Psychology and Career Choice - 765 Words

Period 2 December 4, 2013 Pre-Calc Lam Career Choice: Psychology My future career choice is in psychology. I want to The definition of psychology is basically the study of human (and sometimes animal) behavior. The word itself means the science of the soul. The first syllable, psyche means soul, and the second part contains the root of the word logic. Essay on My Interest in the Field of Psychology I have always wondered about human behavior. Why does this person scream when he is angry? Why does that person cry? Whenever I see someone who looks confused or discouraged, I sometimes wonder what the disturbance is and if there is anything I could do that would inspire them. I think this is why I want to be a†¦show more content†¦Most of my friends know that if they really need someone to talk to, my door is always open, and I will always listen. I think psychology would be a good career for me because I enjoy the kind of work that they do, and I think I could be good at it if I really set my heart and my mind to it. My strongest quality is that I am a people person. I usually know when to say what, depending on the person and the mood they are in. My goal with this career paper is to learn more about what a psychologist does and decide if it is the right career choice for me. The definition of psychology is basically the study of human (and sometimes animal) behavior. The word itself means the science of the soul. The first syllable, psyche means soul, and the second part contains the root of the word logic. (Encyclopedia of Careers and Vocational Guidance 244) What all psychologists do is teach people the meaning of things, or they give the effect, a cause. They hold meetings to counsel other people. There is a lot of research to get, like finding out about the clients background. They also conduct tests all to better understand people. Psychologists are there to give advice, to listen, and to work with their clients to find explanations to their problems. Most good psychologists have a lot of curiosity. Some of that wonder is trying to figure out how things work. Figuring out the cause of a reaction that someone is having, or why people have emotions and why someShow MoreRelatedCareer And Interest Self Assessment Results952 Words   |  4 PagesI. Career and Interest Self-assessment Results This self-assessment test was something that narrowed down possible interest and helped the participants open their mind to new careers. In-fact when I finished my test I was able to view the different careers that feel in my interest category. Taking a survey and calculating the different likes each field had accumulated determined my test outcome. After gathering the likes that had accumulated I was able to determine which inventory category was strongestRead MoreProfessional Philosophy : Sports Psychology778 Words   |  4 PagesA potential career that I have in mind is becoming a Sport Psychologist. The first scholarly article I found is titled â€Å"NCAA Athletic Administrators’ Preferred Characteristics for Sport Psychology Positions: A Consumer Market Analysis†. The study conducted in this article looks into the market for Sport Psychologist in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It compares different Athletic administrator’s preferences for sport psychology positions based on time, commitment, affiliationRead MoreCareer Research Paper: Clinical Psychology894 Words   |  4 PagesCareer Research Paper: Clinical Psychology Clinical psychology is just one of the many subfields that psychology has to offer. Those who choose to enter clinical psychology aim to help people with addiction, emotional stress, mental illness, or any other type of mental problems. Knowing what a clinical psychologist does in their practice is important in understanding their profession. A clinical psychologists education is the most prominent part of their career; without it, they cannot be consideredRead MorePsychology or Accounting?775 Words   |  4 PagesPsychology or Accounting Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions a person has to make in their life. It is so important because that is what people will have to do to support their selves throughout life. For the past ten years psychology and accounting were two of the top ten potential career choices. According to the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics up to 70,000 bachelors degrees in psychology were awarded, and up to 30,000 in accountingRead MoreCareer And Interest Self Assessment Results935 Words   |  4 PagesSelf Assessment I. Career and Interest Self-assessment Results This self-assessment test was something that narrowed down possible interest and helped the participants open their mind to new careers. In-fact when I finished my test I was able to view the different careers that feel in my interest category. Taking a survey and calculating the different likes each field had accumulated determined my test outcome. After gathering the likes that had accumulated I was able to determine which inventoryRead MoreIs Winning Everything? : Is It All About The Enjoyment Of The Game That Really Matters?1618 Words   |  7 Pagesshould come to mind when evaluating the Sports Psychologist career is if you have interest in sports and physical activity. But of course, you must earn a degree like any other career. The entry level position with a bachelor’s degree is not likely to happen, because most positions require a Master’s or Doctoral degree in clinical counseling or Sports Psychology. There is two different ways to becoming a sports psycho logist. You have the choice of obtaining a degree in a department of training in physicalRead MoreReporting Studying senior social science subjects was the most influential factor which provided a1600 Words   |  7 PagesEspecially, getting an A+ for a psychology report assignment and genuinely enjoying the process have given me a sense of competence in performing similar tasks such as planning and conducting experiments, analysing results, and evaluating research processes. After additional research, I became aware of various viable career paths associated with psychology, and this had allowed me to establish specific goals (e.g., completing an undergraduate and master’s degree in psychology and becoming a registeredRead MoreThe Importance Of Becoming A Forensic Psychologist1218 Words   |  5 Pagestrying to become better equipped, whether it be voluntary or an instinct. Picking a career is just one example of an aspect in life that is heavily dependent on choices throughout life. Decisions about what courses to take, what college to attend, what major to pick, where to live af ter graduation, all depend on the career a person is pursuing. For someone who desires to enter the department of forensic psychology, certain steps must be taken. It is essential that one is properly informed and ableRead MorePSY 305 Week 1 Exploring Psychology Careers Essay1141 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿ Exploring Psychology Careers Sara M. Covey PSY 305 February 6, 2015 Dr. Sheila Rapa Exploring Psychology Careers Everyone who decides to enroll in college must, at some point, think about what area they want to major in. There are many things that students consider when choosing a major. Some make their decision based on what they think can make them the most money once they begin their lives in the work force. However, many students believe that if you choose a major that interestsRead MoreSchool Psychology as a Career1579 Words   |  7 PagesSchool Psychology Career paper Psychology 250 My subject of attention is school psychology and career choice is school psychology. I have researched this topic and found lots of valuable information to discuss. I will cover all aspects of this career including a definition of what it involves on a day to day basis, why I have chosen this career as my subject of interest, common personality characteristics and values that go along well with this job. I will also talk about the minimum requirements

The Declaration Of Independence And The Us Constitution

No documents have had a greater influence on the citizens of our country than the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution. The Declaration of Independence marked the birth of our republic and set forth our â€Å"unalienable rights† to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Later, the Constitution outlined our style of government and defined the rights that are protected from intrusion by government. These documents have been a beacon to all men and women who value freedom. They are just as meaningful now as when they were written. As the American statesman Henry Clay said, â€Å"The Constitution of the United States was not made merely for the generation that then existed but for posterity – unlimited, undefined, endless, perpetual posterity.† The Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution were written with the intent that they could be easily read and understood by ordinary citizens. The difficulty comes with the changes in the English language that have occurred since they were written, making both documents more difficult to decipher. Freedom Defined addresses this problem by providing instant access to the definitions of words and phrases used in these documents. The definitions are based on dictionaries used during the early years of the United States, the records of the Constitutional Convention, and the writings of the Founding Fathers. Benjamin Franklin, one of the few men to sign both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of theShow MoreRelatedInfluence Of The Declaration Of Independence711 Words   |  3 PagesThe Influence of the Declaration of Independence The Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, influenced the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights which was later written by James Madison in 1787. The purpose of the Declaration of Independence was to declare independence from England and outline what rights they wanted and why they should have them because their voices and opinions were not being heard. The goal for the US Constitution was to ensure that the new governmentRead MoreInfluence Of The Magna Carta789 Words   |  4 Pagesa significant role in influencing the founding of the United States. The Magna Carta inspired our Founding Fathers to draft our Constitution centered around these same ideas seen here. The Magna Carta influenced many ideas of English justice and law. These same ideas in the Magna Carta influenced the Amendments to our US Constitution. The amendments to the US Constitution incorporated the same protections found in the Bill of Rights and the Magna Carta. One of these protectio ns are seen in ClauseRead MoreThe Declaration Of Independence By Thomas Jefferson1113 Words   |  5 PagesThe United States Constitution, Declaration of Independence share many similarities and probably the same amount of differences. The Unites States Constitution was written on 17 September 1787 and the Declaration of Independence was written on 4 July 1776, the dates hold no significance at that time, but the Declaration was written first. This shows that out of the three the Declaration of Independence was written first, and with that being said was most important. Usually documents written and signedRead MoreComparing The Declaration Of Independence926 Words   |  4 Pages 2 The US Constitution, The Declaration of Independence as well as the Letter to the Danbury Baptist are not just historical documents, but are some of if not the most important documents of the history of our nation. Although, similar in many facets the intentions and the goal pursued by each highlight their individuality. The fact that the Declaration of Independence was the first to be implemented and signed is of significant importanceRead MoreComparison Paper GOVT200679 Words   |  3 PagesS. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are two of the oldest documents in America and two of the most popular. These documents help to shape America and gave us freedom from the British government. The two documents contains very important information about our independence but they are different in many ways. In this paper I will compare the two documents and incorporate an outlook from the Christian biblical worldview. The U.S Constitution and the Declaration of Independence areRead MoreComparison Of The American Constitution And The Declaration Of Independence713 Words   |  3 PagesThe Declaration of Independence was one of the most important document ever written in our US history. This document defined the colonies freedom from Britain. This document defined that the colonists became its own nation, freeing themselves from Britain. The Declaration of Independence was written with the ideology that everyone will live equally and free. Soon after the Declaration of Independence was written, the Constitution was written. the Constitution was written so that there were rulesRead MoreThe Declaration Of Independence And Independence969 Words   |  4 PagesThe US Constitution, The Declaration of Independence as well as the Letter to the Danbury Baptist are not just historical documents, but some of if not the most important documents of the history of our nation. Although, similar in many facets the intentions and the goal pursued by each highlight their individuality. The fact that the Declaration of Independence was the first to be implemented and signed is of significant importance as it set the pace and put in motion the proceeding documents thatRead MoreU.s. Constitution And The Declaration Of Independence Essay1115 Words   |  5 PagesThe U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are two very important documents in the founding of our nation. This essay compares how these two documents are linked together, but also how they are clearly different. Though both documents were created near the same time, the Declaration of Independence was actually written first. It was written by Thomas Jefferson and was adopted by congress on July 4, 1776, what we know today as Independence Day. The U.S constitution though, was not adoptedRead MoreThe Declaration Of Independence And Federalist Papers Essay1640 Words   |  7 Pagestopics are discussed, but if it werenâ₠¬â„¢t for the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and Federalist papers. How far would the world get on a day to day bases? The constitution is a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is acknowledged to be governed (Oxford Dictionaries). The Constitution was written the same place the Declaration of Independence was signed. The constitution was written during the Philadelphia Convention,Read MoreComparing The Declaration Of Independence877 Words   |  4 PagesComparison Paper In comparing the Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to the Danbury Baptists, The Declaration of Independence, and U.S. Constitution, it is evident that the basis of all three documents is the idea that all human beings possess God given fundamental rights and that government is created to protect those rights. The Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, is the first of the three documents penned. This is of great importance because it defined the rights of liberty

