Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Rohm and Haas Case Study Essay Example

Rohm and Haas Case Study Essay Example Rohm and Haas Case Study Paper Rohm and Haas Case Study Paper ROHM AND HAAS CASE WRITE-UP Problem Statement Rohm and Haas have a great product with the potential to make millions of dollars; however the end user is not aware of this product or its potential benefits due to their uninspiring promotional strategy, which really has only targeted large formulators and distributors leading to disappointing sales of Kathon MWX. The Kathon MWX has barely reached 6% of their targeted sales volume during its first five months and is nowhere near the potential $20 million market to individual systems. Alternative 1 Maintain Status Quo Pros: Kathon MWX is in the introductory stage of the product life cycle and the individual adoption process may take longer than expected, therefore sales may increase once consumers become aware of the product without additional cost to change marketing efforts. No additional cost, man hours, accounting, or clerical work would be incurred if they maintained the same marketing plan. Cons: The cost of doing nothing may snowball the poor sales and cause a decrease in long term profits. The more time it takes for consumers to become aware of the product, the more time it is giving the competition to react to the market. Market potential for Kathon MWX is estimated at $20 million, therefore allowing competition to be the first to reach consumers. Management may withdraw product from the market if this plan does not work. The current marketing strategy does not focus efforts on bringing awareness or knowledge of the product to the 150,000 individual system plants or the small companies that rely on supply houses and machine tool shops. Alternative 2 Adjust promotional strategy of Kathon MWX using extensive sales promotions along with advertising and personal selling focused on penetrating industrial supply houses and machine tool shops. Pros: By focusing promotions and advertising towards the secondary network instead of the large distributors helps create awareness of the product to the actual users of the product. This creates a pull or demand from consumers as opposed to a push from suppliers. Also, the concentrate biocide market is predicted to be cannibalized by the maintenance biocide market, hence adjusting the promotional strategy more towards the end users can boost sales by expediting this process sooner. Since Kathon MWX is a far superior product and more cost effective to users, creating a buzz or awareness of the product can sway consumers away from the competition and assist in gaining the untapped market. Personal selling and trade shows would allow the retailers and customers to become familiar with the product and ask questions regarding usage and safety since the previous marketing survey revealed consumer apprehension about safety. Cons: Adjusting a promotional strategy and implementing changes can be costly and time consuming. Additional sales force would be needed to help penetrate the smaller markets. The cost of implementing could be hard to predict and management may be reluctant to invest money into a product that is doing poorly. Formulators may resent the change since the product extends the life of the product they sell, which could decrease their sales. Alternative 3 Rerun the full-page advertisements in American Machinist and offer sampling again for an additional 5 months. Pros: Little time or effort would be needed to implement since it has already been done. This could be compared with the last effort to see if this promotional strategy is working. They could use the information gathered to add to their survey. No additional staff would be needed and cost would be minimal compared to other options. Cons: Since it had little response the first time, the odds of new customers reading the magazine are not high and they really will not be raising awareness of the products benefits or reaching the small users of the product. The only readers who received samples had to fill out reader service coupon, which may act as a deterrent. Each ad cost $3,800. Distributors are expected to follow up and generate orders, which takes an element of control away from Rohm and Haas and leaves the â€Å"selling† up to the distributors who have other products to sell. Recommendation My recommendation is for Alternative 2. Adjusting the promotion strategy to target the new â€Å"small users† instead of the industry formulators brings awareness of the product which should be the first step in the introduction phase of the product life cycle. The results of the previous survey showed that the majority of users sourced from small, local supply shops close to their business, therefore this promotional strategy will make Kathon MWX more visible and accessible to wider range of consumers. If Kathon MWX can capture just 15% (each competitor in biocide markets holds 15-20%) of the potential $20 million dollar market, it can increase sales by $3 million, which is outlined in Table A. This will offset the major drawback of this alternative which is the cost to implement a new promotional strategy. Table ASales Potential Potential Market$20 million Rohm and Haas’ Share of Biocide Market15% (low end) Potential Sales$3 million I would implement the plan by first approaching the sales group at Rohm and Haas that is under Specialty Chemicals. This will assist with internal relations since the sales group may feel some resentment towards a new sales team and this will allow for inputs and determine the most effective plan. Sales promotion that focuses on store demonstration with large, easy to read advertisement and free sampling would be most effective, along with trade promotion and making multiple appearances at trade shows. Second, I would hire a sales team to help with the promotional campaign and sales and then distribute target areas by region. All promotions would be backed up by advertising that would specifically target the individual systems to make them aware of the product and its benefits. I would evaluate the effectiveness of the new promotional campaign followed with another survey in five months. This would assist in determining the promotional strategy’s impact on the end user. I would also continue amicable relations with the current customers to ensure service is not impact. In general, the consumer only needs to be aware of a great product that is superior in performance and cost effective to buy it; therefore making them aware is the first step.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

