Essay --

Background The Roman Colosseum, used to known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, start building in AD 72 by Emperor Vespasian, before Vespasian dies, the Colosseum only completed three stories. After that, his son, Titus, completes it in 80. Later, Domitian, Titus’ brother further remodelled it. The Colosseum is located in Rome, Italy. It is located at the heart of Rome. The height of this building is 157ft and it has a perimeter of 1788ft. it is also the largest amphitheatre ever built in the Roman Empire. There are 4 main floor, the first floor is 34ft, second floor is 38ft, third floor is 37ft, and the fourth floor is 45ft. each floor has 80 arches. Also, it can hold about 50,000 of spectators. The central arena is 180ft wide and 287ft long, and it is surrounded by 15foot wall with seating above. Underneath, there are rooms and tunnels, some housed gladiators and wild animals, others contained pulleys, ramps and hand operated elevator. There are over 1million of animals died in the course o f the Coliseum games. The last recorded games were helps in the 6th century. The Colosseum survived several earthquakes that cause the south side to collapse. (History.com staff, 2009) Analysis History aspect Why was the Colosseum built? In 64AD, the Great Fire of Rome, this burned for 9 days strikes and wrecked the city. After the tragedy, Emperor Nero built a palace which consist of a beautiful lake and gardens, it was names the Domus Aurea (Latin for â€Å"Golden House†), also, there is a colossal statue of Nero about 100-120 Roman feet which is around 37m high. It became a landmark in the heart of the city of Rome. When the burning of Rome happens, the Amphitheater of Statilius Taurus and the Amphitheatrum Neronis has been destroyed. A... ...a big change to make it a National Football Stadium for their national football team. Being a football fan, we all know that the Italy National Football Team is very good in that sport. They were the World Cup Winners in four occasions and being the European Champion once. Why not take a step forward and change the arena into a football stadium? So that the team could have their home ground like some other football teams have, and play there listening the cheer of their supporters. In this 21st century, the technology is so good that it is easy to turn over the arena to turn it into a stadium. First of all for the interior, add seats for the fans and the seats should be in blue colour because of the national team colour. The exterior, since the statues have been destroyed before, I think it would be good if they build statue of their great football legends. Compare

Integrated Marketing Communications Starbucks Essay

Starbucks key of success is the ability to change the concept consumers had about drinking coffee. With more than 6000 outlets across the world (2003 numbers) and the intention of increasing them in the near future, the company has transformed coffee into a lifestyle accessory with as much elegance as the latest fashion. However, their way to success was not so easy and if we go back in 1971, we will find that coffee didn’t look like it was a great business. There were no signs of getting better, either. Coffee consumption in the United States had peaked in the 1960s, but by 1971 it was on the decline. Most Americans drank something called â€Å"coffee† that came ground up very finely in vacuum-sealed tins. Nevertheless, there was appeared tiny Seattle based chain with innovative idea of how to do business that in a few years changed the vision about the process of drinking coffee not only in USA but worldwide. Starbucks has evolved into a great success due to their imp lementation of Integrated Marketing Communications. What is integrated marketing communication? For many, IMC is concerned with the harmonization of customer oriented promotional messages. Duncan and Everett (1993) suggest IMC has been referred variously as orchestration, whole egg and seamless communication. It is regarded by some as a means of combining the tools of the promotional mix in a more efficient and synergistic manner. Increasingly IMC is seen to include all consistent interactions a stakeholder has with an organization (Shultz and Schults 1998) and therefore any definition needs to include or refer to concepts such added value, relationship marketing, corporate blending and with it, the blending of internal and external communications. One of the primary motivations why Starbucks moved towards IMC was the reduction in costs that it was possible to realize through this approach. The rise in some media costs, most notably television through 1990s, the proliferation of media opportunities and the splintering of audiences has led to a reappraisal of the communications strategies used by organizations and a reformulation of their promotional and media mixes. By reducing their reliance on above-the-line media and by attempting to move towards the use of media-neutral mixes to deliver consistent messages that cut through the increasing clutter, Starbucks has moved, if unintentionally, towards some  form of integrated marketing