The Importance of Oral Traditions in African History

One of the most crucial aspects of the development of philosophy of African history has been a realization of the importance of the spoken or oral traditions in the framing and interpretation of African history. The oral tradition is a living, and dynamic organism within the African community, and the original element of oral traditional is djembe. The Djembe is a traditional African drum and is the symbolic instrument of the West African community. The Djembe is held on a high pedestal in the social communal aspect of the society’s daily routine, and is seen in many gatherings. The value and importance of the djembe as embodiment of African tradition and its translation in West Africa and the United states via the salve trade demonstrate†¦show more content†¦The slaves who were taken from West Africa also carried their cultures and values with them. Drumming served as a vehicle of communication and reconciliation with African roots. In her book entitled â€Å"The dr ummers path: moving the spirit with ritual and traditional drumming† (1992), Sule Greg Wilson who advances the understanding of the presence of African drums, shows illustrations and photographs of drums and also landscape settings depicting the drumming scenes from the eighteen and nineteenth century in the United States. One of those photographs shows a drum described as â€Å"typical of the Ashanti of Ghana† which was collected in Virginia in the 1750s and is now kept in the British Museum (Wilson 1992). However, the drum is not made with the typical traditional materials conventions; the drum in this case was made with deerskin and wood. Also, the drum was misclassified as an Indian drum for reasons not discussed, and it is was not until further down the years that it was confirmed to be an African drum, and thus served as proof that African-style drums were being constructed in the United States as early as the mid-eighteenth century (Wilson 1992). This indicates t hat other Africans living in America meticulously constructed their traditional drums and hide them from slave masters, but this also reveals the place that drum plays into the African tradition and values. Perhaps masters feared the use of African drums because ofShow MoreRelatedOral Tradition And Oral Traditions1272 Words   |  6 Pageswrite down a single word. Oral tradition is used to pass stories down from generation to generation through different forms of communication without any writing system. Oral tradition stories are told by word of mouth, riddles, storytelling, and songs. It cannot be changed although the narrator might embellish it. Oral tradition is how Africans perceived the past. The significance of oral Tradition is due to the stories holding so much information and knowledge. Oral tradition contributed to understandingRead MoreImportance of Oral Tradition963 Words   |  4 PagesAssess the significance of Oral tradition in Bantu Religion. In your view, doe s oral tradition have a future in the midst of modernity and social change? In African Traditional Religion, morals, values, beliefs and culture among other things play a critical role in society. The upholding of societal norms and values is a sacred affair especially that in African society religion is a way of life. In addition, the younger generation is also inquisitive about the history of the society that itRead MoreOral Traditions or Spoken Word in the Caribbean1557 Words   |  7 PagesORAL TRADITION OR SPOKEN WORD The oral tradition constitutes the main element of transmission and coverage of the oral literature and history, music and dancing. This tradition begins with the internal context of the group and the communication through interaction which brings fourth a folkloric process. The Afro-Caribbean folklore of the Archipelago is a mixture of the African, the British, and the Creole aspects distributed through a cultural continuum of variations. The members of the elite developRead MoreReligion: Values, Practices, and Beliefs1074 Words   |  4 Pagesreligious groups in the world today and as a result most people suffer differences of religions because the state allows freedom of worship and there is no way one can be denied the opportunity of worship even if one disagrees with the beliefs. Importance of understanding other peoples religions Personally I hold to the principle that it is unfair to infringe on ones rights to worship; I think it would be best if one could take the initiative of learning at least the ethics and beliefs of otherRead MoreRoots of Hip Hop968 Words   |  4 PagesStylistic Foundations of the Rap Music and Tradition†    Hip-Hop as well as many other artistic cultural forms we practice today can be related back to African culture and various traditions. Author of  The Roots and Stylistic Foundations of the Rap Music and Tradition,  Cheryl Keyes, discuss’ the spirit, style, tradition, emotions, culture and the delivery of music. Keyes says that many of these practices can be traced back to the West Afrikan Bardic Tradition in particular. When asking many old-schoolRead MoreAnalysis and Commentary on The Epic of Sundiata685 Words   |  3 Pagesexplains how his family had played an important role in preserving the history of the Mali Empire. By serving the princes of the Mali Empire. He says a griots job is to protect secrets, memorize the names and accomplishments of the great kings and preserving â€Å"the memory of mankind.† It is the griot that teaches kings their history so they can use lessons of their ancestors to guide their decisions. There is an obvious tone of importance in his introduction as well as a theme of power that resonates throughoutRead MoreEssay about Sundiata1005 Words   |  5 Pages If you want a taste of West African History Sundiata will give you exactly what you want and more. Sundiata was an interesting piece of literature to read. Unlike the previous two books we have read this semester I found this book much more simple. This book was much easier for me to comprehend and actually get into. This book exposed me not only to the West African history, but also a new religion. The story of Sundiata depicts the story of the foundation of the Mali Empire in West AfricaRead MoreWhy Were Many African Civilizations Prosperous?1422 Words   |  6 Pages Why were these North African civilizations prosperous? Why between the Mediterranean and the Sahara? What is a plateau? *The Sahara covers  ¼ of Africa! *AFRICA IS A CONTINENT !!! *Sahel is a word for shore (in Arabic) which are lands surrounding the Sahara *Jungle is a place with dense plants and trees which prevents sunlight from reaching through the tall trees onto the forest floor Lake Victoria that is in east central Africa is one of the world’s biggest lakes Read MoreCandido Term Paper: African Slave Trade1254 Words   |  6 PagesWednesday, April 2nd, 2014 Neil Marshall 999681704 Book Review: An African Slaving Port on the Atlantic, by Mariana Candido The impact of the trans-Atlantic slave trade on the people living in Angola during the seventeenth century onwards was monumental. The Portuguese presence in the Benguelan harbour caused disorder, social strain, and sociocultural transformation for the people specifically residing in Benguela. In the study An African Slaving Port on the Atlantic, Mariana Candido outlines the progressionRead MoreLanguage As A Powerful Tool1731 Words   |  7 Pagespoems dealing with this powerful tool which is ‘language’. I will take in consideration Derek Wolcott. Drawing thought two of his poems, I am going to point out the way he uses ‘language’, The S. Lucian poet, for a long time, tried to show the importance of his being â€Å"hybrid†. In one of the most famous and early poem â€Å"A Far Cry From Africa†, he ended this poem with a sequence of question regarded his roots, his being â€Å"divided into the vein â€Å" with the blood of both culture, English and Africa. Questions

