Night World : Secret Vampire Chapter 14

â€Å"YOU see,I like James,† Ash said. â€Å"I think he'sa little soft on vermin, but I don't want to seehim in trouble. I certainly don't want to see him dead.† Poppy felt the way she had last night when herbody was starving for air. She was frozen, too stillto breathe. â€Å"I mean, do youwant him dead?† Ash asked, as ifit were the most reasonable question in the world.Poppy shook her head. â€Å"Well, then,† Ash said. Poppy got a breath at last. â€Å"What are you saying?†Then, without waiting for him to answer, she said, â€Å"You're saying that they're going to kill him if theyfind out about me. But they don't haveto find out about me. Unless you tell them.† Ash glanced at his fingernails thoughtfully.. Hemade a face to show that this was as painful for himas it was for her. â€Å"Let's go over the facts,† he said. â€Å"You are, in fact,a former human.† â€Å"Oh, yeah, I was a vermin, all right.† He gave her a droll look. â€Å"Don't take that so seriously. It's what you are now that counts. But Jamesdid, in fact, change you without clearing it with anybody.Right? And he did, in fact, break cover and tellyou about the Night World before you werechanged. Right?† â€Å"How do you know? Maybe he just changed mewithout telling me a thing.† He shook a finger. â€Å"Ah, but James wouldn't dothat. He's got these radical permissive ideas abouthumans having free will.† â€Å"If you know all about it, why ask me?† Poppysaid tensely. â€Å"And if you've got a point-â€Å" â€Å"The point is that he's committed at least two capital offenses. Three, I bet.† He flashed the wild, handsome smile again. â€Å"He must have been in love withyou to have done the rest.† Something swelled in Poppy like a bird trapped inher rib cage and trying to get out. She blurted, â€Å"I don't see how you people can make laws about not falling in love! It's insane.† â€Å"But don't you see why? You're the perfect example. Because of love, James told you and then hechanged you. If he'd had the sense to squash hisfeelings for you in the beginning, the whole thingwould have been nipped in the bud.† â€Å"But what if you can'tsquash it? You can't forcepeople to stop feeling.† â€Å"Of course not,† Ash said, and Poppy stoppeddead. She stared at him. His lips curved and he beckoned to her. â€Å"I'll tellyou a secret. The Elders know they can't really legis late how you feel. What they can do is terrorize youso that you don't dare show your feelings-ideally, so you can't even admit them to yourself.† Poppy settled back. She'd seldom felt so at a loss.Talking to Ash made her head whirl, made her feel as if she were too young and stupid to. be sure of anything. She made a forlorn and helpless gesture. â€Å"Butwhat do I do now? I can't change thepast†¦.† â€Å"No, but you can act in the present.† He jumpedto his feet in a lovely, graceful motion and beganpacing. â€Å"Now. We have to think fast. Presumably everyone here thinks you're dead.† â€Å"Yes, but-â€Å" â€Å"So the answer is simple. You have to get out of jthe area and stay out. Go someplace where youwon't be recognized, where nobody will care ifyou're new or illegal. Witches. That's it! I've got some cross-cousins in Las Vegas that will put you up. Themain thing is to leave now.† Poppy's head wasn't just whirling, it was reeling.She felt dizzy and physically sick, as if she'd juststepped off Space Mountain at Disneyland. â€Å"What? Idon't even understand what you're talking about,†she said feebly. â€Å"‘I'll explain on the way. Come on, hurry! Do youhave some clothes you want to take?† poppy planted her feet solidly on the floor. Sheshook her head to try and dear it. â€Å"Look, I don'tknow what you're saying, but I can't go anywhereright now. I have to wait for James.† â€Å"But don't you see?† Ash stopped his whirlwindpacing and rounded on her. His eyes were green andhypnotically brilliant. â€Å"That's just what you can't do. James can't even know where you're going.† , what?† â€Å"Don't you see?†Ash said again. He spread hishands and spoke almost pityingly. â€Å"You'rethe only thing putting James in danger. As long as you're here, anybody can look at you and put the piecestogether. You're circumstantial evidence that he's committed a crime.† Poppy understood that. â€Å"But I can just wait and James can go away with me. He would wantthat.† â€Å"But it wouldn't work,† Ash said softly. â€Å"It doesn'tmatter where you go; whenever you're together,you're a danger to him. One look at you and anydecent vampire can sense the truth.† Poppy's knees felt weak. Ash spoke soberly. â€Å"I'm not saying that you'll bemuch safer yourself if you leave. You bring your owndanger with you, because of what you are. But aslong as you're away from James, nobody can connect you with him. It's the only way to keep him safe. Do you see?† â€Å"Yes. Yes, I see that now.† The ground seemed tohave disappeared beneath Poppy. She wasfalling,not into music, but into an icy dark void. There wasnothing to hold on to. â€Å"But, of course, it's a lot to expect, to ask you togive him up. You may not want to make that kindof sacrifice-â€Å" Poppy's chin came up. She was blind and empty and giddy, but she spoke to Ash with utter contempt,spitting out the words. â€Å"After everything he sacrificedfor me? What do you think I am?† Ash bowed his head. â€Å"You're a brave one, littledreamer. I can't believe you were ever human.† Then he looked up and spoke briskly. â€Å"So do youwant to pack?† â€Å"I don't have much,† Poppy said, slowly, becausemoving and speaking hurt her. She walked towardthe bedroom as if the floor was covered with broken glass. â€Å"Hardly anything. But I have to write a notefor James.† â€Å"No, no,† Ash said. â€Å"That's the last thing you wantto do. Well, after all,† he added as she swiveledslowly to look at him, â€Å"James being so noble andlovestruck and everything-if you let him knowwhere you're going, he'll come right after you. Andthen where will you be?† Poppy shook her head. â€Å"I†¦ okay.† Still shakingher head, she stumbled into the bedroom.She wasn't going to argue with him anymore, but she wasn't going to take his advice, either. She shut the bedroom door and tried as hard as she could toshield her mind. She visualized a stone wall around her thoughts. Stuffing her sweat pants and T-shirt and whitedress into the duffel bag took thirty seconds. Thenshe found a book under the nightstand and a felt-tippen in the drawer. She tore the flyleaf out of thebook and scribbled rapidly. Dear James, I'm so sorry, but if I stay to explain this to you, I know you'll try to stop me. Ash has made me understand the truth-that as long as I stick around I'mputting your life in danger. And I just can't do that.If something happened to you because of me, I woulddie. I really would. I'm going away now. Ash is taking me somewherefar away where you won't findme. Where they won'tcare what I am. I'll be safe there. You'll be safe here.And even if we're not together, we'll never really beapart. I love you. I'll love you forever. But I have to dothis. Please tell Phil goodbye. Your soulmate, Poppy. She was dripping tears onto the paper as shesigned it.She put the flyleaf on the pillow and went outto Ash. â€Å"Oh, there, there,† he said. â€Å"Don't cry. You'redoing the right thing.† He put an arm around hershoulders. Poppy was too miserable to shrug it off. She looked at him. â€Å"One thing. Won't I be putting youin danger if I go with you? I mean, somebodymight think youwere the one who made me an ille gal vampire.† He looked at her with wide, earnest eyes. They happened to be blue-violet at the moment. â€Å"I'm willing to take that risk,† he said. â€Å"I have alot of respect for you.† James took the stairs two at a time, sending probing thoughts ahead of him and then refusing to believe what his own senses told him. She had to be there. She hadto be†¦. He pounded on the door at the same time as hewas thrusting the key into' the lock. At the same timeas he was shouting mentally. Poppy! Poppy, answer me! Poppy! And then, even with the door flung open and hisown thoughts ricocheting off the emptiness in theapartment, he stilldidn't want to believe. He ran around, looking in every room, his heart thudding louder and louder in his chest. Her duffel bag was gone. Her clothes were gone. She was gone. He ended up leaning against the glass of the livingroom window. He could see the street below, andthere was no sign of Poppy. No sign of Ash, either. It was James's fault. He'd been following his mother's trail all afternoon, from decorating job to decorating job, trying to catch up with her. Only to find,once he did catch up, that Ash was already in Elcamino, and had, in fact, been sent over to James'sapartment hours ago. With a key. putting him alone with Poppy. James had called the apartment immediately. Noanswer. He'd broken all speed limits getting backhere. But he was too late. Ash, you snake, he thought. If you hurt her, if youput one finger on her †¦ He found himself roving over the apartment again,looking for clues as to what had happened. Then, in the bedroom, he noticed something pale against the light brown of the pillowcase. A note. He snatched it up and read it. And gotcolder and colder with every line. By the time he reached the end, he was made of ice and ready tokill. There were little round splashes where the felt-tippen had run. Tears. He was going to break one of Ash's bones for each one. He folded the note carefully and put it in hispocket. Then he took a few things from his closetand made a call on his cellular phone as he was walking down the stairs of the apartment building. â€Å"Mom, it's me,† he said at the beep of an answering machine. â€Å"I'm going to be gone for a few days. Something's come up. If you see Ash, leave me amessage. I want to talk with him.† He didn't say please. He knew his voice was clippedand sharp. And he didn't care. He hoped his tone would scare her. Just at the moment he felt ready to take on hismother and father and all the vampire Elders in theNight World. One stake for all of them. He wasn't a child anymore. In the last week he'dbeen through the crucible. He'd faced death andfound love. He was an adult. And filled with a quiet fury that would destroyeverything in its path. Everything necessary to getto Poppy. He made other phone calls as he guided the Integraswiftly and expertly through the streets of El Camino.He called the Black Iris and made sure that Ashhadn't turned up there. He called several other blackflower dubs, even though he didn't expect to find anything. Poppy had said Ash was going to take her far away. But where? Damn you, Ash, he thought. Where? Phil was staring at the TV without really seeing it.How could he be interested in talk shows or infomercialswhen all he couldthinkabout was his sister?His sister who was maybe watching the same showsand maybe out biting people? He heard the car screech to a stop outside and wason his feet before he knew it. Weird how he wasabsolutely certain of who it was. He must have cometo recognize the Integra's engine. He opened the door as James reached the porch.