communication activity. Agreeing a definition of IMC is proving elusive but one of the more popular, simple and intrinsically satisfying views of IMC is that the messages conveyed by each of the promotional tools should be harmonised in order that audiences perceive a consistent image of a product or organisation. One interpretation of this perspective is that the key visual triggers (design, colours, form and tag line) used in advertising should be replicated across the range of promotional tools used, including Point-of-Purchase (POP) and the sales force. At another level IMC is about the integration of some of the promotional tools. One such combination is the closer alliance of advertising with public relations. Increasing audience fragmentation means that it is more difficult to locate target audiences and communicate with them in a meaningful way. By utilising the power of public relations to stimulate word-of-mouth communication about brands and advertisements. Basically, we see that Starbucks’ success was built on two things: the store experience (Starbucks’ image) and the quality of its product – it really is a better cup of coffee The first one is so sacred that on Starbucks employees initiative the chain even prohibited smoking in its stores in Vienna, where cigarettes and coffee are inseparable, because Starbucks doesn’t want anything to interfere with the seductive scent of fresh-brewed espresso. That’s why top-management of Starbucks deeply believed that employees make the store that they work in. A Starbucks employee needed to be very knowledgeable, communicative, and helpful to the customers. Customers need to know the difference in the new roasted coffee Starbucks will offer. Well-educated employees will surely handle this requirement. Starbucks need to use strong cultural incentives to drive the identification of opportunities. In Starbucks all employees are called â€Å"partners,† signaling a level of responsibility maintained by few companies with sales in the billions of dollars. Anyone who has an idea uses a one-page form to pass it to the senior executive team–and gets a response. When the company pursues an idea, its author, regardless of tenure or title, is typically invited to  join the launch team as a full-time member. New-style marketing organizations, by contrast, hire marketers not for jobs but for two broad kinds of roles: those of integrators and specialists. Integrators are marketers with broad skills who coordinate the delivery of products and services to the market from beginning to end. Specialists–more narrowly focused marketers with specialized skills–can be mobilized quickly to provide the particular expertise a given opportunity team requires. Starbucks is one of them and finding its way of capturing the market it will surely pay high attention to the recruitment process. If communications are to be used effectively then there is a need to communicate aspects of the direction in which the organisation intends moving and how it intends to achieve this. In other words, the business philosophy and its aims and objectives, often expressed formally through mission and vision statements, need to be communicated to particular audiences in a way that is synchronised and co-ordinated with the organisation’s other communication activities. At a strategic level IMC has at its roots the overall business strategy of the organisation. Using Porter’s (1980) Generic Strategies, if a low cost strategy is being pursued then it makes sense to complement the strategy by using messages that either stress any price advantage that customers might benefit from or at least do not suggest extravagance or luxury. If using a differentiation focus strategy (e.g. Waitrose) then price should not figure in any of the messages and greater emphasis should be placed on particular attributes that enable clear positioning. In case of Starbucks mission sounds like this:†Establish Starbucks as the premier purveyor of the finest coffee in the world while maintaining our uncompromising principles as we grow†. The development of the mission statement was the start of the company’s marketing management initiative. Starbucks overall objective in the eye’s of the leaders was defined. This mission does not want to jeopardize the quality, ambiance, or service due to expansion into a global marketplace. Besides writing a mission, Starbucks has outlined their guiding principles, which they follow in their business: 1.Provide a great work environment and treat each other with respect and dignity; 2.Embrace diversity as an essential component in the way we do business; 3.Apply the highest standards of excellence to the purchasing, roasting, and fresh delivery of our coffee; 4.Develop enthusiastically satisfied customers all of the time; 5.Contribute positively to our communities and our environment; 6.Recognize that profitability is essential to our future success. There can be little doubt that the elements of the marketing mix, however configured, also communicate (Smith 1996). The price and associated values; the product, in terms of the quality, design and tangible