Balancing Control in Management Free Essays

In any kind of organization, management control and management styles are core representatives of the way the organization works and how the people within the organization interact. To have a positive and healthy organizational environment, a suitable and balanced management style is very important. An organization has many plans and tasks that it takes care of either on a day to day business or time specific projects. We will write a custom essay sample on Balancing Control in Management or any similar topic only for you Order Now The kind of management control over these projects and the involvement of the manager along with the employees also plays a crucial part in how successful these tasks and projects are. Management in a business environment comprises a combination of the different theories of management styles and the actual implementation or the practice. it is extremely important of a task for an organization to find the right kind of business management style which would be suitable to the kind of environment and personality your organization or business has and should be given a lot of time and a lot should be invested in it. This is important because knowing your weaknesses and working on them to make them your strong points and also highlighting the strong points of your personality can help the organization grow and enable smooth process of communication with the employees and other people of concern. (Daud, 2008) If you consider the management style that exercises a lot of control and power over the employees and where the management has a lot of emphasis on what is being done on projects, it is basically known as an autocratic style of leadership. In this style the manager wants to take care of everything by enforcing a lot of power and sometimes misusing his or her power. Here more power and trust is given in the hands of the boss or the manager rather than the employees themselves. Rather than making the employees feel a part of the decision or the process, the management tends to take care of all the important decisions and creates a very cold and unconcerned environment for the employees to work in. The problems that arise in this kind of leadership are that there is no employee manager relationship. People are not motivated to work because they feel like they are working under a dictatorship and they have no say in what the organization does. There is no employee loyalty or sense of belonging. This kind of style does manage to get the work done but at the expense of the morale of the employees. Employees in these kinds of culture are generally dissatisfied and there is a high employee turnover which refers to the amount of employees that leave the organization. (Beam, 2008) When we talk about the management style that has an open environment and complete freedom is given to the employees to make their own decisions and to build a casual and open environment where there are no rules or there is no one to answer to, you are basically describing a democratic style of management. Here the management has very little influence over what the employees are doing and there is no form of formal control or guidance over the employees. The employees are given maximum freedom of input in projects and plans of the organization. Although the final decision is still taken by the management in this style of control, the employees are efficiently involved in the process before these decisions are made. The problem with this kind of management is that it completely ignores one of the core aspects of management that is control. The lack of control can have serious consequences on the kind of output the employees produce. With some kind of control, the management is able to keep the employees on their toes and is able to produce the outcome on time. In this kind of democratic leadership, the environment is such that employees are happy to come and there is a sort of comfort and the employees feel like they are a part of the organization, however, the relaxed environment can be misused by the employees to the extent that their work holds less importance than building and maintaining relationships. (Daud, 2008) Now we realize how important it is to create a balance between these two very diverse styles of management and management control. so one of these alternatives is known as â€Å"the laissez fair management style†. This style is one approach that aims to strike a balance between the two different approaches by using the advantages and avoiding the disadvantages of both the democratic and autocratic styles of leadership. This is a more accommodating style of management, This approach gives a balanced amount of power to the employees by allowing them to give their input in the decision making process while giving the management the control over making the decisions on both the project and how the employees are performing over projects and plans. Here the employees is not shunned and is given a fair chance to participate but also is under the control of the management so that he or she is answerable for anything that they are doing or any task that they have been assigned to do so to the upper management. This way the balanced environment of work and healthy employee and management relationship is also maintained. References Beam, J. (2008). What is Employee turnover, Retrieved on September 3, 2008 from http://www. wisegeek. com/what-is-employee-turnover. htm Daud, Naz (2008), Different Management Styles, Retrieved on September 3, 2008 from http://www. articlesbase. com/management-articles/different-business-management-styles-432524. html Windmueller, J. (1996). Conflict analysis and resolution bookshelf, Retrieved on September 3, 2008 from http://www. spcomm. uiuc. edu/projects/vta/vta021. 401 How to cite Balancing Control in Management, Essays

Deviancy Defined Essay Example For Students

Deviancy Defined Essay DEVIANCY DEFINED â€Å"Men are born soft and supple; dead, they are stiff and hard. Plats are born tender and pliant; dead, they are brittle and dry. Thus whoever is stiff and inflexible is a disciple of death. Whoever is soft and yielding is a disciple of life. The hard and stiff will be broken. The soft and supple will prevail. † TAO TE CHING Moynihan measures the increased level of deviance through three major categories that he feels are responsible for the change in defining deviance. Altruistic (deinstitutionalization), opportunistic (alternative family structures), and normalizing (growing acceptance of crime) are Moynihans examples of how American society has increased beyond the levels the community can ‘afford to recognize. Andrew Karmen feels as though Moynihans expression holds some truth, but that Defining Deviance Down ignores and overlooks many examples that do not fit into his theory. Karmen does not completely disagree with Moynihans analysis, but adds another perspective that he feels is essential while addressing the topic of American behavior. Karmen measures the decreased level of deviance through numerous examples of behaviors that used to be disregarded, but are now reason for punishment. Krauthammer seems to agree with Moynihan to the degree that defining deviancy down has taken place over the past 30 years or so. However Krauthammer, is also able to recognize that defining deviancy up has taken place. As is noted in the following excerpt from Krauthammer: â€Å" As part of the vast social project of moral leveling, it is not enough for the deviant to be normalized. The normal must be found to be deviant. Therefore, while for the criminals and the crazies deviancy has been defined down (the bar defining normality has been lowered), for the ordinary bourgeois deviancy has been defined up (the bar defining normality has been raised). Large areas of ordinary behavior hitherto considered benign have had their threshold radically redefined up, so that once innocent behavior now stands condemned as deviant. † As such it would seem that to some degree that Krauthammer is also in agreement with Karmen. In so much as it relates to behaviors that used to be disregarded, but are now labeled as being deviant behavior. Where Krauthammer and Karmen differ is that Krauthammer seems to believe that the middle class family is being labeled unjustly as the production house of deviant behavior . In closing it is my opinion that the dispute if indeed there is one can be easily settled if all parties would agree to disagree and focus on those aspects that they share in common. Joining forces to generate solutions that would educate people not so much about the problem itself but about preventive measures that would help stem the spread of deviant behavior in so much as that is possible.

Shaykh Abd al

Free Essays on Titanic

Abstract No one ever dreamed that her first voyage would also be her last. She had been nicknamed â€Å"The Unsinkable Ship.† On the night of April 14, 1912, shortly after 11:30 p.m., the passenger liner R.M.S. Titanic struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic approximately 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland (Ballard, 20). Within hours, the largest ship the world had ever seen would plunge to the bottom of the ocean with over 1,500 lives still on board. The story of the Titanic began before anyone had even thought about building the great ship. In 1898, fourteen years before the Titanic sank an American writer named Morgan Robertson wrote a book called The Wreck of the Titan. In his story, the Titan, a passenger ship labeled â€Å"unsinkable,† sails from England to New York. With many rich and famous passengers onboard, the Titan hits an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sinks. Because there are not enough lifeboats on board, many lives are lost (Ballard, 10). In reality, Thomas Henry Ismay purchased the White Star Line Company in the mid 1800’s. At the time of their debut, large beautiful ships were popular with many rich travelers. Upon his death in 1898, his son J. Bruce Ismay (Appendix A: Portraits) took over as chairman of the White Star Line. In July 1907, Bruce Ismay and Lord Pirrie, chairman of Harland & Wolff’s shipbuilders, discussed plans to design three of the world’s most famous ships ever, the Olympic, the Titanic, and the Brittanic. Their goal was to give the White Star Line a competitive edge in the Atlantic passenger trade with several gigantic ships whose accommodations would be the last word in comfort and elegance. On May 31, 1911, the hull of the Titanic launched at the Harland & Wolff shipyards in Belfast, Ireland, before a cheering crowd of 100,000 people. To slide her into the water they used twenty-two tons of soap, grease, and train oil. She reached a speed of twelve knots befor... Free Essays on Titanic Free Essays on Titanic Abstract No one ever dreamed that her first voyage would also be her last. She had been nicknamed â€Å"The Unsinkable Ship.† On the night of April 14, 1912, shortly after 11:30 p.m., the passenger liner R.M.S. Titanic struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic approximately 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland (Ballard, 20). Within hours, the largest ship the world had ever seen would plunge to the bottom of the ocean with over 1,500 lives still on board. The story of the Titanic began before anyone had even thought about building the great ship. In 1898, fourteen years before the Titanic sank an American writer named Morgan Robertson wrote a book called The Wreck of the Titan. In his story, the Titan, a passenger ship labeled â€Å"unsinkable,† sails from England to New York. With many rich and famous passengers onboard, the Titan hits an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sinks. Because there are not enough lifeboats on board, many lives are lost (Ballard, 10). In reality, Thomas Henry Ismay purchased the White Star Line Company in the mid 1800’s. At the time of their debut, large beautiful ships were popular with many rich travelers. Upon his death in 1898, his son J. Bruce Ismay (Appendix A: Portraits) took over as chairman of the White Star Line. In July 1907, Bruce Ismay and Lord Pirrie, chairman of Harland & Wolff’s shipbuilders, discussed plans to design three of the world’s most famous ships ever, the Olympic, the Titanic, and the Brittanic. Their goal was to give the White Star Line a competitive edge in the Atlantic passenger trade with several gigantic ships whose accommodations would be the last word in comfort and elegance. On May 31, 1911, the hull of the Titanic launched at the Harland & Wolff shipyards in Belfast, Ireland, before a cheering crowd of 100,000 people. To slide her into the water they used twenty-two tons of soap, grease, and train oil. She reached a speed of twelve knots befor...

HOW TO IDENTIFY CUSTOMERS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

HOW TO IDENTIFY CUSTOMERS - Essay Example Customers are central to the operations of any business. Identifying, targeting, and satisfying customers are the main principles behind business operations. This makes it important for any business to have an elaborate record that clearly indicates the customers of such a company at different levels depending on activity, geographical location, and persistence, volume of goods purchased, among other different criteria that may be used to group, rank, and classify customers. This would make it easy for a business to identify their potential customers and treat them according to their loyalty to the business. Below is a design structure that can be used in identifying and classifying customers in any business for better decision making as outlined by Peppers & Rogers (2011). Define The definition stage will involve the identity of the customers. In this stage the customers’ full names, phone numbers, emails, physical location, and distance from the business have to be recorded. Chverton (2002) asserts the importance of setting objectives in such key account management. The objective in the dry-cleaning business is to critically define the identity of the customer, which would help in understanding the geographic location of the main customers, and facilitate easy contact with such customers when need be.This stage involves the method to be used in collecting the customer details. Customer data will be collected from receipt books issued from the business, customer’s business cards, websites, and forms issued to all customers to fill their details after any transaction, emails, and calling the customer over the phone to inquire about such details. Once all the data about each and every customer is collected, the data is entered alongside the custom er details, with each customer having being entered into the database with provisions for entering all the above data. Customer records in the dry-cleaning business will involve a carefully designed database that will show all the customer details once their names are keyed in. Link After all the details regarding the customers’ identity are exhausted, the details have to be linked to respective departments within the business to prevent multiple records of the same customers. Therefore, the dry-cleaning database defined above has to link the following departments; the manager, record keeping, the reception, cleaning, and home delivery departments. Linking the above departments will enable a customer to be identified immediately they get in touch with any of the departments, and the information updated across all departments. Therefore, if a customer gives any instructions to the receptionist section over the phone, all the above departments have to be aware of such instructi ons. Such instructions will be reflected across all departments, which amounts a SMART way in which the activities of each customer can be determined (Cherverton, 2002). Integrate All the above customers’ information has to be integrated and linked to their respective interactions and transactions. In the dry-cleaning business, all the clothes brought in have to be accurately identified through a specific number linked to the customer details entered above. In addition, when a customer brings in their clothes, keying in the name of the customer has to bring out all their details, which have to be updated automatically upon entering the new clothes brought in. This means the entire information system has to link all the departments in the business, with any transaction or interactions being updated automatically from the reception stage where clothes are received for cleaning with the update reflecting in the manager’s office and any other relevant office instantly. Int egrating would mean customers’ activities are reflected in the entire enterprise through the information system in use. Recognize. In the dry-cleaning business, a customer’s identity has to be uniform across all sections. In

