Roche Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Roche - Coursework Example 56). The method is essential for the implementation of innovative approaches, branding strategies, and synchronistic strategies. On the other hand, businesses engage on innovative approaches to evaluate market viability, dynamics of the clients, and the appropriate technology to implement in achieving successful outcomes (OrtuÃŒ n Rubio and GarciÃŒ a-Fontes, 2011, p. 33). The following is a critical discussion seeking to implement the process of marketing and innovation in Roche Pharmaceuticals inclined to appropriate recommendations to decipher its success and probable opportunities in the market. Roche Pharmaceuticals operates in the healthcare industry seeking to deliver astound resolutions in the pharmaceutical and diagnostics market segments. The healthcare industry is composite of many dynamics and business finding the idea of evaluation an inevitable course. Roche’s marketing and innovation programs exist amidst an ever-changing environment for the industry is broadly affected by internal and external environmental forces. Arguably, the healthcare industry exposes the available business entities to uncertainties due to a process of continued degree of competition (Moffat, Bohmert, and Hulme, 2008, p. 107). This also serves to barricade new businesses from entering the market. Roche is a globally renowned producer of medical equipment, taking the divisions of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics respectively (Tinguely, 2013, p. 32). The former field is tasked with applied sciences, and Roche Molecular Diagnostics. Further, the field draws the company into professional and tissue diagnostics, and diabetes care. The latter is tasked to the Roche Pharma, Genentech, and Chugai that serves to enhance its relevance in the industry. However, these facts do not serve as potential solutions to the challenging market situations (Mohr, Sengupta, and Slater, 2010, p. 142).

