Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Construction Companies in an Online Environment Essay

For a company to be feasible online it must pull the consumer every bit good as nowadays a feasible market for the merchandise being sold. When one thinks of a company that does concern good online they may convey to mind concerns such as Amazon or Google. However there are many companies that provide a great merchandise or service but fail to hold an on-line presence that some of their top online rivals possess. One field that has an expansive online presence is the building industry. Many companies such as Thor Construction Inc. have gone the path of engaging a professional online market company to plan their web site. while other much smaller companies have to plan their on-line presence by what their budget will let. Darrell Julian Construction out of Albuquerque. NM is a company that has a web site that could profit from developing a different online scheme directed toward their mark audience in the commercial and residential building field. It used to be that one would travel to the xanthous pages to happen a contractor or trust on word of oral cavity to happen a company for a building undertaking. Harmonizing to the web site for Darrell Julian Construction ( Darrell Julian Construction. Inc. . 2007 ) . the company was established in 1975. long earlier on-line selling would hold been a idea for Mr. Julian and his company. As the company grew and the industry began to hold greater on-line prevision. Darrell Julian building needed to take its service to the cyberspace to increase their marketability and remain competitory with the other buildings companies in their mark market. By making this Darrell Julian’s company identified with what Swiply’s web site provinces that â€Å"the cyberspace gives you a virtually limitless platform on which you can separate yourself as an industry expert. † ( Swipely. 2011 ) In 2007 the web site darrelljulianconstuction. com was created to give this long established company a opportunity to vie in an on-line environment. The merchandise and service that the company has to offer would be feasible in an on-line market as the consumer would be able to see the edifices and the alone manner that Darrell Julian’s company assembles the merchandise. Harmonizing to the web site the walls are designed at a panel works located at their installation and so shipped to the occupation site for assembly as opposed to constructing everything at the occupation site. This ability allows the workers to piece preciseness wall panels and construct big scale undertakings in a timely mode. Having these keywords in their online selling allows the client to seek for a building company that can provide the demand of big building undertakings with a timely bringing. All of these facets allow this company to acquire the word out to the online shopper that they can make full specific demands. nevertheless merely holding a web site in today’s market may non be plenty to acquire the consumer to shop your merchandise or service. Darrell Julian’s web site is available merely by typing in Darrell Julian and so the hunt engine supplies the web site as one of the first listed on the page. So it is non a difficult web site to happen. if one knows the name of the concern. However. if a individual was to seek for building companies in Albuquerque. NM. that individual would non see the name Darrell Julian anyplace on the first page. The client seeking for what Mr. Julian’s company has to offer would non hold the chance to see the web site because it is non available in a general hunt. For this site to be successful it must make the people that are seeking for it. The competition is out at that place and their end is to make the consumer foremost before they have the chance to shop around. Some of the first sites that one sees when a hunt is done for building companies in Albuquerque would be companies such as Jaynes Corporation. Gerald Martin General Contractor. and Hart Construction Inc. There are many other companies that appear on the first page of the hunt but a first glimpse these appear to be the more popular companies that consumers search for when seeking to happen a building company. Jaynes Corporation is the first site that appears with a brief description after the companies’ name. Jaynes Corporation is chiefly a commercial building company that offers competition to Darrell Julian Construction on a big graduated table. Their site shows many images of the undertakings that they have done every bit good as elaborate descriptions as to what the undertaking required. Some of the other positives of the web site are that they provide a complete company profile. imperativeness releases and intelligence narratives representing their work every bit good as wagess. and links to societal media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Some of the negative facets of the site are that they do non speak about that building procedure every bit much as one would believe would be necessary to understand how the company adds to the value of their service with alone traits of their design. There is besides non a topographic point to happen client feedback on the site. be it good or bad so that a client can associate to the other organisation that have utilized Jaynes Corporation’s services. Gerald Martin has a beautiful place page that entices the visitant with dramatic images of some of their greatest achievements in the field of commercial building. Besides on the place page are some of the company’s accreditations. with the in writing designs that those who understand the building industry would acknowledge by site. As with the web site for Jaynes. this site offers many images of the company’s undertakings with a elaborate description of the construction that was built. Besides there is a nexus to read intelligence Jockey shortss to let one an penetration into some of the interior workings of Gerald Martin and their achievements. One of the negatives that could stand out to a visitant of the site would be that there are no links to societal media sites. Again much like with Jaynes Corporation there are no testimonies on the site. There is non a topographic point to travel to see customer’s sentiments of the company or the site. Another facet that one might happen is that there is non a topographic point to compare how Gerald Martin stands apart from their competition giving the client a manner to extinguish other companies from their hunt. One concluding site for comparing is Hart Construction located in the local Albuquerque country. The web site for this company has many of the same attributes as Darrel Julian’s web site. Upon first glimpse the site is non as professionally done as the other two companies that it is compared to above. The site does have quality images that show some of the occupations that the company has done but there are no descriptions as to what was done on the undertaking. so one does non what aspects of building the company can supply to their clients. One property that the site does offer. that differs from the others. is a mention page. They are non testimonies but they do give the possible client the opportunity to reach other clients that have used the company for their undertakings. All of these sites differ immensely from Darrell Julian Construction with the exclusion of Hart Construction’s site. that allow for competition to supply a much more attractive online experience for individuals seeking for a quality contractor. One facet of online selling that Darrell Julian’s web site could profit from would be content selling. Harmonizing to Laura Lake from About. com â€Å"everyone is seeking to sell. but those that can inform are more likely to acquire gross revenues. † ( Lake. L. . n. d. ) Though Darrell Julian’s site does demo content that supports their service every bit good as descriptions of what the company can offer the client. it does non travel in depth adequate to demo the value added when taking Darrell Julian Construction over one of their on-line rivals. The site lacks the ability to pull clients with up to day of the month stations and information about the company. It besides does non offer a manner for the possible client to experience that they are being enticed to take Darrell Julian over a similar company that may hold a more modern-day image of their overall value. The content of Jaynes Corporation’s web site offers a really appealing ocular entreaty every bit good as a battalion of chances to research why engaging this company to make a occupation would be good non merely in quality but monetarily every bit good. The content of the web site is presented in such a mode that allows the spectator to voyage to where he or she would wish to travel to happen relevant information. When one positions Darrell Julian’s web site it is non as appealing nor is it as easy to voyage as some of their rivals. A company must remain relevant to remain in order to remain in competition with other rivals. If a site gives the spectator the sense that the content is non current. and that the company is non keeping their web site. a individual may be inclined to travel elsewhere to hunt. Another online selling scheme Darrell Julian’s company would profit from would be Web site optimisation. As mentioned antecedently. the web site can be found when typing in the owner’s name. Darrell Julian. However. if one was to type in general building keywords they would non be directed to Darrell Julian’s web site. Even though the rubric of the company does incorporate the word building it would be much more good to hold the first word in the rubric be associated with the building industry. A name like Construction Designs by Darrell Julian would let the company a better opportunity of demoing up on the first page of the hunt engines query. ( Stokes. R. . n. d. ) Optimization brings to mind ways to execute in a more adept mode. For Darrell Julian’s web site to be more adept for the client it would hold to be more readily accessible. One manner to do a site more available to the individual carry oning the hunt would be to hold links on web site that provide related merchandises or services. If a relationship could be made with a site that provides land that is zoned for commercial building a client that was looking for land to construct on would besides come across Mr. Julian’s web site to supply their building demands. It is of import to hold positive facets about 1s company be the focal point when a client is seeking for a merchandise or service provided by a company. When Darrell Julian Construction is typed into a hunt the focal point of the hunt conveying the oculus straight to the web site. which is the first point on the page. However if the individual seeking for this peculiar web site scrolls down to mid page there is a nexus to a legal web page that brings up a jurisprudence suit against the company from 1998. Though this is non a detrimental claim it does convey inquiries to the consumer carry oning the hunt as to whether or non they should go on to see Darrell Julian Construction as a campaigner for their concern. It would be much better for the company if intelligence like this had to be searched for alternatively of on the same page as the nexus to the site itself. One scheme that would be utile here would to be persevering in making adequate web traffic via societal media or other positive web sites that allows this information to fall back to other pages so that it is non the first thing that a client sees. One could utilize sites like Squidoo. or a blog site such a sGoogle+ to make positive web traffic on a page. Even though Darrell Julian’s web site does province what the concern can make for the client. it does non to the full cover how the client will profit by taking Darrell Julian Construction as its contractor. One scheme that keeps such things in head is a displacement in believing. altering the focal point from and upstream attack. looking at the merchandise. to a downstream attack. concentrating on the client. In Naraj Dawar’s Harvard Business Review article he states that â€Å"the strategic inquiry that drives concern today is non ‘What else can we do? ’ but ‘What else can we make for our clients? † . ( Dawar. N. . 2013 ) Darrell Julian’s web site does a good occupation of speaking about their expertness in panel works building and how that allows the company to construct walls at their site and so transport them out to the build site. It does non travel into great item as to how this will profit the client financially every bit good as shorten the clip line it will take to complete the merchandise. All of these facets of the concern would be positives to a possible client and should be brought out in more item on the site in topographic point that would be readily viewed by the consumer. such as the place page. With all of these schemes in head one of the most good schemes that Mr. Julian could integrate into his web site would be the presence of societal media. It seems about everyone is on societal media sites these yearss from grandmas posting images of their grandkids to concerns marketing their merchandise with instant client feedback and response. From Facebook to Twitter concerns are acquiring the message out that their merchandise is superior over what their competition has to offer and ask for clients that have used their company to distribute the word that they approve of the merchandise or service that they received. Jaynes Corporation is a perfect illustration of how the building industry can make those clients that may non straight search for their site by marketing on sites such as Facebook and Google Plus. One of the advantages to sites such as Facebook is that clients can make your web site through your Facebook page. or they can associate to you Facebook though your direct web page. For illustration. if person had used Darrell Julian Construction for one of their undertakings they may wish your page on Facebook. Possibly a possible client may be friends with this person and come across Darrell Julian’s web page via this signifier of selling. On the other manus a possible client may be on Mr. Julian’s web site and desiring to read some testimony of others experiences with his company so they click the nexus on the site and are directed to the companies Facebook page. There they will hold the advantage of acquiring to cognize what type of a concern they are looking into and how others felt about the service they received from Darrell Julian building. By supplying these chances for his clients Darrell Julian has the possible to spread out his concern web presence exponentially. Another societal media site that could be really utile to Darrell Julian’s company would be YouTube. This site allows the user to watch video’s of peculiar topics that the spectator may be interested in through a hunt straight on the site. or by associating to the site via 1s personal web page. One manner that Darrell Julian may profit from a site such as this would be to set links to some pictures of his undertakings as they are being constructed in existent clip. Customers could snap on the nexus and ticker as a undertaking unfolds. and to see the professionalism and workmanship that Mr. Julian speaks of in his web site. Traveling back to a old remark sing selling scheme. one of Darrell Julian’s hallmark design facets of the concern is his panel works design. If the links are set up right on the site a client could hold the chance to watch the panel works procedure as it happens. This individual would hold the alone ability to visualise for themselves what the company is speaking about in the site without of all time holding to go forth the comfort of their office. There is besides the testimonial piece of the selling scheme. YouTube could let for picture to be posted of clients speaking about the first-class service and outstanding experience they had when covering with Darrell Julian Construction. These sites are some of the more good cognize societal media sites that most are familiar with. nevertheless blogs offer the company an chance to make a topographic point for non merely direct selling by speaking about the merchandise. but indirectly by composing about experiences and interactions with clients. Blogs come in many forms and sizes. from societal web logs to wikis. or podcasts. A web log can be set up easy by an single and does non necessitate the aid of a professional to be appealing to individual reading or composing in the web log. Another great property of the web log for the company that chooses to use that media is that it can be controlled. Unlike Facebook or Twitter one can put bounds on who can entree the web log to compose remarks. or give feedback. This is a safe manner for a company to acquire the word out about their merchandise without holding to make excessively much harm control. Darrell Julian Construction could spread out their web presence by holding a web log that clients could associate to through the site. This would once more let the client to read elaborate descriptions of others experiences with the company every bit good as get to cognize Mr. Julian straight through his entries to the site. Another positive facet of the web log is that it can take a place on the first page of a hunt that person may be carry oning for Darrell Julian Construction leting for a positive hunt and forcing negative facets such as the case to a ulterior page. As a whole the online selling program that Darrell Julian Construction. Inc. set out to set up was a good start for the company. A web site that would market to their consumer base on the cyberspace and let them to remain competitory with other companies that provided similar services. When Darrell Julian set up his web site in 2007 there were many properties to the site that would let his company to stay competitory via the cyberspace. On the site potency clients could happen out what Darrell Julian Construction’s mission and vision is. every bit good as how the concern operates. One can besides happen images and brief descriptions of some of the company’s top designs. With that being said the site itself is non what some of Darrell Julian rivals has to offer their clients. One of Mr. Julian’s biggest rivals. Jaynes Corporation. offers their client a visually appealing web site that has a battalion of high definition images every bit good as elaborate description of their undertakings. In add-on to the entreaty of the web site. a client can besides associate to the companies Facebook site. their Twitter site. every bit good as other societal media sites that will let the client to derive better cognition of whom they are making concern with. If Darrell Julian wants his company to remain competitory in an online environment his web site will necessitate to be updated with more content as to why the company is feasible to the possible online client. More elaborate descriptions of Darrell Julian Constructions alone panel works and how the works will profit the client would be a utile add-on to the site. More synergistic images and elaborate descriptions of occupations will let a client better entree to information from the comfort of their personal computing machine. Mr. Julian’s competition will most likely continue to update their sites every bit good as add content as it becomes evident that it will assist in their selling scheme. For Mr. Julian to remain competitory his company will necessitate to implement a program to hold person within the company or a 3rd party that will maintain the content up-to-date and let a competitory border over the competition. Some of the facets discussed supra will assist in leting Mr. Julian’s company to be one of the first web sites a client sees when they Google the word building in Albuquerque. NM. One major alteration may merely merely be altering the name of the site to include the existent word building at the beginning of the name leting the hunt to give his web site by subject. These schemes that would to be implemented will let a much better experience for the client every bit good as the company as a whole. Social media is everyplace and most people are traveling to societal media to seek for merchandises or services before they will really see the company’s web site. Many will falter across a company’s web site as a consequence making other things on a societal media site. Mr. Julian does hold a Facebook site for his company nevertheless. there is no manner to entree the company’s web site from Facebook. nor is at that place any manner to entree the Facebook site from the existent web site itself. A nexus between these two sites would let the client to non merely see the web site but to use societal media to seek for a company that will suit their demand. In decision. Darrell Julian has an on-line presence that allows a client to happen them if they are willing to make the research. Most do non pass that much clip to happen a company when there are other sites that are readily available to the client through a hunt on a hunt engine or through a societal media site. Companies continue to acquire a bulk of their concern through their advertisement and selling on the cyberspace. for some companies it is their individual and best beginning of selling. Darrell Julian Construction could keep a strong presence on the web by doing some critical alterations to their site and societal media interaction with the client. Keeping this on-line presence and taging their company in a professional mode could be the difference between a client taking Mr. Julian’s company over the competition. MentionsDarrell Julian Construction. Inc. ( 2007 ) . Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. darrelljulianconstruction. com/Lake. L. ( n. d. ) . Top Internet Marketing Strategies for the Small Business. Retrieved fromhypertext transfer protocol: //marketing. about. com/od/strategytutorials/a/Top-Internet-Marketing-Strategies-For-The-Small-Business. htmStokes. R. ( n. d. ) . eMarketing: The indispensable Guide to Online Marketing. v. 1. 0. Chapter 6:Search Engine Optimization. Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //catalog. flatworldknowledge. com/Bookhub/reader/19? e=fwk-105454-ch18 # fwk-105454-ch06Dawar. N. ( 2013 ) . Harvard Business Review: When Selling Is Strategy.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