attributes; the manner and efficiency of the service delivery people, and where and how it is made available, for example the location, retailer/dealer reputation and overall service quality, are brand identity cues with which recipients develop associations and images, which in turn through time may shape brand reputations. It is suggested, therefore, that IMC cannot be achieved just by saying the same message through a variety of promotional tools. Effective communication underpins the stability and quality of relationships. While the origins of IMC might be found in the inadequacies of the prevailing structural conditions, an understanding of what IMC is or should be, is far from being resolved and is evolving as the industry matures. The elements involved in IMC are many and numerous. Depending upon the perspective an individual might adopt, those elements might range from a simple configuration of the promotional mix through to a fully integrated and culturally driven mission and corporate strategy. Starbucks chose the second one (Product Concept) and their success over the past 25 years has a lot to do with the quality of the product, which has attracted a loyal and growing following among consumers. The retail strategy has been to put a coffee shop on every corner and to make fresh-brewed coffee by selling only the highest-quality products and charging a premium price. However, the product mix has changed significantly over the years, with beans accounting for about 15% of the chain’s sales and company needs to remember this entering the Russia market. Meanwhile, Starbucks is expanding its offerings, with a line of ice cream for supermarkets and a joint venture with Pepsi Cola to market Frappuccino. At the same time, the company continues to develop sales in alternative outlets, including foodservice and non-traditional retail sites as United Airlines, Holland America cruise line, Seattle Kingdome, an Alliance with Barnes & Noble bookstores, among others. Stoking the niche for seasonal drinks, Starbucks added caramel apple cider and white chocolate mocha just in time for the holiday and winter months. This year’s lineup of new summer beverages will be announced in a few weeks. The last cornerstone of the marketing strategy of Starbucks is clustering. The company locates stores within close proximity in the world and it should do it the same way in Russia. Clustering is becoming important because company’s objective is to become a household name and it can be reached by fierce expansion and high coverage. Starbucks must open their doors and be in the Russian market before anyone else. This would give them a great fist-mover advantage. Once consumers experienced Starbucks service, quality coffee, and ambiance of their stores there would be a great switching cost for the consumer to go anywhere else. The success of becoming a household name worldwide is now close to reality. The company received very high profits. However, Schultz measured his success by not compromising Starbucks ideals to maximize profit and was doing it very successfully. To keep up with this expansion Starbucks opened three manufacturing plants to relieve itself of the large transportation and storage costs. This decision really improved Starbucks’ distribution of the product. Starbucks could now distribute faster, fresher, and more product to many more of their stores. The plants also allowed them to enter the supermarket coffee sales industry  in the spring of 1998 and will allow to dominate in the Russian market. To accomplish the goal of being a household name brand coffee in Russia, Starbucks should choose to implement an expansionary strategy (as they are doing in any other country). Starbucks should use the first-mover element to jump in and gain consumer loyalty. With its fierce expansion, Starbucks should try to open new stores at a rate of more than one per day. This strategy will allow Starbucks to enter a Russian market and win consumer loyalty before anyone else can. After visiting a Starbucks, switching costs for the consumer will be extremely high due to the great service and quality that Starbucks can assure. Their decision to open three manufacturing plants to distribute their product more efficiently was essential to accomplish this strategy. Prior to these new plants it was difficult and costly to deliver the quality of the product. Starbucks saved a great deal of money by using this new distribution method. They no longer have to pay for the shipping and storage of the product. With Starbucks expanding globally, the only adjustment they might want to consider is a plant overseas to help distribution there. The decision to enter the supermarket coffee sales market was a huge step for household recognition in USA and they probably should do this in Russia. Two thirds of the world’s coffee is sold in stores for home consumption. Not only will they be able to reach millions of coffee consumers, but also this will ensure a great distribution channel that will help lock out some potential competitors. Consumers can now enjoy great quality coffee at home or by stopping in a local