Romeo and Juliet Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Romeo and Juliet - Assignment Example The ceremony started with melodious music being played. Paris was with his best man on the altar waiting for his bride to arrive. He was blushing with joy and very happy which showed on his face. There was a silence that was music in itself as the bride, Juliet, entered. She walked down the aisle smiling but clearly showed signs of nervousness. All eyes were on the beautiful bride but there was something missing in her. Even though she was very beautiful, the glow of a happy bride seemed to be missing. Paris broke into a smile as Juliet stepped on the altar to join him. Clearly he was on cloud nine, and the nervousness of Juliet vanished as she stepped on the Altar. They made their vows in front of the guests and she they pronounced husband and wife by Friar Laurence soon after. They had their first kiss as a couple. They showed at the balcony where citizens of Verona were waiting to get a glimpse of the couple. The couple had their first kiss in public, then waived to the crowds. They walked hand in hand into the chapel again. Lord Capulet had held a dinner party attended by everyone who is anyone in Verona. The dinner was followed by dance where Paris and Juliet had their first dance as a couple. The day in great style as it had

Are pro athetes paid too much Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Are pro athetes paid too much - Essay Example It shall discuss this issue using evaluations published by experts on the topic; a thorough assessment of professional athletes’ salaries shall be made based on accepted standards in the field of economics and sports. Professional athletes are reportedly paid millions of dollars annually. Salaries of professional athletes from the NBA, MLB, NHL, and the NFL seem to increase per year and for each athlete. The latest figures from the 2007-2008 sports season reveal that Alex Rodriguez was paid $28 million; Jason Giambi, $24 million; Shaquille O’Neal, $21 million; Kevin Garnett, $23.8 million; Julius Peppers, $14.1 million; Carson Palmer, $13.5 million; Scott Gomez, $10 million; and Daniel Briere, $10 million (Gilmartin â€Å"Articles†). Based on 2002 statistics, basketball players have an annual salary of $2.2 million, with 220,000 as minimum starting salary; baseball players register an annual salary of $1.37 million with $109,000 as minimum starting salary; hockey players have an annual salary of $892,000 and 125,000 as minimum starting salary; and finally football players register an annual salary of $795,000 and 131,000 starting salary (Strategic Reading, p. 26). The figures above seem to be lopsided when they are compared or set side by side with annual salaries of teachers, police officers, fire fighters, or even doctors. Many critics weigh in on this issue as they evaluate the factors which contribute to such high salaries and whether or not such salaries are deserved. An article which dates back as far back as in the 1990s attempted to evaluate the issue by weighing in both sides of the argument. On one hand, it contends that professional athletes are worth their high salaries because sports consumerism drives or dictates the terms of this market. This article cites Larry Lundy, a sports marketing director at Walt Disney who contends that there is only a limited number of superstar