National University Essay

American students have different attitudes about studying Contents 1. Tallahassee Democrat, Flag. Tallahassee Democrat, Flag. BY Quit Lie One and a half years ago, when my husband came to Florida State University for his doctorate in oceanography, I accompanied him from China. When I first stepped on American soil, many American things deeply attracted me. Since enrolling at the community college for my associates degree, I have especially noticed the differences between Chinese and American attitudes toward studying. Many of my American lacerates are also Curious about societal, family and educational systems in China. Expressing my ideas about the effects of these systems on college students in China may help my friends here understand the differences between us. China is a big country, not only in its land but also in its tremendous population. Although the government spends a huge amount of funds on developing education every year, It still can’t satisfy the innumerable students who are seeking knowledge. Thus,unlike in America, where everybody can go to college, a lot of Chinese students do not have the opportunity to study at colleges. For example, the government has a policy that people must be under 25 years of age to be able to go to college. Also, students must pass an annual National University Entrance Exam, which Is very strict. Often, only one out of 10 students pass It. The students call this testing month ‘ ‘ Dark July,† implying that this exam decides their fate. Not only do the students regard it as important, but also their parent’s treat It seriously. In America, students can decide to go to college by themselves and their parent’s hardly Interfere with them. In China, old, traditional thoughts are still kept In people’s minds. They think that studying at allege Is an Incomparable honor. If a student Is enrolled In college, his or her parent’s are extremely happy. They will Immediately tell all their relatives and friends. But If a student doesn’t pass the entrance exam, his parent’s will feel as If they cannot raise their heads In front of others. Some parent’s will even blame their child for not studying hard enough. These common views make some students feel pressure on their hearts. By comparison, American students leave their parent’s earlier and live and work In society by themselves. Most Chinese students never leave their parent’s before they go to college. This dependent life makes them want to obey their parent’s’ advice about everything. Prenatal advice Is their mall Influence. Some parent’s Insist that their child attend the July exam year after year until he or she passes It. The Influence of the family Is very Important on students In China. When I first came to college here, the American laissez-fairer style of education deeply Interested me. American colleges give students broad space and allow students to develop Independently. Students can freely choose their favorite courses, except for certain required courses. They can even choose their favorite teachers. This Is Incredible to e. In China, the field of study can’t be changed from the first day that the students come to college. Furthermore, every semester the school has already formulated the limits their development. At the community college, I also observe that quite a number of students cut class without excuses. This behavior is really strange. In China, even if a student is sick, he will normally persist in attending classes. Although the school has strict rules for absent students, the majority of students think that they should take responsibility for their own education. Chinese students study very hard and treasure the opportunity to study. Everyone wants to get the highest score. In China, there are no part-time students in a university. Tuition is provided by parent’s, so students want to get the highest scores to repay their parent’s’ love. Unlike American students who have a lot of chances to get a good Job, when Chinese students graduate, their grades become a major factor for a good company to choose them. To get a good Job in the future, students must study hard. Obviously, compared with the American educational system, the Chinese educational system could be improved by giving students more freedom to develop their abilities based n their interests.

