPC is looking for big customers so they are able to establish themselves by directly targeting at the higher end. * POSCO-IPPC is strict in its payment dates which are not favoured by all its customers for they need a margin to settle their accounts. * Although the main problem is the lack of raw material from POSCO. Due to the Special price-low supply condition between POSCO and POSCO-IPPC, there is low supply of raw materials. The demand is high for POSCO-IPPC’s steel but due to low output, it cannot adhere to every customer’s needs. POSCO-IPPC is capable to produce more output than its current production but due to the lack of raw material, it has to restrain itself and do job production. * POSCO-IPPC’s customers expect a same price and supply surety for three months which is not possible for POSCO-IPPC as it imports its raw material and it is subject to foreign exchange policies and other government policies which affects its price. The supply surety cannot be given due to lack of supply of raw material. * Also the defaulting of POSCO-IPPC’s price and bargaining to pay less price by the customers is discouraging POSCO-IPPC to expand itself so quickly as they are losing on their profits. * But overall, the lack of raw material is a big issue and solving that issue can solve many other problems related and in the course of time, brisk movements of trade will solve other problems too. 3) What can you tell about the special price-low supply condition? POSCO is a global player and it distributes its steel at a common international price (Rs 59000) to the world but as that rate is very high in terms of Indian currency, it would not settle down in the Indian market so in order to satisfy its Indian customers, it reduced the price and this is known as special price (Rs 45000). But as POSCO reduced the rate for POSCO-IPPC, it only did this for a condition and this condition was that POSCO-IPPC will receive only a limited supply from POSCO, Korea. ) Since TATA is one of your major customers in the automobile segment, can you please put light on the company’s relationship with TATA? * Sure, TATA Motors is a major customer of ours and there is a considerable amount of dealings with TATA. Tata itself produces steel but is partly dependent on POSCO-IPPC for high quality steel for the chassis of their automobiles. They need good quality for the outer body of the car for it to be firm and more attractive for which they take the support of POSCO-IPPC. Tata requires 30,000 metric tons/month and the demand is going up by 7-10% / year. Tata demands 5000-7000 metric tons/month from POSCO-IPPC but it can only supply 2000-2500 metric tons/month to TATA for out of its total output, it also needs to supply to other customers in order to remain in the market and also to stabilize it. The customers in the market are also asking for POSCO-IPPC’s steel like General Motors, Volkswagen and Fiat. For which TATA has supported POSCO-IPPC in sending a petition to POSCO to supply more steel. POSCO-IPPC distributes cold rolled steel in the open market at Rs 53-55000; the price keeps on fluctuating, whereas TATA gets it at Rs 48,000 (maximum. ) Thus, such factors are creating hindrances in transaction between TATA and POSCO-IPPC. 5) What is your PEST? * PEST POLITICAL & LEGAL * Central Government encourages the foreign investment- Change in the central Government may result in change in different trade policies – Indian Economy has shown relatively high levels of development, stability and potential growth. -Korea having a high level of percentage of investment in the Indian market Economical * Indian Economy is booming-Growth in its GDP and economic growth-Fluctuations in the exchange rates -Social ties and contacts between India and China is increasing-Expansion of a basic industry is always favoured- Company also gives importance to maximum exploitation of resources. Social * Opened a school for the children of its workers- Helped to develop the village Talegaon -Increase in the capacity of the unit, there will be more employment in the area-Adapt the Indian Culture-It believes in job satisfaction and motivation of its staff Technical * POSCO-IPPC uses advance technology to process its raw material-High dependency on technology-India is a developing country where there is a great problem with electricity so load shedding takes place-Alternative method to use generators during the time of load shedding proves expensive-Supply of diesel in such large quality proves to be a negative factor. Appendix 3: POSCO-IPPC SWOT Analysis Appendix 5 – Graphs Figure 1: Figure 2: Appendix 6: Mail from Joseph Joe This was a mail from Mr. Joseph Joe giving out some information. Investment: 500 mn INR | | | | | | | | | | | | | Probability | | Difference| | Source Company | | Cost Price/ metric ton | | Selling Price/ metric ton| | Quantity Purchased and sold| | Total Revenue| | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0. 6| | Special Price| POSCO, Korea| | Rs 45000| | Rs 55000| | 11111| | 611. 105 mn INR| 0. 4| | No Special Price| POSCO, Korea| | Rs 59000| | Rs 55000| | 8474| | 466. 07 mn INR| 0. 3| | Wihtout O. H. E| POSCO, Orissa| | Rs 48,000| | Rs 55000| | 10416| | 572. 88 mn INR| 0. | | With O. H. E| | POSCO, Orissa| | Rs 56000| | Rs 55000| | 8928| | 491. 