store. This is a key step in ensuring that Starbucks becomes a household brand name. The only adjustment Starbucks must consider is that they are in a new industry with huge competitors such as Maxwell House, Folgers, and many others. Starbucks must make sure that the organization stays with its mission statement. In accomplishing the market development strategy of promoting the company’s range of services to a wider audience the work group fitted to the theory of the Kotler’ marketing mix. Hence the allocation of the 4 P’s, product, price, place and promotion. Having determined the desired markets that the company would compete in the next step was organising a promotional strategy in these area. Following the apportionment of a marketing budget discussions were held in order to decide the best way of using this allocation. In this idea of market development the company would attempt to sell its range of services to a wider market. Starbucks should have a unique promotional strategy in Russia:  ·Only $300,000 million on advertising annually;  ·Relies on ubiquity and word of mouth;  ·In comparison, McDonald’s spends $3-4 million annually in Russia;  ·No commercials on TV The price as regards building contracting is largely determined by the amount of margin to be added to the build up of the estimate for the project. Price is almost always considered as being the single most important factor for the client as 99% of contracts are let to the lowest bidder. â€Å"The setting of the correct price is of enormous importance in marketing – both in getting the product accepted by the target market, and in generating sufficient revenue for the organisation.† Starbucks pricing policy is also unique. It’s expensive. In USA you’ll pay about $2 for a regular coffee and $3-4 for a specialty one. In the Russian market the numbers will differ but the point will stay the same (expensive). As for place, there is one good phrase about it: â€Å"Starbucks is caffinateing the world† (5,689 stores in 28 countries. And the product itself is always been paid high attention by Starbucks. â€Å"The aroma of our coffee is one of our competitive advantages; it is one of our products, † says Mr. Hong, manager of Chineese Starbucks division. â€Å"You cannot have a complete Starbucks experience if you have smoky air. We need to win people over on  the importance of aroma. Nevertheless, before entering the Russian market Starbucks need to realize that there were some pitfalls: 1.Although Russian marketers evidence the trend of increasing coffee consumption in Russia, more than 50% of population prefer to drink tea and don’t like coffee, at all. 2.The volume of Russian coffee imports is equal to 100,000 tonnes (2003) and will increase 10-20% per year basing a good economic situation to Russia 3.Most Russian coffee drinkers use instant or soluble coffee, with this category accounting for 76 percent of imports. 4.Of coffee drinkers, 91 percent drink both coffee and tea with only nine percent drinking only coffee, he said. Coffee drinking is concentrated in European Russia and the south near Turkey and Armenia, which have strong coffee traditions 5.Even with the increase in imports this year, Russia’s per capita consumption of coffee will only be 650 grams, compared with four kg in Brazil and 10 kg in Scandinavia However, if look at Chinese market, which has like Russian one a history of drinking tea and low level of coffee consumption and see how it all changed after Starbucks entered the market, we may assume that the same situation will repeat with the Russian market because of Starbucks power of brand. In order for Starbucks to become a brand name in Russia, they must not stray from the strategy they set forth in the past. Their commitment to the mission statement, their employees, and expansion is what got them where they are. To stray from these ideals would prove tragic in their goal of world recognition. In order for Starbucks to develop in Russia they must remember the success factors they used in the United States. Should  Starbucks stay loyal to their own beliefs they can only grow bigger. With stores opening all the time in new markets, Starbucks’ greatest challenge is managing its phenomenal growth. Their market is affluent, conscientious and discriminating. They want to know what Starbucks is giving back to the communities they infiltrate and markets they dominate. Starbucks is not a perfect company. But it is a company who has managed to make the voyage to success without compromising key principles of the guiding vision. The voyage ahead is more treacherous. Will Starbucks be able to maintain the integrity of its vision. I hope so. References: 1.www.starbucks.com 2.Kevin Lane Keller, â€Å"The Brand Report Card,† Harvard Business Review, 78:1 (January-February 2000): 147-157 3.Ralf Leszinski and Michael V. Marn, â€Å"Setting Value Not Price,† The McKinsey Quarterly, 1 (1997): 99-115 4.Paul Betts and John Thornhill, â€Å"Starbucks steams into Italy,† Financial Times, October 22, 2000, p. 7. Story is on Starbucks entering the Milan market 5.Niraj Dawar and Amitava Chattopadhyay, â€Å"The new language of emerging markets,† in â€Å"Mastering Management,† Financial Times, November 13, 2000, pp. 6-7 6.Ralf Leszinski and Michael V. Marn, â€Å"Setting Value Not Price,† The McKinsey Quarterly, 1 (1997): 99-115 7.Olson, Dave. â€Å"A Passion For Coffee† Starbucks: A Passion For Coffee. Menlo Park: Sunset Publishing Corp.,1994, pp. 8, 9, 13 8.Olson, Dave. â€Å"Plantation to Cup† Starbucks: A Passion For Coffee. Menlo Park: Sunset Publishing Corp.,1994, pp. 16-19, 22. 