INTB3000 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

INTB3000 - Essay Example lobal, acting local and thinking local, acting global, need to exist side by side because contrary to the general perception that building a brand sells it, the actual key to success is local passion for the brand coupled with a feeling of local pride and ownership. Examples of thinking global, acting local: 1. Retaining a clearly focused target product, so that the nature of the product was clear in the customer’s mind – Vicks was a rub for colds 2. Not growing complacent with the 20% growth that made Vicks no: 1 in India, but growing the market and benchmarking against the best in the world 2. Using an efficient, low cost local distribution system and 3. Using local ayurvedic medicinal products to prepare additional Vicks preparations apart from the rub for colds. Thinking local, acting global: 1. The global strategy was to increase advertising during the winter months, but Vicks Vaporub stepped up its advertising in the monsoon months, when local conditions caused more colds. 2. Positioning the 5 gm tin for the middle class and pricing a package of 4 such tins lower than a 19 gm jar, because it was specifically targeted at the middle class. Das and Vicks Vaporub were so successful in India because they were able to understand their consumers and act to satisfy their needs. They were able to use the existing, low cost distribution networks perfected by traders to avoid excessive costs along the supply chain. When chemists and pharmacists across the nation came together to boycott Vicks, the Company changed its registration from Western to Indian medicine to extend this distribution networks to food shops and local grocers, thus avoiding the strike altogether. 1. Being receptive to regional variations, i.e, suiting the product to fit opportunities available in the local market; for example using the monsoon as an opportunity to step up advertising during summer months. In a country like Russia, the economy was in a state of transition from a

Opportunities and Limitations of the Trade Market Essay

Opportunities and Limitations of the Trade Market - Essay Example It is an integrated process through of creating value for customers and build strong customer relationships to capture value from customers in return (IMA, 2010). International marketing refers to marketing outside the immediate country of origin or registration of a given organization. It so happens that there is currently a lot of competition for tourists from almost all countries in the world. To help improve their chances of capturing tourists, countries are only too willing to give their profiles to help them achieve this end (Pricken, 2008, p 24) This paper sets out to discuss the application and analysis of the profile of France with specific regard to the tourism industry. It looks at France as a potential market for tourists bound for the UK and proposes appropriate strategies to boost this particular market segment for the benefit of UK tourism. France is one of richer Western European nations. It is made up of a population of 64.1 million persons according to the 2008 national census. The main language spoken in the country is French which is an international language spoken by over 1 billion people globally who are mainly found in Francophone countries which are former colonies of France. Other important languages are English, Spanish, and German. It is important to note that all these languages share a history of conflicts with French for supremacy in Europe. So some of them, especially English, may not have been very welcome in certain sections of France in the past. However, with the emergence of America as a superpower, speaking English has become fashionable and prestigious among the younger generations in France (visitbritain.com, 2010). French is a highly developed language classified as romantic and low context. It is highly expressive with nasalized and lilting sounds.

