Target market Essay Example for Free

Target advertise Essay Wellness United is a huge wellness office, in its beginning times of activity. We began this wellness office to enable our individuals to set aside cash. While getting fit, remaining in the shape they all prepared are, or simply beginning something new. Our exercise centers will decrease the costs that the normal family unit spends on remaining fit, by offering low costs and ensuring that you remain on target; without there being a misfortune for gear. At the point when you remain fit and fit as a fiddle you improve profitability, you rest easy thinking about yourself, and you realize that you are doing all that you can to improve your life. Our objective markets are segment, psychographic, and conduct fragments. We felt that Demographic division will permit us to arrive at everybody and anybody in our locale. Our exercise center will have an age limitation, shockingly youll should be more than 17 years old to come into the rec center. We will be attempting to connect with the more youthful individuals in our locale and have the option to oblige their youngsters with day care, along these lines exercise center goers will have the option to exercise and remain solid realizing that their kids are sheltered and being looked out for. Starting to get ready for the future, Fitness United will permit you remain fit and solid and have the option to get ready for what ever you need to do. By remaining fit and sound you can anticipate that fantasy excursion climbing mountains in the mayan, or any place your heart desiers. We will have the most recent items and assets that our individuals will have the option to work with to accomplish their objectives. The most up to date gear that permits our individuals to get fit quicker and work diverse muscle bunches each time they go to the rec center. Our coaches will assist you with supper intends to ensure you get the best out of your exercises and help fix your body after exercises. Our mentors are prepared to assist individuals with remaining on target, with month to month gauge ins and supper designs; this is all piece of the enrollment cost. Psychographic division will let us contact individuals and make their fantasies work out as expected, with the correct promoting and the correct publicizing we can address what they will have the option to accomplish with buying our enrollment. Not only an extraordinary body or a low fat rate, however another you. Another you that you can be glad for and challenge the ones around you to turn into the equivalent. The intensity of fearlessness is a key with psychographic division and wellness boundless. Practices division will permit us to focus on the individuals to look to satisfy their objectives. We will ensure that our staff will stroll with our customers bit by bit to accomplish these objectives. Information is key they state, we have the best mentors and staff that will sit with our customers and ensure that they are taught about what they are doing in the rec center, and have the option to respond to any inquiries customers may have. We realize that there will be less expensive and flashier exercise centers in the network, yet none will be have the ability and gear that we will have. We will drive deals and beat the opposition by publicizing everything, and I mean everything that you get without enrollment. No rec centers will have the option to offer equivalent to we can. From prepared and affirmed youngster disapproving, to prepared and confirmed mentors we will have all the instruments to go well beyond the various exercise centers in our segment.

Morality and the crucible Essay

Ethical quality is the differentiation among good and bad. It is the assurance of what ought to be done and what ought not be done; or what is correct and what's going on. Ethics manage practices just as thought processes. All people live by some arrangement of ethics particularly strict individuals. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, this is plainly obvious. It is about the puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts and the chase for witches. Numerous individuals are dishonestly blamed for black magic. All through this record of history key characters need to settle on decisions that challenge their convictions and morals. They should conclude whether to make the wisest decision, and battle against an untruth, or do what’s wrong and surrender to the lie to spare their own lives. Elizabeth Proctor is one of the individuals who battled for reality, in this manner she; as I would see it is the most good character in the story. Elizabeth is the spouse of John Proctor; held, legit, slow to grumble, and loyal. She and her better half offer an also exacting adherence to equity and good standards. She has incredible trust in her own ethical quality and in the capacity of an individual to keep up a feeling of exemplary nature in any event, when this guideline clashes with severe Christian principle. She is notable all through the town for being a Christian lady, knowing every one of her rules. At whatever point her significant other is befuddled or uncertain about something, she drives him onto the way of equity. For instance, she encourages him to stop the witch preliminaries by uncovering reality with regards to Abigail’s wicked, beguiling ways. At the point when Her better half needs to conclude whether to be murdered or admit to black magic, she doesn’t need him to surrender to a degenerate and out of line society. In spite of the fact that she doesn’t wish to lose her significant other, she still doesn’t avoid her ethics and convictions. Indeed, even toward the end, when Proctor chooses to kick the bucket as opposed to marking an admission that would have been an untruth, she doesn’t attempt to battle his choice however shows regard for his honest decision when she says, â€Å"He have his decency now. God deny I take it from him! † This shows her own, however her spouses ethics too, were critical to her. Out of the considerable number of characters in the Crucible, Elizabeth end up being the most good. In a general public where it’s either, blame or be charged, she decided to adhere to her ethics regardless of whether it implied her destruction. She settled on a choice that was exemplary in her eyes. â€Å"Often in obvious trial of good character where individuals are enticed to delude, be deceptive, or exploit one another, there are rare sorts of people who genuinely succeed. † This announcement demonstrated valid, particularly during the witch chase, however Elizabeth Proctor had the option to come out as one who prevailing with regards to standing her grounds and ensuring her ethical quality.