John Henry Newmans Definition of a Gentleman

John Henry Newman's 'Definition of a Gentleman' A leader in the Oxford Movement and a cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church, John Henry Newman  (1801-1890) was a prolific writer and one of the most talented rhetoricians in 19th-century Britain. He served as the first rector of the Catholic University of Ireland (now University College Dublin) and was beatified by the Catholic Church in September 2010. In The Idea of a University, originally delivered as a series of lectures in 1852, Newman provides a compelling definition and defense of a liberal arts education, arguing that the primary purpose of a university is to develop the mind, not dispense information. From Discourse VIII of that work comes A Definition of a Gentleman, a superb example of character writing.  Note Cardinal Newmans reliance on parallel structures  in this extended definition in particular his use of paired constructions  and tricolons. A Definition of a Gentleman [I]t is almost a definition of a gentleman to say he is one who never inflicts pain. This description is both refined and, as far as it goes, accurate. He is mainly occupied in merely removing the obstacles which hinder the free and unembarrassed action of those about him, and he concurs with their movements rather than takes the initiative himself. His benefits may be considered as parallel to what are called comforts or conveniences in arrangements of a personal nature: like an easy chair or a good fire, which do their part in dispelling cold and fatigue, though nature provides both means of rest and animal heat without them. The true gentleman in like manner carefully avoids whatever may cause a jar or a jolt in the minds of those with whom he is cast;all clashing of opinion, or collision of feeling, all restraint, or suspicion, or gloom, or resentment; his great concern being to make everyone at their ease and at home. He has his eyes on all his company; he is tender towards the bashful, gentle towards the distant, and merciful towards the absurd; he can recollect to whom he is speaking; he guards against unseasonable allusions, or topics which may irritate; he is seldom prominent in conversation, and never wearisome. He makes light of favours while he does them, and seems to be receiving when he is conferring. He never speaks of himself except when compelled, never defends himself by a mere retort, he has no ears for slander or gossip, is scrupulous in imputing motives to those who interfere with him, and interprets everything for the best. He is never mean or little in his disputes, never takes unfair advantage, never mistakes personalities or sharp sayings for arguments, or insinuates evil which he dare not say out. From a long-sighted prudence, he observes the maxim of the ancient sage, that we should ever conduct ourselves towards our enemy as if he were one day to be our friend. He has too much good sense to be affronted at insults, he is too well employed to remember injuries, and too indolent to bear malice. He is patient, forbearing, and resigned, on philosophical principles; he submits to pain, because it is inevitable, to bereavement, because it is irreparable, and to death, because it is his destiny. If he engages in controversy of any kind, his disciplined intellect preserves him from the blundering discourtesy of better, perhaps, but less educated minds; who, like blunt weapons, tear and hack instead of cutting clean, who mistake the point in argument, waste their strength on trifles, misconceive their adversary, and leave the question more involved than they find it. He may be right or wrong in his opinion, but he is too clear-headed to be unjust; he is as simple as he is forcible, and as brief as he is decisive. Nowhere shall we find greater candour, consideration, indulgence: he throws himself into the minds of his opponents, he accounts for their mistakes. He knows the weakness of human reason as well as its strength, its province and its limits. If he be an unbeliever, he will be too profound and large-minded to ridicule religion or to act against it; he is too wise to be a dogmatist or fanatic in his infidelity. He respects piety and devotion; he even supports institutions as venerable, beautiful, or useful, to which he does not assent; he honours the ministers of religion, and it contents him to decline its mysteries without assailing or denouncing them. He is a friend of religious toleration, and that, not only because his philosophy has taught him to look on all forms of faith with an impartial eye, but also from the gentleness and effeminacy of feeling, which is the attendant on civilization. Not that he may not hold a religion too, in his own way, even when he is not a Christian. In that case, his religion is one of imagination and sentiment; it is the embodiment of those ideas of the sublime, majestic, and beautiful, without which there can be no large philosophy. Sometimes he acknowledges the being of God, sometimes he invests an unknown principle or quality with the attributes of perfection. And this deduction of his reason, or creation of his fancy, he makes the occasion of such excellent thoughts, and the starting-point of so varied and systematic a teaching, that he even seems like a disciple of Christianity itself. From the very accuracy and steadiness of his logical powers, he is able to see what sentiments are consistent in those who hold any religious doctrine at all, and he appears to others to feel and to hold a whole circle of theological truths, which exist in his mind no otherwise than as a number of deductions.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Critical Perspectives on HRM in Britain Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Critical Perspectives on HRM in Britain - Essay Example Research shows that when an organisation is able to achieve a cohesive and unified organisational culture, it improves problem-solving capacity within a firm and leads to enhanced organisational performance (Yilmaz and Ergun 2008). Furthermore, a longitudinal study conducted by Kotter and Heskett (1992) discovered that having a cohesive organisational culture was correlated with a 765 percent improvement of business incomes for the investigated organisations occurring between 1977 and the year 1988. With such evidence of organisational improvement and enhanced problem-solving capacity as a result of developing a cohesive organisational culture, it would appear that it is, indeed, desirable for senior managers to seek to change their organisational cultures if it is determined that existing culture in insufficient for enhancing organisational performance. However, change resistance is commonplace in many organisations in which managers become the victims of illogical and irrational employee responses when organisational members are faced with change (Ford, Ford and D’Amelio 2009). Hence, it might not be feasible to seek change of culture as a result of the intensity of psychological retaliation imparted upon management when attempting to elicit cultural change. There appears to be significant evidence that seeking to change organisational culture maintains a variety of benefits for an organisation. O’Donnell (2006) asserts that when an organisation maintains a cohesive culture, culture can facilitate development of innovations that support an organisation’s goals. For many organisations, especially those that operate in saturated competitive markets, the capability of an organisation in achieving many innovative outputs serves as a predictor of competitive advantage and holistic organisational performance. Kalyanaram and Gurumurthy (2008) describe an example of being a first mover in a new market where a firm

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

History of American Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

History of American Economics - Essay Example The US economy has overthrown all other economies since then and is ever-growing with the passage of time. A brief chart is given below for further understanding. Table 1: RAILROAD MILEAGE INCREASE BY GROUPS OF STATES 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 New England 2,507 3,660 4,494 5,982 6,831 Middle States 3,202 6,705 10,964 15,872 21,536 Southern States 2,036 8,838 11,192 14,778 29,209 Western States and Territories 1,276 11,400 24,587 52,589 62,394 Pacific States and Territories 23 1,677 4,080 9,804 TOTAL USA 9,021 30,626 52,914 93,301 129,774 SOURCE: Chauncey M. Depew (ed.), One Hundred Years of American Commerce 1795-1895 p 111 (Source Wikipedia) The independent yeoman farmer continued to exist, particularly in New England and the middle colonies, but most settled land in North America by 1750 was devoted to the cultivation of a cash crop. New England turned its land over to the raising of meat products for export. The middle colonies were the principal producers of grains. By 1700 Philadelphia exported more than 350,000 bushels of wheat and more than 18,000 tons of flour annually. The Southern colonies were, of course, even more closely tied to the cash crop system. South Carolina, aided by British incentives, turned to the production of rice and indigo. North Carolina, although less oriented toward the market economy than South Carolina, was nevertheless one of the principal suppliers of naval stores. Virginia and Maryland steadily increased their economic dependence on tobacco and on the London merchants who purchased that tobacco; and for the most part they ignored those who recommended that they diversify their economie s by turning part of their land over to the cultivation of wheat. Their near-total dependence upon the world tobacco price would ultimately prove disastrous, but for most of the 18th century Virginia and Maryland soil remained productive enough to make a single-crop system reasonably useful. As America evolved from subsistence to commercial agriculture, an influential commercial class increased its power in nearly every colony. Boston was the centre of the merchant elite of New England, who not only dominated economic life but also wielded social and political power as well.. And it is clear that the commercial importance of the colonies was increasing. During the years 1700-10, approximately 265,000 sterling was exported annually to Great Britain from the colonies, with roughly the same amount being imported by the Americans from Great Britain. By the decade 1760-70, that figure had risen to more than 1,000,000 sterling of goods exported annually to Great Britain and 1,760,000 annually imported from Great Britain. (Source Britannica encyclopedia) Situation now days The United States of America holds the honor of world's greatest economic power in terms of gross national product (GNP) and is among the greatest powers in terms of GNP per capita. The nation's wealth is partly a reflection of its rich natural resources. With only 5 percent of the world's population, the United States produces nearly one-fifth of the world's output of coal, copper, and crude petroleum. The agricultural sector produces nearly one-half of the world's corn (maize); nearly one-fifth of its beef, pork, mutton, and lamb; and more than one-tenth of its wheat.