†What's up?† â€Å"Come on.† James was already heading for the car.There wasa deadly energy in his movements, abarely controlled power, that Phil had never seen before. White-hot fury, leashed but straining. â€Å"What's wrong?† James turned at the driver's side door. â€Å"Poppy'smissing!† Phil threw a wild glance around. There was nobodyon the street, but the door to the house was open.And James was shouting as if he didn't care whoheard. Then the words sank in. â€Å"What do you mean,she's-† Phil broke off and jerked the door to thehouse shut. Then he went to the Integra. James already had the passenger door open. â€Å"What do you mean, she's missing?† Phil said assoon as he was in the car. James gunned the engine. â€Å"My cousin Ash has taken her someplace.† â€Å"Who's Ash?† â€Å"He's dead,† James said, and somehow Phillip knew he didn't mean Ash was one of the walkingdead. He meant Ash was going to bedead, completelydead, at some point very soon. â€Å"Well, where's he taken her?† â€Å"I don't know,† James said through his teeth. â€Å"Ihave no idea.† Phil stared a moment, then said, â€Å"Okay. Okay.† He didn't understand what was going on, but hecould see one thing. James was too angry and toointent on revenge to think logically. He might seem rational, but it was stupid to drive around at fifty five miles an hour through a residential zone with no idea of where to go. It was strange that Phil felt comparatively calmit seemed as if he'd spent the last week being wacko while James played the cool part. But having someone else be hysterical always made Phil golevelheaded. â€Å"Okay, look,† he said. â€Å"Let's take this one step ata time. Slow down, okay? We might be going in exactly the wrong direction.† At that, James eased up on the gas pedal slightly. â€Å"Okay, now tell me about Ash. Why's he taking Poppy somewhere? Did he kidnap her?† â€Å"No. He talked her into it. He convinced her thatit was dangerous for me if she stuck around here. Itwas the one thing guaranteed to make her go withhim.† One hand on the wheel, James fished in his pocket and handed a folded piece of paper to Phil. It was a page torn out of a book. Phillip read thenote and swallowed. He glanced at James, who wasstaring straight ahead at the road. Phil shifted, embarrassed at having intruded on private territory, embarrassed at the sting in his eyes. Your soulmate, Poppy?Well. Well. â€Å"She loves you a lot,† he said finally, awkwardly.†And I'm glad she said goodbye to me.† He folded the note carefully and tucked it under the emergency brake handle. James picked it up and put it in hispocket again. â€Å"Ash used her feelings to get her away. Nobodycan push buttons and pull strings like he can.† â€Å"But why would he want to?† â€Å"First because he likes girls. He's a realDon Juan.†James glanced at Phil caustically. â€Å"And now he's gother alone. And second because he likes to play withthings. Like a cat with a mouse. He'll fool around with her for a while, and then when he gets tired ofher, he'll hand her over.† Phillip went still. â€Å"Who to?† â€Å"The Elders. Somebody in charge somewherewho'll realize she's a renegade vampire.† â€Å"And then what?† â€Å"And then they kill her.† Phil grabbed the dashboard. â€Å"Wait a minute.You're telling me that a cousin of yours is going tohand Poppy over to be killed?† â€Å"It's the law. Any good vampire would do thesame. My own mother would do it, without a second thought.† His voice was bitter. â€Å"And he's a vampire. Ash,† Phil said stupidly. James gave him a look. â€Å"Allmy cousins are vampires,† he said with a short laugh. Then his expression changed, and he took his foot off the gas. â€Å"What's the-hey, that was a stop sign!† Philyelped. James slammed on the brakes and swung into aU-turn in the middle of the street. He ran over somebody's lawn. â€Å"What is it?† Phil said tightly, still braced againstthe dashboard. James was looking almost dreamy. â€Å"I've just realized where they've gone. Where he'd take her. Hetold her someplace safe, where people wouldn't carewhat she was. But vampires wouldcare.† â€Å"So they're with humans?† â€Å"No. Ash hates humans. He'd want to take hersomeplace in the Night World, someplace where he'sa big man. And the nearest city that's controlled bythe Night World is Las Vegas.† Phil felt his jaw drop. Las Vegas? Controlled by theNight World? He had the sudden impulse to laugh. Sure, of course it would be. â€Å"And I always thoughtit was the Mafia,† he said. â€Å"It is,† James said seriously, swerving onto a freeway on-ramp. â€Å"Just a different mafia.† â€Å"But, look, wait. Las Vegas is a big city.† â€Å"It's not, actually. But it doesn't matter anyway. Iknow where they are. Because all my cousins aren'tvampires. Some of them are witches.† Phil's forehead puckered. â€Å"Oh, yeah? And how didyou arrange that?† â€Å"I didn't. My great-grandparents did, about fourhundred years ago. They did a blood-tie ceremonywith a witchfamily. The witches aren't my realcous ins; they're not related. They're cross-cousins.Adopted family. It probably won't even occur tothem that Poppy might not be legal. And that'swhere Ash would go.† â€Å"They're cross-kin,† Ash told Poppy. They weredriving in the Rasmussen's gold Mercedes, which Ashinsisted his aunt Maddy would want him to take.†They won't be suspicious of you. And witches don'tknow the signs of being a new vampire the way vampires do.† Poppy just stared at the far horizon. It was evening now, and a lowering red sun was setting behind them. All around them was a weird alien landscape: not as brown as Poppy would have expected a desertto be. More gray-green, with clumps of green-gray. The Joshua trees were strangely beautiful, but alsothe closest thing to a plant made up of tentacles as she'd ever seen. Most everything growing had spikes. It was oddly fitting as a place to go into exile. Poppy felt as if she were leaving behind not only herold life, but everything she'd ever foundfamiliarabout the earth. â€Å"I'll take care of you,† Ash said caressingly. Poppy didn't even blink. Phillip first saw Nevada as a line of lights in thedarkness ahead. As they got closer to the state line,the lights resolved into signs with blinking, swarming, flashing neon messages. Whiskey Pete's, they an nounced. Buffalo Bill's. The Prima Donna. Some guy with a reputation for being a Don Juanwas taking Poppy in thisdirection? â€Å"Go faster,† he told James as they left the lightsbehind and entered a dark and featureless desert.†Come on. This car can do ninety.† â€Å"Here we are. Las Vegas,† Ash said as if makingPoppy a present of the whole city. But Poppy didn'tsee a city, only a light in the clouds ahead like the rising moon. Then, as the freeway curved, she sawthat it wasn't the moon, it was the reflection of city lights. Las Vegas was a glittering pool in a flat basinbetween the mountains. Something stirred in Poppy despite herself. She'dalways wanted to see the world. Faraway places. Ex otic lands. And this would have been perfect-if onlyJames had been with her. Up close, though, the city wasn't quite the gem itlooked from a distance. Ash got off the freeway, and Poppy was thrown into a world of color and lightand movement-and of tawdry cheapness. â€Å"The Strip,† Ash announced. â€Å"You know, whereall the casinos are. There's no place like it.† â€Å"I bet,† Poppy said, staring. On one side of her wasa towering black pyramid hotel with a huge sphinxin front. Lasers were flashing out of the sphinx'seyes. On the other side was a sleazy motor inn with a sign saying â€Å"Rooms $18.† â€Å"So this is the Night World,† she said, with a twingeof cynical amusement that made her feel very adult. â€Å"Nah, this is for the tourists,† Ash said. â€Å"But it'sgood business and you can do some fairly seriouspartying. I'll show you the real Night World, though.First, I want to check in with my cousins.† Poppy considered telling him that she didn't reallycare to have himshow her the Night World.Something about Ash's manner was beginning to bother her. He was acting more as if they were out on adate than as if he were escorting her into exile. But he's the only person I know here, she realizedwith a dismayed sinking in her stomach. And it's notas if I have any money or anything–not even eighteen dollars for that crummy motel. There was something worse. She'd been hungry for some time now, and now she was starting to feel breathless. But she wasn't the dazed, unthinking animal she'd been last night. She didn't want to attacksome human on the street. â€Å"This is the place,† Ash said. It was a side street,dark and not crowded like the Strip. He pulled intoan alley. â€Å"Okay, just let me see if they're in.† On either side of them were high buildings withcinder-block walls. Above, tiers of power lines obscuredthe sky. Ash knocked at a door set in the cinder blocka door with no knob on the outside. There was no signon the door, either, just some crudely spray-paintedgraffiti. It was a picture of a black dahlia. Poppy stared at a Dumpster and tried to controlher breathing. In, out. Slow and deep. It's okay,there's air. It may not feel like it, but there's air. The door opened and Ash beckoned to her. â€Å"This is Poppy,† Ash said, putting an arm aroundher as Poppy stumbled inside. The place looked likea shop–a shop with herbs and candles and crystals. And lots of other weird things that Poppy didn't recognize. Witchy-looking supplies. â€Å"And these are my cousins. That's Blaise, andthat's Thea.† Blaise was a striking girl with masses ofdark hair and lots of curves. Thea was slimmer and blond. They both kept going out of focus as Poppy's vision blurred. â€Å"Hi,†she said, the longest greeting she couldmanage. â€Å"Ash, what's wrong with you? She's sick. What have you been doing to her?† Thea was looking atPoppy with sympathetic brown eyes. â€Å"Huh? Nothing,† Ash said, looking surprised, as ifnoticing Poppy's state for the first time. Poppyguessed he wasn't the type to worry about other peo ple's discomfort. â€Å"She's hungry, I guess. We'll haveto run out and feed-â€Å" â€Å"Oh, no, you don't. Not around here. Besides,she's not going to make it,† Thea said. â€Å"Come on,Poppy, I'll be a donor this once.† She took Poppy by the arm and led her through abead curtain into another room. Poppy let herself betowed. She couldn't think anymore-and her wholeupper jaw was aching. Even the word feedsharpenedher teeth. I need†¦I have to †¦ But she didn't know how. She had. a vision of her own face in the mirror, silvery eyes and savage canines. She didn't wantto be an animal again ,and jump on Thea andripher throat. And she couldn'task how-that would give her away as a new vampire for sure. She stood, trembling, unable to move.