Information Systems, Not Computer Science

Information Systems, Not Computer Science The largest growth in most economies is coming from information industries. The success of such knowledge-based organisations lies in their information systems. Also, forced by technological change and globalisation of markets, many manufacturing industries are also placing increasing emphasis upon information systems. Information systems are more than just computer programs. Though information and communications technologies are playing an increasing role in meeting organisations information needs, an information system is a much more general concept. It refers to the wider systems of people, data and activities, both computer-based and manual, that effectively gather, process, store and disseminate organisations information 2.0 Information Systems not Computer Science Information systems, as a discipline, focuses on exploring the interface between management, information science and computer science. Computer Science focuses on information technology: software. Information Systems mediates the two opposing worlds of human activity systems and information technology 3.0 Information Systems and the Modern Organization 3.1 Outline Competitive Advantage and Strategic Information Systems Evolution of Information Systems Classification of Information Systems The Modern Computing Environment Managing Information Resources 3.2 Learning Objectives Describe Porters competitive forces model. Discuss strategies that companies can use to achieve competitive advantage in their industries. Describe strategic information system (SISs) and how information technology helps companies improve their competitive positions. Describe various information systems and their evolution. Learn major Information System classification schemes. Describe the emerging computing environments. Describe how information resources are managed and the roles of the information systems department and the end users 4.0 Competitive advantage and SIS Competitive Advantage: An advantage over competitors in some measure such as cost, quality, or speed, which leads to control of a market and to larger than average profits. 4.1 Competitive forces model A business framework, devised by Michael Porter, for analyzing competitiveness by looking at five major forces that might alter a firms competitive standing. 4.2 Porters five forces Model 4.3 Strategies for Competitive Advantage Cost Leadership. Produce products and/or services at the lowest cost in the industry. Differentiation. Offer different products, services or product features. Customer orientation. Concentrate on making customers happy so that they remain loyal. New markets. Discover new markets either as a means of expansion and growth, or with the goal of capturing market niches. Innovation. Introduce new products and services, add new features to existing products and services or develop new ways to produce them. Operational Effectiveness. Improve the manner in which internal business processes are executed so that a firm performs similar activities better than its rivals. Discussion: Which of these strategies can be enhanced by the use of IS/IT, and how? 4.4 Strategic Information Systems (SISs) Systems that help an organization gain a competitive advantage through their contribution to the strategic goals of an organization and / or their ability to significantly increase performance and productivity. 4.5 IS Related Organizational Responses Strategic Systems may provide advantages that enable organizations to increase market share and/or profits, to better negotiate with suppliers, or prevent competitors from entering their markets. Customer Focus is the idea of attracting and keeping customers by providing superb customer service. Can be enhanced by use of IS/IT. Made-to-Order. is a strategy of producing customized products and services. Mass Customization is producing a large quantity of items, but customizing them to fit the desire of each customer. E business and Ecommerce. Is the strategy of doing business electronically. Discussion: Which Information Systems would be strategic for: An university An online book store A car manufacturer? 5.0 Evolution of Information Systems The first business application of computers (in the mid1950s) performed repetitive, high volume, transaction computing tasks. The computers crunched numbers summarizing and organizing transactions and data in the accounting, finance, and human resources areas. Such systems are generally called transaction processing systems (TPSs). Management Information Systems (MISs): these systems access, organize, summarize and display information for supporting routine decision making in the functional areas. Office Automation Systems (OASs): such as word processing systems were developed to support office and clerical workers. Decision Support Systems: were developed to provide computer based support for complex, or no routine decision making. End-user computing: The use or development of information systems by the principal users of the systems outputs, such as analysts, managers, and other professionals. Knowledge Management Systems: support creating, gathering, organizing, integrating and disseminating of an organization knowledge. Data Warehousing: A data warehouse is a database designed to support DSS, ESS and other analytical and end-user activities. Intelligent Support System (ISSs): Include expert systems which provide the stored knowledge of experts to non experts, and a new type of intelligent systems with machine learning capabilities that can learn from historical cases. Mobile Computing: Information systems that support employees who are working with customers or business partners outside the physical boundaries of their companies; can be done over wire line or wireless networks. 