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Benchmarking for Performance Evaluation Essay Example for Free

Benchmarking for Performance Evaluation Essay IntroductIon In September 2004, Wendy Wiley, the Northlake Bookstore manager, was considering the implications of a shocking development. For the first time in her seven years as the Bookstore manager, textbook sales for this fall had decreased from the prior fall sales. The sales decrease was approximately $180,000, or 3% of annual textbook sales. Wendy wanted to address this problem before it got worse. She found that this sales decrease was due to two emerging technology problems, possibly of equal magnitude: 1) the students’ increasing use of online textbook vendors, and 2) the professors’ increasing use of online textbook publishers. Wendy reported the bad sales news to her boss, Chuck Irwin, the Vice Chancellor of Finance at Northlake University. After commiserating with her, Chuck told her that he was not surprised by this sales problem and that she should consider how to deal with these emerging technologies in her next performance evaluation report by comparing the performance of the Northlake Bookstore against competitors using benchmarking analysis. This analysis would help Wendy find the strengths and weaknesses of the Bookstore. Additionally, Chuck wanted Wendy to develop a few key related short-term performance goals and related measures that could be used in future performance evaluations. He wanted to discuss the situation at their meeting next week, which was the annual review of the Bookstore’s performance for the prior fiscal year 2004 (July 2003 through June 2004). A benchmarking analysis was required by Chuck for the annual review of all the nonacademic departments under his management. Northlake is a private university, located in a major metropolitan area in the Midwest, with an annual enrollment of 12 ,700 students, mostly undergraduates. Northlake is quite dependent upon student tuition, which typically accounts for 60% of its total revenues. However, the Chancellor was concerned because donations and gifts to the University were down, possibly due to uncertain economic conditions and erratic stock market performance. Prior to becoming the Northlake Bookstore manager, Wendy had spent 15 years in retail sales, most recently as a Wal-Mart sales manager. She was an outgoing, supportive individual who really liked being a retail sales manager and enjoyed working with her employees. She strongly believed in continuous improvement of any sales department that she managed. Despite her extensive retail experience in the for-profit sector, this was her first experience working in an academic environment. Wendy occasionally became frustrated working with faculty due to their late or inaccurate book orders. However, she liked helping students and enjoyed working in an academic environment without all the pressures of a for-prof it business with aggressive sales and earnings targets like Wal-Mart. China Case Competition 2009 To prepare her benchmarking analysis report required for the upcoming annual performance evaluation of the Bookstore, Wendy had collected income statement, product line, and other performance measures for the last three fiscal years. To aid evaluation, she summarized the various Bookstore operations into five product lines: textbooks, supplies and sundries, clothing, software and accessories, and computers. The textbook product line included new texts, used texts, class notes (course packs), and general reference books. The supply and sundry line included school and office supplies, electronics, food, sundries, greeting cards, and miscellaneous campus department sales. The clothing line included all insignia clothing, gifts, and memorabilia. Wendy knew she needed to act fast to thoroughly analyze all the information needed for the Bookstore’s annual benchmarking analysis that Chuck and the Chancellor required. She had a lot of historical information and was wondering how to analyze this financial information for her benchmarking analysis report. BEncHMArKInG Benchmarking is the process of identifying superior performance of other organizations for products, services, and processes, and then attempting to improve necessary areas with the goal of achieving similar excellence. The benchmarking process first became popular in 1989 after Xerox advertised its success with the tool; however, the tool was initially employed by Xerox in 1972. In fact, more than 70% of the Fortune 500 companies—which includes ATT, Ford Motor Company, IBM, and Eastman Kodak—reported using benchmarking regularly. Benchmarking is useful in countless decision-making settings including performance evaluation, health and safety management, and supply chain management. To reach for greater standards of excellence, Ford would likely consider foreign automobile manufacturers that have been well known for high efficiency and quality, such as Toyota, the current world-wide leader in automobile sales. Wendy currently benchmarked the performance of the bookstore against other college bookstores and major booksellers. In performing a benchmarking analysis, it was imperative for Wendy to benchmark processes that were aligned with organizational strategic objectives. Since the Bookstore was a profit center, it was imperative that she compare the profitability of the various product lines with other universities. The Bookstore also had an objective to provide service excellence. Thus, if available, it would be beneficial for Wendy to benchmark customer satisfaction data with other universities. Once processes that were consistent with strategic objectives were identified, it was necessary to collect and analyze internal information vis-Ã ¡-vis external information from competitors. The benchmarking process did not stop once areas of excellence and inferior performance were identified. Rather, it was imperative for Wendy to identify how to sustain the areas of excellence and improve the areas of inferior performance. In determining how to improve poor performance, she needed to understand the reason behind the poor performance. Once that was attained, it would be possible to determine a long-term plan for improvement. A key role of the Bookstore was to supply the Northlake University communitywhich included but was not limited to faculty, students, alumni and parentswith textbooks, supplies, clothing and gifts, computers and software, and much more. The Bookstore’s formal mission statement was as follows: The Northlake Bookstore is an academic resource for the students, faculty, staff, alumni, and guests of the University. The Bookstore serves the University with a business presence dedicated to providing service excellence that meets or exceeds the needs of each customer and University department. The Bookstore played a significant role in enabling parents of freshmen to participate in getting their children ready for the first day of class. Additional temporary staff was hired to ensure there was adequate assistance available for new students and returning students who were purchasing their textbooks. These staff members were readily available and happy to answer any question that new parents or students might have regarding textbooks or the University in general. Also, congruent with the University laptop requirement for all students, the Bookstore sold computers and software. This was a great way for parents to enjoy onestop back-to-school shopping. Additionally, the Bookstore tried to promote the University as a brand name by selling clothing and accessories with the University logo and/or name. Availability of clothing and accessories was also a service provided to students, parents, and alumni who wanted to show their support for the school. Sales of merchandise with the University logo indirectly promoted the University, but the Bookstore did not try to formally create alumni support nor was that a formal goal. This was the function of the University Alumni Advancement (funding) office. As indicated by the mission statement, by the role taken to familiarize new parents and students, and by the sale of merchandise with the University logo, the Bookstore operated in a manner aimed at achieving high customer satisfaction. To measure customer satisfaction the Bookstore conducted an annual customer satisfaction survey and a separate faculty satisfaction survey. Customer suggestion forms were also readily available on the Bookstore website. In her years as the Bookstore manager, Wendy had developed various financial performance measures to help assess the performance of the Bookstore. Over the last few years, she had used these measures as part of her benchmarking analysis. She felt fortunate to have a fairly comprehensive benchmarking database available to her. It was provided annually to all bookstore members free of charge by the National Association of College Stores (NACS). The only requirement was that each bookstore had to contribute its own data to the benchmarking database in order to use it. The NACS database included income statement, product line, and other types of benchmarks. With the looming threat from online textbook vendors, Wendy had started to benchmark Northlake’s textbook prices against the major online textbook vendors. She also tracked mail orders and Web orders from Northlake’s own website (started in 2000). Her task now was how best to use this benchmark information. She believed that her first step was to compare her current financial and operating results with the benchmark data to pinpoint areas in need of improvement. This analysis would likely uncover some areas that needed her attention, which would be useful in identifying areas in need of improvement.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Port-a-Blast :: Personal Narrative Writing

