My First Experience with Prostitute Essays

My First Experience with Prostitute Essays My First Experience with Prostitute Essay My First Experience with Prostitute Essay I had been at a show in San Francisco when I wound up out of cigarettes, a pain I endured maybe every other day, my propensity being less extreme than those that had ended the lives of such a large number of individuals I’d known. My companion and I had met at the theater, and we had separated after the presentation, so I was distant from everyone else in my truck when she moved toward me. My new pack was in my grasp, and I was tinkering with the covering when she showed up, outlined against the splendid lights of the corner alcohol store. She stated, â€Å"Hey, attractive, do you need a date? † She was a pretty dark lady of around 30, yet her eyes were far off, as though she also had as of late fulfilled a compulsion. My first idea was heroin. My hesitation was of my better half sheltered and warm in my bed. I removed the cling wrap from my new pack. She had no chance to get of knowing what my identity was, or that I filled in as an analyst at a mother and children’s tranquilize treatment office in Oakland. Just a couple of evenings prior, I had remained late and tuned in to the tale of Patrice, one of my grown-up customers: how her little girl had as of late turned six, and how this was raising issues for her, as six was the age at which her own mother’s sweetheart had begun explicitly manhandling her. Patrice had clarified how she didn’t need to resemble her mom, who had now and then been in a similar bed when the maltreatment occurred, sitting idle, and how small amounts and bits of since quite a while ago stifled memory were coming back to her, finding in her little girl a youthful a blameless form of herself. My customer was continually giggling and kidding around, and this was the first run through I’d seen her cry. I stated, â€Å"No, I need to return home. † The lady waited at my open window, and I took a gander at her face. She was appealing, and unobtrusively squandered from the outset, however then she began to get restless, which caused me to feel somewhat anxious also. My engine was running, yet I didn’t pull away. I pondered who this young lady was, and what she had done before she took up her present calling. I realized that a portion of my grown-up customers had been phone administrators, receptionists, and even medication advocates before their propensities took them to the road. About 70% had sold their bodies for tranquilize cash while in their addictions. Patrice was extremely brilliant, however had been moderately youthful when she rampaged. The feelings she had prepared a few evenings ago were profound, and now and then clashing. In addition to the fact that she wanted to shield her little girl from what had befallen her, yet she additionally felt envious of her girl: desirous that her girl could be six years of age in a mother and children’s medicate treatment program where she was shielded from misuse. And afterward she felt regretful about inclination desirous of her little girl. What's more, she was distraught at her mom, wishing that her mom, likewise a fiend, could have discovered a program like the one at which she was an inhabitant, and I an advocate. The lady stated, â€Å"Well at that point, hello, might you be able to simply drive me a few squares down the road? I just gotta get two or three squares down the road. † She was getting progressively restless, and this made me somewhat frightful, yet I was amazed by the idea that experienced my head. My dread was not that this young lady would have a weapon, and attempt to mug me, nor was it that some enormous â€Å"pimp† would rise up out of the haziness and bother me. It was that the police would out of nowhere rise up out of no place and capture me. Capture me for what? I hadn’t offered her any cash, and I hadn’t welcomed her into my vehicle. Be that as it may, I was as yet apprehensive. And afterward I unexpectedly grinned at the incongruity: How amusing it was that an aspect of my responsibilities was to support previous whores and street pharmacists figure out how to lead the â€Å"straight† life, yet I was more dreadful of capture by the police than of a whore and the obnoxious organization that may encompass her. A few unimportant traffic stops by a multi year time span had been sufficient to sabotage y sentiment of security around Officers of the Law. She stated, â€Å"Come on, Baby, only a few squares down the road. † I had seen at work that a considerable lot of the ladies I worked with were acceptable in the territory of deals. They could keep you engaged with a discussion, or persuade you to give them a benef it that the standards didn't permit, with incredible aptitude. Indeed, in instructors gatherings we had talked about the significance of helping our grown-up customers â€Å"sublimate† their business aptitudes into what we thought about genuine work. What's more, there I was, for the most part my very own detainee musings, yet in addition of her determination, really pondering giving her a ride. I stated, â€Å"No, I truly got the chance to get over the scaffold. † And by then I gave her a look, I recall, of something like skepticism, as though to state, â€Å"What the hellfire would we say we are doing around here having this discussion? What's more, who are you, truly? † I felt sort of started crying, and like I needed to disclose to her what my identity was, and I's job. And afterward her face mollified, and she grinned, however only for a few seconds. She knew at that time that I wasn’t a likely John, and I think she realized that I didn’t judge her either. When she stated, â€Å"Just a few squares? † there was no conviction in her voice. â€Å"I’m simply searching for a date,† kind of trailed off into the night. I hauled a cigarette out of my pack yet I didn’t offer her one. I guess I was returning my limits up. I stated, â€Å"I trust you discover a man who treats you right tonight,† and I glanced her straight in the face since I would not joke about this. At that point I perplexed the truck into first and pulled. On the scaffold, the Bay Bridge which returns me toward the East Bay, I thought about whether I’d see her in our Program one day, or if she’d end up dead, or simply continue doing what’s she’s doing. At work the following day, I needed to make reference to my experience to Partice, yet I didn't, as it isn't fitting to examine our own lives with customers. This all occurred around three years prior. Last I heard, Patrice was still perfect and calm, had a great job, and her little girl was progressing admirably. With respect to the whore, I don’t think I’d perceive her on the off chance that I saw her today.

Frq-French and Indian War free essay sample

Because of the French and Indian War, the British wound up in the red and censured the homesteaders for their neediness which at last influenced the efficient connection between the British and the pioneers. The British actualized the Townsend Acts which burdened lead, glass, paint, and tea. The British implemented the stamp Act which put an expense on each printed authoritative archive. After the stamp Act was placed vigorously, the pilgrims fought by pounding charge authorities and boycotting every single British great until the Stamp Act was at long last repealed.Each of the duties straightforwardly influenced the affordable connection between the British and the pioneers in light of the fact that the homesteaders had to pay unjustifiable assessments that they didn't affirm of. Albeit numerous demonstrations were actualized that influenced the efficient relationship, a significant number of the demonstrations influenced the political relationship. The Boston Tea Party was held when a restraining infrastructure on tea was given to the British East India Company. We will compose a custom exposition test on Frq-French and Indian War or on the other hand any comparable point explicitly for you Don't WasteYour Time Recruit WRITER Just 13.90/page Thus, the British upheld the Coercive Acts (Boston Port Act) which influenced the pioneers most provincially on the grounds that it shut down the harbors which shut down the work of the colonists.John Adams at that point called the 1 SST Continental Congress and he advanced an all out blacklist of every British great and the Declaration of Rights which was sent to the King. The Coercive Acts were the last draw and the Revolution started soon after when British soldiers were sent into Lexington. Every one of these demonstrations influenced the political connection between the British and the pilgrims on the grounds that the out of line laws and acts f the British prompted the pioneers assurance to split away and comply with their own political views.Many factors brought about by the French and Indian War later lead to the American Revolution. Unexpectedly, the battle of the insurgency pushed the provinces towards France and prompted the autonomy of the United States, when the Declaration of Independence was achieved. Monetary and policy centered Issues started among France and America after the French and Indian war. They were later content with ACH other because of the help they gave one another.FRR-French and Indian War By librarianship AP US History opened 3 September 5, 2013 its North American provinces. From the timespan of 1763-1765, numerous events Stamp Act which put an assessment on each printed authoritative record. After the Stamp Act was pioneers. John Adams at that point called the first Continental Congress and he advanced an Independence was achieved. Monetary and policy driven issues started among France and America after the French and Indian War.