04 mn INR| ——————————————– [ 2 ]. Refer to Appendix 1 – Interview with Mr. Bhattacharya [ 3 ]. Refer to Appendix 1 – Interview with Mr. Bhattacharya [ 4 ]. Refer to Appendix 1 – Interview with Mr. Bhattacharya [ 5 ]. POSCO-INDIA, â€Å"corporate overviewâ⠂¬ , http://posco-india. com/website/company/corporate-overview. htm. (20th September, 2008. ) [ 6 ]. Refer to Appendix 5- Graphs [ 7 ]. Economy Watch, â€Å"India Steel Industry,† http://www. conomywatch. com/india-steel-industry/, (20th September, 2008. ) [ 8 ]. Economy Watch, â€Å"India Automobile Industry,† http://www. economywatch. com/business-and-economy/automobile-industry. html, (23rd September, 2008. ) [ 9 ]. Refer to Appendix 5- Graphs [ 10 ]. Refer to Appendix 2 – Interview with Mr. Joseph Joe [ 11 ]. Refer to Appendix 1 – Interview with Mr. Bharat Indu Bhattacharya [ 12 ]. Refer to Appendix 2 – Interview with Mr. Joseph Joe [ 13 ]. Refer to Appendix 1 – Interview with Mr. Bharat Indu Bhattacharya [ 14 ]. Refer to Appendix 6 – Mail received from Mr. Joseph Joe [ 15 ]. India Brand Equity Fund, â€Å"Steel,† http://www. ibef. org/industry/steel. aspx (3rd August, 2008. ) [ 16 ]. SWOT Analysis [ 17 ]. PEST Analysis [ 18 ]. http://www. stratfor. com/analysis/india_poscos_steel_investment_challenge [ 19 ]. PEST Analysis [ 20 ]. SWOT Analysis [ 21 ]. PEST Analysis [ 22 ]. SWOT Analysis [ 23 ]. PEST Analysis [ 24 ]. http://www. economywatch. com/business-and-economy/steel-industry. html [ 25 ]. http://www. economywatch. com/business-and-economy/automobile-industry. html

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A Life That Almost Happened - Lab Report Example It listed jobs in food service, supermarket cashier, but the mere fact that he had a resume at all is evidence that he had set goals and ambitions. It tells the story of potential- the story of a life that almost happened. After graduating from North High School in 1999, Alfonso moved out of his mother's house in the government project where he grew up, instead, he went to work, driving a delivery truck for Albuquerque Tortilla. Even then he wanted to be more than a delivery boy. For a while, Alfonso had considered going into the Marine Corps, but decided instead to go to college once he paid off his truck. In the meantime, he moved in with his sister, Miriam Celaya, and her two children. On Saturday afternoon, March 10th 2001 Alfonso had gone to his friend Rafael Espinoza's house at 31st Avenue and Washington Street. Rafa was 20 then with three kids, twins on the way, a wife and a girlfriend on the side. He said that he's not a bad guy and that he's stayed away from gangs and drugs. But Alfonso's family isn't convinced, either, so on that Saturday Alfonso has to go to Rafa's house, because Miriam doesn't approve of the friendship and doesn't want Rafa in her home. Late that afternoon, Alfonso and another friend, Narvel Murrieta, headed towards Rafa's house in Alfonso's white pickup. Narvel had arrived in Phoenix less than two weeks ago from a small ranching community called Pantanito, in Magdalena, Sonora, where Alfonso's family also has a home. Alfonso has offered to show Narvel around, and help Narvel get acquainted with life in Phoenix. They arrived at Rafa's small gray house around 4:30. Then the three men talked outside for a while about their plans for the evening. Narvel has never been out in Phoenix, and wants Alfonso to show him around. Today was also Rafa's girlfriend's 21st birthday. The trio makes tentative plans to meet up later in the evening to celebrate. Then they headed to the nearby house of Rafa's cousin, where Rafa plays the accordion, while the cousin gives Alfonso a guitar lesson. Then Alfonso and Narvel leave for their house while Rafa called his girlfriend Estrella, to make plans to celebrate her birthday. While at the same time, not far from Rafa's house, 18-year-old Jesus Maris pumps gas at the Texaco, a black man selling jewelry, a watch, some bracelets, chains and a semi-automatic handgun approached him. The man wanted $100 for the gun, but Jesus talked him down to $40. He hoped to sell the gun for $100 himself and make some money. Jesus heads home around 6 p.m. and gets ready to go out for the evening. Jesus would later tell investigators, that the purchase of the gun was more a product of chance and opportunity than anything else. As dinnertime approached at the Celaya house, the family sent Noel Caudillo, one of the brothers to get hamburgers from Carl's Jr. hamburgers. After dinner, Narvel and Alfonso left together, and didn't tell the family where they're headed. It was the last time Alfonso's mother would see her youngest son alive. Around the same time, Jesus Maris, Omar Mendez and his brother Antonio had just finished drinking a couple of beers at Omar's apartment in Mesa. They headed to a party. There, they met up with another friend and had a few more drinks. About a half-hour later, the four cruise toward Phoenix in a Chevy pickup. While Alfonso and Narvel, Estrella and her two friends, and Rafa's 15-year-old sister all arrived at Rafa's house. They got into two cars, heading out for an evening at the Mexican

The Archetypal Hero Thesis Essay Example for Free

The Archetypal Hero Thesis Essay Archetypal Hero Thesis The archetypal hero appears in all religions, mythologies and epics of the world in different forms and stories which distinct commonalities can be drawn between each. An archetype is a recurring pattern of character, images, situations or symbols found in mythology, religion, dreams and stories of all cultures that is an expression of the world’s personal and collective unconscious. By that, an archetype is an unlearned tendency to experience things in a certain way. Humans didn’t ‘invent’ archetypes, but they do express archetypes in the conscious world, therefore, the hero is not someone â€Å"out there† in the universe but the hero is an expression of people’s deep psychological aspect of human existence. Heroes from different stories, cultures and times, all possess different traits, whether it is gender, disposition, motives or context. However, the common factor that creates the archetypal hero is the fundamental structure that their journeys follow or, as Joseph Campbell refers to it, the monomyth. Campbell summarizes it as being, â€Å"A hero [that] ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man. While not every story containing a hero follows this path exactly, the hero will be identified by following a similar journey, whilst reflecting the appearance and values of the dominant thinking in a societal group, with the story resulting in the hero’s people gaining independence, usurping power or obtaining a number, or at least one, favorable result to the journey. TKB