Essay about Love in Mid Summer Nights Dream - 988 Words

Love Love is one of the most difficult mysteries of life. The difficulty of love is shown throughout A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In the play, the characters have to deal with jealousy that comes along with being in love. Love’s difficulty in the play comes from love being out of balance. Love being out of balance is a romantic situation where a difference gets in the way of happiness in the relationship. William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream demonstrates these conflicts with a little bit of humor and buoyancy. The four young Athenians have many difficulties with love. Hermia loves Lysander and Lysander returns the feelings; Helena loves Demetrius but Demetrius loves Hermia. The two men love the same women, which leaves Hermia†¦show more content†¦Helena chases Demetrius when he claims he hates her. Helena thought Hermia was against her because jealousy is blinding. Helena also believes that Demetrius and Lysander are making fun of her. â €Å"You are always insane when you are in love (Friedlander).† The meaning of true love is the way a person feels about another person and the actions that person takes to prove his or her love. â€Å"Love is pleasure and pain, joy and sorrow. It has long been held that what you love can hurt you, in almost equal reciprocity. The more you love, the more you can get hurt. The more you love, the more you stand to lose (Black).† Often a person will give gifts and never express his or her feelings out loud. The purpose of his or her love would feel as if the love was being bought. â€Å"Money does not give joy. Material wealth does not give joy. It gives convenience, yet often takes way from love. How many rich people seek so hard and far, yet never find it (Black).† A person wants to be told that he or she is loved. Helena wants Demetrius to love her. Demetrius’ love for Helena is not true love though. It is misleading because the loving affection he has for her is not reality. Lester 3 The love for Helena appeared out of nowhere. He did not develop the passion for her, it happened in one day. True love needs true passion, not passion from a potion. Love is not something that is material; it is felt from the heart, not a potion. Demetrius’ and Helena’s love is forgedShow MoreRelatedA Midsummer Nights Dream: Bottom1466 Words   |  6 PagesA Midsummer Nights Dream: Nick Bottom In a Mid Summer Nights Dream, the character Nick Bottom is given a rather prominent role in the several scenes he appears in, although he is not a lead character in the play. Bottom is unique from all the other characters of the play not only because of the considerable contribution his character brings to the comedic value of the play, but because he is the only character able to enter fully in to both the human world and the world of the fairies. In thisRead MoreAnalysis Of A Midsummer Night s Dream 1052 Words   |  5 PagesEnglish IV 10 December, 2014 Endless Love Faults exist when love and law attempt to coincide. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hermia comes head to head with unfairness, the fault which arises after her father disapproves of her marrying who she loves. According to the Athenian Law she must serve a punishment for disobeying her father. By this law, she should treat him like a god or her ruler. What he says goes and he intends for her to marry Demetrius, but she loves Lysander. In the play, if she doesRead MoreEssay on Judgment and Superficiality1232 Words   |  5 Pagesyou want the things they have. But we were all created differently. You have to like yourself first for anyone else to like you. Relating to ‘Beauty is only skin deep’ means that people only look at what’s inside that counts. Some people believe at love at first sight, what is all that about? That means they like the person just from seeing them. So many people in this world can relate. People judge people. You look around and think by the clothes or hairstyle this girl wears that she can either notRead MoreThe power to change feelings Essay3615 Words   |  15 Pagespeople, and this virtuous person must be brought from happiness to misery† (Handbook 505). Tragedy as a genre has remained an important motif over time and can be seen specifically in three major works: Oedipus Rex, Macbeth, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The first great tragedy of antiquity and written by Sophocles in circa 5th century BCE, Oedipus Rex is acclaimed as an exemplary drama in the genre (â€Å"Mythological Background† 66). As stated earlier, given strict definition by Aristotle inRead MoreDaisy, Reckless And Drug Rock N Roll Lifestyle1746 Words   |  7 Pagesbecome a cop. That dream crumbled when I realized it would be hypocritical of me to do so. That summer I took a job as the local ice cream shop to earn some extra cash to fund my love pot and underaged drinking habbits. That job collapsed when I showed up to work still drunk from the previous night and puked on a mother who most likely passed her children off to nannie and dressed straight out of the J. Crew catalogue - a mother who I skillfully aimed all of my previous night’s alcohol on her buttonRead More A Midsummer Nights Dream by William Shakespeare Essay2133 Words   |  9 Pages A Midsummer Nights Dream by William Shakespeare In the second scene that completes Act I, we are introduced to an extraordinary group of familiar but outlandish comical characters that have been enlightened with the possibility of performing a stage interlude as part of the entertainment at the quick approaching marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. ====================================================================== The Mechanicals are not only thought of asRead MoreThe Wise Fools of Shakespeare1868 Words   |  8 Pagescertain nonsensical clowns appearing just to create ludicrous entertainment. In ‘Love’s Labour Lost’ we find three such characters Costard, Dull and Adrian de Armado who are of very little importance to the plot but as we move on to the ‘Mid Summer Night’s Dream’, Bottom the daft artisan though intended to project humour for his supreme vanity, we see this same attribute of his being exploited by Oberon the king of the fairies to teach his queen a lesson. In this way we notice in Shakespeare’s comicRead MoreGoal Movie Review10720 Words   |  43 Pagesmuddy days watching young lads beat the hell out of each other. But once in a while, there’s one that comes along and lifts your heart.† --Glen Foy in â€Å"Goal! The Dream Begins† GOAL! THE DREAM BEGINS Production Information Like every kid, Santiago Munez has a big dream. But unlike every kid, he’s given the rare opportunity to make that dream come true—if he’s willing to put his fears aside, travel thousands of miles from home, and hold his own with some of the best in the world. The intense pressureRead MorePersonal Narrative Letter Essay10525 Words   |  43 Pagesever since.† My trip to Addis will not be an easy one. In fact, it is with some trepidation that I leave Wolliso for Addis the morning after Maureen’s letter is put in the hands of my new friend from Michigan. When I lived in Ethiopia in the mid-1970s, with a husband assigned to the U.S. Embassy as a low level spy and two children, Chris and Katy, ages 3 and 4, we had arrived just in time for the revolution that was to overthrow the emperor. The uprising put in his place a band of young revolutionariesRead MoreThe Way Wordsworth and Heaney Present Nature and Rural Life in Their Poetry4285 Words   |  18 Pagesof Lyrical Ballads in 1798, which was a joint collection by Coleridge and Wordsworth. A year later, William and Dorothy returned to their roots and moved to Dove Cottage, Grasmere, where they could both share and revel in their love of nature. Years later, after moving twice more, and getting married, Wordsworth moved to Rydal Mount, where he spent the remainder of his life, until 1850 when he died, aged 80. Almost all of Wordsworths poems share a common factor

Financial Outlook on Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Free Essays