Monday, July 29, 2019

ETB Paper and Activity 3 and 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

ETB Paper and Activity 3 and 4 - Essay Example 2. The profile result is a good illustration of my work-related interests. The top 3 interests show what exactly what I look for in a job. I’m habitual of focusing on doing things nicely and completely, rather than messing it up for the sake of creating something new or extraordinary. The investigative interest is also what fanaticizes me, and I would love to adopt a profession, which requires investigative and analytical tasks. Enterprising is another interest, close to my personality. It is because of my interest in drawing innovative ideas and strategies for businesses or projects and the potential of leading a group of people to a desired goal. 3. The occupational matches of my interest are of sales and marketing. I find these occupations interesting as they offer room to potential ideas and investigating public behaviour. The occupation of marketing covers all the basic interests I look for in a work or occupation. That includes a conventional working environment, where w inning the trust of customers is the key element. Moreover in the marketing field, innovation and enterprising are always valued and serve as essentials of one’s recognition and success in this occupation (Ehret and Galanakis). Activity 4: e-Learning Business Skills Demos (Being an Effective Team Member) 1. The course being selected for this activity is â€Å"Being an Effective Team Member†. This course draws a nice outline of elements required in forming a stronger and productive team. The learning environment serves as a powerful tool in understanding the benefits of working in a team and prioritizing team’s interest over self interests. Another positive feature that this course offers to its participants is the knowledge of different behaviours that commonly exists in any team and how to deal with those effectively (skill Soft). One negative feature of this learning environment is that, it does not cover the hidden problems of mistrust, free loaders and polit ical activities among team members. These are areas that affect the productivity and willingness of a person to work in a team, or to put additional efforts (skill Soft). 2. Some of the major learning outcomes of this course include motivation and zest of an every team player, to work as a unit. The course focuses on the concept that, for a team to be productive, each of its members should be motivated and feel good about the team he or she is associated with (Dettmann). To achieve this outcome, this online medium of learning can prove beneficial as it uses practical and real life scenarios, to build a sound understanding about the topic. Examples and activities for team building and working proactively, can be taught nicely in this method of learning, by providing a cluster of theories and examples (skill Soft). 3. Online learning is not a recent method of studying, but was introduced many years back. Tough we can see that the awareness about e-learning has grown substantially over the years, but still its usage is limited to a group of people. This is because its benefits and adaptability varies with the type of people and their professions (Tellefsen). A particularly essential element in e-learning is computer literacy and accessibility, and those who do not have knowledge or access to computer, cannot adopt this medium for learning. However, there are several types of people, which have switched from the conventional method of studying to

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Political ideologies Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Political ideologies - Article Example Engel was the only user of this phrase, and not even once by Marx. He used it in a private epistle to Franz Mehring in 1893. In this letter he wanted to talk about how little or no effort was invested in thinking about the influence of the state of mind in determining social action. He and fellow philosophers had only thought of the reverse. False consciousness refers to the knowledge that a working class character should have but are yet to possess due to lack of consideration of how they should be paid, their working conditions, their rights and privileges (Lukacs 4). Simply it is the lack of knowledge of one’s own best interests. Self-sacrifice is a form of false consciousness. It is likened to working for free yet one is entitled to pay as well as privileges since one is cut out for that particular job. That one is needed by the owner of the mode of production but fails to see the fact that since they are needed, they should be getting a wage, not only as pay for the work but also privileges to ensure that they are ever available and to make their life as comfortable as possible in order for them to undertake their scheduled task as efficiently and as to the maximum profit achievable. Lukà ¡cs introduced this idea in the 1920s with a bid to comprehend ‘how come the working class is made of the less of social revolutionaries.’ ... mployer should ensure he has health insurance, or his pay may be too low compared to the amount of labor, and in case of errors because of being human, and not deliberate sabotage, his pay is safe from deductions. A paralegal who works in the archives is also entitled to the same health benefits as those of the legal superiors she works for. The dust id hazardous and the working hours are long for someone who is on their feet three quarters of the time. That due to the fact that they know the content and location of the files, they too are needed and their pay deserves to reflect that. 2. Specifically how has mechanical reproduction compromised our ability to think critically? (Walter Benjamin) Mechanical reproduction takes away the authenticity of art. It no longer becomes the property of the original artiste but becomes of the masses. They get to own the product even though they did not contribute to its composition, neither did they contribute to its creative works. Mechanical rep roduction also takes away the autonomy of the artwork itself. It seizes to be the only one of its kind and it becomes a mass production which anyone can have at their will. This reduces its exchange value and therefore the artwork becomes less of an attraction to own. The mechanical reproduction of a photograph of a human model or actor, for example, loses value as it is transferred from one person to another from the original photographer. The ideas of the original photographer are disseminated throughout and they become less interesting when seen too many times. If a certain company wants to use that picture and they happen to find it in circulation, they will want to use a picture that has never been seen by the public. In any case, they wanted to make an impression that was unique to

Saturday, July 27, 2019

International Human Resource Management and organisational behviour Essay

International Human Resource Management and organisational behviour - Essay Example In the case of running an enterprise or organization, the staffing function is a continuous process, and so the leader or the manager particularly the Human Resource Manager should perform the staffing function at all times. It is necessary that the management must ensure a constant availability of sufficient number of efficient employees from managers, executives, technical persons to labourers, for the efficient functioning of the enterprise. Overall, the selected personnel should be physically, mentally, emotionally and temperamentally fit for the job. This can be achieved by adopting or by having an optimal staffing process. According to Koontz and O’Donnell, â€Å"The managerial function of staffing involves managing the organization structure through proper and effective selection, appraisal and development of personnel to fill the roles designed into the structure†. This optimal staffing process and the resultant optimal performance of the organization will diffe r according to the nature or the type of the organization. That is, organizations may be divided into national firms and Multinational firms. National or indigenous firms are normally started or established by the ‘sons’ and ‘daughters’, or citizens of a particular nation, while Multinational companies (MNC) will be established in particular nations by foreigners, with the native people only playing a secondary role. Due to this difference in origination, the staffing process for these two types of organization will differ. So, this paper will discuss the perspective that staffing a Multinational Company is fundamentally different from staffing a national firm, by analyzing it through case studies. Recruitment forms the first and the main part of the staffing process, whatever is the type of the organization. The HRM perspective stresses that each activity including Staffing should form part of the whole process of people management. (Price 2002) Normally, organizations

Friday, July 26, 2019

Scientific Method Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Scientific Method - Assignment Example The Roman Catholic Church denied the heliocentric view and suggested that people that believed this view were heretics (Young, 2006) because it contradicted some of the passages in the Bible. Many of the new scientific discoveries were thought to be at odds with the teachings of Christ and therefore were not accepted in the eyes of many Christians at the time (and some are still not accepted). This made it very difficult for scientists to publish their works for fear of being ostracized from society. Spinoza believed that there was only infinite substance, in contrast to Descartes’ dualistic view that there is infinite and finite substance. He also rejected the thought that there is a ‘thinking substance’. Protestant values are thought to have encouraged the development of scientific thought by separating Church from state and therefore allowing these ideas to be published and spread legally and politically. The Catholic Church began to have less power and therefore science had the freedom to

Analysis of Personal Finance Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Analysis of Personal Finance - Case Study Example    The Share Portfolio of Ms. Joan Watterson comprises of 2500 Telstra & 1000 AMP shares which she has been holding for more than a year. However, it may be noted that Ms. Watterson is not a very keen equity investor and these investments were accidental. The Capital gain that Ms. Watterson can earn (if these shares were sold now) is equivalent to $3000. Company Numbers of Shares Share Price (as on April 27, 2012) Value of Shares Telstra 2500 3.511 8775 AMP 1000 4.252 4250 All shares were bought and have been held for over one year. The total value of shares: $13025. Telstra paid a dividend worth 0.14 (both 100% franked)3 twice during the last one year, which is the period Ms. Watterson was holding its 2500 shares. During the same period, AMP paid a dividend worth 0.15 (30% franked) and 0.14 (50% franked)4. We can compute the franking credits for Joan Watterson as follows: Franking Credits = Dividend * (3 / 7) * Franking Percentage5 Franking credits for Telstra = $300 and Franking credits for AMP =30 + 19.28 = $49.28 Total Franking Credits = $349.28. 1.3. ... Disposable Income Value Notes Taxable Annual Salary $62000 Dividends received $990 2500 * 2 * 0.14 = $700 1000*0.14 + 1000*0.15=$290 Franking credits $349.28 Interest on cash 4% of $4444 4.25% of $4500 Balance in Holiday account- $4444 (puts in $200 per month at 4%). Balance in Common Wealth Bank (CBA) account- $4500 (interest rate 4.25%)6 Taxable Income $63025.19 Tax Payment $4650 + 0.3*(63025.19-37000) = 12457.55 For taxable income $37,001 - $80,000, the applicable tax is $4,650 plus 30c for each $1 over $37,0007 Disposable Income $50567.63 1.4. Total Expenses per annum Expenses Value per Year Notes Mortgage payment $9050 $7200 (actual fringe benefit per annum + additional $600 per month) Laundry $300 Food & grocery $8400 $700 per month Clothing & shoes $1000 Electricity & gas $660 $110 per two months Phone & Internet $1800 $150 per month Municipal Rates $1000 Water $600 Car Expense Licensing $500 Comprehensive insurance $500 Running cost & repair $2500 Car Loan 0 Medical expense $ 1200 $100 per month Holiday expense $ 5000 Entertainment $4800 $100 per week Gifts $1920 (of which $633.6 is tax deductable) $40 per week (33% of which is in donations to community aid and tax deductable) Other expenses $2400 $200 per month Superannuation Expense $1380 Additional contribution made into West State per month (from taxed income) Total Expenses $50,210  Ã‚  