Characteristics and Qualities of Heroism

Characteristics and Qualities of Heroism Theories Personality Psychology Print The Characteristics of a Hero What makes someone a hero? By Kendra Cherry facebook twitter Kendra Cherry, MS, is an author, educational consultant, and speaker focused on helping students learn about psychology. Learn about our editorial policy Kendra Cherry Updated on August 28, 2019 Oivind Hovland / Getty Images More in Theories Personality Psychology Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Behavioral Psychology Cognitive Psychology Developmental Psychology Social Psychology Biological Psychology Psychosocial Psychology What characteristics or qualities make a person a hero? Is there a hero gene? According to one recent study, the answer might rest in what type of heroism we are addressing. Researchers have found that people who had engaged in one-time acts of bravery (like rushing into a burning building or rescuing someone from the path of an oncoming train) are not necessarily that much different from control groups of non-heroes. By contrast, people who engage in lifelong heroism (such as professional nurses who regularly comfort the sick and dying) do share a number of important personality traits such as empathy, nurturance, and a need to live by a moral code. Definitions of Heroism The scientific study of heroism is a relatively recent topic of interest within the field of psychology. Researchers have offered different definitions of exactly what makes a hero, but most suggest that heroism involves prosocial, altruistic actions that involve an element of personal risk or sacrifice.   Researchers Franco, Blau, and Zimbardo suggest that heroism involves more than just this, however. In their definition, heroism is characterized by: Actions that are done in service of others who are in need, whether it is for an individual, a group, or a communityActions that are performed voluntarilyThe individual recognizes the potential risk or sacrifice they are making by taking these actionsThe heroic individual willing accepts the anticipated sacrifice they are makingThey engage in these actions without any expectation of reward or external gain?? The Characteristics of Heroism Researchers also do not necessarily agree about the central characteristics that make up heroism. One study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology suggested that heroes have 12 central traits which are: Moral integrityBraveryConvictionCourageSelf-sacrificeSelflessnessDeterminationInspirationalHelpfulProtectiveHonestyDetermination The psychology of heroism might not be well understood, but many experts do believe that it is possible for people to learn to be heroes. The following are just a few of the major characteristics that researchers have ascribed to heroes. Heroes Are Concerned With the Well-being of Others According to researchers, empathy, and compassion for others are key variables that contribute to heroic behavior. People who rush in to help others in the face of danger and adversity do so because they genuinely care about the safety and well-being of other people. One study found that people who have heroic tendencies also have a much higher degree of empathy. People who engage in acts of heroism feel concern and care for the people around them and they are able to feel what those in need of help are feeling. The Benefits of Empathy Heroes Are See Things From the Perspective of Others Researchers suggest that heroes arent just compassionate and caring; they have a knack for being able to see things from the perspective of others. They can walk a mile in another mans shoes, so to speak. When they encounter a situation where an individual is in need, they are immediately able to see themselves in that same situation and see what needs to be done to help. Heroes Have Useful Skills and Strengths Clearly, having the training or physical ability to deal with a crisis can also play a major role in whether or not people become heroes. In situations where would-be rescuers lack the know-how or sheer physical strength to make a difference, people are less likely to help or are more likely to find less direct ways to take action. And in many cases, this approach is probably best; after all, people senselessly rushing into a dangerous situation can pose even more difficulties for rescue workers. People who are trained and capable, such as those with first aid training and experience, are more ready and able to step up when their skills are needed. Heroes Have a Strong Moral Compass According to heroism researchers Zimbardo and Franco, heroes have two essential qualities that set them apart from non-heroes: they live by their values and they are willing to endure personal risk to protect those values. Their values and personal beliefs give them the courage and resolve to endure risk and even danger in order to adhere to those principles. Heroes Are Competent and Confident It takes both skill and self-confidence to rush in where others fear to tread. Researchers suggest that people who perform heroic acts tend to feel confident in themselves and their abilities.?? When faced with a crisis, they have an intrinsic belief that they are capable of handling the challenge and achieving success no matter what the odds. Part of this confidence might stem from above-average coping skills and abilities to manage stress. How People Become More Resilient Heroes Face Fear A person who rushes into a burning building to save another person is not just extraordinarily brave; he or she also possesses an ability to overcome fear. Researchers suggest that heroic individuals are positive thinkers by nature, which contributes to their ability to look past the immediate danger of a situation and see a more optimistic outcome. In many cases, these individuals may also have a higher tolerance for risk. Plenty of caring and kind people might shrink back in the face of danger. Those who do leap into action are typically more likely to take greater risks in multiple aspects of their lives. Heroes keep working on their goals, even after multiple setbacks. Persistence is another quality commonly shared by heroes. In one 2010 study, researchers found that people identified as heroes were more likely to put a positive spin on negative events. When faced with a potentially life-threatening illness, people with heroic tendencies might focus on the good that might come from the situation such as a renewed appreciation for life or an increased closeness with loved ones.?? The decision to act heroically is a choice that many of us will be called upon to make at some point in time. By conceiving of heroism as a universal attribute of human nature, not as a rare feature of the few “heroic elect,” heroism becomes something that seems in the range of possibilities for every person, perhaps inspiring more of us to answer that call, write heroism researchers, Zeno Franco, and Philip Zimbardo. A Word From Verywell Researchers have found that in a lot of ways, heroes are not all that different from most people. However, there are a number of skills you can build that can boost your hero characteristics. Building empathy, becoming competent and skilled, and being persistent in the face of obstacles are all abilities you can work on over time. By doing so, you can improve your ability to help others and come through in times of need.

Paulo Freires Social Justice Idea - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 1023 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2019/04/08 Category Society Essay Level High school Tags: Social Justice Essay Did you like this example? Introduction Paulo Freires idea of learning for social justice has influenced many academic disciplines and has remained an inspiration to many across the world. This Brazilian educator has been revolutionary in his ideas of education for justice and he has left a significant mark on thinking progressive practices in education. Paulo Freires Pedagogy of the Oppressed is one of the most quoted educational text worldwide, through which he was able to weave together educational practices and liberation. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Paulo Freires Social Justice Idea" essay for you Create order He explained the deep theory and practice of liberatory education around the globe and relates the education to broader social movements to fight for humanity and liberation. Purpose of education is mainly concerned with literacy so that these educated people can make their own arguments by weighing different perspectives. So, the literacy would help men and women to overcome their sense of powerlessness and thus develop agency. They can tranform their situation relating to any problem in life by thinking critically about reality and then taking action. Freires theory relates this to overcome oppression by appropriate education and thinking critically. This oppression can be any problem associated with social, political and economical context of a persons life. To become such kind of literate we have to make our education system to support such transformation. According to Freire, education system played a central role in maintaining oppression and it need to be reformed in order for things to change for thewho suffered. Teachers who wants to change the world need to engage students in doing same as its the co-participation of both teachers and students in justice struggle. Teachers must be open with their views, but never impose them on students and give the right to students to have their own ideas, but also must have mutual respect for each others ideas. Key components and strategies of learning for justice theory: these key components of learning for justice will provide the insight of the whole process to impove existing teaching policies and strategies in padagogy. 1.Banking education Banking education framewrok explains the existing framework for curriculum delivery, in which the students are the depositories and the teacher is the depositor where the teacher makes deposits which the students patiently receive, memorize, and repeat. In this type of educational system, students are listening objects, are not asked to think critically about the world in which they live. They are merely asked to swallow information. This banking education allows the oppressors (policy makers, curriculum designers) to maintain the system of oppression, which minimize students creative power and to stimulate their credulity to serve the interests of the oppressors in which students do not have the opportunity to question or critically evaluate the world in which they live and thus have no opportunity to change their lives for the better. Alternative to banking education which Freire proposed as is the liberating education or questioning education. Liberating education involves a proce ss of humanizing people who have been oppressed, which can be related to todays school system to empower students to question education. It also empowers them to question their lives and their position in society. They will become more fully human and would know how to fight dehumanization which involves the injustice, exploitation and oppression etc. 2. Culture Cycle Freire took the education out of traditional (four wall) classroom, where students and teacher together discuss themes that have significance within the context of students lives. These themes should be discovered through the cooperative research of educator and student. These themes are related to nature, culture, work, and relationships and can be discovered by making connections with students and knowing their background and interests. These themes are then represented in the form of visual representations then students decode these themes and they recognize them as situations in which they themselves are involved as subjects. This process will engage them in critical consiousness. For example Gutstein, enhanced the coursework with the project in which students investigated racism and using mathematics as a key analytical tool, which emphasis on relating these themes to official curriculum by finding connections. The themes like racism, discrimination, gender, sex, can be taught i n classroom settings. 3. Generative themes and codifications Generative (capacity to unfold further to generate many themes) theme should be interested to students, which evoke importance or concern to them, so that discussion can be generated. The themes should be represented in the form of codification (either represented by a word or short phrase or a visual representation a picture or photograph). These codifications would make students explore these themes critically by regarding them objectively rather than simply experiencing them. System of codifications has been very successful in promoting literacy among adult students, Freire always emphasized that it should not be approached mechanically, but rather as a process of creation and awakening of consciousnes with which they decode the aspects of situation by feeling themselves in the situation and be able to reflect critically upon its various aspects. The activism can be applied by using approach of codifications, in which students would deal with a problem by feeling themselves in th at situation. For example themes like Raising social consciousness: prejudices and employment, Quality of life: consciousness and participation, Housing: urbanization and values, Cohabitation and violence. These themes with concrete representations of ideas, hopes, outlooks and challenges arising out of human beings orientations to the world will provide a certain view of viewing the world to the students. This practice is suggested to replace traditional method where teacher choose the program content and students adapt to it. 4. Praxis Freires concept of praxis in education is related to action research: a process where a group works together through cycles of action, reflection and further action to improve a situation. Freirean praxis assumes that education is political, so the practice of education must be informed by praxis learning begins with action is then shaped by reflection, which gives rise to further action. In order to transform the world, reflection and action are inseparable, you cannot act without thinking and reflection without action will not change reality. Which is required to replace the existing policy of teacher talks and student listens.

Uniforms in School - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 1 Words: 444 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2019/02/15 Category Education Essay Level High school Tags: School Uniforms Essay Did you like this example? Furthermore on the idea, it can also be said that students can manifest their individuality in school uniforms by including modifications and attaching accessories. Andrea Dashiell, the journalist on Parentmap had presented an article School Uniform: Conformity vs Creativity, and her idea that she confronted is informing the audience that students should express themselves with uniform on, and she had come to an understanding that 54% of eighth graders said they could continue to publicize their individuality while wearing their school uniform every day. As one can continue the idea of adding on accessories, students may choose to express themselves with anything on their wrists whether it be watches or bracelets. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Uniforms in School" essay for you Create order It is a much more convenient and understanding way to present to school without standing out with any expensive clothing as said previously. Another idea presented was from Julia Rubin who created an article How to Accessorize your School Uniform and what she had exhibited was that students can manifest their individuality as well in school uniforms by including modifications and attaching accessories and she quotes, â€Å"Contrary to popular belief, uniform do not stop students from being themselves. Uniforms do not silence voices. Students can wear variety of expensive items, such ad buttons or jewelry.† This idea not only brings out the best in students but also where if students can express themselves without having to wear expensive items, they can be socially active with others around the school or in the classroom as they become academically prepared for class. As Rubin quoted, she finalizes her idea that students can voice out to their opinion, meaning they have the freedom of speech to say anything about what they like and do not like if it were to ever come to a situation that uniforms policy is not being held the way it is supposed to be. It has been shown that school uniforms are immeasurable for discipline and will take school more precariously to then concentrate more on learning rather than clothing or abhorrence of violence since additional issues that are a severe situation in our world. this come to many great points to as whether uniforms are a great choice in our society whether it was violence abruption, academic readiness, financial reasoning, and much more. But it usually comes into consideration in where one comes from and where the school is located. The argument presented can be drawn out to many of those that strive for a better education or policy in the school or around the community especially for those that dress presentable with a uniform on and only has one purpose which is to be educational and successful throughout their lives.