There Are Four Archetypal Developer Personas Which One Are You

There Are Four Archetypal Developer Personas â€" Which One Are You Meister HQ was recently taken over by students! Don’t panic, it wasn’t a hostile takeover. Best we explain a little more. We hosted a few international management students from the Vienna University of Economics and Business, who, as part of a project they were working on, went around and interviewed a couple of developers, ours included. This yielded a few interesting insights. The article below is just an example of that. This is what they had to say about how, through personas, software companies can attract potential developers with a view to hire them. What are Personas? A persona is a fictional figure or archetype that has been formulated as a direct result of grouping individuals together. The way individuals are grouped together â€" whether it be by demographics, behavioral patterns, motivations or goals â€" will affect the type of persona created.   A very broad (and basic) example would be grouping together all females with children as “moms”, then finding the characteristics and personality traits that all moms have in common in order to create the archetypal fictional figure â€" that would be the “mom persona”. This is very important, because personas need to be based on real people, real behaviors, real motivations and goals in order for them to be effective. The History of Personas The personas idea has its roots in marketing, but has gained popularity for its application in talent acquisition. Before we go into how personas can be applied, let’s outline the challenges recruiters face. Since our main focus was on software developers, we’ll focus on the challenges faced by software companies.   Firstly, sourcing talent isn’t easy as the talent pool is often limited i.e. few developers, many jobs. Secondly, recruiters have to consider that great talent doesn’t always equal great fit â€" the applicant might have the suitable skills, but will they fit into the company culture? And, into the existing team? This is where the use of personas can help.   Personas in Recruitment Prospective employers that are aware of the specific personas relevant to their industry have an easier time navigating through the labour market. This is because personas can help sift through aspiring candidates and sort them from those who would be potential fits and those who would not. This could significantly narrow down the search and deliver only quality candidates. We set out to uncover the different types of personas within the software industry in Vienna, Austria. This project involved finding software developers to interview. Sounds easy right? Wrong. We canvassed at universities, companies, and even online. Our research took us three months, hours of interviews at university campuses and various companies. The result…a goldmine of insights! Piecing Together the Persona Puzzle   We asked our interviewees a wide array of questions, ranging from demographics to career motivations. The aim was to gather enough data in order to get more of an understanding of what employees expect from their employers. This led to many interesting learnings, like: did you know that the team, work-life balance, the software product and career development are the most important factors that programmers consider when looking for a job?   But developing concrete personas still involved going further and digging deeper. Upon analyzing our research and comparing notes, we noticed a pattern emerging. Many of those we interviewed expressed similar feelings towards certain aspects of their professional life. These were our puzzle pieces. Adding these pieces together built the first four software developer personas: Kim, Robin, Alex and Charlie.   (Note: for ease of explanation, we’ve chosen to give each persona group a name. However, the names are by no means a reflection of gender i.e. not all Kims are female nor are all Alexes male.) Kim: The Early Beginner Kim is someone in her early 20s. Still too young to remember the greatness of ICQ and Napster. She could either be working in her first job or still be a student, studying computer science at a technical university. Kim often has little or no prior work experience. And if she’s worked before, she hasn’t yet chosen her area of specialization (front-end/back-end/mobile etc.). Kim is often inquisitive and curious. She is often known for constantly asking questions, wanting to find out more about the ins and outs of programming. Due to her lack of experience, Kim is primarily focused on learning. This means that the “Kim” persona would look to work for a company with leaders that empower staff and that has a supportive culture that’s conducive to learning. She isn’t driven by salary and therefore has limited salary demands. She is usually single, extroverted and enjoys social activities. Robin: Time for a ChangeSoon Robin is in his mid 20s and has completed his formal education, such as a Bachelor’s degree in computer science. He is probably on his second or third job but has reached the ceiling in his current job, as in, he has learnt a lot and gained experience but would be keen on taking the next step to further his career. Even though he probably hasn’t taken any steps to find a new job (applied), he is on the lookout for something challenging as well as purposeful. In his current role, he can be found working in a specialized programming area (front-end/back-end/mobile). On a personal level, he is probably in a relationship, he is also quite introverted and self-aware.   