Japanese Mourning Ritual Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Japanese Mourning Ritual - Essay Example Most cultures have a method of attempting to help that spirit get to the right place. This paper will discuss the rural Japanese and their method of dealing with the death of a loved one. Many of the parts of the Japanese ritual were familiar and some of them were unusual. After the body is cremated, family members remove bones from the body and place them in a jar which is then placed in the burial place for the family. This seems odd in the sense that if cremation is the answer to their burial problems, why then do they place bones in a crypt. The article does not really say why the family does this only that they do not physically touch the bones because of the contamination from death (Irish, 2000). Then the bones that are not chosen are dumped out back as if they were not important at all. This part of their ritual does not match anything that we do in our culture so it is hard to discern why it would be done. It does appear that all Japanese or at least the majority are concern ed with somehow being contaminated with death. They handle the body after cremation with chip sticks, being careful not to touch any part of it and the wearing of particular garments to ward off death as if it was something to catch. It also appears that cremation is accepted by all of the different Japanese societies. There is also quite a bit of superstition that seems to be general throughout the culture as far as cats. They believe that the body will rise up if cats approach it. This might keep the spirit in this world and they are afraid of spirits so cats are kept away. Though there are great differences which are mentioned, there are also great similarities to the rituals that we practice in our mourning ceremonies. The Japanese place the body in a casket and allow time for family to mill around and sit with the body, they cleanse the body ahead of time and dress it in a white Kimono under which is a favorite piece of clothing. In our traditions, the body is cleaned and after embalming, if the body is to be buried, the favorite clothing of a person is usually placed on the body. Friends and family provided food for the relatives and friends that have shown up to pay their respects which is also very familiar in what we do here. The family is usually presented with dishes from other family and friends to serve to the people who come and for dinners in the home for a few days so the family does not have to cook. The mourners wear black and on the average the male mourners are in one room and the female in another rule. It happens that way here too. I think it is really a utilitarian issue here and I would imagine that it is there too (Searle, 2003) Our women do most of the cooking and serving and so they kind of stay together for that reason while the men are usually more comfortable with each other and generally sit together in the same room. There are a couple of other interesting things that bear mentioning. One of those is the fact that neighborhood groups are responsible for weddings and funerals so the cost of these things is really shared among many. This seems to be a great idea. It does not say what originally caused such a tradition but it would seem that this might be something that many other cultures might want to look at. The other is the "to pull a friend" ritual. In order to prevent the deceased from taking a friend with them, they place a doll or other comfort in the coffin with them. This is somewhat like us. Many families like to place a comforting object in the coffin with the body. Sometimes that is a treasured teddy bear and sometimes something else but always an object that was special that they can

What does an examination of 'secret trusts' mean Rationale behind the Essay

What does an examination of 'secret trusts' mean Rationale behind the Secret Trust - Essay Example He is the beneficiary of a generous trust set up by his father" his condition or obligation of one to whom anything is confided; responsible charge or office." We can summarize the term trust in this manner.Secret and half-secret trusts are invented by English. They have come into existence on the slender of grounds, and been nurtured over the years because nobody seems to have the heart to put them out as it is deep rooted in the field of trust. The trust property is something held by one party for the benefit of another and the first party is called as the trustee and second party is the beneficiary. The main intention behind the creation of trust is that the devisee or grantee shall convey it, or dispose of the profits, at the will, or for the benefit, of another; an estate held for the use of another; a confidence respecting property reposed in one person, who is termed the trustee, for the benefit of another, who is called the cestui que trust.Law of equity and trust confers the provision regarding the trust. It laid down several duties and responsibilities for the trustees. As said before, generally we can define the a trust as a capacity by which a person can transfer title of the specific property to another who agrees to hold or manage it for the benefit of a third person. But when a person transfers his property to another person by way of gift or any other manner and it is implied that the same is to be kept as the trust on behalf of the beneficiary, then what will be the status of such property. Law of trust dealt this, with the provision of secret trust. Whenever we analyze the scope of secret trust, the importance of scope of implied trust can not be excluded. Any description of trust includes an implied resulting or constructive trust and a bare trust. (1) (Sub-section (1) (a), Trust of land and Appointment of trustees Act 1996) an implied trust is based on the presumed intention of the parties at the time the property is acquired by the resulting trustee. That is the point at which the contributors' beneficial interests crystallize. The beneficial shares are unaffected by subsequent conduct. This scope of implied trust has been rightly explained in ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Trust of land and Appointment of trustees Act 1996, 2 in Cowcher v Cowcher (2).In the context of above, We shall examine the scope and rationale behind the provision of secret law under law of trust. Scope of secret trust A secret trust is an undercover arrangement between a testator and a trustee which operates outside the terms of the will. Equity enforces the settler's true intentions to benefit a third party even though this is contrary to the provisions of the Wills Act 1837, which was itself based on long-standing principles of the old Statute of Fraud 1677. Until 1677, there was no formality attached to the making of the will. Before the enactment of the 1677 statute any person could deceive in the name of bequest as it was made on behalf of him. But 1677 statute put an end to this fraud play by laid down the provision of importance of signature and writing at the time of making Will. It was extended to all assets under the section 9 of the Wills Act 1837. Will's Act is an anti-fraud provision. It imposes series of formalities that has to be complied with so as to ensure the will of the testator is being genuine and not fake. E.g. forbidding any gift which is made in favor of the witnesses and their spouses s15 (WA 1837) stipulation of compulsory requirement of codicil amendment of will.( sec.20,WA 1837) A secret trust arises when a testator wishes, for whatever reason, to transfer the benefit of property to a person without specifying that person as a legatee under his will. In consequence,