6.0 Classification of Information Systems The two most common classifications are: Classification by breath of support Classification by organizational level. 6.1 Classification by Breath of Support Typical information systems that follow the hierarchical organization structure are functional (departmental), enterprisewide and interorganizational Functional information systems are organized around the traditional departments. Enterprise information systems serve several departments or the entire enterprise. Inter organizational systems connect two or more organizations. An organizations supply chain describe the flow of materials, information, money, and service from raw material suppliers through factories and warehouses to the end customers. IT provides two major types of software solution for managing supply chain activities: Enterprise Resource Planning ( ERP), Supply Chain Management (SCM) 6.2 Departmental, corporate, and inter organizational IS 6.3 IT outside your organization 6.3 Classification by Organization Levels The typical enterprise is organized hierarchically, from the clerical and office worker layer, to the operational layer, the managerial layer, the knowledge worker layer and finally the strategic layer. 6.4 Levels in an Organization 6.5 The Clerical Level Clerical workers constitute a large class of employees who support managers at all levels of the company. Among clerical workers, those who use, manipulate, or disseminate information are referred to as data workers. These employees include bookkeepers, secretaries who work with word processors, electronic file clerks, and insurance claim processors. 6.6 The Operational Level Operational or first line managers deal with the day to day operations of the organization, making routine decisions, which deal in general with activities such as short-term planning, organizing, and control 6.7 The Knowledge Work Level They act as advisors and assistants to both top and middle management and are often subject area experts. Many of these professional workers are classified as knowledge workers, people who create information and knowledge as part of their work and integrate it into the business. 6.8 The Strategic Level Top-level or strategic managers (the executives) make decisions that deal with situations that may significantly change the manner in which business is done. 7.0 The Modern Computing Environment Computing Environment: The way in which an organizations information technologies (hardware, software, and communications technology) are organized and integrated for optimal efficiency and effectiveness. Legacy system: Older systems, typically those that process an organizations high volume transactions that are central to the operations of a business. 8.0 Managing Information Resources Information resources includes hardware, software, data, networks, applications etc. Management includes acquisition, introduction, support. Traditionally, department (ISD IS department) owns, manages and controls all resources End-user computing: employees use computers, write applications, manage data etc. Leads to fragmented management and need for cooperation between ISD and users Who is responsible for which resources? Includes financial responsibilities (contracts between users and ISD IT controlling) Discussion: What are the possible problems associated with: Complete control at ISD, and Complete control for end-users? Which factors in a company would lead to which outcome Chief Information Officer (CIO): sometimes member of top management, nowadays no longer technical, but strategic function IT Governance: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ the leadership and organisational structures and processes that ensure that the organisations IT sustains and extends the organisations strategies and objectives. Framework for IT Governance: COBIT Control Objectives for IT and related Technologies Mandated for Turkish banks in 2006 Domains: Plan and Organize, Acquire and Implement, Deliver and Support, Monitor and Evaluate COBIT 9.0 The information system strategies implementation in UK companies 9.1 Strategic process formality Business strategy relationship % companies The ISS is a formal documented part of the business strategy 47.5 There is no formal documentation, but the ISS is related to specific strategic aims 41.8 The ISS is a departmental function, rather than a corporate function 6.4 The ISS is not seen as related to the business strategy 0.0 9.2 Success of strategies 9.4 Conclusion: Collective intelligence and knowledge management can become effective mechanisms to help avoid the disturbances leading to internal disequilibrium within the organisation. Collective intelligence and knowledge management can remediate the negative effects of the instability of environment. The information and knowledge become raw materials for the intelligent organisation; their management requires simple solutions. Life cycle for products and services is getting shorter; the markets are global, fragmented by the needs and exigencies of the clients. The organisational culture evolves according to the aggregate strategy. The role of knowledge manager is to invest in the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge, leaving the employees to capitalise their personal competence