He enjoys working on complicated tasks and really wants to be involved and feel a part of the company. He values transparency and is happy working with inspiring leaders. He’s keen to know what is going on and where the company is headed. Salary isn’t his top priority (as long as it is not too far below average). In stead, Robin appreciates non-financial rewards, especially those that make him feel valued for his work. Alex: The Focused Careerist Alex is in his mid to late 20s. He has a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in computer science or a related field. Because Alex studied and worked at the same time, he gained approximately three or four years worth of programming experience, this makes him highly specialized. He knows that he is good at what he does. He’s also very much aware of his market value, which, according to him, is quite high. This makes the Alex persona career oriented. When looking for jobs, he won’t settle for anything less than working for the best company in his field of interest (or for a company with the best reputation). At work, Alex requires a high degree of autonomy and opportunities to progress in his career. Since Alex is very focused on his career, he doesn’t have much time for a relationship outside of work; you could say that he is married to his career. Charlie: Work 2.0 Charlie is in her late 20s to mid 30s. She has a Bachelors degree but not necessarily in IT. She’s a self-taught developer. Her coding is unconventional and she mixes genius lines with simple errors. She seeks to reinvent her software development career but the how is still unclear. Charlie has a family, which makes financial stability and work-life balance essential. She’s new to the industry and thus looks for a company that offers a supportive, people-oriented environment, where she can learn and improve her skills. While the size of her paycheck is not unimportant, her salary demands are lower than those of Alex and Robin.   Which Persona Are You?   Obviously Kim, Robin, Alex, and Charlie don’t cover all developers. It’s possible that people are a mixture of two personas or perhaps share common qualities with all four of them. Take the questionnaire below to find out which person you are most similar to: Attracting Personas: Defining Your Company’s EVP So we’ve given you a brief history about personas, told you how the concept originated, and defined four software developer personas in Vienna. It’s time to circle back and give companies a way to use this information in order to attract and recruit new talent.   The type of personas which your company should hire will depend on several factors such as: your company’s hiring and growth strategy, the company culture, and the personas you already have working within your company (as some personas work together better than others). A good persona-company fit is essential. Personas have the potential to impact company culture. Mapping out the existing personas represented in your company is a good place to start.   Then carefully assess your current Employee Value Proposition (EVP). Talentlyft defines a company’s EVP refers to “the balance of rewards and benefits that employees receive from their employers in return for their performance at the workplace”. It’s an employee-centred approach that is directly linked to talent acquisition and retention. It brings together company culture, brand, internal processes, and employee benefits. All of these together make up a company’s EVP.   Here are three simple questions that can help your company define its EVP and they are: What do my current employees love about my company? What are the benefits employees gain upon choosing to work at my company? What would make potential employees choose to work at my company as opposed to any other? The answer to these questions should give you your company’s EVP. You then need to see whether it resonates with the EVP desired by the personas you wish to hire. If it doesn’t, take the necessary steps to bridge those gaps. But, if there is a match, your company should try and leverage this in its employer branding strategy in order to hire the most suitable personas.

Machiavelli Aristotle Comparison Essay - 914 Words

Machiavelli and Aristotles writings on man, The Prince and Nichomachean Ethics respectively, and the management thereof contain divergent ideas of how man should act and reason. They have a similar view of the end: greatness, but the means which the two philosophers describe are distinctly different. Machiavelli writes about man as mainly concerned with power and self-assertion, while Aristotle desires a society of individuals, of honorable men. An excess of the power seeking Machiavellians and an undeniable scarcity of genuine individuals have created a contemporary society so out of touch with its own humanity that it desperately needs an application of Aristotles Nichomachean Ethics. Modern-day society overflows with†¦show more content†¦Men spend hours analyzing and absorbing the opinions of others in order to advance their social, economic, and political status in society, hours that are a total waste to the development of inner accomplishment and true innovation. I t is because of such extensive self-deviation that Machiavellis ideas are self-inhibitive, and that society needs a strong dose of Aristotelian ethics. With men of the Machiavellian ilk being in excess comes a society lacking a distinctly individual population; it has few honorable men by the standards of Aristotles writings about the proud man. Today, nearly all politicians conform to public opinion. Because most politics is based on representation, public opinion is typically what decides the opinions of men in charge. Additionally, most men tend to conform to the public opinion as well. The general public tends to swing together on issues, picking a side rather than developing their own individual ideas. Although there are people who develop opinions that cross the political spectrum, there are more people who blindly follow their political party and vote accordingly, never diverging from its ideals. Aristotle, however, advocated sheer integrity. He wanted men to display th eir individual views, for to conceal ones feelings, i.e. to care less for truth than for what people will think, is a cowardsShow MoreRelatedComparing Aristotle And Niccolo Machiavelli Essay1698 