International Finance Project On â€Å"Financial outlook on Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. † Submitted to: Prof. We will write a custom essay sample on Financial Outlook on Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories or any similar topic only for you Order Now S. K. Gupta Submitted by: Date: 31 Dec. 2011 SOURAV KUMAR 2K10IB30 PGDM IB 2010-2012 ASIA PACIFIC INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT 3 4, Institutional Area, Jasola, New Delhi 110025 INTRODUCTION Established in 1984, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. (NYSE: RDY) is an integrated global pharmaceutical company, committed to providing affordable and innovative medicines for healthier lives. Through its three businesses – Pharmaceutical Services and Active Ingredients, Global Generics and Proprietary Products – Dr. Reddy’s offers a portfolio of products and services including Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), Custom Pharmaceutical Services (CPS), generics, biosimilars, differentiated formulations and News Chemical Entities (NCEs). PURPOSE VALUES: Providing Affordable Medicines Our Global Generics business helps reduce drug costs for individuals and governments by bringing generic drugs to market as early as possible, and making them available to as many patients as possible. We market both generic small-molecule drugs and generic biopharmaceuticals. In markets with guidelines for approval, our Biologics business offers more affordable and equally effective generic biopharmaceuticals or biosimilars. We supply pharmaceutical ingredients to other generic companies through the API arm of our PSAI business, which contributes to our goal of providing affordable edicine. We will continue to promote affordability in significant ways and work to expand our product offering of generics, focusing on increasing access to products with significant barriers to entry. We will continue to look for new opportunities to take generics to more patients, in collaboration with other companies. Developing Innovative Medicines Despite the great advances of medical science, there are still many unmet medical needs. Our Proprietary Products businesses address some of these unmet medical needs, by developing and bringing to market new drugs. Through innovation in science and technology, combined with a deep understanding of underlying disease pathways, we develop and commercialise new formulations of approved products. We also develop new chemical entities with improved and well-characterised safety and efficacy profiles. We focus our research on the therapeutic areas of pain, anti-bacterials and metabolic disorders. Our Custom Pharmaceutical Services arm of our PSAI business helps innovator companies get their proprietary medicines to patients faster, by providing a range of technology platforms and services. ABOUT THE BUSINESS: The healthcare needs of people worldwide cannot be met by one company alone. Collectively however we can bring new drugs to the market in a fast and efficient manner and provide the building blocks of affordable medicines. Through our PSAI business, which comprises the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) and Custom Pharmaceutical Services (CPS) businesses, we offer IP advantaged, speedy product development and cost-effective manufacturing services to our customers – generic companies and innovators. This allows us to help make good medicines available to more people around the world. The core strengths of our PSAI business are the state-of-the-art infrastructure, resources and skills we are able to offer to our customers: †¢Large and diverse product portfolio †¢Eight FDA-inspected plants and three technology centers †¢World class chemistry expertise †¢Robust, large-scale manufacturing capabilities †¢Intellectual Property (IP) driven product development for freedom to operate †¢Total, seamless supply chain management PARTNERSHIP PHILOSPHY: At the core of each successful partnership is a great relationship based on trust and mutual respect. As we work towards fulfilling our core purpose we share your aspirations. We recognize and embrace the fact that our partners are a core component of this strategy. We understand that partnerships are successful when benefits accrue to both parties. They are built on a shared vision with well-defined and agreed-upon goals. We also know that that the partners’ thinking and interests may not always be identical, but that we share the same goal—a successful product. Our shared partnership successes are at the very heart of our business. From our first meeting through product launch and beyond, we stand behind our belief in true partnership thereby combining our strengths and sharing our successes. Dr. Reddy’s firmly believes that the right alliances can contribute significantly to the success of our partners as well as to our own strategy and sustainable growth. â€Å"At Dr. Reddy’s we aim to foster a culture of building fair, effective, and mutually beneficial—winning—collaborations. The importance that we place on building winning collaborations is evidenced partly by the early and substantial involvement of senior management. In this way, we achieve quick decision-making and the allocation of necessary resources to achieve success. † G V Prasad Vice Chairman and CEO Transparent and Simple process: Clarity of thought, Speed of execution, Flexibility, creativity, and transparency are critical components of our negotiation and transaction process. As no two deals are the same, we work with potential partners to structure deals through customized approaches that allow both partners to leverage unique capabilities and assets in order to achieve common goals. A simple and streamlined process to progress our partnering discussions and a flat organizational structure facilitates rapid decision making from initial screening to execution. As a company that evaluates 100+ business development opportunities in any given year (many of which come to closure), we value the time and resources our potential partners commit to explore and complete any potential partnership. Dr. Reddy’s emphasizes a transparent and collaborative negotiation process and prompt decision making. We bring a reputation for acting swiftly and being flexible. We will work with you to reach an agreement with which you will be comfortable and that will head us in the right direction toward shared success. Sustained relationship based on trust and mutual respect: Our robust alliance management principles and practices allow successful execution of joint initiatives. Dr. Reddy’s is committed to ensuring that our partnerships succeed and flourish. Quarterly Results: Quarterly Results of Dr Reddys Laboratories——————- in Rs. Cr. ——————- Sep ’11Jun ’11Mar ’11Dec ’10Sep ’10 Sales Turnover1,646. 981,696. 961,329. 161,389. 761,296. 88 Other Income13. 0555. 5429. 1137. 2152. 35 Total Income1,660. 031,752. 501,358. 271,426. 971,349. 23 Total Expenses1,390. 181,085. 201,113. 741,046. 631,022. 98 Operating Profit256. 80611. 76215. 42343. 13273. 0 Profit On Sale Of Assets———- Profit On Sale Of Investments———- Gain/Loss On Foreign Exchange———- VRS Adjustment———- Other Extraordinary Income/Expenses———- Total Extraordinary Income/E xpenses———- Tax On Extraordinary Items———- Net Extra Ordinary Income/Expenses———- Gross Profit269. 85667. 30244. 53380. 34326. 25 Interest15. 7815. 244. 250. 540. 13 PBDT254. 07652. 06257. 78379. 80326. 12 Depreciation73. 4068. 9365. 5063. 8961. 35 Depreciation On Revaluation Of Assets———- PBT180. 67583. 13192. 28315. 91264. 77 Tax42. 17129. 0826. 4153. 1444. 57 Net Profit138. 50454. 05165. 87262. 77220. 20 Prior Years Income/Expenses———- Depreciation for Previous Years Written Back/ Provided———- Dividend———- Dividend Tax———- Dividend (%)———- Earnings Per Share8. 1726. 799. 8015. 5313. 01 Book Value———- Equity84. 7684. 7484. 6384. 6184. 60 Reserves———- Face Value5. 005. 005. 005. 005. 00 ___________________________________________ Balance Sheet of the company (annually): ——————- In Rs. Cr. —————————— DescriptionMar-11Mar-10Mar-09Mar-08 SOURCES OF FUNDS: Share Capital84. 684. 484. 284. Share Warrants Outstanding39. 333. 935. 532. 5 Total Reserves5896. 35796. 35139. 44695. 2 Shareholder’s Funds6020. 25914. 65259. 14811. 8 Secured Loans0. 70. 82. 63. 4 Unsecured Loans1444. 1562. 463 7. 7458. 9 Total Debts1444. 8563. 2640. 3462. 3 Total Liabilities74656477. 85899. 45274. 1 APPLICATION OF FUNDS : Gross Block30252425. 72157. 31750. 2 Less: Accumulated Depreciation13341110. 1946. 5762. 8 Less: Impairment of Assets Net Block16911315. 61210. 8987. 4 Lease Adjustment A/c Capital Work in Progress570. 4745. 4411. 2246. 5 Pre-operative Expenses pending Assets in transit Investments24622555. 1703. 81930. 6 Current Assets, Loans Advances Inventories1063. 2897. 4735. 1640. 9 Sundry Debtors1770. 51060. 51419. 7897. 7 Cash and Bank66. 2368384. 4536. 7 Other Current Assets1. 80. 62. 8 Loans and Advances2606. 42048. 718401250. 6 Total Current Assets5506. 34376. 44379. 83328. 7 Less: Current Liabilities and Provisions Current Liabilities1440. 71447. 51050. 2680. 9 Provisions1223. 2992. 2665. 6451. 3 Total Current Liabilities2663. 92439. 71715. 81132. 2 Net Current Assets2842. 41936. 726642196. 5 Miscellaneous Expenses not written off Deferred Tax Assets / Liabilities-100. 8-75- 90. 4-86. 9 Total Assets74656477. 85899. 45274. 1 Contingent Liabilities2488. 22412. 21977. 93325. 8 Book Value353. 481087348. 382701310. 190024284. 143876 Adjusted Book Value353. 481087348. 382701310. 19284. 1439 Profit Loss Statement of the company (annually) ——————- in Rs. Cr. ————————————— DescriptionMar-11Mar-10Mar-09Mar-08 No of Months12121212 INCOME : Gross Sales5284. 74543. 84239. 83449. 7 Less: Inter divisional transfers Less: Sales Returns Less: Excise Duty97. 37480. 984. 5 Net Sales5187. 44469. 84158. 93365. 2 EXPENDITURE : Increase/Decrease in Stock-79-117. 3-64. 1-93. Raw Material Consumed1396. 413461177. 61146. 1 Power Fuel Cost144. 6104. 19077. 1 Employee Cost701. 2510413. 3368. 6 Other Manufacturing Expenses1053. 9793. 3894698. 2 General and Administration Expenses288. 7195. 6228193. 9 Selling and Distribution Expenses477443. 8448. 7375. 4 Miscell aneous Expenses113. 991. 6121. 930 Less: Expenses Capitalised Total Expenditure4096. 73367. 13309. 42795. 4 Operating Profit (Excl OI)1090. 71102. 7849. 5569. 8 Other Income219220. 5101. 1191. 1 Operating Profit1309. 71323. 2950. 6760. 9 Interest9. 91627. 414. 7 PBDT1299. 81307. 2923. 2746. 2 Depreciation247. 9222. 4193. 162 Profit Before Taxation Exceptional Items1051. 91084. 8729. 5584. 