Port-a-Blast I had been waiting in the cold, empty interrogation room for hours anticipating the dreaded arrival of the detective. It had to be one of the longest nights of my life waiting in anticipation to find out the consequences I was about to face. I had numerous thoughts running through my mind about how I was going to get out of this predicament. I was the last of four, Kevin, Chris, Brian, and I, to be interviewed. To my relief, I did not have to talk my way out of the crime I had committed, which seemed to have occurred days earlier. It was about ten o’clock on a brisk and lonely night in November of 2001 when we parked my car about 800 meters away from our target, the notorious port-a-potty, which was located on the west side of the park. My car was the only car in the parking lot, which turned out to be our biggest mistake of the night. We sat in the car for about ten minutes with thoughts racing through our heads of the getaway route we were going to take. We talked about what we would do if we got split up on the run back and where we would meet. We also made sure we emptied our pockets of cell phones, wallets, and anything else that we might drop, which could connect us to the scene. The walk through the park to the port-a-potty seemed to be one of the longest walks of my life. The anticipation and excitement was like that of a kid opening presents on Christmas Eve. We were not exactly sure what was going to happen when we would place the sparkler bomb in the port-a-potty, but we had a good idea and could not wait to find out. When we finally reached the port-a-potty, we were constantly on the lookout for passers-by. We ended up waiting about thirty minutes for the coast to clear. We did not want to take any chances, because we knew of the considerable distance we had to run. Kevin would be the one to light the sparkler bomb, while Chris, Brian, and I were on the lookout. We made sure we had our running shoes tied up tight one last time. As Kevin stepped into the port-a-potty, we waited about ten feet behind in a row of trees impatiently anticipating the lighting of the sparkler bomb.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Aristotle and Aurelius Essay

Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics goes to show that he believes that the end goal of all human actions is eudaimonia, or happiness through success and fulfillment. Following this concept Aristotle goes on to explain that through virtuosity a human being can lead a happy life. He defines virtue as a disposition to make the correct decisions that lead to the chief good of happiness. A perfect example is when he describes someone who does an action well as being good, but they are only considered good because of their distinctive activity. The distinctive activity for human beings can be considered our rationale. This is where virtue comes into play in the matter, but this translation could also be deciphered as excellence. Human beings do every single thing they do for a reason and that reason is to help towards an end goal. Although it may seem like the end goal might be something good like eating lunch, it is actually a chain to the ultimate good which is being happy. Happiness in Aristotle’s view is not second-by-second or even minute-by-minute but an entire lifetime. This is because we view happiness as and end goal which we hope to achieve by death and that way you can look back on a person’s life to see if they succeeded in their goal, through virtuous moral character and virtuous intellectual character and through the act of temperance. A life-time of that act can guarantee a happy, fulfilling, and successful life. Being virtuous come through two different ways in our actions as said by Aristotle, â€Å"Excellence being of two sorts, then, the one intellectual and the other of character, the intellectual sort mostly both comes into existence and increases as a result of teaching whereas excellence of character results from habituation†¦ † (Nicomachean Ethics, 1103a15). Intellectual virtue comes from teaching, experience, and time while character virtue is formed through the habit of repeated virtuous actions and constant practice. This allows for every human being to potentially have a virtuous moral character for the fact that it cannot be learned but only practiced, and not one person can be born already virtuous. The only problem with this concept is that there is no exact guideline in which to follow in order to become virtuous and, ultimately, happy. Basically Aristotle explains that you can find virtue in the middle ground of your actions, for example, he says â€Å"For to arrive at one of the two extremes is more erroneous, to arrive at the other less; so, since it is hard to hit upon intermediate with extreme accuracy, one should take to the oars and sail that way, as they say, grasping what is least bad of what is available†¦ † (Nicomachean Ethics, 1109a35) There is no teaching as to why, for example, courage is preferred over cowardice or rashness but that you need to practice being courageous in order to understand the reasoning for being courageous. This is true for all virtuous traits and merits of the human character and by combining the moral and intellectual teachings and habits can you start on the path of a virtuous disposition. The key to virtue is keeping within a balance between the vices. For an excessive vice there is excessive pleasure but also excessive pain and for the opposite there is no pleasure and no pain. The key is in a state of temperance in order to feel the correct amount of pleasure for a healthy lifestyle and choices. Aristotle’s views show that someone with a virtuous disposition should automatically or naturally choose the best action or behavior in any circumstances without having to rely on reason because the virtuous habit has been already learned. In response to someone arguing against an accidental choice, these views only perceive the deliberate and voluntary choices made by the person of virtue. Also a virtuous moral character will always aim for the good while unjust character will try to aim for what is their perception or the â€Å"apparent† good as said in â€Å"That wish is for the end, we have already said; but to some it seems to be for the good, whereas to others it seems to be for the apparent good. The consequence, for those who say that the object of wish is the good, is that what the person making an incorrect choice wishes for is not wished for.. † (Nicomachean Ethics, 1113a10). A virtuous person will always do the right thing and will never be surprised by their actions, nor will they do it the right thing with an ulterior motive. Though you cannot live a happy life just with a virtuous disposition because you still need to act within accordance to virtue, you absolutely cannot live a happy life without virtue. Having virtue in your actions will lead to the final goal of happiness because it far outweighs the happiness found in pleasure, awards or merits. II. Marcus Aurelius was a philosopher-king and emperor of the Roman Empire and was considered of of the most influential Stoic philosophers of all time. His greatest work Meditations is an honest portrayal of Aurelius’ thoughts as they were found in journal form, never meant to be publicized. He wrote these books for himself as a sort of guideline and thought-provoking inner voice. In his works of Meditations, Marcus Aurelius doesn’t use arguments as a way to get his point across but rather states his words as truths and seems to be very confident in his uses. It seems he is prying at the meaning of life, the why’s and how’s of it all on the idea of living. He is very blunt in his use of understating the human existence in the world and compares them to specks in the grand scheme, but the point of this is to provide a sort of carpe diem lifestyle. By letting yourself let go of the things you cannot control, you begin to gain a better understanding of the things you can control and act accordingly. â€Å"We were born to work together like feet, hands and eyes, like two rows of teeth, upper and lower. To obstruct each other is unnatural. To feel anger at someone, to turn your back on him: these are obstructions. † (Meditations, 17). This quote goes to show how you cannot allow yourself to get angry at another person for what they have done, but to continue your existence and recognize what you need to do. He advises in his writings â€Å"To shrug it all off and wipe it clean-every annoyance and distraction-and reach utter stillness. † (Meditations, 54) and once you can do that you can realize what is natural. Stoicism being a very popular philosophy in ancient Rome for it called for a â€Å"cosmic determinism† in relation to â€Å"human freedom† by a parallel will to that of Nature . Aurelius,himself, was a firm believer in the Logos, which can be identified as a principle a guiding force for the universe, human beings and all matter. In fact, it is one of the most important concepts in Stoicism for the ancient Romans of the time. The stark and â€Å"manly† belief that every single citizen had a duty, whether they were a king or a peasant, were expected to follow it to the best of their abilities. The term utter stillness is used to acknowledge the state of no distractions. By achieving this you can focus solely on appropriate actions and how to follow your own road by the way of Nature on an unconscious level. Not by thinking about it but by acting naturally should you continue to help others, work for yourself, never stopping but continuing to reply to Nature’s demands. To do this all under the Logos, in order to find our common sense and avoid the annoying distractions all the while by controlling these actions through your inner unconscious/conscious self. III. The Greek philosopher Aristotle and the Roman philosopher-king Marcus Aurelius can be compared and contrasted in their similar and different ways of thoughts. First you can compare Aristotle’s ideas on eudaimonia and Aurelius’ use of utter stillness to help follow the logos, also the final step of death as the end of one’s journey towards a life of fulfillment. Contrastingly, they have different outlooks on purpose of human life and how to lead to the fulfilling of that said life. Stoicism was developed within the framework of Greek theory and philosophies from Plato and Aristotle so obviously there are bound to be many similarities. Both of these men were truly brilliant and ground-breaking in their respective ways of thought and led centuries of intellectuals to search for more fulfillment and happiness’s in their lives. Some big differences between Aristotle and Aurelius were there views on mortality or death. While Aristotle concludes that our lives are given to us and as valuable as human beings want to make them, the Stoics view on life is that is shaped by death and that the thoughts, choices and actions are just based on the knowledge of death. Eudaimonia is a subject in which Aristotle and Aurelius were familiar with in their writings about philosophical life. Aristotle thought of eudaimonia as an activity done with virtue performed rationally and consciously. Aurelius and the other Stoics insist that the way for eudaimonia is to live a morally virtuous life, in regards to the fact that virtue is good, vices are bad and most everything else is neutral. A popular argument for this where a death in the family would be involved, according to Aristotle, that would rob the most virtuous person of their eudaimonia while the Stoics would consider that neutral. Another interesting fact about Aristotle is how he acknowledges how â€Å"dumb luck† can aid or block the journey for eudaimonia, for example being born beautiful or losing close friends and family. Basically, they agree that eudaimonia is self-sufficient; the chief goal in life and that eudaimonia is the most complete end result. Virtue is very important to both philosophers and their ways of thinking and considers it absolutely crucial for eudaimonia. Aristotle and Aurelius can agree that no one is born just virtuous as it must be an act learned. Virtue is believed to be how one can control their emotions for it helps them to stay stable and in moderation. Overall, living life virtuously is living a life full of dignity. Marcus Aurelius’s view is a much more justified view because it is more modern and more adaptable. As the stoicism wants people to better themselves within reasonable goals and change values into something that will bring upon an unconscious change so that they may make better decisions consciously. Aristotle instead relies too much on a proper upbringing and calls the loss of good and friends as a prevention of eudaimonia. Stoics learn to realize what is out of their control and move on to what they can control. Aristotelian views also say that if a person dies early that it is a tragedy and that they were taken away before they reached their prime which in the Stoics eyes, a virtuous person should never be afraid of death because their life is sufficient when living a virtuous life. The difference continues when viewing the topic of emotions for Aristotelian that emotions are not good nor bad, only bad when expressed inappropriately while the Stoics think the whole point of eudaimonia is to be free from emotion. Finally the stoics don’t see a difference between the rich, poor, slaves or free men, because in their views bodily and external things can no impact on their dignity, whereas Aristotle believes that a life based on virtues along with enough material and external goods like freedom, wellbeing, and close friends lead to a life of dignity. Overall, Aurelius and the Stoics have built upon and modified Aristotle’s view to be more realistic and to try and be more optimistic in leading the best possible life no matter the circumstances.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Southwest Airlines: Organizational Commitment and Communication