9.Suicaorich, John and Winster, Stephen. â€Å"The Coffee Book – A Connoisseur’s Guide to Gourmet Coffee†. London: Prentice Hall International, Inc., 1976, pp. 97-107 10.Mintz, Sidney W. â€Å"The changing roles of food in the study of consumption.† Consumption and the World of Goods eds. John Brewer and Roy Porter, 261-73. London: Routledge, 1993 11.Jay Belt, â€Å"Wired Angels Espresso Cafe† Hanford, California, February 26, 1999 12.Rice, Paul D. Market opportunity assessment for Fair Trade Coffee. Prepared for Transfair USA, February 1997

Expected Shortfall Essay

Part I describes the calculation ofVaR in its conventional form. For illustrative purposes, Part I will describe parametric VaR on a Gaussian distribution. Part II summarizes known weaknesses in VaR, from inherent model and estimation risk to VaR’s failure to perform under extreme economic stress and VaR’s failure to satisfy the theoretical constraints on â€Å"coherent† measurements of risk. Part Ill describes how to calculate expected shortfall as an extension of conditional VaR. It further describes how expected shortfall, but not VaR, provides a coherent measure of risk. Part Ill then reverses field. It explains how VaR, but not expected shortfall (or, for that matter, nearly every other general spectral measure of risk), satisfies the mathematical requirement of â€Å"elicitability. † Mathematical limitations on measures of risk therefore force regulators and bankers to choose between coherence and elicitability, between theoretically sound consolidation of diverse risks (on one hand) and reliable backtesting of risk forecasts against historical observations. Justin Smith Morrill Professor of Law, Michigan State University (effective July 1, 2013). This paper summarizes a presentation made on April 17, 2013, at Georgetown Law Center’s colloquium on international financial regulation, conducted by Professor Christopher J. drummer. I appreciate comments by Adam Candeub and Jeffrey Sexton. Special thanks to Heather Elaine Worland Chen. Jim Chen Page 1 Electronic copy available Conventional VaR Like modern portfolio theory and the entire edifice of quantitative finance derived from those beginnings,l conventional value-at-risk analysis assumes that risk is rguably represents the most important tool for evaluating market risk as one of several threats to the global financial system. Basel II identifies a version ofVaR analysis as that accord’s preferred tool for assessing banks’ exposure to market risk. 4 Authorities around the world have endorsed VaR, either as a regulator standard or as a best practice. Even absent regulatory compulsion, private firms routinely use VaR as an internal risk management tool, often directing traders to reduce exposure below the level prescribed by those firms’ own VaR limits.

Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials

ETHICS â€Å"Is deciding what is RIGHT and doing it† ETHICS is equated with: * Good Governance: It requires us to decide what is good. * Public Service Ethics: Requires us to give quality service to the public. * Standards, Rules, Morals – ETHICS is the â€Å"science of human duty†. ETHICS OF GOVERNANCE Good Governance is characterized with: * Accountability * Transparency * Participation * Non-Discrimination * Responsiveness * Poverty Alleviation (According to UNDP as cited by Carino) * Participation * Rule of Law * Transparency * Responsiveness * Consensus Orientation * Equity * Effectiveness and Efficiency * AccountabilityEthical Bases * RULES * RESULTS * RELATIONSHIPS * TRADITION RULES as an Ethical Basis – We believe in them as coming by divine revelation. – With authority or of our community. The utilitarian principle focuses our attention on results or the consequences of our actions. It has been expressed traditionally as â€Å"Seeking the Greatest Good for the Greatest Number† RELATIONSHIPS as an Ethical Basis Confucius’ â€Å"Golden Rule† of caring: â€Å"Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you†. Jesus Christ’s expression of LOVE: â€Å"In everything, do to others as you would have them do to you†. TRADITION as an Ethical BasisTraditional Ethics – the ethics of earlier generations that is based on tradition. It is right to act in certain way because that is what it has always been done. RULES as an Ethical Basis * Section 1, Article XI, 1987 Constitution – Public Office is a Public Trust. Public Officials and employees must at all times serve the people with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty and efficiency, act with patriotism and justice, and lead modest lives. † * Section 28, Article II, 1987 Constitution – The State shall maintain honesty and integrity