2 Exceptional Income / Expenses Profit Before Tax1051. 91084. 8729. 5584. 2 Provision for Tax158. 5238. 7168. 6108. 9 Profit After Tax893. 4846. 1560. 9475. 3 Extra items Adjustments to PAT597. 2-24. 8-1. 5 Profit Balance B/F2554. 12039. 11657. 51305. 1 Appropriations4044. 72860. 42218. 41778. 9 Equity Dividend %22522512575 Earnings Per Share52. 801418450. 124407633. 307628. 258 Adjusted EPS52. 801418450. 124407633. 307628. 258 Forex and External commercial borrowings: ——————- in Rs. Cr. ————————†”———— DescriptionMar-11Mar-10Mar-09Mar-08 EXPORTS Total Inflow In Foreign Currency3747. 73161. 43123. 32366. 8362 Exports – FOB Value3671. 83013. 82892. 52259. 9061 Revenue in Forex75. 9147. 6230. 8106. 9301 Frieght Insurance Technology transfer fees Service Fees31111. 1197. 959. 2134 Commision Earned2. 4 Dividend received Interest Earnings33. 635. 13236. 8753 Other Exports8. 91. 40. 910. 8414 Capital Inflow – Other Deemed Exports IMPORTS Total Outflow In Foreign Currency1321. 31021. 41180. 91071. 0232 Imports – CIF Value533. 7486. 4553. 8658. 4784 Raw Materials533. 7486. 4553. 8658. 4784 Traded Goods Stores spares Other Imports Total Capital Outflow277. 3110. 7135. 577. 1814 Capital Goods277. 3110. 7135. 577. 1814 Other Capital Expenditures Repayments of Loans Investment In foreign Currency Expenditure in Foreign Currency510. 3424. 3491. 6335. 3634 Travelling Expenses5. 16109. 385 Interest Expenditure7. 5 Legal Expenses113. 166. 652. 355. 1145 Royalty Technical Fees Commision paid Others384. 6351. 7429. 3270. 8639 Dividend Paid Deemed Imports Raw Materials consumed Material Imported in Amt456. 6334. 2357231. 2115 Material Imported in %43303926. 37 Material Indigenous in Amt609. 8766. 3564. 2645. 144 Material Indigenous in %57706173. 63 Stores and spares consumed Spare Imported in Amt52. 433. 230. 121. 2313 Spares Imported in %1513811 Spare Indigenous in Amt300. 7220. 3326. 3180. 0892 Spares Indigenous in %85879289 Dr Reddy’s Laboratories in News Dr Reddy’s Laboratories: Higher capacity, New products to pump up growth Kiran Kabtta Somvanshi, ET Bureau Dec 26, 2011, 05. 20am IST Tags: †¢Sun Pharma| †¢Russia| †¢Germany| †¢generics Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, the second-largest pharma company (by sales) in India, is at an inflexion point. Its robust performance in the US and Russia is driving its growth. The second half of the fiscal is likely to be better for the company than the first one –characterised by more product launches and increase in market share. It’s probably the right time for investors to consider this stock. BUSINESS The company is engaged in generics, bulk drugs custom services and proprietary products. The genericsbusiness contributes over 70% to its total revenues, which stood at $1. 7 billion in FY11. DRL has focussed on four key regions — North America, India, Russia/CIS and Europe — with an objective to achieve critical mass in the base business. North America is the company’s largest and strongest market, contributing onethird of the company’s revenues. New product launches, limited competition products and improved market share has helped the company post a strong performance in the region. DRL’s German business remains its sore point, pulling down the growth rates for the European region. The pricing pressure brought about by the tender-based business structure has adversely affected its profitability. The Indian business has been a laggard since the last several quarters, but the sequential improvement in its performance in the September quarter is encouraging. Its biosimilars portfolio has done very well and has logged a growth of 22% y-o-y, hinting at a better period in the coming months. The Russian business, though not a large contributor, has proved to be yet another growth driver for the company. The OTC business, in particular, is doing well in the region. GROWTH DRIVERS DRL has targeted revenues of $3 billion and a RoCE of 25% in FY13. The company has a strong pipeline with 76 pending ANDAs (17 tentative approvals). It has 40 Para IV filings of which 11 have first to file opportunities. The company is focussing on scaling up manufacturing and having a higher mix of US generics in total global generics. In Germany, the company has undertaken cost control measures, and has commenced supplies to AOK tenders and launched new products outside the scope of tenders. Its effect would be visible from the current quarter. DRL has a tie-up with GSK to develop and market select products across emerging markets outside India. FINANCIALS While its earnings have been erratic over the years, the company’s revenues have grown at a CAGR of around 21% over the last decade. DRL has restructured operations at its German and Mexican units. It has capped risky and expensive R by pulling out research in therapies like diabetes and cardiovascular. Instead, it is now channelising its R efforts towards development of limited competition products, biosimilars and new chemical entities in areas like pain management, anti-infectives and dermatology. CONCERNS Forging growth in its Indian business and profitability in its European operations is a major concern for the company. Its future growth depends on the success of its efforts in these areas. The company has raised `1,077-crore debt in the current quarter to meet working capital requirements and also to refinance old loans. This brings its total debt to over `4,200 crore. VALUATIONS The company’s stock is trading at 23 times its consolidated annual earnings. These valuations are lower than its better-performing peers like Sun Pharma and Cipla. Pharma cos with huge FCCBs may not get hit as their export earnings remaining high Sanjay Pingle, Mumbai Monday, December 19, 2011, 08:00 Hrs [IST] Steady depreciation of Rupee against US Dollar and Euro may not have any major impact on Indian pharmaceutical industry despite many pharma companies have huge exposure to foreign currency loans and bonds. To a great extend, such adverse rates will be offset by the sizable export earnings of Indian pharma companies. Continuous depreciation of Indian Rupee against US Dollar and Euro is a great concern for Indian manufacturers having Foreign Currency Loans (FCLs) and Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs). But the exports of these companies are likely to shoot up in 2011-12 with depreciation of rupee in terms of foreign currencies. Indian pharma companies have recorded export earnings of more than 50 per cent of their revenues to US and Europe during 2010-11 and with depreciation of Rupee export earnings are likely to go up significantly. This will reduce the adverse effect on bottom line likely with the current unfavorable foreign exchange rates. Uncertainty in Euro region and recessionary conditions worldwide is making Dollar more firm against several currencies. At present, the exchange rate of Indian Rupee against dollar is moving near to Rs. 55 and that of Euro is moving over Rs. 71 as against Rs. 45. 87 per Dollar and Rs. 61. 13 per Euro year ago. The Dollar appreciated nearly by 20 per cent and Euro by almost 17 per cent within one year making FCL and Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs) payments costlier for Indian companies. The pharma industry has already incurred huge foreign currency loss during the first half of 2011-12 and these are likely to increase in the remaining part of the FY’12 with adverse exchange fluctuations. Though the Indian pharmaceutical companies have created strong networth position in the past, the volatile and adverse change in foreign exchange rates may put pressure on bottom line. The borrowings of Pharmabiz sample of leading 35 companies shows that the total borrowings, including secured and non-secured loan went up by 18. 3 per cent to Rs. 37,709 crore during 2010-11 from Rs. 1,899 crore in the previous year. The secured loans, including foreign currency loans and FCCBs, of 35 companies increased by 19. 8 per cent to Rs. 21,899 crore from Rs. 18,278 crore. As against these borrowings, the net worth, equity capital plus reserves surplus, of these companies stood at Rs. 68,201 crore as compared toRs. 48,811 crore in the previous year, representing a strong growth of 39. 7 per cent in 2010-11. Out of 35 companies, 23 companies availed FCL or issued FCCBs and the aggregate amount worked out to Rs. 9,560 crore in 2010-11 as compared to Rs. 10,765 crore. Thus, FCL and FCCBs comprised of 25 per cent in 2010-11 of aggregate borrowings as compared to 34 per cent in the last year. The reduction is mainly due to redemption of FCCBs by few companies and repayment of costly FCLs. The aggregate amount of FCCBs issued by these companies reduced by 12 per cent to Rs. 5,382 crore from Rs. 6,118 crore and foreign currency loans by 10. 1 per cent to Rs. 4,178 crore from Rs. 4,647 crore. Ranbaxy Laboratories has outstanding FCCBs aggregating to US$ 440 million as at the end of December 2010. The company has shown Rs. 1,967 crore as unsecured loan for FCCBs as compared to Rs. ,048 crore in the previous year. Orchid Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals has outstanding FCCBs of Rs. 523. 58 crore as against Rs. 607. 74 crore in the 2009-10. Jubilant Lifesciences has reduced its FCCBs amount to Rs. 633. 70 crore from Rs. 861 crore in the previous year. Further, Strides Arcolab has reduced its FCCBs loan to Rs. 457. 28 crore from Rs. 634. 15 crore and Aurobind o Pharma toRs. 620. 76 crore from Rs. 767. 71 crore. Wockhardt’s FCCB liabilities increased slightly to Rs. 458. 82 crore from Rs. 446. 40 crore and that of Plethico Pharma’s to Rs. 425. 12 crore from Rs. 411. 91 crore. The foreign currency loans (FCLs) of Jubilant Lifesciences went up to Rs. 1755. 71 crore from Rs. 1580. 48 crore and that of Cadila’s to Rs. 737. 70 crore from Rs. 722. 80 crore. Biocon has successfully reduced its FCLs to Rs. 189. 94 crore from Rs. 220. 72 crore. Dr Reddy’s Laboratories has repaid its FCLs ofRs. 889. 90 crore during 2010-11 through three new short-term borrowings. However, FCL of Lupin went up sharply to Rs 306. 54 crore from Rs. 181. 99 crore in the previous year. Further, FCL of Orchid Chemical went up to Rs. 325. 22 crore from Rs. 250. 02 crore and that of Panacea Biotec to Rs. 359. 4 crore from Rs. 293. 74 crore. Ipca Laboratories FCLs also jumped to Rs. 183. 15 crore from Rs. 125. 52 crore. The sample of Pharmabiz 35 companies have managed to reduce their liabilities in respect of FCCBs and FCLs during 2010-11 and likely to reduce risk of depreciation of Rupee against Dollar and Euro. Further rise in interest rates by RBI will also put additional burden on the sector in 2011-12. However, higher exports may assist to reduce adverse impact on working. Dr. Reddy’s Q2 FY12 Financial Results : Q2 FY12 Revenues at ? 