Southwest Airlines’ strong organizational culture is reflected in its mission as shown in its website: â€Å"dedication to the highest quality of Customer Service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and Company Spirit. † Southwest is a company that not only excels in customer service and profitability but also in employee development. Its organizational commitment is not reduce to the organization; it is actually expand it to an ongoing relationship with the employees where they have the opportunity to express their ideas, suggestions and concerns. This organizational culture has made Southwest Airlines one of the companies with the fewest customer complaints, and an employee turnover ratio of less than 10 percent (D’Aurizio, 2008). The same strong culture Southwest Airlines has built over the time is supported by every employee who has in mind that they have to deliver a warm and friendly assistance to their customers. Southwest management’s strategy could not be any better; the management treats employees as family, expecting from the employees to treat customers like family as well. The company is characterized for having a decentralized structure. In between the CEO and the frontline supervisors, there are only a few levels. Their philosophy on structure is very relaxed. Any employee who feels the need is welcomed to contact someone above their supervisor. The president has three executive vice presidents who each have five or six vice presidents who report to them. There is one vice president of Internal Audits and Special Projects who reports directly to the president. (Rivera, Cornwell, Abenes, 2003) The Southwest culture creates and integrates a dedicated and motivated workforce that succeeds together. The owners’ leadership style is led by example; that is how Kelleher treats his employees, like family, he is open to communicate and he also knows the vital role in forming this unique culture. Before people become employed at Southwest, the managers in charge of the hiring interview make sure they embed the organizational culture in the candidates. When they become part of the Southwest family, then they are treated like part of it. Any event in the lives of the employees are acknowledged and celebrated by everyone, everyone cherish for the success and happiness of the members of the family. The company establishes special programs for families of employees. The company listens to comments and feedback, not only from employees, but also employees’ families, customers, and vendors (D’Aurizio, 2008). This company has become profitable by putting into practice the philosophy of an open communication. Southwest does not have the culture only in paper, they actually live it. The managers start giving the example to the employees, and they follow their leaders. Southwest strategically generates satisfaction to their employees, this needs satisfactions will later reflect and convert into satisfaction to the customer and shareholder value via organizational capabilities I believe the success of Southwest Airlines comes from the combination of different sources of power. Part of it comes from the expert power, and also from the reward power. Southwest management had has the ability and knowledge to create such an amazing organizational culture, this ability is the expertise power. Now the way they have applied the idea into real actions, the fact that they led by example and treat the employees as family is the reward power. The management has gained the respect, trust and loyalty from their employees. This is because of what they have done not only with words but more important with actions. Concerning the communication aspect, this plays an important role in the organizational culture of Southwest Airlines and the way the employees perceive that culture. The website Reference for Business (2009) explain how the contend of a message send will be perceive in different way by every individual. Each person gives their own personal meaning to the message received. This also happens due to the experience, the receiver makes sense out of a message based on experience. No one can perceive experiences in the same exact way as another does. Each individual has a unique set of experiences, a unique perceptual â€Å"filter,† that helps them to understand or interpret messages received. These filters are built over time by each individual person according to their childhood background, and the life experiences. Finally, we can say that the combination of the message received and he experience of the receiver is what makes an interpretation of the message. This is the reason why Southwest management emphasizes in a clear and concrete communication. They know how some messages can be easily misunderstood or twisted on the way. And this is the reason why they keep an open communication to the employees. Allowing questions when the message was not clear, as well as allowing suggestions when the employees do not agree. The challenge for every organization is how to create a great channel of communication that will enable employees to comprehend messages in the way they were originally intended to be transmitted. According to Beebe and Masterson, â€Å"conflict in a group occurs when members disagree over two or more options that a group can take in trying to make a decision, resolve a problem, or achieve a goal† (Chapter 7, p. 69). Other types of conflicts can occur as a result of differences in goal. Now, the good news about conflict is that it can be use in a positive way contrarily to the popular belief that states that a conflict should always be avoided. Southwest Airlines, for example, could use conflict to challenge their employees to research, or come up with ideas of how to resolve some specific issues, problems. Additional researches will help to determine a better way to fix problem that are costing a lot of money to the company. The commitment of Southwest airlines is to a culture that motivates, empowers and promotes employees to make the company one of the best companies to work for, as well as one of the most profitable one. One of the most important tools this company uses is the open communication and the in-house advancement that encourages a positive perception of company culture, allowing employees the opportunity to express ideas, suggestions, concerns that Make them believe they are part of the Southwest â€Å"family†. Southwest best strategy is the commitment not only to the organization itself but also to the employees. Everyone there is part of a big family who works hard to keep harmony n within the family. They use great leadership styles where the managers led by example and they are always open to any communication. This company should be use as example as what it is to build a great culture and a great organizational commitment.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Operation Lila Scuttling of the French Fleet