Working Capital Affect on Performance of Retail Industry

Working Capital Affect on Performance of Retail Industry 1.1 Introduction: The main aim of this dissertation is to study how working capital management affects the performance of retail industry. This dissertation concentrates on one of the important areas of finance the working capital management. Working capital management is the management of both the current assets and current liabilities. Management of working capital is considered as an important function for any kind of organization. Without proper management of working capital the company cant perform their day to day operations smoothly. So each organization in the industry performs several activities to manage their working capital as efficiently as possible in order to compete from each other. Companies in retail industry depends heavily on working capital for their daily operating activities and therefore it is essential for managing their working capital in order to gain profitability and also to avoid solvency. Improper management of working capital can also lead to bankrupt and there are also some retail companies in the past to explain this fact is true. The main problem and issue in working capital management it is to determine the optimum level to be maintained in the current assets and current liabilities and also to determine whether the firm should invest heavily in current assets or in fixed assets. These issues can seriously affect the profitability and liquidity of the organization and it should be carefully considered in order to compete in the industry. It is very necessary for the organization to know the level of funds to be invested in each component of the current assets such as cash, inventory, accounts receivable and marketable securities. Funds invested in current assets are generally turned back into cash in the end of the working capital cycle which is normally within one year. Therefore investing high or low in current assets affects the profitability and liquidity of the firm and it should be maintained in such a way which satisfies the exact needs of the business. It is also necessary to know how to investment these currents assets which are either by short term financing or by long term financing. For these decisions to be made efficient working capital management is essential. It has been discussed in many journals that working capital management has a direct relationship with the profitability and liquidity of the organization. Therefore managing the working capital components is very critical to maintain the firm profitability and liquidity. For example in the case of cash which the company holds if it holds more it is going to lose the profit which can be earned by investing the excess cash in current assets and if the company has low level of cash it is going to miss the business opportunities when they arrive. In the case of inventory investing more in inventory can reduce the profit if the company cant able to sell the goods quickly and also investing less in inventory can lead to loss of sales. Accounts receivable and account payable also has a huge impact on the profitability of the firm. The company credit policies have a great impact on the volume of good sold. If the firm grants a longer credit period for the customers it is going to encourage the sales which thereby increase the profit. On the other hand companys which delays the payments to their suppliers can use that cash for in some other asset and could earn from that investment. But delaying the payment should not exceed the granted period given by the suppliers otherwise the firm may lose the discounts provided by the supplier for early payments. The main objectives of this study is to, To measure the working capital management performed in retail companies and then analysing the performance of retail companies. To determine the working capital cycle for the retail company. To determine what kind of working capital policy is practiced in retail industry. To determine whether the working capital management practices really affects the profitability of the firm. The first chapter of this dissertation is the introduction which is a short description explaining the basic idea behind this research. It will give the problems and issues associated with the research topic and it also explains the aims and objectives accomplished by this research. The second chapter is the literature review which discussed the theoretical concepts in working capital management. This chapter explains the importance of working capital management, the working capital cycle and the different working capital approaches followed in different industries. It also explains the management of each of the working capital components such as cash, inventories, accounts receivable and marketable securities in detail and the objectives satisfied by managing these working capital components. In the end of this chapter the various sources which finance the working capital are discussed. The third chapter is the research methodology which explains the research methodology adopted for this dissertation. It explains what kind of research method followed in this dissertation and also shows the different data collection methods and tools used to complete the dissertation. The fourth chapter is the findings and analysis. In this chapter the performance of the retail industries is analysed and then the findings are discussed. The different analyses performed in this chapter are ratio analysis, correlation analysis and regression analysis. By ratio analysis the performance of the retail companies are analysed and then by correlation and regression analysis it is analysed to see whether the inventory holding days, accounts receivable days, accounts payable days and cash conversion cycle affects the return on capital employed. Finally the last chapter concludes and gives recommendation based on the results analysed. 1.0 Working Capital: Working capital is the capital which satisfies the short term financial requirements of any business enterprise. It is capital which is engaged in the operations of the business for not more than one year. Every organization whether it is profit oriented or not needs working capital for the day to day operations of the business. Managers when making investment decisions not only plans for the long term such as buying new building or machine but also considers the need to have additional current assets in the short term for any expansion of activity that the organization is planning to do. For example if the organization is planning to increase the level of production the organization needs to hold a greater level of raw materials similarly if the organization increases the sales there will be an increase in level of debtors. All these investment decisions can bring the organization to level of risk. So it is very necessary for an organization to manage this working capital effectivel y to avoid the company fall into risk (Mclaney 2006). 1.1 Importance of Working Capital Management: The management of working capital is very important for several reasons. According to Padachi (2006), working capital management is very important for the financial health of the business of any size. He also suggested that the funds invested in the working capital are high in proportion to the total assets employed. Therefore it should be managed in effective and efficient way. Also working capital management directly affects the liquidity and profitability of the firm. Therefore managing the working capital should be done in such a way that it should create a balance between the liquidity and profitability (Falope, I and Ajilote, T 2009). The main advantage of working capital management is the flexibility of it. That is it has the ability to change with the rise and fall in seasonal demands of the product or service, and with the rise and fall in economic and market conditions (Mathur, B 2003). Largay, A and Stickney, P (1980) studied the bankruptcy case of a large retail store in the year 1980. From their study they found that the bankruptcy should have occurred because of the poor cash flow from their operation during the last few years of their bankruptcy. So managing the working capital is very necessary for the survival of the business 1.2 Components of Working Capital: Working capital which is also called as current capital or circulating capital is the capital that the managers put it to work for the day to day operations of the organization. There are two important concepts in the working capital management that is the gross working capital and the net working capital. Gross working capital is the capital that includes only the current assets used in the day to day operations of the organization and net working capital is the capital which includes the current assets less the current liabilities. The components which comprise the current assets are the following, (Brigham, F and Houston. F 2007). Cash Marketable Securities Inventories Accounts Receivables These currents assets are financed using the following sources such as, Accruals Accounts Payable Short term bank loans Commercial paper etc. The degree to which an organization invests in current assets depends on several factors such as the type of business and products the organization do. For example retail companies mostly invest a lot of funds in their current assets such as inventory and they invest less in long term assets such as buying plant and equipment. But in the case of some manufacturing companies more is invested in long term assets such as machines and equipment as they are very necessary for the organization. The length of operating cycle also is an important factor. The longer the operating cycle the more is invested in the current assets. The level of uncertainty in the business also is one of the important factors. So depending upon the industry practices the organization invests more in current assets or in long term assets (Fabozzi, J 2003). . 2.0 Working capital cycle: Working capital cycle is the time taken for the capital invested by the organization turning back into cash. Generally the working capital cycle for a manufacturing business starts when the organization buys the raw materials on credit followed by working on these raw materials to produce the final goods, and selling of the finished goods. During this cycle the organization also needs to pay the creditors. As the organization sells the final product on credit, the debtors are increased and when the customers started to pay it will increase the amount of cash in the business (Myddelton, D 2000). Retailers Supplier Inventory Supplier Merchandise Supplier Merchandise Supplier Merchandise Supplier Merchandise Customers Payment Payment Payment Payment Figure1: Working capital cycle of a Retail Business (Reynolds, Cuthbertson and Bell 2004) The above figure shows the general working capital cycle of a retail business and it explains how the operating process is performed in a retail business. The first stage in the operating process is where the suppliers provide the merchandise to the retailers. Large retail companies manufacture their own products under their brand name. After all the merchandise is received from the suppliers the retailers makes the store ready, and other arrangements for the received products to be sold. The products which are available to be sold become the inventory. In the next stage the customers buys the products which generates cash into the company (Reynolds, Cuthbertson and Bell 2004). 2.1 Cash Conversion Cycle: An important cycle which is embedded in the working capital cycle is the cash conversion cycle. When the organization buys raw materials from their suppliers they dont pay them immediately. They usually have a credit period contracted by the supplier and before that they need to pay. This is known as the creditors payment period. Also not all customers pay the cash immediately when they buy a product. Some buy them on credit and they should pay the certain amount within a particular period. This period which is granted by the business to the customer is known as the debtors payment period. The gap between these two periods is known as the cash conversion cycle. It is the cycle where the invested cash that is the cash invested in the suppliers turns back into cash when the customers pay the money during the debtors collection period (Arnold 2005). Raw Material Stock Period Work-in Progress Period Finished goods inventory period Debtor Collection Period Creditor Payment Period Stock Conversion Period Cash Conversion Cycle Figure2: Cash Conversion Cycle (Arnold 2005) The above figure shows the cash conversion cycle. The length of the cash conversion cycle depends on three factors, Stock conversion period Debtor collection period Creditor payment period Stock conversion period is the period where the raw material bought from the supplier are processed and converted into finished goods. Therefore the duration of a cash conversion cycle is found by, Cash conversion cycle = Stock Conversion period + Debtors collection period – Creditors payment period In an article Jose, Lancaster and Stevens (1996) suggest the importance of cash conversion cycle in the profitability and liquidity of the organization. They explained that for an aggressive approach to liquidity management the organization should reduce the cash conversion cycle by reducing their inventories and debtor collection period while increasing their creditors payment period. Managing the cash conversion cycle this way may involve tradeoffs between liquidity and profitability. If the business reduces the inventory and the debtors collection period they will lose the sales because of stock running out so early and also losing customers who usually buys in credit. Also if the firm increases the creditor collection period they will lose the discounts available for early payments and also the flexibility of pay debts in the future. So cash conversion holds an important role in maintaining the liquidity and profitability of the organization. 3.0 Working capital policy: Working capital policy is the policy made by the organization for making decisions on two important things, which are how much should the firm invest in each component of current assets and how these investments should be financed. Any business for managing their working capital efficiently should make decisions on what level of cash they should hold, what level of inventory they should maintain, what level of accounts receivable can be allowed and they should also decide whether to finance these current assets either with short term funds or with long term funds. These decisions made by the organization together make up the working capital policy (Correia et al. 2007). According to Vishnani and Shah (2007) working capital policies had a great impact on the firms performance. They suggest the importance of working capital policies for maintaining the firms liquidity and profitability. An unnecessary investment in current assets can reduce the rate of return thereby affecting the prof itability. Also it is very necessary for maintaining the liquidity for a normal running of the business. If the firm holds too much liquidity it explains that the firm is not using its funds efficiently and on the other hand if they have inadequate liquidity it will affect their credit worthiness. So it is very essential to determine the optimal level of working capital. 3.1 Permanent and Temporary Working Capital: A working capital policy is affected because of the firms varying requirements of current assets. The working capital requirements of a firm do not always remain stable through out the year and it varies from time to time. Because of the seasonal demands of some product the firm changes their level of production and holdings of inventories. Due to these conditions the currents assets in the firm also varies. But a certain amount of current assets is always maintained regularly in the business to meet the minimum day to day operations of the business to continue without any difficulties. This minimum requirement of current assets is known as the permanent working capital. On the other hand the amount which is invested in current assets due to the varying seasonal requirements is known as the temporary working capital (Van Horne, C and Wachowicz, M 2008). Amount of working capital Permanent working capital Temporary working capital Time Figure 3: Permanent and Temporary working capital (Source: Van Horne, C and Wachowicz, M 2008) Generally permanent working capital remains the same for whole year and the temporary working capital is the one which varies over time. But for some growing business the permanent working capital also rises steadily over time to meet the expansion activities of the business which is described by the figure above. 3.2 Approaches in Working Capital Policies: There are three different approaches in working capital policies and they are moderate, aggressive and conservative approaches. A firm which follows a moderate approach uses both long term and short term financing to finance their assets. The main aim of this moderate approach is to create a balance between the risk and the return. The firm which follows an aggressive approach tends to use a more of short term funds and less of long term funds to finance its current assets. Even though short term interest rates are lower than long term interest rates short term financing is more risky than long term financing because they should be paid off in a short time period. Therefore following an aggressive approach increases the risk of liquidity and it also increases the possibility of higher profits. The firm which follows a conservative approach uses a less of short term funds and more of long term funds. Therefore it reduces the liquidity risk and also the possibility to achieve higher pr ofits (Gallagher, J and Andrew, D 2007). Weinraub, J and Visscher (1998) examined the relative relationship between the aggressive and conservative approach by studying on ten different industry groups and found that each of these industries were following a unique and different working capital management polices. From their research they also found that the relatively aggressive working capital management appear to be balanced by the relatively conservative working capital management. 3.3 Factors Determining the Working Capital Requirements: Financial managers should manage their working capital in such a way that it should not be surplus or excessive. For this the managers the managers need to know the working capital requirements of the organization to make sure to provide the perfect financing. The working capital requirements of any business depends among several factors and generally some of the factors which should be considered while determining the working capital requirements are the following (Banerjee 2005), Nature of the business: The general nature of the business itself affects the working capital requirements of the business. In the case of manufacturing industry they will invest significantly in both fixed and working capital. But in other industries such as trading and financing firms invest a small amount fixed assets and a large in working capital. Some firms needs to have a large amount of inventory and debtor balances because of their nature of business. Growth and Expansion of Business: The level of investments in working capital depends upon the size of the business. The more the business expands its activity the more working capital requirement is needed. Production Cycle: Production cycle is the period where the raw materials are converted into their finished product. The longer the period to convert these raw materials into finished product the larger is the working capital. Business Cycle: The business cycle is an important factor in considering the working capital requirement. The business has to pass through a period of good times and bad times such as recession. During the good times where the business is growing the business needs to increase their working capital requirements because of the increased sales and during the bad times the business needs to reduce their working capital because of reduced sales. Production Policy: The demands of certain products are seasonal in nature. So during the peak season the working capital requirements are higher while during the off-season the working capital is kept lower. Therefore depending upon the seasonal demands of the product or service the working capital requirements varies. Credit Policy: Credit policy has a direct impact on the working capital requirements. When the business reduces the credit period it will reduces the volume of sales which leads to the reduction of working capital requirements. But when the business grants a longer credit period it encourages the sales and there by needing to increase the working capital requirements. Price Level Changes: The varying price level also affects the working capital requirements. When the price level increases the business also needs to increase their working capital to maintain their same volume of activity. Operating Efficiency: Operating efficiency is an important factor to be considered by the business. The business can maintain their working capital to a minimum level only when they are able to manage or control their operating costs and utilise their working capital efficiently. 4.0 MANAGEMENT OF CURRENT ASSETS: As discussed before working capital management is the management of both current assets and the current liabilities. The main objective of working capital management it is to maintain an optimum balance of each of the working capital components and to develop the optimum level between the current assets and the current liabilities. The optimum level is the level where a balance is created between risk and efficiency (Filbeck and Krueger, M 2005). In the following paragraphs the management of currents assets such as cash, marketable securities, inventories and accounts receivables are discussed. 4.1 Cash Management: Cash management is defined as the management of cash inflows and cash outflows. The cash flows out of the firm when the business buys goods and services from its suppliers and cash flows into the firm when the customer pays for the product they purchased. The term cash refers the cash like assets like currency, bank balances etc. The cash is often considered as non earning assets because they do not provide earnings but the cash provides safety from insolvency. Cash is very important for the day to day operations of the business and to meet the liabilities when they are due (Besley and Brigham 2005). There are several reasons for a business to hold cash (Besley and Brigham 2005), Transaction balance: Cash balance is very essential for the operations of the business. Cash is used for paying their employees wages, buying raw materials, fixed assets, and also to pay their taxes. Compensating balance: It is the minimum bank balance that the firm should maintain for the services provided by the bank such as check clearing and cash management advice. Precautionary balance: It is the cash kept as reserve by the firm because the company cannot predict the future cash flow. The amount which is kept as reserve depends upon the predictability of the cash flow. The less cash predicted the more cash balance is maintained. Speculative balance: These are cash maintained by the firm to take advantage of any profit opportunity when arises in the business. Ferreira, A and Vilela, S (2004) suggest that the level of cash holdings is positively affected by the investment opportunity and cash flows of the firm and it is negatively affected by the liquid assets, leverage and size of the firm. Firms with high investment opportunity needs to hold a high level a cash to take the benefits of the immediate opportunities available to them and also if the firm has a unpredictable cash flow the firm holds a high levels of cash. On the other hand firms which has high level of liquid assets holds low level of cash because the firm convert the liquid assets into cash when they are needed. Also firms with higher leverage that is the ability of the firm to raise debts will hold less level of cash. And at last the size of the firm affects the level of cash holdings. Large firms hold less level of cash than smaller firms because borrowing funds by smaller funds is expensive when compared to larger firms. So smaller tend to hold more cash to avoid borrowin g funds. The two main goals of cash management practices is (Fabozzi, J 2003) To have adequate cash in hand to meet the immediate needs of the firms and To receive the cash from those to owe it as early as possible and to pay the cash which the business owes as late as possible. To determine the level of investment in cash is a very important function. The firm cannot hold too much cash because of the holding cost associated with it. Holding cost is the cost that the business would have earned if the cash is invested in some form of asset. The level of investment in the cash depends upon the firms liquid assets, debt levels, and rate of return and economic conditions. There are two models used by the firms to determine the adequate level of cash needed to be maintained. One is the Baumol model which assumes that the cash is used uniformly through the period and based on this assumption the amount of cash to be maintained is measured. But by the second model which is called as Miller model assumes that the cash flow varies in an unpredictable manner and based on this assumption the amount of cash to be invested is measured. These two models help in satisfying the first goal of cash management (Fabozzi, J 2003). To achieve the second goal of cash management which is to reduce the period cash inflow and to increase the period of cash outflow, several ways are being followed. The following techniques help reduce the period of cash inflow (Shim, K and Siegel, G 2000). Lockbox System- In this system the customer instead of mailing the check to the firm send their checks to a nearby post office box which is controlled by the firms bank. The firms bank then collects the check from the post office and deposits the check. Due to this process the time the check spends in the mail and also since the bank itself receives the check it avoids the time the check spends when received by the firm and thus saves the processing time of the checks in the firm. Pre-Authorised Debits- In this system the cash is collected from customers by obtaining permission from customers to have pre authorised debits automatically charged to their bank accounts. Thereby it eliminates the time the check spends in the mail and the processing time of the check. Wire Transfer- In this system the cash is transferred quickly between banks and thus eliminates the transferring time of the cash. Wire transfers are done though computer terminal and telephone. So far we have discussed the ways to reduce the period of cash inflow. Now lets discuss the ways to increase the period of cash outflow. Zero-balance account- Zero balance account as the name suggest it requires no balance. It is an arrangement between the bank and the firm to achieve controlled disbursement which is to pay exactly what the company owes. When the check is offered to the bank the bank just transfers the money from the firms account. By this system the firm can pay the exact amount which covers the check. This system also increases the period of cash flowing out (Bragg, M 2007). Payable through drafts- Payables through drafts is similar to the checks. But a draft works in a different way. When a draft is offered to the bank the bank sends to the firms which issued the draft and waits for its approval. Only after receiving the approval from the firm the bank deposits funds into the receivers account. Due to complex procedure when using drafts it takes a long time for the amount to be transferred in to the receiver account (Shim, K and Siegel, G 2000). 4.2 Management of Marketable Securities: Management of marketable securities is just a continuation of cash management. We know that cash does not earn any return so instead of holding these cash firms just invest these cash in marketable securities for a short period of time. When the firms feel that they need some they just convert these marketable securities back into cash. Depending upon the yield curve the security earns the return. When the yield curve rises the firm gains a higher return. For example if the firm invest in a security for one year period of time then the return it would be getting is measured by (Puxty, G and Dodds 1988) R = P2 P1 + I P1 Where R is the return, P2 is the maturity value of the security, P1 is the purchase price and I is the interest paid. There are several factors which the firms consider when investing on securities and they are as follows (Chandra 2005), Safety – The most important factor which the firm consider when investing in any kind of security is safety. The firm before investing in any security first checks whether they will get back the amount invested. T-bills or the treasury bills are considered as the safest investment because the obligation are promised by the government. But investing in other securities depends upon the type of security and the issuer. Liquidity- The liquidity refers to the ability of the investor to convert the security back into cash without acquiring any loss. For a traded security a large and active secondary market ensures liquidity while a non traded security liquidity risk is high. Yield- The yield represents the return which the security is going to gain by way of interest, dividend and capital gain. Maturity- Maturity represents the expiry time of the security. The longer the maturity period the higher will be the yield. But securities like t-bills provide a fixed return when they are matured. Some of the marketable securities where the firms generally invest are the following, (Fabozzi, J 2003) Treasury Bills- These are securities issued by the US government and as a maturity period of one, three and six months. Investing in this type of security is risk free but it provides a lower rate of return. Certificates of deposits- These are debts issued by the bank in large amounts and have a maturity period up to one year. Investing in this type of security is highly risky because some times the issuer will not pay the interest and principal as promised. Commercial paper- These are debts issued by firms in large amounts and have a maturity period generally up to thirty days. Investing in this security is also risky but this risk is minimized by the back up lines of credit offered by commercial banks. Commercial paper is very attractive because of the higher returns it provides than when compared to the return provided by t-bills. Holding cash and marketable securities offers both advantage and disadvantage for a firm. The advantage is, it reduces the transaction cost because there is no need to issue security or borrow cash and holding cash or marketable securities provides opportunities to take advantage of immediate growth opportunities. The disadvantage of holding cash and marketable security is the after tax return of both cash and marketable security is considerably very l