Changes During the Ageing Process

Changes During the Ageing Process Physiological and sociological ageing is an unpreventable process to which, each individual goes through. Although each ageing process varies greatly from each individual to another it tends to speed up as we age. â€Å"Ageing can be defined as increasing the number and proportion of elderly in society† (Calasanti Kathleen, 2006) We age from the moment we are born, however the changes that occurs during ageing results from losses that is gradual overtime. It is said that loses can often start from young adulthood (mid 20’s-30’s) because our bodies being able to adjust and maintain health in most individuals, it is said the loss in not shown until later on in life. â€Å"We lose 1% of organ functionality per year from the age of 30 years old† (Martin GM, 2007) â€Å"the majority of these changes are not seen until after age 70† (Critchley, 1931, 1934) The considerable difference in the rate of ageing and organ efficiency lies within the presence of disease and/or the ability of the body to adapt to external stress. The three main models of changes that we need to focus on during our ageing process are; physical, psychological and social. At any given time, one can be effected or all of them together which can impact on a person’s quality of life. As we’re all unique in our own right, each person’s ageing process can be different ageing cycle. â€Å"The pensioner population is expected to rise despite the increase in the women’s state pension age to 65 between 2010 and 2020 and the increase for both men and women from 65 to 68 between 2024 and 2046.† (Parliament, 2010) According to the NHS, individuals are living longer than ever before and our society is expanding. With the NHS explaining that â€Å"with the fastest rise in the ‘oldest old’, means that the overall number of people in our society withhealth or care needs has risen. In turn, this has altered the very nature of our health and care services, with older people now the biggest users† As we get older, it is common for some memory loss such as forgetting names or appointments, this is normal due to â€Å"memory being affected by age, stress, tiredness, or certain illnesses and medications† (NHS, 2014) Typically common illnesses and diseases occurs (however not exclusive to elderly individuals) is Dementia, Cancer and also Arthritis. Dementia is a progressive disease. Affecting all parts of the brain such as the frontal lobe, occipital lobes, temporal lobe, and parietal lobe. â€Å"Dementia is a syndrome (a group of related symptoms) associated with an ongoing decline of the brain and its abilities. This includes problems with: memory loss, thinking speed, mental agility, language, understanding, judgement† (NHS, 2014) According to the Alzheimer’s Society there are â€Å"around 800,000 people in the UK with dementia. Current statistics show that one in three people over 65 will develop dementia, and two thirds of people with dementia are women†. Research undertaken by Alzheimer’s Society has shown that young people also develop dementia and it is not exclusive to elderly people. According to Cancer Research, 2013 â€Å"Cancer is a disease caused by normal cells changing so that they grow in an uncontrolled way. The uncontrolled growth causes a lump called a tumour to form†. Age Concern UK, conducted a study in the years between 2009-2011 and found that the most top 5 cancer diagnosed for men aged 75 and over is prostate, lung, bowel, bladder and stomach cancer. Their research also found that the top 5 commonly cancer being diagnosed for women over 75 and over; breast, bowel, lung, pancreas and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma cancer. Also shown during this research was that â€Å"36% of all cancers are diagnosed in the elderly† (UK, 2009-2011) Arthritis is not exclusive to elderly people and it is a myth to say that â€Å"only elderly people have arthritis† it also affects younger individuals also. â€Å"Arthritis is a common condition that causes pain and inflammation within a joint. In the UK, around 10 million people have arthritis. Two of the most commonare osteoarthritisand rheumatoid arthritis.† (NHS, 2012) According to Arthritis Research UK, 2013: â€Å"Osteoarthritis is a common form of arthritis statistic shows that 8.5 million people are affected by Osteoarthritis.† â€Å"In people affected by osteoarthritis, the cartilage (connective tissue) between their bones gradually wastes away, leading to painful rubbing of bone on bone in the joints. The most frequently affected joints are in the hands, spine, knees and hips. Osteoarthritis often develops in people who are over 50 years of age. However, it can develop at any age as a result of an injury or another joint-related condition† (NHS, 2012) â€Å"The psychological aspect of ageing is a phase of personal integrity with despair† (Erik Erikson, 1950) during the final stages of the cycle of life; the individual is often seeking a sense of integrity and trying to avoid a sense of despair. Elder age often becomes a time of reflecting back on their life which allows a return of events during their own personal lifetime. â€Å"To the extent we have succeeded in effectively solving the problems that had arisen at every stage of life, we have developed a sense of completion and fullness that is to say, the feeling of full life† (Gullette, 2004). Societies views on ageing has been deemed as somewhat negative, it has been argued that the older population can be wrongly so, be a drain on society. Due to advantages in modern medicine and technology it has been clearly proven that there is a better quality of life for older people. The government has also contributed in helping improve quality of life to over 65’s by providing; state pension, free TV licence, free bus pass, winter fuel allowance, help with care nursing fee’s* (if individual doesn’t have any form of assets such as property*) and legislations in place for best interests of individuals and pushing them to remain independent where possible by staying in their own home rather than carting off elderly people into nursing homes or care homes once they reach retirement age. Elderly individuals do also contribute back to society such as volunteering, childcare for grandchildren and also, most continue to work and pay their taxes after the â€Å"state pension age† of 61 and 68 years old. Ageing is different from one individual to another because all human beings are unique in their own right, it’s hard to pinpoint how the ageing process affects each individual physical, intellectual abilities and psychological quality of life however, individuals needs change as they age and in order to meet a standard of quality of life their needs should be simultaneously met where possible. During life, we all often begin to experiences many types of losses this can include loss of many things such as material things; health, jobs, homes. Death of relatives, friends and pets. At times, this can come all at once or spaced out nevertheless; losing an object or an individual close to you can be overwhelming sadness period in anyone’s life which can result in problems physically and mentally such as depression. Dr Elisabeth Kà ¼bler-Ross’s pioneering research on grief and grieving has made a significant indent on the bereavement and support care of those individuals that are grieving. In fact such an idea or understanding of grief was a rare and novel idea before Dr Elisabeth Kà ¼bler-Ross 1969 research which inaugurated her â€Å"five stages of grief† which is detailed as; first stage, shock and denial and sometimes overwhelming, the second stage is anger. Dr Kà ¼bler-Ross explains that the realisation of reality emerges after the initial shock. The feelings of anger may be directed at the loved one whom passed over or people around the person who is grieving. Following from that the third stage of grief is said to be bargaining, the person who is grieving can be thinking the classic â€Å"should of, could of, would of† †¦ I wish I would have done this, I wish I would have done that. I wish I would have told them this, seen them more before passing etc. forth s tage of the process is said to be depression, a mixture feelings of sadness and mourning and the final stage of the process is acceptance; this phase is a mixture of accepting what has happened, knowing that you cannot change the past. Allowing themselves to continue living after a loved one has passed without feeling guilty about â€Å"moving on†. Although the five stages of grief model was initially developed to help health care professionals around the world understand the grief of their patients and their relatives who are on the verge of passing over, it has now been comprehensively adopted by individuals around the world not just medical professions but individuals who are facing to be in a situation of their loved ones passing over. The stages are arguably an experience during which, the sorrowful process of the experience of grief are somewhat, easier to understand the grieving process. The idea also provided an in-depth understanding of grief and for helping others cope through personal trauma of grief. Going through grief is understandably, one of the hardest things an individual can ever go through, but realising that they don’t have to do it all by their selves can help â€Å"ease† the pain from grieving. These days there is lot of support groups available for people who are grieving. The support groups can benefit others by sharing their loss and pain by openly talking about their circumstances and feelings is an active step for them to work through their pain and come to term with that has happened to them. Another positive is that by sharing the loss and pain with others going through the same thing, eventually the individuals find themselves giving compassion and reaching out to help others within the support group with the hope they will survive through the terrible personal trauma of grief. Although many theories has been developed regarding the ageing process, the theory of disengagement has generated the most interest to this day (Cumming Henry, 1961) according to their theory; â€Å"as people age, they tend to withdraw from society, and this can be mutual, with society†. Cumming Henry had argued â€Å"this was a consequence of people learning within their limitations with age and making way for new generations of people the fill their roles†. However, it is said that the disengagement theory is controversial, and many individuals do not agree with it. One negativity of disengagement is the low self-esteem that can occur of disengaging. This could have a knock on effect of simply â€Å"not engaging† with others if they believe they are not â€Å"worth it†. â€Å"This qualitative change will accompany the quantitative reduction in social interaction taking place between the elderly and society† (Masoro, 2006). Within diverse societies, it is argued that the disengagement theory is a negative one. When the disengagement theory was created by Cumming Henry, the tradition within society back then was allowing older people to live at home with their families rather than using any form of nursing and residential care. The activity theory was originally developed by Robert J. Havighurst in 1961; originally the activity theory was conceived as a response to then, the recently published disengagement theory of ageing. As mentioned above, the disengagement model suggested that it is natural for elderly to disengage completely from society when they realise that they are close to their death. According to activity theorists, as people interact with their environment and each other, they achieve a series of outcomes. As individuals engage within activities, it gives them something to focus on and keeps themselves as well as their brains active which can minimise depression and feelings of being unwanted. The activity theory has been to understand the emotional changes within ageing adults. Research has found that elderly individuals that has remained in employment, or being able to peruse hobbies or day centres etc. can actually improve a quality of life as it keeps themselves busy and actively engaging with others can improve their self-esteem dramatically. As we’re all unique in our own right, it’s hard to define ageing process for every single human being. But on average, whilst most over 60’s might still be in employment, having independence and remaining in their own home and others might be unable to mobilize and lost their independence and residing in a care home. Following from research of this essay, as long as all elder individuals needs and preferences are met, their quality of life is at a high standard and appropriate help and support is available then processing through the later adult ageing process will be significantly easier for the individual going through the ageing process and dealing with complications that can occur such as higher risk of developing illnesses that can occur as we age.

Islam The Straight Path Essay -- Religion Islam Muslim John L. Esposit

Islam The Straight Path   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  An evaluation of the book by John L. Esposito: Islam The Straight Path. In this book , Esposito provides a succinct, up-to-date survey of the Islamic experience, an introduction to the faith, belief, and practice of Islam from its origins to its contemporary resurgence. He traces the emergence and development of this dynamic faith and its impact on world history and politics. He discusses the formation of Islamic belief and practice (law, theology, philosophy, and mysticism), chronicling the struggle of Muslims to define and adhere to their Islamic way of life. Equally important is the essential information Esposito provides on the contemporary world of Islam, from Muslim responses to the challenges of colonialism and modernization to the reassertion of Islam in politics and society. This introductory book in the teaching of Islam and Islamic way of life by Esposito can be categorized in three different sections with various sub-tittles. First section concentrates on structural elements of Islam that includes Messenger and the Message; that are Muhammad and the Holy Koran. Second section is about The emergence of Islamic identity, as the Muslim Community, which includes the belief and the practice of the religion. And finally the modern Interpretations of Islam. Esposito introduces three concepts; in the first three chapters he explains what Islam is. I believe that he did an excellent job in presenting pre-Islamic time for Arabia and its surrounding region. But I also believe that concentrating on Muhammad's (PBUH) biography has little relevant to Islam. Because Islam is based mainly on the completion message of God to the World. I believe if a non-Muslim reader try were to understand Islam through this book he or she would compare it to the concept of Jesus, or David the Texan cult leader, and many others. I found that Esposito guides its readers to a clear understanding of Muslims and non-Muslim prospective. Nevertheless, he is a director of center for Muslim-Christian understanding. Esposito has emphasized on the holy Quran, Gods message and the messenger. I also believe that he has introduced a clear guideline for Muslims and their practice. Laying out their laws, beliefs, attitudes, values, and other religious responsibilities. I also found that Esposito writes with good academic intentions and writin... ... completion to the writings of the three holy books of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Islam is a religion that has brought peace, enlightenment, and unity to the faithful. I feel that this book could guide Muslims and non-Muslims in forming clear views on specific Islamic religious issues. In conclusion, throughout the book "Islam the Straight Path", many understandings come about by looking at the many struggles of any particular community. For the purpose of this book review, I went through the book to grasp an understanding of the title "The Straight Path". For many centuries Muslims around the world have experienced the transformation of their society. The important forces that build Islam and Muslims together are the religious life, faith, beliefs and practices. Today Muslims around the world face many challenges of leaders that build the community whether it is a secular or an Islamic nation. As examples given earlier about modernization which includes nations such as Turkey and on the other side of the spectrum the practice of Islamic Shariah. As a final note, my main objective from this book review is to see Islam from the eye of Muslims and Non-Muslims alike.