Rcsc214 Exam 1

Chapter 1 Retailing-consists of the final activities and steps needed to place merchandise made elsewhere into the hands of the consumer or to provide services to the consumer. Last step in supply chain. Trends that affect Retailing today: * E-tailing- ie. The Internet accounts for less than 5% of retail sales but has changed consumer behavior. (speed, convenience, control, vast info, lowest prices) hasn’t destroyed †¦ *Bricks-and-Mortar retailers – Retailers that operate out of a physical building. ’ but B & M retailers must give customers more control to combat E-tailing.Outshopping-when customers get needed info (such as proper size or how to assemble a product) in the store and then orders it online for a lower price and to avoid paying sales tax. * Price Competition Loss Leader-selling a product at or below its cost Bottom Line-net profit on an income statement *Same-Store sales-compares an individual store’s sales to its sales for the same month in the previous year. *Market Share-the retailer’s total sales divided by total market sales *Scrambled Merchandising- exists when a retailer handles many different and unrelated items.The result of the pressure being placed on many retailers to increase profits by carrying additional merchandise or services (with higher profit margins) that will also increase store traffic ex. Convenience store that sells low margin gasoline but high margin bread, milk, beer, ciggs ETC. Supercenters, gift cards in grocery stores but causes cost increases in RENT, INVENTORY COSTS, LABOR COSTs *Category Killer-a retailer that carries such a large amount of merchandise in a single category at such good prices that it makes it impossible for customers to walk out without purchasing that they need, thus KILLING the competitionCategorizing Retailers Census Bureau- NAICS code Number of outlets- Chain? Or not? *Standard Stock list-a merchandising method in which all stores in a retail chain stock t he same merchandise *Optional Stock List approach-merchandising method in which each store in a retail chain is given the flexibility to adjust its merchandise mix to local tastes and demands. *Channel Advisor or Captain-the institution (manufacturer, wholesaler, broker, or retailer) in the marketing channel that is able to plan for and get other channel institutions to engage in activities they might not otherwise engage in.Large store retailers are often able to perform the role of channel captain. *Private Label Branding- May be store branding, when a retailer develops its own brand name and contracts with a manufacturer to produce the product with the retailer’s brand, or designer lines, where a known designer develops a line exclusively for the retailer. Margin/Turnover Gross margin percentage- measure of profitability GROSS MARGIN/NETSALES Gross Margin-NET SALES – COST OF GOODS SOLDOperating Expenses-expenses that a retailer incurs in running the business other t han the cost of merchandise Inventory Turnover- refers to the number of times per year, on average, that a retailer sells its inventory. High Performance retailers-retailers that produce financial results substantially superior to the industry average. Low margin/low turnover-operates on a low gross margin percentage and a low rate of inventory turnover†¦ will not be able to generate sufficient profits to remain competitive and survive. High Margin/Low turnover-(bricks and mortar) high gross margin percentage and low ate of inventory turnover ( high end stores, mom and pop) Clicks and Mortar-instore and online Low margin High turnover- low gmp, high rate of inventory turnover (wal mart, amazon. com) High, High- convenience stores, 7 eleven, circle k, Location- new non traditional places. Size *Store management- the retailing career path that involves responsibility for selecting, training, and evaluating personnel, as well as instore promotions, displays, customer service, buil ding maintenance, and security *Buying-retailing career path whereby one uses quantitative tools to develop appropriate buying plans for the store’s merchandise lines.Analytical method –finder and investigator of facts Creative Method- Idea person Two pronged approach- both analytical and creative CHAPTER 2 Strategic planning- involves adapting the resources of the firm to the opportunities and threats of an ever changing retail environment * Development of mission statement * Definition of specific goals and objectives for the firm * Identification and analysis of the retailers strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats –SWOT ANALYIS * Development of basic strategies that will enable the firm to reach its objectives and fulfill its missionMission statement- a basic description of the fundamental nature, rationale, and direction of the firm. Market Share- retailer’s TOTAL SALES/ TOTAL MARKET SALES Profit-based Objectives-deal directly with the monet ary return a retailer desires from its business ROI/RONW- Return on investment/ Return on Net Worth STRATIEGIC PROFIT MODEL (MEMORIZE) Net ProfitMargin| Net Profit /Total Sales| Return on Assets| Net Profit* /Total Assets| Financial Leverage| Total Assets/Net Worth| Return on Net Worth|Net Profit*/Net Worth| X = Asset Turnover| Total Sales/Total Assets| Stockouts- products that are out of stock and therefore unavailable to customers when they want them Productivity objectives- state how much output the retailer desires for each unit of resource input: Floor space, labor, and inventory investment. * Sales prod: net sales/ total square feet of retail floor space * Labor prod: net sales/#of full time equivalent employees * Merchandise prod: net sales/average dollar investment in inventorySocietal Objectives- those that reflect the retailer’s desire to help society fulfill some of it’s needs. * Employment objectives * Payment of Taxes * Consumer Choice * Equity * Being a b enefactor RASM- (revenue per available seat mile) calculation used by airlines. Yield Management- the understanding, anticipating and reacting to changing customer needs in order to maximize the revenue from a fixed capacity of available services. (1)low marginal costs (2)fixed capacity (3) perishable product (4)fluctuation demand (5)different market segmentsPersonal Objectives-reflect the retailer’s desire to help individuals employed in retailing fulfill some of their needs. * Self Gratification * Status and respect * Power and authority Strategy- a carefully designed plan for achieving the retailers goals and objectives. 3 strategies Get shoppers into your store/ traffic strategy Convert these shoppers into customers by having them purchase merchandise (retailers conversion Do this at the lowest operating cost possible that is consistent with the level of service that your customers expectTarget market-the group of customers that the retailer is seeking to serve Location-g eographic or cyber space where the retailer conducts business Retail mix- the combination of merchandise, price, advertising and promotion, locations, customer service and selling, and store layout and design Value proposition- clear statement of the tangible and/or intangible results a customer receives from shopping at and using the retailer’s products or services Operations Management- deals with activities directed at maximizing the efficiency of the retailer’s use of resources. It is frequently referred to as day to day management.CHAPTER 6 Horizontal Price Fixing- occurs when a group of competing retailers (or other channel members operating at a given level of distribution) establishes a fixed price at which to sell certain brands of products ILLEGAL violates Sherman Antitrust Sec 1 Vertical Price Fixing-occurs when a retailer collaborates with the manufacturer or wholesaler to resell an item at an agreed upon price Price discrimination- occurs when 2 retailers buy an identical amount of â€Å"like grade and quality† merchandise from the same supplier but pay different prices. Clayton act makes only certain forms illegal DEFENSESCost justification- differential in price could be accounted for on the basis of differences in cost to the seller in the manufactur, sale, or delivery. Due to differences in quantity or method. Changing market differences-justifies based on the danger of imminent deterioration of perishable goods or on the obsolescence of seasonal goods. Meeting Competition in good faith -lower price was made in good faith in order to meet an equally low price of a competitor Deceptive Pricing-occurs when an misleading price is used to lure customers into the store and then hidden charges are added; or the item advertised may be unavailable.Predatory Pricing-exists when a retail chain charges different prices in different geographic areas to eliminate competition in selected geographic areas. Palming off-occurs when a retai ler represents that merchandise is made by a firm other than the true manufacturer Deceptive advertising-when a retailer makes false of misleading advertising claims about the physical makeup of a product, the benefits to be gained by its use, or the appropriate uses for the product. Bait and switch- advertising or promoting a product at an unrealistically low rice to serve as â€Å"bait† and then trying to â€Å"switch† the customer to a higher priced product. Product liability laws-deal with the seller’s responsibility to market safe products. These laws invoke the forseeability doctrine, which states that a seller of a product must attempt to foresee how a product may be misused and warn the consumer against hazards of misuse. Expressed warranties- are either written or verbalized agreements about the performance of a product and can cover all attributes of the merchandise or only one attributeImplied warranty of merchantability- made by every retailer when t he retailer sells goods and implies that the merchandise sold is fit for the ordinary purpose for which such goods are typically used Implied warranty of fitness- a warranty that implies that the merchandise is fit for a particular purpose and arises when the customer relies on the retailer to assist or make the selection of goods to serve a particular purpose Territorial restrictions-are attempts by the supplier, usually a manufacturer, to limit the geographic area in which a retailer may resell its merchandiseDual distribution- occurs when a manufacturer sells to independent retailers and also through its own retail outlets One way exclusive dealing arrangement-occurs when the supplier agrees to give the retailer the exclusive right to sell the suppliers product in a particular trade area Two way exclusive dealing arrangement- occurs when the supplier offers the retailer the exclusive distribution of a merchandise line or product in a particular trade area if in return the retaile r will agree to do something or the manufacturer, such as heavily promote the suppliers products or not handle competing brands. ILLEGAL. Tying agreement-exists when a seller with a strong product or service requires a buyer to purchase a weak product or service as a condition for buying the strong product or service Ethics-set of rules for human moral behavior Explicit code of ethics-consists of a written policy that states what is ethical and unethical behavior Implicit code of ethics- an unwritten but well understood set of rules or standards of moral responsibility Chapter 14Empowerment- occurs when employees are given the power in their jobs to do the things necessary to satisfy and make things right for customers. Servant leadership-an employees recognition that their primary responsibility is to be of service to others. 20% of customers generate 80% of sales value proposition-the promised benefits a retailer offers in relation to the cost the consumer incurs customer relation ship management CRM-comprised of an integrated information system where the fundamental unit of data collection is the customer, supplemented by relevant information about the customer erformance appraisal and review- is the formal, systematic assessment of how well employees are performing their jobs in relation to established standards and the communication of that assessment to employees Motivation-is the drive that a person has to excel at activities, such as a job, that he or she undertakes Esprit de corps- occurs when a group of workers feel a common mission and a passion for that mission and a pride in being part of the groupFixed component- typically is composed of some base wage per hour, week, month, or year Variable component-is often composed if some bonus that is received if performance warrants Fringe benefit package-is a part of the total compensation package offered to many retail employees and may include health insurance, disability benefits, life insurance, retire ment plans, child care, use of an auto, and financial counseling Job enrichment- the process of enhancing the core job characteristics to improve the motivation, productivity, and job satisfaction of employees.

Effect of Advertisement on Sales

MKT 321: MARKETING RESEARCH METHODS JAN – APRIL 2013 CAT 1 Using the knowledge and skills acquired in this course (Research methods) explain how would improve the performance of your Research and Development Department in a firm (15 marks) A research and development (R&D) department in a firm is responsible for innovations in design, products, and style. This department is responsible for creating innovative new products to keep companies a step ahead of the competition. Many companies also rely on the R&D department to improve existing consumer products, and to explore new ways of producing them.Companies thrive and succeed by creating innovative products, as well as by increasing company profit and utilizing cost-efficient methods. A research and development department is primarily responsible for ensuring that these goals are met. This is an especially important function in the fields of manufacturing and pharmaceuticals, but can be applied to virtually any industry. Often, research and development works closely with the marketing department. Marketing studies consumer trends by surveying and researching consumer demands, purchasing methods, product sales, and the existence and development of technology across the relevant market.The marketing department gathers all the data, and makes this information available to the R&D department, which will take action in response to the findings and proceed to keep the company on top of current market needs. Consumer demands often change very quickly, and the research and development department must be alert and adapt to these market fluctuations accordingly. I would invest a substantial amount of money to research and development so that it can continually modify and update the firm’s products to preserve a brand's position within the market.This is because even if our product would be leading in the market, however much it is a key product, usually will not remain in the number one market position forev er without some type of improvement and advancement. Research and development department software The progress of innovation research and product development requires a good balance between the team and management involved in R;D projects. VIP Task Manager provides this balance and allows to manage R;D projects and activities effectively.The software helps to carry information on the latest developments and coordinate the resource assignment to new promising projects in efficient and timely way. VIP Task Manager can be used as R;D project management software for organizing the workflow of the department. The software gives the following options Quality is a major issue and R;D department is deeply involved in ensuring quality of new products and attaining the required levels of regulatory requirements. In cooperation with the quality assurance department, R;D department develops a quality plan for new products.When a company sells a product on the marketplace, it should keep regulat ory compliance with legal requirements. By using Centriqs, the R;D managers can organize the workflow for researches and development of new products. In Centriqs, there can be used task templates for researches of typical products as well as for a new product specification development. The software allows to add new workflow with specific task statuses. By introducing Centriqs shareware into the workflow, the R;D department can effective cooperate with QA department through sharing tasks and projects aimed to development of quality plans for new products.The R;D managers can use the Files view to upload regulatory documents to the database and attach documents to required tasks shared between engineers, technicians and scientists. | | Research and development department goals/tasks The main goal of the R;D department is to provide the organization with pro-active leadership in the industry and strong competitive advantages through implementation of new technologies and solutions aim ed to improve current product range and develop new products.The R;D department closely works with the quality assurance department in order to create a new solution for enhancing the sustainability and the quality of products. The tasks of R;D department could be split into two main groups: research and development. The groups are closely linked with each other, however they have some peculiarities. The research activities allow the organization to find more effective ways to produce a product. The development activities are focused on how to implement these ways into manufacturing of the current or a new product.Research and development department in company structure Research and development are often very expensive and it takes much time to get positive results from them. However most businesses invest a lot of money in research and development and build R;D departments. The organizations which have R;D departments in their structure, gain big advantages, because: 1. Products ar e commercialized faster 2. Products reach global markets 3. Contribution to customer confidence 4. Effective exploitation of technologies 5.They gain advantages over rivalsThe research and development department will enable a more progressive and faster transfer of innovations into product development and exploitation. | CAT 2 As a manager you have noted that the sales for a certain product have dropped despite having increased the level of advertising. Explain in details how you would undertake a market research to know whether advertising affects sales (20 marks) a. Background information. The background serves to put research objectives into context, and it will help me to understand why I will pursue the objectives of knowing why advertising affect sales.I would detail what i see as being the main events that have caused or contributed to the advertising effect on sales. Such a background gives a framework for the researcher to investigate other potential events, contributory fa ctors or causes. b. Objectives. The first part of this section would detail which marketing decisions are to be completed once the research has been undertaken. This requires decision-makers to explain what they see as the focus of the decision they plan to make. They then go on to explain what gaps(s) they see in their knowledge. Those gaps create the focus to planned esearch activities and set the research objectives. The formulation of the marketing objectives can encompass two areas: organizational objectives and personal objectives of the decision-maker. For the researcher this may not be explicit or obvious to discern. It may take time working with a decision-maker or a particular organization to see the potential conflicts in organizational and personal objectives. This ‘first-step’ brief offers the opportunity for the researcher to draw out and develop a much clearer vision of marketing and research objectives.Drawing out and developing decisionmakers’ pe rspective of objectives, helps the process of developing a common understanding of what the decision-maker is trying to achieve. c. Target to research. Any market research project will measure, understand or observe a target group of individuals. These may be distinct groups of consumers, channel members such as retailers or competitors, or company employees. In this section, details of the characteristics of the target group(s) can help in much research design decisions.These cover areas of identification, gaining access to conduct research, understanding which techniques are appropriate to measure or understand these individuals, and the best environment or context in which to conduct the research. d. Who is to use the findings? This section would outline brief details of the decision-maker who will use the research findings. For example, certain decision makers may be entrepreneurial and introspective, looking for short-term tactical advantages. Managers with a background and tra ining in statistics may expect results to be analyzed and presented in a particular manner to have any credibility.Other managers may not have such training or may even be distrustful of statistical analysis and seek a more qualitative interpretation. These 19 issues have an impact upon the nature and extent of analysis conducted upon the data collected and the style and format in which research findings will be presented. e. Constraints. The main limitation to marketing researchers carrying out what they may perceive as being the correct way to research a problem is the time and money that the marketer can afford. With knowledge of time and cost constraints, the researcher can develop a research design to suit these eeds. The researcher may also demonstrate other courses of action that could demand greater amount of money or time, but could have clear benefits that the marketer may be unaware of. Other constraints, such as those imposed by the client firm’s personnel, organi zational structure and culture, or decision making styles, should be identified to determine the scope of the research project. Yet constraints should not be allowed to diminish the value of the research to the decision-maker or to compromise the integrity of the research process.In instances where the resources are too limited to allow a project of sufficient quality, the firm should be advised not to undertake formal marketing research. f. Administrative considerations. These would lay out the administrative details in completing the research project. Examples could be the expected delivery of interim reports, contacts in the organization that may be able to help supply further information, or reference to sources of materials and individuals that are needed to complete the research successfully.