22. 7 billion ($462 million), YoY growth of 21%; Q2 FY12 Adjusted* EBITDA at ? 5. billion ($104 million), YoY growth of 20%; Q2 FY12 Adjusted** PAT at ? 3. 1 billion ($63 million), YoY growth of 8% Hyderabad, India, October 25, 2011: Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. (NYSE: RDY) today announced its unaudited consolidated financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2011 under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Key Highlights †¢Consolidated revenues are at ? 22. 7 billion ($462 million) in Q2 FY12 versus ? 18. 7 billion ($381 million) in Q2 FY11, year-on-year growth of 21%. Consolidated revenues for H1 FY12 is at ? 42. 5 billion ($866 million). oRevenues from Global Generics for Q2 FY12 are at ? 6. 1 billion ($329 million). Year-on-year growth of 18% mainly driven by North Americ a and Russia. oRevenues from PSAI are at ? 5. 9 billion ($121 million) in Q2 FY12, growth of 28% over previous year. †¢Adjusted* EBITDA of ? 5. 1 billion ($104 million) in Q2 FY12, is at 23% of revenues recording year-on-year growth of 20%. Consolidated adjusted EBITDA for H1 FY12 is at ? 9. 4 billion ($193 million). †¢Adjusted** Profit after Tax for Q2 FY12 is at ? 3. 1 billion ($63 million), is at 14% of revenues with year-on-year growth of 8%. Consolidated adjusted PAT for H1 FY12 is at ? 5. 6 billion ($115 million). During the quarter, the company launched 28 new generic products, filed 17 new product registrations and filed 11 DMFs globally. †¢Dr. Reddy’s today announced the final approval of its olanzapine 20 mg tablets, the generic version of Eli Lilly’s Zyprexa ®from the USFDA. *Note: Adjustments include: benefit from a part reversal of provision booked in Q1 for Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) floated by the company. **Note: Adjustments incl ude: a) interest on bonus debentures and b) benefit from a part reversal of provision booked in Q1 on account of Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) floated by the company. All figures in millions, except EPS All dollar figures based on convenience translation rate of 1USD = ? 49. 05 Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Limited and Subsidiaries Unaudited Consolidated Income Statement ParticularsQ2 FY12Q2 FY11Growth % ($)(? )%($)(? )(%) Revenue46222,67910038118,70410021 Cost of revenues21410,473461788,7184720 Gross profit24912,206542049,9865322 Operating Expenses Selling, general administrative expenses1477,216321165,7093126 Research and development expenses301,4596261,270715 Other operating (income) / expense(4)(215)(1)(4)(218)(1)(2) Results from operating activities763,74517663,2251716 Net finance (income) / expense1500135042 Share of (profit) / loss of equity accounted investees(0)(13)(0)(0)(3)(0)- Profit / (loss) before income tax763,70916653,1941716 Income tax (benefit) / expense1363137327293 Profit / (loss) for the period633,07814582,867157 Diluted EPS0. 418. 1 0. 316. 9 Profit Reconciliation: Adjusted EBITDA ReconciliationQ2 FY12Q2 FY11 ($)(? )($)(? ) PBT763,709653,194 Interest522506 Depreciation1887915731 Amortization83896317 EBITDA1065,203874,248 Adjustments: Part reversal of provision booked in Q1 for Voluntary Retirement Scheme(2)(94) Adjusted EBITDA1045,109874,248 Adjusted PAT ReconciliationQ2 FY12Q2 FY11 ($)(? ($)(? ) PAT633,078582,867 Adjustments: Interest on Bonus Debentures2118 Part reversal of provision booked in Q1 for Voluntary Retirement Scheme(2)(94) Tax normalizing adjustment(0)(4) Adjusted PAT633,099582,867 Segmental Analysis Global Generics Revenues from Global Generics segment are at ? 16. 1 billion ($329 million) in Q2 FY12 registering growth of 18% over previous year. †¢Reven ues from North America at ? 6. 3 billion in Q2 FY12 versus ? 4. 4 billion in Q2 FY11. Growth in USD terms of 45% was led by new product launches in the last twelve months and market share improvement in key products. 5 new products launched during the quarter, including limited competition products such as fondaparinux and fexofenadine pseudoephedrine D24 OTC. o24 products of our prescription portfolio feature among the Top 3 rank in market share (Source: IMS Sales Volumes July 2011). oDuring the quarter, 4 ANDAs were filed. The cumulative ANDA filings as of 30th September, 2011 are 177. A total of 76 ANDAs are pending for approval with the USFDA of which 40 are Para IVs and 11 are FTFs. †¢Revenues in Russia Other CIS markets at ? 3. 4 billion in Q2 FY12 versus ? 2. 8 billion in Q2 FY11, year-on-year growth of 23%. Revenues in Russia at ? 2. 9 billion in Q2 FY12 versus ? 2. 3 billion in Q2 FY11, year-on-year growth in USD terms of 30%, largely driven by volume growth in key br ands. ?OTC portfolio growth of 33% over previous year; OTC sales at 25% of overall Russia sales. ?Dr. Reddy’s year-on-year secondary prescription sales growth at 20% versus industry’s growth of 10%. (Source: Pharmexpert August 2011). Dr. Reddy’s is ranked 12th in market share. oRevenues in Other CIS markets remained flat at ? 477 million in Q2 FY12. †¢Revenues in India increased by 9% to ? 3. 5 billion in Q2 FY12 versus ? . 2 billion in Q2 FY11. o3 new products launched during the quarter. oBiosimilar portfolio growth of 22% over previous year ; represents 6% to sales. †¢Revenues from Europe at ? 2. 1 billion in Q2 FY12, declined by 10% over previous year. oRevenues from Germany declined by 27% to ? 1. 2 billion in Q2 FY12 due to continuing impact of tenders. oRevenues from Rest of Europe grew by 26% to ? 933 million in Q2 FY12 driven by new launches in UK and growth in out-licensing business. Pharmaceutical Services and Active Ingredients (PSAI) †¢Revenues from PSAI are at ? 5. billion in Q2 FY 12 versus ? 4. 6 billion in Q2 FY11, year-on-year increase of 28%. oGrowth in Active Ingredients business led by new product launches in Europe. oPharmaceutical Services business grew on account of improved customer order book status. oDuring the quarter, 11 DMFs were filed globally, with 2 in US, 2 in Europe, 1 in Canada and 6 in rest of the markets. The cumulative DMF filings as of 30th September 2011 are 506. Income Statement Highlights: †¢Gross profit at ? 12. 2 billion ($249 million) in Q2 FY12, margin of 54% to revenues, marginal increase over previous year. Selling, General Administration (SGA) expenses including amortization at ? 7. 2 billion ($147 million) increased by 26% over Q2 FY11. This increase is on account of a) higher freight costs both on account of increase in sales volumes as well as rate increases, b) inflation and year-on-year increments linked increase in manpower costs across businesses, c) incremental costs at Bristol and Shreveport manufacturing facilities in the US and d) the increase in the OTC-related selling and marketing costs in Russia and other CIS markets as compared to previous year. RD expenses at ? 1. 5 billion ($30 million) in Q2 FY12, increase of 15% over Q2 FY11. †¢Net Finance costs are at ? 50 million ($1 million) in Q2 FY 12 versus ? 35 million ($0. 7 million) in Q2 FY11 The change is on account of : oNet forex gain of ? 151 million ($3 million) versus net forex loss of ? 49 million ($1 million) in Q2 FY11. oNet interest expense of ? 225 million ($5 million) in Q2 FY12 versus ? 5 million ($0. 1 million) in Q2 FY11. oProfit on sale of investments of ? 25 million ($0. 5 million) in Q2 FY12 versus ? 19 million ($0. 4 million) in Q2 FY11. Adjusted EBITDA of ? 5. 1 billion ($104 million) in Q2 FY12, is at 23% of revenues with year-on-year growth of 20%. †¢Adjusted Profit after Tax for Q2 FY12 is at ? 3. 1 billion ($63 million), is at 14% of revenues with yea r-on-year growth of 8%. †¢Adjusted EPS for Q2 FY 12 is at ? 18. 2 ($0. 4) versus ? 16. 9 ($0. 3) in Q2 FY11. †¢Capital expenditure for H1 FY12 is at ? 3. 6 billion ($73 million). Appendix 1: Q2 FY12 Key Balance Sheet Items (In millions) ParticularsAs on 30th Sep 11As on 30th Jun 11 $)(? )($)(? ) Cash and cash equivalents1557,5961115,468 Trade receivables41920,56834917,136 Inventories37918,59235517,401 Property, plant and equipment64131,45062230,524 Goodwill and other intangible assets30815,11530414,921 Loans and borrowings (current non-current)63831,30348823,940 Trade payables1828,9401728,433 Equity98048,08199748,902 Appendix 2: Q2 FY12 Revenue Mix by Segment (In millions) Q2 FY12Q2 FY 11Growth % ($)(? )as a %($)(? )as a % Global Generics32916,1367127913,6677318 North America 6,28739 4,4163242 Europe 2,11713 2,36617(10) India 3,45921 3,160239 Russia Other CIS 3,38021 2,7512023 RoW 8936 9747(8) PSAI1215,93326944,6172528 North America 1,06818 8141831 Europe 2,30339 1,5513448 India 75213 6531415 RoW 1,81031 1,5993513 Others1261039420245 Total46222,67810038118,70410021 Appendix 3: Q2 FY12 Revenue Mix by Geography (In millions) Q2 FY12Q2FY 11Growth % ($)(? )as a %($)(? )as a % North America1597,777341115,4642942 Europe924,53620844,1022211 India864,21019783,8132010 Russia Other CIS693,38015562,7511523 Others572,77512522,573148 Total46222,67810018,70418,10021 Appendix 4: H1 FY12 Consolidated Income Statement All figures in millions, except EPS All dollar figures based on convenience translation rate of 1USD = ? 49. 05 ParticularsH1 FY12H1 FY11Growth % ($)(? )%($)(? )(%) Revenue86642,46210072435,53510019 Cost of revenues40219,7014633916,6354718 Gross profit46422,7615438518,9005320 Operating Expenses Selling, general administrative expenses28513,9723322811,1913125 Research and development expenses542,6566462,263617 Other operating (income) / expense(8)(401)(1)(8)(404)(1)(1) Results from operating activities1336,533151195,8501612 Net finance (income) / expense296042121(55) Share of (profit) / loss of equity accounted investees(0)(17)(0)(0)(8)(0)113 Profit / (loss) before income tax1326,455151155,6471614 Income tax (benefit) / expense15751214684210 Profit / (loss) for the period1165,704131014,9631415 Diluted EPS0. 733. 6 0. 629. 2 Appendix 5: H1 FY12 Profit Reconciliation (In millions) Adjusted EBITDA ReconciliationH1 FY12H1 FY11 ($)(? )($)(? ) PBT1326,4551155,647 Interest9446(0)(3) Depreciation351,708291,416 Amortization1679412605 Reported EBITDA1929,4041567,665 Adjustments: One-time charge of Voluntary Retirement Scheme142 Adjusted EBITDA1939,4451567,665 Adjusted PAT ReconciliationH1 FY12H1 FY11 ($)(? )($)(? ) Reported PAT1165,7041014,963 Adjustments: Interest on Bonus Debentures5236 One-time charge of Voluntary Retirement Scheme142 Tax normalizing adjustment(7)(364) Adjusted PAT1155,6181014,963 How to cite Financial Outlook on Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Papers