Comaprison Theorist Essay

Sigmund Freud’s approach to personality would be and still is a debate within our society today. Researchers and psychologist are still observing his approach and there are still unanswered questions. One approach Freud did not use was how our society and culture would effect the person we all would become. The one thing that most Neo-Freudian’s agreed on was that early childhood experiences would have an effect on your personality development. Freud laid the path for psychologist and many would take what they learned from him and go in their own direction. Alfred Adler was one Neo-Freudian that disagreed with Freud. Their disagreement was not only professional it became personal. Adler approach was called the individual psychology. He helped us understand personality with striving for superiority, how our parents were an influence on our personalities as children and the effect of our birth order. Adler like Freud believed that your earlier years were important when it came to shaping your personality when you became and adult. One thing Adler believed is that the parent’s role would affect the child. The first thing parents should not do is give the child too much attention. By stating this Adler meant pampering. He believed that pampering would take away children’s independence. They become more dependent on people, and they don’t learn how to make their own decisions. He believed that they should be able to make mistakes and make their own decisions, because this would be good for them and they would learn to be more dependent. Another mistake  parents make stated Adler was they would not give children enough attention, which would lead to neglect. If children don’t receive enough attention they would grow up to be distant, and would not know how to be intimate or carry on a relationship. Adler was the first psychologist to mention that the order in which you were born would shape your personality. Comparison of Theorists3 Carl Jung also would leave Freud and Freud would feel betrayed by that. He took him leaving personal as well. Jung was curious with religious concepts. He would take Freud’s idea of unconscious and put his own twist to it. We as people would inherit our physical characteristics, but Jung believed we inherited unconscious psychic characterics as well. After Jung left Freud he would travel around the world and study other cultures and this is were he would base his theory on. He relied a lot on ancient mythology and Eastern religion. Jung believed that the collective unconscious is made up by something called the primordial images. These images would help people respond to our society in a different way, there called archetypes. Basically Jung would describe the collective unconscious as the concept of instincts. He also believed that every man had a feminine side and female had a masculine side. He had three archetypes that he spoke on the anima which is the feminine side of the male, and the animus is the masculine side of female. Stating this, Jung was the first psychologist to point out people would have both male and female characteristics within themselves. Another archetype he had was called the shadow. The shadow was known as the dark side that people would possess. It does not actually mean that people are evil. The main thing that Jung is known for was his focus on introversive and extroversive types. An introvert was someone who focused more inwardly, this person was not the social type and focused more on themselves. An extravert focus just the opposite their focus was outward. Jung, like Freud would stay on the topic of human behavior. Karen Horney was a female psychologist who disagreed with how Freud viewed women. Freud stated that men and women were born with different personalities. (pg 111 n.d.). Horney would disagree with that, she thought  that our social and culture played a bigger role in our  Comparison of Theorists4  personality then biology. She studied a term called neurosis, which means neurotic. Horney’s definition of neurotic is that people are trapped in a self-defeating interpersonal style. The way people interact with others prevents them from developing the social contact they unconsciously crave. (pg 112 n.d.). This will lead to a defense mechanism to help with their feeling of anxiety. Freud would say neurosis was an unconscious battle between various aspects of personality. Horney would state that it would start off in your childhood. Horney had three styles neurotics would use to avoid anxiety experiences. They were called â€Å"moving away from people†, â€Å"moving toward people†, â€Å"moving against people.† Moving away from people, this is when children would learn to just tune people out. When in a hostile environment or situation, instead of engaging with the others they would just tune the person out. Basically ignore the situation. As adults they become sheltered. They would find jobs with little interactions and they would reframe from being in a relationship or intimate. These people would become emotionless and if attached to someone or something the feeling of emptiness while a child would all return. Moving toward people, these people become very dependent on others. They yearn for affection and strive to get accepted by their parents. This yearning would temporally relive them for any anxiety they are having, but in later years they would rely on this. As adults they would have more then usual need for love and affection. They don’t want to be lonely, and believe that any relationship they are in is a relationship. They are demanding affection and don’t know how to love, they are more clingy. Moving against people, these people would rather fight. They have the urge to have power while pushing around children. These individuals believe that being aggressive and mean you can get what you can in that form. You basically take control of the matter before anyone else does. One thing that Horney debated about was Freud theory on  Comparison of Theorists5  women. Freud stated women had â€Å"penis envy†, which is the desire that every girls as to be a boy†(pg 114 n.d.). Horney disagreed and stated that men envy us women and the ability we have to bear and nurse children, this was called the â€Å"womb envy†. Horney was not stating that men were not pleased with themselves but simply stating that we all have qualities that each other admirer. Horney did point out when Freud was making his theory on woman that he was living in a time where woman were treated the way they should have been, he was living in a era where the culture would have helped his influence on the decisions he made for women. Erick Erikson would use some of Freud ideas in his theory; he would add some of his own ideas. Freud believed that the ego was between id impulses and superego demand; however Erikson believed that the ego played a bigger part. Erikson believed that the ego played a powerful, independent part of personality. (pg 106 n.d.). It would help with your identity, and your need to over come the environment. Your ego is to help you get your sense of identity. The term identity crisis comes from Erikson. You would usually find this in adolescents; they seem to not know which way they are going in life. Freud ended his personality development around six years of age, as for Erikson he said it would continue throughout a person’s life. By saying this he gave us eight stages that start from when you are a baby until you’re at an old age. The first stage is basic trust versus mistrust this stage is during infancy years, newborns have no choice but to rely on everyone around them. Autonomy versus shame and doubt is during the toddler’s years, when children want to feel powerful and independent. At the toddler stage Adler stated parents should not pamper, as for Erikson he stated they should not be overprotective at this stage. Initiative versus guilty is early childhood, children learn how to organize and they will learn to set goals and kick down and challenges that come their way. Industry versus. Comparison of Theorists6  inferiority is elementary school age years, this when children soon find out  there is more competition out their in the world. Identity versus role confusion is adolescence years, when teenagers find out who they are and what they want in life. Intimacy versus isolation is young adulthood years, when you seek for the relationship you have always longed for. Generatively versus stagnation is adulthood years, when you want to guide the next generation because you feel as though you have not done everything you want in your life. Ego integrity versus despair is old age years, when you look at your past life and smile you know you have that sense of integrity, but if you don’t you know at this time, it’s too late because time is short now. These four Neo-Freudians have their own approach on personality psychology. When reading all of their perspectives, I would agree to disagree with most. I agreed with Erikson’s approach with the eight stages, Horney was believable because I am a woman and I could relate to where she was coming with her feminine psychology approach. Jung was the more vibrant one and he dug deep into different cultures, and I disagreed with Adler’s approach with the birth order, but would agree with his perspective on how parents pampered and neglected their children. So like there are still debates and intellectual conversations about personality psychology, I would have to debate as well, because there are so many different approaches you can lean towards when it comes to this topic. Comparison of Theorists7 References Burger, J. (2010). Personality. CengageLearning. Eighth edition

Boeing Learns

Boeing Learns From 787 Mistakes: Using Technology to Create Supply Chain Success Introduction The Boeing Company is one of the largest Aerospace and Defense enterprises in the world. Presently headquartered in Chicago, Illinois; they have contributed to some of the largest breakthroughs in aviation technology † breakthroughs that greatly enhance the lives of the world's people. Boeing began as a small startup in 1916; but by the Korean War, defense efforts had grown Boeing to one of only 23 companies with $1 Billion in annual revenue.Boeing parlayed this growth into being ne of the premier designers and manufacturers of commercial aircraft. Designs such as the 707, 737, and 747 cemented their role as the leader in the industry until 2003 when Airbus first surpassed Boeing in annual sales and order backlog. (Nolan 2012) CEO Phil Condit saw Airbus making progress well prior to 2003, however. In 1996 Condit determined that the Boeing Company needed to be refocused in order to comp ete with the European conglomerate.Airbus had an advantage in innovation and manufacturing because it used collaboration amongst many suppliers to roduce quality aircraft in the most cost effective way possible. In order to continue in its global leadership position, Condit set Boeing along a path to leverage their core competencies, â€Å"with detailed customer knowledge and focus on operating lean and efficient systems. † This plan would be called the â€Å"2016 Strategy' and it would see Boeing change its relationship with suppliers from third-party contract-based to close, strategic partners. Nolan 2012) In future designs, Boeing would rely on these partners to not only build, but also design subcomponents for aircraft. Boeing knew hat it must have a way of coordinating the design process among all suppliers, which cleared the way for a powerful Enterprise Resource Management (ERP) tool. Boeing selected Exostar's Supply Chain Management Solution to coordinate the design and supply chain for the first project under the 2016 Strategy, the 787. (PRNewswire 2013) The 787 was conceived as a revolutionary design that would be a replacement for the aging 767, cost about the same, but be 2 more tuel efficient.It would accomplish this by utilizing a construction of 50% composite – something never before attempted in the commercial aviation arena. In summary, Boeing was endeavoring to build a brand new clean-sheet aircraft from materials never used, using methods never attempted, and using a supply chain more far reaching than ever experienced by the plane maker. In retrospect, it may be easy to see why the 787 has had so many problems. The problems are so large that Forbes was prompted to publish an article titled, â€Å"What Went Wrong at Boeing. (Denning 2013) Boeing has worked through most of its supply chain woes and has delivered over 60 787s to date. Boeing is now designing a next generation version of its supremely popular 777, the 777-8/9. B oeings desire to reduce costs and production time by relying risk-taking suppliers to design and produce major aircraft components has led to many failures and cost overruns in the 787 program. In order for Boeing to avoid the pitfalls of the 787 program, Boeing must take the lessons of the past in concert with good technology to ensure good management of the new 777 supply chain.Literature Review Boeing's move toward a supply chain that relied on utilizing risk-taking suppliers for the 787 was meant to reduce the design timeframe and shorten the production cycle, owever it actually placed the future competitive ability of Boeing in peril. The present paper specifically focuses on the practice of outsourcing design of the aircraft to the aforementioned suppliers and how improper oversight of the process led to delay, cost overruns, and the loss of intellectual property. The literature reviewed during this investigation is both peer-reviewed and Journalistic in nature.The following r eview is presented in a logical flow to show why Boeing chose this new strategy, some select major problems that occurred, and finally the actions that were taken to rectify those problems. Christopher S. Tang and Joshua D. Zimmerman (2009) begin their Journal article, Managing New Product Development and Supply Chain Risks: The Boeing 787 Case, by laying out the drivers for the 787 design strategy. In the 1990s, Boeing had decided that it must offer more customer value to compete with EADS' Airbus in the commercial aircraft industry.Ultimately, Boeing settled on designing a new mid-size, wide body Jet that would offer a superior passenger experience and burn 20% less fuel. To bring the Jet to market faster and cheaper, Boeing wanted to move away from its role as a manufacturer and become ore of a systems integrator. Tang, et al. say this strategy intended to save $4 billion in development cost and shave 2 years off the design period. (Tang, Zimmerman, ; Nelson, 2009) Boeing refers to these risk-sharing partners as â€Å"Global Supply Partners† (6SP).During an interview with World Trade; Steven Schaffer, then vice president of Boeing Commercial Airplanes' Global Partners, said the name change â€Å"reflect[ed] a deeper business relationship. † (Bernstein, 2006) In Chapter 8 of Cases on Supply Chain and Distribution Management: Issues and Principals, the nature of he relationship is further discussed. The suppliers are called â€Å"risk-sharing†, because they invest much of their own money into the success of the final assembled product. In fact, Boeing was able to get $4. billion of the $10 billion design budget from 6SPs around the world. These suppliers nave significant risk since they don't see any income until the aircraft are delivered. (Garg ; Gupta, 2012) In a seminal ex post analysis of the 787 outsourcing plan, Ehsan Elahi (2012) of the University of Massachusetts Boston asserts that improper monitoring and suboptimal supplier ele ction led to the appearance of many â€Å"hidden costs† and that Boeing didn't have an adequate understanding of the operational risks associated with outsourcing new product development.He concludes that these oversights led to poor stock performance, a drop it Boeings credit rating, and late delivery penalty payments for customers. The research by Elahi in the UMASS paper, along with his contribution to the Chapter in Miti Garg and Sumeet Gupta's book, lays out a great case for how too much reliance on outside design can lead to a loss of intellectual property. On pages 67-169 of the book, Elahi discusses how these partners were given the opportunity to learn how to build aircraft from composites without Boeing retaining any exclusivity rights.