The Print Media Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Print Media - Research Proposal Example However, a recent detailed version of the story public on the New York Times reveals the account from the lens of the bloggers which is indicated by the mere headline of the piece, i.e. ‘NYC Mayor De Blasio: Police Were Disrespectful to Turn Backs’. In other words, the gist of the story which clearly speaks of the account of how the Mayor castigates the police officers is revealed by the headline. Any reader referring to the news story or even an opinion leader mentioning this news story can`t help but readily demonstrate an inherent bias towards the issue. Further reading into the story, the story reveals the account of how the Mayor castigated the NYPD and directly targeted those who created a scene at the funeral earlier saying that these officers were disrespectful towards the families of the deceased. Furthermore, the piece is worded in such a way that it would appear to the reader as if the Mayor exceeded his limits and was too harsh on the innocent officers. Moreo ver, another report says that Mayor avoided the reporters for weeks, which has again been presented in such a way that the readers would perceive as if the Mayor was merely engaged in face-saving. Therefore, clearly, the piece lacks balanced approach. However, the same paper reported the issue in a contrasting context earlier where the bias was placed more in the favor. The opinion editorial published in New York Times labeled ‘Respect for NYPD Squandered in Attacks on Bill de Blasio’ presents yet another picture where the paper takes a contrasting direction.

Failure of democracy in developing countries Research Paper

Failure of democracy in developing countries - Research Paper Example According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s report on the status of democracies in the world, in 2014, almost 70% developing states’ democratic governing systems were characterized as the â€Å"flawed democracies.† According to the report, deficiencies in the governing process, electoral system, political culture, and civil rights have played a crucial role in failure of democracies developing states. After the end of the World War II, especially during the Cold War era, western powers were engaged in aggressive promotion of democracy in developing and third world countries. During the period, democratic peace theory, which was introduced by Immanuel Kant in 1795, emerged as the widely recognized theory in the global politics and academic spheres. This theory is the core of western promotion campaigns of democracy in developing states. According to the theory, democracy plays a vital role in development of economic stability, security and peace. The theory further claims that democratic states are usually peaceful and comparably less war-oriented. Therefore, it is assumed that the larger the number of democratic states in the world will lead to the less possibility of war and the greater assurance of social and economic stability and peace in the society. On the basic of various scholarly researches and available data, the present paper provides numerous pieces of evidence that w ill cast serious doubts on the validity of the democratic peace theory. In other words, by confuting the major assumptions of democratic peace theory, the paper exposes the failure of democracy in developing world and argues that only the potential spread of democracy won’t lead to more secure world, rather flawed and unmethodical promotion of democracy can lead to more instability and insecurity in the world. Since the period of Cold War, Western powers have

Long term oxygen therapy in patients with chronic obstructive Essay

Long term oxygen therapy in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease - Essay Example A prescription of LTOT is properly considered, because Medicare claims on LTOT prescription only if this therapy is vitally important for patient’s life. In case of such kind of strict regulations it is weird that LTOT is blamed for causing deaths or worsening patient’s quality of life or health status. Generally speaking, LTOT is a generally accepted and approved treatment for patients with COPD. With regard to the fact that there are different points of view expressed by medicals, critics and researchers concerning LTOT, this research is focused on unprejudiced consideration of this method and discusses both its benefits and negative outcomes. On the one hand, the results of the studies, which have been constantly conducted, witness that LTOT prolongs patient’s life. On the other hand, a poor diagnosis and inexact guidance for this treatment prescription and deaths of some patients prove inconsistency an inappropriateness of LTOT for individuals with COPD: In COPD patients considered for LTOT, the FEV1 should normally be less than 1.5 IV litres, or less than 40% of predicted normal values. The presence of arterial hypoxaemia with a higher FEV1 suggests that there may be another cause for the hypoxaemia, e.g. sleep apnoea, and further investigations will be required. Patients should be prescribed LTOT for at least 15 h per day, although survival improves when LTOT is used for more than 20 h per day. Thus the hours of LTOT use should not be restricted, especially in severe COPD. There is no benefit in the use of LTOT in COPD patients with a PaO2 above 8 kPa (Tiep, Barnett, Schiffman, 2002). Benefits of LTOT may be proven by improvement in patients’ lives, quality of patients’ lives, decrease of mortality levels, psychological and cognitive statuses’ perfection etc. In this frame of discussion, it is relevant to mention a study on relationship between heath and quality of life before and after LTOT. The results show that quality of life among

Assessment and Recovery from Mental Distress Essay

Assessment and Recovery from Mental Distress - Essay Example The common causes of mental illness and distress are chemical imbalances in the brain, stress and everyday problems, and exposure to severely distressing experiences such as loss of a relationship, job, death of a family member, sexual assault, killings, and violence, among others. However, some mental health experts claim that mental illness can also be inherited. There are different types of mental distress: anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, manic depressive distress, borderline personality disorder, schizophrenia, and many more depending on gravity and description. People who suffered from these distresses were seen with various symptoms. The person could experience upset, feeling restless, sleeplessness, tremors, nightmares, extreme sadness or despair, loss of interest in doing anything, loss of appetite, irritability, impulsiveness, depression, inability to perform daily tasks, hopelessness, sense of guilt, extreme mood swings, feeling worthless, sen se of guilt, extreme mood swings, violence, and suicidal tendencies (Borg and Kristianssen, 2004). Being mentally distressed is difficult. Some even deny they have such illness because of the prejudice and discrimination of people around them. But, having the illness is not anybody else’s fault or a sign of weakness and not something to be ashamed of (Mental Health Commission, 2007). It has been suggested that the treatment must not be delayed in order to prevent it into more severe stage. However, it has been found that conventional or traditional treatments had not been successful for many patients. If a person is seen with early stage symptoms of mental distress, it is not only a prompt treatment that must be provided to be able to recover the patient more quickly but the proper one and, there could be similar or different methods for every patient’s case. It should be noted, however, that early detection and treatment helps the patient to restore his/her respect, d ignity, and confidence, and live a full, quality life (Borg and Kristianssen, 2004). Those mentally distressed can recover, provided they seek and provided the appropriate treatment and support. The treatment can be medication, therapy, support and counseling, lifestyle adjustment, support group meetings, and, provision of an inner strength that â€Å"†¦can come from any number of places, these former patients say: love, forgiveness, faith in God, a lifelong friendship,† (Carey, 2011, P 8). Discussion A. Mental Health Nursing Mental health nursing was described as â€Å"an ‘artistic’ interpersonal-relations tradition which emphasizes the centrality of nurses’ therapeutic relationships with ‘people’ ‘in distress’ and a ‘scientific’ tradition concerned with delivery of evidence-based interventions that can be applied to good effect by nurses to ‘patients’ suffering from ‘mental illness’,à ¢â‚¬  (Norman and Ryrie, 2009, 1537). The task employs two different methods that are either integrated or complementary in order to deliver quality care to patients. It should be noted that one method is free and independent of any outlined procedure while the other is systematic and depends on evidence for its implementation. It should be also highlighted that a third factor is the â€Å"interpersonal relations†

