The Most Important Feature of Life in Mesopotamia Essay

The Most Important Feature of Life in Mesopotamia - Essay Example The domestication of plants and animals such as cattle in the area not only changed the lives of people living in the area, it also had the effect of dramatically changing the course of human history. In order to care for their herds of animals an crops, it was necessary for people to live in one place and this necessitated that there be a shift from a nomadic lifestyle to people now settling in villages (Moorey, 1-2). The numerous branches of the rivers Euphrates and Tigris made it possible for farming activities to be conducted in Mesopotamia. However, the region was prone to frequent flooding in addition to suffering from the effects of hot and dry climatic periods at certain times of the year that made it impossible to conduct farming activities. To tackle this problem, the Mesopotamians became the first people to attempt a large scale control of water via the use of an integrated system of reservoirs, dikes, aqueducts, drainage channels, and canals. The use of this waterway system enabled the inhabitants of this region to conduct farming activities all year round (Pollock 29-32). Farming had a great impact in the lives of Mesopotamians as it led to the development of cities as people settled down and stopped leading nomadic lifestyles. It also ensured that they enjoyed food security throughout the year and this allowed for them to find time to venture into developing other occupations such as art and pottery in addition to developing writing (Pollock 29-32). Another remarkable aspect of life in Mesopotamia is that civilization had a political governance system. The political governance system was formed around the Sumerian cities each of which formed its very own city-state that was mainly composed of the city and the entire farmland that surrounded it (Hansen, 117).  Ã‚  

Luther Against the Peasants forum 11 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Luther Against the Peasants forum 11 - Essay Example e peasants turned to violence and instigated the German peasant war that caused massive destruction of property and loss of lives, Luther justifiably became angry and rebuked the peasants the best way he could. He adopted the harsh stance since it was the only way of he could express his feelings about the violence. Additionally, his close relationship with the peasants led the prince to believe that he masterminded the revolution. The harsh stance was therefore a personal way of distancing himself from the revolution. This stance does not change my views of Luther. As explained earlier, my experience of Martin Luther is that he loves peace and diplomacy. Luther often represented the weak in the society. The weak and vulnerable population in a society lacked any military strength with which to engage in revolutions. As such, in case of any armed revolution, his people would always suffer massive losses. As a result, Luther often encouraged peaceful ways of resolving issues. The same was the case with the peasants since he had encouraged them to seek peaceful ways of resolving their concerns. He therefore rebuked the peasants for disobeying his