Muscle Fiber Essay

Muscle Fiber Essay Muscle Fiber Essay MUSCULAR SYSTEM Types of Muscle Tissue: Skeletal, Smooth, and Cardiac * Skeletal, aka â€Å"striated†, aka â€Å"voluntary† – attached to bones and under conscious, willful control. Has the ability to contract (shorten) and thereby bring about movement I. Muscle and Muscle Fiber Structure: A muscle is composed of many muscle fibers (muscle fiber = muscle cell). The individual muscles are separated from each other and held in place by a covering called the FASCIA. This fascia also forms TENDONS and APONEUROSES connecting muscles to bones and muscles to muscles. A muscle also contains 3 different layers of connective tissue: Epimysium – outermost layer, surrounds entire muscle Perimysium – separated and surrounds the FASCICLES (bundles) of muscle fibers Endomysium – surrounds each individual muscle fiber Skeletal muscle fibers contain numerous nuclei and mitochondria The muscle fiber membrane is called the SARCOLEMMA and the cytoplasm is called the SARCOPLASM. Within the sarcoplasm are many parallel fibers known as MYOFIBRILS [pic] Each myofibril is made of many protein filaments called MYOFILAMENTS. There are two types: MYOSIN – thick filaments ACTIN – thin filaments Actin and Myosin filaments are arranged in an overlapping pattern of light (â€Å"I† bands) and dark (â€Å"A† bands). In the middle of each â€Å"I† band is a line called a â€Å"Z† line. The section of a myofibril from one Z-line to the next Z-line is called a SARCOMERE. The arrangement of these sarcomeres next to each other produces the STRIATIONS of the skeletal muscle fibers. Each Myofibirl is surrounded by a network of membranous channels called SARCOPLASMIC RETICULUM. Other â€Å"tubes† [pic] between the actin and myosin filaments ( the filaments slide between

Pat Parker Associates †Harvard Business School Case Study

Pat Parker Associates – Harvard Business School Case Study Free Online Research Papers Critical Issues The Pat Parker Associates case, written in 1995 by Mursten in the Harvard Business Review raises several points that should be considered when dealing with intellectual property matters. We need to clearly understand who owns the copyright to a report prepared by a firm for a client. The fair use defense to a copyright infringement can be complex and difficult to prove. The work for hire doctrine needs to be applied to the case in order to assign copyright ownership. Using sound business judgment in negotiations and following a code of ethics should have more weight on decisions than the legal implications. If something is legal to conduct, then this doesn’t mean it is an ethical action. Ignorance is not always a viable defense for permitting a civil wrong to take place. Questions need to be asked in order for individuals to make the most informed decisions. These critical issues will all come into play as we take a closer look at the Parker case and are able to draw some conclusions. Campaign Research Consultant Parker’s business operations are basically a fact-finding service. His firm researches political candidates and reports back on their voting history, prime and co-sponsored bills, and attendance records. It also looks at financial disclosures, gift reports, lawsuits, general public records, and non-legislative activities (Mursten, 1995). Information is gathered, organized, and presented to the client. The actions that the client decides to take based on the information gathered is independent of the work that the consultant was paid to do. Opinions are not generated, but inconsistencies and weaknesses are drawn out. Parker’s firm can also be utilized to consult on political advertising campaigns while they are in the development stages (Mursten, 1995). Use of the Research Report Created for Dale Jackson Parker had no way of knowing if the research he compiled for Dale Jackson was ever used. Jackson decided not to publicly address any of the voting disparities of Paine (Mursten, 1995). This did not mean that his campaign discarded the research report. He could have used the information to prepare for a debate or could have used it in general discussions he had with other legislators throughout the election process. Sometimes you just want to know what your opponent’s weaknesses are so you are equipped in case you are caught off guard with the media. It would also help to be prepared if your opponent decided to attack your own voting record. You are armed with ammunition but don’t always have to use it. In my opinion, reading the information that was provided in the report meant that Jackson’s campaign used the research. Use of a Copy of the Research Report by the SATL Parker never asked what the State Academy of Trial Lawyers (SATL) intended to use the research report for. What did they want the purchase to accomplish? Since ethics came into play regarding his final decision, he had the right to ask questions that would help him make that decision. The SATL would have the right to decline to give a reason. Parker was forced to speculate that the SATL would use the report to be aware of any potential criticisms of Paine. Their intentions were likely noble as they prepared to work on his next campaign. Parker had no way of knowing or controlling how they would ultimately use the information provided. Legal Implications of Political Campaign Actions It would be illegal for the SATL to give the research report to the Paine campaign. Cash gifts up to $250,000 could be bundled from 500 individuals and be considered a legal campaign contribution. According to the state campaign financing statutes, giving in-kind gifts in excess of $500 was a criminal action (Mursten, 1995). In-kind gifts did not qualify for the bundling exception. If Parker sold the research to the SATL knowing that they would give it to Paine, he could be implicated as aiding in the crime and held accountable for a misdemeanor (Mursten, 1995). It would be possible for the SATL to in turn sell the research to the Paine campaign. It this occurred, the transaction would be indicated in the official spending reports. The SATL could also donate the research to the Republican Party. The Republican Party could then donate the research to the campaign of the Republican nominee. According to Mursten, â€Å"Under state campaign financing law, registered political p arties were exempt from the $500 contribution limit.† This would likely provide a loophole to the campaign gift policies. Parker could not be held liable if Paine used the research information to violate the new Florida Voluntary Code of Fair Campaign Practices. If Paine publicly announced his support for the code and then violated it with research conducted by Parker’s firm, then Paine should be held accountable. Parker also could not legally distribute a copy of the postcard from the Jackson campaign since his firm did not create the marketing piece. He merely reviewed the postcard for accuracy and had no rights to the product. Every functional area in the business world has legal exposure (Baumer, 2001). Each business needs to identify what their largest exposures are and determine how they can best be contained. Copyright Law The Agreement for Campaign Research and Consulting Services limited the use of the research report by the client for a specific period of time coinciding with a specific election campaign (Exhibit 8). The Agreement did not limit the future use of the research report by Parker’s firm. Since it did not specifically limit the use of the research, then Parker interpreted the contract to read that his firm could use it again for hire. Parker also felt that the campaign could not claim the copyright since a copyright disclosure was omitted on the document. The Copyright Act of 1976 does not require a copyright symbol to appear on a work in order for it to be covered by copyright protection. The Act only requires the work to be original and fixed (Wikepedia, 2006). The question regarding who owns the copyright still must be answered. The Agreement and disclosure statements on the report address when the report can be used and who has the right to use it (Mursten, 1995). These documents never mention that Parker’s firm retains the original copyright to the work and can republish it in the future. Because these statements don’t exist, there can be considerable debate regarding who should own the copyright. Work For Hire As a general rule the author of the work owns the copyright. The Copyright Act of 1976 contains an exception called the â€Å"work for hire† doctrine. If the â€Å"work for hire† doctrine can be proven in a specific case, then the person or company that the work was created for would own the copyright (Developer, 2006). The work for hire doctrine applies when an employee creates a product within the scope of his/her employment or in a situation where a certain type of work is specially ordered or commissioned by which an express agreement is considered for hire (Developer, 2006). Since Parker is an outside consultant or a contractor, and not an employee, the â€Å"work for hire† doctrine would not apply under the first part of the test. The work was specifically ordered, it is new, and it could be classified under the compilation category in the Copyright Act of 1976 if there were an agreement that expressly stated that the work was made for hire (Developer, 2006). Since this statement did not exist, the second part of the test also favors Parker’s interpretation. This scenario would not be considered work for hire(,) and Parker would retain the copyrights. The copyright ownership issue should always be addressed with the assistance of legal counsel in preparing the agreement. Transfer of Ownership It would be possible for the Jackson campaign to transfer the ownership of the copyright if the contract were negotiated as a work for hire. They could even authorize the sale of the copyright and reap the financial rewards of the transaction. It would be difficult to determine if the Jackson campaign would easily give up the copyright or refuse the request. Since they are no longer in the political circuit, they may be willing to share the information. On the other hand, they may feel that the information would create a disadvantage for the Democratic Party and decline the transfer request. Fair Use Under the Copyright Act of 1976, the fair use of copyrighted work does not infringe a copyright. Fair use is generally permitted for criticism, news reporting, teaching, scholarship or research purposes (Wikipedia, 2006). Fair use is further determined based on the character of the use, nature of the copyrighted work, amount of the original work used and the effect it will have on the demand for the original work (Wikipedia, 2006). If it were determined that the Jackson campaign owned the copyright, Parker could argue that the reproduction of the research reports fall under fair use of a copyrighted work. The main use would be for research purposes and would not be disclosed publicly. An individual should have a right to obtain a copy of materials written about their own character provided discretion is used and public criticism of the work is not made. It is legal for Parker to resell the report, but not sell the postcards. Ethical Issues Parker felt uncertain about the request for information soon after receiving the phone call from the SATL. He questioned if he should even be taking on the contract. Parker’s gut feeling told him that something didn’t feel right about the request (Mursten, 1995). As a rule of ethics, if you immediately question an action, then you should spend a considerable amount of time conducting research in order to justify the action you decide to take. If you feel uneasy about performing a service or action, then you have the right to turn down the business without providing a detailed explanation. Parker also felt like he had nobody to turn to for advice with his firm (Mursten, 1995). He felt pressured as the sole decision maker of the firm to make the right decision. I don’t see anything wrong with the SATL’s request to purchase old research. I do have a concern about the price that they are willing to pay for the data. They are willing to pay full price for research that has already been conducted and paid for by another client. Are they coming in with a high offer in order to deter Parker from considering the ethical and legal implications of their request? Appropriate Ethical Action When the request for information was made Parker, he should have replied that he would retrieve the old contract and get back in touch with the SATL regarding his ability to meet their request. Parker should have taken a few days to consider all of his options and seek advice. Since he had nobody to turn to within the company for guidance, he should have leveraged his extensive political network. He should have been able to identify a few individuals that worked in legislature that would be able to provide an unbiased opinion on the subject. Parker should also revise his standard client agreement in order to clearly state who retains the copyright for the product produced. He needs to eliminate any confusion and can work with an attorney to draft the agreement. I do not feel that he should resell the report to the SATL since they are likely to use it to aid the Republican candidate. Conclusion Parker needed to ask more questions regarding how the research would be used and whom it would be disseminated to within the political arena. In order to make a well-informed decision, he needed to have all of his concerns addressed. If he were not able to obtain answers to all of his questions, then he should have declined the offer. If he were comfortable that selling the research would not violate any copyright laws, state legislature, or prior contracts, then he had an ethical duty to sell it for a fair price. He has an ethical duty not to sell the research. In my opinion, $25,000 is not a fair asking price for a report that already exists and would take minimal time and effort to reproduce. An asking price of $10,000 would be more appropriate for all parties involved. Copies of the postcards created for the Jackson campaign should not be included since a different marketing consultant created them. It would be copyright infringement to sell the postcards. Parker has wor ked hard to establish his firm as the â€Å"Party’s choice† for Democrats. (Mursten, 1995). He has a loyal customer base that values the work that he has conducted over the years. He would get negative press if word leaked out that he sold a report originally contracted by a Democrat to the Republicans. He would be disloyal to his former client, whether anyone knew about it or not. It would look like he was abandoning that party in favor of financial rewards. According to Baumer, managers should be mindful of the legal pitfalls that can confront their company. Parker should be able to get through this scenario on all of the legal technicalities. He does retain the copyright ownership since the work for hire doctrine does not apply. He could still be challenged to defend his position. I don’t think it is worth the time or effort to put up a fight to defend these actions. He could get sued and have to spend money on attorneys and time in court. His free time is worth more to him than the price of the contract. He should weigh ethics above all else and decline the request. He would not lose any clients by turning down the business and his reputation in the industry would still be intact. Parker has always worked for Democrats and the client who paid for the report was a Democratic organization. The SATL likely supports the Republican candidate. This puts Parker in a conflict of interest position. He has fostered loyalty to the Democrats, and resale of the report to the SATL would appear disloyal. References: Baumer/Poindexter: Cyberlaw E-Commerce (2001). Ch. 1 Developer. developerdotstar.com. Who Owns Your Software? Software Copyright and the Work for Hire Doctrine. 2006. developerdotstar.com/mag/articles/daniels_softwarecopyright.html Exhibit 8. Mursten, D.B. (1995). Agreement. Pat Parker Associates. Harvard Business School Publishing. Mursten, D. B. (1995). Pat Parker Associates. 9-393-059. Harvard Business School Publishing. Wikipedia.com (2006). Copyright Act of 1976. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Copyright_Act_of_1976 Research Papers on Pat Parker Three Concepts of PsychodynamicCapital PunishmentResearch Process Part OneStandardized TestingPETSTEL analysis of IndiaGenetic EngineeringEffects of Television Violence on Children