Organization Behaviour at Amazon Corporation

Question: Discuss about the Organization Behaviour at Amazon Corporation. Answer: Introduction: The current study focuses upon evaluating the issues pertaining to organizational behavior that arises in case of Amazon Inc. The presence of the company around vast geographical areas coupled with high degree of market expansion has displayed that the company has had operational success unmatched by other retailing firms. However, despite generating considerable degree of revenues the company has visible issues pertaining to employee management, organizational behavior. The high degree of turnover pertaining to employees along the degradation of the companys reputation as a recruiter can be construed as a proof towards presence of issues concerning human capital. Employees have showcased frustration coupled with visible degree of resentment towards working at Amazon. Moreover, the problems as regards to employee feedback, employee-superior relationship have been evaluated thoroughly in light of present and past organizational theories. Case Description: The advent of online retailed coupled with the demand for large supplies and high degree of logistics has accelerated the growth of Amazon Inc. as an online retailer. The vast global presence coupled with the culturally diverse set of workforce has aggravated the degree of complexity in labour management. The present workplace conditions pertaining to the companys lower and mid level employees are not conducive to growth. This is because the company has not displayed visible degree of acclimatization to local culture and work values practiced in the markets that it caters (Zillman 2016). Moreover, the working conditions at its warehouses are reported to be inappropriate for its employees. The payments pertaining to the lower level employees of Amazon are also below par as compared to the payment made for the same degree of labour in other organizations. These factors have contributed towards increasing the degree of non-alignment of employees objective with that of the company. The managerial policy undertaken at lower managerial level seeks to undermine labour welfare and which in turn is tend to be solely profit motivated. Moreover, it tends to lack any visible degree of policies, which facilitates sustainability of cohesiveness, in its workforce. There has been instance, whereby the company has penalized its employees for taking on vacations or for taking time out for medical treatments or serious family engagements (Zillman, 2016). The policies regarding the treatment of employees resemble that of start-ups instead of public company as big the size as that of Amazon. The responses received out of current and ex-employees pertaining to the companys human resources policies and work culture display low morale on the part of such employees. This tend to arise out of management that tend implement policies which ends up accelerating the degree of labour turnover and results in fostering of negativity in the organizational culture. In terms of the scale of negative repercussions pertaining to organizational behaviour, the effects of mismanagement prevalent in the organization affects the human resources (HR) of Amazon. Moreover, it tends to affect the labor turnover and degree of employee motivation generated negatively along with adversely affecting the companys human capital. In terms of adherence towards classical theories of organizational management, it can be construed that the organizational problems arising out of workforce and work culture in general tend to arise out of both human resource department. Since the classical theories emphasized that reporting of problems are done based upon hierarchical structures and thereby are restricted on a departmental basis (Streitfeld 2016). Thereby, it can be construed that as per the relevant classical theories, the problems visible in terms of employee management is restricted only to the HR department. Moreover, it is relevant to note the fact that online retail sectors inherently has its own set of constraints in terms of price related competitions and very low or minimal profit margin. It is construed thereby that minimizing the overhead costs pertaining to warehousing, logistics amongst other operations forms a priority for Amazon Inc. Moreover, the motto as regards to work ethics and values for set out by Amazons management for its employees comprises of intense degree of hard work coupled with consistently satisfactory performance. The high benchmark set out by Amazon for its employees in terms of minimal holidays, high work pressures and tough workplace conditions coupled with uncertainty regarding their future in the company aggravated diminishing employee morale. The primary protagonists pertaining to the aforementioned issues arising out of workplace behaviour tend to be the operations manager pertaining to the organisation. The policies as regards to the work ethics, the policies regarding workplace environment, employee retention schemes amongst others have been laid down under the oversight of its CEO and top management team. The primary focus of the operations manager was facilitating enhanced contribution from employees through evolving the labour management policy in a manner that facilities labour productivity and labour welfare. However, expansion policy regarding the operation of the division that the operations manager belongs resulted at a cost of stringent workforce rules pertaining to the employees. This is coupled with considerably low wages and longer working hours at its back offices and warehouses. Moreover, it can be observed that the perception regarding the company as an online retail giant with considerable reputation pe rtaining to the company at stake due to the image that has been created as regards to its employee management policy. Case Analysis: The different theories of organisational behaviour, which could be significant to address the identified issues of Amazon, comprise of ERG theory of motivation. According to Miner (2015), this theory identifies the needs of the human beings into three major categories that constitute of existence, relatedness and growth needs. The existence needs comprise of all the physiological and material desires of the human beings like water, clothing, safety and affection. Another category of ERG theory is the relatedness needs, which entails external and social esteem. This implies significant associations with different persons like friends, families, colleagues and employers. This helps in bringing a sense of confidence and security amongst the human beings (Hogg and Terry 2014). The growth needs in ERG theory comprises of self-actualisation and internal esteem. This impels an individual to make productive or creative influences on the person and the overall environment. As a result, it helps in completing meaningful tasks for the individuals (Pinder 2014). It has been identified that Amazon inserts unjustified pressure on its workers in the form of overtime, low incentives and decreased holidays. As a result, the organisation has failed to maintain the existence and relatedness needs of the ERG theory. This is because the employees did not receive holidays for their physical illnesses and this has negatively influenced their level of motivation. Finally, the growth is limited in Amazon, as the organisation does not conduct regular appraisal of employee performance and provide promotion to its staffs. Another theory of organisational behaviour, which could be applied to address the various employee-related issues of Amazon, is two-factor theory of motivation, as proposed by Mintz Herzberg. According to this theory, the job factors are classified into two major factors like motivation factors and hygiene factors (DuBrin 2013). The motivation factors constitute of recognition, which is the appraisal of the managers for realising the accomplishments of the subordinates. In addition, responsibility is another attribute of the motivation factor, in which the staffs take responsibilities for performing their obligations. In addition, growth and promotion is required in order to enhance the career growth and opportunities of advancement for motivating the employees (Cane, OConnor and Michie 2012). In addition, the work assigned to the employees needs to be challenging and meaningful, so that it could be used to increase the level of motivation for the employees. The hygiene factors, on the other hand, are those factors, which are needed to motivate the employees in the workplace. Although these factors are not fruitful in the long-run, absence of these factors might result in loss of motivation for the employees in the workplace (Naylor, Pritchard and Ilgen 2013). The hygiene factors could further be subdivided into dissatisfiers and maintenance factors. The salary structure needs to be reasonable and appropriate in comparison to the industrial standards. The policies of the organization need not be rigid; instead, they need to be fair and clear. In the words of Altman, Valenzi and Hodgetts (2013), the company policies need to include flexible shifts, vacation, breaks and dress code. In addition, the employees need to be provided with adequate fringe benefit policies like healthcare plans for the family members and help programs. The physical working condition is another criterion of the hygiene factor, in which the organization needs to use modernized and updated equipments (Barrick, Mount and Li 2013). It is the sole responsibility of the management to ensure that strong interpersonal relationships exist between the staffs and managers. The conflict of interest or element of humiliation needs to be eliminated. Finally, job security is another hygiene factor, which aims to increase the satisfaction and motivation levels of the organisation (Borman and Motowidlo 2014). According to the identified problems, the lack of motivation and satisfaction level of the employees has declined the organisational productivity of Amazon. This is because the organisation has not undertaken adequate steps; rather it has enforced rigid working conditions for the employees. The employees are forced to work for additional hours without any additional payment coupled with absence of employee appraisal. Hence, the absence of motivation factors, as depicted in the two-factor theory of motivation, is clearly inherent in the organisation policy of Amazon. In this context, Baran, Shanock and Miller (2012) cited that the organisations failing to motivate the employees often experience fall in productivity and quality of services delivered to the customers. Furthermore, the communication gap between the managers and subordinates of Amazon signifies the absence of hygiene factor. In the current case, analysis regarding Amazons workplace and behavioural analysis pertaining to current employees of the company has been undertaken. The study focuses both upon the individual level and at the group level and tend to evaluate the organizational behavior issues pertaining to the company in the current issue. The current study is relevant in assessing the workplace dynamics prevalent in major organizations, in our case its Amazon, and then evaluates the repercussion of such dynamics upon employee performance, level of motivation and behavior as a group. The assessment then takes into account the different relevant theories, model pertaining to organizational behavior, and applies the theories congruent with the prevalent situation at Amazon. In case of Amazon, for the fresh recruitments a separate set of leadership principles are provided that summarizes the core principles that the employees are required to adhere to. The unproductive habits that Amazon assumes its recruits have inculcated through the previous organizations that they have worked on are to be forgotten and such poor habits are told not to be repeated at Amazon (Kurtz 2016). Moreover, the evaluations pertaining to employee performances are undertaken on a frequent basis and the weaker link in each department are warned of their future prospects at the company lest they continue performing in this manner. Moreover, those that tend to score the highest on the parameters set out by Amazon for gauging employee performances are provided virtual recognition through the title Im peculiar (Kurtz 2016). The current workplace environment at Amazon induces frequent clashes of ideas between the employees. Moreover, instead of facilitating alignment and fostering respect for each employee by another, the company encourages employees towards aggravating clashes with other employees (Streitfeld, 2016). Moreover, the working hours pertaining to Amazonians, what the company calls its employees, are long and hard. Moreover, even for emails that are sent to the employees during midnight, this to be followed by text messages at the employees phone requiring justification as regards to why the email was not replied to. Moreover, proclamation by the management at Amazon that the organization is not the easiest place to work in displays the fact that the management itself implements worker policies that tend to challenge employee in attaining high performances on a regular basis. Further, the organization itself proclaims that its standards regarding employee performance in particular and company s financial performance in general are unreasonably high. There can be several factors, which has facilitated the development of company objectives of such nature. The exponential growth in the number of internet users coupled with rise in online retailing first in the developed economies and then in the emerging economics has created vast opportunities for Amazon. Thus inducing the company to penetrate large number of offshore markets and thereby facilitate high quantum of expansion. However, the approach that Amazon undertakes in order to capitalize upon such opportunities has resulted in negative repercussions upon the performance, work ethics and motivation of its employees. Practices such as encouragement to employee towards sending secret feedbacks to their immediate superior as regards to the happenings in other department of the organization