E-Commerce Analysis: Online Ticket Purchasing

E-Commerce Analysis: Online Ticket Purchasing CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter presents the background of the research study. It starts by providing an overview of Electronic Commerce, customer satisfaction and service quality, followed by an outline of the current situation concerning â€Å"Online Ticket Purchasing† in Kuwait. The problem of the study is then defined, highlighting the research the study seeks to investigate and its significance alongside the research objectives, questions and methodology used to achieve these desired objectives. The research limitations are then explored and the chapter concludes with an outline of the thesis structure. 1.2 OVERVIEW Unprecedented advances in Information Technology in recent decades, alongside evolving business environments have seen the emergence of Electronic Commerce (E-commerce) as a major economic force. With the increasing number of Internet users and rapid development of network technologies, e-commerce is perceived as an essential application of the computer and communication technologies (Manvi and Venkataram, 2005 cited by Zhang and Tang, 2006). As observed by Gunasekaran and Ngai (2005) e-commerce enhances communication channels and provides a virtual interactive environment where the suppliers and customers can exchange information and products. Moreover, it improves the communications between partners along the value chain and offers an integrated business model by which companies can be more responsive and flexible to the changing markets and customers requirements (Zhang and Tang, 2006). E- commerce therefore replaces or enhances the traditional market channels by opening web-based storefronts, which is known as â€Å"business to customer e-commerce†. Firms present their products and services on the web and generate revenue from the sales of those products and services to their customers (Molla and Licker, 2001). According to Khalifa and Liu (2003) there has been considerable growth of internet based services, both from internet businesses and from traditional companies developing online services. The technology of e-commerce identifies what can be offered to customers, but only customers determine which of those technologies will be accepted (Lin, 2003). As Jamal (2004) has argued, in the last forty years the issue of customer satisfaction has been one of the most important theoretical as well as practical issues for most marketers and customer research. Satisfaction is significant in the success or failure of any business depending on the performance of the perceived service, if the perceived performance is less than customer expectation the customer will be dissatisfied; whereas, if the perceived performance exceeds their expectations then customers will be satisfied. Many researchers agree satisfaction is an attitude or evaluation that is formed by the customer comparing their pre-purchase expectations of what they would receive from the product to their subjective perceptions of the performance they actually experience (Oliver, 1980). Numerous studies on service quality and customer satisfaction present service quality and customer satisfaction as conceptually distinct, but closely related constructs. Satisfaction is defined as the degree of discrepancy between customers normative expectations for the service and their perception of the service performance (Parasuraman et al., 1994; Dabholkar, 1996). Different researchers such as Gronroos (1983) and Parasuraman et al. (1985) have tried to identify features of service more related to quality assessments. The most common measure reveals ten dimensions of service quality: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, communication, credibility, security, competence, courtesy, understanding the customer and access. These were then filtered to 5 dimensions and based on these 5 items a measurement tool for service quality was devised known as SERVQUAL (PUT SOURCE HERE!!!). While Yang (2001) highlighted the rapid growth of online retailing with broadening experiences of consumers online shopping, Santos (2003) believes that e-service quality can increase attractiveness, hit rate, customer retention, stickiness and positive word of mouth. It can also maximize competitive advantages of e-commerce. Numerous researchers have the discussed the dimensions of e-service quality including Cox and Dale (2001), Madu and Madu (2002), Parasuraman (2002), Yang et al. (2003), Parasuraman et al. (2004) and Lee and Lin (2005), yet online retailers appear to fail due to poor quality services provided to their customers. For that reason online service quality is significant for two reasons: (1) it influences customers satisfactions and intentions to shop online and (2) e-service quality plays a major role in attracting potential customers (Cai and Jun, 2003). Zeithaml (2002) points out online companies should focus on all elements of e-service quality before, during and a fter the transaction, as e-service quality is the extent to which a website facilitates efficient and effective shopping, purchase and delivery. 1.2.1 E-Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction Customer satisfaction is a critical element in the success or failure of any business. Web customer satisfaction has been emphasized as crucial by the rising demand for long-term profitability of dotcom companies and traditional companies that are â€Å"Net enhanced† (Pather, Erwin and Remenyi, 2002). An understanding of the factors that influence web customer satisfaction is vital for e-commerce. Satisfaction is a result of an effective evaluation, where some comparison standard is compared to the actually perceived performance. If the perceived performance is less than expected, customers will be dissatisfied. In contrast, if the perceived performance exceeds expectations, customer will be satisfied (Lin, 2003). A broad idea of traditional service quality might not be enough to build the e-service quality dimension, hence amending several variables is important. Santos (2003) discussed the e-service quality dimensions of, ease of use, web-appearance, linkage, structure and layout, content as the incubative dimensions; reliability, efficiency, support, communication, security, and incentive as active dimensions. This paper focuses on achieving a measurement of the service quality of the Jazeera Airways Website as perceived by their passengers, using a conceptual model of e-service quality developed by Santos (2003). 1.3 ONLINE TICKETING Electronic ticketing over the Internet facilitates the buying or reservation of tickets online, by making the process more easily accessible and convenient. Through these services tickets may be purchased from any location and at any time, provided an Internet connection exists. The tickets are ordered from a web site that provides both ticket information and the purchasing or reservation service. Internet booking or online ticketing concentrates on providing a helpful and efficient service to clients. Firms who sell travel tickets, performing arts, game tickets, concerts, movies and many other activities have notably embraced the online ticketing system according to Burford (1998). Convenience is a main advantage of buying tickets via the internet as the service is available at any geographical location, including ones home via laptop and cellular phone and at any time or day. Electronic ticket services have a further advantage by providing relevant information along with the service. This can help purchasing decisions and may encourage future usage (Burford, 1998). Another feature is that apart from maintenance and data updates, no manpower is necessary to offer the service once it has been established. The process of recording the transactions is more automated and overheads are reduced. An essential point is that ticket providers while providing a convenient service are thereby improving their public image and encouraging return customers (Burford, 1998). A number of countries across the globe are already benefiting from electronic ticketing including the U.S.A., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain and France. In fact the U.S.A. it has 80% market p enetration, while in Europe it is approximately 40% and in the U.S.A. more than $350 million dollars in event tickets were sold online during 2000 increasing to $3.9 billion in 2004 (Bhatia, 2004). 1.3.1 Online Services and E-Ticketing in Kuwait The internet is a technology with many properties with the potential to transform the competitive landscape in many industries while at the same time creating completely new industries (Afuah and Tucci, 2003). The revolution of the internet continues to excel leading to rapid changes in many fields, at an overwhelming speed. In Kuwait, prior to 1990 internet usage was limited to electronic mail and minor services, however in 1992 a decision was made by the Ministry of Communication to facilitate the public data network. In the same year the National Science Foundation agreed to extend the Internet to Kuwait at a time when it was only available for US institutions and some selected institutions overseas. In recent years with the support of the Kuwaiti government for IT plans, practical steps have been taken in this field with the possibility of payment for mobiles and traffic tickets via the internet and the sale of online airlines tickets for the first time. These advances indicate the growth and development in the IT field in Kuwait as a whole. In 1943, the oil boom opened a new chapter in the modern history of Kuwait as The Kuwait Oil Company Limited (KOC) was founded. By 1947-1948 KOC developed the new Al-Nugra (Al-Mayass) Airport, located in the Nuzha district, operating in daylight only, with airlines opening offices in Kuwait City to handle ticketing and cargo operations for the Arab expatriate community. By 1954, the Kuwaiti National Airlines Company celebrated the arrival of the first airplane, which was called â€Å"Kazma† (http://www.da.gov.kw). The worldwide revolution of low-cost carriers (LCCs) started successfully with Pacific Southwest Airlinesin the United States, which pioneered the concept in 1949. Notable successes which have followed are Irelands Ryanair, which began low-fares operations in 1990, and EasyJet, formed in 1995. These low cost carriers then developed in Asia and Oceania from 2000 led by operators such as Malaysias AirAsia, Indias Air Deccanand Australias Virgin Blue. The low-cost carrier model is applicable worldwide, although deregulated markets are most suited for its rapid spread. In 2006, new LCCs were announced in Saudi Arabia and Mexico (http://www.absoluteastronomy.com). On September 12, 2005 Jazeera Airways owned by Marwan Boodai, Chairman and CEO, announced its first flights were open for booking. Jazeera Airways is the first privately owned airline in the Middle East, established in Kuwait. It offers passengers ticketless flights to Dubai, Lebanon, Damascus, Amman and Bahrain via the web, by phone, SMS or through travel agents (www.jazeeraairways.com). Breaking away from out-dated business models by developing a new model tasked with raising operational efficiency requires incorporating the latest revenue management procedures into the company and installing state-of-the-art technologies. This will ultimately enable travelers to become more independent in their bookings and payment. With tickets sold through a website as the main distribution channel, online booking is a very efficient distribution method for airlines. It reduces the number of back office staff and reduces the payment cycle. Jazeera Airways has worked hard to entice travelers to book through its website by making it the cheapest method to purchase tickets. Many promotional offers made by the company are available only to travelers who book online, therefore Jazeera Airways strategy is rewarding travelers who book online (www.jazerraairways.com) 1.4 PROBLEM DEFINITION Understanding customers requirements is vital to any business enterprise in order for it to remain competitive. Customer satisfaction is of great interest since it has a direct effect on customer retention, loyalty and the prospect of new customers. Retention is a major challenge, as customers can easily switch from one service provider to another considering the internet can facilitate easy access to a wide variety of choices with lesser cost. Acquiring new customers may involve significant cost on the part of the company in terms of marketing, advertising and promotion. Hence it is important to understand the determinants of customer satisfaction and assess the current experience of the customer in order to improve services. Customer satisfaction is a major issue of Jazeera Airways and good online service quality is a key factor that will determine in the long term, whether it will succeed or fail in retaining existing customers and attracting new ones. Due to rapid technological advancements in the marketplace Jazeera Airways maintains a close relationship with their customers, as their expectations and perceptions of online service quality may change. This research will therefore be conducted on Jazeera Airways, the first low cost airline in Kuwait. Jazeera Airways offers online ticketing in its website as the main distribution channel. Therefore it is important to take into account the quality of its website and to pay more attention to customer evaluation of the service given. Customers want to make their own bookings in their own time without depending on middlemen; as a result it is necessary that online service quality determinants lead to satisfaction. Dissatisfied travelers may perceive one of the following: Web sites do not seem to have many of the very basic features that experts consider important in forming relationship with customers. Service providers undervalue the attributes that customers use to judge service quality that should be monitored and enhanced to help the service performance. There are other variables of the online service quality that affect the overall travelers satisfaction. Therefore this research aims to address such problematic issues by researching the relevant factors including current opinion of the airline users. 1.5 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES As this research study aims to examine the customer satisfaction of the service of Jazeera Airways in online ticketing through the quality delivered through its website, its main objectives are as follows: To assess the perception of each service of Jazeeras e-service Quality dimensions. To evaluate consumer satisfaction towards e-service quality for online service quality within Jazeera. To determine the important dimensions leading to satisfaction when purchasing online tickets within Jazeera. 1.6 RESEARCH QUESTIONS In order to fulfill the objectives of this study, the following questions need to be addressed: What key incubative dimensions do online customers perceive as important for their e-service quality? What key active dimensions do online customers perceive as important for their e-service quality? What are the most influential online service quality dimensions of the website as perceived by respondents with a high level of customers satisfaction in the Jazeera Airways website? What are the most influential online service quality dimensions of Jazeera Airways contributing to customer satisfaction when examining the Jazeera Airways website? Are the different socio-demographic variables involved perceiving e-service quality and satisfaction in the same way or differently? 1.7 Research Methodology This research is considered deductive, quantitative, descriptive, explanatory, and exploratory to some extent type of study. The research follows the survey strategy approach and consists of 67 questions composed of a two page questionnaire distributed to the target sample in Kuwait. Data was collected using Arabic and English questionnaires, from a sample size of X passengers who booked online through Jazeeras website. The questionnaire consists of four sections (A, B, C, D). Section A solicits demographic information. Section B evaluates Jazeeras Airways e-service quality using an adapted Santos (2003) model. Section C measures the level of customer satisfaction. Statements of Section B and C are scaled using a Likert type scale from 1 to 5. Section D collects information added by customers that will add value to the research. 1.8 RESEARCH LIMITATIONS Throughout this research conducted in Kuwait regarding Jazeera Airways website service quality a number of limitations were noted as follows: The thesis investigates the customer satisfaction of Jazeeras Airways website service quality and does not include the companys perspective/point of view; therefore the study is limited in its scope to customers and not employees or managers. The study does not include product quality, price, situational factors, personal factors, and other services provided by Jazeera Airways. Using a quantitative approach only towards addressing the research problems, a qualitative approach is lacking. The research scope is limited as it assesses Jazeera online service â€Å"e-ticketing† excluding airport customer services such as check in, luggage, lounge and on board services. There is limited relevant literature concerning service quality in the airline industry in Kuwait and the region, therefore there are no previous findings or frameworks to consult. 1.9 THESIS STRUCTURE This study is composed of five main chapters. Chapter One presents the background details of the selected research area and the experience in Kuwait, followed by the problem definition, the research objectives and questions, the methodology, the studys limitations and the thesis structure. Chapter Two discusses related theories, concepts and models providing a comprehensive review and an insight into the subject area as a whole, followed by an explanation of the research to the country of Kuwait. Chapter Three describes the methodology, research design and techniques used in the collection and analysis of the data. Chapter Four presents the gathered data, their interpretation and analysis. Chapter Five looks at the findings, assessing whether they satisfy the research questions and objectives to draw conclusions from the results. Based on these conclusions, recommendations for management are provided with further suggestions for future research. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 INTRODUCTION In this chapter a comprehensive review of available related literature is made concerning website service quality and customer satisfaction. In the process various concepts, models and theories covering customer satisfaction, determinants of customer satisfaction, the relationship between online service quality and satisfaction and online service quality dimensions are presented and explored to give the study a wide ranging theoretical basis. In addition the relevance of the research to the country of Kuwait is also addressed. 2.2 CUSTOMER SATISFACTION 2.2.1 Definition of Customer Satisfaction Oliver (1980) explains satisfaction as the summary of a psychological state resulting when the emotion surrounding disconfirmed expectations is coupled with a consumers prior feelings about the consumer experience. In other words, satisfaction is an attitude or appraisal that is created by the customer comparing their pre-purchase expectations of what they would receive from the product or service to their subjective perceptions of the performance they actually did receive. Customer satisfaction has become a key intermediary objective in service operations, because of the benefits it conveys to organizations (Ranaweera and Prabhu, 2003). The importance of customer satisfaction results from the generally accepted philosophy that for a business to be successful and profitable, it must satisfy customers (Shin and Elliott, 2001). While many authors have described satisfaction using various definitions, Table 2.1 presents a few notable explanations of customer satisfaction. Table 2.1 Definition of Customer Satisfaction Definition Author Customer satisfaction is a collective outcome of perception, evaluation and psychological reactions to the consumption experience with a product/service. Yi (1990) Satisfaction is function of consumers belief that he or she was treated fairly. Hunt (1991) Satisfaction is a persons feelings of pleasure or disappointment resulting from comparing a products perceived performance (or outcome) in relation to his or her expectation. Kotler et al. (2000) Source: Research based From the above table we understand that satisfaction is the consumers evaluation of the product and service that meet their needs and expectations. According to Parker and Mathews (2001) there are two main interpretations of satisfaction; satisfaction as a process and satisfaction as an outcome. Whereas Gustafsson (2005) argues satisfaction has a strong positive effect on customer loyalty intentions across a wide range of product and service categories. 2.2.2 Determinants of Customer Satisfaction Zeithaml et al. (2005) argued that satisfaction, as shown in 2.1, is influenced by service quality perception, product quality, and price as well as situational and personal factors. Economists differentiate between two categories of properties of consumer products; search qualities and experience qualities. With search qualities consumers determine before purchasing a product like color, style, price, fit, feel, hardness and smell. Experience qualities, are hard to determine; as a result it can be evaluated after the purchase and until the service is received like vacations and restaurant meals (Zeithaml et al., 2005). Keaveney (1995)ppp.jpg point out that a main reason leading to customers switching services is price, as customers, based on prior experience with the service provider, sometimes felt cheated and believed that price increases were unfair or even deceptive. According to (Zeithaml et al., 2005) comparing the price relative to value and state, research reveals that customers of services will make trade-offs among different service features such as price level versus quality. A number of customers, for example, view price as an important element for their satisfaction more than quality. Perceived service quality is only one factor of customer satisfaction (Zeithaml et al., 2005). Consequently to achieve a high level of customer satisfaction, most researchers suggest that a high level of service quality should be delivered by the service provider as service quality is normally considered an antecedent of customer satisfaction (Cronin et al. 2000). Zeithaml et al. (2005) described a consumers emotional state as a personal factor. Satisfaction will vary due to customers biographical characteristics such as age, gender, education, ethnicity and income (Gilbert and Veloutsou, 2006;Van Pham and Simpson, 2006). Customers take partial responsibility for outcomes and describe those negative feelings that influence how a consumer responds to services, causing a person to overreact negatively to the slightest problem (Zeithaml et al., 2005). Situational factors can notably influence purchase decisions such as social environment, physical environment of the purchase place, time influence and the previous states (Vysekalovà ¡, 2004; Nagyovà ¡, 2001). 2.3 The Evidence of Service (3Ps) Services are intangible; therefore customers are searching for evidence of service in every interaction they have with the organization. The three major factors of service experienced by customers are: people, process, and physical evidence. Together these elements are considered as an evidence of the service. Each evidence or subset is present in each service 2.2. Firms should essentially manage the service quality that will lead to satisfying their customers (Bitner, 1993). 2.4 SERVICE QUALITY Numerous researchers have defined service quality their own ways, including Bitner, Booms and Mohr (1994) who described service quality as the consumers overall impression of the relative inferiority / superiority of the organization and its services. Perceived service quality is only one component of customer satisfaction (Zeithaml et al., 2005). According to Parasuraman et al. (1994) service quality is defined as, the degree of discrepancy between customers normative expectations for the service and their perception of the service performance. Gronroos (1982) stated that total service quality is customers perception of difference between expected service and perceived service. Afterward in 1984, he then explained service quality of the service encounter as two different dimensions: one is technical or output quality and the other functional or process quality. Therefore, service quality has become a well-liked area of academic investigation, recognized as a major factor in differentiating service products and gaining competitive advantage (Zeithaml et al., 1996). Table 2.2 presents the concept of service quality from varied authors viewpoints who combined suggest we can understand that meeting the need and requirements and achieving customers expectations depends on delivering the best level of service quality. Notably with time, service quality takes place before and leads to overall customer satisfaction Table 2.2 Definition of Customer Satisfaction Definition Author Service quality as the subjective comparison that customers make between the quality of the service that they want to receive and what they actually get. Gefan (2002) Service quality can be defined as â€Å"the difference between customers expectations for service performance prior to the service encounter and their perceptions of the service received†. Asubonteng et al. (1996) Service quality is determined by the differences between customers expectations of services providers performance and their evaluation of the services they received. Parasuraman et al. (1985,1988) Source: Research based Gilbert and Veloutsou (2006) determined different approaches to measure customer satisfaction, varying between measuring expectations relative to perception or measuring the performance aspect only, without relating it to the desired level of service. Service quality has been found to be an important input to customers satisfaction (Caruana, 2002). 2.4.2 Dimensions of Service Quality Service quality has been the focus of increased study in recent years as many researchers have tried to reveal features of services that significantly relate to quality evaluation in traditional service environments. In 2001 Brady and Cronin presented a model consisting of interaction quality, physical environment quality, and outcome quality. These dimensions draw on, among others, the work of Gronroos (1982) and Rust and Oliver (1994) who suggest that exploring both what is delivered (Gronroos technical quality) and how it is delivered (Gronroos functional quality) are important aspects of service quality. Table 2.3 Dimensions of Service Quality Quality Requirement Description Reliability Reliability Consistency of service/ dependability, i.e. the ability to provide the service on time, accurately and dependably Responsiveness Responsiveness Willingness/readiness of employees, i.e. the ability to deal effectively with complaints and promptness of services Assurance Credibility The extent to which the service is believed and trusted; involves honesty, trustworthiness and believability Courtesy The politeness, respect, consideration and friendliness shown to the customers by the contact personnel Security The freedom from danger, risk and doubt Competence The possession of staff of the necessary skill, knowledge and information to perform the service effectively Empathy Access The ease of approachability and contact Communication Listening to customer and keeping them informed about the service Understanding the customer Trying to understand the customers needs and specific requirements Tangibles Tangibles Appearance of personnel and condition of equipment Source: Parasuraman et al. (1985); Ghobadian et al. (1994); Curry and Herbert (1998) A most widely used and accepted study done on service quality is by Parasuraman et al. (1985). Having developed ten dimensions through focus group studies: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, communication, credibility, security, competence, courtesy, understanding the customer, and access. These ten dimensions were then filtered and extracted to five: tangibles, reliability, responsibility, assurance, and empathy, which constitute the basis of a global measurement for service quality, SERVQUAL (Parasuraman et al., 1988). Based on these five dimensions researchers presented a 22-item service quality scale and on an operational level service quality research has been dominated by the SERVQUAL (Parasuraman et al., 1985; Curry and Herbert, 1998). Table 2.3 presents a description of the service quality dimensions. 2.4.3 Relationship between Customer Satisfaction and Service Quality Service quality has been found to be an important input to customer satisfaction (Caruana and Malta, 2002). Cronin and Taylor (1992) examined the causal relationships between service quality, customer satisfaction, and purchase intention. The results suggested that service quality was an antecedent of consumer satisfaction, service quality had less effect on purchase intentions than did consumer satisfaction, and consumer satisfaction had a significant effect on purchase intentions. Customer satisfaction had a stronger effect on behavioral intentions than service quality did (Dabholkar et al., 2000). As a process in time, service quality takes place before, and leads to overall customer satisfaction. Customers loyalty was affected by product quality, service quality, and retailer image. They also suggested that quality of product and service is directly related to customer satisfaction, and then leads to the loyalty of the customer (Cà ¶ner and Gà ¼ngà ¶r, 2002). Based on empirica l findings in service quality and satisfaction literature, service quality is one of the antecedents of satisfaction (Anderson and Sullivan, 1993; Cronin and Taylor, 1992), and loyalty is one of the consequences of satisfaction. Luarn and Lin (2004) indicated that not only customer satisfaction and perceived value directly affected customer loyalty, but also indirectly affected customer loyalty through commitment. 2.5 THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY IN SERVING CUSTOMERS According to Parasuraman (2000), delivering excellent customer service is vital in case customers have to serve themselves by technology-based systems. With quick penetration of technology-based customer-company interfaces such as online banking and e-commerce, employee-delivered service is being replaced by self-service, reducing the need for face-to-face encounters between customers and company personnel. However, this fundamental shift does not mean that companies can afford to ignore customer service. Development of self-service technologies need to emphasize customer service to ensure the customer-technology interface is user-friendly, putting in place an excellent customer-service infrastructure (including properly tr