Words   |  7 PagesThe term political scientist has been used to describe both Aristotle and Niccolo Machiavelli, but does that term do the work of either man justice? From the outset it is very easy to see the philosophical differences between the two men and their visions of the political system(s). It is fairly obvious that both men were products of their times, Aristotle coming from the end of the Golden Age of Greece and Machiavelli coming from end of Medieval Europe, but in both cases their ideas and advice haveRead MoreEssay on Machiavellis The Prince: Politics, War, and Human Nature1334 Words   |  6 PagesMachiavellis The Prince: Politics, War, and Human Nature [I]t is necessary for a prince to know well how to use the beast and the man. (Machiavelli, The Prince, p. 69[1]). In this swift blow, Niccolà ² Machiavelli seems to strike down many visions of morality put up on pedestals by thinkers before his time. He doesnt turn to God or to some sort of common good for his political morality. Instead, he turns to the individual?more specifically, self-preservation in a position ofRead MoreThe Machiavelli s Political Philosophy1575 Words   |  7 Pagesaddressing ourselves to the most mundane question-why consider Machiavelli in the context of philosophy, least of all, political philosophy? This question dominates any philosophical inquiries of the Machiavelli’s political ideologies. Put differently, do the contributions by Niccolà ² Machiavelli to the various salient discourses in the Western thought, most notably political theory, meet the requisite standard models of academic philosophy? Machiavelli essentially seems no t to consider himself a philosopherRead MoreMy Friendship With The Best Friend Essay2054 Words   |  9 Pagesfriendship is one of virtue - the type of friendship preached about by Aristotle in Nicomachean Ethics. My friendship with Rachel was one of the best, most genuine friendships I have ever had. Machiavelli, however, provides a complete contrast to this. He does not preach or advocate for strong friendships of virtue like what I found in my friendship with Rachel. Machiavelli’s definition of friendship is more of what Aristotle would call a â€Å"friendship of utility,† which I have also experienced. AlthoughRead MoreSchool Leadership Roles And Responsibilities10143 Words   |  41 Pagesquestion. Hartman argues that instead of just teaching ethical principles, educators can improve ethical behavior through the education of character. Hartman provides an Aristotelian response to the character debate by clarifying that according to Aristotle, ethics are about virtues. These virtues become a matter of one’s well-being. As human beings, the issue may be in the state of that well-being considering good moral values. Good character serves the best interest of the individual, if the bestRead MorePlato And Aristotle s Views On Political Philosophy Essay3649 W ords   |  15 Pagesand justice. It depends on the philosophers that can be entangled with ethics, economics and also metaphysics. Political thinkers are the pioneers of â€Å"Modern Politics† in the world. The first serious political thinkers emerged in Greece. Plato and Aristotle are two great philosophers of ancient Greece. Plato in his book â€Å"The Republic† delivers the concept of utopian society which means an imaginary society in which people live in a perfect environment governed by the laws that provides happiness toRead MoreThe Biotic Community Do Not Construct Paradigms Essay1628 Words   |  7 Pageswelcomes variations that do not function within binaries. In the misfortunes and transformative events of history, political history, from the works of Aristotle, Aeschylus, Plato, Socrates, Machiavelli, Hobbes, and many others who have contributed to theory of what is not what should be have left the world with a way to view certain objective truths. Arist otle, once said â€Å"at his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst† and Aeschylus, â€Å"tame the savageness ofRead MoreThe Philosophical Point Of Humanism1733 Words   |  7 Pagesthe greatest humanists, occupied a position midway between extreme piety and frank secularism. Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374) represented conservative Italian humanism. Robust secularism and intellectual independence reached its height in Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) and Francesco Guicciardini (1483-1540). Rudolphus Agricola (1443-1485) may be regarded as the German Petrarch. In England, John Colet (c.1467-1519) and Sir Thomas More (1478-1535) were early or conservative humanists, Francis Bacon (1561-1626)Read MorePolitical Morality And Leadership Lessons2220 Words   |  9 Pagesexample of this dualism is represented in the leadership lessons covered by Cicero, on the one hand, and Machiavelli on the other. Whereas their lessons are fundament ally divergent in many regards, there are some subtle points of implicit convergence. The purpose of this essay is to assess with a comparison and contract of the lessons as found by the assigned writings of Cicero and Machiavelli. Both of these books providers time-tested theories and assertions that have been used to obtain and sustainRead MoreAristotle vs. Hobbes: Equality.2378 Words   |  10 PagesAristotle vs. Hobbes, constitutes a debate between two great thinkers from two profoundly different periods of time. Whereas Aristotle (384 - 322 BCE) had been a part of the Greeks and more precisely, Athenss Golden Age, Thomas Hobbes (1588 - 1679) had lived through the English Civil War of 1640s to become one of the most influential philosophers. Based on their own personal experiences and surroundings, both Aristotle and Hobbes had developed a view of what human equality should sustain. However

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd ) - 1506 Words