Essay --

Lonnie Young III Susan Trudeau College Writing 25 November 2013 University College Program Today’s colleges are more geared towards admission requirements such as GPAs, standardized test scores, and advanced placement scores to accept students. Students are often denied for admission because their standardized test scores or grades are below the average scores. Some of the students might attend community colleges in order to transfer into the college of their choice or go to the University College Program. The University College Program at UDM is a secondary admission program. This program is for students who have not met all the university admission requirements. Students in the program must sign a contract to participate in support services the university has to offer. The contract plays an important role in the day to day life of UCP students. The contract not only includes several obligations for student in the program to obey, but also for admission into the program immediately. The reasons why the contract used are to keep students on the straight and narrow, academic dish...

Sample Financial Plan Description

We have created a financial plan to help you retire at the age of 62 and afford to send your son, Sam, to college. After looking at the information you gave us regarding your income and expenses, we came up with the best solution for your financial future. We’ve picked out profitable mutual funds for your son’s college, as well as retirement investments. We also have found different methods of saving money for your retirement and future education for your son. We believe that there will be a great benefit to having a financially stable future. We understand with Sam attending a four-year university, the cost will be great along with the need for saving money for this to work financially. Grand Valley State University will provide an excellent education for your son, along with benefiting him for his future. Overall, it will cost $189,750 to attend Grand Valley State University for four years. We do, however, understand that the cost to attend the university may concern you at first, but there are methods of assistance that are available, such as investments and savings plans. Investing in specific funds, with good performance history, will have a huge advantage in acquiring the money for your son to go to college. We strongly advise investing a portion of your discretionary income into mutual funds. Your discretionary income would be the amount of your income that is left over, after taxes and expenses have been paid. Investing in mutual funds, rather than other investment options, will eliminate the stress and difficultly of trying to time the market. We invested 46% of your discretionary income into four different types of mutual funds, which will provide diversification for your investments. Using a MET and/or a MESP savings plan will create many advantages that will benefit you in sending your son to college. Both, the MET and MESP savings plan, are 529 plans. These are tax-advantaged savings plans specifically designed to encourage saving for future college costs. You are not able to withdraw money that is invested into a 529 plan unless it is an eligible college expense. We feel as though it is a benefit for most because it allows the money to amass without disturbance. The Michigan Education Trust (MET) is a way to help pay tuition and mandatory fees at Michigan public colleges. The plan allows for years of college tuition to be purchased for the future use of a student at today’s price. For example, you could buy four years of tuition now at 2011 prices, which would be $189,750, for Sam to use when he enters college in 2028. Some advantages the MET offers are a state tax deduction and a tax-free growth. The only thing that we want to bring to your attention is that you only have fifteen years to use the tuition benefits, unlike the MESP, which has no expiration date. The Michigan Education Savings Plan (MESP) is an advantageous way to allow your family to save for the expenses that come along with college. The MESP is a 529 college savings plan which allows families to save for tuition, room & board, mandatory fees, equipment, and required books for any qualified institution in the nation and some abroad. When the student is ready to use the funds in the MESP, whatever has been accumulated is what they have to work with. Some benefits of the MESP include: a state tax deduction, tax-free growth, and it allows for unused benefits to be transferred between members of the same family. We would recommend this plan over the MET to your family. The MET will cover tuition fees; although, it lacks the flexibility to pay for other related expenses, such as books, supplies, and other miscellaneous items. A mutual fund is an investment in which a company brings together money from many investors and invests it in stocks, bonds or other assets. Mutual funds are a good long-term investment, such as for your retirement. The risk level depends on the type of mutual fund it is. In your case, we chose the mutual fund with the best performance out of each different type. We recommend taking the remaining portion of your discretionary income, which would be 54%, and invest it just as we did for your son’s education. Mutual funds that are properly diversified will have investment dollars spread equally among four different classes of financial assets. We invested the remaining portion of your discretionary income into the same four mutual funds that were used for your college savings. We chose to invest in an international mutual fund, the New World Fund, which has a 9. 