We Must Build a Culture of Peace Essay -- Graduate College Admissions

We Must Build a Culture of Peace      Ã‚   " Think global, act local" is an appealing slogan, but the advice falls short. We live in a world where our best friends live on different continents and we converse more with our neighbor in Nigeria than our neighbor next door. No longer is it logical to say, "Charity begins at home." Instead, our work for human dignity and human rights must be carried on everywhere at once. To create a global culture of peace, youth of the new millennium must think and act both "global" and "local" contemporaneously.    Youth with a burning inner desire to see a global culture of peace must seek opportunities and relationships in which to demonstrate peace. Over 50 years ago, a child fugitive knew this and proclaimed, "How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world" (Frank). As a young teen, Anne Frank innately knew that the premise for building a global culture of peace is for each of us to reach out and touch the lives of as many people as possible in an attitude of love and tolerance. To accomplish this goal, young people must work concurrently in 3 spheres: local, national, and global.       Locally, we can create our own community-based peace clubs and/or we can join established clubs within schools which promote peace, peer mediation, and conflict resolution. In these clubs youth can learn about peace and then go a step further to educate others by organizing peace walks, writing letters, distributing petitions, planting peace gardens, writing poetry and essays about peace to present in coffee houses, sponsoring peace essay and art contests, writing peace plays to present to the public, and/or publishing our own newspapers.   ... ...me sow love" (Halamandaris). We must let our peace flow outward to influence other youth and adults to join us in our cause. For it is only when we agree to settle our disputes and attain "liberty and justice for all" with words and not wars, gentleness and not genocide, harmony and not hatred will we achieve the ultimate goal - a global culture of peace.    Bibliography Dumas, Alexandre. The Three Musketeers. Bergenfield, New Jersey: Penguin USA, 1982. Frank, Anne. The Diary of a Young Girl: The Definitive Edition. Otto H. Frank, Editor. New York: Doubleday, 1995. Halamandaris, The Brothers, editors. Caring Quotes: A Compendium of Caring Thought. Washington, DC: Caring Publishing, 1994. "World Population Trends." United Nations Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). May 28, 2000. Available http://www.un.org