A Beautiful Mind takes place over the course of forty seven years in John Nash’s life Free Essays

A Beautiful Mind takes place over the course of forty seven years in John Nash’s life. It is based on a true story. The film begins with John Nash as he is entering into graduate school at Princeton in the late 1940’s and lasts through the reception of his Nobel Prize in 1994. We will write a custom essay sample on A Beautiful Mind takes place over the course of forty seven years in John Nash’s life or any similar topic only for you Order Now During his schooling he lives on campus alone, but a few years after he graduates, he meets Alicia Larde. Eventually he marries her, and they move in to together and have a son. Throughout the span of the film he develops schizophrenia and his condition progresses, until he is diagnosed, after which treatment is implemented. He seems to suffer from schizophrenia paranoid type, because of the prominence of his delusions, as well as his numerous interpersonal problems. The first symptom that John Nash displays which can be used to classify him clinically as schizophrenic is disturbance of language. When he is working on a difficult mathematics problem, or walking from one place to another, he mutters unintelligible things to himself. Often when coming out of one of his hallucinations he is under a lot of stress and begins talking nonsense, such as when he was giving his infant son a bath. When his wife returned to find the baby nearly drowning, John Nash insists, even though he is alone in the room, that his old college roommate, who doesn’t exist, was watching the baby. Further, he claims that Charles was injected with a sort of serum that made him invisible. The meaning of his claims doesn’t make sense within the context of the situation. Also, at the beginning of the movie, in response to a challenge, he tells his classmate that he is â€Å"terrified, mortified, petrified, and stupefied,† by him, which could be a form of clanging, although it actually makes sense. His disturbance of language mainly results from his disruption of perception, which includes rather complex hallucinations. The first hallucination he has, which follows him for the rest of his life, is his roommate, Charles Herman, whom he ‘meets’ in graduate school. Soon after, John Nash is introduced to six year old Marcee, Charles’ niece. After graduating, and being appointed to a position at Wheeler Lab, his work with the government prompts another hallucination-this time of a top secret government investigator, a William Parcher, who goes on to give Nash an assortment of ‘assignments. The many delusions that he suffers can be classified under disturbance of thought. First of all he exhibits delusions of grandeur. He estimates himself at such a high importance level that he feels as though he is invincible, and should not be capable of losing-even in a board game. Also after doing minor work with the government, he thinks he’s a spy, allowing him to work with top secret government documents, but that is just a part of his delusions of grandeur. Really believing he is a spy has to do with his confused sense of self. Being a spy is a position he has created for himself. Even after being forcibly admitted to the psychiatric hospital, he continues to believe they are his enemies, that they hospital staff are merely Russians trying to trick him into divulging his secrets. He’s so paranoid, that when his wife, Alicia, comes to visit at the hospital, he warns her that ‘they’ may be listening through microphones. John Nash feels persecuted by his friends and the doctors. He thinks they are simply out to get him, because he cannot realize the condition he is in. There are two clear examples of inappropriate emotion that Nash exhibits in this film. When he is studying in the library at Princeton, he casually mentions how he watched a woman get mugged, and then continues to display the mathematical equation he drew depicting the event. As his hallucination of Charles Herman points out to him, it’s not normal to sit by calmly and watch as a woman’s purse gets stolen. Second of all, when his baby nearly drowns because of his carelessness, he does not seem very upset, and cannot understand why his wife is so distraught. John Nash can be considered abnormal by evaluating him under several characteristics. All of these symptoms that he displays throughout the movie fit the criteria perfectly. First off he shows a deviation from normal and ideal mental health. People in his life began to notice that something is just not right with John. His wife finds herself in denial, but near the end she sees it, too. Because of his condition he suffers from nearly constant personal distress and discomfort. His classmates taunt him, and even losing a simple game with one of them upsets him and sends him off running, mumbling to himself in a disturbed way. His frustration with himself at not being able to solve math problems or come up with a topic for his doctorate thesis, interfere with his functioning in everyday life. He spends the majority of his time obsessing over his work-real and imagined. Hours and hours every night he pores over magazines for his government â€Å"boss† (one of his hallucinations) trying to discern top secret codes and patterns, but in reality he is just idling away his time that should be spent with his family or performing his job. He can’t seem to control his obsession with following the instructions his hallucinations give him to the point where it impairs his functioning as an instructor, a husband, and a father. He’s a danger to himself, as well as to others. In graduate school in a fit of frustration he cracks his head against a glass window, cutting his head open, and once committed to the psychiatric hospital he digs a hole in his arm until he starts bleeding, trying to find the secret code he believes is implanted in his skin. Dr. Rosen, the psychologist, after a careful examination of John Nash, gives him the professional diagnosis of schizophrenia. Of the two types of schizophrenia, reactive and process, John Nash is most likely suffering from process schizophrenia, because of factors involving the way the disease progressed. His symptoms developed gradually, beginning as early as graduate school in Princeton, when he first started ‘seeing’ his college roommate, Charles Herman-rather than resulting from a specific precipitating stressor. The symptoms began, as noted, supposedly close to the time when he begins graduate school, and continue to get progressively worse as time passes, lasting throughout his entire life. This type of schizophrenia has a poorer prognosis compared to the sudden-onset Reactive schizophrenia, and even though the doctors administer insulin shock and prescribe pills for John Nash, his symptoms still persist into his old age. This film begins simultaneously with John Nash’s entrance into graduate school, and that is also when development of his schizophrenic symptoms began. Despite the fact that the film does not give evidence of his pre-morbid personality, it can be inferred that Nash has always had social problems. At one point he informs his ‘roommate’ that he doesn’t much like people, and neither do people much like him, which leads the audience to believe that he has struggled with social relationships for most of his life. In the several bar scenes, he attempts conversations with women, but finds himself lacking the social skills necessary to keep any of their favors the moment he opens his mouth to speak. In his opening line to one girl he proposes â€Å"intercourse,† in addition to mentioning something regarding â€Å"the exchange of fluids. † And his best friend in the world turns out to be a hallucination. John Nash manages to maintain only one close relationship during the entire film, and that is to his wife, Alicia-and even that tie becomes stressed when his symptoms began to increase in severity. To put John Nash’s behavior into a theoretical framework, both of his methods of treatment can be taken into account. His doctors at the psychiatric hospital administer him a vigorous program of insulin shocks to begin treatment. After which he is put on a prescription of drugs to control his symptoms. According to the Biological theory his schizophrenia had to be caused by some abnormality in his genes, resulting in either a dysfunction in his nervous or endocrine systems. To correct for this Dr Rosen, his doctor, prescribed a course of medical treatments, which seemed to work, because Nash’s hallucinations, as well as other symptoms, went away. The medicine had unpleasant side effects for Nash-interfering in his work because he could not focus on equations, and disrupting his personal life, because he could not respond to his wife sexually, nor interact with his son-so he decided quit taking the medication and to try a different method. John Nash’s personal opinion was that he could learn to control his symptoms on his own. He felt that life wasn’t worth living if he couldn’t do it on his own terms, if he couldn’t work, relate to his wife, or raise his son. He took on an Existential perspective, holding to beliefs that he had the freewill to be responsible for his own condition. He decided that he did not have to pay attention to his hallucinations, and while they never left him completely, he was able to live day to day without getting caught up in them to the point where it would interfere with his functioning. He chose to get better, and thought the symptoms did not go away, he was able to develop discipline on his own to ignore them. My question is how the lack of social skills is related to his development of schizophrenia. Did he suffer from poor social skills, and as a result, his condition was catalyzed by the consequential lack of meaningful relationships? Or were his poor communication proficiency and lack of perception early warning signs of the disease to come? For the paranoid type of schizophrenia, there are automatically interpersonal problems taken into account, because of the bizarre behavior, regarding interaction with their hallucinations. People suffering from negative symptoms-and thus having few social skills-tend to have a smaller social network to support them throughout the difficulty of their disease, which deprives them of the ability to function independently (Macdonald, 1998, p. 275). Lack of social skills and appropriate social responses has been determined to be caused by the slowing down of visual processing in schizophrenics. By administering a test of visual apprehension, it was shown that schizophrenics take longer to visually register gestures and facial expressions, and often the social clue lasts too briefly to be understood (Sergi, 2002, p. 239). John Nash, to begin with, has a very difficult time operating in social situations. Even his third grade teacher commented that he was give two brains, and only half a heart, so apparently his lack of social skills stems from his childhood. Since he was not able to build up a social support network prior to the development of his disorder, it was more challenging for him to be able to function normally within society again on his own. Eventually, though, it is his relationship with his wife, and his desire to be there for her, which helps him in dealing with the ongoing symptoms so that he can survive from each day to the next without giving in. Research has found that neurocognitive functioning, or a dysfunction in neurocognitive functioning-due to a biologically based disorder, like Schizophrenia-may have an effect on specific social skills. In turn, the hindrance of those skills could then indirectly affect the level of social functioning in an individual (Addington, 1998, p. 65). Thus, the disorder is not the cause or the social dysfunction, but neither is the lack in social skills a risk factor for developing Schizophrenia. While these two factors do not have a causational relationship, they do seem to have a correlational relationship-meaning the presence of one would indicate a higher probability of also detecting the other. How to cite A Beautiful Mind takes place over the course of forty seven years in John Nash’s life, Papers

Quality Improvement in Health Care

Question: Discuss about the Quality Improvement in Health Care. Answer: Introduction: The issue of patient safety has been a concern for health care system for a long period of time. In this case, various changes in health care have been done but it has not always been able to achieve the needs of patient safety. The nursing professionals and their leaders have a prime responsibility of providing quality care to the patients. All the leaders in health care such as chief executive officers and members of the board should have proper training in patient safety provision. Leaders in health care need to see patients safety problems through their system protocols (Ring Fairchild, 2013). However, if medical errors arise in the process of offering care to patients, then they act as providers of system improvement. Hence safety of the patient in health care facilities depends on both care providers as well as their leaders. The competency of health care leaders to create positive work environments and manage constant change is essential to the success of teams and organizations. The health care leaders need to be competent enough in order to create a positive environment for patients. There is a positive relationship between leadership and patient outcomes and hence organizations should make efforts to develop relational leadership to improve the outcomes of the patient. Nursing leaders who are effective make sure that there is effective staffing and other resources which enable the provision of safe care to patients. The senior nurses and leaders provide strategic steps to be undertaken by participating in crucial decision making which influence the practice of nursing and eventual patient outcomes (Wong et al., 2013). As a result, the quality of health care is not top down but involves everyone in all directions i.e. top down and down top. References Ring, L., Fairchild, R. M. (2013). Leadership and patient safety: A review of the literature. Journal of Nursing Regulation, 4(1), 52-56. Wong, C. A., Cummings, G. G., Ducharme, L. (2013). The relationship between nursing leadership and patient outcomes: a systematic review update. Journal of nursing management, 21(5), 709-724.