Greek Shipping Competition

Greek Shipping Competition Introduction: During the 20th century Greek shipping eventually developed as one of the most competitive players globally. Greek shipowners managed to establish their reputation as dominant players based on a well-structured positioning mix that has supported their efforts throughout the years. A variety of studies has been developed aiming to define what precisely supported Greek owners to build this successful entrepreneurial structure and which factor allowed them to obtain and sustain the competitiveness of the Greek shipping. According to M. Porter ‘’competitiveness†¦.’’ The definition for the competitiveness of Greek shipping has been studied by a respectful number of mostly Greek academics. The majority of the studies, focused mainly in specific sectors (e.g. dry bulks) or factors (e.g. Greek shipping network) as to analyse the competitive advantage of the Greek fleet. However, the aim of this paper is to evaluate if Greek shipping can sustain its competitive character. Thus, from the point of view of the writer, it will be more realistic to analyse a range of factors and sectors that contribute to the success of Greek shipping. It would not be simplistic to say that at the end of the day the competitiveness is defined by profitability. (2) From the referred range of studies and publishes, the writer believes that the competitive strength Greek shipping companies is summarised into careful selection of Business (cost control) and investment (timing) strategies. (1) Thus, in this paper we are going to investigate to what extent Greek shipowners will be able to sustain their competitiveness in the long-run based on the above principles. Specifically, the paper is about to concentrate on analysing the fleet on the basis of: Managerial Structure (business strategy) and Investment (timing) strategy. Once again, the aim will be the overall evaluation of the long-term prospects of Greek shipping to sustain its competitiveness. Fleet Analysis: General Information: Historically, shipping has played crucial role for Greek people and it has characterised some of the most important moments of their history: during the Persian Wars and the battleship of Salamina, in the Greek revolution against Ottoman Empire in 1821, the Balkan Wars and the World War I the Greek ships played significant role and affected the citizens of the Greece and (in some occasions) the global status quo as well. Figure 1, Source: BCG Impact assessment of Greek shipping on Economy and Society However, in our days when we refer to the Greek shipping we mean the great presence of the Greek shipowners to the global market. This presence was firstly established in dry bulk and the tanker (oil, products) sectors but lately we have strong signs of diversification into more sectors such as the container ships and the gas tankers. Statistical Analysis: It is better to set clear, in this paper when we refer to the term of ‘’Greek shipping’’ we actually discuss the Greek-controlled ships irrespectively of the company’s headquarters and the flag under the ships sail. (3) The reason of this choice reflects on the following table which describes the attitude of the owners to flag out their ships. Figure 2, The 35 countries and territories with the largest owned fleets, as of 31st January 2013 (DWT) Thus, according to the UNCTAD (2013 Report), only the 22.3% of Greek ships sail under the national flag when the remaining 77.7% sail under international flags. Hence, for the aim of the paper we will analyse the wider Greek-owned fleet instead of only focusing to the ship that are registered in Greece. Under that basis we can present the following statistical figures (which will be commented on the following part of this paper): The Greek-owned fleet is consisted of 4573 vessels and managed by 690 companies. Figure 3, Number of Greek-owned vessels, SOURCE: 2013 Petrofin research by Ted Petropoulos, October 2013 The 65.07% of the companies possess less than 5 ships while fleets with 25+ ships represent the 5.07% of the total. Figure 4, Fleet distribution of Greek Companies, SOURCE: 2013 Petrofin research by Ted Petropoulos, October 2013 The average age of the fleet has declined recently and at the end of 2013 was about 14.05 years. Figure 5, Average age of Greek fleet, SOURCE: 2013 Petrofin research by Ted Petropoulos, October 2013 Greek Orderbook (end of 02/2014) corresponds to 496 vessels (approximately 11% of existing fleet) of several types. Figure 6, Type of Orders by type, SOURCE: SIN database The majority of the new buildings have been ordered in Chinese shipyards while Republic of Korea follows with a slight difference: Figure 7, Greek Orderbook by country of builder, SOURCE: SIN database Greek shipping status Analysis: Management structure: Company Structure: As it has been referred, there are 690 shipping companies (Petrofin) mainly under tight family management. In Figure 4 we observe that the majority of the Greek companies possess a small fleet of ships. This can be a result of taxation strategy or mainly can be driven by the attitude of shipowners globally to not risk the viability of their whole business if one of their ships faces problems with regulation or capital cost. In the case