The 1944 Education Act Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The 1944 Education Act - Essay Example Education was seen as a means of enlightening the people and solving problems associated with industrialization which was taking place in Europe. Before then, individuals were engaged in artisan trades where they possessed particular skills and controlled their working schedules but industrialization brought about the need for educated people to handle various tasks in industries (Bates et al. 2011). Many education Acts were legislated to change the nature of education but the education Act of 1944 formed the basis for the present education system in Britain. The Education Act of 1944 was very crucial as it replaced all previous education legislations and set the framework for post-war education system in England and Wales aimed at promoting equality of opportunity for all pupils. It established the Ministry of Education and made education free and compulsory for pupils up to age 15. The Act also aimed at helping Britain to reconstruct its education system after it was disrupted by W orld War II. According to Lowe (2012) the war destroyed school buildings through bombing and millions of children were evacuated. Furthermore, there was need for an education system that would solve social and economic problems through state control. The paper will thus discuss the Education Act and its impact on education and the society after the Second World War. To understand the education policy, it is important to look at the education background in Britain before the war. During the pre-war period, education in Britain was dominated by independent and church schools belonging to the Roman Catholic and the Church of England. Britain being a liberal state did not interfere with education but left it in the hands of local boards and authorities which were democratic in nature (McNaughton & Burgess, 2003). The schools provided elementary education from age 5-14. Secondary education was restricted to a minority children hence formal education was usually over by the age of 12 lead ing to child labour. Since pupils paid school fees in independent schools, education divided people along social class; the wealthy people could afford to enter grammar schools and get employment thereafter while the working-class only managed to get basic skills from elementary education (Gates, 2005). Teachers were recruited for training based on their religious affiliation and the Catholic schools only admitted students from catholic families who were taught catholic faith. Another aspect of early education was the provision of meals and school milk for nutrition purposes. During the war, most children were evacuated from bomb prone areas and resettled in bomb free zones away from their parents. As a result, there was a mixture of races and differences which resulted in racial prejudice. There was a decline in cultural values and morality as parents could not monitor their children’s progress since the schools of choice where religious values were taught were far away (Low e, 2012). The buildings were in a deplorable state due to bombing hence education was offered at home in selected premises. Due to the prevailing circumstances and the need to impart patriotism in citizens, there was need for an education system that would serve this purpose. Education was seen as a tool of transmitting cultural values and morality and also as a tool of social and economic policy since the society was becoming more complex requiring wide range of knowledge and skills. Bartlett and Burton (2007) argue that education was also to be used as a vehicle for equality of opportunity especially by ensuring implementation of the Beveridge report of 1942 which advocated for formation of a welfare state. To ensure everyone

Communities of practice, their benefits and management challenges Essay

Communities of practice, their benefits and management challenges - Essay Example This paper will look into Communities of Practice, their benefits and a number of management challenges that they pose in a knowledge-based organisation. A community of practice has numerous benefits to an organisation. Organisations the world over have been utilising Communities of Practice for the last 2 decades in order to have sound knowledge-management systems. It is however important to note that CoPs have existed for centuries within management circles but their full formal attention in a modern organisational setup only emerged in the early 1990s. A CoP is comprised of a group of people willing to share their knowledge and expertise for a considerable amount of time. Organisations have used them to develop their human resources and encourage innovation and new approaches to problem solving. The intensifying of globalisation trends in the 1990s triggered heightened global competition. In order to survive firms are supposed to be creative and innovating which has driven them to appreciate the role that knowledge plays in organisational development. CoPs assist in diffusing knowledge and leverage a firm’s intellectual advantages. Knowledge-based organisations therefore require CoPs in developing their knowledge strategies. As such CoPs also have their limitations in respect to management of a firm. This paper will look into Communities of Practice, their benefits and a number of management challenges that they pose in a knowledge-based organisation. A community of practice has numerous benefits to an organisation. Formerly, many firms used information systems in knowledge management but the results were disappointing. CoP offers relatively new approaches where people interact and learn together. Due to the benefits that this approaches have most firms have adopted CoPs (Wenger and Snyder 2000). Some of the key benefits are as follows; Help with challenges It is clear that all firms experience challenges in their day-to-day running. However, these ch allenges need to be dealt with and a community of practice should be established to do just that. CoP solves problems by pooling of expertise, knowledge and skills from a number of employees. It is important to note that their winding down and eventual shutting down happens when problems they were dealing with are solved and consequently their purpose is fulfilled. Access expertise Organisations that treasure CoP are predominantly knowledge-based meaning that they require a great deal of expertise to carry out their tasks. In order to have a successful CoP its membership should be comprised of knowledgeable and experienced people. In case a firm is short of such workforce it is forced to source for them. In doing this a firm attains a pool of experts within its workforce which works to improve on its performance and profitability. Enhancement of team spirit Members in a community of practice need to work together to achieve set goals. They are not necessarily people who share the sa me ideals or beliefs but they are required to have similar interests in order to ensure a solid group (Llewellyn and Hindmarsh 2010). This facilitates teamwork in decision making and strategy formulation. Saving on cost an time of searching for information A CoP is established in order to deal with problems or to develop solutions. A small team is assembled which analyses the way forward. The smaller the team, the less the time they take in coming up with a solution. A small team is also easily managed and it is relatively cheap to maintain. This saves a great deal of time that inter-departmental meetings would have taken for consultations. It also offers time for the rest of the employee to continue with their normal duties while just a handful of them are picked to deal with pending issues (Wenger and Snyder 2000). The opportunity cost would be too high in taking many workers’ time in decision making. Improvement in quality of decisions A CoP is comprised of carefully selec ted people who bring to the table high-level skills and expertise. This assures the firm that the discussions made are meaningful and that decisions arrived at have high likeliness of being the best for the particular situation. Firms that have many CoPs tend to have better operational strategies which

A Company Reporting on its Supply Chain Activities Essay

A Company Reporting on its Supply Chain Activities - Essay Example A Company Reporting on its Supply Chain Activities One of the companies exemplified in the report was Steel Dynamics where the current situation reported by Stundza (2010) was manifested as weak demand for products such as merchant bars, wire rod, light structural products, mini-mill made steel, special quality bar, structural steel and fabricated rebar, among others. The raw materials for these products are highly dependent on the availability and prices of scrap, briquettes, pellets, the types of steel to be produced, and operational factors. The end products are marketed to consumers of which the following were mentioned: automakers, automotive parts producers, residential and non-residential building construction, export markets and the nuclear industry. The crucial information that affects the supply chain are factors affecting supply and demand. As revealed, there is currently low demand or sluggish movement in both residential and non-residential building construction, and the prices of raw materials, particularly scrap. Further, export markets deem to be a lesser viable alternative to market their products due to end prices that would not be competitive in Europe and Asian nations because of including custom-duties, insurance fees, freight costs and availability of ships for export. Other relevant factors that affect pricing strategies for the products are the rising cost of scrap due to seasonality in supply and the strong demand for export markets.

Soap opera Essay Example for Free

Soap opera Essay Every soap uses lots of different camera shots and angles. First of all there is the reverse shot, this is used when two people are talking, tends to be head and shoulders shot. The second one is the medium shot; this is usually head, shoulders and half of a body on the shot. This is normally used when three people are talking, example, at the bar in the Rovers Return. The third shot is the tracking shot, this is used when the characters are moving, i. e. walking or running. This is usually a full body shot. It can be of more than one person. This was used on the live 40th anniversary episode when it first started. The fourth shot is the zoom, this is when the camera gets closer or further away from a character, e. g. when Sarah-Lou found out that she was pregnant. The fifth shot is called a pan; this is to ensure a long broad view of a whole area. It can also move side to side. This was used in the very first episode of Coronation Street. When Kens dad passed his wife a cup of tea, it didnt just switch from one person to another. The fifth shot is called the tilt, this is when the camera tilts up and down. In the 40th year episode of Coronation Street they did a live episode. The two main narrative strands were, Whether they were going to save the cobbles, and Whether Vera was going to survive. I think they used these storylines because the producers wanted the whole of the cast to appear in the episode. Some of the speeches had double meanings. When Ken said, Long live coronation street, he is talking about the street but I know that he wants the programme to go on for another forty years. Also when the whole cast is singing, We shall not, we shall not be moved, they are trying to save the cobbles but also they want to stay in Coronation street as there characters. Ken Barlows son came and we know this is going to be the start of a new story line. Then Vera wakes, this is a storyline resolved. When Curly went into the pub to tell all the characters that Vera had woken up, they all cheered, this shows that Vera is a well-respected character. At the end of the episode, when Ken says, We did it, he means that they have saved the cobbles, but also he means that they had finished the episode with success. The actors seemed genuinely happy, not acting. For Australian soap operas, theme tunes are accompanied by lyrics. They have unrealistic storylines. Neighbours and Home and Away have lots of teenagers who do not seem to have parents. For British soap operas the theme tune is easily recognisable type of music. This lets you know when the programme is on if you are in another room. The brass band type of music lets you know it is northern. Piano and drums let you know that it is cockney, i. e. Eastenders. In every soap, which has, adverts every time before a break it has a question. E. g. when the break came on, on the live episode the question before the break was whether Vera was going to survive or not. Advertisers like to put their adverts on during prime time television i. e. coronation street because they know that millions of people will be watching the programme. In coronation street the producers and directors deliberately uses the northern dialect. This makes it easily identifiable to a Lancashire place. Standard English is a way of speaking without using a regional accent or dialect. The reason we have Standard English is to make sure every country understands each other. I have been looking at a 1995 coronation street script, and the differences in the language of the script compared with Standard English are completely different. The script is written in everyday speech for it to show that it is typical northern town talk. The unusual thing about the script is that it uses typical northern accent and dialect. At the start of the script Vera says, I could do with some crudities. Then Jack says, its a Christening not a flaming stag night. Now Jack and Vera had a different meaning to the word crudities. Vera means raw vegetables but Jack thought she meant things like strippers. This shows that Jack is common because he misunderstood the word crudities. Also when Vera says, who were that on phone? this shows a strong, northern phrase. This phrase is dramatically incorrect. In the 1940s films they used strong, sharp, clip Standard English. The queen, how she speaks now was old Standard English. Zoi Ball says, Rilly Gid instead of, Really Good. This is Received Pronunciation and this is starting to filter up throughout the country. Despite soap operas being popular because it is centred on women, there is some evidence to show more, that soaps are focussing more frequently on storylines outside the domestic plots such as crime. Additionally the storylines have recently focused on male characters as in Eastenders, Ian Beale fought to get his children back and in Coronation Street Jim McDonald had to face the consequences when his son got in a lot of trouble with drug dealer, Jed Quigley. Finally, other possible reasons for soap operas popularity could be escapism or relaxation. At the end of the day the viewer can sit down, relax and watch an episode of Coronation Street, and escape from the problems of reality, and think about characters problems instead. Most significantly though, soap operas concern with the everyday people and their problems, big and small, appears to be one of the main reasons why this genre is so popular.