As a result of R.S.’s chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), he’s going to be experiencing the many consequences of his type B COPD, otherwise known as chronic bronchitis. Copstead Banasik (2013) states that the pathogenesis for chronic bronchitis has changes in the airways that include swelling and chronic inflammation of the bronchial mucosa which can lead to scarring. In addition, there is hypertrophy of mucosal glands and goblet cells, which leads to increased mucosal production. In chronic bronchitis, there’s also a hypersecretion of bronchial mucous (Copstead Banasik, 2013, p. 483). In normal conditions, the mucus produced by the mucus glands aids in the protection of the lungs by capturing the foreign particles that enter into the lungs. Bellamy Booker (2004) report that when long-term smokers such as R.S., who are already developing chronic airflow obstruction, the excess of hypersecretion of mucus contributes to the decline of lung function. Long-term production of mucus may cause the patient to suffer lower respiratory tract infection (p. 19). Chronic bronchitis’ occurs in a period of more than three months that continues in a period of two years (Copstead Banasik, 2013, p. 483). The destruction of bronchial walls will result in dilation of airway sacs. The dilated sacs contain infected secretion from streptococcal and staphylococcal pneumonia, which can spread to nearby areas of the lungs such as other areas of the body and even to the brain.Show MoreRelatedChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd ) Essay1722 Words   |  7 PagesChronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a group of gradual, incapacitating respiratory conditions, which include emphysema and chronic bronchitis. It is generally characterized by reduced breathing capacity, airflow restriction in the lungs, a persistent cough, and other various symptoms. COPD is notoriously associated with a history of cigarette smoking and has become th e number one contributor to mortality in chronic disease of the lower respiratory tract. It is also defined as a preventableRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd )807 Words   |  4 Pagesdiaphragm, consistent with COPD. Question: What are the treatment options available to patients with COPD, and how are individualized assessments used to determine the most effective therapy? Generate: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a respiratory illness that progressively worsens over time. As seen in Mr. Adam’s case, symptoms include dyspnea, wheezing, and an occasional productive cough,.1 Emphysema and Chronic Bronchitis are the two main conditions of COPD, and can occur simultaneouslyRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd )1541 Words   |  7 Pagesdistressingly difficult to breathe owing to a combination of emphysema and chronic asthmatic bronchitis – a deadly duo known as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (Brody, 2012).† The overall disease-state, role of exercise, treatments, and implications are all interrelated when improving patient COPD. Throughout this paper, all will be addressed with the goal to better the understanding of COPD. COPD is becoming prevalent disease within today’s society, ranking as the fourth leading cause of deathRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd )1748 Words   |  7 Pagestopic will be based on the topic of COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). COPD patients are usually readmitted due to acute exacerbations also known as (AECOPD). (Laverty et al., 2015). In this paper, we explore the COPD discharge care bundles which have been developed by different authors. The care bundle consists of a short list of certain evidence-based practices to be utilized or implemented before discharge for all patients who have been admitted with COPD, based on reviewing national guidelinesRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd )981 Words   |  4 Pages1.2 Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) 1.2.1 What is COPD? COPD is a chronic inflammation of the airways leading to fixed airflow obstruction and restricted gas exchange. The term COPD includes two basic respiratory pathologies: chronic bronchitis and emphysema (GOLD, 2006) that are described below. The condition is not reversible and may progressively worsen with time (NICE, 2010). Chronic bronchitis: is the narrowing of the bronchi and bronchioles due to thickening of the airway wallsRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd )1839 Words   |  8 PagesSynopsis All over the world, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a very significant and prevalent cause of morbidity and mortality, and it is increasing with time (Hurd, 2000; Pauwels, 2000; Petty, 2000). Due to the factor of COPD being an underdiagnosed and undertreated disease, the epidemiology (Pauwels, Rabe, 2004) is about 60 to 85 % with mild or moderate COPD remaining undiagnosed (Miravitlles et al., 2009; Hvidsten et al., 2010). The risk factors of COPD include genetic factors asRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd )1166 Words   |  5 PagesChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is moving to the forefront of public health problems. It is projected to rank third in mortality rates by 2020.6 COPD is a lung disease that is treatable and preventative.6 The patient has toxic particles or gases that cause an enhanced chronic inflammatory response in the airways and lungs as well as progressive airflow limitation.5 Other causes for COPD include emphysema, chronic bronchitis, chronic asthma, and some forms of bronchiectasis.6 OccupationRead MoreCopd : Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease2033 Words   |  9 Pages COPD is an abbreviated term for the lung disease Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and it is seen in people everyday. It is estimated that this disease affects roughly 24 million individuals in the U.S.. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease occurs in other countries instead of just the United States. It is increasing rapidly and therapies currently do not alter the disease (Gross â€Å"Abstract†). Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease can be caused by smoking, environmental factors and or geneticRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd ) Essay2079 Words   |  9 PagesIntroduction The topic is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). It is an umbrella term used for respiratory disorders such as chronic asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema. It is a serious condition that restricts airflow to the lungs and is not fully reversible. It is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Australia. More than 1 in 20 Australians over 55 have COPD and is also the fifth leading cause of death. There is also a rate of 1,008 per 100,000 of the population aged 55 andRead MoreChronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ( Copd )1098 Words   |  5 Pagesprovided; the three differential diagnosis that are being considered include; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchitis and community acquired pneumonia (CAP) (Papadakis, McPhee, Rabow, 2015). COPD Symptoms of COPD often begin in middle age and is commonly caused by years of smoking. COPD is progressive, irreversible and made up of chronic bronchitis and emphysema (Goolsby Grubbs, 2011). Symptoms include; chronic productive cough for three consecutive months each year for 2 sequential

New Years Free Essays

Gabriela J. Bachman Professor Lathrop Writing 1 19 October, 2009 New Years at Home As I described in essay one, New Years for my family is a very important event and we celebrate it with a number of activities based in superstition. According to Wikipedia (1) superstition is defined as â€Å"a credulous belief, not based on reason. We will write a custom essay sample on New Years or any similar topic only for you Order Now The word is commonly applied to beliefs and practices surrounding luck, prophecy and spiritual beings, particularly the irrational belief that future events can be influenced†. Despite the fact that Catholicism is the main religion in my country, all Peruvians believe in superstition. New Years Eve is when people confirm these superstitions by performing a variety of strange rituals such as burning a â€Å"Muneco de Ano Nuevo†, wearing yellow wrist bands, eating grapes at midnight, and placing lentils in our pockets, all these in order to push some luck and prosperity into our life. In the following paragraphs I will be making a deeper analysis on the meaning of these rituals and explaining why these rituals are still being carried by Peruvian families. One of the most famous rituals and the first I described in essay one is building and burning our first â€Å"Muneco de Ano Nuevo. † A â€Å"Muneco de Ano Nuevo† is an effigy of an important public person that had caused a big commotion during the year. Since in the past decades, politics has been a topic that has caused deception and discontent to Peruvians; this is the reason why effigies are mostly created to represent politicians as showed in this passage from essay one: â€Å"we made an effigy of Alberto Fujimori, who was the president at that time, and who didn’t have a good reputation. Since my family is very interested in politics, this ritual is a joy for them. The part of the ritual they enjoy the most is the burning of the effigy. This doesn’t mean we want to see the real person in flames, but we see it as type of anger therapy, as means of getting rid of all the frustrations we have accumulated towards the politician during the past year, hopi ng he will change and consequently, he will help to bring prosperity to our country. Besides releasing our anger, building and urning the â€Å"Muneco† is also intended to bring the family together into a last activity of the ending year, and first activity of the starting year, hoping family unity will be maintained throughout the entire year. Everyone has an important role in this activity. Although my siblings and I were in charge of building the â€Å"Muneco de Ano Nuevo,†, my whole family contributed in different aspects, as this sentence from essay one clearly illustrates it: â€Å"we used mom’s tan pantyhose to build the face, dad’s old blue jeans and black suit jacket to build the body, and my grandfather’s white tennis shoes to make the feet. A very important role in this ritual is the role of the males, which is to protect their children by doing the most dangerous activities involved in this ritual, as this passage from essay one shows â€Å"my dad and uncles closed the street, sat the â€Å"Muneco† in the middle of the street, bath it on gasoline, and lighted it on flames†. A superstition that is more focused with our history is wearing a yellow wristband in New Years Eve. As I said in essay one â€Å"my mom gave to each of us a yellow wrist band which we wore the entire night†. In Peru, yellow is the dominating color of New Year because is associated with hope, happiness, and optimism. Likewise, yellow is the color of the good things in life such as the sun and gold. But this superstition has a deeper meaning of just being the color that identifies a celebration; in fact it has a connection with the past. For our ancestors, the sun was our God, and the gold was the treasure used to venerate him, but when Spain colonized Peru, they stole our gold and forced natives to change their religion. This is the main reason why we celebrate New Year in Yellow, as a way to award homage to our roots and ancestors, hoping our country will never have to go through this pain again. Lastly, two family oriented superstitions that were also mentioned in essay one are eating grapes at midnight and placing lentils in our pockets. Eating grapes right when the clock strikes midnight is a common superstition practiced in Peru and Latin America in general. â€Å"†¦ Right after, my mom and aunts ran to the kitchen to get the grapes (†¦) they handed us a bowl with twelve grapes each, which we ate under the table†. This example, as strange