Video game industry analysis Essay Example for Free

Video game industry analysis Essay History The history of video games goes as far back as the 1940s, when in 1947 Thomas T. Goldsmith, Jr. and Este Ray Mann filed a United States patent request for an invention they described as a cathode ray tube amusement device. Video gaming would not reach mainstream popularity until the 1970s and 1980s, when arcade video games, gaming consoles and home computer games were introduced to the general public. Since then, video gaming has become a popular form of entertainment and a part of modern culture in most parts of the world. There are currently considered to be eight generations of video game consoles, with the seventh and the eighth concurrently ongoing. Early Founders During the golden age of video games in the 1970s, it was a rush to the start to see which company and which programmer could create a video game and platform that could trump the rest. However, most large video game manufacturers can trace their roots far before that decade, reaching back into the early 1900s or even the late 1800s. While some video game companies, such as Nintendo and Sony, would begin their economic pursuits in other fields, companies like Atari and Sega were created with an eye toward producing the ultimate gaming system. The first major video game company to come into being was Nintendo, which would eventually make video games popular again in the 1980s. Nintendo is a Japanese company that was created in 1889 and was originally named the Marufuku Company. In 1951, this company, which manufactured Western-style playing cards in Japan, would take the name Nintendo, meaning â€Å"leave luck to heaven. In 1891, the Philips Company, owner of Magnavox and an important frontrunner in the video game production race, was established in the Netherlands. In 1947, another major video game icon was founded under the name Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Company. After the founders realized this name was too cumbersome to say and remember easily, they modified the Latin word sonus (meaning sound) to form the company name Sony. Sega was founded in 1952, under the name Service Games, as a company that provided coin-operated games and jukeboxes to American servicemen in Japan. It would not be until 1972, well into the beginning of video games, that Atari was formed as a cooperative partnership between leading video game programmers Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. First Video Games and Platforms The idea for an interactive video game was first conceived of by Ralph Baer, an engineer with an airborne electronics company, in 1951. Commissioned to design a television for the company, Baer believed the TV could be more marketable to consumers if it contained a type of interactive game (Kent 2001). His idea was shot down by the company, but other engineers and programmers would not let it settle for long. The first official video games, a table-tennis type game and a computer space game, were developed in 1958 and 1961, respectively. These early video games proved to be the necessary catalyst for game programmers and were the early predecessors of the popular arcade games Pong and Space Invaders. Pong, created by the Atari Company in 1972, turned into an incredible success in arcades and led to the creation of the first home video gaming system, the Magnavox Odyssey. After the moderate success of the Odyssey, several video game companies would follow with their own home gaming systems in 1976 and 1977, including the Atari Video Computer System (VCS). Video Games Take Off By 1978, home video game consoles were beginning to sell well, and more competitors had entered the market. Nintendo of Japan released its first video game that year, a simplistic version of the board game Othello that was marketed in arcades. The popular toy makers Mattel and Milton Bradley also entered the video game scene in the following two years with a hand-held video game unit from Milton Bradley and the Intellivision by Mattel, the first video game console to offer true competition to Atari. During this golden age of video games in the late 1970s, the two leading contenders, Magnavox and Atari, both tried to add competition to the home computer market. Magnavox released the Odyssey 2, a programmable video game console that included a built-in keyboard, while Atari began selling its own personal computer designed to rival Apple. However, most consumers connected Atari only with video games, and the computer system was widely disregarded. During this time period, Atari also released its first home version of the popular arcade game Space Invaders, leading to a massive increase in sales for the VCS game console. As video gaming entered the 1980s, two incredibly popular games that would revolutionize the industry were created. Pac-Man, created by Namco in 1980, became the best-selling arcade game of all time and the first video game that was popular with both males and females. The later version, Ms. Pac-Man, would also prove to be immensely popular at arcades. The next year, in 1981, Nintendo of America created Donkey Kong for arcades. While the hero of Donkey Kong was originally named Jump man, this name was later changed to Mario and he would become an icon in years to come as a key video game hero. Unfortunately, as video games began to take off in the early 1980s, the market quickly became flooded with multiple consoles and games, and the industry experienced a market crash in 1984. Industry Growth Along with increasing Internet and broadband penetration throughout the world, online and mobile gaming represents the greatest push in the video game growth. The implication of this increase in accessibility to technology is many developing countries -specifically the BRIC economies (Brazil, Russia, India and China) – are now becoming major players in the industry. As online and mobile gaming becomes more affordable, video gaming becomes more accessible to developing countries. Though console gaming currently represents the largest market in the industry, its growth is projected to slow down in the upcoming years, from a 10. 9% growth between 2003 and 2008, to a 5. 5% between 2008 and 2013. In 2008, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) represented the largest video gaming market share (35. 3%). In 2013 it is projected the Asia-Pacific region will be the leader in both growth and market share. The projection is market share in EMEA and North America will decline, while it is expected to increase in Latin America. The video game industry in the BRIC economies has developed in parallel fashion to these countries’ general economic expansion. It is projected the BRIC countries will have increased market share in future years. Market size The Video Games are a cultural phenomenon that is growing ever more prominent among young and old alike. They have become an integral part of the mass media culture and have been in existence for nearly as long as the television. While the video games of today are growing ever more detailed and lifelike, early video games like Pong, Space Invaders, and Pac-Man were equally impressive and highly entertaining at their time. From their earliest years to the complex video game landscape of the twenty-first century, video games have developed into enchanting, alternate worlds that have captured the hearts of millions of players. As of today, it is estimated that video game consoles represent more than 25% of the worlds general-purpose computational power. Also they were banned in China since June 2000 and now China is seeing explosive growth. Market size from 2003 to 2013 in $billions REVENUE FOR 2012. Size of global traditional video game market revenue, excluding mobile games on smart phones and tablets: $70 billion, up from $65 billion in 2011 Size of global video game market revenue, including mobile games on smart phones and tablets: $78. 5 billion for 2012 Retail software revenue: $28 billion, down from $29. 5 billion in 2011 Online revenue, including digital delivery, subscriptions, Facebook games: $24 billion, up from $18 billion in 2011 (Source: DFC Intelligence) CONSOLE MAKERS Microsoft Corp * Xbox 360 launched in the United States: November 2005 * Xbox consoles sold: 67 million. * Kinect motion sensors sold: 19 million Major initiative: Microsoft is expected to show off new entertainment features of its Xbox 360 and a new version of Halo. Sony Corp * PlayStation3 launched in the United States and Japan: November 2006 * As of March 31, PlayStation3 units sold: Over 63 million units * As of June 6, 2011, Sony Move motion sensors shipped: 8. 8 million units Major initiative: Sony is expected to push new games to boost sales of the Vita and PlayStation 3. Nintendo Co Ltd * Launched Wii in the United States: November 2006 * Wii units shipped: More than 95 million * DS units shipped: More than 151 million. * 3DS units: More than 17 million Major initiative: Nintendo will finally unveil the first home console in six years at E3. Device is expected to feature HD graphics, a special tablet controller and motion sensors. SOFTWARE PUBLISHERS Activision Blizzard Annual revenue: $4. 8 billion Top franchises: Call of Duty and World of Warcraft Electronic Arts Inc Annual revenue: $4. 1 billion Top franchises: The Sims and Madden NFL Take-Two Interactive Software Annual revenue: $826 million Top franchises: Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption Ubisoft Annual revenue: 1. 06 billion euros Substitute Products. Substitute products for games maybe songs from music industry, movies from movie industry, and television programs from television industry which people also sought fun and entertainment. There have not been so many problems with the substitute products because video game industry is uprising. According to a writer for Fortune, music sales have been falling in recent years, the movie going experience hasn’t change that much and network TV is on the skids. Political Determinants Unlike many other industries, the gaming industry isn’t universally affected by political determinants. Political determinants are generally specific to a country. While violence and sexual content of games are common themes of discussion, how they are handled varies from country to county. Social and Environmental Factors Social Factors Video games have an enormous place in society – most kids are exposed to video games in some sort of capacity growing up. Just like other technological mediums, there are both positive and negative social issues related to video gaming. Some Positive Effects of Playing Video Games Video games have proven to be effective tools for children’s learning when used appropriately as they impart specific attitudes, skills and behaviors on the player. For example, some video games have helped to teach children how to effectively deal with their asthma and diabetes. Further, in a study with college students, playing a golf video game improved students’ actual control of force when putting, even though the video game gave no bodily feedback on actual putting movement or force. Video games have also been shown to increase surgical skills for doctors, and research has more broadly proven that people can learn iconic, spatial, and visual attention skills from video games. [1] Some Negative Effects of Playing Video Games. Research has shown that video games can lead to negative effects on children’s physical health, including obesity, video-induced seizures, and postural, muscular and skeletal disorders, such as tendonitis, nerve compression, and carpal tunnel syndrome. Additionally, the amount of time spent playing video games has been shown to have a negative correlation with academic performance. [2] But even more prevalent, is that playing video games has been shown to have a positive correlation with antisocial and aggressive behavior. Violent video games are most commonly defined as games where the player can intentionally harm the other characters. Not only do a majority of video games today fall under this definition, but a recent study established that the majority of 4th to 8th grade students prefer violent games. [3] Environmental Factors E-Waste Almost 50 million tons of electronic products are discarded every year, and the figure continues to grow as the lifespan of new devices continues to shrink. According to the environmental organization Greenpeace, that estimated amount of e-waste generated every year put into containers on a train would be enough to circle the globe! In fact, up to five percent of all municipal solid waste worldwide is this electronic waste (e-waste). Such is the magnitude of this e-waste that it now ties with plastic packaging in number; yet electronic waste is much more hazardous. While mobile phones and computers are the main causes of this ever-increasing waste as they are replaced on average more frequently, video games and video game consoles contribute significantly to e-waste. [1] http://www. mediafamily. org/facts/facts_effect. shtml [2] http://www. buzzle. com/articles/effects-of-video-games-on-children. html [3] http://findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m0816/is_6_21/ai_n9772319/.