Dominant Ideology in the United States Essay

Dominant ideology is the prevalent culture, values, traditions, beliefs, practices, and such in a particular group. Within the structure of society, dominant ideology stands for what majority of the people who make up society uphold as their philosophies, values, beliefs, thoughts, principles, etc. (Dominant Ideology Thesis, 1998) Dominant ideology represents what the people stand for. Moreover, it is not only represented in the observable actions, behavior, and way of thinking of people within a group or society, but is also evident in the material or tangible culture existing within their societal circle. For instance, the dominant ideology of society may be interpreted and expressed through literature, music, movies, theater, television programs, sport events, and such. The dominant ideology of the United States leans toward the concept of humanism, such that the nation upholds rationality, morality, and the condition of human life as basis for philosophies, values, or belief systems. (Edwords, 1989) Specifically, the dominant ideology of the United States endorses democracy and liberalism, as well as corporate power and capitalism (Bayes, 2005). Although democracy and liberalism when compared with corporate power and capitalism may be conflicting in several aspects, it still proves to establish what the United States stands for as a nation. The argument of democracy and liberalism as a dominant ideology is the inability of the nation to accomplish it fully (Baves, 2005). Still, inequality exists, and so does prejudice, bias, unfairness and such. However, it does not mean that the non-accomplishment of the dominant ideology makes it invalid for such label. The nation might uphold the values and beliefs of democracy and liberalism, and corporate power and capitalism, at the same time while failing to accomplish what it means for the nation. The dominant ideologies aforementioned in previous discussions are represented in American literature, music, movies, theater, television programs, and even sports events. The theme of these products of culture always contains hints of democracy, liberalism, corporate power, and capitalism. For instance, the major themes of American literature and theater are the strong advocacy for democracy and liberalism. â€Å"The Crucible† and â€Å"Death of a Salesman† by Arthur Miller, â€Å"Uncle Tom’s Cabin† by Harriet Beecher Stowe, and such plays and novels are American classic literature that criticizes repression, injustice, and discrimination. Tales of the history of American Indians are also strong forces that build upon the advocacy of American literature and theater for democracy and liberalism. (Major Themes in American Literature, 2008) Themes of American music, movies, and television programs represent liberalism, and in some aspects, corporate power and capitalism. Liberalism is applied in American music, movies, and television programs because themes or plots could be anything. American artists are more open-minded when it comes to art and expression in properties of media such as music, movies, and television that themes go a long way from conservatism, to rationalism, humanism, to classical, historical, and such. Themes always vary according to artistic interest and inclinations that sets the liberalism as a dominant ideology. Exhibiting corporate power and capitalism may be observed from the setting of movies, such that most movies, music, and television shows represent in one way or another, the concept of the American dream – which when analyzed deeply represents utopia which symbolizes power and perfection. Sports events also represent the dominant ideology of corporate power and capitalism. Famous American sports such as basketball, American football, and baseball, represent the dominant ideologies of the country. Sports events are capitalistic in nature, such that almost every aspect of it boils down to business. Americans patronize sporting events, as it is highly advertised to the public. Majority of Americans attend these sporting events, then comes the opportunity for business institutions to make profit from it, by selling tickets, food, props, and such. I believe it is capitalistic in nature because of the strong business context of sporting events. References Bayes, J. (2005). â€Å"Democratic Dreams in the United States in the Age of Empire: A Feminist Perspective from the North† Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Studies Association, Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu, Hawaii. Retrieved October 15, 2008, from All Academic Incorporated. Website: http://www. allacademic. com/meta/p70048_index. html Dominant Ideology Thesis. (1998). Retrieved October 15, 2008, from Highbeam Research, Inc. Website: http://www. encyclopedia. com/doc/1O88-dominantideologythesis. html Edwords, F. (1989). What is Humanism? Retrieved October 15, 2008, from the American Humanist Association. Website: http://www. jcn. com/humanism. html Major Themes in American Literature. (2008). Retrieved October 15, 2008, from JHSSAAC. Website: http://school. jhssac. org/Faculty/HrgaI/documents/Summaryofthe5Themes. pdf

John Locke on Property Essay

Natural reason suggests that human beings have the right to preserve themselves the moment they are born. An individual can utilize everything that he sees around him to preserve himself. He can drink if he is thirsty; he can eat if he is hungry. Nature, which God gave to the world, is the individual’s source of materials for his preservation. Locke emphasized that the world was given to the whole humanity by God. This, for Locke, is nothing but common knowledge (Locke 11). Locke questions how an individual can actually own a thing. He finds it difficult to understand why, when God has given the Earth to His children, men would search for things on earth and label it as their own. Since it is difficult to find a part of the Earth which an individual can own and call it his â€Å"property†, then the only easy way to solve this dilemma is to have the world owned by a universal monarch. This, then, would only be possible upon the belief that Adam owns the world because god gave it to him. As Adam has the world, it also means that his heirs own the world, too (Locke 11). Since this clearly is not the case in today’s world and in today’s society, Locke promises that he will explain how an individual claim a part of what God has given mankind, and that, with no single express compact of all people (Locke 11). As God has given mankind a whole world, it also means that along with this, He has given mankind a reason to use this world to their convenience and best advantage. The world are has everything that a man needs to survive. It has air, water, food and shelter. It contains that things that an individual needs to live a comfortable life. Whatever is found in this world all help in supporting the life of an individual (Locke 13). Although the food found on earth, including the animals or the predators that feed on them, are all qualified as properties of mankind (since nature produces all them), the fact alone that they are included as part of the earth means that even the predators are necessary for the survival of mankind – even when these beasts harm the quality of living of an individual. There will always be a way for a man to know how a harmful beast may help him. Whatever way this is, he has yet to figure out, but the fact remains that a harmful beast is indeed beneficial since it is a part of the world that God gave him (Locke 14). For Locke, the meat and the fruit which an individual feeds on are both considered occupants of the earth. No other individual will have the right to own that particular meat or particular fruit before it can support his life. No one has a right to something if the benefits are yet undiscovered (Ishay 116). The earth is indeed common to all the people living in it – to all its occupants. Then again, each individual has a property of his own. He is the only person who can practice his rights on that certain thing since he is the only person owning it. His hands do the working. His body does the laboring. Because of all these, whatever he produces rightfully becomes his property. Whatever thing nature has provided, which he, in turn, takes away from the state, becomes his property, as soon as he mixes his labor with it. Whatever it is that he takes away from the state which was placed there because of nature eliminates the right of other men, as long as he was able to own it through his hardships and labor (Ishay 116). Labor is indeed an important factor in this case, since labor is something that mankind cannot question. Labor is the unquestionable property of the man who is laboring. The man laboring is the only man who has the right to his products (Ishay 116). Whoever is being supported and benefited by the fruits of his labor has definitely appropriated these fruits for him. The question of Locke now, is when exactly did this fruit became his own? If, for example, an individual harvests the apple that came from the tree he himself planted, when exactly did he own the apple? Was it from the time when he digested the apple, since it is believed that as he is nourished by the fruit of his labor, he can start calling this his own? Or was it from the time when he picked the apples from the tree (Ishay 117)? What marks the difference between the common man and himself is labor. Labor defines what nature cannot. If an individual makes use of what nature has given him, and he, in turn, starts to benefit from it, then he owns the fruit. The man is able to own things as he extends what a nature can do to support his life. Here is where the concept of private right comes in (Ishay 118). Another dilemma is realized from this perspective, since will one not have a right to that apple which he appropriated for himself if mankind did not allow him to? Does he need the consent of other men to make the apple his property? Would this be considered robbery, since whatever is found on this earth is a property of all men (Boaz 123)? Then again, John Locke argued that consent from other men is not even necessary in the first place. If an individual always waits for a go-signal from other men so that he can start owning and eating an apple, then he will end up being starved. What is common in mankind, or common in â€Å"commoners†, is the act of taking something away from this world to make it his property. Nature leaves something in the state, and commoners remove it out from there. As an individual removes it from the state, it starts to be his property. Without such property, then the individual will be of no use to the world. Taking something which an individual may consider his property is not dependent on whether or not commoners will allow him to (Boaz 123). The grass is in the lands to be eaten by a horse. A servant sees a turf which he may cut. All people can see ores, and all of them have right to the meat. An individual can do everything that he can, and thus exhibit acts of labor, to produce something that can benefit him. As a product of his labor, his prize is to own it as its property. He does not need to consult other men; more so, need their consent. The moment an individual removes something from the state is already a manifestation of a labor being enacted. There is a struggle, a difficulty, and an action taking place as an individual takes something away from the state. From this point exactly, an individual owns a thing (Boaz 123). John Locke’s main argument when he said that property is prior to the political state; he was referring to the law of reason. This law is what makes the deer a proper of an Indian, only if this Indian went his way into killing the deer. Once he exerted effort and enacted labor into killing the deer, then he has every right to eat the deer. The deer used to be a property of the world, and of everyone. Killing it is also a right of every person. Then again, whoever has the reason to go first and bestow his energy, labor and power to kill the deer, is the same person who owns the meat. Reason is what defines a person’s property, according to John Locke. Whatever it is that is found in this earth is a property of everyone, and everyone has the right to owning it. Then, again, labor, when fueled with reason, is what makes and what allows a person to own something and start calling it his property (Boaz 124). For John Locke, it is effortless to imagine and think how labor can start and prescribe a person’s property, considering the fact and the supposed challenge that may be faced since this property used to be a property of all mankind, and this property of mankind is coming from nature – the nature itself being an entity that belongs to everyone. The limits of a property are defined by how we spend it. For John Locke, arguments and conflicts regarding property and owndership may be eliminated if we see things his way (Boaz 125). Through John Locke’s view in property, he suggests that convenience and right go along together. He has his right which is his reason enough to employ his labor on a property common to mankind. Once he goes through challenges to own it to his convenience, then there should be no room left for conflict and quarrel. Whoever went his way to experience challenges just to reap what he saw, has every right to own the fruits of his labor (Boaz 126). Works Cited Boaz, David. The Libertarian Reader: Classic and Contemporary Readings from Lao-tzu to Milton Friedman. Free Press, 1998. Ishay, Micheline. The Human Rights Reader: Major Political Essays, Speeches, and Documents from Ancient Times to the Present. CRC Press, 2007. Locke, John. Two Treatises of Government. Kessinger Publishing, 2004.