Impact of Organizational Culture in Decision Making Essay Example for Free

Impact of Organizational Culture in Decision Making Essay In any organization, decision making has traditionally been put in the hands of the management or superiors. An organization’s hierarchy emerges when an organization experiences problems in coordinating and motivating employees. As an organization grows, employees increase in number and begin to specialize, performing widely different kinds of tasks; the level of differentiation increases; and coordinating employees’ activities becomes more difficult (Jones, 2004). As globalization and information technology has changed every sector of the world, business organizations have attuned to demand their leaders to make decisions quickly, without needless ado, and move on to other pressing matters. This creates the temptation to make the decision unilaterally, for the sake of speed and efficiency, and be done with it. On the other hand, it is becoming increasingly clear that healthy organizations characteristically find strength in opening up participation in decision making and empowering relevant people at all levels of the organization to contribute to the quality of the decisions made. There are two reasons for making decision making in organizations more dynamic. First, empowering people to participate in important decisions is highly motivating to them and second, broad participation infuses the decision making process with the full spectrum of knowledge and good ideas that people throughout the organization have to contribute. On the other hand, the concept of organizational culture is at the core of understanding organizational behavior such as decision making. Organizational culture involves the norms that develop in a work group, the dominant values advocated by the organization, the philosophy that guides the organizations policies concerning employees and client groups, and the feeling that is evident in the ways in which people interact with one another. Thus, it clearly deals with basic assumptions and beliefs that are shared by members of the organization. Taken together, these define the organization itself in crucial ways: why it exists, how it has survived, what it is about. As an organization’s culture influences decisions made by its members it also influences its members’ acceptance or rejection of decisions made by its leaders. So when an organization changes its strategy, the primary interest involves assessment of the compatibility of a decision option with the organization’s culturewhere an option is defined as a possible course of action in the case of a member who is making a decision, or a proposed course of action in the case of a decision that has been made by leaders (Beach, 1996, p. 118). For example, CEOs in different industries vary considerably from one another in terms of their background characteristics and experience, an observation that has intrigued the business and academic press. For example, a widely scrutinized and publicized CEO selection decision was Apple Computers decision in 1985 to replace founder Steven Jobs with John Sculley, an industry outsider with virtually no experience in the technology-driven personal computer industry. The arguments in this controversial decision centered around the relative suitability of these individuals given the changing nature of the personal computer industry. As a result of changing industry conditions in which marketing and advertising were viewed as increasingly important strategic levers, Sculley’s marketing background and experience at Pepsis beverage operations were expected to make him a better â€Å"fit† as CEO than the technologically oriented Steve Jobs (Datta, Guthrie Rajagopalan, 2002). In this regard, the impact of organization culture in decision making is seen to be very vital. Organizational culture is a powerful environment that reflects past experiences, summarizes them, and distills them into simplifications that help to explain the enormously complex world of the organization. Efforts to reduce this complexity through simplification processes such as imposing decision-making models on it are not likely to be very workable. In this view, therefore, the culture of the organization represents significant thinking prior to action and is implicit in the decision making behavior of the organization’s leaders. So when two organizations merge, there will be an impact in it uniting the culture as to who will make the decision and the issue of empowerment and participation. Empowerment and participation would be viewed by some leaders as losing power by giving it away to others. However, modern empowering leaders understand that one gains power by sharing it with others because in collaborative effort the power available to the group multiplies. To make this effective, this effort should be accompanied by the support of ongoing technical training and consultation to help all participants to master the group process skills that are essential to making empowerment succeed. They must also be accompanied by the development of concrete and publicly known processes through which one participates in the collaborative process.

Tesco PLC And Its International Communications Strategy Commerce Essay

Tesco PLC And Its International Communications Strategy Commerce Essay Tesco plc is the fourth largest retailer in the world after Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Home Depot, and the largest supermarket retailer in the UK, McLoughlin Aaker (2010, p126). The company was founded after WW1, and is widely recognised for having expanded its services during the 1990s away from groceries. In the last quarter of 2009 the company had a 31% share of the entire UK grocery market, with a reported gross turnover of 59.4 billion for the fiscal year 2008/2009. Cornelissen J (2005, p23) defines corporate communications at its most basic level as a management function that offers a framework and vocabulary for the effective coordination of all means of communications with the overall purpose of establishing and maintaining favourable reputations with stakeholder groups upon which the organization is dependant.   Cornelissen (2004, p32) provides an alternative synopsis of corporate communications via a historical perspective, defining five central or core themes. The realisation by the 1900s that organizations so as to stay afloat had to practice and engage through communications with a number of groups in the environment. For the larger part of the 20th century, managing communications had been defined predominantly via public relations and marketing divisions, this being an intrinsically limited approach, thus contemporary forms of communications management have integrated these divisions into the wider corporate communications function. Furthermore the shift from rigid to flexible market landscapes, and increasingly competitive marketplaces, this together with a greater call from society for corporate citizenship, pushing many organizations into stakeholder management strategies, and finally the relationship of corporate communications with the stakeholder era, and the need to build and ma nage relationships with stakeholder groups upon which the organization is economically and socially dependent. In this paper, Ill discuss and talk about The External and Internal communications. Identity, reputation and image, Culture and its influence in corporate communications for Tesco, The role of technology in corporate communication, Internal-the role of HR corporate Communication. Hargie D Tourish D (2004, p3) outline the scope of communication strategy and organizational success with an emphasis on internal communications proposing a systematic approach to the construction of a seaworthy communications strategy and the rigorous evaluation of all steps taken along the way. In the same way that Cornelissen J (2005), in the context of a historical understanding defines a shift in communications strategies and practices, the authors spell out a contemporary paradigm. Quirke, (1995, p76) is cited to have defined the traditionally bound or understood terms of organizational communication, such as the announcement of management conclusions, and the ensuring of consistent information, making messages easily comprehensible, and easy to disseminate. The authors go on to cite Quirkes further suggestions relative to the attempt to widen organizational participation and involvement, inclusive of the stimulation of thinking, participation and ideas, the networking of know how and learning across the organisation, the involvement of all employees in improving processes, the identification of ways of providing additional value to customer and lastly the expansion of what all employees believe is possible, Hargie D Tourish D (2004, p19), also see Quirke, (1995, p77). Quirke is further cited in so as to summarize this contemporary view of communications, the role of communication becomes not the top-down dissemination of management thinking, but the bottom-up means of connecting those who know what needs to change to those who have authority to make change happen. With respect to issues of external communications a number of fundamental questions are defined; who is communicating with whom? Which issues receive the most attention and arouse the most anxiety? How much information are people are receiving and sending on crucial issues? how much interpersonal trust exists; and how the overall quality of working relationships can be characterized? such iss ues are among the core concerns of efforts to establish what has been termed organisational climate (Lammers, 1994). The authors go on to outline the way in which a communications audit can be implemented citing a five stage sequential model devised by Baker, (1999) beginning with the selection of a topic, followed by an outlining of desired performance in relation to criteria and standards. The third stage entailing collection of objective data, fourthly the implementation of appropriate changes to improve performance, and lastly the collection of data to check for changes induced by the model. Van Riel suggests a framework for the coexistence of a number of communications functions in a single organization, this being particularly relevant to a company such as Tesco which as a result of its product and market diversification is concerned with a number or varying communication channels. Van Riels framework relates to internal concerns of an organization or company, as described by Barker Angelopulu (p371), Van Riel proposes a framework for organizations to stimulate cooperation among all relevant communication functions by defining the baseline of corporate communication. Three ultimate stages are devised by Van Riel, the definition of common starting points, the use of common operational systems and lastly the coordination of decision making. http://www.emeraldinsight.com/content_images/fig/1680120205001.png Figure 1, Van Riel, Internal Communications Framework McLoughlin, Aaker (2010) define Tescos success and growth over the past three decades directly in relation to its strategy and image, further relating it to market segmentation. The authors outline a number of strategic initiatives such as its managed range of four differing level brand product, finest range of premium products, Tesco healthy living, value range and Tesco organic range and furthermore describing the way in which the company changed customer perceptions of the brand itself, Secondly the company mantra has shifted form maximising shareholder value to maximising customer value. While the underlying objective is naturally to make higher profits this is specifically done while focusing on customer service (2010, p127). The third term which Damien McLoughlin, David A define is that of its diversification strategy which as outlined is based on four key principles, these being the innovation and expansion into the core UK grocery market and into areas like convenience store s; innovating through expansion into non food business like consumer electrics, clothing health beauty CDs and DVDs and even developing its non food finest and value ranges; expanding into retail services like personal finance telecoms and utilities by entering into joint ventures with major players in these industry sectors; finally, expanding internally which accounted for more than 25% of sales in 2008/9 with plans for further expansion in international markets including India and China, Damien McLoughlin, David A. Aaker (2010) Considering the expansion and diversification of Tescos services and products, in addition to the widening of its potential targeted market landscape, the initially defined terms of corporate communications devised by Cornelissen J (2005) and Hargie D Tourish D (2004), central to which are ideas of integration, and the crossing of functional boundaries, seem most appropriate. Despite the broad range of services and products offered by Tesco, there are in existence a number of unifying terms to which the organization would need adhere to, such as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and an overall brand value. The organizations present a number of terms which embody the core purpose of Tesco as a business, Value via competitive prices, product choice and high food quality, helpfulness via customer service, availability and customer communications, inclusiveness via the means of ensuring that the organization appeals to a broad range of customers, something for everybody, and innova tion via new product development and retails services technology. Chaffey et al (2009) outline Tescos strategy of diversification predominantly in terms of internet marketing and implementation, citing the chief executive of Tescos Terry Leahy from the Sunday Times, we will be the worlds biggest online grocery retailer and we intend to become the UKs No.1 e-commerce business (Lorenz and Nuki, 1999), further defining the way in which Tescos affirmed expansion was aligned to its expansion in providing wider products and services, in 2000, the online services diversified, offering many non food product ranges and financial services. The terms of diversification are understood predominantly in relation to internet shopping and service innovations, By 2003 96% of the UK population could shop online with Tesco.com giving the commonly 65% of the UK online grocery shopping market and further diversification of product ranges, e.g. financial services and telecoms. Specific innovations such as DVD services to the door, a rental film DVD service, the provisio n of energy utilities whereby customers can save money on their house bills, initiatives and schemes to promote better health such as online -diet services which help customers to tailor their food shopping and diets, and telephone services, Currently Tesco is focusing on the development of TESCO direct, which offers customers a wide range of non-food goods as well as launching a range of own brand computer software. Currently Tesco accounts for approximately 66% of the UKs online shopping market. Dave Chaffey et al (640; 2009). Oliver (1997, p128) suggests a communications framework in relation to IT technology which ultimately aligns terms of cultural values and beliefs of an organization with the organizations vision. The author presents a model devised by Goldberg Sifonis (1993) titled communication framework, which relies on the assumptions of management which are adopted on an intuitive basis and that need to be communicated with internal and external stakeholders, as described by the author, from that, a dynamic campaign plan or communication framework is produced which clearly represents the cultural values and beliefs of an organization aligned to its vision, Oliver (1997, p128). It is widely referred to throughout literature that the role of HR in terms of wider communications strategies is immensely under emphasised, HR departments most often not being considered under the scope of a communications department. The U.S. society for HRM asserts the way in which communications and HR should be closely related within any organizational framework, specifying the role of HR in terms of communication as a way by which to assert any given culture as alive and healthy. HR is predominantly responsible for and concerned with internal communications in this respect. Turner (2003, p20) proposes a model which adapts the traditional framework of linking HRM and performance. Turners model incorporates communications into the entire model. For example at the stage of HR strategy, the author suggests good communication as a tool by which to join up HR policies and strategies. In terms of HR practices, the author outlines, effective people management practices to be communica ted to line managers, and directly in relation to terms of financial performance, the author suggests efficient communication of a culture of good people practice, this being particularly important to an organization such as Tesco plc, which falls into the category of a dominant, large multi-national corporation, at risk of gaining a bad reputation for this very reason. In this regard, HR can come up with different strategies which can be fruitful for the organization in the long run. Apart from making different rules and regulation for the organization, HR can be the beacon of light in devising strategies to enhance corporate communication and can train its employees to effectively deal with it. To Conclude this, Pelsmacker P et al (2005, p228) define a number of channels adopted by the Tesco organization so as to communicate to as wide a consumer market as possible. For example the authors define the Tesco club card magazine, describing the aims as the creation of fun and information, managing the communicated core Tesco brand values and services. The authors further outline the engendering of lasting brand loyalty, and contribute significantly to customer awareness of new areas and lastly the increase up take of other Tesco ventures particularly in non food, the authors go onto to describe, At forward publishing, they realised very quickly that you cant talk to someone in their twenties in the same way that you would to a person in their sixties, resulting in various targeted, specific magazines. The organization identified five life stages from Club card data, creating five different copies of the clubcard magazine. This is defined as just one initiative amongst many more such as Tesco lifestyle scheme and the Tesco loyalty program which gave the organization the ability to customize and further optimize the customer expertise. As an international organization, concerned with such a diverse range of services the Tesco organization embody and epitomize the very need to diversify and integrate communications approaches, as described by Cornelissen and to implement the bottom up means of connecting those who know what needs to change to those who have the authority to make change happen as defined by Quirke (1995). Further analysis of Tesco plc in terms of corporate communications would need to incorporate quantitative data in addition to a qualitative assessment; furthermore the role of a communications strategy would need to be discussed further, directly in relation to Tescos brand and product diversification.