Overstock.com E-Business Essay Example

Overstock.com E-Business Essay The e-commerce system chosen is the Overstock. com. Overstock. com is an online retailer offering a broad variety of high-quality, branded name goods at discount prices, including bedding, home decor, appliances, watches, jewellery, electronics, sporting goods, clothing and shoes. At the beginning, Overstock. com sold surplus and returned merchandise on an online E-commerce marketplace and liquidating the inventories of the failed dot-com companies at below-wholesale prices (Drummond, 2006). Recently, it has expanded to sell new merchandise and also offering manufacturers, distributors and other retailers an alternative sales channel for liquidating their inventory. In addition to its direct retail sales, Overstock. com has also offered online auctions on its website. The company’s major competitors are eBay and Amazon. com (Mann, 2005). b. The e-Marketplace. Overstock. com is considered as a private e-marketplace that is owned by a single company. In a sell-side e-marketplace, such as Overstock. om will sell either standard or customised products to individuals (B2C) or to business (B2B), this type of selling is considered to be one-to-many (Turban, King, Lee, Liang amp; Turban, 2010). Overstock. com uses the Internet to create a more efficient market for liquidation, closeout and other discount merchandise by providing consumers and businesses with quick and convenient access to high-quality, brand-name merchandise at discount prices. Besides that, Overstock. om operates the part of their website as an online auctions business, a marketplace for the buying and selling of goods and services-as well as online sites for listing cars and real estate for sale (Mann, 2005). Overstock. com is an example of virtual e-tailers that sell directly to consumers over the Internet without maintaining a physical sales channel. Virtual e-tailers have the advantage of low overhead costs and streamlined process (Turban et al. , 2010). General e-tailers, such as Overstock. om, selling a vast range of goods and services online, capitalize on the internet to offer such variety to a diverse group of customers geographically without the need to maintain a large physical storefront network (Mincedmedia, 2008). 2. Research into the e-business components. a. Organization. i. Possible internal organization functions involved the system. The internal organization of the Overstock. com is formed by few different departments. The sales and marketing department will find and retain customers by building effective customers relationships to increase the sales of the firm. We will write a custom essay sample on Overstock.com E-Business specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Overstock.com E-Business specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Overstock.com E-Business specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Marketers of the Overstock. com uses several types of online advertising methods such as banner ads, e-mail advertising and video ads (Turban et al. , 2010). The engineering department will be in charge of the firm’s e-commerce system, online security, payment systems, IT compliance, application software, website design and maintenances and also data management. The firm’s IT engineer will be responsible to use technology expertise such as the defence and e-commerce security strategy, e-commerce payment systems, application of software and the knowledge in the web 2. to facilitate the online business of Overstock. com (Kelly, 2005). The accounting and finance department will be responsible in partnering with other county departments to leverage resources that are essential toward achieving related objectives and also ensuring that quality financial services and information is provided. In addition, the operations department does the day to day operation of the business. The operations department of the Overstock. com consist of the merchandise operational coordinator, co-op manager and system administrative. They handle all the clerical functions having to do with clearance, settlement, and execution of trades (Mincedmedia, 2008). This department keeps customer records and handles the day-to-day monitoring of margin positions. ii. Possible firms, suppliers and business partners. Part of Overstock. coms merchandise is purchased by or manufactured specifically for Overstock. com. Merchandise is obtained either by buying excess inventory, referred to as the companys direct business, or by selling the merchandise of other retailers, catalogue companies, and manufacturers on a commission basis (Mann, 2005). Among their products are handmade goods produced for Overstock by workers in developing nations. The shopping business of the Overstock. com includes both a direct business and a fulfilment partner business. Products from the fulfilment partner segment are from various industry verticals, such as florist supplies, restaurant supplies, and office supplies (Wang, Liu Koong amp; Bai, 2009). Overstock. com form partnerships with companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Kenneth Cole, Simon amp; Schuster, Samsonite, and Cuisinart. These fulfillment partners, constituting the former commission side of Overstock. coms business, drove the companys revenue growth high and following its IPO. iii. Possible business process associated with the system. The shopping business of the Overstock. com includes both a direct business and a fulfilment partner business (Overstock. com). The fulfilment partner business is one of the business process associated with the system, Overstock. com sell merchandise of other retailers, cataloguers or manufacturers ) through their Website. Overstock. om currently has fulfilment partner relationships with approximately 1,250 third parties on their website (Ferguson amp; Hlavinkha, 2007). Overstock. com also provides an online auction service on the Website. The Auctions business allows sellers to list items for sale, buyers to bid on items of interest, and users to browse through listed items online. The revenue for the merchandise returned to the Company that we sell at auction is recor ded on a gross basis. Revenue from the auctions business will be included in the fulfilment partner segment. Besides that, an online site for listing cars for sale was provided as a part of the Website. The cars listing service allows dealers to list vehicles for sale and allows buyers to review vehicle descriptions, and allows purchasers to contact sellers for further information and negotiations on the purchase of an advertised vehicle. Revenue from the cars listing business is recorded net and is included in the fulfilment partner segment. In addition, an online site for listing real estate for sale was provided as a part of the Website. The real estate listing service allows customers to search for active listings across the country. Listing categories include foreclosures, live and on-line auctions, for sale by owner listings and also broker or agent listings. Revenue from the real estate listing business is recorded net and is included in the fulfilment partner segment (PR Newswire, 2010). b. Possible technologies. i. Hardware, Software and Network telecommunications technology. Overstock. com needed equipment that would perform consistently and handle the traffic peaks that occur in the fourth quarter of the year without service degradation therefore, they chosen Foundry’s BigIron MG8 high-performance 10-Gigabit switches to power the backbones at its headquarters. Foundry is a leading provider of high-performance enterprise and service provider switching, routing and Web traffic management solutions and also an application service provider for Overstock. com, Inc. Foundry has helped them achieve the level of performance with a solution that will accommodate future growth and the payoff can be enormous in terms of customer experience and cost savings (Foundry Network, n. d. ). Overstock. com is using the OptiMine Software, a provider of intelligence software for advertising optimization. Their flagship product, OptiMine Paid Search Bid Management Application, forecasts the performance of each paid search ad placement each day and automatically sets optimal bids. Overstock. com also uses many other software such as Breach Security’s web defend and VPNs for website security purpose. Besides that, software like EDIs are used for online data interchange via emails and chat rooms; EFTs are used for the purpose of e-payment systems (â€Å"Breach†, 2009). Overstock. om uses the internet and extranet, private network that uses Internet protocols and network connectivity (VeriSign, 2008). Overstock. com uses these network and telecommunications technology to operate the online shopping, online auctions and online listing cars and real estates. It has been described as a state of mind in which the Internet is perceived as a way to do business with a selected set of other companies, the fulfillment partner companies to sell their products online (â€Å"Success St ory†, 2009). ii. Payment systems and security technologies. The payment system used by Overstock. com is majorly based on online credit card payment. In the United States, credit card holders of the American Express, Discover Card, MasterCard and Visa card are able to purchase goods online directly from Overstock. com website. ‘Bill Me Later’ is a payment method offered on the websites of many well-known merchants, including Overstock. com. The site offers credit through CIT Bank, allows purchases to be made online without using a credit card. Besides that, the payment systems of Overstock. om also have many special features, such as secure ordering/Payment system, on-line ordering shopping cart system, on-line order tracking system, customers info is confidential, gift services available and also live customer representative (Steiner, 2006). Lately, Overstock. com has integrated Auction Checkouts payment service into its auction platform. Third-party sellers on Overstock. com Auctions can now accept credit card payments for auct ion sales without having a credit-card merchant account (McDonald amp; Dunbar, 1998). One of the most important issues for a desirable e-payment system is the system should be based on well-established security principles (Turban et al. , 2010). Overstock. com uses the methods of address verification, manual review and fraud screens and automated decision models in preventing financial frauds in the payment system. For securing the networks of Overstock. com, the company uses firewalls, VPNs and IDSs and also teaming with some leading provider of application security assessment to optimize their Web security systems (Overstock. com, 2010). For example, Overstock. om chose Breach Security’s WebDefend web application firewall (WAF) to provide immediate compliance with the latest Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS) (VeriSign, 2008). The system ensures that all web-facing application be protected against known attacks via web application firewall vulnerability scans or code review. c. Value of the e-business system. i. Tangible benefits. The ef fect of e-business in Overstock. com has brought several tangible benefits to the firm itself. The sales of Overstock. com have increased due to the some of the factors. Revenue has increased by having new customers from new markets, from existing customers due to the repeat-selling and also cross-selling (Turban et al. , 2010). By using the e-business technology, costs can be reduced as the efficiency of search and transaction costs have been improved. Marketing cost also can be reduced as we reduce time for customer service, reduce printing and distribution costs of marketing communications. Besides that, Overstock. com’s supply chain cost also can be reduced by reducing the levels of inventory and having a shorter cycle time in ordering. In addition, administrative cost also can be reduced from more efficient routine business processes such as recruitment, invoice payment and holiday authorization (Schwartz, 2002). E-commerce system allows Overstock. com to carry out businesses without the barriers of time or distance and therefore people can save time and cost. Customers can log on to the Internet at any point of time, be it day or night and purchase or sell anything one desires at a single click of the mouse. The relationship between the customers and Overstock. om also can be improved because the website also includes a support home page where the customer support, customer care contacts and also some frequently asked questions. Overstock. com also provides personalization services whereby the firm will notify customers by e-mail when there are new products, according to the specific user’s preferences (Deeter-Schmelz, amp; Kennedy, 2004). ii. Intangible benefits. The use of e-business system by the Oversto ck. com also brings a lot of intangible benefits to the organizations, individual customers and society. One of the benefits is the enhancement of products, with the e-business system Overstock. om get to expand its business by selling their own product and also selling some ‘fulfilment partnership’ products, and further on manages an online auction site and provides car and real estate listings. Besides that, the e-business system brings more rapid, more responsive marketing communications including public relations to the firm (Turban et al. , 2010). A faster product development lifecycle will also enabling faster response to market needs (Ferguson amp; Hlavinkha, 2007). A better customer service will be served as well because of the customer service home page on the Overstock. com web page. Customers can solve their problems quickly by searching the web page. The firm can also easily collect feedback from customers on products. This can assist the firm in meeting customer’s expectations (Drummond, 2006). The strategic position of the company can be improved as the Overstock. com includes value propositions such as complementarities and novelty. Overstock. com provides complementarities such as the bundling of products and services, for example, the website offers a wide variety of products and after purchasing these products, shipping services from will be also included by the company. The novelty of what Overstock. om introducing is about using innovative ways for structuring, connecting partners and fostering new market. For example, Overstock. com helps some firms to liquidate their inventories and also sell their products on the website under the â€Å"fulfilment partner† category. Besides that, Overstock. com also provides online auction, listing car and real estate for sale which encourages the fostering of new market. Overstock. com