Aristotle and Oedipus essays

Aristotle and Oedipus essays Oedipus is a prime example of a tragidy, according to Aristotles definition in the poetics. Aristotles Poetics is considered the first work of literary criticism in our tradition. The couple of pages in the book mainly describe tragedy from Aristotles point of view. He defines tragedy as being an imitation of an action that is a whole and complete in itself and of a certain magnitude. Aristotle also points out terms such as catharsis, which can be said that is the purification of ones soul. He argues in his Poetics that catharsis is achieved through emotions of pity or fear, which is created in the audience as they witness the tragedy of a character who suffers unjustly, but is not entirely innocent. Then he moves on to describing the main elements of tragedy. Such elements are: plot, character, language, thought, spectacle, and melody. Then he classifies these in three parts, the media, the manner and the objects. The language and melody constitute the media, in which they effect the imitation. Then there is the spectacle, which is the manner, and the remaining three, the plot, character and thought are the objects that are imitated. Aristotle considers the plot to be the most important of these elements. He describes the plot as not being a unity revolving around one man. Instead, he states that many things happen to one man, which may not always go together, to form a unity. At the same time, he says that among the actions that a character performs there are many that may be irrelevant to one another, but yet they form a unified action. Aristotle continues depicting the plot categorizing it in two manners: simple and complex. In a simple plot, a change of fortune takes place without a reversal or recognition. In contrast, in a complex plot, the change of fortune involves recognition or a reversal or both. T...

Mary Tudor, essays

Mary Tudor, essays Although through the years Mary Tudor has been named Bloody Mary, she turns out to be one of the kindest Tudors to ever live. Her famed nickname was given to her because of the three hundred (or more) Protestants who were put to death during her reign. (Plowden, p.150) It was also to the amazement of everyone that she actually got to the throne. (Loades, p.3) First of all many considered her an illegitimate child of Henry VIII, and that she in no way deserved the throne. Also the idea of having only a queen solely rule the kingdom brought an upset to many nobles. ( D.M. Loades) Thirdly she was a sickly woman and well past her prime years(she was 37 when she came to the throne). (Plowden, p.137) In Greenwich Palace on February 18, 1516, Mary Tudor was born. (BritainSun.com, p.1)Mary was born to Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. (BritainSun.com, p.1) She was the fifth child to be born to them, but she was the only one of the five to survive past birth. (BritainSun.com, p.1) She wasnt the healthiest of children either, although this wasnt uncommon during this time period. She was often ailed with headaches and poor vision. (BritainSun.com, p.1) Her parents both tried to keep her from becoming ill, they went to extents of drawing out special routes so that when she traveled it would not be near any towns where even rumors of a break out had happened.(Erickson, p.42) Mary had a very nice childhood in terms of comfort and possessions, but in time spent with her parents she was greatly lacking. (Erickson, p.36) Her father at first adored and loved her greatly because of her spunk, sweetness, and her ability to draw the love of all the adults who met her. He even donned her with the nickname of the greatest pearl in the kingdom.(Erickson, p.38) At the age of seventeen her father had his marriage with her mother annulled and he declared Mary illegitimate to the thrown. This c...

Guidelines for Revising a Composition

Guidelines for Revising a Composition Revision  means  looking again  at what we have written to see how we can improve it. Some of us start revising as soon as we begin a rough  draftrestructuring and rearranging sentences as we work out our ideas. Then we return to the draft, perhaps several times, to make further revisions. Revision as Opportunity Revising is an opportunity to reconsider our topic, our readers, even our purpose for writing. Taking the time to rethink our approach may encourage us to make major changes in the content and structure of our work. As a general rule, the best time to revise is not right after youve completed a draft (although at times this is unavoidable). Instead, wait a few hourseven a day or two, if possiblein order to gain some distance from your work. This way youll be less protective of your writing and better prepared to make changes.   One last bit of advice: read your work aloud when you revise. You may hear problems in your writing that you cant see. Never think that what youve written cant be improved. You should always try to make the sentence that much better and make a scene that much clearer. Go over and over the words and reshape them as many times as is needed.(Tracy Chevalier, Why I Write. The Guardian, Nov. 24, 2006) Revision Checklist Does the essay have a clear and concise main idea? Is this idea made clear to the reader in a thesis statement early in the essay (usually in the introduction)?Does the essay have a specific purpose (such as to inform, entertain, evaluate, or persuade)? Have you made this purpose clear to the reader?Does the introduction create interest in the topic and make your audience want to read on?Is there a clear plan and sense of organization to the essay? Does each paragraph develop logically from the previous one?Is each paragraph clearly related to the main idea of the essay? Is there enough information in the essay to support the main idea?Is the main point of each paragraph clear? Is each point adequately and clearly defined in a topic sentence and supported with specific details?Are there clear transitions from one paragraph to the next? Have key words and ideas been given proper emphasis in the sentences and paragraphs?Are the sentences clear and direct? Can they be understood on the first reading? Are the sentences varied in length and structure? Could any sentences be improved by combining or restructuring them? Are the words in the essay clear and precise? Does the essay maintain a consistent tone?Does the essay have an effective conclusionone that emphasizes the main idea and provides a sense of completeness? Once you have finished revising your essay, you can turn your attention to the finer details of editing and proofreading your work.

International Marketing Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

International Marketing Plan - Assignment Example The Chinese culture has been the inventor of paper, tea etc. The culture is five thousand years old and to the modern days the country has been able to maintain the ethnicity and the distinctiveness of the culture. Ethnic groups like the Huns and the Mongols have ruled the country from time to time. (A brief introduction to Chinese culture, n.d.) Today, China has opened up to the foreign countries in the wake of the globalization of the economy. The westernization of the culture is evident from the dressing trend of the people. The traditional dresses are used during the times of occasion while in normal times they wear modern dresses. Gini & Jony is focused on the modern dresses for the kids. The company will have tremendous scope for growth in the country. (Living and Values, n.d.) Shanghai has been the most populated city in China with a population of 16.74 millions according to the census of 2000. Out of the total population 88.31% is urbanized and the density is 2,657 people/ square kilometer. The fertility rate of the city has been controlled and it was one of the first regions to have a negative growth rate. It has been maintaining a growth rate of -1.9%. The per capita income in the area is 5,596 Yuan, which is higher than that of Beijing and Tianjing. (Shanghai, n.d.). The city offers a good opportunity for a company like Gini & Jony to cater to the high value customers. The fertility rate has been a problem. However, the company caters to children of various age groups. Shanghai opened up to the foreigners in the 1800s. Since then, Shanghai has been flooded by religions from all over the world. The Christians came in with their religion and so did the other religions. There are five principal groups in the city today - Buddhism, Catholicism, Taoism, Islam and Protestantism.  The culture of Shanghai has opened up from the traditional to the modern forms. This is an