An Argument Against Abortion :: essays research papers

Psychologist, Sociologists and Anthropologist all have their place when it comes to analyzing criminals. Any member from these fields of study would have an interesting time analyzing Eric Rudolph. Eric Rudolph has been held responsible for numerous bombings of anti-abortion clinics as well as the bombing at the 1992 Atlanta summer games. As a result of these bombings one person has been killed and over 100 injured. From a psychological standpoint, Mr. Rudolph had some very serious issues. He was ruled to be mentally unstable. Eric belonged to a great number of anti-abortion groups. From a sociological stand point these groups did a great deal to aid in the crimes committed be Eric Rudolph. Upon looking at this case form the point of view of an anthropologist it becomes very clear that there is international support for Eric’s cause and very little being done to stop such actions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mentally unstable, odd, unsociable and depressed were all words used to describe Eric Rudolph in his childhood. In grade six a teacher wrote the following in the comment section. â€Å"Your son is an odd individual, please seek help for him. He is incredibly bright and gifted yet awkward and anti-social.† Eric Rudolph was constantly being called a failure and being told he was a plague on the planet, by his alcoholic father Mike Rudolph. Eric needed something to believe in, he took a stand in anti abortion. Anti abortion was a cause he supported ever since a very young age. Eric believed his criminal activities were simply moves in a direction of ending abortion and saving a life. This was his way of striving to make a difference. Time magazine did a psychological analysis of Eric Rudolph and they concluded â€Å"†¦ very little ability to decipher right from wrong, Eric is a young man that exploded in the very same manner as his bombs did. He was a cl ock waiting for the right time to make some noise.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the words of the great philosopher, David Letterman, â€Å"Eric Rudolph is like the whore of the anti abortion world, he is in bed with every anti abortion organization imaginable, some peaceful and some not so peaceful.† The role of a sociologist is to look at what groups or organizations that the person belongs too. There is a great deal of groups that Eric Rudolph was associated with. It was these groups that were responsible for teaching Eric what he needed to know in order to make a bomb.

Explorers of Africa :: Geography

Explorers of Africa Mungo Park was a Scottish explorer who led one of the first expeditions to investigate the course of the Niger river in Western Africa. Mungo Park was a 23 year-old scottish surgeon who had just returned from a journey to Sumatra on a ship of the East India Company. There he had discovered 6 species of fish, and he had published descriptions in a Scientific Journal. In 1795, Park had gone to Piscina, on an offer to research further into Africa. Park had accepted and a severe fever overcame him during his journey. Park also had been captured by certain muslim leaders. After he had gotten out of the Prison he had wandered around and had finally found the Niger River. Park was amazed at how beautiful the River was. Park had stated "I saw with infinite pleasure, the object of my, mission". Park had returned home to London where became famous on his publications of his voyage across Africa. Later in 1806 he sailed downstream to the Bussa rapids, where he drowned, trying to escape an attack by the Africans. Rene Callie was a 27 year old man who was fascinated by the stories told about peoples travels to Africa. His readings of Mungo park also stimulated his fascination. Callie had entered a contest for the first person to reach Timbuktu and reach back. He had reached Timbuktu. During Callie's trip he did not find it easy to prove to the French Authorities that a young man with no experience could discover Timbuktu. On his way back Callie had joined a Arab Caravan preparing to cross from Western Sahara to Morocco. Callie had stated "I am the first European to cross from the sandy ocean from the south to the north". On his return to Paris, Callie was known as a hero. Later, questions were asked if he was telling the truth or not. Johann Rebmann Johann Rebmann was a German missionary, who was not like Mungo Park or Rene Callie. The purpose of Rebmann's explorations is to find a place where he might serve God. His most helpful weapon was a umbrella, which he used to fight off lions and would be attackers. Rebmann was the european explorer who kept a careful record of his journey. Together with his

Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol :: Charles Dickens Christmas Carol Essays

Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol The editor of one edition of ‘A Christmas Carol’ wrote â€Å"A story so admirably told, the details of place, of time, of person so dexterously made real for us† How does Dickens achieve this? How does he ‘A Christmas Carol’ a story which â€Å"No one could help but enjoy† In this essay I am going to be writing about the different techniques in which Dickens uses, and by using these bring people, place and time to life. Dickens cleaver use of techniques throughout this book really makes us feel as if we are actually there are selves. I think that the reason why dickens is so good at making this all seem so real to us is because when he was younger he grew up as a child in London himself, which I think would explain why this book has so much detail in it. A lot of what happens in this book most probably happened to Dickens as a boy as he used to be quite poor himself, an example of this is the cratchits Christmas dinner which I think was based on what Christmas used to be like for Dickens. Dickens motive for writing this book was so that he could make people aware of how awful it was to be poor, so he therefore wrote this in a story to try and get his point across. This is why Dickens is so good at using a range of different techniques which really create an image in are heads of what is really going on. I am mainly going to be focusing on the different techniques used in three certain passages from the book; these are going to be the description of Scrooge, the description of the shops in London and Fezziwigs ball. I have chosen these three passages as I think that they have been written in great detail and show us exactly how Dickens brings things to life and how well he does it. Even though I am focusing particularly on these passages Dickens use of techniques is constantly used throughout this book. His constant uses of adjectives throughout really create an image in are head of what something looks like or what is going on. He uses adjectives in a number of different ways but contently uses these same ways all through the book. Dickens will use listing such as â€Å"Great joints of meat, sucking pig, long wreaths of sausages, plum puddings.† He will also list three adjectives and then a noun for example â€Å"Cold, bleak, biting weather† and â€Å"Long, bare, melancholy room.† This really helps us to create an