Using Writing Bursts to Generate Ideas and Enthusiasm

Using Writing Bursts to Generate Ideas and Enthusiasm Using Writing Bursts to Generate Ideas and Enthusiasm Using Writing Bursts to Generate Ideas and Enthusiasm By Ali Hale Many of us want to write fiction but rarely manage to get round to it. We struggle to find a free hour to write in – or the energy to write. Doing writing bursts is a great way to get going when time is short and motivation flagging. What is a writing burst? I came across the concept in Robert Graham’s How to Write Fiction (And Think About It). Mini-exercises are scattered throughout the book, and Graham explains: Every class I teach begins with a 10 minute writing exercise which I call a writing burst. I give a stimulus and ask the class to start writing, keep writing for 10 minutes and not to worry for one second about the quality of the work appearing on the paper. When the thought of sitting down and writing a whole short story is daunting, it’s much easier to find 10 minutes. Open your notebook or word-processing program of choice, write the burst at the top, then set a timer – and write without stopping or looking back. How do writing bursts help? I use writing bursts when I have very little time in the day to write, but wanted to feel I’ve achieved something. They’re also great for establishing a creative mood at the beginning of a longer writing session. You can use the material you produce as a starting point for longer pieces. One of mine became a thousand-word â€Å"twist in the tale† short story that I’ve submitted to a woman’s fiction magazine. The bursts help you to generate new or unusual ideas – I come up with more creative and interesting concepts than usual, because I don’t stop to self-edit. Where do you find them? There are plenty of sources for writing burst prompts. The Writers’ Book of Matches, by Writers’ Digest Books, is a collection of â€Å"1,001 prompts to ignite your fiction†. The Pocket Muse: Ideas and Inspirations for Writing has some similar exercises, as well as photo prompts to help spark your writing. Competitions which give a first line can be used as writing bursts. Famous quotes can work well, so long as they’re short. Phrases or lines from a story you’ve read that inspire you are also good starting points. What variations are there? If you’ve tried a few writing bursts and you’re starting to get bored, the concept is open to any number of tweaks. When ten minutes starts to seem too rushed, you could lengthen the burst to fifteen or twenty minutes. If your ideas seem stale or trite, try writing with a friend: use the same prompt and swap the pieces that emerge. Alternatively, use multiple prompts – pick two prompts at random and figure out how to use them both. If you’re writing a novel or extended piece of fiction and have ground to a halt, use a prompt to get going again. You can always cut the scene out later – but it just may give your story the new life it needs. Some writing prompts After completing a solo camping trip, a woman gets her film developed and discovers that several photos are of her †¦ sleeping. (From 1,001 Prompts) â€Å"That was the moment I wished I could remember what we’d been taught.† (from How to Write Fiction) â€Å"She’s been told.† (from How to Write Fiction) â€Å"When a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.† (Samuel Johnson) A man sneezes painfully. He looks into his handkerchief and finds something that looks like a microchip. (From 1,001 Prompts) â€Å"The place is very well and quiet and the children scream only in a low voice.† (Byron) Pick one of the prompts now – you can afford ten minutes – grab that blank page, and go! Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Fiction Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:20 Great Similes from Literature to Inspire YouComma Before ButList of 50 Compliments and Nice Things to Say!

Group reflection paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Group reflection paper - Essay Example Moreover, a member who does not work is quite noticeable in a small group so that every individual is forced to give some output in order avoid criticisms. In addition, quality work is more assured in a small group for similar reasons therefore, small group concepts are widely used in schools and other institutions. The first phase of decision emergence theory was quite obvious is the group of Cuisine Queens during which, there was quite a tension among us, not knowing much about each other. When we were getting acquainted with each member, there was a high degree of politeness and consideration, each wanting to show respect and hoping the same to be given by the other member of the group. The group had to make clear the goals and procedures of the activity to avoid misunderstanding among us. We agreed on our topic and we decided to work individually on the questionnaire before we continue with the interviews as a group. Questions were raised to clarify matters that seemed vague. Everyone seemed to be satisfied with the results of this stage because the process went on smoothly and we were able to make new friends. During the second phase, some conflicts sprouted because of individual differences. As the group was getting more acquainted and comfortable with each other, reservations were minimized and there were some who spoke their thoughts openly. There could have been no problem about this if all the members agreed on just one opinion but just like in every group, there were differing opinions that were presented. In addition, the attitudes of each member became more evident so that the group was able to choose on a leader who should be responsible in keeping the group on track. During the emergence stage, our group improved from arguing to being more focused on achieving goals. Some who earlier had strong oppositions turned to a compromised attitude in order to finish the task and perhaps for the reason that things have been made clear that one

Organisational Culture of Oral Smooth Plc Essay

Organisational Culture of Oral Smooth Plc - Essay Example It is the process of establishing the empire of business by a series of strategies viz. executing the business concept, promotion, services, goods, pricing, equal and effective idea generation to generate healthy relationship to meet the organizational and personal objectives (Harris, 1994). We can analyse the situation by strategically approach to the business of Oral Smooth Plc. Oral Smooth Plc is based in London; an innovative company produces tooth pastes for smokers. In the past, Product Diversification and Customer Care do have due attention from the management experts. Today it has become a powerful tool for the consultants to enhance the managerial efficiency. Edgar Scheins theory also caters the same effect to better the performance of the organisations. Objective of the study Oral Smooth Plc is having its presence in every part of the UK. The product diversification always enables the company the market leader of the sector without any challenges. Here Oral Smooth Plc wants to put their business mark in UK as a part of diversification in the business. We would like to know the differences, similarities and the difference within the organization, how the organization manages his employees and the process to ensure successful service delivery and customer satisfaction. Organizational culture of the company using Edgar Scheins theory The particular theory focuses on an organisational culture ethics the system. Scheins says that culture is the basic factor for change in an establishment (Campbell, 2003). The thorough understanding about the organisational dynamics starts with this fact. In order to have a strong and dominant leadership Scheins suggests 3 levels of culture (Black, 2003). They are, 1. Artifacts (this can be very easily seen just like our outfits and not very easy to decipher) 2. Espoused values (Philosophies and targets) 3. Assumptions (unconscious beliefs) Scheins also suggest, group dynamics for a better leadership in organisational cultu re. He says that small groups function within a particular group culture in the similar way firms function within the culture of the firm. His model categorise informal groups into 3. 1. Vertical cliques containing different ranks in the same section/dept 2. Horizontal cliques containing similar ranks 3. Mixed cliques containing members of various depts. Here we can implement the Schein management theory for the better performance of the firm. To Biech, Elaine 1998, Culture envelops us in fully. They are, pervasive and complex. Hence as per Scheins we cannot understand Organizational development and planned change, if not we consider it as the main origin of resistance to change. Furthermore, Biswas & Twitchell (1999) remarks that if management consultants are not in a position to understand about culture, naturally they will handle the situation and such embedded culture will manage them .In fact cultural awareness is everything for a society to know but as far as leaders are conce rned, they are the top-notch community to learn this properly as they are to lead the society. To Block (1999), with his Three categorisation of Culture, Edgard Schein has contributed much to make the management practitioners aware what culture is. The plan Oral Smooth intends to ensure its monopoly across the country by their corporate strategic management. So as a first and prime step they want to organise a good campaign to make the event more noticeable there in the country. They wish to make it reorganised their marketing presence within a short time period. A clear but brief background of the two markets, with a

Problems of Managing Joint Ventures in China Essay

Problems of Managing Joint Ventures in China - Essay Example The enterprises are busy in making their products and services more and more attractive for the consumers all around the world. They make changes in their products and services in order to meet the requirements of their culture and society. The cultural changes, throughout the world, act as a strong challenge to the enterprises. Efficient cross culture management can guarantee flourishing worldwide operation of international enterprises in the multi-culture and region. The worldwide business dealings are also flourishing in Chinese enterprises. Chinese enterprises have made it an aim to progress and make their name all around the world. Chinese enterprises are making progress in their fields of expertise to promote their abilities and talents throughout the world market. Foreign companies have been working in China for many years, frequently by joint ventures with local firms and usually in the more developed coastal areas. Nowadays, however, Government is now developing the areas with poor infrastructure and encouraging investment in those areas. The poor infrastructure, illiterate public and employers with less knowledge about market economy concepts made it very difficult for the firms existing there and even for th e firms making joint ventures to progress. In the central Shaanxi province, fifty four interviews were planned with the managers in twenty four join ventures clearly shows the prospective hazard in the way of a thriving join venture. As Chinese market is becoming the centre of attention of more and more foreign investors the pitfalls of Chinese market, management and hurdles in its way to success are given proper thought and suggestions are made to solve these problems (Ahlstrom et al. 2003; Beamish, 1993; Child, 1994; Goodall and Warner, 1999; Peng, 2000). It is already known that in the previous twenty five years, almost 85 percent foreign firms, located in China, are sited along the Coastal belt of China (SSB, various years). Since late 1990s, the Chinese government is busy in the developmental process of the areas with weak infrastructure and poor growth rate in order to get rid of the local regional differences. "The Great Western Development Strategy (xibu da kaifa)" was commenced in 1999 with a motive to encourage local and international investment in the country. It was a categorical effort to increase investment in those regions of China, mainly in need but least likely to attract support on their own. U nder its persuasion, an increasing number of foreign firms and joint ventures entered in the underdeveloped hinterland. In 2002, 31,822 foreign ventures had been set up in China's 18 interior districts and one municipality (SSB, 2003, p.678). All the regions carry some importance. In the same way, China's interior is of great importance, without development of those regions China wouldn't be able to progress in the international market. All facilities and technologies must be equally provided in the underdeveloped regions. For this reason, under the 7th Five Year Plan (FYP) (1981-1985), China's economies were separated in to three regions, namely, the Eastern region, the middle region and the Western region (Linge and Forbes, 1990, p.68 and Chen, 2000, pp.9-10; Wei. 2000, p. 1). Traditionally, the Middle and the Western areas have been considered as one large part, the interior (Chen, 2000, p. 10 and Wei, 2000, p. 1). As stated in the 7th Five Year