Elisabeth Vigee Lebrun's Humanization of Marie Attionette Research Paper

Elisabeth Vigee Lebrun's Humanization of Marie Attionette - Research Paper Example Le Brun is the Queen’s confidant ii. Le Brun attempted to save Marie Antoinette from guillotine through propaganda letters and portraits IV. Marie Antoinette’s Portraits by Le Brun: â€Å"An Average Woman† i. Marie Antoinette en chemise ii. Marie Antoinette and Her Children V. Conclusion Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun's Humanization of Marie Antoinette Introduction Eighteenth Century Europe is no place for a woman. Ranging from ruling the household to ruling the state, men had become beings of ultimate idealism that it overshadowed the importance of women. In a time and space where men are kings, it is notable to recognize two women who made their mark in history and found intimacy in friendship despite the disparity of their social status. It was art why the painter Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun and the French monarch Marie Antoinette established a close relationship and saw each other not according to their social roles, but women who have equal needs and challenges, in tha t male-dominant society they have to endure; especially for Elisabeth’s part, she humanized Marie Antoinette through the portraits she made for her and the genuine friendship she had established with her. Le Brun and Marie Antoinette: Meeting of Two Worlds Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun came from a humble family of artists, and having inherited her father’s talent, she embarked a road less traveled by women in her time: painting. Being unique and creative in her style, she was initially rejected by the artists’ community. It was not until 1776 when she finally had her opportunity of becoming a full-fledged artist, when she was summoned to make a portrait of the then Queen of France, Marie Antoinette (Bietoletti 76). Although Le Brun noted that she was intimidated by the queen, she was able to diminish this feeling through Marie Antoinette’s grace and kindness towards her, perhaps because â€Å"they were [of] the same age† (Rafter). On the other hand is a French monarch who was known of her stylish, beautiful and admirable countenance, Queen Marie Antoinette. Tracing back to her roots, she was basically a foreigner and her marriage with Louis XVI was part of a peace-making strategy of her native land Austria and its eternal rival, France. However, the purpose was not fulfilled to its fullest, and instead of reconciling the two nations, the Queen always had an awkward situation with the rest of the French royal family and developed â€Å"tensions and suspicions† among them (Goodman 4). In Marie Antoinette’s tumultuary political life and social stature, she became at least an ordinary woman, with the help of her official portraitist Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun. Imprisoned by the standards of a typical French monarch, Le Brun released her from the bars by seeing through her more than that of the King’s wife, but first of all, a mother and a woman, just like her. Le Brun’s Friendship to Marie Antoinette As stated previously, Le Brun and Marie Antoinette crossed each other’s path when the painter was ordered to paint the French queen. On that day, they were able to establish a relaxed emotional connection which soon became a close

Introduction to Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Introduction to Business - Essay Example This paper reviews the importance of communication channels in business organizations. In addition, it looks into the ways through which communication channels can help business organizations to improve on their performance and gain competitive edge over their competitors. An effective communication channel will ensure that information reaches the intended persons. It should be noted that communication channels enables managers as well as other individuals within an organization to send information and receive feedback. Therefore, effective communication channels will ensure that a given message is sent to the target audience and the feedback is got. Effective and efficient communication channel within organizations is capable of maintaining excellent relationships between employees and the management of the organization. Through it, employees will be encouraged to share their ideas that may be implemented and this is capable of enhancing an organization’s performance. Through effective and efficient communication channels, employees are capable of submitting their comments, work accounts, grievances as well as recommendations. Moreover, when organizations have effective as well as speedy communication channels, delays will be prevented and results will be achieved. Good communication channels are beneficial to organizations because it will enhance motivation since employees will be informed and clarified concerning works to be conducted as well as the manner in which they are to be conducted very quickly. In addition, it will enable employees to enhance on their performance when it is below the expectations. The productivity of organizations will thus be improved. Similarly, good communication channels will ensure that the individual attitudes of employees are altered since they will be well informed very quickly. It should be noted that proper communication

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Strategic HR Management - Job Analysis - Essay Example and objectives so as to enhance business performance and build up organizational culture that promote innovation, competitive advantage and flexibility† (Becker, & Huselid, 2006). In the organizational setting SHRM strategy is adopted in order to augment the existing HR policies and initiatives as a strategic component by many organizations. Thus in the formation and implementation of the organization’s strategies through HR activities such as selecting, recruiting, rewarding workers for their performances and training them, the management focuses on the labor productivity. Many writers in the 1980s began to focus on a more strategic approach for the management of human resources rather than the traditional concept of people management or industrial relations. SHRM concentrates on human resource programs with long-term goals. Rather than concentrating on internal human resources, the emphasis is on looking at and solving problems that affect people management programs on a global scale and in the long run. As such the main objective of strategic human resources is to enhance people productivity by concentrating on business obstacles that take place outside of human resources. The main activities of a strategic human resource manager should be to find out key HR areas where strategies could be implemented in the long run so as to enhance the overall employee productivity and motivation. Communication between top management and HR of a firm is important as co-operation is not possible without active participation (Fine, & Cronshaw, 1999). The key feature s of SHRM are; Job analysis can be defined as â€Å"A job analysis is the process used to collect information about the duties, responsibilities, necessary skills, outcomes, and work environment of a particular job. You need as much data as possible to put together a job description, which is the frequent outcome of the job analysis. Additional outcomes include recruiting plans, position postings and

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Strategic HR Management - Job Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strategic HR Management - Job Analysis - Essay Example and objectives so as to enhance business performance and build up organizational culture that promote innovation, competitive advantage and flexibility† (Becker, & Huselid, 2006). In the organizational setting SHRM strategy is adopted in order to augment the existing HR policies and initiatives as a strategic component by many organizations. Thus in the formation and implementation of the organization’s strategies through HR activities such as selecting, recruiting, rewarding workers for their performances and training them, the management focuses on the labor productivity. Many writers in the 1980s began to focus on a more strategic approach for the management of human resources rather than the traditional concept of people management or industrial relations. SHRM concentrates on human resource programs with long-term goals. Rather than concentrating on internal human resources, the emphasis is on looking at and solving problems that affect people management programs on a global scale and in the long run. As such the main objective of strategic human resources is to enhance people productivity by concentrating on business obstacles that take place outside of human resources. The main activities of a strategic human resource manager should be to find out key HR areas where strategies could be implemented in the long run so as to enhance the overall employee productivity and motivation. Communication between top management and HR of a firm is important as co-operation is not possible without active participation (Fine, & Cronshaw, 1999). The key feature s of SHRM are; Job analysis can be defined as â€Å"A job analysis is the process used to collect information about the duties, responsibilities, necessary skills, outcomes, and work environment of a particular job. You need as much data as possible to put together a job description, which is the frequent outcome of the job analysis. Additional outcomes include recruiting plans, position postings and