Operation Lila Scuttling of the French Fleet Conflict Date: Operation Lila and the scuttling of the French fleet occurred on November 27, 1942, during World War II (1939-1945). Forces Commanders: French Admiral Jean de LabordeAdmiral Andrà © Marquis64 warships, numerous support vessels and patrol boats Germany Generaloberst Johannes BlaskowitzArmy Group G Operation Lila Background: With the Fall of France in June 1940, the French Navy ceased to operate against the Germans and Italians. To prevent the enemy from obtaining the French ships, the British attacked Mers-el-Kebir in July and fought the Battle of Dakar in September. In the wake of these engagements, the ships of the French Navy were concentrated at Toulon where they remained under French control but were either disarmed or deprived of fuel. At Toulon, command was divided between Admiral Jean de Laborde, who led the Forces de Haute Mer (High Seas Fleet) and Admiral Andrà © Marquis, the Prefet Maritime who oversaw the base. The situation at Toulon remained quiet for over two years until Allied forces landed in French North Africa as part of Operation Torch on November 8, 1942. Concerned about an Allied attack through the Mediterranean, Adolf Hitler ordered the implementation of Case Anton which saw German troops under General Johannes Blaskowitz occupy Vichy France beginning on November 10. Though many in the French fleet initially resented the Allied invasion, a desire to join the fight against the Germans soon swept through the fleet with chants in support of General Charles de Gaulle erupting from different ships. The Situation Changes: In North Africa, the commander of Vichy French forces, Admiral Franà §ois Darlan, was captured and began supporting the Allies. Ordering a ceasefire on November 10, he sent a personal message to de Laborde to ignore orders from the Admiralty to remain in port and to sail to Dakar with the fleet. Knowing of Darlans change in loyalty and personally disliking his superior, de Laborde ignored the request. As German forces moved to occupy Vichy France, Hitler desired to take the French fleet by force. He was dissuaded from this by Grand Admiral Erich Raeder who stated that the French officers would honor their armistice pledge not to allow their ships to fall into the hands of a foreign power. Instead, Raeder proposed that Toulon be left unoccupied and its defense entrusted to the Vichy French forces. While Hitler agreed to Raeders plan on the surface, he pressed on with his goal of taking the fleet. Once secured, the larger surface ships were to be transferred to the Italians while the submarines and smaller vessels would join the Kriegsmarine. On November 11, French Secretary of the Navy Gabriel Auphan instructed de Laborde and Marquis that they were to oppose the entry of foreign forces into naval facilities and onto French ships, though force was not to be used. If this could not be done, the ships were to be scuttled. Four days later, Auphan met with de Laborde and tried to persuade him to take the fleet to North Africa to join the Allies. Laborde refused stating his would only sail with written orders from the government. On November 18, the Germans demanded that the Vichy Army be disbanded. As a result, sailors were taken from the fleet to man the defenses and German and Italian forces moved closer to the city. This meant that it would be more difficult to prepare ths ships for sea if a breakout were to be attempted. A breakout would have been possible as the French crews had, through falsification of reports and tampering with gauges, brought aboard enough fuel for a run to North Africa. The next several days saw defensive preparations continue, including the placing of scuttling charges, as well as de Laborde requiring his officers to pledge their loyalty to the Vichy government. Operation Lila: On November 27, the Germans commenced Operation Lila with the goal of occupying Toulon and seizing the fleet. Comprised of elements from the 7th Panzer Division and 2nd SS Panzer Division, four combat teams entered the city around 4:00 AM. Quickly taking Fort Lamalgue, they captured Marquis but failed to prevent his chief of staff from sending a warning. Stunned by the German treachery, de Laborde issued orders to prepare for scuttling and to defend the ships until they had sunk. Advancing through Toulon, the Germans occupied heights overlooking the channel and air-dropped mines to prevent a French escape. Reaching the gates of the naval base, the Germans were delayed by the sentries who demanded paperwork allowing admission. By 5:25 AM, German tanks entered the base and de Laborde issued the scuttle order from his flagship Strasbourg. Fighting soon broke out along the waterfront, with the Germans coming under fire from the ships. Out-gunned, the Germans attempted to negotiate, but were unable to board most vessels in time to prevent their sinking. German troops successfully boarded the cruiser Dupleix and closed its sea valves, but were driven off by explosions and fires in its turrets. Soon the Germans were surrounded by sinking and burning ships. By the end of the day, they had only succeeded in taking three disarmed destroyers, four damaged submarines, and three civilian vessels. Aftermath: In the fighting of November 27, the French lost 12 killed and 26 wounded, while the Germans suffered one wounded. In scuttling the fleet, the French destroyed 77 vessels, including 3 battleships, 7 cruisers, 15 destroyers, and 13 torpedo boats. Five submarines managed to get underway, with three reaching North Africa, one Spain, and the last forced to scuttle at the mouth of the harbor. The surface ship Leonor Fresnel also escaped. While Charles de Gaulle and the Free French severely criticized the action, stating that the fleet should have tried to escape, the scuttling prevented the ships from falling into Axis hands. While salvage efforts began, none of the larger ships saw service again during the war. After the liberation of France, de Laborde was tried and convicted of treason for not trying to save the fleet. Found guilty, he was sentenced to death. This was soon commuted to life imprisonment before he was granted clemency in 1947. Selected Sources Battleships Cruisers: Scuttling at ToulonHistory.com: French Scuttle Their Fleet

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Women and Revolution in China and Iran

Women and Revolution in China and Iran During the 20th century, both China and Iran underwent revolutions that significantly changed their social structures. In each case, the role of women in society also shifted enormously as a result of the revolutionary changes that took place - but the outcomes were quite different for Chinese and Iranian women. Women in Pre-Revolutionary China During the late Qing Dynasty era in China, women were viewed as the property first of their birth families, and then of their husbands families. They were not really family members - neither the birth family nor the marriage family recorded a womans given name on the genealogical record. Women had no separate property rights, nor did they have parental rights over their children if they chose to leave their husbands. Many suffered extreme abuse at the hands of their spouses and in-laws. Throughout their lives, women were expected to obey their fathers, husbands, and sons in turn. Female infanticide was common among families who felt that they already had enough daughters and wanted more sons. Ethnic Han Chinese women of the middle and upper classes had their feet bound, as well, limiting their mobility and keeping them close to home. If a poor family wanted their daughter to be able to marry well, they might bind her feet when she was a small child. Foot binding was excruciatingly painful; first, the girls arch bones were broken, then the foot was tied with a long strip of cloth into the lotus position. Eventually, the foot would heal that way. A woman with bound feet could not work in the fields; thus, foot-binding was a boast on the familys part that they did not need to send their daughters out to work as farmers. The Chinese Communist Revolution Although the Chinese Civil War (1927-1949) and the Communist Revolution caused enormous suffering throughout the twentieth century, for women, the rise of communism resulted in a significant improvement in their social status. According to communist doctrine, all workers were supposed to be accorded equal worth, regardless of their gender. With the collectivization of property, women were no longer at a disadvantage compared with their husbands. One goal of revolutionary politics, according to the Communists, was womens liberation from the male-dominated system of private property. Of course, women from the property-owning class in China suffered humiliation and the loss of their status, just as their fathers and husbands did. However, the vast majority of Chinese women were peasants - and they gained social status, at least, if not material prosperity, in post-revolutionary Communist China. Women in Pre-Revolutionary Iran In Iran under the Pahlavi shahs, improved educational opportunities and social standing for women formed one of the pillars of the modernization drive. During the nineteenth century, Russia and Britain vied for influence in Iran, bullying the weak Qajar state. When the Pahlavi family took control, they sought to strengthen Iran by adopting certain western characteristics - including increased rights and opportunities for women. (Yeganeh 4) Women could study, work, and under Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavis rule (1941 - 1979), even vote. Primarily, though, womens education was intended to produce wise, helpful mothers and wives, rather than career women. From the introduction of the new Constitution in 1925 until the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Iranian women received free universal education and increased career opportunities. The government forbade women from wearing the chador, a head-to-toe covering preferred by highly religious women, even removing the veils by force. (Mir-Hosseini 41) Under the shahs, women got jobs as government ministers, scientists, and judges. Women got the right to vote in 1963, and the Family Protection Laws of 1967 and 1973 protected womens right to divorce their husbands and to petition for custody of their children. The Islamic Revolution in Iran Although women played an important role in the 1979 Islamic Revolution, pouring out into the streets and helping to drive Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi out of power, they lost a considerable number of rights once the Ayatollah Khomeini took control of Iran. Just after the revolution, the government decreed that all women had to wear the chador in public, including news anchors on television. Women who refused could face public whipping and prison time. (Mir-Hosseini 42) Rather than having to go to court, men could once more simply declare I divorce you three times to dissolve their marriages; women, meanwhile, lost all right to sue for divorce. After Khomeinis death in 1989, some of the strictest interpretation of law were lifted. (Mir-Hosseini 38) Women, particularly those in Tehran and other large cities, began to go out not in chador, but with a wisp of scarf (barely) covering their hair and with full makeup. Nonetheless, women in Iran continue to face weaker rights today than they did in 1978. It takes the testimony of two women to equal the testimony of one man in court. Women accused of adultery have to prove their innocence, rather than the accuser proving their guilt, and if convicted they may be executed by stoning. Conclusion The twentieth-century revolutions in China and Iran had very different effects on womens rights in those countries. Women in China gained social status and value after the Communist Party took control; after the Islamic Revolution, women in Iran lost many of the rights they had gained under the Pahlavi shahs earlier in the century. Conditions for women in each country vary today, though, based on where they live, what family they are born into, and how much education they have attained. Sources Ip, Hung-Yok. Fashioning Appearances: Feminine Beauty in Chinese Communist Revolutionary Culture, Modern China, Vol. 29, No. 3 (July 2003), 329-361. Mir-Hosseini, Ziba. The Conservative-Reformist Conflict over Womens Rights in Iran, International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society, Vol. 16, No. 1 (Fall 2002), 37-53. Ng, Vivien. Sexual Abuse of Daughters-in-law in Qing China: Cases from the Xingan Huilan, Feminist Studies, Vol. 20, No. 2, 373-391. Watson, Keith. The Shahs White Revolution - Education and Reform in Iran, Comparative Education, Vol. 12, No. 1 (March 1976), 23-36. Yeganeh, Nahid. Women, Nationalism and Islam in Contemporary Political Discourse in Iran, Feminist Review, No. 44 (Summer 1993), 3-18.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