Giligan Oakmont Country Club Case

Gilligan oOakmont Country Club 1 Thomas W. Gilligan University of Southern California I t is the summer of 1996 and management must decide whether or not to alter the process used to trade the club’s 450 memberships. The current fixed price system, in which management sets the transfer fee for club memberships, offers some degree of financial certainty for existing and prospective members as well as for the club’s financial planners. However, the fixed price system promotes chronic imbalances between the number of members wishing to leave the club and the number of eligible candidates wanting to enter the club.These imbalances create frustrations for eligible candidates, hardships for long-time club members, difficulties in developing suitable new members and problems for club planners. Management is considering several alternatives. THE CLUB Oakmont Country Club is a private golf and social club located along the Arroyo Verdugo in northern Glendale, California. Establi shed in 1922, Oakmont has long provided the kind of relaxed social life prized by many Southern California families. Oakmont’s mission statement reveals the club’s goals and orientation. . . to provide its members with a premium golf and country club experience that includes a well maintained, highly respected and competitive golf course; an attractively designed and efficiently operated clubhouse that meets the membership’s requirements for excellent service, top-quality food and beverages and ample meeting and banquet facilities; and the maintenance of the Club’s unique atmosphere of a strong and friendly family orientation. All contemporary management issues at Oakmont are evaluated through the lens of this mission statement.This case was prepared by Thomas W. Gilligan, University of Southern California, as a basis for classroom discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation.Oakmont’s challenging 18-hole, 6,736-yard golf course is a tough test for golfers of any ability. The course was designed by Max Behr, architect of many local courses including the one at Lakeside Country Club, and modified by William Bell, Sr. , creator of courses at the Riviera and Bel Air Country Clubs. Oakmont’s course is currently the site of an annual Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) tournament and over the years has hosted many important professional and amateur events. Among the notable winners of golf tournaments held at Oakmont are Ben Hogan and Al Geiberger.Oakmont’s clubhouse, which was renovated in 1995, is a 42,000 square foot, single-story structure characterized by an elegant reception area, formal dining room, private meeting and banquet rooms, a member’s grill, a casual dining room and a terrace grill for indoor and outdoor eating. In addition, there is a fully equipped state-of-the-art exercise room and men’s and women’s locker rooms. A competitive short course pool, with toddler swimming area, is open from Memorial Day through Labor Day each year. Oakmont’s assets are valued at nearly $13 million while its annual operating expenses are more than $3 million.Tables 1 and 2 are statements of the financial position and activities of Oakmont Country Club for fiscal years 1995 and 1996. Oakmont is organized as a non-profit corporation under the laws of the state of California. According to its bylaws, Oakmont’s membership is fixed at 450 regular members each with an equal proprietary interest in the club’s assets (Oakmont also has several non-equity membership categories). Regular members govern Oakmont through the election of a Board of Directors (the Board), the chief policy-making body of the club. The Board appoints members o standing and special committees and, together with the club’s General Manager and senior staff, supervise the daily operations of Oakmont. Regular members also vote on the adoption of new articles or amendments to Oakmont’s bylaws.THE MEMBERSHIP PROCESSMost of Oakmont’s regular members are professionals, entrepreneurs or corporate leaders who reside in Glendale and the neighboring communities of La Crescenta, La Canada-Flintridge and Pasadena. Some are executives or high-ranking managers in the entertainment industries that permeate the Los Angeles basin.Many current members are children of long-time Oakmont members. Surveys conducted by the club indicate that many members consider other clubs before joining Oakmont. Three nearby clubs – Annandale Country Club in Pasadena, San Gabriel Country Club in San Gabriel, and Lakeside Country Club in Burbank – compete directly with Oakmont for new members. Indeed, the need to provide competitive club characteristics and amenities was a major motivation for the recent renovation of Oakmont’s Clubhouse. Regular members wishing to leave Oakmont do so for a varie ty of reasons.Some have moved or are planning to move to locations that would limit or preclude their use of Oakmont. Others wish to give up their golfing privileges but continue their association with Oakmont as social members. Some find that due to changing life circumstances (e. g. , the death of a spouse), their club usage has declined and it is no longer sensible to continue to pay the monthly membership dues, which can approach $500 even with little or no use of the club. And some are no longer economically able to cover the cost of membership. Historically, roughly two members leave the club each month.The process of becoming a member at Oakmont is typical of private country and social clubs in Southern California. Prospective members are invited to join Oakmont by two current members (a â€Å"proposer† and â€Å"seconder†) and endorsed by five additional regular members. These prospects are then interviewed by the club’s Membership Committee and evaluate d by the Board.Eligible candidates become members of Oakmont by remitting an entrance fee to the club’s business office. Part of the entrance fee, the transfer fee, is used to defray the current expenses of the club. Table 2 illustrates that the transfer fee is an important revenue source, constituting roughly 14 and 19 percent of the club’s operating revenues in 1996 and 1995, respectively. The balance of the entrance fee, the member’s equity, is paid to the resigning member. Currently, the entrance fee, transfer fee and member’s equity are set by Oakmont’s Board.This so-called fixed price membership system is typical of social and country clubs like Oakmont and has several desirable features. The fixed price system allows the Board to reliably budget transfer fees. The fixed price system also appears to provide some certainty about the costs of joining Oakmont to prospective members and the value of member’s equity for members planning to resign. Since the fee structure adopted under the fixed price system is at the discretion of the Board, it permits some flexibility in adjusting to relevant changing circumstances.For example, the vicissitudes of the Southern California economy have a large bearing on the number of members wishing to resign from or join Oakmont. During the economic boom of the late 1980s and prior to the recession of the early 1990s, the Board increased the entrance fee by almost 50 percent (from $34,000 in May 1989 to $50,000 in March 1992). After the recession of the early 1990s, the Board reduced the entrance fee by nearly a quarter (from $50,000 in March 1992 to $39,000 in June 1993).Changes in the entrance fee also reflect the financial requirements of construction or acquisition of new assets. Also in June 1993, the Board increased the entrance fee by $6,700, an amount equal to the assessment levied on all current Oakmont members to cover the costs of the Clubhouse renovation (note that the ol d entrance fee plus assessment yields the new entrance fee of $45,700). Table 3 reports the entrance fee, transfer fee, and member’s equity for October of each year from 1989 to 1995, as well as for August of 1996.THE PROBLEMSThe fixed price membership system used at Oakmont is associated with at least one potentially undesirable feature; a chronic imbalance between the number of members wishing to resign and the number of eligible candidates wishing to join the club. The last column of Table 3 reports the number of people waiting to join (in parenthesis) or resign from Oakmont for several months during the 1989 to 1996 period. In October of 1991, there were 11 eligible candidates for membership to the club who, due to the paucity of members wishing to resign, remained eligible candidates for at least one month.Inspection of Table 3 indicates that the number of eligible candidates waiting to join Oakmont at the end of October of 1990 and 1989 was even greater; 42 and 27, resp ectively. Indeed, some members who paid Oakmont’s highest historical entrance fee late in 1991 or early in 1992 had waited over two years to join the club. A long waiting list of eligible candidates wishing to enter Oakmont had its good and bad points. Some members viewed a long queue of eligible candidates as indicative of the value and exclusivity of the club.After all, it is traditionally difficult to get into a desirable social club; why should Oakmont be any different? Others, however, were troubled by the impact of this lengthy wait on eligible candidates. All of the eligible candidates had been asked to join by current Oakmont members. Many of these members were embarrassed and frustrated by the lengthy wait that accompanied their invitations. In addition, some felt that the long waiting list to enter Oakmont generated â€Å"speculative† eligible members; individuals that declined to exercise their option to become a member when they reached the top of the list. While these two membership categories addressed some of the problems associated with the long waiting list to join Oakmont, they also created some new issues and abuses, as well. During 1992, the imbalance between the number of members wishing to resign or join Oakmont continued unabated.Paradoxically, the relationship that existed during the late 1980s and early 1990s reversed itself; there were now more members wishing to resign than to join. The factors behind this new trend were evident. The weakening national and, especially, Southern California economy shrank the number of individuals with the discretionary income necessary to belong to a country club. Changes in the tax law in the early 1990s that reduced allowable deductions for club dues and entertainment further limited the number of prospective members.Moreover, the average age of Oakmont members, a good predictor of the number of members wishing to resign, had increased from 55 years in 1971 to 62 years in 1996. As Table 3 reports, at the end of October of 1992 there were 10 members who wished to leave Oakmont but could not because there were no eligible candidates waiting to enter. By the end of August of 1996, this number was now 41 and the member at the top of the list to sell his membership had waited since June of 1994. Club management soon discovered that there is nothing good about a long list of members waiting to leave Oakmont.By the second half of 1994, those waiting to leave were quite bitter. These resigning members had endured the physical disruptions of the Clubhouse renovation, which still had a year to go and was at the time 50 percent over budget. The resigning members who had left the area thought it unfair that they be required to continue to pay monthly dues. Management tried to accommodate these individuals by establishing another membership category – inactive member – with reduced monthly fees in exchange for the surrender of club privileges.This plan placated f ew resigning members. And the general negativity of the current situation accelerated the number of members wishing to resign and diminished further still the number of prospective members wishing to enter Oakmont. Indeed, during several months in 1994 and 1995, few prospective members made inquiries and no eligible members were admitted to the club. Ironically, by the middle of 1996 the national and regional economy had recovered with a vengeance. Real estate prices, the stock market, and national and regional employment were all rising dramatically.The Clubhouse renovation had been completed and, by all accounts, greatly increased the utility and desirability of Oakmont. Yet, the number of members wishing to resign from Oakmont continued to accumulate. All of the long-term fundamentals for a strong and popular club were now in place. Where were the prospective members that a modern club and healthy economy and stock market should help create? Could the allure of country club livin g have declined in contemporary Southern California? Or might savvy prospective members have anticipated a better deal around the corner?THE ALTERNATIVESDuring 1996 the Board contemplated possible solutions to the membership problem. One possibility was to promote the club more effectively among prospective members. In the 1990s the Board had adopted a variety of plans to generate eligible candidates, such as offering existing members prizes for successful referrals (e. g. , vacations to Hawaii, free dues for three months). These plans had been judged to be only moderately successful and created a backlash among members who felt that such promotions were in poor taste and counter to the Club’s recruitment goals.Some current members felt that new members should be those who fit well within the club’s niche, not those simply financially able to be Oakmont members. The renovation of CaseNet ®  ©South-Western College Publishing Oakmont Country Club 5 the Clubhouse help ed generate new members, as well. Following its completion there was an initial surge of interest. Some Board members felt that an aggressive promotional plan coupled with some minor improvements in the Club’s physical plant (e. . , the pool) would go far towards alleviating the membership imbalance. Many of these same Board members believed that the strengthening economy would naturally solve the current problem. Another alternative the Board considered was to reduce the entrance fee, as was done in 1992. This simple solution, which was favored by some of the Board’s members, was consistent with the long-time practices of the club and would require few if any changes to the administrative procedures governing the membership process.Other Board members felt that it was unfair to members wishing to leave the club to force them to sell their memberships at a discounted fixed price. And even if the Board reduced the club’s entrance fee, what should the new fee be? Should the fee be set to generate a waiting list of eligible members, as had existed prior to 1991? If so, what was the right length waiting list? Some Board members felt that, under the current circumstances, any change in the entrance fee would have to be modified in the near future and, depending on the volatility of several factors, on a periodic basis.A third alternative considered by the Board was to abandon the fixed price membership system altogether and adopt the so-called float method to determine the entrance fee, transfer fee and member’s equity of Oakmont memberships. This method had been adopted at some neighboring clubs (e. g. , San Gabriel Country Club and Lakeside Country Club) with varying success. Generally, the float method permits the entrance fee to change monthly as a function of the number of members wishing to enter and leave the club and the value that these members place on membership in Oakmont.Board members who favored the float method felt it wou ld alleviate the imbalance between the number of individuals wishing to leave and enter Oakmont. They also felt that the float method would get club management out of the business of trying to guess the value of club memberships and addressing, on an ad hoc basis, the problems that might arise from lengthy waiting lists to enter or leave the club. Some Board members opposed the plan because they felt it would interject uncertainty in budgeting for transfer fee income.Others opposed the plan because they felt that membership in Oakmont was not like a piece of real estate to be transacted on the open market. These members felt memberships should be allocated by the Board, with consultation from the Membership Committee, to prospective members who would help further Oakmont’s values and mission.THE DECISIONIn late September of 1996, the Board abandoned the fixed price membership system and adopted a float method to determine the entrance fee, transfer fee, and member’s eq uity of Oakmont memberships.Under the float method, a resigning member offers to sell his membership at any price he wishes. At the end of each month the Board presents these offers, from lowest to highest, to eligible candidates. Priority is given to eligible candidates based on the submission date of their membership application. If an eligible candidate accepts the offer, the candidate remits a check in the amount of the offer to Oakmont’s business office. The transfer fee is half of the offer price or $15,000, whichever is greater, with the remainder constituting the resigning member’s equity.If an eligible candidate declines the offer, he assumes the lowest priority in the following month’s membership sale. A candidate can decline three offers before losing his eligibility. The highest selling price, the number of memberships transacted, and the number of remaining eligible candidates is reported each month to Oakmont members, eligible candidates and prospe ctive members.Smith and Mr. Jones, both long-time Oakmont members, submit offers to sell at $35,000 and $40,000, respectively. Currently, Mr. Brown, Mr. Black and Mr. White are the only eligible candidates. Based on the timing of their membership applications, an offer will be presented first to Mr. Brown, then to Mr. Black, and finally to Mr. White. The Board presents Mr. Smith’s $35,000 offer to Mr. Brown. Since Mr. Brown declines the offer, he is placed on the bottom of next month’s eligible candidate’s list and Mr. Black is presented with Mr.Smith’s offer. Mr. Black accepts, remitting a check for $35,000 to Oakmont, $17,500 of which goes to the operating budget of the club as transfer fee and $17,500 of which goes to Mr. Smith as member’s equity. Mr. Jones’ $40,000 offer is now presented to Mr. White, who declines and goes to the bottom of next month’s eligible candidate’s list behind Mr. Brown. Mr. Jones’ $40,000 of fer stands unless he advises the Board that he wishes to either withdraw or alter his offer. The Board would report that one membership changed hands at $35,000.If more than one membership had been traded, the Board would report the highest price only. Table 1 reports the monthly history of the float method at Oakmont Country Club from October of 1996 through January of 1999. This table catalogs the number of members waiting to sell their membership, the number making offers to sell, the number of offers accepted by eligible candidates, and the highest selling price. In Oakmont’s 1997 Annual Report, President Charles J. Gelhaar offered the following summary. The success of our â€Å"float† process continued in 1997.Our waiting-out list has [been] reduced from 43 to 0. We sold 34 regular [memberships]. The last membership sold for $57,750. Oakmont’s President in 1998, David A. Werbelow, provided the following assessment. [The] Membership Committee continued the p ositive turnaround which began in . . . October, 1996, with the introduction of the â€Å"float† system. This year, every offer to sell was accepted by a buying new member – the 1998 average selling price of just over $60,000 was $12,000 higher than the average of the prior year.The average age of incoming members is more than 20 years younger than retiring members, and Oakmont Country Club has firmly established a niche in Southern California as a family club. The History of Oakmont Country Club, published on the club’s 75 th Anniversary in 1997, provides a more theatrical description of the events surrounding the adoption of the float method. . . . it was now time to tackle another pressing problem: the membership. The recession that damaged Southern California had impacted Oakmont as well. The average age of golf members had climbed to 61, and there were some 40 members waiting to get out.Unfortunately, new members were coming in at a snail’s pace. At one point, only one new member applied in a three-month period. Spearheaded by 1996 Club President Olaf Falkenhagen, the idea of a floating membership fee was implemented in October, 1996. Other clubs in the area had tried it with varying success; and after considerable debate at the Board level, it was time for Oakmont to try it. It was an instant success. Five new members applied immediately. Thirty five members applied in six months.A high of $60,000 was reached in May, 1997, and a waiting list to join seems a real possibility for the first time in years. The float method developed at Oakmont, referred to as the Oakmont Float, is now used by a variety of equity-based golf and social clubs in the Southern California and Las Vegas areas.