Hacking Essay -- Technology, White Hat, Back and Grey Hat

Determine if hacking into a Web site is ever justifiable, applying your theory to a real-world case in which someone hacked into a system, including the name of the company and details. In general, hacking or more specifically cracking is not justifiable due to the negative connotations associated with the term. Hackers are generally categorized into three categories, white hat, black or grey hat (Arnone, 2005). White hats are personnel that are often employed to find holes, penetrate or exploit a security system so the company can take corrective actions. Black hats are typically associated will malicious activity (cracking) such as developing and deploying viruses, worms, theft or damaging a system. The gray hats are somewhere in between the white and the gray hats. Arnone discusses how the federal government is utilizing hackers to test their own security measures and learn how to secure their systems by understanding how hackers operate and gain entry into network systems (Arnone, 2005). The white hat hacker has proven value by showing a company where their security vulnerabilities lie. White hackers are also in demand. They are hired by consultants for many Fortune 500 companies to find external and internal weaknesses and report them in order for those holes to be closed (Wiles, 2008). There are some instances in which hacking can be justified. Hacking for National Security can be justified although controversial. The military has been using hacking techniques for decades. While not specifically tied to a computer, they have deceived the enemy using fake radio broadcasts, such as the preparations for the invasion of Normandy in World War II. The military has monitored radio conversations by eavesdro... ... constantly evolving threats and increasingly sophisticated cyber criminals, AT&T works to stay one step ahead. The company's sophisticated network monitors, probes, and algorithms to identify known or suspected viruses, worms, and other Internet attacks – often destroying them before they reach an enterprise† (AT&T, 2011). AT&T stresses individual vigilance regarding their personal account information. AT&T will never ask for any account information via e-mail or over the phone. Should you receive such inquiries, treat it as fraudulent. AT&T has alerted the cyber task force of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to provide assistance and examine our security systems to prevent a future breach. We treat this breach very serious and maintaining your trust is our highest priority and we apologize for the incontinence this security breach caused. Sincerely,

Tkam Theme Essay

Kiah Lyons Mrs. Farrands Honors English II 30 October 2012 As children, we are taught simply that something whether it is a person, object, or belief is simply good or bad. We can classify or identify what is good or bad using three sources. Typically our beliefs are primarily based on what our household says. Society also has a large role in our views as well. If something is illegal, outlawed, or even frowned upon by society it is considered bad. However, saying something is acceptable or not acceptable is something completely different from what our actions say. Many parents use the saying: Do as I say, not as I do.Sometimes we know something goes against what is right or against or morals but we do it regardless. Scout sees that in most instances; what those in her household tell her, what society tells her, and what her family and society does do not all coincide. This is evident when analyzing two main topics of the book which are race and Boo Radley. Atticus always tells Scout and Jem the importance of treating colored people equally if not better. While talking to Mr. Raymond, Scout tells him that Atticus told her â€Å"cheatin’ a colored man is ten times worse than cheatin’ a white man, Says it’s the worst thing you can do† (Lee 205).While defending Tom Robinson, Atticus told the court: â€Å"The truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women-black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men† showing his strong belief of equality among all men no matter what their skin color may be (Lee 208). Even though Atticus strongly believes in the quote from Thomas Jefferson that â€Å"All men are created equal†, Aunt Alexandra tended to have a different perspective regarding colored men and women (Lee 208).This is strongly evident in the way she treats and talks about Calpurnia. When Aunt Alexandra first arrive d, instead of a cordial greeting she tells Calpurnia right away â€Å"Put my bag in the front bedroom, Calpurnia† which shows that Aunt Alexandra views Calpurnia of a different class and has no respect for her. Aunt Alexandra disapproved of practically everything that Calpurnia did, and if it could be avoided, she did not want Scout and Jem spending any extra time with her. Although Scout looks forward to going to Calpurnia, Aunt Alexandra is not fond of the idea, and actually encourages Atticus to fire Cal.She believes Cal is not a good role mole which leads her to tell Atticus to â€Å"face it sooner or later [†¦] We don’t need her now† (Lee 138). Aunt Alexandra felt that just because Calpurnia was black, she was not suited as a mother figure, and allowed her assumptions about blacks affect her view of Calpurnia. Throughout the summer, Jem, Scout, and Dill love to reenact Boo Radley’s life and play games which include messing with the house, which Atticus does not approve of. When he caught the kids he told them that â€Å"what Mr. Radley did was his own business. If he wanted to come out, he would† (Lee 50).Although the rest of his family may not have the same beliefs as Atticus, he takes highly his standards and morals of treating men of all types and colors with respect and equality. It is clear that Maycomb’s society does not agree with Atticus defending Tom Robinson. Scout does not realize that she would face this opposition until a few members of Maycomb make remarks about Atticus to her, not having the guts to say anything to Atticus’ face. In school, Scout faces her first opposition from Cecil Jacobs when he says: â€Å"Scout Finch’s daddy defended niggers† (Lee 77).Even some of her family disapproves of Atticus defending Tom. Francis, only repeating what his grandmother says, tells Scout that Atticus â€Å"is a nigger-lover† and â€Å"we’ll never be able to walk the s treets of Maycomb agin. He’s ruinin’ the family†, which of course leads to Scout punching Francis (Lee 85-87). Passing by Mrs. Dubose, Scout and Jem get more of the usual harassment when she says makes a condescending remark about a Finch â€Å"in the courthouse lawing for niggers† and that Atticus is â€Å"no better than the niggers and trash he works for† (Lee 105).As for Boo Radley, most everyone in Maycomb has a different story for Boo Radley and why he stays at home all day. Stephanie Crawford even claims â€Å"she woke up in the middle of the night one time and saw him looking straight through the window at her† (Lee 13). Jem said that Boo â€Å"dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, [†¦] his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time†, obviously a tale but no one said anything different. (Lee 13). It would be easy for Scout to fall in line with what the majority of what people think so that she would be accep ted.The characters’ actions throughout the book show if they actually live by what they preach. For example, Atticus knows that he will face disapproval defending Tom Robinson. He tells Jack that â€Å"reasonable people go stark raving mad when anything involving a Negro comes up† (Lee 91). Knowing that he cannot go against what he believes, he defends Tom despite the opposition. He also defends Calpurnia when Aunt Alexandra talks negatively about her saying â€Å"Calpurnia is not leaving this house until she wants to. You may think otherwise, but I couldn’t have got along without her all these years.She’s a faithful member of this family and you’ll simply have to accept things the way they are† later adding â€Å"She tried to bring them up according to her lights, and Cal’s lights are pretty good ? and another thing, the children love her† (Lee 138). Atticus could have easily taken his sister’s side, but he really appre ciates everything that Cal has done for his family. Society believes that black people are of a lesser class which is the focal point of the Tom Robinson case. Even though Tom had more evidence to prove him innocent than the plaintiff had to prove him guilty, his race was what ultimately convicted Tom.Atticus makes the statement in front of the court that the â€Å"case is not a difficult one [†¦] It should have never come to trial. This case is as simple as black and white† (Lee 207). Regarding Boo Radley, no one attempts to make an effort to stand up against the unruly rumors such as that Boo â€Å" went out at night when the moon was down, and peeped in windows. When people’s azaleas froze in a cold snap, it was because he had breathed on them. † and the â€Å"Radley pecans would kill you† (Lee 9). It was more important to have a good story, than to have the not-so lively truth.Their actions showed their true beliefs. We can be molded into good pe ople by taking the good and bad from each source, or we can be brainwashed into one source. Each source has their pros and cons, which is why it is important to take what people say with a grain of salt, before immediately adapting their views. Regardless, we can all learn things from our household’s beliefs, what society says, and what peoples’ actions say. As we grow as a people and we gain experience, we gain a better understanding of what is good and bad, right and wrong.

Reflection of Black Like Me essays

Reflection of Black Like Me essays The book I read was called Black Like Me and the author is John Howard Griffin. John Howard Griffin is also the main character, author, and narrator of the story. He is a middle-aged white southerner who wanted racial justice in 1959. His plan is to make his skin color darker and posing as a black man. He calls medical information services and tells them what he plans to do and they give him three names of some Dermatologists. The first name on the list he gives a call and gets an appointment immediately. He is exposed to ultraviolet rays and takes a medication orally. Within a week he looks like a black man. He then makes sure us has full support from George Levitan who is the editor for a black-oriented magazine called Sepia. This magazine is going to fund Griffins excursion. Everywhere he goes he is insulted and experiences difficulties. He cant find jobs or bathrooms to use that he had no problems using when he was a white man. No one takes his money and is bullied a round all the time by white people. Its been several days now and Griffin decides to travel to Mississippi and Alabama, which happens to be worse than New Orleans. He is very tired and losing hope and calls P.D. East who is a white newspaperman. P.D. East also is very opposed to racism. Griffin spends one day with P.D. East and they talk about how the legal code of the south is influenced by writers and politicians. After spending the day with his friend he ventures throughout Alabama and Mississippi. In Montgomery however Martin Luther King J.R. shines no light on the black community. Its called passive resistance and its a nonviolent way to deal with the racist laws. He starts to switch from a black man to a white man because he is starting to lose hope in the whole plan (this is the climax of the story). He will first go somewhere as a black man and then go to the same place as a white man and spot the differ...

TEXT TAX OPPOSITION essays

TEXT TAX OPPOSITION essays Virtually every nation is operating at a deficit these days. Every government is trying to find new sources of income in these tough times, but our nation may be the first place to turn to text messaging. Cebu City Councilor Sylvan, Chairman of the Committee on Communication of the Cebu City Council is in opposition to the national governments plan. I think people have been taxed enough. I dont think we should allow the increase of taxes for text messaging because its already so much on the part of the Filipinos, he said. Jakosalem pointed out the importance of short messaging service (SMS) in communication. What they should tax on are those for cigarettes, alcoholic beverages and other items that Filipinos dont really need, he reacted. The Philippines has an estimated 28 million mobile phone subscribers, and industry estimates said they expect half of the 84 million populations to own a handset by the end of next year. With 120 to 150 million messages crossing mobile phone networks daily, the Philippines has been tagged as the "text capital" of the world. Since Telecommunications companies receive huge profits with SMS and was among the eight tax measures President Gloria Arroyo asked Congress to pass last month to help narrow the deficit, which in the first half reached 80.1 billion pesos (1.43 billion dollars), exceeding a government-set ceiling. Speaker Jose de Venecia has announced that Congress will only increase the franchise taxes imposed to telecommunications companies instead of imposing additional to SMS. But Councilor Jackosalem said that the companies were not sure to increase the price of texting when higher price will imposed to them and assured that franchise tax will not be passed to mobile subcribers. Association of Concerned Texters (ACT), a consumer group led a text campaign in Cebu to denounce to tax mobile phone text messaging or SMS. ...