also can make out new partners and supporting existing partners more efficiently and effectively with a better management of marketing information, customer information and business partners’ information (Schwartz, 2002). ii. Alignment with company vision, mission and objectives. By using the e-business system, Overstock. com has significantly cut down the cost associated with marketing, customer care, processing and information storage. It also reduces the time period involved with business process re-engineering and customization of products to meet the demand of particular customers, increasing productivity and customer care services. Electronic commerce reduces the burden of transportation to conduct businesses and thereby raises the amount of funds available for profitable investment. It also enables efficient customer care services. Alternatively, it collects and manages information related to customer behaviour, which in turn helps develop and adopt an efficient marketing and promotional strategy (Deeter-Schmelz, amp; Kennedy, 2004). In fact all these benefits will help out Overstock. com to achieve their vision, missions and objectives. Overstock. com’s vision is to provide online shoppers with the best price and a superior customer experience with the values of honest, helpful, efficient, accountable, and trustworthy, and committed to profitability and service. The value and benefits of e-business systems in Overstock. om can help to reach its vision as the cost reduction of firms and the improved customer service and relationship will allow customers to buy products with a cheaper price and enjoy a superior customer experience (Wang, Liu Koong amp; Bai, 2009). Overstock. com’s main mission is to save consumers’ money (Overstock. com). With the e-business system in the Overstock. com, con sumers can compare and shop online for the lowest prices and also get information easily with details and demos. The standard of living of the consumers also can be improved as consumer can afford to buy cheaper goods and services. The e-business system also helps Overstock. com to achieve its mission. The objective of the Overstock. com is to become the dominant internet-based closeout solution for holders of brand-name merchandise, allowing them to dispose of that merchandise discreetly and with high recovery values, and to ultimately become a one-stop Internet-based discount shopping destination. 3. Possible e-business issues a. Security and privacy issues The lack of trust in Internet commerce applications may result in cautious business operators and clients to abstain from using the Internet for now and revert back to traditional ways of doing business. This eradication of trust being fuelled by continued stories of hacker attacks on e-commerce sites and intrusion of consumer data privacy (Marchany amp; Tront, 2002). There are two major threats faced by Overstock. com: Denial of Service (DOS) and financial fraud. DOS is still an attack in which many major e-commerce sites suffer whereby hackers rely on software and zombie PCs to launch the attacks. DOS attacks can be difficult to stop; a series of steps could be costly to combat these attacks. Overstock. com consumers use credit cards for online purchases where security and fraud are the major issues in making e-payments. Due to this issue, wide variety of tools such as address verification and other authentication services are employed to reduce the problems while considering the ease of use and the fit within the overall business context. However, it is impossible to totally overcome security and fraud issues as the victimized industries, users, and organizations are still vulnerable due to the failure of taking necessary precautions to avoid becoming a victim (Turban et al. , 2010). Consumer privacy is becoming the most common security issue following theft and fraud as top concerns in e-commerce. For example, selling consumer data without the customer knowledge or permission is the major internal threat to consumer privacy. This type of issue will be a resistance for people to participate in certain types of e-commerce transactions if the assurance of privacy is low or non-existent. If the majority of businesses are not considered to be secure, the confidentiality and integrity of the customer information will be in doubt (â€Å"Breach†, 2009). Hence, e-commerce security needs to be addressed not only at the business site with its servers/network ut also on the client side, which includes direct connected home computers. Despite of all the security and privacy issues flooding the society, security architecture of e-commerce sites has to be tailored to ensure consumer data privacy and company resources are not used to attack other Internet sites. There are guidelines for securing systems and networks to educate the consumer on these e-commerce security issues. Consumers playing their part in solving these issues are the most critical element of the e-commerce security architecture (Turban et al. , 2010). Besides that, training and orientation programs are critical to increase the general public awareness of security on the Internet. IT and financial control groups within the e-commerce site should form an alliance to overcome the general resistance to implementing security practices at the business level while industry self-regulation of consumer privacy should make recommendations to congress in order to introduce legislation on privacy issues. b. Marketing issues. One of the marketing issues faced by Overstock. com is competition. Two major competitors of Overstock. com are eBay and Amazon. om (Overstock. com, 2010). These two competitors are well known e-marketplace for the internet surfers (Mann, 2005). Overstock. com has an oligopoly market structure in which a small number of firms supply most of the market. There are only a few firms dominating the market such as big firms with large share of market sales. Firms in an oligopoly market structure are interdependent whereby they watch each other closely because of the competitive strategy. Oligopoly firms such as the Overstock. com normally use non-price competition accrue greater revenue and market share. It has a high barrier to enter the market and large existing firms enjoy economies of scale. However, new entrants tend to face higher production and set up costs. Overstock. com has to spend enormous amount of money on advertising to win and retain their customers and brand loyalty. Consumer behaviour is also one of the marketing issues faced by Overstock. com. It is difficult to create customer loyalty as it is very fast and easy for consumers to switch loyalty online. Hence, enhancing loyalty through methods such as e-loyalty programs is a must. Besides that, building trust is very difficult since people do not know or see each other. Amazon. com is using one-to-one marketing which can increase the degree of loyalty. This one-to-one marketing strategy is not exercised by Overstock. com which leaves them in the losing end if compared to its competitors (Mincedmedia, 2008). In order for Overstock. com to survive in this competitive market, their possible market strategy and segmentation is to set up their e-business system as their storefront and gain new market target and new market opportunities on online selling sites of car and real estate listing (Overstock. com, 2010). Overstock.com E-Business Essay Example Overstock.com E-Business Essay The e-commerce system chosen is the Overstock. com. Overstock. com is an online retailer offering a broad variety of high-quality, branded name goods at discount prices, including bedding, home decor, appliances, watches, jewellery, electronics, sporting goods, clothing and shoes. At the beginning, Overstock. com sold surplus and returned merchandise on an online E-commerce marketplace and liquidating the inventories of the failed dot-com companies at below-wholesale prices (Drummond, 2006). Recently, it has expanded to sell new merchandise and also offering manufacturers, distributors and other retailers an alternative sales channel for liquidating their inventory. In addition to its direct retail sales, Overstock. com has also offered online auctions on its website. The company’s major competitors are eBay and Amazon. com (Mann, 2005). b. The e-Marketplace. Overstock. com is considered as a private e-marketplace that is owned by a single company. In a sell-side e-marketplace, such as Overstock. om will sell either standard or customised products to individuals (B2C) or to business (B2B), this type of selling is considered to be one-to-many (Turban, King, Lee, Liang amp; Turban, 2010). Overstock. com uses the Internet to create a more efficient market for liquidation, closeout and other discount merchandise by providing consumers and businesses with quick and convenient access to high-quality, brand-name merchandise at discount prices. Besides that, Overstock. om operates the part of their website as an online auctions business, a marketplace for the buying and selling of goods and services-as well as online sites for listing cars and real estate for sale (Mann, 2005). Overstock. com is an example of virtual e-tailers that sell directly to consumers over the Internet without maintaining a physical sales channel. Virtual e-tailers have the advantage of low overhead costs and streamlined process (Turban et al. , 2010). General e-tailers, such as Overstock. om, selling a vast range of goods and services online, capitalize on the internet to offer such variety to a diverse group of customers geographically without the need to maintain a large physical storefront network (Mincedmedia, 2008). 2. Research into the e-business components. a. Organization. i. Possible internal organization functions involved the system. The internal organization of the Overstock. com is formed by few different departments. The sales and marketing department will find and retain customers by building effective customers relationships to increase the sales of the firm. We will write a custom essay sample on Overstock.com E-Business specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Overstock.com E-Business specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Overstock.com E-Business specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Marketers of the Overstock. com uses several types of online advertising methods such as banner ads, e-mail advertising and video ads (Turban et al. , 2010). The engineering department will be in charge of the firm’s e-commerce system, online security, payment systems, IT compliance, application software, website design and maintenances and also data management. The firm’s IT engineer will be responsible to use technology expertise such as the defence and e-commerce security strategy, e-commerce payment systems, application of software and the knowledge in the web 2. to facilitate the online business of Overstock. com (Kelly, 2005). The accounting and finance department will be responsible in partnering with other county departments to leverage resources that are essential toward achieving related objectives and also ensuring that quality financial services and information is provided. In addition, the operations department does the day to day operation of the business. The operations department of the Overstock. com consist of the merchandise operational coordinator, co-op manager and system administrative. They handle all the clerical functions having to do with clearance, settlement, and execution of trades (Mincedmedia, 2008). This department keeps customer records and handles the day-to-day monitoring of margin positions. ii. Possible firms, suppliers and business partners. Part of Overstock. coms merchandise is purchased by or manufactured specifically for Overstock. com. Merchandise is obtained either by buying excess inventory, referred to as the companys direct business, or by selling the merchandise of other retailers, catalogue companies, and manufacturers on a commission basis (Mann, 2005). Among their products are handmade goods produced for Overstock by workers in developing nations. The shopping business of the Overstock. com includes both a direct business and a fulfilment partner business. Products from the fulfilment partner segment are from various industry verticals, such as florist supplies, restaurant supplies, and office supplies (Wang, Liu Koong amp; Bai, 2009). Overstock. com form partnerships with companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Kenneth Cole, Simon amp; Schuster, Samsonite, and Cuisinart. These fulfillment partners, constituting the former commission side of Overstock. coms business, drove the companys revenue growth high and following its IPO. iii. Possible business process associated with the system. The shopping business of the Overstock. com includes both a direct business and a fulfilment partner business (Overstock. com). The fulfilment partner business is one of the business process associated with the system, Overstock. com sell merchandise of other retailers, cataloguers or manufacturers ) through their Website. Overstock. om currently has fulfilment partner relationships with approximately 1,250 third parties on their website (Ferguson amp; Hlavinkha, 2007). Overstock. com also provides an online auction service on the Website. The Auctions business allows sellers to list items for sale, buyers to bid on items of interest, and users to browse through listed items online. The revenue for the merchandise returned to the Company that we sell at auction is recor ded on a gross basis. Revenue from the auctions business will be included in the fulfilment partner segment. Besides that, an online site for listing cars for sale was provided as a part of the Website. The cars listing service allows dealers to list vehicles for sale and allows buyers to review vehicle descriptions, and allows purchasers to contact sellers for further information and negotiations on the purchase of an advertised vehicle. Revenue from the cars listing business is recorded net and is included in the fulfilment partner segment. In addition, an online site for listing real estate for sale was provided as a part of the Website. The real estate listing service allows customers to search for active listings across the country. Listing categories include foreclosures, live and on-line auctions, for sale by owner listings and also broker or agent listings. Revenue from the real estate listing business is recorded net and is included in the fulfilment partner segment (PR Newswire, 2010). b. Possible technologies. i. Hardware, Software and Network telecommunications technology. Overstock. com needed equipment that would perform consistently and handle the traffic peaks that occur in