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Critical thinking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Critical thinking - Essay Example Though, theories and methods are proven or disputed, still due to the critical thinking these conclusions are not final and they are always exposed to comments and criticism. Thanks to critical thinking knowledge is added to all fields allowing for the perpetual evolution of disciplines. Critical thinking and critical approach contribute for the desirable skills that all students aim to - to be able to assess decisively situations. Universities insist on critical thinking because it develops and evolves intelligence and associative thinking. Critical thinking has been interpreted and measured in numberless ways. According to Pascarella and Terenzini (1991) critical thinking "typically involves the individual's ability to do some or all of the following: identify central issues, make correct inferences from data, deduce conclusions from the information or data provided, interpret whether conclusions are warranted on the basis of the data given, and evaluate evidence or authority" (p. 118). They note that the impact of the activated critical thinking is evidenced in postsecondary education. The imperative that students have to concentrate and develop their critical thinking in their postsecondary education identifies the need for scholars to accent on other aspects of thinking while at university. Very often students receive feedbacks on... zing, synthesizing and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generalized by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning or communication, as a guide to belief and action (1)." For them critical thinking is a process and not an end. Paul and Elder (2002) emphasize that there are 9 qualities that transform the language into an optimal use: clarity, precision, depth, accuracy, relevance, significance, logic, breadth and fairness. Usually students who master the critical thinking technique will be able to: Search patterns and underlying rules; Connect ideas to previous knowledge and examine and compare theories and real life experience; Verify and substantiate evidence and relate it to the conclusions; Explore the arguments for and against and ask critical questions and made assumptions; Recognize alternative viewpoints and being able to built counterarguments; Generalizing main concepts and seeking clarifications to build sustainable knowledge; At university level critical thinking is essential for combining discussion with peer-editing activities and to stimulate the collaboration between pupils. An example of encouraging critical thinking at university is establishing "buzz groups" within the class and each groups will discuss a certain aspect of the topic and the other will try to build counter-arguments and critique the conclusions. A research conducted by Johnson et al (1991) shows that "buzz group" discussions following the guidelines of covering main concepts and then critically evaluating if a counter-argument can be built helps students to develop problem-solving skills and to enhance their independent thinking. In "buzz group" discussions learners are able to formulate problems and to be involved in the process of exploratory learning. This is so,

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Citizenship in the age of internet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Citizenship in the age of internet - Essay Example The first and most important benefit of e-voting in Switzerland is that it has raised the number of voters who participated in the recent past elections compared to those who were participating in the earlier elections when the postal voting system was used. E voting has encouraged the young people to participate in the elections due to its simplicity and time saving nature. Another factor that has led to an increase in the voters’ turnout is the facts that the e voting did not replace the other channels of voting like postal voting – those uncomfortable with e voting have an option of using the old methods. In addition, the Swiss who live abroad can now participate in the polls from wherever they are and the handicapped do not have to travel to the postal offices to cast their votes. This voting system is more successful in big cities like Geneva where the pilot projects were carried out. Moreover, e voting reaches the voters from their home and the voting is faster than the traditional methods. There are also possibilities of having several elections in a year and e voting could entice voters to participate in every election. Since its introduction, e voting in Switzerland has received much support from the citizens who more than 74% use the internet and one in every three uses the internet daily. Another advantage of e voting system is the quality of votes. Most of the voters use the internet to access the information they require. This helps them to make informed decisions on the candidates and the electoral process. E-government is another important development in the technological world and it has come to be associated with the word, ‘Information Technology’ in European countries. In e-government, most of the government services are online and the government communicates with the citizens through the internet. On the other hand, the internet media is well developed and

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Thermography technique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Thermography technique - Essay Example Thus a complete surface temperature map of the object can be obtained in a non-contact manner. With appropriate calibration, it is also possible to get the absolute temperature values of any point on the surface of the object. Standards are required for calibration and these standards are materials of known emissivity in the temperature range of calibration. Infrared refers to a region of spectrum between the visible and microwave. The infrared spectrum extends from 0.75 mm to 1000 ?m wavelength range. However for practical applications it is the 1 – 15 ?m wavelength band, which is used. The properties of infrared radiations are similar to those of other electromagnetic radiations like light. These radiations travel in straight lines; propagate in vacuum as well as in solid, liquid and gases. These radiations can be optically focussed and directed by mirrors and lenses. The laws of geometrical optics are valid for infrared radiations as well. The energy and intensity of infrar ed radiation emitted by an object primarily depends on its temperature and can be calculated using the analytical tools such as Wein’s law, Plank’s law and Stefan Boltzmann law. When a body is heated, there is an increase in the temperature and emitted energy. The spectrum of infrared radiation emitted by a heated object contains a continuous band of wavelength over a specific range. The fundamental equations or radiation laws that link the absolute temperature of the emitting object, peak radiation, the intensity and wavelength are the Plank’s Law, the Stefan-Boltzmann Law and the Wein’s Displacement Law. The Plank’s law describes the spectral distribution of radiation intensity from a black body and is mathematically expressed as: [Wm-2sr-1?m-1] †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. (1) Where, W? = Blackbody spectral radiant emittance at wavelength ? (?m) c = 3x108 m/s is the velocity of light in vacuum h = 6.634 x10-3 4 Js is Plank’s constant k = 1.4 x10-23 J/K is Boltzmann’s constant T is absolute temperature of the blackbody Spectral radiant emittance of a blackbody at different temperatures is shown in Fig.1 [1]. Fig. 1: Spectral radiant emittance of a blackbody at different temperatures It can be seen in Fig. 1 that total energy radiated by a blackbody i.e. area under the spectral radiant emittance increases with increasing temperature of the blackbody. Further it can be seen that maxima of the spectral radiant emittance is shifting towards lower wavelength with increasing temperature of the blackbody. If one differentiates equation (1) with respect to ? and equates the differential to zero then one gets the relationship between the temperature of the blackbody and the wavelength corresponding to the maximum spectral radiance. This relationship is known as Wein’s law and is mathematically expressed as [2]: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. (2) Where, ?max is the wavelength corresponding to the maximum spectral emittance T is absolute temperature of the blackbody This equation supports left ward shift of the spectral emittance peak with increasing temperature of the blackbody as in Fig. 1. Integrating equation (1) with respect to ? between the limits ? = 0 to ? for a given temperature T of a blackbody, one gets total radiant power emitted into a hemisphere from the blackbody. This relationship is known as Stefan’s-Boltzmann law and is mathematically expressed as: Total emittance [W/cm2] †¦

Monday, July 22, 2019

Comparing and Contrasting The Conflict Scenes in Great Expectations and Of Mice and Men Essay Example for Free