Importance of Being Earnest and the U.S. Government Essay

Importance of Being Earnest and the U.S. Government - Essay Example He was born in 1854 and died in 1900. He had particular aspirations when it came to the writing of short stories and he is known to have written one novel. Wilde was later in his life arrested and imprisoned for being involved in homosexuality and indecency. After his release, he moved away from Ireland and he never returned. "Importance of Being Earnest" is a playwright written by Wilde in the year 1895. The concept of the play is vested in England. The play consists of humor and lies and is based on two men who escape their obligations. The first scene of the play is centered in the house of Algernon Moncrieff who is depicted as an upper-class refined young man with a male servant known as Lane. It is tea time in London and Algernon has just entered the room where Lane is preparing the table for tea. (Wilde, Pg 8) Algernon plays the piano and then starts a conversation with Lane asking him whether or not he liked how he played the piano. Lane says that he is sorry because he had not been very attentive. This first part of the play if compared with the government in the United States depicts the aristocratic kind of life that is led by the government. The government is sophisticated and their lies are surrounded by servants who undertake all kinds of duties left right and center. As the play coAs the play continues, Algernon requests his male servant to make mushroom sandwiches specifically for his aunt who is coming in with his cousin Gwendolyn. The scene takes a twist when Algernon asks Lane what he thinks about marriage and Lane says that he has no much experience on the field since he is a divorcee. The servant's casual answer surprises the boss. Their conversation is disrupted by the door bell which the servant responds to. Algernon is left in the room eating the Mushroom sandwiches. (Wilde, Pg 13) Lane comes back to the room announcing the presence of Ernest Worthing. Ernest is Algernon's friend. Ernest is from the country side but he often comes to visit London. Ernest in their conversation reveals to Algernon about his intention to propose to Gwendolyn, Algernon's cousin. Algernon is not happy about this and he tells Ernest that he would not allow him to propose to his cousin until he explains the incision that he had collected written from a certain Cecily. At first, Ernest says that he does not know of any Cecily. At this point in the play, a light is shed on the United States government. The government is always in a position to lay down its virtues earnestly but is always in denial. This is clear from the situation in Iraq where innocent individuals have been killed but the government of the United States continues to deny this. This leaves Ernest to explain to his friend that he leads a double life. In the country side, he is known as Jack. In addition, he feeds lies to the people in the country that he has a brother in the city known as Ernest Worthing. He uses this excuse as an attempt to escape his responsibility in the country. Therefore, Cecily is his ward in the country and the granddaughter of the man who had adopted him. (Wilde, Pg 15) In the process of the conversation, Algernon also reveals that he lives a double life since he also lies that he has another invalid friend in the country known as Bunbury who he goes to see

How Ethics Fades Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

How Ethics Fades - Essay Example To control such activities, the Securities and Exchange Commission (S.E.C.) was established to put into completion rules and regulations protecting the government, investors and public alike (www.sec.gov). The story of Raj Rajaratnam is action-packed non-fiction that brings audiences to a glimpse of how the S.E.C. functions. Rajaratnam is the founder of Galleon, a multi-billion hedge fund, who hired employees illegally, who were working in potential companies to get information from them. Among these people who played important roles in the game of Rajaratnam was Anil Kumar, a senior executive of McKinsey, a consulting firm which wanted to get Rajaratnam as a client. Meeting at a charity event in 2003, the two being former classmates made a deal about how Kumar was to be paid by the billionaire as an adviser. Kumar was not the first nor the only one of Rajaratnam’s informer, though. Names like Adam Smith, Krish Panu, Kris Chellam and Rajiv Goel were in the Galleon’s hea d’s list, all Indian-born businessmen with prominent positions in large companies. Paying them a good deal of money, their services were at Rajaratnam’s command, making him escape the loss of great amounts of money or the gain of it. When his investments are at a risk, Rajaratnam was informed and he sold his shares before a company closes down. Likewise, he is advised on what to buy at very low prices in accordance with the information given to him by his ‘advisers’. Whatever occurs, he is always on the win with his dealings (Packer). Insider trading is the name of Rajaratnam’s game, getting information from insiders for his benefit, making sure he always makes money in his investments and he may not be the only one who is doing the practice but his large company just could not escape the suspicious eyes of the S.E.C. Formerly, S.E.C. was looking into Sedna Capital, a hedge fund run by Rengan Rajaratnam, the billionaire’s brother who was tipp ed off engaging in insider trading. An anonymous letter sent in 2007 about Galleon strengthened S.E.C. official’s suspicions and their investigations begun.

Money versus Religious Object Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Money versus Religious Object - Essay Example I have a parachute and obviously money would mean I will be able to buy anything I longed for. Money in itself serves as a religious object. Evidently, benefits of the $10 million will be more compared to the one for the religious object.In my economical perspective, money is the stronghold of my survival and this is why I have chosen to go for the $10 million. It is not that I am not religious. Good life is proportionally related to the money one has in this world. Everyone in this world longs and works hard to get more and more money. This is because they have a longing for something money provides. In this regard, I believe to some people money serves as a religion. This is so because it controls and manipulates people towards doing some things they were not likely to do. In order to maintain order and a sense of belongingness in a community, money is a pre-requisite. I choose the $10 million dollars not only for a good life but also for respect in society. I chose it because I al so have dreams that I ought to make a reality. I believe money is just a need and would not overcome my religion. I do perceive it differently in my case. I cannot enslave and misuse humanity since I have all the money in the world. I envision a sense of purpose when I have the $10 million dollars and not the religious object. The advantage about the $10 million dollars is that given I use it wisely, I will generate more and more of it and this will boost my survival instincts and that of the society as a whole.

A Study in Scarlet Essay Example for Free

A Study in Scarlet Essay The great author Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was born on the 22nd May 1859 in Edinburgh Scotland. He had graduated with a degree in medicine at Edinburgh University in 1881. His first short story was published in1879 however the first mystery featuring Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson, A Study in Scarlet, was not until 1887. He had married twice and fathered five children. Conan Doyle had died in 1930. People are drawn to the Sherlock Holmes mystery as Conan Doyle is able to make the reader feel part of the story. The suspense and tension in his stories raise questions in the readers mind. This piece of course work will trace why Conan Doyle writings are popular in the 21st century. One key feature that helped the popularity of Sherlock Holmes stories is Conan Doyles use of language, style of writing and its simplicity. In the man with the twisted lip, Mr. Boone was a horrific looking beggar described as a broad wheel from an old scar ran right across it from an old scar ran right across it from eye to chin, and by contraction had turned up one side of the upper lip, so that three teeth were exposed in a perpetual snarl. A shock of very bright red hair grew low over his eyes and forehead. Conan Doyles use of descriptive language enables the reader to put together a picture of this revolting beggar. In the Red Headed League John Clay, also known as Vincent Spaulding, the criminal had asked to be called with respect Have the goodness also, when you address me always say sir and please. The use of language to introduce humour can be picked up from such comments. Also the idea that a red headed man had died and he wanted to give his inheritance to any other red headed man. Conan Doyle starts to put questions in the readers mind Why would someone want to do this? This seems virtually impossible and farfetched; such reference continually adds flavour to his writing. In the speckled band Dr. Roylott tried to threaten Sherlock Holmes and called him names I know you, you scoundrel! I have heard of you before. You are Holmes, the meddler Holmes, the busybody Holmes the Scotland Yard Jack-In-Office. Through dialogue we are able to deduce the character of Dr. Grimsby Roylott and his aggressive attitude towards people. The reader begins to understand why Helen stoner was afraid of her step father and had come to Holmes without his permission. Sherlock Holmes was able to speak fluent Latin omne ignotum pro magnifico; in the Victorian era you had to be well educated to be able to articulate a word of Latin. Conan Doyle has used this technique to show the reader Holmes accomplishments and status in society. Language plays a very important role in all Conan Doyles stories which in many ways have added to the never ending success. It has helped to transform the stories the stories into pleasant readings for a wide range of audiences. In all the stories a similar pattern seems to emerge which helps create the perfect recipe for a mystery. The stories unfold in the most unusual way leaving the reader intrigued up to the very end. The themes in Conan Doyles stories are directed towards acts of injustice, crimes, the clever villains and innocent victims; all spiced with greed. In the speckled band the victim was Helen stoner, who had come to seek help relating to the sudden death of her sister Julia. The villain to the readers surprise was Dr. Grimsby Roylott. Mrs. Stoner, mother of Helen and Julia Stoner, had received not less than 1000 pounds a year she gave this money to Dr. Roylott. a certain annual sum should be allowed to each daughter after marriage; due to Dr. Roylotts selfish needs he was responsible for the death of Julia and attempt to murder Helen. In the red headed league Mr. Jabez Wilson had consulted Sherlock Holmes to look into an advert that seemed peculiar. Mr. Jabez Wilson had taken a job because it offered double a normal wage, 4 pound a week. To the readers it seemed a shock that Vincent Spaulding, who was the loyal employee, had been the criminal John Clay. John clay had planned to steal the French napoleons from the bank. He was a con man hell crack a crib in Scotland one week, and be raising money to build an orphanage in Cornwall the next. In the man with the twisted lip Mrs. Neville StClair, the victim, had approached Holmes because she needed help finding her husband. Boone, the beggar, was able to earn 700 pounds a year where as Mr. Neville StClair, a journalist, earned two pounds a week. Mr. Neville StClair was the victim of his own deeds as he was not able to meet the expectation of society within the Victorian era. In the 21st century many people are not able to find time to read long novels. Conan Doyles Sherlock Holmes stories are short and simple to read, anyone can find time for them. You can pick up a story and read it on your way to work or school. The stories start in a similar way; we are first introduced to the innocent victims who are always reassured by Sherlock Holmes with his sympatric and caring nature and in most cases in the company of Dr. Watson. There is always a mention of the residence of Sherlock Holmes. This is to create a make believe situation in the readers mind. The setting is always dark and gloomy when the client comes to seek for advice; this gives a cosy and calm atmosphere. Conan Doyle was taught how to make deductions about patients by observing them closely; this skill was transferred to his stories and injected into his main character Sherlock Holmes. Holmes carries out his investigation using simple means. His use of knowledge allows him to give an insight in the red headed league. Vincent Spaulding had worked for half wage; he was always diving down into the cellar like a rabbit and he was the one who showed Mr. Jabez Wilson the advert. When Sherlock Holmes went to ask for directions, under pretence just to come in contact with the so called assistant Vincent Spaulding, he was reassuring himself that what he was thinking was actually possible. Holmes was able to conclude on the note that Vincent Spaulding and John Clay was the same person. Sherlock Holmes has a special essence which draws the reader towards him. Sherlock Holmes is known as one of the worlds greatest detectives. His mission was always to help gain justice for his clients. He is an individual who is never after money but more interested in solving the crime my profession is its own reward. He was a guardian angel to all and everyone had total trust in his skill. There are two sides of Holmes, one which is the never quitting crime solver and other which just likes to relax. He also has many weaknesses cocaine injections and all the little weaknesses. In these three stories Conan Doyle has used Watson to narrate the story. We are able to learn what is in the Dr. Watsons mind towards Holmes. John Watson is a very close friend and assistant of Holmes. He has full trust in friends skills and has the same thirst for mysteries as Holmes; Your cases have indeed been of the greatest interest to me The mystery in most cases concludes on the note that Sherlock Holmes has solved the case. In the speckled band Helen stoner was able to live without fear of her stepfather. This pattern of a constant happy ending allows the reader to look forward to the end and they know that they can always rely on Holmes. In the 21st century Conan Doyle still rubs shoulder with many other famous detective stories such as murder she wrote and C. S. I. None of them however can beat Sherlock Holmes!!! Conan Doyle has out done himself. The Sherlock Holmes stories are suitable for all age groups. Worldwide he is an accomplished writer as the stories have been translated into over 60 different languages. Even today the famous residence 221b baker street is still known as the fictional home of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Now it is the site of the Sherlock Holmes museum. Such tributes have helped keep the stories alive to date. Neelam Hirani Page 1 Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Miscellaneous section.