as it seems, involve us getting under the table to eat twelve grapes in only twelve seconds. Per each grape that we eat, which represents a month of the year, we get to ask a wish. If all the grapes are sweet, it means it will be a good year; in contrast, if for example the fourth grape was sour or not as sweet as the other ones, it means that April is not going to be a good month. As for the reason why we have to get under the table to eat the grapes, I think this just help us on concentrating when asking for the wishes and to avoid choking since all the grapes must be eaten very fast. Another family oriented superstition I mentioned is to carry lentils in our pockets during New Years Eve. In my country, people consider lentils as being a very nutritious food because it contains a big amount of proteins, minerals, and vitamins. As I mentioned in essay one â€Å"my mom handed us a handful of lentils that we put in our pockets for the entire night. † The illustration of the mother handing out lentils to her kids symbolizes the love and care the mother has towards their kids, providing nourishment and making sure they have the vitamins they need to grow strong. By practicing this superstition, we believe food will be available on our table throughout the whole year. Also, lentils resemble coins, thus we believe that carrying lentils in our pockets during New Years Eve will bring money to our home. (Transition) Although I have immigrated to a new country and culture, I will maintain these beliefs in my family, and I will pass it onto my children as my grandparents did to my parents, and my parents did to me. And whether or not all these superstitions are true, they have become part of the Peruvian history and folklore, making our New Year’s celebration unique. Work Cited (1) Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. â€Å"Superstition. † Web. 19 Oct. 2009. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Superstition How to cite New Years, Essay examples

Dells Value Chain free essay sample

The value chain was a concept initially proposed by McKinsey and later developed and made public by Harvard strategy guru Michael Porter. According to Porter, the value chain is defined as the complete flow of products from the suppliers to the customers and management of the information flow in a way that maximizes the consumer satisfaction with the increase in the profit margins of the company. Simply, it includes a series of value-adding activities connecting a companys supply side (raw materials, inbound logistics, and production processes) with its demand side (outbound logistics,  marketing, and sales). And these activities are supported by the infrastructure of the firm, human resource management, technology and development, procurement. The value chain model is a useful analysis tool for defining a firm’s core competencies and the activities in which it can pursue a competitive advantage. Firstly, we mention about cost advantage. A firm may create a cost advantage either by reducing the cost of the individual value chain of activities or as what have been said before reconfiguring the value chain to suit lower production costs. Once the value chain is defined, a cost analysis can be performed by assigning costs to the value chain activities. The costs obtained from the  accounting  report may need to be modified in order to allocate them properly to the value creating activity. In this way, cost advantage is achieved by the firm in the industry it is operating. Porter identified 10 cost drivers related to value chain activities such as: economies of scale, learning, capacity utilization, geographic location†¦ect. And a firm develops a cost advantage by controlling these drivers better than the competitors do. A cost advantage also can be pursued by reconfiguring the value chain. Reconfiguring means structural changes such as a new production process, new distribution channels, or a different sales approach. Secondly, in order to gain competitive advantages, a firm has to have a differentiation. A differentiation advantage can arise from any part of the value chain. For example, procurement of inputs that are unique and not widely available to competitors can create differentiation. A firm must either provide a similar value to its client, or perform the activities in a unique way that create a higher value for the client that allows the firm to ask the better price. This is the differentiation. Porter identified several drivers of uniqueness: policies and decisions, linkages among activities, timing, location, interrelationships, learning, integration, scale and institutional factors. Many of these also serve as cost drivers. Differentiation often results in greater costs, resulting in tradeoffs between cost and differentiation. There are several ways in which a firm can reconfigure its value chain in order to create uniqueness. It can forward integrate in order to perform functions that once were performed by its customers. It can backward integrate in order to have more control over its inputs. It may implement new process technologies or utilize new distribution channels. Ultimately, the firm may need to be creative in order to develop a novel value chain configuration that increases product differentiation. Thirdly, technology also plays an important role for the firm to gain competitive advantage over its competitor in the industry. Almost if not all modern firms employ technology in all its value creating activity. Technologies have a very significant role in the organization, changes in technology can impact competitive advantage by incrementally changing the activities themselves or by making new possible configurations in the value chain. There are various types of technologies used in both primary activities and support activities. There is the inbound logistic technology which involves transportation, handling, storage communications etc. Technologies that are used in the production of