The impact of culture on consumer behavior Research Paper

The impact of culture on consumer behavior - Research Paper Example People from different cultures, customs, traditions, and religions find equal respect in this country and can stay with complete harmony. Religion and Spirituality are very important in India. Worship of various deities is a salient feature. India is said to be the birthplace of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism; 80% of the population follow Hinduism which is at least 4000years old. However people from various religions stay in this nation (Ganeri, 2013, pp. 6-7). India is the land where the Vedas and Upanishads originated (Vyas, 1992, pp.13-14). All the scriptures have been written in Sanskrit which is considered to be the mother of many languages. At present, Hindi is the national language which is again derived from Sanskrit. Indian languages, customs, rituals, dance, music, architecture, food, clothing etc differ greatly from place to place within the country. Naturally it is bountiful with seas, mountains, agricultural lands, forests, rivers, deserts, etc. India is the origin of various classical dance forms and music. However, each form represents the heritage of a particular group of people. ... Though, now - a- days, boys and girls mix up more freely, yet in general the society is conservative and arranged marriages are still a norm. Business meetings in large cities are organized as in western countries. It is rich in its cultural heritage; however, it is a third world developing country. There is a stark difference between the cultures of rural and urban India. For Indians, the concept of time is generally relaxing. Weekends comprise Saturdays and Sundays (Soundar, 2005, pp. 119-122). Culture of UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is made up of the seven small emirates of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ras Al-Khaimah, Ajman, Umm Al-Qaiwain, and Fujairah. Four-fifths of the UAE is desert. However, UAE is a rich country, due to its oil reserves. Originally, the local population was little and didn’t have the technical skills needed for a developed society. The discovery of and commercial production of oil triggered rapid economic growth and also resulted in the immigratio n of male foreign laborers, on a large scale. So, in just four decades, it has become a cosmopolitan and multicultural country. About two-thirds of the immigrants are Asians, mainly from India, Pakistan, Iran, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh etc. (Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Washington DC, 2012) Islam is the main religion in the UAE but they are well known for religious tolerance. Temples, Gurdwaras, Churches are found along with Mosques. The official language is Arabic. English is the language of commerce. They generally greet by saying â€Å"Salaamu aleikum†. They pray five times a day, religiously. Muslims observe an entire month of fasting, in the fall, called Ramadan, during which they do not eat, drink or smoke between sunrise and sunset.

Friday, November 1, 2019

Wal-Mart's Growth Plan in China Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Wal-Mart's Growth Plan in China - Case Study Example The case starts with a brief history of how Wal-Mart was formed and the strategy it employed to grow under the radar of big retailers and never come in direct competition with them. It talks about the reasons of success of wall mart - everyday low prices, customer focus, and relentless cost control, partnership with suppliers and unrivalled distribution and logistics management. After giving details how Wal-Mart become a huge success in USA; the case goes on to describe its China venture. It takes us through the history of retail market in China. It talks about retail being a centrally controlled business to the phase wise opening up of the sector to foreign players. In the end the case talks about many challenges being faced by Wal-Mart in China such as income disparity , local protectionism , infrastructural deficiencies , regulatory restrictions , lack of IT infrastructure and the different consumer behaviour of Chinese consumers than their counterparts in North America. The case makes us ponder over these difficulties being faced by Wal-Mart even after 10 years of starting operations in China. 1) Everyday Low prices -This strategy of Wal-Mart was able to win a large number of customers. It helped in successfully addressing customer's disappointment in constantly changing shelf prices. More important than the promise was Wal-Mart's ability to meet this promise every time. 2) Customer is No.1 - Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart ensured that customer was treated respectfully by his employees and provided great customer service. The company came up with Sam's ten rules which became the corner stone of great customer service at Wal-Mart. 3) Small Town Locations - During the initial growth phase, Wal-Mart grew under the competition's radar. They operated in these towns which were considered as unviable by big retailers at that time. 4) Relentless Cost Control - Saving was given as much importance in Wal-Mart as was creating a sale. Wal-Mart relentlessly tried to cut costs to pass on the benefits to the customer. 5) Partnership With Suppliers - Wal-Mart provided big volumes to its suppliers but extracted a lot from them. It was always trying to push them to cut costs. Many processes being followed by suppliers were modified by Wal-Mart in order to reduce costs. 6)Unrivalled Distribution and Logistics Management - The IT infrastructure of Wal-Mart was connected with its suppliers in order to ensure that constant update on inventory requirements reach the customer. It followed Just in time approach and utilized cross docking method to reduce inventory of its stores. In analysing the Wal-Mart case we have used the long cycle process framework. The case analyses starts with identifying the major issues that Wal-Mart faces and have then gone on to analyse the same and find solutions in the last phase. Issues faced by Wal-Mart in China. 1) Immediate Issues. A) Market Segmentation Large amount of income disparities in China. The coastal regions have very high per capita income of 2117 $ where the inner and western regions have significantly less purchasing power as can be seen