Motorolas marketing strategies

Motorolas marketing strategies CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Problem Statement Motorola rapidly became the largest mobile phone seller in UK. In 2001, its asset was more than  £32.74 billion and it had 100 million subscribers. Until 2002, these figures have grown to over  £38.8 billion and more than 138 million subscribers (Motorola Company Profile, 2004, p1). However, the continued good performance of Motorola is threatened by a number of factors. These threats come from a number of places, the most important of these being the fierce competition with the three other state-owned companies. However, this competition will be increased in 2007 when the British Telecom (BT) Telecommunications Agreement comes into effect, allowing foreign companies access to UKs telecommunications market (Milner, 2003, p3). This pressure is reflected in the fact that the Mobile Phone Revenue per User has dropped 50% in the past three years (Milner, 2003, p3) to a figure of  £100 Yuan (Reuters, 2004, p1). Another major threat faced by Motorola comes from Nokia, which has gained significant strategic advantages through its security of exclusive rights to use the new CDMA network technology (Milner, 2003, p3). Purpose of the Study All of these mean that Motorolas marketing strategies, especially its advertising strategies, will become the most important element of its sustained and successful growth. The challenge for Motorola is to gain and maintain market share, and continue to seek future growth. Winning clients is one thing; keeping them an entirely different challenge companies have to adopt proactive strategies to retain hard-won customers. (How to maintain loyalty among risk customers, 1999, p1) Therefore, the application of successful advertising strategies is a critical factor for attracting new customers and keeping existing ones. Marketing research suggests that advertising is about attitudes, the attitudes of consumers towards products. Boyd, Ray and Strong (1972) propose that there are five strategies which marketing managers can pursue in relation to basing their advertising campaigns on attitudinal change. Aims Objectives The objectives of this research are consequently: To identify the current attitude of both existing and prospective customers towards Motorolas service. To examine to what degree Motorolas current advertising campaigns are related to the five marketing strategies mentioned above, which are based on changing customers attitude towards one brand. To suggest tentative recommendations to Motorola on how attitudinal strategies could be better incorporated into its future advertising campaigns. This objective is based on the findings of the current study and suggests various ways, in which Motorola can effectively influence the attitudinal sets of customers (see Chapter 2.0, p7), i.e. their attitude to products. Dissertation structure This dissertation consists of five chapters including Chapter One, the Introduction, which deals with background information, as well as giving a brief introduction to marketing strategies. In addition, the research objectives are presented here. Chapter Two provides the reader with an overview of the literature review, which first covers the background of the global and British telecommunications industry and second looks at some specific advertising strategies in order to construct a basis for conducting the research. Chapter Three refers to the methodology used, and discusses the limitations to the research carried out. Chapter Four presents the findings of the research together with the discussion of the conclusions reached. Chapter Five, the conclusion, discusses the possible implications of this research for future studies. Summary This chapter has provided readers with a brief introduction of the research background, as well as has identified the objectives that this study aimed to achieve. The next chapter begins a literature review, in which a comprehensive background concerning this study and some mainstream marketing theories will be presented. CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW History of British Telecommunications Industry The telecommunications revolution will have a profound impact on us all- on our everyday lives and our jobs. Indeed telecoms, together with the closely related but broader category of information technology, are going to be the biggest technological driver of economic and business change during the next decade and more. (Dadd, 1998, p1) The history of the world telecommunications industry has been a turbulent one. It has been common in western countries that the state controlled monopolies, such as that of British Telecom in the United Kingdom or Bell Atlantic in the United States have completely dominated their domestic markets for a long period (Local hero: mobile telephones, 1993, p1). However, a break up such as that of Bell Atlantic into the baby Bell companies, which occurred in following years, heralded a new era of the telecommunications industry (Dadd, 1998, p2-3; Pruzan, 1996, p1-3). After the failure of the dot com revolution, telecommunications emerged in the late 1990s as the new darling industry in the stock market with millions if not billions of dollars invested into it in the western world (Sarkar, Cavusgil and Aulakh, 1999, p1-2). Along with the universal growth in the telecommunications industry, it was the area of mobile phone networks which saw the most dramatic growth and highest profits of thi s industry. The deregulation of telecommunications however is not a phenomenon which has been restricted to western economies. Deregulation of the telecommunications industry is seen by many governments not only as a significant economic affair but also an important social one, A bold deregulation of the telecoms industry will, with luck, spread the use of the Internet in India and change millions of lives. However, the telecommunications industry is also a political matter in many countries such as UK, which sees foreign control of its domestic telecommunications companies as a serious issue (Harwit, 1998, p1; Milner, 2003, p1). Yet due to UKs accession to the WTO, it has been forced to deregulate its telecommunications industry and furthermore open the market to foreign investments (Stilson, 1999, pp1-2). The history of UKs telecommunications industry dates back to 1877 when the first telegraph line was installed. By 1911, there were 8,000 telephone subscribers and 8,800 telephone lines yet little improvement was made on this infrastructure during the rule of Chairman Mao (Harwit, 1998, p4). The British government realizing these changes responded early in the 1980s was aware that reforms of UKs stagnated telecommunications industry would become a vital and critical factor in successfully modernizing UKs overall economy (Harwit, 1998, p5). However, it was not until the 1990s that the pace of reform was quickened when the monopoly UK Telecom was split up (Lin Sun, 2000, p1). In 1994, Nokia was founded in order to compete with UK Telecom, followed by the formation of the Information Industry Ministry in 1998, which became UKs telecommunications industry regulator (Rothman and Barker, 1999, p1). Motorola Communications Corporation (CMCC) was established on April 20th, 2000 (Pangestu and Mrongowius, 2002, p5), and it became the biggest mobile phone seller in UKs telecommunications market (Motorolas net edges up as competition intensifies, 2003, p1). While the four companies originated from the same parent company, this common heritage however is not reflected in the highly competitive relationship which now exists among the four companies. Indeed this competition is set to increase with the recent development of information technology and the soon occurrence of 3G License permitted by the British government (Milner, 2003, pp3-4). It has been reported by various sources that the fixed lined operators intend to compete along with the mobile operators for the rights to operate these networks (Pangestu and Mrongowius, 2002, pp5-7). Motorolas Current Situation Motorola finds itself doing business in a market, which is in upheaval as well as of deregulation, internal competition and external competition (Motorolas net edges up as competition intensifies, 2003, p1; Einhorn and Roberts, 2002, p1-2). The fierce competitive environment in which Motorola operates therefore has meant that the company has had to embark on an aggressive advertising campaign, which is designed to solidify and increase its market share before the full effects of the WTO inspired reforms can be felt. According to Nielsen Media Research on advertising spending in UK, Motorola spent 1.3 billion advertising in 2002 (British brands dominate ads in local market, 2003, p1). Thus this is both a demanding time for Motorola and an interesting time for anyone who wishes to research a young and dynamic company in a period of rapid change for its marketing strategies. Theories of Marketing Strategy and Advertising Strategy The marketing concept states that you stand a much better chance of selling something if you understand why someone wants to buy it in the first place. (Michaels, 1982, p67) Marketing can be seen as those sets of business practices and related strategies which are applied by companies to attract potential consumers into purchasing their products (Kotler and Cox, 1988). But marketing is not only about enabling a company to attract consumers, but also about maintaining those existing customers over a period of time, in essence the building of a brand and the creation of a brand loyalty (Kotler and Cox, 1988, pp76-77). In order to achieve such a aim, one of the key strategies to be the most important for gaining and maintaining market share is advertising and sales promotion, increase advertising and sales promotion of superior products, services, or price benefits to underpenetrated or untapped customers; advertise new or improved benefits to all customers. (Kotler and Cox, 1988, pp76-77) Marketing research has suggested that advertising is about attitude, the attitude of consumers towards products, Our reason for selecting attitudes as our basic way of looking at a market is based on more than the fact that one function of advertising is to affect attitudes. There is considerable evidence to show that the way a person thinks and feels about a brand- his attitudinal set determines how he will behave. His reasons for wanting a product determine his selection. (Reiser cited in Boyd, Ray and Strong, 1972, p341) Boyd et al (1972) suggest that there are five strategies which marketing managers can pursue in relation to base their advertising campaigns on attitudinal change. These strategies briefly seek to: Affect factors which influence the choice criteria of customers; Add salient characteristics to products; Increase /decrease the ratings for salient characteristics; Change brand perception; Change perception of competing brands with regard to some particular salient characteristics. Telecommunications is one field in which it has been possible to find quite similar responses. Telegraph, post, and telephony have been organized as state monopolies almost everywhere, and states have acted as policy makers, regulators, and service providers all at once. National telecommunications regimes have surprisingly similar features from Europe to Asia, and from America to Africa (Noam, 2006, 2007). Naturally, there are exceptions (for example in the United States, where the monopoly is private and the state acts only as regulator and policy maker). Still, the similarities in the organization of the telecoms sector are unique compared with the diversity of institutions and governance mechanisms of other sectors. The old telecommunications order is now undergoing radical changes. The sector, which for years served as the economics textbooks most cherished example of a natural monopoly, has been transformed to a competitive sector (although competition is imperfect and partial). Surprisingly, despite the widespread changes, sectorial homogeneity in the move to liberalization remains remarkable across countries, continents, and level of economic development. In telecommunications, changes are indeed global and they include radical change in the economics, technology, and organization of the sector as well as in the role of the state and the mode of governance. The extent of change in telecommunications is so radical that it is now seen to epitomize the hollowing out of the state. Telecommunications, argued Susan Strange, serve as an extreme example of one process by which authority has shifted massively away from the governments of states to the corporate management of firms The result of this shift has been to narrow the options open to supposedly sovereign states, and to extend the opportunitiesand riskof those enterprises engaged in the supply of services and the hardware by which the services are offered on the market (Strange, 2007, p. 100). As competition increases and markets widen, telecommunications may become a paradigmatic case exemplifying perceptions of reality and change in political economy among the general public and social scientists alike. Telecommunications thus acquires the characteristics of a critical case for theory testing. If suggestions regarding the retreat of the state prove false or one-sided in telecoms, it should be even more difficult to support them in other cases. The scope of change and the extent of regulatory innovations make telecommunications highly interesting for retailers of politics, political economy, and public policy. It becomes the paradigmatic case, one which shapes beliefs about organization of the economy and relations between politics and economics. At the same time, it generates new knowledge about the regulation of other sectors. This is also observable in popular journalism. Take, for example, the following passage from the Economist: In recent years, the telecom business has demonstrated that when deregulation and innovation, strong forces in their own right, come together, the results can be startling. What is true in telecom is now coming true in electricity (my emphasis). Indeed, beyond electricity, telecommunications has come to be conceived as a regulatory laboratory in which experiments are conducted and experience is accumulated for future implementation in other sectors such as road transport, railroads, water, and gas. The restructuring of the telecommunications sector during the last decade has generated a global telecommunications market for the first time. Increasingly more parts of telecom equipment are no longer produced nationally, but are traded on extra-national markets. Foreign direct investment in the sector is booming and the liberalization of services has been accompanied by the entry of foreign investors as competitors but also as partners in global alliances. Instead of one national network for telephony, different networks now exist, characterized either by the same technology (wire telephony) or competing technologies (internet telephony, mobile telephony, and cable telephony). The striking changes in the national arenas of telecommunications are repeated and enforced by several international agreements such as the WTO agreement on the liberalization of government procurement (2007), the Information Technology Agreement (2007), the WTO agreement on trade in basic telephony (2007), a nd the Mutual Recognition Agreements on the testing and certification