the products and services are labeled as operations technologies. Production process, materials, machine tools used, packaging and maintenance are examples of production stages that employ technology. If there is an inbound logistics technology, there is also an outbound logistics technology. Outbound logistics refer to as the delivering of the product from the production area to the market or to the buyer itself. Outbound logistics employ almost the same technology used by the inbound logistics, it also requires transportation technologies, the handling, packaging, communication and information systems. Marketing the product and selling it to the market also requires technology through the use of media and information systems. The role of the firm usually do not stop after a consumer purchased a firm’s product, after-purchase services are important and product innovation is a constant process if the firm is aiming to stay at a competitive advantage from its competitors. After-purchase services and product innovation also requires the use of technologies. Because of technologies, innovation and creation of new products to suit customer satisfaction are made faster. We can note that technology is widely used across the value chain, and to the extent that technology affects uniqueness of the product, and this leads to competitive advantage. Moreover, value chain activities are not isolated from one another. Rather, one value chain activity often affects the cost or performance of other ones. Linkages may exist between primary activities and also between primary and support activities. The firm may be able to reduce cost in one activity and consequently enjoy a cost reduction in another, such as when a design change simultaneously reduces manufacturing costs and improves reliability so that the service costs also are reduced. Through such improvements the firm has the potential to develop a competitive advantage. Dell’s value chain is one of a kind, they outsource all there components across the world and then assemble and sells it directly to the customers. Dell works in a very complex manner by directly supplying to the customer and by this they skip the market middlemen. They achieve value addition at the same time because of incurring low on total expenditure. This ensures dell to get the maximum advantage in the market. Dell’s advantages in its value chain activities are based on two models below: direct selling strategy and build to order. These create differentiation for Dell Computer. While other computer manufacturers were using the traditional value chain, Dell changed activities in its value chain. Computer manufacturers, such as IBM, Compaq designed and built their products with preconfigured options based on market forecasts. Products were first stored in company warehouses and later dispatched to resellers, retailers, and other intermediaries who typically added a 20–30 percent markup before selling to their customers. But Dell is different. It never used retail channels for distribution like its competitors, according to dell they waste unnecessary cost and time which could be saved. And Dell’s solution is  its unique direct to customer model. The creation of the model was the major reconfiguration of the traditional personal computer value chain, which computer manufacturers and Dell competitor are using. By employing the model, the company outsourced all components but it still performed the assembly. In the process this eliminated retailers and directly shipped the computers from its factories to end customers. This action leads Dell into Cost leadership among the players in the industry. By eliminating the retailers, consumers were buying consumers from Dell with out the extra payment for retailers’ margin. This in turn leads to cheaper computers from Dell compared to its competitors. As the Internet is becoming more popular in daily life, businesses rely on the Internet for commerce and real-time information exchange; customers go online to shop, bank and conduct personal correspondence. Because of this Dell began to take customized orders for hardware and software over the phone or via the Internet. And it designed an integrated supply chain linking Dell’s suppliers very closely to its assembly factories and order-intake system. With the industrys most efficient procurement, manufacturing and distribution process, Dell offers its customers powerful, richly configured systems at competitive prices. Every Dell system is built to order. Customers are getting exactly what they want. Dell uses knowledge gained from direct customer contact before and after the sale to provide award-winning reliability and tailored customer service. By reconfiguring the traditional value chain model of computer manufacturers, Dell Computers defined its biggest core competency and the activity in which it can pursue its competitive advantage. First Dell gained cost advantage from its competitors by understanding cost drivers (retailers) in its production and squeezing them out. The implementation of the direct to consumer model solved the problem of expensive computer born out of the margins asked by the middlemen. Dell Computers also realized the differentiation advantage by focusing on their efficient model as its core competency which resulted to Dell outperforming its competitors. Another differentiation of Dell is its better access to technology compared to its competitors. Dell introduces the latest relevant technology much more quickly than companies with slow-moving indirect distribution channels. Currently Dell’s initiatives include moving even greater volumes of product sales, service and support to the Internet; using the Internet to improve the efficiency of Dells procurement, manufacturing and distribution process and further expanding an already broad range of value-added services. By taking its direct business model and its associated customer experience to even higher levels, through the Internet.