create a negative vive for the employees. Moreover, the phone directory at Amazon implicitly mentions that the higher management approves such exchanges of secret emails in order to mitigate org anizational hazards. However, it can be observed that such practices end up being demoralizing the employee and tend to have negative repercussions upon the degree of integrity inculcated in them. In comparison to Amazon, companies such as Google and Facebook tend to have an organizational structure that is more informal in nature and tend to foster creativity, innovation coupled with enabling its employees towards working under high work pressures. For instance, at Google, no formal outfits have been specified to be worn by its employees and it is at the employees discretion to choose what to wear to work. This is coupled with free gourmet food at its canteens that facilitates in ensuring that employee have a better set of communications with each other. The belief that sharing a meal together has positive repercussions upon employee productivity, efficiency and it mitigates the risks regarding high employee turnover. Facebook too has a organizational structure that is overtly informal in nature and operates as a startup and fosters openness amongst its employees. Moreover, in house contests amongst its employee coupled with numerous set of financial and non-financial bonuses and incentives. Further, Facebook undertakes measures that facilitate absorption of workplace pressure such as mid day yoga sessions for its employees for free at the office premises. In contrast to aforementioned examples, Amazon has an inflexible work regime coupled with the fact that some of its policies directly aggravate internal politics in the organization. Presence of sample texts in Amazons employee directory provides a representation of how the company encourages secret communications regarding minor issues and which encourages sabotage of an employee by another. The aforementioned policies clearly states the fact that work practices at Amazon is not conducive to excellence or growth in the context of employee performance. Moreover, the company has displayed practices that make it difficult for majority of its prospective employees along with those currently employed at retaining their job in the long term. The purposeful Darwinism as described by its human resources is aimed towards weeding out the weak links in the organization but in turn has resulted in creating a bad reputation as a recruiter (Streitfeld 2016). The company undertakes the largest log istical operations in order to facilitate timely deliverance of its products to its government. Moreover, in terms of handling human capital pertaining to the organization, there has been instances that workers suffering from miscarriages, cancers and other major illnesses are not provided adequate time to recover and rejoin the organization. Moreover, in case of performance evaluation, such illnesses and recuperations are seen as a drawback and thereby the probability of such employee not provided a fair hearing prior to being retrenched is significantly high. Therefore it can be construed that organizational culture pertaining to Amazon tend to foster group think where each department tend to assimilate the collective inputs from their employees in order to facilitate higher performance but in turn result towards undertaking dysfunctional decisions. Hogg and Terry (2014) stated that in case of managing occupational stresses, it is required to be ensured that the objectives of the employee has an fair degree of alignment with the organizational and occupational requirements. It can be construed from the practices as observed in case of Amazon that there seems to be substantial degree of non-alignment pertaining to the objective of employees and that of the company. Primary objective of each employee is towards responding to incentives that are both of financial and non-financial nature and to maintain work life balance. In case of the current company, it is observed that few of the employees get to achieve the stringent set of benchmark as has been laid out by Amazon. Even though that facilitates incentives such as financial bonuses and stocks for managerial employees and executives, it is absent in case of lower level staffs. The nature of Amazons business resulted in putting high degree of emphasis upon the warehousing and deli verance of goods. However, the observations made pertaining to the warehouse conditions and the inadequate incentive structures related to lower level workers showcases that Amazon has serious organizational management issues. Shafritz, Ott, and Jang (2015) stated that in case the human resources and incentive structure tend to be constrained by adverse managerial policies, the organizational stress tend to aggravate. It can be construed in case of Amazon; the organizational stress is prevalent in a high quantum. Moreover, it can also be mentioned that there are clear instances of workplace incivility prevalent at Amazon. It can be construed that the policies regarding employee and workforce management that comprises of facilitating means to aggravate office politics, accelerate high degree of employee turnover cannot contribute positively towards Amazons performance in the long run. Naylor, Pritchard and Ilgen (2013) stated in the context of employee performance, job satisfaction is the primary determinant of the rate of employee turnover that the organization faces. Moreover, Altman, Valenzi and Hodgetts (2013) stated that in case of high growth companies, the emphasis shall be upon lowering attrition rates and through incentives and recreational activities. The aforementioned set of observations made upon Amazon results in a perception that the company requires revising its organizational framework and emphasize upon facilitating a workplace environment that is permeated by job satisfaction. Armstrong and Taylor (2014) advocated that transformational leadership theory tend to inculcate the mannerisms and attitudes showcased by the leaders and which in turn is then affects the organization as a whole. CEO Jeffrey Bezos has set high benchmarks for its employees and the financial performance, pertaining to the company has displayed enormous growth prospects. However, the leadership skills of the CEO have failed in motivating the employees in providing their best efforts as regards to performance for a sustainable period. Greaves, Zibarras and Stride (2013) stated that in the organizational contexts, intrinsic motivation has greater degree of dependency upon employee-superior relationship. In case of Amazon, the pressures of generating high quantum of revenue out of thin profit margin on each transactions has resulted in exerting high degree of pressures upon its employees. Timely deliverance of products to consumers coupled with an incentive structure that is below par as f ar as comparisons are made to incentive structures. Recommendations: The prevalent set of work culture at Amazon requires a though evaluation in order to identify the shortcomings in managerial policies pertaining to employee and worker motivation. The policies that aggravates workplace politics requires amendment in order to facilitate an environment where the employee can focus upon the designated jobs rather than indulging in activities that are predominantly unproductive. The feedback policy pertaining to the employees requires overhauling and a grievance redress department is required to be set up by the company. That, in turn, shall facilitate minimizing the adverse issues faced by employees. Moreover, the human resources department requires undertaking measures that aggravates the degree of job satisfaction as is faced by the employee. Moreover, a certain quantum of profit requires to be distributed onto its lower level employees in order to improve the risk mitigation measures. Moreover, the performance parameters are required to be scaled down in order to facilitate minimization of attrition rate of employees. The company requires to observe other giants such as Facebook, Google, Apple amongst others in terms of reframing its policies regarding employee engagement. The leadership pertaining to the CEO and higher-level management requires to be permeated into its employee. Moreover, the company requires focusing upon the fostering motivation onto its employees and restricts policy that tend to aggravate resentment and sabotage. Conclusion: The above study showcased analysis of factors affecting organizational behavior at Amazon Inc. The study had sought to address those issues in light of organizational behavior theories and find remedies pertaining to the problems prevalent in the organization. The observation of employee management policies prevalent at Amazon has displayed that there are serious negative repercussions upon the employee performance. In order to minimize the attrition and turnover rate pertaining to the organization, the aforementioned recommendations are required to be followed by Amazon. References and Bibliographies: Altman, S., Valenzi, E. and Hodgetts, R.M., 2013.Organizational behavior: Theory and practice. Elsevier. Armstrong, M. and Taylor, S., 2014.Armstrong's handbook of human resource management practice. Kogan Page Publishers. Avolio, B.J. and Yammarino, F.J. eds., 2013.Transformational and charismatic leadership: The road ahead. Emerald Group Publishing. Baran, B.E., Shanock, L.R. and Miller, L.R., 2012. Advancing organizational support theory into the twenty-first century world of work.Journal of Business and Psychology,27(2), pp.123-147. Barrick, M.R., Mount, M.K. and Li, N., 2013. The theory of purposeful work behavior: The role of personality, higher-order goals, and job characteristics.Academy of Management Review,38(1), pp.132-153. Bolino, M.C., Klotz, A.C., Turnley, W.H. and Harvey, J., 2013. Exploring the dark side of organizational citizenship behavior.Journal of Organizational Behavior,34(4), pp.542-559. Borman, W.C. and Motowidlo, S.J., 2014.Organizational citizenship behavior and contextual performance: A special issue of human performance. Psychology Press. Cane, J., OConnor, D. and Michie, S., 2012. Validation of the theoretical domains framework for use in behaviour change and implementation research.Implementation Science,7(1), p.1. DuBrin, A.J., 2013.Fundamentals of organizational behavior: An applied perspective. Elsevier. DuBrin, A.J., 2013.Fundamentals of organizational behavior: An applied perspective. Elsevier. Francis, J.J., OConnor, D. and Curran, J., 2012. Theories of behaviour change synthesised into a set of theoretical groupings: introducing a thematic series on the theoretical domains framework.Implementation Science,7(1), p.1. French, S.D., Green, S.E., OConnor, D.A., McKenzie, J.E., Francis, J.J., Michie, S., Buchbinder, R., Schattner, P., Spike, N. and Grimshaw, J.M., 2012. Developing theory-informed behaviour change interventions to implement evidence into practice: a systematic approach using the Theoretical Domains Framework.Implementation Science,7(1), p.1. Greaves, M., Zibarras, L.D. and Stride, C., 2013. Using the theory of planned behavior to explore environmental behavioral intentions in the workplace.Journal of Environmental Psychology,34, pp.109-120. Haslam, S.A., van Knippenberg, D., Platow, M.J. and Ellemers, N. eds., 2014.Social identity at work: Developing theory for organizational practice. Psychology Press. Hatch, M.J. and Cunliffe, A.L., 2013.Organization theory: modern, symbolic and postmodern perspectives. Oxford university press. Hogg, M.A. and Terry, D.J. eds., 2014.Social identity processes in organizational contexts. Psychology Press Hogg, M.A. and Terry, D.J. eds., 2014.Social identity processes in organizational contexts. Psychology Press. Kurtz, D. (2016). Why Is Amazon Still Fighting a Critical New York Times Piece?. [online] New Republic. Available at: https://newrepublic.com/article/123165/why-amazon-still-fighting-critical-new-york-times-piece [Accessed 23 Nov. 2016]. Martins, C., Oliveira, T. and Popovi?, A., 2014. Understanding the Internet banking adoption: A unified theory of acceptance and use of technology and perceived risk application.International Journal of Information Management,34(1), pp.1-13. Metcalf, L. and Benn, S., 2013. Leadership for sustainability: An evolution of leadership ability.Journal of Business Ethics,112(3), pp.369-384. Miner, J.B., 2015.Organizational behavior 1: Essential theories of motivation and leadership. Routledge. Naylor, J.C., Pritchard, R.D. and Ilgen, D.R., 2013. A theory of behavior in organizations. Academic Press. Nelson, D.L. and Quick, J.C., 2013.Organizational behavior: Science, the real world, and you. Cengage Learning. Nytimes.com. (2016). Amazon Spars With The Times Over Investigative Article. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/business/amazon-spars-with-the-times-over-investigative-article.html [Accessed 23 Nov. 2016]. Pettigrew, A.M., 2014.The politics of organizational decision-making. Routledge. Pinder, C.C., 2014.Work motivation in organizational behavior. Psychology Press. Shafritz, J.M., Ott, J.S. and Jang, Y.S., 2015.Classics of organization theory. Cengage Learning. Streitfeld, J. (2016). Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/technology/inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-in-a-bruising-workplace.html [Accessed 23 Nov. 2016]. Twice.com (2016). Bezos Still Smarting From New York Times' Amazon Article. [online] Available at: https://www.twice.com/news/retail/bezos-still-smarting-new-york-times-amazon-article/61056 [Accessed 23 Nov. 2016]. Van de Ven, A.H., Ganco, M. and Hinings, C.R., 2013. Returning to the frontier of contingency theory of organizational and institutional designs.The Academy of Management Annals,7(1), pp.393-440. Venkatesh, V., Thong, J.Y. and Xu, X., 2012. Consumer acceptance and use of information technology: extending the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology.MIS quarterly,36(1), pp.157-178. Zillman, C. (2016). Amazons Jay Carney rips New York Times report on company culture. [online] Fortune. Available at: https://fortune.com/2015/10/19/amazon-new-york-times-2/ [Accessed 23 Nov. 2016].