Comparing and Contrasting The Conflict Scenes in Great Expectations and Of Mice and Men Essay A major point in each of these films are the fight or conflict scenes and although they appear in different points in the story they still have an equally large effect on the main story line. In of Mice and Men this conflict between Curley and Lennie is really not cause by any major factors apart from the fact that Curley is a bully. He only chooses to pick on Lennie because he thinks he can win either way when picking on a big man, because if he wins he has won the fight, and if he looses he can say he won to a larger opponent. This is why Curley picks Lennie when in fact all the others were the ones who were being critical of him. All Lennie had to do was smile to make Curley hit him! You could say he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, which is exactly what Pip was in Great Expectations this was what caused Magwitch to pick on Pip. Magwitch was not retaliating to anything Pip had done in the same way that Curley was not retaliating to anything that Lennie had done, although he does make the false accusation that Lennie was laughing at him. We do not know any past history about Great Expectations apart from the fact that Pips mother and father are dead although this really does not have anything to do with this conflict. We find out later that Magwitch is an escaped convict and so he was merely trying to get food. In of Mice and Men, however, we do know some past history behind the conflict. Curleys wife is a flirt but Curley doesnt seem to realise this so when people say something about his wife he feels confronted and in this case he releases his aggression physically and he releases it on Lennie because he thinks that is the fight he is least likely to loose. The two combatants in the conflict scene from of Mice and Men are Lennie and Curley. Curley comes across as a small muscular ex-boxer who is quick on his feat and very intentionally aggressive. Lennie on the other hand is portrayed as a large soft figure who is naive, innocent and very dependant (on his travelling partner George) and is therefore never intention ally aggressive towards anyone. The men are almost total opposites of each other; this is similar to the end of Great Expectations where Magwitch, the ex-convict meets up with the perfect gentleman he has produced, who happens to be his former combatant Pip from the beginning of the book. In Great Expectations Magwitch is presented as particularly dangerous person at first however later in the book we realise he is in fact a complicated person who was never really trying to hurt anyone. He was obviously born into this social class where he was bound to end up having to steal for food anyway and in fact later in the story he says his earliest memory was stealing cabbages from a farmers patch! So when it comes to Magwitch being a criminal, he really didnt have any choice in the matter. Pip, who the story is about is portrayed as a person with as the story is named Great Expectations, he doesnt seem to be happy with growing up to be just an average worker. So it really must be an amazingly kind and dedicated man, who despite being a convict, manages to produce this perfectly crafted young gentleman. Which in the end causes Magwitch to be executed when he comes over to see what all his money and effort has produced. A main feature in of Mice and Men is the words and phrases used to describe and create atmosphere in relation to the conflict scene between Curley and Lennie. This includes many references and comparisons between the two men and animals. It starts near the beginning of the conflict when Curley tries to intimidate Lennie by walking over and staring at Lennie. In The book Steinbeck describes it by writing, Curley stepped over to Lennie like a terrier. This is a good simile as it really does emphasise Curleys small but snappy character. Then later on when Curley has started hitting Lennie Steinbeck describes Lennie as Bleating. Later on in the fight, however, when Lennie fights back and grabs Curleys hand, this action is described in the book as Curleys fist being lost in Lennies paw. Also as a consequence of this action Curley ends up, Flopping like a fish! This may not be intentional by Steinbeck but bears are a natural predator of fish, which would agree with the comparisons. Yet we already know that Curleys, natural targets have been bigger men, so it is a contrast of this when Curley himself becomes the prey. In the conflict scene in this book there are a lot of verbs to suggest Curleys boxing career, for example on page 66 when Curley first starts to hit Lennie it says, Curley was balanced and poised. He slashed at Lennie with his left, and then smashed down his nose with a right! All these words show that Curley really was just beating Lennie up at this point. Lennie was not retaliating at all; he was just taking the huge blows from Curley. Its seems as if he does not realise that he can fight back, Lennie gave a cry of terror. George He cried Make him let me alone George as he backed up against the wall Lennie, even when in the most dangerous and threatening situations where you would have though natural instinct would set in, still calls for Georges guidance or help. It is Lennies lack of ability to do things for himself, which eventually leads to his downfall. The language also plays a big part in the story, In Great Expectations the words and phrases also play a big part in displaying the action happening during the conflict although generally they are used to show the actions and feelings of the characters rather than the physical conflict because the conflict in this story is less dramatic. For example phrases such as, I pleaded in terror! I was dreadfully frightened. and He muttered then considering. all show emotional or mental states which do help you imagine the situation however the actual physical action is not portrayed as if it was extremely violent which is because although it is a conflict, the two combatants are not really engaging in any kind of physical fight. The most dramatic thing that happens in this meeting is when Magwitch grabs Pip and shakes him upside down by his ankles, which probably hurt Pip somewhat. All that is said about this in the story however, is, He turned me upside down and emptied my pockets. this does not make it sound particularly dramatic. This is because it is not done as an intentionally hurtful thing to try and cause harm to Pip it is just Magwitch trying to get food from Pip. Even when Pip is defending himself, it is never physically. There are only two times when he really tries to stop Magwitch from hurting him and the first of these is at the top of page 2when he says, Dont cut my throat sir, and then on page 3 when he says, If you would kindly please to let me keep upright, sir, perhaps I shouldnt be sick, and perhaps I could attend more. In both of these instances Pip regards his attacker with the utmost of respect and tries to reason with him despite the fact that this man he has never met has threatened to kill him. In this way the language shows the reader how Pip feels and how they are behaving, whereas in of Mice and Men we get mainly a physical side to the fight because that conflict is a lot more actual fighting than in the conflict between Pip and Magwitch. In Great Expectations there are no other characters watching when the actual conflict occurs and so the meeting is a lot less about show than it is in of Mice and Men where Curley is really just trying to show the other men that he is still a good fighter and is in charge physically as well as being the bosses son. This fails though, when Lennie successfully retaliates. There are a lot more people who have a role in the conflict in of Mice and Men than there are in Great Expectations. In Great Expectations Pips has done nothing to provoke the attack and he does not have any real family who could have done so and Magwitch is a convict. The only person we could say, that had a role in this conflict would be the person who Magwitch escaped with because he was the one who helped him escaped and who Magwitch said the food was for. Although this escaped partner turns out to be the person who lets him down by giving him in to the police. In of Mice and Men George is another main character that plays a big role in this conflict. Because Lennie is so dependant on George, he has to stay around him all the time or he may do something which will end up with them leaving their jobs or having to leave town. He gives Lennie all the right advice about Curley, yet Curley still finds an excuse to hit him. So George is entirely just in telling Lennie to hit back in this situation. Even though he doesnt do it at first, in the end Lennie fights back and with incredible force. Seeing as Lennie takes every instruction from George, you could say it was George who was fighting back against Curley because if it werent for him then Lennie would have just sat back and taken the beating until he was knocked out or until someone stepped in. Another character who had a role in this conflict was Curleys wife. Curley does not know how to control her flirting and so he just tries to make everyone to scared to even talk to his wife. This works with the workers and they wont go near her but this makes her try harder to get their attention. This is what puts Curley in a bad mood before the conflict because they all gang up on him about his wife. Ironically the only person who doesnt say anything is Lennie and he is the one who Curley picks to beat up. This conflict in of Mice and Men makes us think that Curley has got his comeuppance and that Lennie is some kind of hero because we naturally feel sorry for the underdog who triumphs over a cocky adversary. We feel a justice has been done and this makes us want to know what Curley is going to do to get back at him. All through the story I think we know that Lennie is going to eventually kill someone so we are always looking for who we think it will be. This conflict makes us proud of Lennie for beating Curley although we still feel sorry for him despite the fact that he has just physically assaulted and seriously injured another human being. I t is strange how Steinbeck gets us to feel this range of emotions through a relatively simple fight. We want to know what will happen next and it brings action to the book which makes us think that the end will be even more dramatic. In great expectations we are given an opening to the story. We know almost nothing about the plot yet we want to read on to find out what relevance this conflict has to the main story line, almost like the chase at the beginning of a James Bond movie. We are enjoying the action and we are introduced to the main character but we still want to find out what the main plot is going to be afterwards. This is not the main action in the story but it is still important. This is the same in of Mice and Men where we know this conflict between Curley and Lennie is not the main action but it is still important and makes us want to know what is going to happen to the characters at the end of the story. The conflict in of Mice and Men is more about catharsis than reso lution; Steinbeck is not trying to solve a problem by showing you this fight, which is a climax of the story so far. He is also not showing you a happy ending to the fight; he is posing a problem, which to some extent is never solved throughout the book. By showing the reader Lennies attempt at doing something bad we actually see what a good person he is by the way he reacts afterwards and even during the conflict. He cries and shouts; as if he has no control over what he is doing to Curley. This is the main theme of the book and once you can see this, you can start to empathise and eventually feel sorry for Lennie, which I think is Steinbecks overall aim in the story. By bringing out Lennies bad side, the author is showing a side of the character that happiness cannot. However when it comes to Lennie, this shows us that he does not have a really bad part to his personality. It is almost through being innocent, that Lennie appears not to be to blame, as he is not clever enough to have unjust just anger towards someone. Although at the same time it is because of his innocents and naivety that he doesnt realise all he has to do is let go, and the madness will stop. However no matter how you look at this Innocent/Harmful side of Lennie, it is still is what causes all the deaths in this book. Yet not one of these deaths or injuries is caused by Lennie intentionally trying to hurt another human being apart from when he hurts Curleys hand in this conflict. It is the only time we really see Lennie intentionally doing some harm, and this is only after being beaten up by an ex-professional boxer and then told to do it by George! So in this way the conflict is not really solving anything. This is exactly the same as in Great Expectations where we see Magwitch stealing food from Pip. Dickens is showing us the bad side of this character right from the start and at first glance we assume he is an evil criminal and a bad person. However if we look closer we see that the bad side of this person is actually not trying to be bad and scary, its just how it looks. For example the first thing Magwitch says is, Hold Your Noise! Cried A Terrible Voice. The word terrible makes us assume that this person is bad but really he is just trying to make Pip be quiet so he does not cause any attention to himself. He is only robbing Pip for food; he is stealing for survival. So he is not actually trying to do a bad thing. Like how Lennie never does bad things intentionally in of Mice and Men. The conflict scenes in both these books are not about intentional harm or causing pain to another person (with exception of what Curley is doing to Lennie); they are about people doing these things because they have to, not out of choice. The stories make you empathise with the main combatants despite the fact they are doing something wrong.