HEALTH LAW AND ETHICS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 14

HEALTH LAW AND ETHICS - Essay Example issue but at the same time, warns them that false reporting and exaggeration can incur them loss, so that a dual-action is developed to make them honest in their reporting of the way things are going in the workplace. Hospitals can outsource the services when tough ethical decisions about resource allocation have to be made. Outsourcing is suitable particularly in the cases of ethical dilemma e.g. when there are two patients needing immediate attention of the doctor simultaneously. Another way is to always keep certain resources ready for employment on immediate basis. For example, one of the off-duty nurses can be called upon work because of shortage of nurses at a certain time but the nurse must be compensated for the unscheduled call of duty. When these options are not available, then the hospital should assess which of the subjects is in a greater need of resource allocation, and the resources must be allocated

Explain the drafting process behind the Universal Declaration of Human Essay

Explain the drafting process behind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights - Essay Example Since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights will serve as a single rule for all countries worldwide to follow, representatives coming from different countries worldwide should be involved in the drafting process. For this reason, common concerns that came out of the drafting process include the question of whose culture has to be followed. For instance, should the Universal Declaration of Human Rights follow the non-Western or Western political culture? Or, should it follow the political culture of communist countries? What specific areas in the first draft are misaligned with what is being expected to be the general rule on human rights? Therefore, after making some corrections in the first draft, the second draft will have to go through another round of scrutiny and corrections before the final drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been officially

THEORIES OF LATE CAPITALISM AND THE WORLD SYSTEM Essay

THEORIES OF LATE CAPITALISM AND THE WORLD SYSTEM - Essay Example With that respect, this essay will seek to highlight and address this problem as well as identify solutions provided by both theorists. Francis Fukuyama assert that the loss of social order as depicted by capitalism was a not matter of poor memory or nostalgia but rather a matter of hypocrisies committed in the early ages of communism. Most recently, as Francis reveals, there has been frequent occurrence of seismic shifts during the fall of 1980s. These shifts involve strategies set in place by governments of the developed countries such as the United States with the aim of harnessing economic power (Harvey 43). The issue regarding if the information age democracies have the ability to withstand social order while facing economic and technological change are part of the greatest challenges encountered by these economic super powers. Philosopher Francis argues that, there exists a strong logic backing the evolution of political institutions pointing towards modern liberty democracy, b asing on mutual relations between stable democracy and economic development. However, the most worrisome aspect as described Francis is that, this progressive tendency lacks social and moral development. His failure to include politics and ecology in his work derives bases from the general tendency of the contemporary basics where liberal democracies fall victim to excessive individualism. Francis makes it clear that the liberty of the modern state premised on the concept whereby the interests political peace, the government would not be in a position to sideline differing moral claims as put forward by traditional culture and/or religion (Harvey 45). In their theories, there is no examination of the ecological implications of modernism or the theoretical practices of postmodernism in relation with the environment to assess whether they repress modernist assumptions or encourage non-exploitation. Their failure to address these issues inevitably reflects the supposed conditions of po stmodernism and discussions based on political stratagem. As a matter of course, their theories omit space analysis into spatial politics as opposed to other theorists (Harvey 46). Indeed, theories of postmodernism bear a strong family resemblance to those ambitious sociological generalizations that bring people the news of the arrival and the inauguration of a new type of society baptized as postindustrial society. To their own relief, these theories have the obvious ideological mission of illustrating that the new social formation does no longer obey the laws of late capitalism. Situation of the problem Their failure to address politics and ecology has made learners fail to understand that despite the increasing global division of poverty and wealth, dependency theory together with its thesis concerning the structural domination of the capitalist West over the developing countries or simply, the Third World, is all but dead. According to Francis and David’s theories of late capitalism, the passing of dependency theory has been faltering, slow, and at the same time inexorable. Now, it is a reduced theoretical political memory in both mainstreams in international relations writing mentioned only as interesting historical lineage (Gray 47). This omission is not very helpful, at best, since

Explain the drafting process behind the Universal Declaration of Human Essay

Explain the drafting process behind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights - Essay Example Since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights will serve as a single rule for all countries worldwide to follow, representatives coming from different countries worldwide should be involved in the drafting process. For this reason, common concerns that came out of the drafting process include the question of whose culture has to be followed. For instance, should the Universal Declaration of Human Rights follow the non-Western or Western political culture? Or, should it follow the political culture of communist countries? What specific areas in the first draft are misaligned with what is being expected to be the general rule on human rights? Therefore, after making some corrections in the first draft, the second draft will have to go through another round of scrutiny and corrections before the final drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been officially

What Sets Us Apart Essay Example for Free

What Sets Us Apart Essay In the essay â€Å"What Sets us Apart,† by Mortimer B. Zuckerman, he examines the issue of how America is regarded by foreign countries and the impact America has in these countries. Zuckerman acknowledges of Hollywood contributing to â€Å"a significant piece of America’s ‘soft power’† on how we are perceived by other countries; meaning that American culture is not viewed favorable by other countries because of Hollywood. Zuckerman’s perception is something that I agree with; unfortunately, America is viewed in a negative way by other countries because of Hollywood contributing to an askew image of America, a misperception by foreign countries, and the tolerance by the American society. First of all, the reason Hollywood has such a profound impact on the appearance on American society, is because they supply â€Å"over 70 percent of the European film makers and 90 percent† to the rest of the world. Sadly, Hollywood targets the â€Å"younger population audience who constitute the bulk† of the film industry, which has a tremendous impact to what movies contain. Of course, being a younger crowd will imply more â€Å"action, violence, sex, and special effects,† which seems as though it will not have an effect but it does. Since Hollywood is the biggest supplier of films to other countries, whatever is shown in these films (action, violence, sex, and special effects) will reflect the â€Å"American lifestyle. Thanks to these images, â€Å"Hollywood has made Americanism a dirty word. † Furthermore, these misperceptions of the American lifestyle has made foreign countries once â€Å"favorable opinion[s] of the United States† drop in recent years. The liberty portrayed in America gives rise to the fears of an up rise by the people in a communism country. Thus making democracy â€Å"less attractive,† rather than displaying the beauty of democracy. People from foreign countries that have strong values see our society with little to no morals, and a lot of promiscuity. All of these factors emitted by the media have attributed to making America a less desirable place to other countries. Moreover, the American society has tolerated and accepted what the media has presented to other foreign countries. The purchase of any these products means we have accepted what is being displayed and agree with what is shown in them. As Americans we need to educate other countries that we are educated individuals whom have strong values and value diversity. We need to show how organized and well-established we are as a democratic society. Here in America, freedom and liberty is granted to individuals in their lifestyle choices. Being American grants us the freedom that not many countries offer; as Americans we can demonstrate the beautiful attributes we have as a society. Overall, we need to demonstrate and educate countries whom view us poorly that we are not what the media displays. Instead, let us show the beautiful aspects of life this country offers to all ethnicities. Here, in America, like Zuckerman said we are provided with â€Å"self-help, self-improvement, and self-renovation† that no other country can offer.