55% rate of return. We also chose an aggressive growth mutual fund, the SMALLCAP World Fund, which has a 9. 62% rate of return. Thirdly, we invested in a growth mutual fund with a 13. 63% rate of return, known as the Growth Fund of America. And lastly, we chose a Growth and Income mutual fund, the Capital World Growth and Income Fund, with has an 11. 17% rate of return. When diversifying the money in which you would like to invest, the smartest decision that you could make would be to invest in the four mutual funds that I just stated or funds that fit into each of the four different classes. This helps to reduce risk, such as if a couple securities in the mutual fund lose value and that loss could compensate for other securities that appreciate in value. When reaching the retirement age you can then transfer your gained revenue from all four of your mutual funds and place it into a bond fund. Bond mutual funds are designed mostly to provide investors with a steady stream of income versus capital gains. These funds are debt securities, or IOUs, which are issued with a promise of repayment on a certain date at a specified rate of interest. For your financial plan, all of your gained revenue was placed into a bond mutual fund as soon as you retired, therefore liquidating your riskier assets. Using this bond fund, you are earning a 5% interest every year. For example, the first year of retirement, after removing your yearly expenses, you will have $678,785 to place in your bond fund. At the end of the year, with the 5% interest rate of return on bond fund, you will have profited $1,139. 70 throughout the year, even after your expenses. We recommend that you invest in at least one retirement savings plan, such as a 401k or a Roth IRA, to securely save for retirement. It is a good idea to look into different savings plans, rather than make a hasty decision, because everyone benefits from a different savings plan, depending on their situation. In your case, the Roth IRA or 401k will be the most beneficial. With both of these retirement savings plans there are tax breaks that will benefit you. These savings plans are greatly used in America to help save for retirement nowadays. Each savings plan offers different advantages for couples saving for retirement. A 401k is a retirement savings plan for employees in which a desired amount of your check is taken out before tax deductions and placed into your 401k account. We understand that you have a pension plan through work, but your wife does not. This type of savings plan would be a great way to save for retirement. 401k is the favorite plan for corporate America today, due to its many advantages. Many employers will match, up to a certain percentage, the amount in which you place into your 401k. Invisible savings is one of the biggest advantages to the 401k savings plan. The money saved is taken directly out of you check weekly, even before the income tax is withdrawn. In doing so, this makes the money seem invisible to your eyes, and to your financial pocket book. There are other beneficial savings plans available, which can be used along with the 401k. Roth IRA’s are after- tax IRA’s. They grow tax free and offer many more choices than the normal IRA. Roth IRA’s are a good choice when it comes to saving for retirement. Even though you contribute after-tax dollars into a Roth IRA, all withdraws are completely tax free if you are over the age of 59 ? and have had the account for 5 years. With Roth IRA’s, unlike a tradition IRA or a 401k plan, there are no required minimum distributions. Direct contributions can be withdrawn at any time as well. Roth IRA’s can be set up on top of already existing retirement plans; as well the assets can be passed onto beneficiaries after death, therefore leaving an inheritance for your family. We are sure that we have supplied you with a detailed overview in helping you to be financially secure now and in the future. In taking the advice that we have given you with these many different investment ideas, you will find yourself more than content financially. We can guarantee that down the road, you will not have to worry about your financial status. Although in actuality, it is important to remember that building wealth takes time. However, the acquisition of your financial contentment will be well worth your time. We hope, here at L&N Financial Planning, that providing you with this letter will give you the financial peace of mind that you and your family deserve.