The Regional Economic Integration

The Regional Economic Integration Introduction: Regional economic integration has existed in most geographical regions since the early days of the multilateral trade system. For example, the European Union was first established as the European Economic Community through the Treaty of Rome in 1957. Latin America and Central America followed soon after with the formation of the Latin American Free Trade Association and the Central American Common Market in 1960. By 1965, regional integration had also begun to take root in North America with the conclusion of the Automobile Products Trade Agreement between Canada and the United States. Regional economic integration is both a process and a state of affairs. Regional economic integration basically approaches a hierarchical model. Free trade area involves the elimination of tariffs and quotas on goods. This is followed by a customs union, in which members of a free trade area also adopt a common external tariff. A common market is the next step and involves creating a single market, with common policies on product regulation and the free movement of goods, services and factors of production. To benefit from regional integration, there are various conditions which has to be fulfilled, they are political commitment of all countries, to higher forms of integration; mutual economic dependence; disparities between countries of the region or narrow economic gaps; similarities at the policy level basically in human development and social policies; lastly, good governance and institutions in order to maximize the benefits of economic integration. Regional economic integration generally leads to greater foreign direct investment (FDI), financial and capital account liberalization, trade liberalization and migration of labour. A region made be regional integration mainly attracts foreign investment and it also reduce the rivalry between the neighbouring regions. Regional Economic Integration in East Asia: In the last two decades, the East Asian economies have achieved substantial liberalisation in Foreign Direct investment (FDI) under the frameworks of WTO and APEC. The result of the expansion of trade and FDI has become the main reason for development and economic growth in East Asia. Trade and FDI openness has also encouraged domestic institutional and governance reforms, which has further promoted trade and investment. Since early 1990s, emerging East Asia has also experienced increasing financial openness. Financial openness helps in rapid economic growth by attracting short term capital and long term capital with trade and FDI openness, with deepened market driven economic interdependence in East Asia. It has been applied as valuable comparative parameters due to a number of its significant characteristics: East Asia is the world largest regional market of 2 billion populations, which is much bigger than the 27 countries of European Union contributing 495 million and NAFTA contributing 405 million populations. After 1960 East Asia has been recorded as the fastest growing region of the world. The region has recorded average annual economic growth rates of around 7%, which is much higher than that of the average 5% growth in the rest of the world. East Asia contents almost half of the worlds foreign exchange reserves and in which China alone recorded a world largest foreign exchange reserve which passed $1.4 trillion in 2007. Along with the European Union and the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), East Asia is one of the worlds three largest economically integrated regions. East Asia has been characterized by extensive economic integration at both regional and global level. Commercial enterprises based in East Asian states particularly Japan, but increasingly also emerging industrial states such as Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan have been at the forefront of processes of regional economic integration, and are increasingly important contributors to global transnational research and development (RD) and production networks. China, a relative latecomer to transnational economic collaboration, is an increasingly prominent participant both regionally and global as well, as it undergoes a transition from a site for low value added assembly and production to advanced production. Regional economic integration in East Asia is notable not only for its extent, but also for the degree to which it transcends the economic and politico military rivalries of the states concerned. The pattern of East Asian economic integration reflects relatively little concern ove r economic objectives stemming from the perceived requirements of national security or intra regional economic competition. The most striking example of this is provided by China and Taiwan, which have managed to develop an extensive and mutually beneficial economic relationship, despite their long standing rivalry. Achievements of Regional Economic Integration in East Asia The prospect of regional economic integration plays a positive role in East Asia after initiating in United States and other western countries. Following are the some of the achievements of regional economic integration in East Asia which can be the proof that East Asia is gathering pace. (i) ASIAN Free Trade Area ASIAN is the important foundation for regional integration in East Asia. This was the first ever regional economic integration of East Asia. It does not affect the intra ASEAN trade and also the regions overall trade with world. The change came in 1992 when ASEAN achieved establish agreement on free trade area in order to help its neighbouring economies to achieve growth in trade. The main aim of ASEAN is to attract investors from foreign and regional as well. Multinational corporations locating in ASEAN would be able to exploit economies of scale and to rationalize production by allocating different segments of production processes among the ASEAN countries according to their respective competitive advantage. He tariff is reduced to 0 5% till 2008 for ASEAN. ASEAN also conduct various agreements focused on enhancing regional integration in transport and communications, trade facilitation, investment, e commerce and intellectual property rights. (ii) Free Trade Agreement Regional Economic Integration in the form of Free Trade Areas has come into existence in the Asia Pasic region. Growing number of bilateral and plurilateral FTAs involving such countries as Japan, China, Singapore, Korea, Canada, New Zealand, Mexico and Chile are currently being negotiated. Significantly, this trend is gathering momentum not much because of a change of sentiments in some of the countries in the region like Japan, China and Korea, which have been strongly opposed to preferential arrangements in the past. In the various Asian countries an important breakthrough was achieved when Japan and Singapore agreed in October 2000 to begin negotiations on a bilateral FTA with a view to concluding the talks by the end of 2001. These results to be gained a little by both countries which already have open investment region, minimum tariff and little trade in the area of agriculture. The important features of Japan and Singapore free Trade Area are establishing the harmonisation of legal frameworks, mutual recognisation of certification authorities for digital signature and coordinated corporate privacy standard. With the help of FTA many Japanese firms find it easier to run their operations in Singapore. This FTA will not only benefit these two signatories but will also have positive effect on various other countries of East Asia. Japan Singapore FTA is also important because it is the first institutionalized link between North East Asian economies and South East Asian economies. It is therefore has a potentially positive demonstration effect that could catalyse closer economic integration in East Asia as a whole. Many times the idea of East Asia FTA was failed few years back. But later East Asia Free Trade Area showed a great pace and attributed not only Japan Singapore FTA but also change the position of other East Asian countries like China. With the successful launch of Japan Singapore FTA, China also decided either creates a free trade zone between China and ASEAN to set up link with the ASEAN Free Trade Area. (iii) ASEAN plus three Unlike other more established regional groupings, cooperation among the ASEAN+3 (i.e. ASEAN plus China, Japan and Korea) thus far has been proceeding more rapidly on financial issues than on trade matters. So for this purpose it is decided to call for a summit on an annual basis which can be a kind of informal meeting. The aim of these summits is to set up the vision to explore ideas for cooperation and has also been holding regular meetings of its Finance Ministers. Trade agreements in East Asia are basically slow to organize as in other regions partly and politically difficult to reach because of the diversity in approaches to trade liberalization. Financial cooperation can proceed more quickly to some extent without discrimination against outsiders. For this purpose, the financial crisis in 1997 provided a strong impetus for East Asia to push ahead with financial cooperation. ASEAN+3 have also implemented a region wide system of currency swaps to help countries in the region which are dealing with possible future financial crises. This currency swap system will helps in the surveillance mechanism that ASEAN has created to anticipate and head off future crises through sophisticated early warning indicators. These achievements are the positive sign that shows the further growth in the region of East Asia after facing financial crisis in 1997. Impact of Regional Economic Integration: Case from China Since ancient China has the hegemonic power in the East Asian region with good relation with neighbouring countries. East Asian region was also influenced by Chinese traditional culture including language and philosophies. Till mid 9th century China has still the largest economy in the world but after mid 19th century till early 20th century China was overwhelmed by static decay, civil instability, famines, military defeats and foreign occupation. During the Cold War period, Chinas social experiments achieved some progresses but suffered serious setbacks due to the internal and external constraints. Since China started the economic reform in late 1970s, the world witnesses the return of Chinas emergence as a regional and global political and economic power. China attracted various large foreign firms when it adopted the open door policy and large amount of foreign currency inflows into China this was not enough after this many industries with latest technology and better infrastructure have established in China. Taking the example of Hong Kong, it has moved almost all of its manufacturing industries to China while. In recent years Taiwan and Mainland China are also came into economic relation after China open doors for foreign investments. Due to the shift of these firms the growth of country as well as firm are coming into existence. In terms of intra regional economic relations in East Asia, since the 1990s there has been a shift away from the previous Japan led flying geese model of vertical economic integration structured on the basis of the Japanese investment, technological transfer and supply of manufacturing parts in line with a hierarchical market exchange and regional division of labour and production networks to a new horizon tal intra regional economic integration. Economic integration helps China to grow in positive way in terms of economy and trade which makes Asia to make stand in the competition with developed nations of EU and NAFTA. The new engine of regional economic growth in China is basically by foreign direct investment which becomes the reason for the developments in the region. It generated networks between domestic firms and other firms in the other countries. This network based exchange of trade and capital has profound impact to East Asian economic integration. One of the key actors in generating dynamic intra regional industrial and economic integrations is the overseas Chinese business communities. Economic integration not only contributing Chinas economy to grow by the sources of foreign direct investment but also contributes to be a network connector which becomes link between Chinese market with rest of the region. With this link many of the developed economies in the region are usi ng China as low cost manufacturing and export base instead of directly exporting finished goods to the Western markets. For this purpose they moved there production in China which results in enhancing the Chinas integration in the regional economy in East Asia. Main factors of these firms in regards to regional integration with China because China act as a source of technology and expertise, Capital and it also brings close business relation between China and rest of the region. The rise of China has met different responses from different corners of the world. With the rapid economic growth due to the regional integration has transformed the Asia in many ways. Talking in economical and political terms Chinas energy and commercial ties with all major regions of the world are expanding. China is one of the main driving forces proliferating regional and bilateral trade agreements and politically, it is often interpreted that China seeks to shape the regions emerging political institutional contours and to encourage movement toward an East Asian community in order to balance the declining influence of the United States. Growth prospects and challenges of China Japan Business Alliance While Japan poses a formidable competitive threat, it also provides a vast opportunity. As the latter aspect of Chinas rise became increasingly apparent around 2002, Chinas perception of Japan became more realistic and balanced. Japans investment in China has been increasing rapidly in recent years: between 1999 and 2004 it grew by 3.5 times. And trade between the two countries has risen steadily over the last six years. Japan China business alliances have begun to cover broader aspects of business activities, from joint ventures and technology tie ups, to contracting aspects of production and consignment arrangements. Although there have been a limited number of examples, Japanese firms have even established comprehensive strategic partnerships with Chinese firms. With major and big Japanese firm small manufacturing firms are also looking towards China as locating their business and with better opportunities with future expansion. But for the successful business alliance between Chi na and Japan, these countries have to work together for several challenges which can become the issue in their alliances 1). There must a rule passed to secure the safety of Japanese firms operating in China and concluding a bilateral investment agreement. The large scale anti Japan demonstrations in China this past April damaged the facilities of some Japanese firms. And while the movement was promptly cooled by the Chinese government, a survey conducted in May following the April disturbances revealed that more than a third (or 36.5%) of respondent firms anticipate the negative impact on their business activities in this fiscal year. For further Japanese FDI in China in future, a bilateral investment agreement needs to be put in place. There is some cautious concern on the Chinese side about concluding such an agreement, but thinking of future technological cooperation between both countries should take a forward looking approach. 2). Another issue between both countries can be regarding the credit. Both China and Japan have to work together to build more credit based business culture. For urban economies to achieve healthy growth, the safety of business transactions must be guaranteed. Various business models can only be fostered in an economy where business transactions are secured and mutual trust is well established. A large number of foreign companies operating in China, however, face difficulties in collecting monies owed to them. This is also a looming issue for Chinese companies, because such problems can hinder future stable economic growth in urban areas, where many of these companies operate. China can resolve this problem by swiftly establishing an antitrust law and also enhancing law enforcement, clamping down on illegal transactions and improving corporate transparency. Japan also faced these issues during its high economic growth in the 1960s. 3). With getting the tough competition and being a rival for some years China and Japan are now understand the importance of come into alliance for the future growth, so for this purpose now Japanese and Chinese firms are coming into collaboration. Some local Chinese companies have recently begun to actively seek business partnerships with Japanese counterparts. In January 2002, Japans Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd. (Sanyo) and Chinas Haier Group Company (Haier) agreed on a comprehensive collaboration deal some local Chinese companies have recently begun to actively seek business partnerships with Japanese counterparts. In January 2002, Japans Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd. (Sanyo) and Chinas Haier Group Company (Haier) agreed on a comprehensive collaboration deal that included the sale of Sanyo products under either the Sanyo or the Haier brand names. In July 2003, a major Chinese pharmaceutical company announced an agreement with a medium sized Japanese manufacturer of Chinese medicines to purch ase the latter, the first case ever for a Chinese company to buy a Japanese one. These are the few example which shows that Chinese companies provides Japanese company with distribution channel to sell their products in Chinese market and grow their business. Conclusion East Asia will enter the second stage of economic integration by around 2008, when the whole region will aspire to become a free business zone, encompassing all regional FTAs and EPAs, including the FTA/EPA between China and Japan. However, in order to make talks for such an agreement go smoothly, China and Japan must build a firm mutual trust, both on political and private levels. Recent developments and achievements suggest that East Asia is finally coming around to giving more serious consideration to regional economic integration either as a complement or an alternative to the multilateral trading system. As discussed above, the economic grounds for closer economic integration among the East Asian countries have existed for many years. Rapid economic development over the past few decades, reinforced by changes in the global economic environment and an uncertain outlook for the international trading system, appears to have convinced the East Asian countries that potential benefits of closer regional economic cooperation outweigh the costs at least for now.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Opportunities To Cadbury Products In The Olympic City Marketing Essay