of telecommunications equipment (2007). Side by side with the transformation of the sector, the creation, extension, and perfection of the regulatory capacities of the state may be observed. The administrative state is relinquishing the provision of services, but instead of retreating it is assuming new regulatory roles. These new roles are enforced and diffused through the constitution of the single European market, emulation of the American regulatory structures, policy learning, and even international pressures. The diffusion of regulation may serve a wide range of social goals, from universal supply of essential services and products to price control in situations of market failure. This paper concentrates on one particular aspect of regulation, namely regulation for competition. Market competition, as will be shown in this paper, is not only the natural outcome of state retreat from the economy or a matter for any invisible hand. Competition is politically, socially, and administratively produced and it takes the form of highly complex regulatory regimes that are devised to govern micro-segments of the telecoms sector. The paper distinguishes two types of regulated competition: regulation-of-competition and regulation-for-competition. While the first is a liberal form of intervention which aims to correct market failure, the second has a mercantilist character and aims at market creation by the state. This second form of competition is a critical aspect in the restructuring of the telecoms sector, which is often misunderstood as simply deregulation. The critical place of reregulation-for-competition in the governance of the new telecoms regime, as will be demonstrated here, underlines the rise of a competition state which is not a liberal state and not a welfare state. The competition state, without transforming the whole apparatus of the state and with an important but limited effect on society, is assuming a very traditional role, with a neomercantilist character, which it always had. It is revitalizing and reforming economic sectors in order to promote national competitiveness. Restructuring Motorolas Markets The introduction of competition to the telecommunications market is a multi-level process. On the intra-national level the introduction of competition may be characterized first as a movement towards corporatization and increase market share of Motorola. The statists provision of telecom services was replaced by a new regime which was based on a mixture of regulations, reregulations, and deregulations. Corporatization means the transformation of a government-administered service into a legal entity of a joint-stock company. This company may still be state-owned, but in contrast to the past it now enjoys a measure of autonomy from the state (Noam Kramer, 2007, p. 278). In most countries where ministerial departments formerly supplied telecommunications services, corporatization was one of the first steps towards a more economic and market-oriented provision of services. Corporatization thus reflects a retreat of the state only if one understands the relations between the state and th e market as mutually exclusive, or zero-sum (i.e., more market means less state, and vice versa). However, if the states strength is not defined in terms of its direct provision of economic services, then outsourcing services may result, exactly as in corporate restructuring, in more power rather than less. In many countries corporatization also led to increase market share of Motorola, namely transfer of shares or functions from public to private hands. In some countries, increase market share of Motorola has been a major milestone in the restructuring of telecommunications. British Telecom was privatized in 1984 and NTT of Japan in 1985. Other countries followed this road a few years later with a partial increase market share of Motorola of their Telecom Operators (TO). In Israel, Bezeq was privatized in 2006; in the Netherlands KPN was privatized in 2007; in Germany, Deutsche Telecom was privatized in 2007; France Telecom was privatized in 2007, and Brazils Telebras was privatized in 2008. Different strategies of increase market share of Motorola were employed in different countries, and following the initial offering of part of the governments shares, the process proceeded at varying rates towards complete increase market share of Motorola. Still, the move to privatize the telecommunications sector has become common around the world. Increase market share of Motorola may not affect, however, the extent of competition in a specific market segment. Private monopoly, as the American example of ATT monopoly shows, does not necessarily entail more competition. But increase market share of Motorola, like corporatization, is definitely a step forward in the introduction of market considerations into segments of the economy formerly that followed (or were supposed to follow) public service criteria. The corporatization of telecommunications services has contributed to the creation of a political space in which public officials can more clearly distinguish their function as providers of telecommunications services and their regulatory and policy making functions. Regulation is a distinctively American approach of state intervention; its introduction to Europe, on the national and European Union levels, is admirably discussed by Majone (2007). Regulations, rather than public ownership, planning, or centralized administration, are increasingly used in telecommunications. While the process of substituting the dirigiste state by the regulatory state is observed beyond the sphere of telecommunications, in this sphere the scope of change is most impressive. The separation of government functions in the sector allowed the creation, development, and consolidation of regulatory capacities in readiness for the new business-like corporations which were still under government control. The process was further accelerated and strengthened following increase market share of Motorola, which marked more clearly the distinction between public and private. National Regulatory Authorities for telecommunications were established or are in the process of being established throughout Europe (e.g., Oftel in the UK, OPTA in the Netherlands, BMPT in Germany, ART in France) and elsewhere (i.e., Brazil, Israel, South Korea, and Australia). Although these regulatory agencies vary in their institutional design, autonomy, and regulatory capacities they command they often enjoy considerable control over the development of the industry. One demonstration of this paradox is the dynamics of the regulation of interconnection regimes with respect to the unbundling of telecommunications services. The enthusiasm, indeed the near religious zeal, that the competition state manifests in the introduction and enforcement of competition, even in the most difficult terrain, shows the critical role the state plays in restructuring global telecommunications. Bundling is the tying of the supply of one service or product to the supply of others. For the seller of products, bundling is a form of legitimate competitive strategy. Yet for clients, it often means that they will have to purchase an unnecessary products or services which they may obtain of better quality and at a better price elsewhere. In such cases, policy makers, regulators, and judges have to decide whether the economic power of the service provider should be balanced by political power. One way of doing this is by requiring the provider to unbundle the products or/and services, and thus enable clients to purchase only the services and products they want, and by extension to promote the market in unbundled services and products. Bundling and unbundling are common regulatory problems in various economic sectors, but in telecommunications they display the complexities of the interaction between state and market and how far regulators feel obliged to intervene for the sake of competition. Unbundling is considered a prerequisite for competition in the local loop; hence regulators readily intervene to ensure that the dominant operators will not force bundled services on their competitors. Here, they regulate relations between household and business consumers and telecommunications operators, and also those between the dominant seller and the smaller, newer providers who need interconnections and various other services from the big and hostile brother. Digital local exchange networks are highly expensive systems which provide a range of services such as advance signaling, diagnostic and testing procedures, switching, and transport. A new seller may thus find it impossible to build an entire local exchange network; to foster its entry to the market, regulators often take measures that ensure its capacity for special access (e.g., switching but not transporting, or signaling but not switching). Determining what may be part of a bundle and what may not requires the regulator to have sophisticated technological capabilities (to determine down to the precise layers and point of access where connection is possible) and sophisticated economic and accounting capabilities (to set an adequate rate for each unbundled service). At the same time, it gives the regulator the power to set prices for each of the components of the telecom networks. Instead of simple cap-regulations of retail tariff in the old telecom regime, it now has plenty of ways to devise the wholesale tariff. The National Regulatory Authorities that were established during the last decade, and their forerunners, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and OFTEL, are now in the process of acquiring these skills. The American Telecommunications Act of 2007, for example, requires that dominant operators unbundle their networks at technically feasible points and make individual elements available to competitors on a modular basis. They are also required to enable their competitors to physically collocate equipment within their premises so as to allow them to take advantage of unbundling (Knauer et al., 2007). By establishing more detailed regulations regarding the general requirements for the unbundling of the telecommunications services, the FCC is now creating one of the most detailed regulatory regimes ever designed for the promotion of competition. The design of an interconnection regime with as many unbundled services and points of access to the network as possible is, at least theoretically perhaps, a matter of commercial agreement. Yet, the dominant seller has strong incentives to use its control over the public network so as to discourage competition (by either inflating prices and costs or preventing interconnection under various technological pretexts). The most complex problem of unbundling is the determination of a gross interconnection charge that has to be decomposed into dozens of elements, each of which may provide the basis for a new dispute (involving several courts in different instances). This situation may be further illustrated by comparison to the more familiar market of cars. The unbundling requirements on telecommunications operators may be compared to a demand that car manufacturers unbundle the vehicles they sell into their various components. A client or competitor would then be able to purchase a car wi th no wheels and/or engine, and shop around for a better deal. Probably, because cars can be purchased from different manufacturers at different price and quality levels, the car industry is not required to unbundle its products. This is not the case, of course, in telecommunications where the local loop is still a natural monopoly and thus requires more rules (e.g., unbundling requirements) to allow for more competition. The unbundling of networks is likely to create more sophisticated markets and may promote competition in the local loop as well. While the success of such a strategy is still unclear, the situation and politics of unbundling demonstrate that the discretionary power of some policy makers and bureaucrats has attained heights never previously reached. The extent and the role of reregulation in the restructuring of the telecommunications market is accompanied by the emergence of strong regulatory states and by the entrepreneurial role states play in the introduction of competition. The strengthening of regulatory bodies and regulation-for-competition policies may shed light on the dynamics of change in the relations between states and the economy, particularly on the change in the role of the state. To achieve this, one has to move beyond the old two-pole model, which sets economic socialism against economic liberalism and which frames the intellectual terrain for the discussion of political economic change. Neither regulation-for-competition nor the rise of the competition state fits this two-pole model. The creation of interconnection regimes and the case of unbundling the networks go far beyond the liberal conceptions of the state as regulator in cases of market failure. In these regimes the state plays the part of market generator, which cannot reconcile with economic liberalism. The central position of regulation-for-competition as the pillar on which the restructuring of telecommunications stands requires us to extend the debate to include a third perspective on political economy. This third perspective is sometimes presented as mercantilism and sometimes as economic nationalism, and it has been, since the rise of classical economics, a subject for scholarly attacks more than ground for positive theory-building (LeviFaur, 1997a; Crane, 2008).[10] It was Adam Smith who coined the term mercantilism in order to ridicule the dominant political economy of his time. Subsequently, the major political economy debates for long turned on the relative advantages and disadvantages of mercantilism vs. liberalism. Later on, in the 19th century and early 20th, when various democratic and undemocratic forms of nationalism became a popular ideology, mercantilism assumed the form of economic nationalism and it became the major antagonist of economic liberalism. While mercantilism mobilized state power in order to advance the economic resources of the state, economic nationalism took the state as a tool for development of the national economy and for the benefit of the nation rather than the state. Several especially nasty forms of economic nationalism, for example, that of Nazi Germany, made the notion extremely unpopular after the Second World War. Since then, both economic nationalism and neomercantilism were marginalized as political economic theories, or at best were reduced to some form of bounded-rationality (e.g., protectionism, large symbolic projects). With the collapse of the Soviet empire and the retreat of social-democracy in the West, we must move on and abandon the habit of framing the discussion exclusively in terms of socialism vs. liberalism, or even Keynesianism vs. monetarism. To capture some basic features of the change we should consider the political economy of mercantilism, which accounts for different interests of na tions in the process of economic development. Summary The information economy carries the distinctive libertarian tone of technologies of freedom and technologies without boundaries. Yet in telecommunications, when the music is actually played, this tone proves to be no more than an undertone, an accent. Indeed, governments are changing their role in this market: they no longer provide telephones and services. Bu