of Greek shipping, the fragmentation of the market probably takes place for an extra reason: the majority of Greek shipping companies are family companies. Thus, there is a tendency that, after some years of experience in the family business, some members decide to build their own start-up business. This effort is supported by the knowledge gained previously and to the available capital. However, this attitude may contribute to the pluralism of the market and to promote Greek entrepreneurship but at the same time may trigger problems for the new companies which sometimes struggle to survive due to market reasons. More importantly, however, the new firms may be treated as undermining efforts against the family operations (4 Theotokas). Furthermore, it should be mentioned that small firms may be forced out of the business if they cannot attract sufficient financing.(5) The most significant advantage of the traditional form of Greek shipping companies is the philosophy of cutting costs passed from one generation to other.(6) However, family members ought to be quite qualified to perform their duties and not placed in businesses exclusively for reasons of heredity. (7) Another significant factor which has come under intense debate is the listing of Greek Companies to exchange markets. At the moment only the 6% of the total is listed, mainly in foreign exchanges (8,Petrofin).Listing can be used as a way of financing. However, Greek companies seek to find the ideal chemistry between a family-run company and a public outlet (9,Tsakos). As a third-generation shipowner A. Martinos quotes â€Å"a stock listed company has no head but a family company can move quickly with decision and authority† indicating a factor of flexibility for the Greek companies. People (human resources) The positioning of the Greek shipowners has been outstanding throughout the years. The reason behind this success can amongst others be the human factor. The fact that the first generation shipowners had been in the sea gave the sophisticated know-how to the industry which has been transferred throughout years and generations.(Theotokas). The referred know-how enables the ability to minimise costs and the dare to invest when the market is low. Particularly, the ability of achieving good timing and good choices has allowed the Greeks to perform excellent the asset play, to turn negative momentum into fleet expansion and to obtain market share and huge capital.(A fleet for the†¦THAN 10) Investment Strategy: Orderbook: The Greek Orderbook is one of the largest at the moment and as it is illustrated in Figure 6, there have been investments to multiple sectors. Specifically, we comment on the most interesting investments: Dry Bulks: Gas Tankers: Containers: Financing: What is the propeller for a ship is finance for a shipping company.(Petropoulos 11) Greek shipping has been significantly affected by the debt crisis which hurt violently the credit system and especially Greek banks which has been funding shipping business for decades. However, Greek shipowners managed to finance the modernisation of the Greek fleet (Navigating the financing storm 12) as it is presented in Figure 5. Obviously, once again Greek shipowners followed their tradition into anti-cyclical investing. During the period we are going through, investments in shipping have been mitigated. While investors around the world were selling vessels, Greeks were buying second-hand ships and they were placing orders to renew the fleet cheaply.(John Psychas 12). Probably, Greek owners took advantage by the capital gathered from previous successful years. Moreover, the recent years they have been using a combination of traditional and latest methods of financing, following sometimes hybrid solutions. (Syriopoulos 13) Another way of financing is listing. The majority of Greek shipowners realise the advantages of listing but seem reluctant to dare the change. It seems that this attitude is at last another point of strength for Greek shipping as traditional companies are based in their own capital to invest instead of raising financing in stocks market.( John Psychas 12) It is important to be highlighted that during crisis Greek shipping created a ‘’major ally’’ which is the Chinese Banks which they gave financial motivation for construction of ships in Chinese shipyards.(Petropoulos Shipping and ship finance 14). Chinese lenders decided to promote local shipping industry and Greek shipowners took advantage of a $10 billion fund for funding Greek orders in Chinese shipyards under competitive terms and interest (Bardounias 15). This trend is also illustrated in Figure 7. Conclusions and Recommendations: It seems that once again Greek shipping followed the traditional attitude of anti-cyclical investment which can probably guarantee long-term competitiveness in terms of capital cost. Specifically, in the dry bulk sector Greeks will be able to play the asset game which has supported their success so far. The renewal of the whole fleet is a strong signal of an operationally healthy industry for the years to come. However, the exposure of the owners to the container ship and gas tanker sector is a question mark which is not easy to be answered. If the market in these sectors will follow an upward in the near future then it is possible that in a few years we will discuss the diversification of the Greeks as another one outstanding strategic positioning. If not it is possible that this decision will be a very costly one and the diversification strategy will probably be abandoned in the future. The human factor will continue to be on the forefront of the Greek fleet as the heritage of the market sense seems to have been successfully developed by the third generation of the shipowners’ families. On the contrary, what has been built throughout all these years has to be protected. Hence, the new generations have unavoidably to be well-educated and strict evaluated as to be able to manage the business. Nepotism has to be scrutinised I order to guarantee evolution and success. The long-term competitiveness of the Greek shipping can be a reality under the optimum proportion of low-cost operation, sustainable management of traditional family businesses, targeted strategy towards financing and repeating of asset play. The diversification into new sectors can be the next competitive advantage of Greek shipping under the condition that the shipowners monitor the market closely and are adequately flexible and adoptable as to realise the different function of the multiple sectors.