Findings on marketing for Maxis

Findings on marketing for Maxis The objectives of this report is to present the findings of the strategic analysis conducted for Maxis company and recommend the key strategies that the organisation should embark in order to remain competitive. This report is also to allow us, Management of Strategy students to apply the fundamental concepts and skills of strategic management to a real-life scenario in order to get a better understanding. This practical approach of learning would allow us to gain better understanding compared to theoretical way of learning. Other than that, this assignment gave us the opportunity to demonstrate competency in both written and oral communication skills in formal business settings. Lastly, it helps us to gain more knowledge in create and integrate business knowledge, decision making, interpersonal, leadership and entrepreneurial skills in proposing strategies and evaluating them. This assignment is a really great opportunity for us to know more about outside world which is not in books . Scope This report shall cover the operations of Maxis company in Malaysia. In this report, all the significant information required for business and competitor analysis are included. It also contains the study of analysing an organisation, its industry, its closest competitors (immediate, impending, invisible) before devising several strategies for it to pursue, selecting the most appropriate strategy and outlining recommendations for its implementation in a formal business report which will also involve a formal business presentation at completion of these tasks. Limitations The limitations of this report are the short duration for the assignment to be completed. The short duration of this assignment did not permit us the time to conduct an interview with Maxis for more accurate information. However, we find information based on valid sources through online. Some information may be outdated with the current company situation so our knowledge of the current situation would not be as accurate as first-hand information. 2.0 Background to the organization Maxis Berhad, with its consolidated subsidiaries is the leading mobile communications service provider in Malaysia with over 11.4 million subscribers starting from 30 June 2009.  [1]  It is established in year 1993 and has been publicly listed in year 2002. The company started its operation in the year 1995. 012, 017 and 0142 dialing prefix is normally identified as Maxis dialing prefix.  [2]  The company mobile services are provided over different Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) such as 900 1800 MHz GSM band. As of July 2005, the 2100 MHz Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) band was used by Maxis. Other than that, Maxis is also the pioneered in the Malaysian market in delivering innovative mobile products and services. In July 2005, Maxis was the first to launch 3G services in Malaysia. In September 2006, Maxis became one of the worlds first to use High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), a high-speed enhanced version of its 3G network, to provide wireless broadband services. The 3G services coverage is up to 740 sites across Malaysia and still expanding now. The 3G services of Maxis enable the users to enjoy the internet access throughout Malaysia. Maxis was also the first operator to bring in and sell the Blackberry and Apple iPhone smart phones to Malaysia. Maxis was also the first to unveiled near field communications (NFC) service in Malaysia. Maxis vision is to bring advanced communications services to enhance its customers lives and businesses, in a way that is simple and personalised, by efficiently and creatively harnessing leading edge technology, and delivering a brand of service experience that is reliable and enchanting.  [3]   3.0 Situation Analysis Situation analysis is a systematic collection and evaluation of past and present economical, political, social, and technological data. It is aimed at the identification of internal and external forces that may influence the organizations performance and choice of strategies, and the assessment of the organizations current and future strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.  [4]   3.1 General environment analysis General environment analysis includes factors such as demographic, economic, political/legal, sociocultural, technological, global and physical environment that generally affect everyone in an industry or market in a similar manner. 3.1.1 Demographic Maxis invested RM1.24 billion to upgrade and modernize their 3G network in year 2009 in order to increase the population coverage from 50% to 57%, which represents the single largest yearly deployment in Maxis history. In the first quater of 2010, Maxis mobile internet users grew from 1.2 million to 6.4 million which is a large increase in customers accessing the internet from their mobiles. The statistics showed that more than 50% of the Malaysias population is under the age of 25 years old, a sizeable number of whom enter the phone owning category each year. It is because the youth segments are now the largest and fastest growing segment. Maxis is a leading regional content player with 39.2% of non-voice revenue as part of mobile revenue and 7.1 million active mobile internet users, more than 50% of its customer base. As a result, Maxis became the most attractive in high-growth, low-penetration markets and diversifying the market base as well. http://i.pictr.com/rjw9vg6zsl.jpg http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRWQfeG7nn0fvz1I_YW6VQ53_r0iiRNNeY66EGgX0euoeEMUbQ-TA 3.1.2 Economic In year 2010, Malaysias economy was expected to grow. This improved outlook is expected to stimulate consumer and business spending for telecommunication services. Malaysias determine to achieve a broadband household penetration rate of 50% by 2010 for Maxis growth in the immediate future. The Malaysian telecommunications industry remains flexible even though the challenging global economic climate. In 2009, the overall growth of the mobile industry was satisfactory and the mobile subscriber penetration crossed 100%. The basic salary of the Maxis employees are fixed for the duration of contract. It can be reviewed into account the individual performance, the inflation price index, and information from independent sources on the rates of salary for similar positions in other comparable companies. Maxis is returning to list on Bursa Malaysia in November or December and its draft prospectus is posted on the Securities Commission website. Maxis was taken private in 2007 and de-listed from Bursa the same year. In a challenging global economic climate in year 2009, Maxis delivered another strong year. http://biz.thestar.com.my/archives/2009/11/20/business/p1-maxischt.JPG 3.1.3 Political/ Legal The government had chosen Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) and Maxis Broadband Shd Bhd (Maxis) at 14th December 2010 to sign a landmark of 10 years agreement for TM to undertake the High Speed Broadband (HSBB) services to Maxis. As we know that, this project was able to offer more quality broadband services. Malaysia government limits the level of playing field for foreign players in the industry. The countrys major telecom players, Maxis and Celcom won the bid together with subsidiary of Time Dot Com and MiTV Corp for the 3G license. However, DiGi was not awarded a 3G license as it has a high foreign ownership. The Maxis website contents are owned or controlled for the purposes by Maxis or its content suppliers and are protected by copyright, trademarks and other laws. The compilation of all content on the website and the service are the exclusive property of Maxis or its content supplier and protected by copyright. Maxis also has a strict condition to avoid broadband user abuse, that is why Maxis specify that every customer must be at least 18 years old to be a Maxis customer. Sub-users under this age must have authorization from the account owner to access the Maxis Broadband service. Before using the Maxis Broadband service, the person must obtain permission from the registered customer. Customers also must not attempt to gain unauthorized access to any computer system. 3.1.4 Sociocultural Maxis provides guidelines for the manner in which all employees should conduct themselves at the work place, while performing their daily duties for Maxis and as a Maxis employee in order to provide better services to customers. Key factors of this growth included the availability of more advanced smartphone models in Malaysia and the strong growth of social networking. Maxis was the first to offer the popular iPhone to Malaysians, achieving annual targets, and it continued to boost the sale of BlackBerry phones. Maxis has Business Value Plus Plans for business people. Business Value Plus Plans have many ways to help save money when calling. Data Plans exclusive to iPad for iPad users to enjoy online entertainment with a much lower price. Maxis prepaid Hotlink come out with a new plan which is much cheaper than other competitors. Maxis focused on minimizing carbon footprint to care for the environment. As such, Maxis partners with Malaysia Airline Systems to reduce the impact to the environment, as well as an in-house recycling campaign. At their work place, efforts are taken to reduce wastage and disposal, reuse existing resources and recycle fully exhausted materials. 3.1.5 Technological Malaysia is set to get a HSBB internet support allowing fast internet access by utilizing fiber optic technology to transfer data. It will allow network operators to take part in and compete with each other in this new network. TM had already commissioned foreign major vendors to lead the project. RM11.3bil national HSBB project is a partnership between TM and our government to expand next-generation, high-speed broadband infrastructure and services for the country. As we know that, HSBB offers bandwidth at network speeds of 10Mbps and above, through fixed line only, as compared to regular broadband services which are delivered at network speeds ranging from 384Kbps to less than 10Mbps through fixed line which also known as DSL and wireless mode, such as 3G, HSDPA, WiMAX and WiFi. Maxis commercially launched the first-in-the-world contactless integrated mobile payment services that utilizes Near Field Communication technology, with partners Nokia, Visa, Maybank and Touch n Go to pay for purchases and transportation charges using mobile phones in year 9 April 2009. 3.1.6 Global Maxis brings excellent coverage in almost every corner of the country and their services are rapidly expanding. In addition to voice, GPRS and EDGE coverage, Maxis also offer Maxis 3G in Penang, Langkawi, Alor Setar, Kuantan, Genting, Klang Valley, Johor Bahru, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Kota Bahru, Ipoh, Malacca and Kuala Terengganu. In India, Global Communication Services Holdings (GCSHL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysian telco, Maxis Communications Berhad, has applied to the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to increase its direct and indirect shareholding in Aircel from 26 percent to 73.9 percent. In year 2009, Maxis and the Western Union Company announce to launch of mobile money transfer service In Malaysia. It allows 11 million Maxis subscribers and 1.9 million foreign workers in Malaysia to send cross-border remittances directly from their mobile phones. 3.1.7 Physical environment The issues that Maxis concern is effective and efficient services, operating hours, and user-friendly facilities in order to improve the values the company can provide to its customers. Maxiss main challenge today is adapting well to a fast changing and often hostile environment of telecommunication industry. Things change very fast until the company is unable to cope with the rapid pace. As a result Maxis shifts at the top management team in order to tackle the changing business environment and global competition. As we all know that, the changes in Maxis is because of trying to deal with shifting market environment and to shift to the updated telecommunication technology, 3G. With the increasing demand for IT to achieve and support corporate objectives, IT department of Maxis must manage with a continuous barrage of changes such as changes in product requirements, technology, development processes, and deployment environments. As a result Maxis deliver newer technology assets and applications to their current customers and attract new customer base through proactive management of change. 3.2 Industry conditions (Porters Five Forces Analysis) Five forces which would impact an organizations behaviour in the market. Understanding the nature of these forces provides organizations the required insights to enable them to formulate the appropriate strategies to be successful in their market (Thurlby, 1998). 3.2.1 Threat of new entrants (high entry barriers) High capital investment for competitor entry into telecommunication industry. Companies in this industry incurred high fixed costs and spend fairly large amount of capital on network equipment and maintain development. Besides, technologies are also considered as barriers for new companies to enter the market. Maxiss reputation has been built around their superior customer service and quality network. Due to high expectations and standards that come with the Maxis brand it is not without reason that customers are more demanding of Maxis. As a result, Maxis always think that their business on being the customers first choice. Capital requirement usually build up a firm which is the high capability to compete in the industry. However, telecommunication is a high competitive industry in order to gain large market share. Therefore, new entrants have to ensure that they have ample financial resource to sustain in this industry. 3.2.2 Bargaining power of suppliers (high bargaining power of suppliers) Telecommunications industry in Malaysia is dependent on imports for the majority of its network components as most of the network equipment cannot be sourced locally. Maxis networks utilize standard equipment which is available from a limited number of suppliers. Most of the GSM equipment for Maxis mobile network operations is purchased from Motorola, Siemens and Trisilco Folec, and Maxis maintains close working relationships with its key network equipment suppliers. Since the suppliers of Maxis are limited, hence Maxis suppliers are powerful when the product they provide are differentiated or it has built up by switching cost. When there is occasional requirement by the buyers such as high investment in submarine fiber optic cable, and replace the copper cable and old satellite dishes that may provide reliable broadband connectivity. Maxis have high competitive environment causes existing entrants need to invest in high modernization technologies to enable the company to support and compete in this industry. Therefore, it is important for service providers to make sure the quality of the technology equipment. This makes the supplier group become more powerful. 