Information Technology Management Essay Example for Free

Information Technology Management Essay It is commonly argued in the Information Systems literature that a major reason why organizations fail to exploit Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) successfully is because of the lack of â€Å"alignment† between the Information Strategy, the Business Strategy and the Organizational Strategy. The provisions according to information sytem literature correspond to the real happenings in the real world. According to Campbell David, 2004, technological advancement has been embraced throughout various aspects of business, academics, finance and governance. The paper addresses one key component of information system that is considered as a challenge by organizations and business entities in the aspect of using information technology. The key value here is alignment between information, organization and business strategy. A major concern in this paper is to explain the term alignment in the context of information technology. The paper addresses reasons that make alignment one of the key values organizations seek to achieve. In this first issue of alignment the major concern is about transactions carried on in financial institutions. Information technology has been adopted in the recent past as a tool for executing and reviving business strategies in financial institutions. The development of certain business strategies has been enhanced by consideration of values that correspond to alignment. Alignment is therefore, the capacity by a business such as a financial institution to demonstrate a strong positive relationship between latest information technologies and the generally accepted financial guidelines. It calls for customer satisfaction, market share and product innovations. These measures are all essentials in value and adopting such determines the stability and the outcome of a financial institution. Before alignment financial institution needs to assemble all available information technology and carry on with feasibility study. This is because the effectiveness of a computer squarely depends on its capacity to improve or malign the organizational units. Factors to consider before alignment Planning- the original process has to be planned and agreed upon by the managers of the financial institution. Auditors should also be involved in this exercise for audits, re-examinations and readjustments of the whole project. Relation to benefits –alignment must be of benefit to the financial institution since it is a costly exercise. It is of no use to adopt latest technology if the problem is controllable by changing some management practises. This is according Culp Christopher, 2001. For example, outputs like profits and revenue do not call for information technology rather the size and organizational structure and number of staff that dictate the demand for additional computers. Alignment must stick to its purposes to overcome all obstacles as resistance to change may come from many sources including the employees and customers. Advantages of alignment The latest technologies such as client sever internet, data warehousing has positive implications which include first, incremental profit gains. Second, internal alignment in an organization remains a success factor in employee’s ability to perform effectively and become a cutting edge provider of value to customers. Third, alignment acts as business intelligence solutions for organization that helps in management and efficient customer satisfaction. For example, e-banking software where customers can access their bank accounts at home without necessarily going to the banking halls. Fourth, other than saving time it is also considered a secure method than transporting money to banks. Fifth, business intelligence solutions have been important aspects in financial institutions as they help to sort out effectively volumes of transactions within a short period of time. For example, pay roll software that is able to calculate thousand of employee’s monthly dues, deductions and contributions irrespective of their earning rates within a mater of seconds. Computers have also been used to solve complicated business calculations and at the same time update them accordingly. Take for example where a customer gets a loan from a financial institution either on a reducing interest rate. The software will auto calculate the interests based on the number of years the customer will take to clear plus the principal amount and at the same time store the information. Sixth, alignment reduces the amount of paperwork used in various departments especially in printing, faxing and laminations. This is because nowadays office memos and other information are shared online by use of internet between departments and even branches. Seven, alignment has played a key role in marketing and advertising new products through the internet. A customer can place an order and at the same time pay by transferring funds from a financial institution to account of the seller effectively. Disadvantages Alignment is a very costly exercise to an enterprise like financial institution in terms of prices and employee training as it calls for massive training. System change over might also be rejected by both the employees and the customers. Sometimes computers breakdown and will definitely slow the process in financial institution slowing down the entire process. This leads to a massive loss and failure to satisfy customer needs. For example, slowing or breakdown of machines in a Forex bureau dealing with foreign exchange will loose sales since currency changes value every minute. Business alignment methods Nowadays, many business transactions are relying on an efficient IT support system. It is remarkable to note the improved professionalism and responsibility in corporate and technical fields. Many companies and especially in the financial sector have invested massively in business IT and corporate ICT. This is a very important development in creation of personal responsibility in terms of accountability, capability and commitment. However, with the changing technology certain changes are felt through continuous exercise which cannot be exploited. New machines have to be budgeted or the old ones have to be upgraded from time to time. To achieve this objective the following steps must be put into consideration. First, planning which calls for implementation of traditional IT alignment techniques seen by many as the CEO’s work. A successful IT/business alignment calls for a more interactive approach or dialogue between the IT managers. They need to clarify what the business expects, what it delivers and how to allocate (Watson Gregory, 2005). This is achieved through prioritization and putting into considerations the rules that empower and govern the IT department. A second plan or consideration used to bring about alignment is that IT should track, adapt and modify business level services. At the same time the use of information technology in financial institutions or any other entities should be done with a purpose of supporting appropriate support of services. Another method is proper management of technological systems which helps to achieve the desired results through a consolidated service support by IT staff. A system need to be put in place to monitor and manage urgent or critical business services. The system should prioritize service requests to enable service delivery at promised levels and also track business processes at certain levels. It is important to note that worth methods are usually required to effectively manage the IT infrastructure and implement changes. The chief executive officer and his or her managers need also to ensure that the set organization standards and expectations are met through proper implementation processes. Certain considerations such as model should be considered for purpose of implementing alignment and information technologies (Selznick Philip, 1952). This involves mapping of IT assets and planning for resources that support services at critical times. It identifies the resources needed to be assembled to deliver IT services. This is done at agreeable service while at the same time reducing costs. A second consideration is measurement whereby the IT department should come up with methods of data collection and operational procedures all based on areas of functionality. According to Chester Arthur, 1994, the measurement methods should correspond with technology and be business oriented. In addition, the measures should ensure a more real time resource allocation decision. The consideration of various measurement principles gives an entity or enterprise the capacity to execute its duties fast. The methods applied by different entities in business alignment are deemed to measure up to set standards and cut down on costs. Alignment of costs and deliver of services through technological application gives entities the capacity to run their operations in a more efficient manner. Validity of alignment as a goal The role played by ICTs is paramount and evident in real life applications in business and organizations. As a goal, alignment is seen to support productivity and new innovation across the entire world. ICT play a very important role on trade development. Application of information technology is also seen as a tool for infrastructure development. Recently, the world economic performance has improved leading to global growth as a result of embracing information systems. The economic growth is seen to have an impact in both developed and developing countries with some developing countries recording a remarkable growth (Danis Wade, 2006). Most countries have recorded a positive growth of the gross domestic product. In addition international markets trade and industrial production has been boosted through alignment. Economic development has led to a smooth global supply chains that broaden the market. A number of advantages arise as evidence that alignment is a valid consideration in the scope of information technology. First, ICT is used for research to provide an organization with basic information about how to improve on performance. Organizations consider putting in place certain measures necessary to acquire information from competitors (Daghfous Abdelkader, 2006). The acquired information is essential as it helps entities to achieve their goals. Second, in the current world of changes, it is important for every organization to consider evaluating measures that support alignment to out perform their competitors. Application of ICT by entities thus promotes a common understanding of how transactions are carried within organizations at low cost. It is a future consideration that all entities should develop measures to fight threats of new entrants, threat exposed by bargaining powers of buyers, sellers, threat of substitute products and barrier to entry. According to Herman James, 2000, embracing information and communication technology will help to do away with threats imposed by five forces. A third consideration is the fact of e-commerce which is a component of electronic business. The use of information systems in carrying on with business transactions online is a true reflection about the validity of alignment. The future of using information technology in the world especially in business transactions is very certain. The concept of globalization is playing a very big role in creation of favourable environment for trading. Creation of strong communication networks enables countries from different regions to carry on with business transactions online. This is one major development of information technology embraced by both developed and developing states. Every state has the mandate to promote the application of information technology through application of the necessary measures. A fourth consideration that needs to be put in place is thorough training of individuals on how to use internet. This should be done in schools and other institutions that promote learning. Children at young age need to know how to apply technological information for purpose of establishing proper measures in business and other aspects of life.