in the public service and take positive and effective measures again st graft and corruption.RA 3019 â€Å"Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act† (Anti-Graft Law) Enacted in 1861 Graft is defined as â€Å"the acquisition of gain or advantage by dishonest, unfair or sordid means, especially through the use of one’s position or influence in politics, business, etc. † (People vs. Bernales, September 3, 1968) Graft and corruption is an act or omission involving breach of the rules of decency, honesty and efficiency, for the purpose of obtaining undue advantage at the expense of the government-owned resources. In our legal system, graft and corruption is basically a crime. BALDRIAS, Napoleon S. The Legal Implications of Graft and Corruption† Corruption is â€Å"an act done with an intent to give some advantage inconsistent with official duty and the rights of others. It includes bribery, but it is more comprehensive, because an act may be corruptly done through the advantage to be delivered from it be not offered by another. â⠂¬  (Magallanes vs. Provincial Board, 66 O. G. 7839) Corruption is the perversion or destruction of integrity of fidelity in discharging public duties and responsibilities by bribery or favor. It entails the use of public power for private advantage in ways which transgresses some formal rule of law. Tendero) RA 6713 â€Å"Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees† signed into law by then President Corazon C. Aquino on February 20, 1989 RA 6713 Rule X. Grounds For Administrative Disciplinary Action Directly or indirectly having financial and material interest in any transaction requiring the approval of his office. Owning, controlling, managing or accepting employment as officer, employee, consultant, counsel, broker, agent, trustee, or nominee in any private enterprise regulated, supervised or licensed by his office, unless expressly allowed by law.Engaging in the private practice of his profession unless authorized by the Constitution, law or regulation, provided that such practice will not conflict or tend to conflict with his officials functions. Recommending any person to any position in a private enterprise which has a regular or pending official transaction with his office. Soliciting or accepting, directly or indirectly, any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan or anything of monetary value which in the course of his official duties or in connection with any operation being regulated by, or any transaction which may be affected by the function of his office.Unfair discrimination in rendering public service due to party affiliation. Disloyalty to the Republic of the Philippines and to the Filipino people. Failure to act promptly on letters and requests within 15 working days from receipt, except as otherwise provided in these Rules. Failure to attend to anyone who wants to avail himself of the services of the office or to act promptly and expeditiously on public personal transactions. Failure to file sworn st atements of assets, liabilities and networth, and disclosure of business interests and financial connections.RA 9485 â€Å"Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007† signed into law by Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on June 02, 2007 Violations Refusal to accept application and/or request within the prescribed period or any document being submitted by a client. Failure to act on an application and/or request or failure to refer back to the client a request which cannot be acted upon due to lack of requirement/s within the prescribed period. Failure to attend to clients who are within the premises of the office or agency concerned prior to the end of official working hours and during lunch break.Failure to render frontline services within the prescribed period on any application and/or request without due cause. Failure to give the client a written notice on the disapproval of an application or requests. Imposition of additional irrelevant requirements other listed in the first notice. Grave Of fense Fixing and/or collusion with fixers in consideration of economic and/or other gain or advantage. Rule X. Grounds For Administrative Disciplinary Action * Directly or indirectly having financial and material interest in any transaction requiring the approval of his office.RED TAPE Inaction/No Action Slow Action Inappropriate/Wrong Action Inadequate/Insufficient Action Services that are: Not delivered Mis delivered * Under delivered * Poorly delivered UNLAWFUL ACTS RA 3019 * Graft and Corruption * Malversation RA 6713 * Pecuniary interest * Conflict of interest * Nepotism * Not all things that are Legal are Moral ! * UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR is not necessarily illegal but nevertheless is contrary to what is RIGHT and doing WHAT IS NOT RIGHT. * Unethical Behavior * Yields Adverse Results * Violates the Norms of Relationships and Traditions Disservice to the Government and the People * Bad Image of the Government DI BAWAL, PERO DI DAPAT! PADRINO SYSTEM KAMAG-ANAK SYSTEM WASTAGE OF OFFIC E SUPPLIES AND EQUIPMENT Engaging in group