the fourth quarter of the year without service degradation therefore, they chosen Foundry’s BigIron MG8 high-performance 10-Gigabit switches to power the backbones at its headquarters. Foundry is a leading provider of high-performance enterprise and service provider switching, routing and Web traffic management solutions and also an application service provider for Overstock. com, Inc. Foundry has helped them achieve the level of performance with a solution that will accommodate future growth and the payoff can be enormous in terms of customer experience and cost savings (Foundry Network, n. d. ). Overstock. com is using the OptiMine Software, a provider of intelligence software for advertising optimization. Their flagship product, OptiMine Paid Search Bid Management Application, forecasts the performance of each paid search ad placement each day and automatically sets optimal bids. Overstock. com also uses many other software such as Breach Security’s web defend and VPNs for website security purpose. Besides that, software like EDIs are used for online data interchange via emails and chat rooms; EFTs are used for the purpose of e-payment systems (â€Å"Breach†, 2009). Overstock. om uses the internet and extranet, private network that uses Internet protocols and network connectivity (VeriSign, 2008). Overstock. com uses these network and telecommunications technology to operate the online shopping, online auctions and online listing cars and real estates. It has been described as a state of mind in which the Internet is perceived as a way to do business with a selected set of other companies, the fulfillment partner companies to sell their products online (â€Å"Success St ory†, 2009). ii. Payment systems and security technologies. The payment system used by Overstock. com is majorly based on online credit card payment. In the United States, credit card holders of the American Express, Discover Card, MasterCard and Visa card are able to purchase goods online directly from Overstock. com website. ‘Bill Me Later’ is a payment method offered on the websites of many well-known merchants, including Overstock. com. The site offers credit through CIT Bank, allows purchases to be made online without using a credit card. Besides that, the payment systems of Overstock. om also have many special features, such as secure ordering/Payment system, on-line ordering shopping cart system, on-line order tracking system, customers info is confidential, gift services available and also live customer representative (Steiner, 2006). Lately, Overstock. com has integrated Auction Checkouts payment service into its auction platform. Third-party sellers on Overstock. com Auctions can now accept credit card payments for auct ion sales without having a credit-card merchant account (McDonald amp; Dunbar, 1998). One of the most important issues for a desirable e-payment system is the system should be based on well-established security principles (Turban et al. , 2010). Overstock. com uses the methods of address verification, manual review and fraud screens and automated decision models in preventing financial frauds in the payment system. For securing the networks of Overstock. com, the company uses firewalls, VPNs and IDSs and also teaming with some leading provider of application security assessment to optimize their Web security systems (Overstock. com, 2010). For example, Overstock. om chose Breach Security’s WebDefend web application firewall (WAF) to provide immediate compliance with the latest Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS) (VeriSign, 2008). The system ensures that all web-facing application be protected against known attacks via web application firewall vulnerability scans or code review. c. Value of the e-business system. i. Tangible benefits. The ef fect of e-business in Overstock. com has brought several tangible benefits to the firm itself. The sales of Overstock. com have increased due to the some of the factors. Revenue has increased by having new customers from new markets, from existing customers due to the repeat-selling and also cross-selling (Turban et al. , 2010). By using the e-business technology, costs can be reduced as the efficiency of search and transaction costs have been improved. Marketing cost also can be reduced as we reduce time for customer service, reduce printing and distribution costs of marketing communications. Besides that, Overstock. com’s supply chain cost also can be reduced by reducing the levels of inventory and having a shorter cycle time in ordering. In addition, administrative cost also can be reduced from more efficient routine business processes such as recruitment, invoice payment and holiday authorization (Schwartz, 2002). E-commerce system allows Overstock. com to carry out businesses without the barriers of time or distance and therefore people can save time and cost. Customers can log on to the Internet at any point of time, be it day or night and purchase or sell anything one desires at a single click of the mouse. The relationship between the customers and Overstock. om also can be improved because the website also includes a support home page where the customer support, customer care contacts and also some frequently asked questions. Overstock. com also provides personalization services whereby the firm will notify customers by e-mail when there are new products, according to the specific user’s preferences (Deeter-Schmelz, amp; Kennedy, 2004). ii. Intangible benefits. The use of e-business system by the Oversto ck. com also brings a lot of intangible benefits to the organizations, individual customers and society. One of the benefits is the enhancement of products, with the e-business system Overstock. om get to expand its business by selling their own product and also selling some ‘fulfilment partnership’ products, and further on manages an online auction site and provides car and real estate listings. Besides that, the e-business system brings more rapid, more responsive marketing communications including public relations to the firm (Turban et al. , 2010). A faster product development lifecycle will also enabling faster response to market needs (Ferguson amp; Hlavinkha, 2007). A better customer service will be served as well because of the customer service home page on the Overstock. com web page. Customers can solve their problems quickly by searching the web page. The firm can also easily collect feedback from customers on products. This can assist the firm in meeting customer’s expectations (Drummond, 2006). The strategic position of the company can be improved as the Overstock. com includes value propositions such as complementarities and novelty. Overstock. com provides complementarities such as the bundling of products and services, for example, the website offers a wide variety of products and after purchasing these products, shipping services from will be also included by the company. The novelty of what Overstock. om introducing is about using innovative ways for structuring, connecting partners and fostering new market. For example, Overstock. com helps some firms to liquidate their inventories and also sell their products on the website under the â€Å"fulfilment partner† category. Besides that, Overstock. com also provides online auction, listing car and real estate for sale which encourages the fostering of new market. Overstock. com also can make out new partners and supporting existing partners more efficiently and effectively with a better management of marketing information, customer information and business partners’ information (Schwartz, 2002). ii. Alignment with company vision, mission and objectives. By using the e-business system, Overstock. com has significantly cut down the cost associated with marketing, customer care, processing and information storage. It also reduces the time period involved with business process re-engineering and customization of products to meet the demand of particular customers, increasing productivity and customer care services. Electronic commerce reduces the burden of transportation to conduct businesses and thereby raises the amount of funds available for profitable investment. It also enables efficient customer care services. Alternatively, it collects and manages information related to customer behaviour, which in turn helps develop and adopt an efficient marketing and promotional strategy (Deeter-Schmelz, amp; Kennedy, 2004). In fact all these benefits will help out Overstock. com to achieve their vision, missions and objectives. Overstock. com’s vision is to provide online shoppers with the best price and a superior customer experience with the values of honest, helpful, efficient, accountable, and trustworthy, and committed to profitability and service. The value and benefits of e-business systems in Overstock. om can help to reach its vision as the cost reduction of firms and the improved customer service and relationship will allow customers to buy products with a cheaper price and enjoy a superior customer experience (Wang, Liu Koong amp; Bai, 2009). Overstock. com’s main mission is to save consumers’ money (Overstock. com). With the e-business system in the Overstock. com, con sumers can compare and shop online for the lowest prices and also get information easily with details and demos. The standard of living of the consumers also can be improved as consumer can afford to buy cheaper goods and services. The e-business system also helps Overstock. com to achieve its mission. The objective of the Overstock. com is to become the dominant internet-based closeout solution for holders of brand-name merchandise, allowing them to dispose of that merchandise discreetly and with high recovery values, and to ultimately become a one-stop Internet-based discount shopping destination. 3. Possible e-business issues a. Security and privacy issues The lack of trust in Internet commerce applications may result in cautious business operators and clients to abstain from using the Internet for now and revert back to traditional ways of doing business. This eradication of trust being fuelled by continued stories of hacker attacks on e-commerce sites and intrusion of consumer data privacy (Marchany amp; Tront, 2002). There are two major threats faced by Overstock. com: Denial of Service (DOS) and financial fraud. DOS is still an attack in which many major e-commerce sites suffer whereby hackers rely on software and zombie PCs to launch the attacks. DOS attacks can be difficult to stop; a series of steps could be costly to combat these attacks. Overstock. com consumers use credit cards for online purchases where security and fraud are the major issues in making e-payments. Due to this issue, wide variety of tools such as address verification and other authentication services are employed to reduce the problems while considering the ease of use and the fit within the overall business context. However, it is impossible to totally overcome security and fraud issues as the victimized industries, users, and organizations are still vulnerable due to the failure of taking necessary precautions to avoid becoming a victim (Turban et al. , 2010). Consumer privacy is becoming the most common security issue following theft and fraud as top concerns in e-commerce. For example, selling consumer data without the customer knowledge or permission is the major internal threat to consumer privacy. This type of issue will be a resistance for people to participate in certain types of e-commerce transactions if the assurance of privacy is low or non-existent. If the majority of businesses are not considered to be secure, the confidentiality and integrity of the customer information will be in doubt (â€Å"Breach†, 2009). Hence, e-commerce security needs to be addressed not only at the business site with its servers/network ut also on the client side, which includes direct connected home computers. Despite of all the security and privacy issues flooding the society, security architecture of e-commerce sites has to be tailored to ensure consumer data privacy and company resources are not used to attack other Internet sites. There are guidelines for securing systems and networks to educate the consumer on these e-commerce security issues. Consumers playing their part in solving these issues are the most critical element of the e-commerce security architecture (Turban et al. , 2010). Besides that, training and orientation programs are critical to increase the general public awareness of security on the Internet. IT and financial control groups within the e-commerce site should form an alliance to overcome the general resistance to implementing security practices at the business level while industry self-regulation of consumer privacy should make recommendations to congress in order to introduce legislation on privacy issues. b. Marketing issues. One of the marketing issues faced by Overstock. com is competition. Two major competitors of Overstock. com are eBay and Amazon. om (Overstock. com, 2010). These two competitors are well known e-marketplace for the internet surfers (Mann, 2005). Overstock. com has an oligopoly market structure in which a small number of firms supply most of the market. There are only a few firms dominating the market such as big firms with large share of market sales. Firms in an oligopoly market structure are interdependent whereby they watch each other closely because of the competitive strategy. Oligopoly firms such as the Overstock. com normally use non-price competition accrue greater revenue and market share. It has a high barrier to enter the market and large existing firms enjoy economies of scale. However, new entrants tend to face higher production and set up costs. Overstock. com has to spend enormous amount of money on advertising to win and retain their customers and brand loyalty. Consumer behaviour is also one of the marketing issues faced by Overstock. com. It is difficult to create customer loyalty as it is very fast and easy for consumers to switch loyalty online. Hence, enhancing loyalty through methods such as e-loyalty programs is a must. Besides that, building trust is very difficult since people do not know or see each other. Amazon. com is using one-to-one marketing which can increase the degree of loyalty. This one-to-one marketing strategy is not exercised by Overstock. com which leaves them in the losing end if compared to its competitors (Mincedmedia, 2008). In order for Overstock. com to survive in this competitive market, their possible market strategy and segmentation is to set up their e-business system as their storefront and gain new market target and new market opportunities on online selling sites of car and real estate listing (Overstock. com, 2010).