Positivism and study of society

Positivism and study of society Positivism was named by Auguste Comte in 19th century, which was influenced by early empiricism of Enlightenment- with achieve the targets which include make objective knowledge and formulate the universal laws. The Rationalism also contributed positivism to improve the human conditions but not God (Smith, 2003, p76). Positivism has three development stages after it was mentioned- the early positivism, the logical positivism and standard positivism (Smith, 2003, p77). This essay will discuss the early positivism and logical positivism. As a branch of empiricism, the broader sense of positivism is the true knowledge which should be based on sense experiences, and only can be advanced by observation and experiment, avoided all metaphysical or speculation (Urmson, 1960). Another definition in this essay which should be introduced is the contributions of positivism. In this essay, contribution means the positivism how to create knowledge than before but not only focus on any positivistï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½s theory or the contributions in any specific subject. Positivism affected the studies of society since early 19th century to now although some people point out positivism is not fitting for the development of society nowadays (Smith, 2003, p76). In this essay, the contributions of positivism are how the positivism creates knowledge. The methodology of positivism was complete the theory of empiricism in Enlightenment. Based on positivism methodology, the closed system was implemented in study of society by Positivists. The critical evaluation of these contributions will be stated in every section. This essay will also state using modern sight to review the contributions of positivism. Early positivism contributed to create a framework of research method and the basic principles of positivism. After early positivism, ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Vienna Circleï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ developed the thoughts and created logical positivism. Positivists followed the same thought to find truth out no matter which stage of positivism. All of them had contributions in history. As mentioned above, positivism is a branch of empiricism. Comparing with empiricism in Enlightenment, the biggest contribution of positivism is complete the methodology on empiricism and lead the positivism nearly regard to scientific spirit today (Heidegren, 2006, p92). Through this methodology, new scientific methods will be completed and applied on social science. The ontology of positivism methodology is the world is external and objective, and the observers should be independent and be neutral in the researches (Smith, 2003). Under this situation, the epistemology of positivism is building hypothesises and then to find the relationships between limited facts in social phenomena, and formulate universal laws at last (Smith, 2003). Be ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½neutralï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½objectiveï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ were positivists insert in the positivism methodology and affect the whole society. Take an instance for the contribution of ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½neutralï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½objectiveï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in positivism is the positivist approach in criminology. Before the positivism, criminal suspects could prove their own criminal behaviours and this lead some criminal suspects were suffering and had to admit the behaviours which were not existed. However, positivists thought this was not humanistic and criminal suspects should be avoid from evidences, that means the criminal suspects cannot prove their own criminal behaviours (Simon, 2006). However, the contribution of ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½neutralï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½objectiveï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ has been questioned. For example, legal positivism has begun to be questioned in recent years. Priel pointed out ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Legal positivism is the thesis that one does not need to rely on evaluative considerations in order to identify what the law isï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in his essay (2006). He had the question about the validity and content of legal positivism (Priel, 2006). Based on the positivism methodology, early positivists completed the scientific methods. As a representative of philosophers in Enlightenment, Bacon created ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½science of methodï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½, there were three steps in the scientific method. First, making observations and repeat the observations, which were based on experiments. Secondly, classify the observations. Finally, formulating the observations to laws through inductive reasoning (Porter, 2007, p21-22). Comte and Durkheim inherited the scientific method and completed this scientific method to six steps, 1) make an observation, 2) suggest a question, 3) formulate a hypothesis and except outline, 4) testing the hypothesis through experiment method, 5) to analyse the data and 6) formulate a universal law (Cohen el al, 2007). Positivism completed the procedure of scientific method, inserted ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½hypothesisï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½experimentï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½. ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Hypothesisï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in scientific method was the speculations of relationships between factors- the causes and effects (Cohen el al, 2007). The ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½experimentï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ means to make a test in a controlled artificial environment which had small number of variables, this system was named closed system and which will be discussed later (Smith, 2003). Hypothesis is not only the speculation of the research, but also the key of the research. Positivists mentioned this notion of hypothesis and lead the scientific method to become complete and more validity. Basically, the research is built on hypothesis, no matter in natural science or social science. For example, scientific method is applied in natural science such as biology, chemistry, physics, and other else. In social science, scientific method is also applied widely, such as economy, legal system, psychology and other subjects. Figure 1 is a good example to show the hypothesis has became one of the most important links in economic study. Applying the closed system in social science is another contribution of the early positivism, as the notion of ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½experimentï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ which is mentioned above. Before the positivism, people only applied scientific method in natural science. Comte and Durkheim believe the social science is similar as natural science and closed system can be applied and the truth and law in social science will be found. This thought provided a model for studying the social science and made people create more knowledge about the society. There are three closures in the closed system- experimental closure, theoretical closure, and statistical closure. Experimental closure is through the experiment methods in an artificial environment to get an empirical purpose (Smith, 2003). This kind of closure is usually applied in psychology and other similar subjects. Theoretical closure is usually building theory models to analyse the relationships between variables (Smith, 2003). Theoretical closure has been applied in economy widely. For example, economists anticipate the trend of national economy through the theory models. The last closure is statistical closure which means finding relationships between different variables through quantitative measurable data sets (Smith, 2003). This closure is used in economy, psychology, political science and other subjects widely. For example, customer satisfaction investigation, examination of electoral results and so on. Early positivists let people study and understand society better through applied scientific method and closed system in study of social science and tried to obtain definite objective knowledge. However, some disadvantages are existed when positivists applying scientific method and closed system in study of social science. There are too many other unpredictable variables exist outside of the boundary of closed system which can affect the results (Smith, 2003). In addition, some social variables cannot be measurable such as beliefs and scientific method maybe not suitable for this situation (Bryman Bell, 2007). Logical positivism is a development of early positivism and appeared in early 1920s (Smith, 2003). A group of philosophers who had informal discussions at the University of Vienna and they were named ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Vienna Circleï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ (Smith, 2003). The logical positivism was promoted by ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Vienna Circleï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½, the centre of the logical positivism was still avoid any kind of metaphysics and speculative attempts (Smith, 2003). According to Ganguly (1967), logical positivism is a kind of the empiricism which with a premise that the objects can be verifiable empirically and meaningful. Comparing with early positivism, logical positivism has ambition to all knowledge which cannot be verified (Smith, 2003). One of the contributions of logical positivism is the meaning of the theory should be communicable. Logical positivists proposed achieve this target through synthetic and analytic statement (Ganguly, 1967). Ayer was a famous positivist who contributed much in logical positivism, and he pointed out that the language which was used in science should simple, clear and free from mystification (Ganguly, 1967). Smith pointed out that this proposal ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½led many to refer to this new approach as the ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½linguistic turnï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in the philosophy of the social sciences.ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ (2003) Another contribution of logical positivism is logical positivists provide verifiability principle. Combining with induction in logical positivism, logical positivists believed the real value-free could be achieved (Ganguly, 1967). Before the logical positivism, researches were based on designersï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ purposes, therefore, the researches would be disturbed by designersï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ opinions although they tried to avoid that. For example, in some marketing satisfaction investigations, the questionnaire will bring researchers subjective and leading the answers. Some theories such as physics theories which cannot be experiment directly should be proved by logic methods. Logical positivists tried to make absolute objective topic and find the real objective truth. Their strict method and serious scientific spirit lead people to treat natural and social sciences carefully, and the real truth can be found without any subjective. However, some experts pointed out there are problems on logical positivism. First, the language requirement of logical positivism makes people confuse about the truth. Indeed, it is hard to translate the language because this doctrine defined the language so exactly (Ritchie, 2009). Secondly, the logical positivists mentioned the knowledge should be verifiable and logical, however, some theories is hard to be proved but people cannot say that is metaphysics (Ritchie, 2009). Positivism contributed so much in history and still influencing the philosophies and study of natural and social sciences today. Positivists provided useful framework in its period and helped people to collect knowledge. Positivism is an ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½extremeï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ philosophy which oppose to interpretivism, however, it is the time to combine them together to develop new framework for study of society (Ricciardi, 2009). As mentioned above, some weaknesses are existed when positivists applied scientific method and closed system in social sciences and obtained the knowledge, such as some hide variables are ignored by closed system when studying social sciences. Under this situation, the validity of the research will be questioned and it is not follow the principles of positivism. Therefore, new framework or new philosophy should be created to solve this problem and replace the positivism. To sum up, positivism was mentioned in early 19th century, Comte and Durkhaim were the founders of the positivism. The purpose of positivism is finding the absolute objective true knowledge, different stage of positivism followed this thought and tried best to avoid metaphysics and subjective. Early positivists who were influenced by empiricism in Enlightenment and completed the positivism methodology, new completed scientific method was created based on this situation. Early positivists developed the closed system and enhance the development of sciences as well. Furthermore, early positivists applied scientific method and closed system in study of society, this helped people to understand the world better in that period, although some disadvantages were exist, such as some variables in society were ignored. Vienna Circle developed the thoughts and methods in early positivism and created logical positivism. They applied more strict principles to find the objective truth. The most imp ortant contributions of logical positivism were using exactly accurate language to describe the theories and verifiable principle. These lead the sciences to be objective and more accurate. However, the weaknesses are still in logical positivism, for example, using exactly language will bring the barriers in communication in different languages. As the development of philosophy and sciences, positivism emerge more and more weakness and will be replaced by other new philosophies. Positivism has depth influence in history and the contributions cannot be eliminated. Bibliography Bryman, A. Bell, E. (2007) Business research methods, published by Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2nd Ed, 2007 Cohen, L., Manion, L. Morrison, K. (2007) The Scientific Method, Research methods in education, published by Routledge, New York, in 2007 Ganguly, S. (1967) Logical positivism- as a theory of meaning, published by Allied Publishers Private Limited, India, in 1967 Heidegren, CG (2006) Positivism before Logical Positivism in Nordic Philosophy, The Vienna Circle in the Nordic Countries, published by Springer, published in 2006 Porter, D. (2007) Baconï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½s Method and Coleridgeï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½s Empiricism, Knowledge broken: Empiricist method and the forms of Romanticism, Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy, published in 2007 Priel, D. (2006) TROUBLE FOR LEGAL POSITIVISM?, Legal Theory, Published by Cambridge University Press, published in 12/2006, p225-263 Ricciardi, F. (2009) Epistemology of Information Systems: Time for Something New? Positivism, Interpretivism, and Beyond, Information Systems: People, Organizations, Institutions, and Technologies, published on 03/10/2009 Ritchie, A. (2009) Errors of Logical Positivism, Philosophy, Vol: 12 Issue: 45, published in 02/2009 Simon, J (2006) Positively Punitive: How the Inventor of Scientific Criminology Who Died at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century Continues to Haunt American Crime Control at the Beginning of the Twenty-First, Texas Law Review, Vol: 84, Issue: 7, published in 06/2006, [accessed on 09/03/2010] Smith, M. (2003) Social science in question, edited, designed, and typeset by The Open University, published in 1998, reprinted 2002 and 2003 Urmson, O. (1960) The concise encyclopedia of western philosophy and philosophers, Urmson, O. edited, publisher: HUTCHINSON CO. London