Information technology Essay

The number one benefit of information technology is that empowers people to do whatever they want to do. It lets people to be creative. It lets people be productive. It lets people learn things they didn’t think they could learn before, and so in a sense it is all about potential. Today Domenic and I are going to talk to you and inform you how information and technology empowers people. There are lots of places where i. t empowerment takes place. There is the workplace, your home, the hospital, and the classroom. Empowering the frontline employees cannot work in vacuum. Empowerment of employees, while very important, requires an important requirements and conditions. Information and information technology are predicted to act as the most important requirements and qualities for empowering 21st century workforce. Advances incommunication and information technology have created new opportunities for organizations to build and manage empowerment process where members collaborate utilizing technology across space and time to accomplish important organizational tasks. One of the ways that Information Technology empowers people in their own home is through communication. Now i. t is empowering people a lot through communication because communication is a big part of our lives. Communication through i. t takes place on many devices such as, mobile phones, computers, iPods, Television and many more devices. Having i. t which enables you to do these amazing things is incredibly empowering towards us. This is because communication is something everybody uses in their everyday lives and without having i. to communicate to others throughout our world; it would make it a lot harder for us to function with everyday life. Information technology has a major impact on online shopping because online shopping takes place upon hundreds of millions in our world and every second of the day items are being purchased and sold through online shopping. This is majorly empowering us to go online shopping because it makes it a lot easier for us because we can purchase our stuff from home which means it takes a lot less time and effort to go online shopping and buy the certain items which you need with just a click of a button. Because online shopping is a positive thing throughout our lives, this shows that information technology is empowering us to go online shopping because of how simple and helpful it is throughout our lives. One of the ways that Information Technology empowers people in their own home is through communication. Now i. t is empowering people a lot through communication because communication is a big part of our lives. Communication through i. t takes place on many devices such as, mobile phones, computers, iPods, Television and many more devices. Having i. t which enables you to do these amazing things is incredibly empowering towards us. This is because communication is something everybody uses in their everyday lives and without having i. t to communicate to others throughout our world; it would make it a lot harder for us to function with everyday life. Information technology has a major impact on online shopping because online shopping takes place upon hundreds of millions in our world and every second of the day items are being purchased and sold through online shopping. This is majorly empowering us to go online shopping because it makes it a lot easier for us because we can purchase our stuff from home which means it takes a lot less time and effort to go online shopping and buy the certain items which you need with just a click of a button. Because online shopping is a positive thing throughout our lives, this shows that information technology is empowering us to go online shopping because of how simple and helpful it is throughout our lives. In the class room i. gives students and also techers the ability to learn many incredible things behind a computer, example us, we learn how to understand and operate computers in this class and to a point that is empowering us. Advances in technology have expanded the classroom walls well beyond school grounds and into the Internet. Allowing students access to more than pen, paper and textbooks empowers different types of learners. Teachers can differentiate between their students, providing resources that m eet their needs. These resources can vary from hardware, like tablet computers, to Internet-based solutions, like teacher websites. Middle school students can engage with content and classmates through technology, giving them more ownership of their learning. Using i. t in a meaningful way is now the golden key to success for youth. The â€Å"e† of â€Å"electronic† that we put in front of so many words today also denotes other vital â€Å"e† words, such as education, employment and entertainment. It is therefore crucial to empower youth through I.  T, especially in the developing world. There are sick and disabled people all over the world and hospitals are the main place where these patients are treated hospitals need advanced information and technology to help cure people and save lives there are numerous machines that lots of people just can’t live without like the the DynaVox EyeMax system which gives individuals with paralysis, cerebral palsy and stroke victims the ability to participate in spoken communication using only their eyes. Using an eye tracking system, users can interact with an on-screen keyboard, allowing them to enter words and phrases, which are then translated into spoken text via the device’s text-to-speech mechanism. That is incredible, it empowers patients to allow them to communicate with just their eyes. Now some of these are people who wouldn’t be able to so much as open their mouths or raise a hand. Empowering the blind; I think this is a very important thing to do. These are people who can’t see, so how do they live ordinary lives? They Don’t. i. t empowers the Blind with new tech that allows them to communicate and interact easier with society. Example; A scientist Dennis Hong is developing a car that can actually be driven by the blind. The aim is to integrate several computer systems, sensors and cameras to observe the environment around the vehicle and provide alternate forms of sensory input, including sound and vibration. This may include seat vibrations of various strengths and locations, pulsing vibration signals in gloves worn by the driver. That right there is very empowering. To conclude this argument I would like to tell you,its just so simple, Information and technology has empower people in ways beyond describing and hopefully ramone and I gaiven you a good understanding on how such different people are empowered through i. t. With our research we have shared with you today we hope you understand and agree with us that information empowers people.

Shanty Towns essays

Shanty Towns essays Shanty towns are a huge problem all around the world. The persistent poverty, rapid industrialisation and the burden of urban shanty towns general massive social and economic impact. The many problems include - Prostitution, Social Injustice, Death by preventable diseases, Infant mortality and Child labour. One of the worst examples is Sao Paulo in Brazil. Migrants who move in every year amount to about half a million people who live in the poverty stricken areas and temporary accommodation. Approximately 40% of Brazilians live in these sort of areas and most have a lack of or a limited supply of water and other basic essentials. Houses are made of any available materials some have two rooms, one for living, one sleeping. There would be about six children and no running water, sewage pipes, gas, electricity and others. Disease is also a huge problem, 15-18 million children are effected by high levels of lead in their blood and AIDS is a huge killer in shanty town areas. Six hundred million urban residents in third world countries many India and Africa live in dwellings "of such poor quality and with such inadequate provisions of water, sanitation and drainage that their lives and health are under continuous threat." The graph below shows levels of pollution in Brazil and shows that these levels are above normal and safe levels. Another of the problems is unemployment. Most are self employed and use cheap or recycled materials. Many are unskilled and are no use to society as there are no educational services for the shanty town dwellers. Women and children work as street peddlers or to work in services e.g. shoe cleaners, selling clothes. Much of the work is labour intensive with use of few tools for those who can't afford them. Many people have access to piped water however it is not uncommon for up to 45 families to share one tap or well. The Brazilian government estimates that app ...