3.2.3 Bargaining power of buyers (low bargaining power of buyers) In the era of globalization, advance of technology could increase the bargaining power of buyer, high available of information make it easier for buyer to evaluate sources of materials about telecommunication. There are many alternatives product such as fax, email, and internet which enhance the bargaining power of buyer to the mobile service provider. For the moment, high level of competition between the major telecommunication companies that exists in current market leads to low switching cost for the buyer to change their mobile service provider. Customers are highly price sensitive and easy to switch brand. It also means that customer will not be faithful to Maxis if they find out other brand provides better services than Maxis so they will change brand. As a result, this contributes to concentration of the buyers industry. Besides this, the buyers have high switching cost in this industry. As a result, the industry is more profitable when the buyers have low bargaining power which means the buyers are unable to affect the setting of prices in the industry. Maxis has came out with many Business Value Plus Plans for business people. It has so many methods to help save money when talking on the phone. Maxis wants to make sure that their customers can enjoy using Maxis services with a much lower price than other competitors. 3.2.4 Threat of substitute product (high threats of substitute) Maxis have many substitutes in the mobile industry. For instance, from traditional way which are using the letter, fixed home line telephone, fax and email to communication with other people till currently mostly everyone using broadband Internet services, which enable faster and always-on connection to the worldwide web, offer more promising growth potential. Furthermore, the pressure on the very low cost to use the phone calling via internet or communicate via online messenger had threatened the mobile industry. For example, nowadays many people use MSN, Facebook, and Skype to communicate rather than use their mobile. Threat of substitute product also will directly affect the profitability of Maxis. Substitute product is the product or services in other industries that is different from the existing product or services but serves the similar needs. Hence, threat of substitutes exists when a products demand is affected by the price change of a substitute product. This threat is supposed to be a strong point for Maxis because these substitute products such as letter or e-mail are unable to fulfill or completely replace the mobile services. 3.2.5 Intensity of rivalry among competitors (low intensity of rivalry) Telecommunication industry consists of only several mobile operators such as TM, Maxis, Digi, Celcom, Umobile and so on due to the entry restriction that imposed by the government. Profitability of the industry also affected greatly by the intensity of competition among existing competitors in the industry. Therefore, rivalry among competitors telecommunication industry in Malaysia is oligopoly structure nowadays and the level of competition in this particular industry is believed that to be low one. Maxis have two main competitors, they are Digi and Celcom. Cannot be denied that, Maxis lead the telecommunication industry. They largely compete on differentiate product and services on how to improve their features and implementing innovation to the customers. In addition, Maxis will definitely compete on the call rates, package price and so on with other two main competitors. Hence, Maxis try to gain competitive advantage through low call rate and price such as Youth Club. As we all know that Maxis, Digi and Celcom invested a lump sum of the money on advertising to promote their products and to attract more customers choose them. Summary of environmental scanning Basically, environmental scanning is about the careful examining of a firms internal and external environment for spotting early signs of opportunities and threats that may influence an organisations decision making process and its current and future plans. In the case of Maxis, they can spread and even penetrate into new market or other countries. Too much dependence on Malaysia as their main market is not enough in order to compete with its close competitors. Thus, Maxis can somehow implement its weakness into opportunities that might bring them into a new future plan. Plans such as adjustments to interconnect rates and ways to overcome the threats from its competitors are soon to be implemented. In the sense of customer care, lots of threats such as worms, Trojans, spyware and so forth would harm the special rights of customers as a Maxis user. Thus, Maxis requires certain software and devices so as to protect their customers from being tracked or harmed by unnecessary parties. Experts who can trace hackers or protect customers from being hacked are encouraged to stay in the management team in order to help overcome this threat. Although Maxis is the first telecommunication company to launch iPhone, the recent launch of Digis iPhone had posed further pressure on Maxis. In order to retain and attract more customers, Maxis would have to execute a better package with affordable rates for its users. Customer services must be improved to cater most of its customers needs. Also, they must keep upgrading their features or functions of its technological devices so as to lure more people in purchasing their products. It is normal to see some aggressive broadband promotions by wireless competitors. Therefore, Maxis must stand out as being more important than the rest to win over this challenging game. In addition to promotions, some other marketing strategies like collaboration with big companies in organizing an event, sponsorship from government agencies and what not can be carried out in order to gain good image from the public as a whole. 3.3 Description of key stakeholders Key Stakeholders are a subset of Stakeholders who, if their support were to be withdrawn, would cause the project to fail.  [5]   3.3.1 Capital Market Stakeholders Major suppliers of capital (e.g: banks) Shareholders Individuals, Bank/Finance Companies, Investment Trusts/Foundations/Charities, Other types of companies, Government Agencies/Institutions/Nominees In the company (Directors Interest in Shares) (Maxis Berhad Annual Report 2009, 2009) -Raja Tan Sri Dato Seri Arshad bin Raja Tun Uda -Robert William Boyle -Dato Mokhzani bin Mahathir -Asgari bin Mohd Fuad Stephens -Eng. Saud Majed A. AlDaweesh -Dr. Fahad Hussain S. Mushayt -Ghassan Hasbani -Augustus Ralph Marshall -Chan Chee Beng -Sandip Das 30 Largest Shareholders (Maxis Berhad Annual Report 2009, 2009) 1. Maxis Communications Berhad 2. Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan) 3. Employees Provident Fund Board 4. Amanahraya Trustees Berhad Skim Amanah Saham Bumiputera 5. HSBC Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd Exempt AN For JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association (U.S.A) 6. Amanahraya Trustees Berhad Amanah Saham Wawasan 2020 7. Amanahraya Trustees Berhad Amanah Saham Malaysia 8. Citigroup Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd Exempt AN For Prudential Fund Management Berhad 9. Amanahraya Trustees Berhad Amanah Saham Didik 10. HSBC Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd Exempt AN For J.P. Morgan Bank Luxembourg S.A 11. HSBC Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd Exempt AN For The Bank Of New York Mellon (Mellon Acct) 12. Malaysia Nominees (Tempatan) Sendirian Berhad Great Eastern Life Assurance (Malaysia) Berhad (Par 1) 13. Permodalan Nasional Berhad 14. HSBC Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd BBH And Co Boston For Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund 15. Valuecap Sdn Bhd 16. Amanahraya Trustees Berhad A s 1Malaysia 17. HSBC Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd Exempt AN For JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association (U.A.E) 18. Amanahraya Trustees Berhad Public Islamic Dividend Fund 19. HSBC Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd TNTC For Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency 20. Citigroup Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd Exempt AN For American International Assurance Berhad 21. DB (Malaysia) Nominee (Tempatan) Sendirian Berhad Exempt AN For Deutsche Trustees Malaysia Berhad (MYET F-DJIM25) 22. HSBC Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd Nomura Asset Mgmt Malaysia For Malaysia For Employees Provident Fund 23. HSBC Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd TNTC For Mondrian Emerging Markets Equity Fund L.P 24. Cartaban Nominees (Asing) Sdn Bhd State Street For IS hares, Inc. 25. Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera 26. SBB Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan) 27. CIMSEC Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd CIMB For Gegas Cekap Sdn Bhd (PB) 28. CIMSEC Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd CIMB For Tiara Gateway Sdn. Bhd. (PB) 29. Amanahraya Trustees Berhad Public Islamic Equity Fund 30. Citigroup Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd ING Insurance Berhad (INV -IL PAR ) 3.3.2 Product Market Stakeholders Primary customers All users which subscribe Maxis line (either prepaid, postpaid or 3G) or buy the products such as Mobile Internet, Iphone, Blackberry, Android, Wireless and Wired broadband from Maxis. Primary customers for Maxis IP VPN (IP VPN, 2010) Customers Name Van Wijnen Groep N.V. Solvay Group Industry Construction Pharmaceuticals, chemicals, plastics Business Challenge Develop employee and customer satisfaction by establishing an ERP system and enhancing information flows through an improved private network. Facilitate business restructuring and support innovation. Network Solution Versatels IP VPN service is based on a Cisco MPLS network to provide a data solution that is managed end to end and gives excellent capabilities for supporting ERP. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ BT Infonets IP VPN service is brought over an MPLS network built end to end with Cisco equipment and possesses a Cisco Powered Network designation. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The service sustains Solvays global ERP and intranet developments. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The managed network offers a flexible and protected foundation for new services, such as voice and video over IP. Suppliers (Authorised Distributors, 2010) ZyXEL Communications Corporation (M) Sdn Bhd ZyXEL, founded in 1989 in Hsinchu, Taiwan, is a pioneer manufacturer and supplier of DSL Customer Premise Equipment. ZyXEL is now worlds largest DSL router vendor and Europes second largest router supplier. In addition to its innovative products and solutions, ZyXEL has strong relationships with worldwide COE vendors such as Alcatel, Lucent and Nokia; ILECs such as Verizon and Chunghwa Telecom; international carriers such as France Telecom, Deutsche Telekom, and Telefonica; ISPs such as EarthLink, Worldonline, Hinet, Seednet, Maxis and many others. Working closely with these and other partners, ZyXEL is committed to helping businesses succeed in the booming broadband market by providing them with value-added service and outstanding performance solutions at the most competitive price. Advanced Broadband Communications Sdn Bhd Advanced Broadband Communications Sdn Bhd is a newly formed company incorporated in April 2001. The company is a private joint venture, high-tech based company between Advanced Broadband Communication Sdn Bhd and Prestige Sierra Sdn Bhd. The company is 100% locally owned to provide total telecommunication solutions and services for both conventional IP Systems. The new technology that bridges conventional Circuit Switch communication to Internet Protocol (IP) communication. All IP-based solutions and services that will be developed and deployed by the company are targeted at business and personal users at all levels. Host communions Unions 3.3.3 Organizational Stakeholders Employees All employees who work under Maxis Managers (Malaysia Equity Research PP, 2010) Name Positions Sandip Das Chief Executive Officer Jean Pascal Emmanuel Dominique Van Overbeke Chief Operating Office Rossana Annizah binti Ahmad Rashid Chief Financial Officer Mark Guy Dioguardi Head of Network and Technology Stephen John Mead General Counsel Mohamed Fitri bin Abdullah Head of Enterprise Carrier Business Matthew Charles Willsher Chief Marketing Officer Azmi bin Ujang Head of Human Resources Chow Chee Yan Head of Internal Audit Chua Seok Theng Chief Information Officer Non-managers 3.4 SWOT analysis based on stakeholder groups 3.4.1 Capital Market Stakeholders Strengths Strong and competitive regional player. Association with MEASAT Satellite System. Weaknesses Depends too much on Malaysia as their main market. Opportunities Potential for triple play if tie-up with content provider/broadcaster, e.g. Astro. Association with Microsoft. Broadband market in Malaysia is growing. Wireless market in Asia Pacific has experienced a rapid growth. Threats Modifications to interconnect rates may pressure Maxis earnings as the company is a net receiver of calls. Regulatory framework. Mobile number portability in Malaysia. Intense competition from other telecommunication companies. 3.4.2 Product Market Stakeholders Strengths Premium branding and customer care persist to attract and retain subscribers. This is further followed by long term iPhone plans. Much broader 3G/3.5G coverage than Digi and similar coverage as Celcom. Largest subscriber base in Malaysia with c. 39% share. Largest postpaid subscriber base of c. 43% is vital to future market trend towards more postpaid subscribers. Its transparency and ability to deliver performance. Good loyalty programmes and perhaps the best family plan in Malaysia in our view. Weaknesses Maxis does not offer triple play of mobile, broadband and pay TV. Opportunities 32% of the Malaysian population is under 15 years old, which is a main target for broadband services over the next 15 years. New mobile devices, e.g. iPhone (4G) and recently launched iPad drive demand for broadband services. Under-served broadband population provides great growth opportunities. Selective enterprise opportunities as Maxis build backhaul capacity mainly for wireless broadband, thus it can target some lucrative enterprise businesses by using the same backhaul network. Threa