Opportunities To Cadbury Products In The Olympic City Marketing Essay Cadbury Plc. is a confectionary giant holding first or second positions in more than twenty of the worlds largest confectionary markets, with an exceptionally good portfolio of toffee, chocolate, energy drinks and other milk products. In 1824 a shop was opened by John Cadbury in Birmingham for the sale of chocolates some other cocoa products, thus begun the quest of Cadbury to conquer the taste buds of millions. In January 2010, Kraft Foods took over Cadbury Plc. Cadbury is the official treat provider of the 2012 London Olympic Paralympic games. This will give exclusive marketing opportunities to Cadbury products in the Olympic city. Cadbury has a very good reputation in the market, they believe in the business culture Doing good is good for business. Currently Cadbury functions in more than sixty countries around the globe with around 35000 suppliers and employee population of around 45000 people. OBJECTIVE OF THE RESEARCH This research report is done to discuss the influence on the decision making in marketing of the Cadbury Plc. by the macro environment for the last one year. SWOT PESTLE analyses on Cadbury Plc. were carried out to solve queries raised during the research. SWOT analysis will help Cadbury Plc. in decisions making processes in their future years. This research work also illustrates marketing strategies experimented by the Cadbury Plc. to ensure their position in the confectionary market. ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND Head office of Cadbury Plc. locates in Middlesex, United Kingdom with organizational network coverage all around the globe. In confectionary industry Cadbury owns most trusted popular brands like Dairy Milk, Eclairs, Halls, Bourn Vita, 5 Star, Perk, etc. Cadbury products are available in over sixty countries in the World. Cadbury has a very strong momentum in its emerging markets such as India, Africa Middle East. In developed markets like UK US, Cadbury performs its robust growth without losing their market monopoly. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY RESEARCH PLAN: Data Collection in investigative approach is performed as the research plan for this report. DATA GATHERING ANALYSIS: Sources of data is classified into Primary and Secondary sources of data. Primary sources are research papers or theories. In this research information are collected from secondary sources such as journals, management magazines, books from college library, websites. SWOT PESTAL analysis were carried out to solve some queries while dealing with the research. PROOF Macro environment has a good command over marketing decisions taken by an organization. In this case we are checking whether the macro environment has a positive impact on the marketing decision making of Cadbury or not and how. Macro environment deals with elements which stay outside the organization so management cannot control them. Macro environment consists of countless factors which can affect an organizations decision making, business strategies, product development altogether performance. Examples of some of these factors are variation in price, demographic factors, strategy of competitors, interest of the customers, economical factors, government orders, demand, supply, technical issues etc. PESTEL ANALYSIS: THE MARKETING OF CADBURY POLITICAL Political conditions of the area where the company market its product can affect the business of that particular organization greatly. Political uncertainty of the locality can disturb the business badly. Sometimes organizations can make use of the political situations to develop their business. Thus the political factors can sometimes harm the organization sometimes favour the organization. In UK the government is much concerned about the health issues of the people. Government spends millions of pound every year on health issues like obesity heart diseases. Chocolate can be a reason for above mentioned health disorders, the government is very strict in the implementation of food safety act. In 2002, Cadbury India Ltd. faced objections from political parties of India after telecasting the advertisement of their new brand, Temptations. Indian print politics accused, Cadbury is making advantage on Kashmir issue. So the company should have good awareness on all political issues which can affect their business to keep their reputation. ECONOMIC Monetary factors are another important feature which can decide the destiny of an organization in a society. Economic instability of the surroundings will question the existence of the organization. Organization may force to compromise on their policies with respect to their economic background and also according to the economic factors in the locality. Economic growth, fluctuating value of money, inflation or deflation can decide an organizations future. The recent global economic crisis affected Cadbury Plc. and their products like other industries. Company was forced to reduce their production as the consumption of confectionaries reduced in a large scale. Multinational companies like Cadbury cannot follow same pricing for same product all around the globe as the economic situations money value are differ with countries. A chocolate sold for  £1 in UK cannot be sold for the respective converted amount in India as people cannot afford the pricing. SOCIAL Peculiarities of the society such as culture, traditions, ethics, moral values, religion can make effect on an organization directly or indirectly. Chocolates are still a luxury material to the poor who work in cocoa plantations in Ghana. Chocolate consumers in poor countries are very less in number as people think consuming an expansive confectionary in a poor society is against their moral values. Veganism prohibits the use of animals for food, clothing, consumption of milk, egg, dairy products etc. Chocolate is a dairy product and thus chocolate is an abandoned food for Veganists. TECHNOLOGICAL Scientific research resulted technological advancement in production techniques with postmodern tools and machines. This helped conventional production methods to have an upgrade according to the demand. Introduction of new effective technologies will increase the product quality as well product quantity this will help the organization to achieve their goals objectives. Latest technology is a must in the field of food beverage producing companies. Cadbury always keep their eyes toward latest technologies which can be used in their organization. Effective advanced packing methods are adopted to keep their products unique among other chocolate products. Cadbury has a skilled technical team to develop advertisements for showing in Television, Internet other visual media. Cadbury also has a very good website with all details regarding their organization, products history. LEGAL Rules or laws by the government come under legal factors. Iimplementation of new business regulations or taxation by the government can make trouble to the organization; in other hand favourable moves from the government such as relaxation of taxes will helpful for the organization. Companies should follow government regulations laws strictly; violation of these rules will lead the company to have legal issues with the government. Other legal issues such as patent laws, quality maintaining health will also affect the wellbeing of an organization. In 2007 Wrigley filed a lawsuit against Cadbury in Australia; accusing Cadbury imitated patent protected hard-coated gum of Wrigley. Health of the citizens is a very important issue before the government. In 2003 a case was filed in Maharastra High court, India against Cadbury India Ltd. after confirming a worm infection in some batches of Dairy Milk. ENVIRONMENTAL Environmental issues natural factors directly affect the business production of an organization. Natural factors are unpredictable uncontrollable by an organization. Natural disasters like earthquake, fire, storm etc. can affect organizations in a very bad manner. Plastic is a non-biodegradable material. Cadbury Plc. use plastic covering to wrap chocolate products. After consumption of chocolates these wrappers are wastes and this pollutes the environment. Now the company is doing research regarding the use of Biodegradable plastic coverings as wrappers. Temperature is an environmental factor which can deform the shape taste of chocolate products. SWOT ANALYSIS ON CADBURYS MARKETING Identifying the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats is a very important task in every industry. SWOT analysis is an effective strategy which is commonly adopted by organizations in medium large levels. SWOT analysis plays a vital role in the prospective decision making of an organization. Company can work accordingly and come across a good result once they properly recognize the threats and opportunities. Strength of a company is the advantage they currently hold in the market. Identifying the weaknesses will help the company to take necessary steps to troubleshoot those failures. STRENGTH S Cadbury products are well recognized well known for their outstanding quality. Chocolate brands of Cadbury Plc. have a very good reputation in the business world. Maintaining good relationship with the customer is a must for any organization. Due to Cadburys excellent customer association and product innovation, Cadbury has lifelong customers who trust in the tag of Cadbury. Cadbury products are being marketed in over sixty countries, giving them the opportunity of having the largest marketing network in confectionary world. Cadbury is the official treat provider of the 2012 London Olympic Paralympic games. This will give unique privileges in marketing product reorganization as official Olympic brand to Cadbury Plc. products in future business. WEAKNESSES Cadbury products are pricier than local confectionaries. This will adversely affect the Cadbury products in poor economies some emerging markets. Public expectation of Cadbury products is very high; this fact may put the company in pressure. In UK production cost of Cadbury chocolates is higher as their manufacturing is done within the country. Errors in packing manufacturing processes cause microbial infections in chocolate products. Infection of Salmonella bacteria in Chocolate products is an example. Chocolate products are fatty, dietary options in chocolates are still unavailable. OPPORTUNITIES Cadbury currently operates around sixty countries with very good business reputation. Company has the opportunity to widen their business in new markets. Cadbury products have a great brand value customer satisfaction records, this will help the company to survive in critical situations. Cadbury is the leader in confectionary business for the last many decades; this reputation is helpful to expand their product range to food beverage industry other than confectionary business. Cadbury can take over other brands in their developed, emerging new markets. This will help the company to have advantage in business. E.g.: Cadbury took over Green Blacks the premium chocolate brand in May 2005. THREATS Cadbury faces threats from Nestle, their competitor in confectionary business. Cost of production, transportation raw materials are increasing day by day with respect to the economic uncertainty of the markets. Governments change laws / regulations for quality and production of food beverages companies. Implementation of these new laws makes the company to cancel proposed marketing plans. STUDY ON CADBURYS MARKETING OBJECTIVES PESTEL SWOT analyses can benefit Cadbury Plc. in their prospective decision making. SWOT analysis on Cadbury Plc. describes the current status of the company in confectionary market.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Alexander The Great Essay -- essays research papers fc