The Middle East And North Africa Mena Economics Essay

The Middle East And North Africa Mena Economics Essay Economic Integration is the elimination of  tariff  and nontariff barriers to the  flow  of  goods,  services, and  factors of production  between a group of  nations.  The purpose of Economic Integration is to allow the free flow of goods and service between nations that can benefit from the economic resources of partner nations. The Economic Integration Model used for this paper is MENA; commonly known as Middle East and North Africa. The countries and regions included in MENA are labeled in the map below http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/MENA.png The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is an economically diverse region that includes both the oil-rich economies in the Gulf and countries that are resource-scarce in relation to population, such as Egypt, Morocco, and Yemen. The MENA region includes the following countries: Algeria | Bahrain | Djibouti | Egypt | Iran | Iraq | Israel | Jordan I Kuwait | Lebanon | Libya | Malta | Morocco | Oman | Qatar | Saudi Arabia | Syria I Tunisia | United Arab Emirates | West Bank and Gaza | Yemen The MENA countries have signed a series of multilateral, regional, and bilateral trade agreements. Multilateral agreements are within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO), of which, with the exception of Syria and the West Bank and Gaza, all countries in the region are members or have observer status. Ten MENA countries have signed European Union-Mediterranean Association Agreements (EMAAs) with the E.U. These agreements replace the preferential access to European markets for goods from African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries with a reciprocal reduction in tariffs on many goods. However, these agreements generally exempt agricultural commodities. The MENA region is also an oil rich region and the regions economic fortunes over much of the past quarter century have been heavily influenced by the price of oil. During the recession of 2008 that effected global economies and the demand for oil, it led to increase uncertainty for the MENA region because of its high dependence on oil price in the international market. As an integrated unit MENA has been able to cope with global recession because of its combined trade policy. In the years to come, integrated regions similar to MENA might be the answer to future problems and hence makes it important to look at costs and benefits of economic integration in the light of MENA. The paper will firstly look at the current problems and challenges faced by the MENA region and then look at the benefits of integration to the region Challenges faced by the MENA region In order to understand the challenges faced by the MENA region collectively, it is important to divide the region into groups and look at these problems in a coherent segregated manner. According to a report by OECD titled Opportunities and challenges in the MENA region these classifications are: Resource-rich, labor-abundant countries are producers and exporters of oil and gas and have large native populations, which represent almost the totality of their residents. This group of countries includes Algeria, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. Resource-rich, labor-importing countries are producers and exporters of oil and gas and have large shares of foreign or expatriate residents, who represent a significant percentage of the total population, even the majority in some cases. This group of countries comprises the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates) and Libya. Resource-poor countries are small producers or importers of oil and gas. These countries include Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia, and the Palestinian Authority. (OECD, 2003) Unemployment The challenges faced by MENA include high unemployment levels (in particular among youth); pervasive corruption and lack of accountability and transparency; bloated public sectors with state-owned enterprises that crowdout the development of private enterprise and investment; low levels of enterprise creation; and, for a number of countries, a high dependence on fuel and food imports generating extensive exposure to commodity price volatility. Given that these challenges are both structural and interconnected, they can be addressed only through a coordinated and comprehensive strategy that involves governments, the private sector, civil society, and the international community which I will show later in the essay. The chart below from the World Bank shows unemployment rates for 2000 and 2009 in the MENA region, indicating the change in unemployment over nine years. (World Bank, 2011) Arab Spring Revolution Immigration is expected to increase in those countries most affected by the Arab Spring. Immigration to GCC countries, which already host significant shares of Arab immigrants, is expected to rise. Numerous accounts have been reported of Immigrants fleeing from Northern Africa to Europe. Furthermore, a survey of Egyptian young people by the International organization for Migration found that the onset of protests and instability may have acted as a primary push factor for youth who reported prior intentions to migrate. The surveys results showed that two-thirds of respondents with migration intentions who were working prior to the start of the protests were negatively affected by the events: 26 percent lost their jobs, 20 percent were asked to take unpaid leave, and 19 percent witnessed a reduction in their working hours. (International Organization for Migration, 2011) Inflation Data from OECD indicated that high inflation which is the product of a high dependence on fuel and food imports represents a major challenge for resource-poor countries. For the MENA region; consumer price inflation has remained high since the oil and fuel price spikes of 2007-08. This is particularly the case in Egypt, which registered an inflation rate of 5 percent during 1996-2005 and a significantly higher rate of 11 percent during 2006-10. A notable exception to high inflation has been Morocco, which has kept consumer price increases below 3 percent. (OECD, 2003) Costs and Benefits of Economic Integration in MENA Although the MENA region has registered a relatively high economic growth during the last few years, However;the absence of a vibrant private sector which would have been able to create more and better jobs, has meant that economic performance has not been reflected in improved living standards for the majority. As discussed earlier, some factors causing this deficiency are rigid labor markets, skills mismatches, the crowding out of private enterprise by SOEs and high corruption. But there are also other economic and structural factors, such as low levels of competitiveness in manufacturing sectors, lack of export-market diversification, and low intraregional integration which still exists in the region. Furthermore, although the Arab Spring provides an important opportunity for economic reform, although its immediate effects will be negative for those countries most affected by social and political instability Transition examples from other regions suggest that the medium-run gains from moving to more open and accountable governments are sizable. Income growth tends to stabilize at a higher average rate in the decade after transition, and income volatility at a lower rate, as compared with the previous period. The results will depend on how swiftly and credibly governments can commit to reform. In the meantime, as investors wait for political uncertainty to be resolved in countries affected by political turmoil, it is inevitable that investment will be delayed and economic challenges will emerge. Evidence from earlier transitions shows that these difficulties tend to be limited; growth typically dips for only one year and then returns to or exceeds previous levels. Integration via Trade in Goods Regional trade agreements (RTAs) have proliferatedin the MENA region in the past two decades. Such agreements can make it possible to reap benefits from internationalintegration, while tailoring the provisions ofthe agreements to the particular needs and adjustmentcapacities of the countries involved. They canalso have beneficial indirect effects. Opening domesticmarkets to partner countries, for example, can increasecompetition in sectors with previously highlyconcentrated industrial structures. Such precompetitive impacts are particularly important for countriesthat have only a nascent domestic competition policy.Also, regional cooperation can be effective in harmonizingcustoms procedures and domestic regulations.Adopting common rules on investment, forexample, has the potential to encourage increased inflowsof foreign direct investment by enhancing thecredibility of FDI-related policies and providing a restrainton sudden policy reversals. According to the World Bank many MENA countries have recently seen the share of intraregional trade in total merchandise trade increase dramatically over the past two decades. Compared to this; the extent of intraregional trade remains lowerthan in all other regions of the world, except for South Asia. Though the ratio of intraregional trade to GDP exceeds 15 percent in the Syrian Arab Republic and Jordan, in most MENA countries the ratio remains in the low single digits. In particular, resource-rich, labor-importing countries generally show a very low level of intra-MENA exports in relation to GDP, despite high total export-to-GDP ratios. (World Bank, 2005). Integration through Services For an economy, services typically contribute a major portion to the GDP. Therefore, it is important to remove barriers to entryfor both domestic and foreign firms and increasethe efficiency of services. The current regional integration agreements inMENA generally do not cover services trade, and in areas where the agreements do cover services, it is in the terms of intentions and tacit agreements. Moreover, there still exist differences in regulations and at times limits on the physical movement of individuals. In these cases it is currently creating a situation in which it is often easier for MENA countries service providers to operate in countries outside the region than within. The chart below from the World Bank represents the service exports for selected countries in the MENA region. Integration through Labor reforms If we compare the regions integration through trade and labor we can see that the MENA region is more integrated in the globaleconomy through labor mobility than through tradeand investment. According to a report by the World Bank on the MENA region titled Economic Developments and Prospects it has outlined that the regions share of global trade flows is below 5 percent, andthe region receives an even lower share of globalFDI flows. However, about 16 percent of all remittancespaid out to migrants in the world originate inthe MENA region, essentially the GCC countries,and 10 percent of global remittances are received byresidents of MENA countries. (World Bank, 2008) They have also explained a recent trend where MENAs share in remittances has come down significantly since the 1990s, at atime when remittances to India, China, Mexico, andthe Philippines have increased exponentially. Thus looking closely at these huge labor flows in the past it becomes important to ask here if immigrations are entirely conflict-driven flows. This is not the case if we look at the chart below where the share of refugees as a portion of Migrants has decreased dramatically. One of the primary factors favoring the increase in immigration still appears to be demographics. According to population projections from the United Nations in context with labor force participation rates, show that, if there is no migration then the labor force in GCC countries will keep growing at 2.2 percent per yearbetween 2005 and 2010, but after 2010, this growth rate will decline. Thus, without additional migrant workers, two GCC workers would still have to supportthree inactive persons over the foreseeable future. This shows that if there are no drastic changes then underlying demographic factors will continue to favor more migration. Integration through Capital Flows Two developments frame the context for recenttrends in capital markets in the MENA region: countriessuch as Syria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisiahave begun to deepen structural and institutionalreforms, increasing the demand for capital The oil boom has generated massive liquidity in theGulf states, thus increasing the supply of capital. Compared with conditions in previous oil boomperiods, a higher amount of the surplus is now availableto the oil-exporting MENA countries and is beingchanneled into project-based investments in the region.GCC countries have already allocated over$1.3 trillion in infrastructure and manufacturing investmentsover the next 5 years according to the EIU outlook for 2007 (Economist Intelligence Unit, 2007) On the other hand, Project-based investments have recently been increasingespecially in Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, andTunisia. These intra-MENA investments are mostly basedon telecommunications, infrastructure, real estate,tourism, and banking. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency has list of multibillion-dollar investment projects in MENA which is getting longer. According to them some recent investment projects include: A$9 billion tourism project by Dubai Holding and Emaar Holding in Morocco, Kuwaits Telecom Group (Wataniya) expanding into Tunisia, DubaiHolding acquiring 33.5 percent of Tunis Telecom ($2.25 billion), and the Bukhater Groups $5 billion City Complex project in Tunisia. To date, there are 15MENA national investment promotion agencies,most of which were established in the past decade.New investments are facilitated by private groupsand finance houses, and governments are closelymonitoring reform indexes published by internationalagencies to analyze the effects of greater investments intra-region. (Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, 2011) Integration through Infrastructure Investments In terms of Infrastructure investment recently, there have been cross-border infrastructure projects that are becoming more prominent in the region. Some of the examplesinclude cross-border electricity grids, gas pipelines,transport links, and telecommunication networks. However, there are still many regulatory and financial challenges.In the past, interconnection of power grids in theMENA region was primarily driven by governmentsconcerns about preserving power supply securityin their respective markets. On the other handother benefits,such as capital investments saving, are also considered,though these are not yet the main drivers fornetwork interconnection. The amount of exported and imported power still remains low in many cases. For instance reports from the World Bank show that only 12 percent of total capacity of theAlgeria-Morocco links is used, 17 percent in the case of the Algeria-Tunisia interconnection. (World Bank, 2011) With the exception of Yemen and Djibouti, transportsystems are well developed in MENA countries. Most countries have been able to develop extensiveroad networks, with high capacity in some areas, and modern facilities for air, sea, and railtransport. The key issue in the region is the quality of the transport assets as a result of the lack of appropriatemaintenance or of poor service operations due to institutional deficiencies. Cost-effectivetransport services, efficient facilitation, and transport infrastructure supplemented with good intermodalconnectivity are required to accommodate the growth in global and intraregional trade. However, regional integration initiatives still remain at an early stage of development in the transport sector.As a result of the closure of several borders in the region, land-based transport plays a minor role inintraregional trade in MENA. Conclusion In light of the recent developments and the challenges faced by the MENA region we can accurately see that there is still room for more substantial development in the region as a result of greater intra-regional economic region. Looking at results from the development of intra-regional trade and services we can see that the benefits outweigh the costs and it is important the reforms are taken at a governmental level to allow for greater de-regulation of markets and policies effecting trade flows between countries. Nevertheless, the recent oil boom and global commodity boom does leave tremendous room for development and growth in the region.