Robert Bolts A Man For All Seasons Essay -- Robert Bolt Man Seasons E

Robert Bolt's "A Man For All Seasons" In the play, written by Robert Bolt, 'A man for all seasons' the Common Man is a very important character and also a very important part of the play, not in the plot but in the way the play has been presented, he is both a narrator and a role player who makes the play more interesting and separates it from reality. The Common Man also introduces some of the ideas from Bertolt Brecht's work. The idea of the Common Man is a rare and rather unusual one. Robert Bolt used him intentionally to be like no other character in his play. One of the distinctive functions of the Common Man is obvious from his name. The word, 'common' meaning, 'common to us all.' Everybody in the audience should be able to relate to him. The Common Man plays a very plain and simple man and he sustains this through all his roles, especially the Boatman, who when asked to describe the life of a boatman says, 'its common.' We see the boatman as a typical hard working man as he talks about the strains of his job, 'from Richmond to Chelsea, downstream, from Chelsea to Richmond, upstream..' Yet this character is still able to make a joke about his wife to show that he is not bitter. The boatman is also the first to introduce the motif of the river, water imagery in the play. This involves the members of the play using the characteristics of water and portraying them into their own lives, an example being society figures as dry land. Throughout all the roles played by the Common Man, including the Steward, Boatman, Publican, Jailer, Foreman of the jury and a Headsman, he will always express a similar attitude, the attitude of the 'plain and simple man,' as the jailer says. The speech used amongst ... ... shows self-preservation at one point and a way in which he is not so simple and ordinary, when he declines the bribe, where as a simple man might have just taken the money, The Common Man understands the wrong and refuses the money. During his role as the Foreman of the Jury, The Common Man seems to bring all the roles together I think a quote that very well sums up the Common Man is when the jailer says, 'Better alive and no conscience, than dead with morals.' But I think the Common Man's most major function in the play is his part as narrator, if it wasn't for the Common Man the story would be told alone just by the characters, this could mean the story might be harder to understand as it goes along. Furthermore the story would be less interesting as well as harder to grasp. The Common Man is a very important part of the play 'A man for all seasons.'

Heathen and Christian Elements in the Wanderer Essay -- Wanderer

Heathen and Christian Elements in the Wanderer      Ã‚  Ã‚   The modern word 'weird' bears only a superficial resemblance to its etymological descendent, wyrd.   What now stands for 'strange' and 'queer' only has an archaic connection to its classical meaning of 'Fate'.   During the process of evolution, however, the word went through many phases, especially during the formation of the English language by the Anglo-Saxons.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Wyrd appears fairly often in Old English poetry and prose, indicating a certain importance in Germanic society.   By following the changes the word undergoes, it is also possible to follow some of the changes that the culture undergoes as well.   A fine example of Old English poetry that employs wyrd on four separate occasions - with four separate meanings - is The Wanderer.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What began as a word firmly rooted in what can only be termed 'heathen' culture eventually began to take on much more religious overtones.   The word wyrd, though originally pagan in meaning, had found an entirely Christian colouring by the time of its use in The Wanderer.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Before beginning an analysis of a single word that appears four times in this poem, it is important to establish a few assumptions about the nature of the piece itself.   Many an article and essay have been written about The Wanderer, trying to define its theme, genre, even its narrator.   Yet the wonderfully ambiguous nature of the poem defies any single explanation, so it remains up to the critical reader to develop his own opinion.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For the purpose of this paper, it is believed that The Wanderer is, in essence, a heathen/pagan poem, rooted firmly in the Germanic culture from whence it hails.   H... ...y Exile of the   Ã‚  Ã‚   Wanderer."   Neophilologus 73 (1989): 119-129.    Dunning, T.P., and A.J.Bliss, eds.   The Wanderer.   London: Methuen   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   & Co, 1969    Lochrie, Karma.   "Wyrd and the Limits of Human Understanding: a    Thematic Sequence in the Exeter Book."   JEPG 85 (1986): 323-331    Timmer, B.J.   "Wyrd in Anglo-Saxon Prose and Poetry."     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Neophilologus 26 (1941): 213-128.    Timmer, B.J.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "Heathen and Christian Elements in Old English Poetry."   Neophilologus 29 (1944): 180-185.      Ã‚  Ã‚   1Due to the lack of punctuation in The Wanderer, it is nigh impossible to know who is narrating, or to whom he/she is referring to at any given time.   Ã‚  Ã‚   2The actual meaning of "sundor à ¦t rune" remains ambiguous.   Though "apart in meditation" seems the most likely, interpretations such as "reading runes" have been put forward.