Alexander the Great and His Achievements Alexander the Great was the king of Macedon. Alexander of Macedon, or ancient Mecadonia, deserves to be called the Great. Alexander the Great was considered one of the greatest military geniuses of all times. He was an excellent king, general, and conqueror. During his thirteen-year rule he conquered almost all the then known world and gave a new direction to history. He had established an empire after he died. His new empire helped many people live their lives. He improved the way of life in his empire in many ways. Conquering other lands spread the Greek traditions and language. Alexander the Great was born in Pella, the ancient capital of Macedon (Martin 192). He was the son of Philip II and Olympias. Philip II was the king of Macedonia and Olympias was the princess of Epirus (Stewart 18). Alexander had many interests in military strategies (Stewart 20). Once when Alexander was about seven years old, a group of Persian diplomats came to Ma cedon to see Philip. Philip was with his army fighting neighboring tribes so the diplomats stayed and talked with Alexander. They didn't except Alexander to ask questions about the size of the Persian army and the length of the journey to Susa (an important city in Persia). This shows one of Alexander's early interests (Stewart 21). Philip decided to buy Alexander a racehorse when Alexander was ten or eleven years old. The horse was named Bucephalas. Bucephalas' behavior did not please Philip. Philip ordered the horse's owner to take the horse away but Alexander declared that he could tame the horse (Stewart 21). Everyone applauded when they saw Alexander ride the horse. The rest of the company broke into applause, writes Plutarch, while his father, we are told, wept for joy, and when Alexander had dismounted he kissed him and said, 'My boy, you must find a kingdom big enough for your ambitions. Macedon is too small for you' (Stewart 22). Alexander needed more than horsemanship and self-confidence to be a good king. He needed discipline. Philip worried that Olympias spoiled the boy too much. For Alexander to learn those things, Philip hires a stern and a tough tutor to teach Alexander. His name is Leonidas. He monitored Alexander's meals and exercises. Leonidas didn't trust Olympias. He suspected she tried to smuggle extra food in Alexander's marching gear. The man [Leonidas] him... ...f his empire. Antigonus took over in Macedonia and Greece, Seleucus took over Persia, and Ptolemy took over Egypt. The richest, most powerful, and longest lasting of these kingdoms was Ptolemy's (Stewart 113). Ptolemy established the world's first scholarly research institute. Its massive library had the goal of collecting all the books (that is, manuscripts) in the world (Martin 210). Alexandria produced many achievements. Alexandria had museums and libraries. They built many royal palaces. An enormous stone lighthouse called the Pharos was a tomb that contained Alexander 's coffin. Hellenistic sculpture was very famous. People purchased many statues. The largest Hellenistic statue is the Colossus of Rhodes (Martin 211). Although Alexander created a new empire, he wasn't around to see it flourish. Alexander won many respects of many people and other kings. He was a great ruler and general. He had conquered most of the land explored in a short number of years. The Hellenistic Age was an important age after Alexander's reign. Alexander's empire improved ways of life in Greece in many ways. Alexander created one of the best empires ever built. Bibliography Self Made Words: 1403

Friday, July 19, 2019

Transvestic Fetishism :: science

Transvestic Fetishism Introduction Someone you know-any male close to you-could be having a secret "affair" behind closed doors and you may not even be aware of it. Not to worry, it may not involve another woman. This man may be having an affair with female clothing. If so, it is safe to say that this man is suffering from a transvestic fetish. What is a transvestic fetish? Transvestic Fetishism is a psychosexual disorder found mostly in men. To better understand this disorder, we must first look at the definition. Transvestism is defined as dressing in the clothing of the opposite sex to achieve sexual arousal, excitement, and gratification. Fetishism is the reliance on nonhuman objects as the preferred or exclusive method of achieving sexual excitement. The major symptom of fetishism is the use of nonliving objects to obtain sexual arousal. The most common fetish objects are articles of women's clothing such as bras, underpants, stockings, shoes and boots. The individual will often masturbate while fondling, kissing, or smelling the fetish object. In other cases, the individual's sexual partner will wear the object during sexual encounters, thereby providing an arousing stimulus that enables the fetishist to participate in otherwise normal sexual behavior. Thus, men suffering from transvestic fetishism gain sexual pleasure from dressing in women's clo thing, a behavior defined as cross-dressing. Cross-dressing can range from wearing only one article of women's clothing while alone to dressing completely in women's clothing and appearing that way in public. In some cases, the cross-dressing is so effective that it is difficult to distinguish a cross-dressed transvestite from a woman. However, the person's goal is not to "pass" but to achieve arousal. Cross-dressing seems to be exclusively male behavior, and there is really no explanation for it. There is no evidence of any hormonal or genetic abnormality. One explanation is that childhood experience with cross-dressing may have been associated with sexual play and arousal. One sample of transvestites found that 78 percent were either married or formerly married, and marital friction is one of the main reasons that transvestites seek therapy. A man with a transvestic fetish will often masturbate while dressed in women's clothes and will fantasize about other men being attracted to him while he is dressed in those clothes. In a very limited number of cases, homosexuals may cross-dress to attract other men, but the homosexuals do not gain sexual pleasure from the cross-dressing and are therefore not diagnosed as having a transvestic fetishism. Transvestic Fetishism :: science Transvestic Fetishism Introduction Someone you know-any male close to you-could be having a secret "affair" behind closed doors and you may not even be aware of it. Not to worry, it may not involve another woman. This man may be having an affair with female clothing. If so, it is safe to say that this man is suffering from a transvestic fetish. What is a transvestic fetish? Transvestic Fetishism is a psychosexual disorder found mostly in men. To better understand this disorder, we must first look at the definition. Transvestism is defined as dressing in the clothing of the opposite sex to achieve sexual arousal, excitement, and gratification. Fetishism is the reliance on nonhuman objects as the preferred or exclusive method of achieving sexual excitement. The major symptom of fetishism is the use of nonliving objects to obtain sexual arousal. The most common fetish objects are articles of women's clothing such as bras, underpants, stockings, shoes and boots. The individual will often masturbate while fondling, kissing, or smelling the fetish object. In other cases, the individual's sexual partner will wear the object during sexual encounters, thereby providing an arousing stimulus that enables the fetishist to participate in otherwise normal sexual behavior. Thus, men suffering from transvestic fetishism gain sexual pleasure from dressing in women's clo thing, a behavior defined as cross-dressing. Cross-dressing can range from wearing only one article of women's clothing while alone to dressing completely in women's clothing and appearing that way in public. In some cases, the cross-dressing is so effective that it is difficult to distinguish a cross-dressed transvestite from a woman. However, the person's goal is not to "pass" but to achieve arousal. Cross-dressing seems to be exclusively male behavior, and there is really no explanation for it. There is no evidence of any hormonal or genetic abnormality. One explanation is that childhood experience with cross-dressing may have been associated with sexual play and arousal. One sample of transvestites found that 78 percent were either married or formerly married, and marital friction is one of the main reasons that transvestites seek therapy. A man with a transvestic fetish will often masturbate while dressed in women's clothes and will fantasize about other men being attracted to him while he is dressed in those clothes. In a very limited number of cases, homosexuals may cross-dress to attract other men, but the homosexuals do not gain sexual pleasure from the cross-dressing and are therefore not diagnosed as having a transvestic fetishism.