Self-portraits

Self-portraits "A self-portrait is more than a likeness it captures the 'reality' of the person."Many artists express themselves through self-portraits to portray how they interpret themselves and the world around them. Three artists that depict this are; Edward Munch, Salvador Dali and Rembrandt Harmensz Van Rijn.A Norwegian painter and graphic artist, Munch concentrated his artworks on illustrating the emotions from deep inside. Munch led a sad life, with his parents, brother and sister all dying while he was still young, he suffered from depression in later life. This bleakness and pessimism shows through in his art, as common themes in his work include; the stages of life, relationships, love, death and the fear of living. However in his later paintings Munch showed more interest in nature and his work became more colourful and less pessimistic. Regarded as a pioneer in the expressionist movement in modern painting, Munch was recognised in Germany and Central Europe as one of the creators of a new era.Rembrandt's son Titus, as a monk, 1660In 1885 Munch embarked on a short study tour to Paris and his work began to show the influence of French painters. Between 1892 and 1908 Munch spent a lot of his time in Paris and Berlin; where he became known for his prints, lithographs and woodcuts. After 1910 Munch returned to Norway, where he lived and painted until his death."Self-portrait with skeleton arm" is one of the first known lithographs that Munch has produced. The basic design is drawn in chalk with a thick ink wash brushed over to create a solid black. The skeleton arm placed at the bottom of the picture gives the viewer an unnerving reminder of death.Shown in front of a pitch black background is the almost glowing portrait of Munch showing us only his head and...

History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 15

History - Essay Example This was the only immediate option for our survival as the owner of the farm we used to till included us on the list of peasant families that were to be removed from its custody due to extreme hardship (Curtis). When the entire Ireland experienced food shortage between 1845-1846 (Curtis), my husband’s illness worsened and he died at the height of the Great Famine. The extremely difficult life in Ireland at that time, leaving only in potato for subsistence (Curtis) had made the call of the Statue of Liberty irresistible. I soon decided to accept the opportunity to flee from the hunger which afflicted Ireland and the painful memory of my husband’s death. I boarded a ship to America on December, 1846 bringing along our five year-old boy, Oliver. After a â€Å"6 to 8 weeks† (â€Å"Irish Settlement†) voyage, my son and I safely arrived in America on February, 1847. We landed in New York and the America that met us was bustling with activity. I saw thousands of immigrants like myself willing to become â€Å"servants with a promise of land and a new life in the new country† (â€Å"Irish Settlement†). I desired to work in one of the many existing factories in New York but found myself wanting of job opportunities. I realized then that we arrived at a time when America was, as described by John Curl, on the brink of technological advancement in machinery thereby creating â€Å"unskilled laborers out of the formerly skilled workers.† Indeed, my son and I were welcomed in 1847 by an America that was buried in â€Å"depression, layoffs, wage cuts and failing strikes† (Curl). It was a terrible experience. I found myself competing with the â€Å"Native-born Americans† (Curl) for factory jobs and being a woman and an immigrant made it even more difficult. I then failed to find a job in New York. During our brief stay in New York, I heard many fellow immigrants recount their â€Å"helpless condition† in America upon arrival (Maguire, 1868). â€Å"Many families were

Cahapter 6 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 11000 words

Cahapter 6 - Essay Example Steel being the choice of material, this geometric form adopted with few change by architects of different era and became a distinctive feature of Modern Architecture (Arnold 1996). Besides architectural factor, several steel building, rising up with architectural setback, is outcome of the zoning and planning regulation mandated for the region. Geometric form with architectural setback mandated by urban planning and zoning regulations for high-rise building and skyscraper located in medium and higher density district. First zoning laws in New York first mandated this building form, in 1916 to reduce the shadow of the high-rise building at street and sidewalk (Naeim 1989). According to New York zoning law, the buildings established between 1916 and 1960 raised up to certain height. The height of lower part defined with respect to the width of the street on which building established. Hence, in narrow streets, the setback started at lower story. Starting from that level, they had to s et back until the plan area of one fourth of whole site reached. (New York Skyscrapers 1996) In early years, the effect of setback on seismic performance of steel frames was not main concerns of architects and engineers, especially, if they were constructed in medium or low seismicity region. Although, few steel frames experienced severe damage during past earthquake, no direct correlation between the damage and vertical irregularity found (Youssef, Bonowitz & Gross 1995). In several regions, restrictions set for different building, believed unnecessary for buildings designed with steel frames. (Arnold 1996) and (Naeim 1989) Earthquake resistant design provisions and guidelines, addresses the vertical geometric irregularity as an issue related with the accuracy and reliability of analytical methods, used to define elastic and inelastic seismic demands. Once the

Strategic analysis of Pepsi Co.