Conventional Medicine And Alternative Medicine Essays -

Conventional Medicine And Alternative Medicine ?Conventional medicine has little to learn from alternative medicine?. Today many people in the UK and US choose to be treated by methods that are not based on Western scientific methods, that is the science and practice of medicine which is standard in the West. These methods are known as ?Alternative medicine? or ?Complementary medicine? ,which include homeopathy, acupuncture, osteopathy, aromatherapy, chiropractic medicine, and reflexology among others. Chinese medicine is also increasingly popular. Unlike alternative medicine, conventional medicine has proven effectiveness and is scientifically based, while alternative medicine has its drawbacks and a lack of scientific basis and its results are not always consistent. For this reason alternative medicine is not generally available on the National Health Service in the UK and other countries, and people have to pay for their own treatment. Whereas some people consider it a mystery and do not dare try it because they believe it might be dangerous or unsafe, some others just consider it as a lot of mumbo jumbo and pay little or no attention to it. People who feel fearful or mistrustful of it claim that if its medicines and potions really worked, then proper doctors would use it. However, since the early 1980s alternative medicine has become more and more popular, and although it is not officially accepted by the medical profession, some doctors do accept that such methods can be effective in treating some types of illnesses. Furthermore, conventional medicine has its limitations, since some illnesses are incurable and some others which are caused by psychological problems cannot be cured by its methods. In contrast, alternative medicine can be effective in many such circumstances and there is a general acceptance that its methods can be beneficial. Many people who have not found a solution to their problem in conventional medicine have resorted to alternative medicine and obtained effective results, as is the case with hypnotherapy which has helped many people in overcoming problems such as insomnia, stress-related disorders, a smoking habit, an allergy, aches and pains. In addition, people who are in favour of alternative medicine claim that it is good beca use it is natural. But not all the people who have tried alternative medicine felt enthusiastic about it from the very beginning. On the contrary, many of them mistrusted it and felt apprehensive or sceptic, and after their experience they changed their mind and were pleased with it as they noticed an improvement in their condition. In other cases, however, people who lacked motivation in undergoing such treatments and were unable to take them seriously found them ineffective and felt unconvinced or even resentful after their experience. This shows that most probably motivation and trust on the part of people play an important role in the results of alternative medicine. In conclusion, it can be said that there can be many potential benefits as well as drawbacks in alternative medicine, and that its effectiveness can depend heavily on people's reliability and motivation with respect to it. Nevertheless it is not scientifically based and cannot be regarded as having as consistent results as is the case of conventional medicine. In spite of this fact, many people choose to be treated by alternative medicine. (521 words) Medicine Essays

Hotel Ratings in the Modern World

Hotel Ratings in the Modern World Introduction Looking at the modern industry of hospitality, the hotel ratings seem too strange and unreliable. Having visited many hotels, I may say that there are a lot of those which do not correspond to the real estate of things. Having read two articles about hotel ratings, I should say that the modern system of hotel ratings is too poor and does not nave any reliable grounds.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Hotel Ratings in the Modern World specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Neither the rating which is given by the credible magazine which tries to follow the international standards nor the one presented by those who have visited the place can be trusted as most of the comments are left by the professional writers who are paid for a rating to make people believe that the place is good enough. There is also no guarantee that a hotel rating presented by a reliable company which is responsible for creating the rating is objective as all people do in the modern world are subjected to business relations. Body Hotel business is one of the most important ones as accommodation is the central aspect in the global political and economical relations in the world. Each company tries to be responsible for the ranks it gives, however, being based on the business relations there is no guarantee that the hotel is ranked adequately and no business relations are involved. Looking at the present situation in the accommodation business, the following aspects are to be considered. First, hotels want to get as many customers as possible, therefore, the marketing and promotion strategy is usually on the high level. The hotels create websites where people seem to express their opinion. However, in most cases professional writers leave comments. Of course, people are able to do it as well. One may come across several negative feedbacks, but a clever client would think that they are just the personal opinion of those who are always unsatisfied with everything as the vast majority of the feedbacks are going to be positive. Second, there are many companies which guarantee to provide hotel ranking services having compared and contrasted the hotel’s services with the standards and to draw the conclusions. However, the absence of any internationally accepted standards makes it possible for the companies to vary in their opinions. The business relations are based on the financial grounds, therefore, the companies get money and give a hotel rating it wants. Finally, hotel business is very competitive. The Internet has become the most important means of advertising. Many people in the world use the Internet for all needs and the information search is one of the main functions the Internet performs. Having understood this idea, many hotel promotion programs became to be oriented on the customers’ feedback. Conclusion Therefore, it should be concluded that hotel ratings in the modern world a re created just with business purposes and some of the hotels do not correspond to the level they are ranked with. Being positioned as 5 star hotels, most of the accommodation services are not that perfect as they are to be.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More It is impossible to get to know about a hotel the whole truth before staying in that hotel. The websites which seem to express client’s opinion are served by the professionals, the feedbacks are created to attract more customers and the ranking system is used just for marketing services as there are no international standards.

Ethnic studies Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ethnic studies - Term Paper Example forcement of policies, attitudes, practices that yield equitable opportunity, power, access, treatment, impacts and outcome for all (Yamamoto, pp, 7). Most people have the perception of racism as an individual action such as prejudice or intentional acts of discrimination but racism is just more than individual acts. Racism is a set of cultural, societal and institutional practices and beliefs that subordinate and oppress one race for the benefit of another. Nevertheless, a racial justice integrates the beliefs and practices but still include prejudice as one of the way racism is propagated. If cases of racism exist in a society, the best response is to provide diversity training or sensitivity training. The racial justice framework would seek to evaluate the social injustices, systems, polices and laws and if cases of inequality are found hold them accountable and demand for systemic change. Racism traces its genesis in the colonial relationships, slavery and capitalism. These three elements are the roots of racisms that have manifested itself in different forms such as human oppression such as mentally, financially or socially. Empathy has always played a central role towards racial justice. The understanding and having compassion for those undergoing racism have ignited the racial justice that currently seen in the world. It is the fight for those who felt this is not right that led to emergence of racial justice. For instance, empathy exhibited by the famous leaders such as Martin Luther King on social equality gave birth to racial justice. Those people who felt the minority were being left out during voting exercise and brought the case to US court in 1965 led to change of the system whereby everyone was allowed to vote regardless of the social status or race so long such individual had the requisite age. Yamamoto offers four aspects as a working definition towards racial justice. These integral aspects when incorporated together works on a theory that

Technology Plan Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Technology Plan - Research Paper Example Its head office is located at Redmond, WA. The company uses a web based platform to promote its business on the internet. It can be visited on: Clean-n-Brite.com. However, this is a static web site that only presents basic information about the company. In this scenario, the implementation of new technology based system will offer an excellent support and capability for establishing online sales. At the present, company has a large loyal customer base. In addition, Clean-n-Brite Business is basically a supplier of cleaning products to a lot of different companies and commercial areas. In addition, Clean-n-Brite Business provides different grade cleaning products for a number of different sectors. Additionally, Clean-n-Brite Business presently deals with a large number of corporations including hotels, processing industries, hospitals and public organizations, catering organizations such as leisure centers and schools. With the evolution in business, Clean-n-Brite Business has been able to see a lot of new opportunities as well as issues. Though, the greatest opportunity that business has got is in form of increased customer reorganization and business market position improvement. While talking about the problems that Clean-n-Brite Business is facing include handling the information and data gathered from various customers and corporations. As a result, the existing system which was created to manage these areas is not effectively dealing with these operations in an appropriate manner. Thus, there is need for a better system which can effectively and efficiently manage the operations and processes of business in an attempt to improve the organizational performance. For resolving this problem we have proposed the idea of application of a web based business platform. The new web based business platform will make use of the new technology based services for managing the online sales and transactions. The new system for business management will

Argue that porn has changed sexuality today Research Paper

Argue that porn has changed sexuality today - Research Paper Example Studies concerning the impacts of pornography in the society focus on various outcomes including potential influences on sexual dysfunction, rape, and difficulties with sexual relationships among others. Individuals can easily access sexually explicit materials from the internet and the effect or influence of this is questionable. Today, exposure to pornography has left many sexually active and independent young women to engage in some sexual acts and do things that they do not want to do in bed which they later regret. According to many studies concerning this same topic, men were found to use sexually explicit materials from the internet as opposed to women. Indeed, watching pornography greatly affect individuals’ sexual behaviours which in turn influences their relationships negatively. Following an extensive research, this paper focuses on the relationship between pornography and sexual aggressiveness among individuals. Even though exposure to pornography has been associat ed with sexual violence and failing relationships, its contribution to sexual enhancement for some people should not be ignored. Individuals exposed to extreme pornographic images are more likely to become addicted or tolerant to such films and this in turn will affect their sexual response. Despite the presence of many studies conducted on this issue, there is still no clear evidence confirming that virtual pornographic images and films can make individuals become addicted to such acts. This is because addiction to porn sex or images influences individuals’ sexual experience in general making them to be sexually dysfunctional since the real sexual experiences do not arouse these addicts. In addition, most people using pornographic materials tend to fantasize about or imitate some of the scenes they have watched in these films in order to get aroused during sexual intercourse with their partners. Pornography is one common way through which

Promoting fashion brands through social media

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