discussion while clients are kept waiting Telebabad Too Much Texting During Office Hours Reading newspaper during office hours LOAFING Improper or Inappropriate Attire CLOCK-WATCHING EXTENDED BREAK GOING OUT OF THE OFFICE WITHOUT PERMISSION Dehumanizing Situations Rob a person of his/her dignity. Diminish his/her worth as a person. Destroy his/her total being. It’s the CHOICES that make us who we are. And we can always choose to do what’s right. † – Peter Parker â€Å"Spiderman 3† Every officials of the government, even the most modest, has a job to perform and is as much in duty bound to perform that job well as those occupying higher positions. In our effort to give the people the best government that there is, we have to have everybody do his job, including the Clerk, the policeman – everybody in the service. Everyone of them should do his best because a government cannot be a government of higher officials only. Pres. Manuel L. Quezon

Managing Information Technology Essay

Question #1: What would be your prioritized list of IT investments? Four IT investments need to be prioritized; 1. 2. 3. 4. Ecommerce & Web sales Aligning the various systems (legacy, SAP, ERP) together. Hire relationship managers Make IT a â€Å"partner† 1. After only 3 years, KL’s Web sales have reached $156M, equalizing its in store sales, and now represent 15% of total sales. This is very encouraging and exciting. KL needs to continue to invest in Ecommerce & Web sales in order to continue this great growth. Selling via the Internet should be a priority because it’s cheaper than your ordinary brick and mortar sales points, there is less overhead expense, and this market is growing exponentially. The company should work towards gaining the most market share possible developing an industry leading website, timely and dependable delivery, and customer service. Accomplishing the above means getting all the company sharing information and data more efficiently (see point #2). 2. KL has a complex IT infrastructure with various systems in use around the world. The result is a frustrated bunch of employees upset with the fact that communication data sharing is awful. To remedy this the company needs to invest more in training to get the whole company, including the USA, to use SAP as soon as possible. 3. Assign/hire relationship managers to improve information sharing, facilitate plans, priorities, communications, and relationships, and in turn get the whole system to work together. 4. To avoid such problems in the future, KL needs to make IT a â€Å"partner† in the decision making process. In other words, the company needs to better involve IT in company strategy and tactical planning. With the IT team, the company needs to develop and define an Enterprise Operating Model and Architecture that include business strategy, current IT assessment, IT strategy and IT plans. Question #2: Would your colleagues on the executive committee agree with your selection and prioritization? The above priorities should be well received because they solve or improve many of the frustrating employees around the company. This answer will look at each division (upper management, sales & marketing, order fulfillment and distribution, and ITS) and see why the four IT priorities should be well received by the executive committee. The KL upper management is on record stating that the company has IT challenges â€Å"†¦around coordinating the various, and at times conflicting, business priorities across the enterprise. We sure could use better IT tools for this as well as ready access to timely performance data.†, CEO Joseph Campbell. In addition, COO Jens McCreary stated that the company needs to improve global supply-chain management and leverage the expertise to outpace out competitors and cut our operating costs†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Considering these quotes it’s safe to assume that the CEO and COO should be accepting of these four IT priorities because will want to see IT provide better services in order to reach their goals. The products, manufacturing and distribution divisions of the company want to see SAP standardized and compatible across the company in order to better share information. Priorities #2 and 3 should please this division. Sales & marketing hope to see inter-operating unit and communications and coordination issues to be resolved and they need real-time data. Priorities #1, 2 and 3 should encourage the sales and marketing team. The order fulfillment and distribution divisions need capabilities to forecast sales and manage our product and cash flows need to be more competitive. They want to be able to deliver in a J.I.T. basis (optimize effectiveness) and have data integration between the legacy systems, SAP, Oracle, etc. These issues should improve with priorities #2 and 3 and this making these priorities acceptable to this division. Finally, the information technology services (ITS) claim that not spending enough on IT (more spent on production and sales), and Web and ecommerce should be priority. Priorities 1 to 4 all favor the ITS team, and therefore should be well received.