Strategic analysis of Pepsi Co. Strategic Analysis: PepsiCos Restaurant Business Divestment Introduction In 1997, Pepsi Co announced that it would spin-off its restaurant business into a separate publicly traded company through issuance of tax free new stocks. The argument put forward by the PepsiCo top management was that the firm would like to concentrate on its core carbonated beverage business. It would be complemented by the high profit yielding snack foods division of Frito Lays. The figures below for FY 96, show that the restaurant business contributed the least to the profits earned by PepsiCo conglomerate. This was largely attributed to the sluggish growth in this segment. PepsiCo was compelled to take the divestment route to boost its stock price and somewhat mollify the investors, analysts and the markets in general. I believe the new restaurant company will be a powerful organization with great potential. For the separated companies, independence would make them far more capable of improving their operations to create solid, sustainable growth. PepsiCo emphasized that it already has taken steps to prepare its chains for independence, including consolidating their payroll, accounting, purchasing, data processing, construction and real-estate functions as well as unifying foreign operations under a single management team. Franchisees willing to comment on the spin-off gave upbeat assessments of the deal. David Adelman, restaurant analyst at Dean Witter Reynolds predicted that Intangible boon to the spun-off restaurant company would be greater pride of ownership. Its managers could be inspired by a more direct compensation correlation between what the company earns and their rewards. Larry Walker, controller for Holland Foods Inc., a 17-unit KFC franchisee in Texarkana, Texas, said that, after the spin-off, These separate companies will have a clearer direction. PepsiCos been a conglomeration; you get confused when you try to run that many businesses. Besides TGI would benefit from certain advantages once it is spun off from PepsiCo Sound commercial credit rating High cash flow contribution from franchising fees and royalties Strong asset base in its real estate portfolio and ownership of nearly 13000 restaurants Pepsi did not transfer any of its $9.5 billion outstanding debt to the new company Tricon Global International (TGI) Tricon Global International (TGI) is the holding company for the three restaurant brands of PepsiCo Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) Taco Bell Pizza Hut It owns, franchises or licenses the 29,000 worldwide branches of the three chains, whose worldwide sales exceeded $20 billion in FY 96 and was second only to $32 billion sales of McDonalds. The newly formed entity TGI would also be the worlds largest chain in terms of the number of outlets under its management, with around 29000 units. Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) Kentucky Fried Chicken was started in 1939 in Corbin, Kentucky. After ownership changed hands through the decades, it was finally acquired by PepsiCo in 1986 and rechristened as KFC. KFC primarily offers fried chicken recipes of which the iconic one is the Original Recipe prepared with secret blend of 11 herbs and spices. It was devised by the restaurant chain founder, Colonel Harlan Sanders. It later started to complement the mainstay product with add-ons like bread, potatoes, gravy, desserts and non-alcoholic beverages and also offered non-fried chicken dishes. The food is prepared and delivered on made-to-order basis, as and when customers place orders. KFC is the market leader in chicken QSR with 55% of the market share in the US in 1997. As of 1997, KFC operates 10397 outlets in 79 countries. In the US, KFC operates 5120 outlets either through franchises or through licensees. TGI is aggressively developing non-traditional outlets like educational campus, airports etc, where it expects to realize significant revenue that would reinforce sales from traditional outlets. KFC also has a significant international presence, with its major markets as below Taco Bell Taco Bell was founded by Glen Bell in 1962 in Downey, California. It gradually grew into a restaurant chain specializing in Mexican food with a pan-American outlet network. The chain was acquired by PepsiCo in 1978 and made a part of its restaurant chain. Taco Bell offers typical Mexican food like tacos, burritos, salads and nachos. The delivery is done after preparation of the order placed by the customer. As of 1997, it was the dominant player in the Mexican fast food category, commanding 72 % share of the US market. Pizza Hut Pizza Hut was started in 1958 by Frank and Dan Carney in Wichita, Kansas. At the time of its debut, pizza parlors dedicated outlets for pizza was unheard of, and the concept soon caught up across the US. Business expanded, even went overseas (starting with Canada) and PepsiCo finally took over the firm in 1977, to make it an integral part of it restaurant division. The main offerings are pizzas, appetizers, pasta, sandwiches, dessert and non-alcoholic beverages. Pizzerias prepare the food after the customer places the order while express counters serve readymade pan pizzas. Future Roadmap TGI would adopt the following strategy to re-invigorate the erstwhile restaurant business of Pepsi The top priority was to addresses the high employee turnover endemic to the industry. To accomplish this goal, Tricon gave each Restaurant General Manager (RGM) a one-time, $20,000 stock option grant called YUMBUCKS. This plan provided an opportunity to earn even more options based on the RGMs restaurant performance, along with a unique program to recognize outstanding restaurant teamwork. Through product innovation, advertisement, promotions and customer service, TGI would aim to increase same store sales growth. Tricon also would combine the three brands within single restaurants in an effort to give customers more choice under the same roof and increase the chance of a share of their wallet. By working closely with top-performing franchisees and company operators, TGI would seek more effective ways to bring down costs. To leverage economies of scale, TGI purchases its food, paper goods and equipment for all its U.S. restaurants through a $4 billion cooperative. The company also uses new technologies that simplify operations and improve service time. Tricon would focus on reducing complexity and redundancy, general and administrative expenses. In this regard, company leaders and franchisees from all three brands would meet to discuss Tricons one-system approach, share best practices and explore bundled brand expansion opportunities. Tricon would try to enhance shareholder value by investing in high return restaurant units and exiting persistently low return units. Besides there would be added focus on sales margin growth, reducing redundancies and well thought out expansion plans. PepsiCo has decided to align itself with a different strategy where its restaurant business would not fit into the scheme of things. Restaurant business is more management-intensive and labor-centric compared to the beverage or snack food distribution business. PepsiCos core strength is in marketing and distribution. It would be best put into effect in the other two divisions where it has historically yielded good returns. However the incompatibility between the requirements of restaurant business and PepsiCos capabilities was pulling down the performance of Pepsi stocks and causing much angst to the investors and markets alike. PepsiCo realized that the food-service business is becoming increasingly competitive with a large number of established players. Growth has started to plateau in the domestic market which is not helping to increase the groups revenues. While other players mostly standalone, were aggressively pursuing overseas markets, TGI association with PepsiCo was not helping matters. There was bureaucratic delays and large lead time in decision making, being a division of a conglomerate. PepsiCo could not tap into the fountain-dispensed soft drinks business, long dominated by Coke. It was partly due to Cokes monopolistic actions by which it did not allow food service distributors to deal with Pepsi. Food service distributors provide broad variety of consumable supplies like food, drinks, paper etc to restaurant chains, movie theaters etc. Also PepsiCos ownership of food chains did not allow it to effectively pitch for fountain service business with firms which were essentially its rivals in food business. In the light of these, PepsiCo decided to concentrate only on business where its core strengths could be leveraged. Thus the renewed and exclusive focus on beverages and snack food segment which would entail divestiture of the restaurant business. In the light of the above developments, it would be important to deliberate on the decision and its impact through different aspects of strategic management perspective External Environment Analysis The external environment can be further classified as General environment Industry environment Competitive landscape The analysis of the competitive landscape for TGI starts with an overview of the food beverage segment. The food services sector in the US can be classified based on the mode of distribution Full-service restaurant Limited-service/Quick-service restaurant (QSR) Cafeteria Snack non-alcoholic beverage bar Food service contractor Caterer Mobile food service Alcoholic drinking establishment In addition to this, there is considerable overlap with other business which act as non-traditional distribution centers and dispense food beverage service Grocery or convenience stores Gasoline filling stations Supermarkets Educational establishment Business Level Strategy PepsiCo has followed a differentiation strategy at the business level due to the following reasons The wide portfolio of products including carbonated beverages and snack foods help it reach out to a vast demography among the customer base. The assortment of choices enables various customers to meet their refreshment demands through PepsiCo products of their preference. PepsiCo is a global company with operations in several countries. In order to obtain a share of wallet of consumers in different regions, it must provide products that are tuned to the tastes and preferences, prevalent in those local regions. This also explains the rationale behind having variety of products so that buyers perceive value for money through their preferred brands. PepsiCo operates in a duopoly market competing with Coke only. It need not adopt a cost leadership strategy as both the cola majors take price signals from each other and adjust markup prices accordingly, to retain market share and revenue. There has rarely been an all-out price war between the two which would have ultimately bled both to huge losses. This allows both players to compete on the basis of differentiated products targeted at a wider and more diverse customer base TGI on the other hand needs to follow an integrated cost-leadership and differentiation strategy due to the nature of the industry it operated in Dining is a higher involvement activity compared to purchasing cola or snacks. While rest of PepsiCos business required more of a product marketing approach, the restaurant group was more of service business. Differentiation is the key in such a scenario to attract customers. Variety in terms of menu options, ambience etc leads to higher footfalls. Also the local divisions in foreign countries need to be geared up to cater to the local needs. Unlike a duopoly in cola segment, restaurant business has many established competitors. This has led to pressure on the price front resulting in reduced margins. To stay competitive, all players have to minimize cost and pass on the benefit or risk losing customers. As evident from the discussion above, the business level strategy for cola snacks divisions and that of the restaurant division are divergent. PepsiCo would have conflict in its day to day operations as well as long-term planning while trying to manage the requirements of the business. Corporate Level Strategy PepsiCo has been trying to adopt a corporate level strategy of related linked diversification due to the following reasons The cola and the snack food business would lead to synergy in the corporate activities. While beverages could be mass produced in bottling plants, separate and dedicated manufacturing facilities for snack foods would be required. The raw materials would also be procured through different routes. The ingredients of cola would primarily be water, sugar and chemicals and plastic or glass bottles. These could be obtained freely or from institutional suppliers like sugar mills, bottle manufacturers etc. The inputs for snack foods would be farmed vegetables sourced through the contract farming route. In spite of the diverse operational requirements of both the business, there exists ample opportunity to leverage the core competencies of PepsiCo for both type of products marketing muscle and wide distribution network. Both the products could be marketed by sharing the expertise within the divisions and the reach could be extended using the superior supply chain and logistics arrangements of PepsiCo. Such a synergy would not benefit the restaurant business. It not only has operational divergence with the soft drinks and snack foods business, but also the core competencies of PepsiCo in marketing and distribution cannot be meaningfully transferred. More of a service orientation is required for the restaurant division apart from managing disparate supply chain, large base of fixed assets especially real estate. The human resource perspective would also be different as in managing workers who are service providers rather than working in production lines. On the other hand, TGI would need to follow a corporate level strategy of dominant business The mainstay would be restaurant business and each of the constituent brands can leverage the common pool of resources of the company. Existing real estate, previously being utilized by a single brand, can be shared among the others to focus on new store growth. The supply chain can be streamlined through coordination with logistics providers to reduce redundancy in operations. Suppliers can be managed in an integrated manner to reduce costs through economies of scale. This can be achieved by consolidating the procurement process of the restaurant brands with TGI. The business can be consolidated by working with top performing franchises to improve efficiency and drive shareholder value. Conclusion The above mentioned facts and ensuing analysis of PepsiCos strategic decision to divest its stake in TGI, point to a few aspects that stand out. The restaurant business is a dominant player in all the QSR categories it operates in sandwich, pizza and chicken. There are also ample growth opportunities in overseas markets though the US domestic market is gradually maturing and growth is slowing down there. Pepsis core competencies in marketing distribution do not fit well with the requirements of a service-oriented business like QSR. Also PepsiCo would like to pursue customers with differentiated products across a broad portfolio like beverages, snack foods, health energy drinks etc. To this effect it would like to bring synergy in its manufacturing and customer reach for all products. This would necessitate diversifying into related categories and focus on growth in these. TGI on the other hand, has to not only to offer differentiated service to its customer, but also needs to compete on the cost front more vigorously. The business of TGI is such that it is concentrated in the food service sector and there is not much scope or rationale for diversification. This would lead to loss of focus and much ground would be lost to the competitors. There is evidently some incompatibility in the operational as well as corporate strategy of PepsiCo and TGI. This would hamper the prospects of both the groups in the long run and seriously undermine the global growth prospects of TGI which is so critical at this point of time. That the divestment decision was well thought and done with lot of foresight, was vindicated by the more than average returns of both PepsiCo and TGI shares thereafter. Pepsi was able to arrest the slide in its margin and seriously challenge its rival -Coke in many emerging markets like South Asia, Eastern Europe etc. TGI on the other hand was able to maintain its dominant position in the QSR and also increase its global footprint substantially