What are the TWO most important things we need to create, and what are Essay - 1

What are the TWO most important things we need to create, and what are the TWO most important obstacles we need to overcome, in dealing with the digital divide - Essay Example consists of the people who have effective access to computer and information technologies and second category comprises of those who do not have accessibility to such resources. There is no doubt that digital technologies and computer have revolutionized the human life largely (Dickard & Schneider, 2002). The paper emphasizes on the importance of equal distribution of resources in all segments i.e. race, education, socioeconomic status etc. Other factors that affect digital divide are existing social economic cultural and learning inequalities. In purview of the complexity of the issue, US federal and state government, internet and computer industry have formulated various focused strategies to spread computer and internet accessibility to every individual. Education is probably the most important issue that affects the ability to gain from technology and minimize the issue of digital divide at greater extent. Generous quantum of time and financial resources are required to provide quality computer education to children at schools and especially to those students who do not have facility of computer at their homes. In this article, Harouna Ba (2009) also explains and throws light on the generalized access model consisting of four universal categories. This model includes technology for disabled people, youth development plans to boost youth leadership, research policies and youth media. Moreover, the introduction of home level programs is mandatory to educate society to its. Another significant thing, on which we need to exercise our focus, is formulation of product and services design industries. The prime drivers of this mission includes the goal of widening and extending the use of internet by developing alternative designs, maintaining lower cost of computing and technical training, and easy accessibility of the training institutes (Centre for Educational Research and Innovation, 2000). These procedures are most likely to help making technology designs and

Modern Buddhism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Modern Buddhism - Research Paper Example Certain fragments of Buddhism became a part of the mainstream, turned into a politically correct element of Hellenic Polytheism of the postmodern age. It’s a wonder, but many forms of the modified Western Buddhism have become the norm: they are re-exported to Asia and, to some extent, change cultures in Buddhist countries. Global Buddhism was the result of western penetration in Asia and western understanding of Asia. Buddhism gradually transformed into a global intellectual and spiritual resource, open to universal use. This paper is focused on the history of Buddhism, its transformation and western variant, spiritual and political leaders. Buddhism is practiced by 6-8% of the world population, which is much inferior to Christianity (about 33%), Islam (about 18%) and Hinduism (approximately 13%). Buddhism is mostly Asian religion: 99 % of Buddhists live in Asia, in the eastern part of it. General periodization of the history of Buddhism includes 4 stages: 1) canonical Buddhis m (from its origin in the 6th millennium BC to the reign of Ashoka Maurya (3 BC)); 2) traditional or historical Buddhism (from Ashoka to the mid / late 19th century); 3) modern or revival Buddhism (from the late 19th century); and, finally, 4) global Buddhism. ... They are well distinguished if contrasted to a dynamic segment. This contrast can be seen on the example of separation of western Buddhist communities into originally born Buddhists and converts. Tension between ethnic groups and neophytes is so obvious that many suggest existence of two branches of Western Buddhism - traditional, passive Buddhism of ethnic diasporas and dynamic, active Western Buddhism of neophytes. Buddhism in Europe was popularized by the Hungarian Tibetologist Alexander Csoma de Koros (1784-1842) and French Indologist Eugene Burnouf (1801-1852). Choma de Koros was just a lone researcher. Burnouf managed to create one of the most powerful Buddhist schools in the world. Burnouf studied Mahayana, translated and published Saddharma Pundarika Sutra in 1852. His main work is Introduction to the History of Indian Buddhism (1844). It contains translations of Sanskrit texts, as well as the first characteristics of Maha-Prajna-Paramita and Lankavatara sutras. He considered that the main benefit of Buddhism study is its contrast with Christianity thanks to which we can better understand the latter. Modern Buddhism became popular and widespread in America thanks to the Beat Generation and the Hippies who happily practiced this peaceful religion. The very combination of words â€Å"Buddhistic fundamentalism† seems irrelevant: compared with the Abrahamic religions, Buddhism has no concept of dogma, orthodoxy and heresy. Buddhism has no ontological dualism of righteousness and sin and, therefore, there is no sharp division into believers and disbelievers, chosen ones and infidels; there is no division of the world into dar-al Islam and Dar al Harb (territory of peace and territory of war). Buddhism does not claim a monopoly on truth. That’s why