An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley Essay -- Papers

An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley In Priestley's play An Inspector Calls, the two main characters, Arthur Birling and the Inspector, both show certain features of real people but, in particular the Inspector seems to be representative of political and social issues that were relevant in 1912. What seems like a simple detective thriller, with an inspector asking questions and the other characters answering them in order to find the person responsible for the suicide of Eva Smith (alias Daisy Renton), gradually develops into a complex investigation of political stances, of capitalism and socialism. To answer this question fully, we have to consider many different aspects of Mr Birling and the Inspector's characters. We need to look at the views they express, but we also need to look at their interaction with other characters before we can fully decide whether they have a rounded personality and can thus be considered to be real people or whether they merely represent social and political concepts. We also need to consider the time the play was set in, the events, the setting and the ritual associated with it. In An Inspector Calls many different issues are brought up about social attitudes and political views, but the most important has to be responsibility. In this particular context, Birling and the Inspector clearly have to be seen as representatives of two opposing definitions of responsibility. While Birling sees it as "a man has to make his own way, has to look after himself and his family", thus excluding responsibility for anybody else, the Inspector represents the idea of social responsibility in a society where t... ...a Smith to commit suicide. The Inspector never forgives nor punishes but just tries to warn the Birlings of their doings so that they can say the right things to the real Inspector, and to know what they have all done. I believe that Priestley has meant to not go into detail on the Inspectors feelings and beliefs, as this almost adds a sought of mystery around the Inspectors character, it mainly gets you thinking towards the end, is the Inspector real or are the Birlings just hallucinating, or could the Inspector be a ghost or a Goole which his last name could represent (Inspector Goole). But the question was can the Inspector represent a real person, to a certain extent yes, but not as fully as Mr Birlings character can, so in my opinion he is not a very good representative of real people in the era of the play.

Leadership from Genghis Khan Essay

In 1165, a child was born in the heart of Asia. It is said that when he was born, he was clutching a blood clot-a sign from Heaven that he was destined to be a great warrior. His name is Genghis Khan, meaning â€Å"Universal Ruler†. The word Khan is not a name, but a title. It means emperor or king. This word had been used by different tribes or nations in various forms in central Asia. Genghis Khan is the most greatest among those Khans.(Abbott, 1902) His life was about to become a legend in human history. Many people believe that his story is full of butchering people and some scholars even compared him to Hitler. The real character of Genghis Khan, however, is far more intriguing. How did this illiterate outcast turn the feuding tribes of Mongolia into a powerful nation? And how did he transform the Mongol hordes into a ruthless and disciplined fighting machine? Snapshot of Genghis Khan Genghis Khan was born with the name of Temujin in 1165 on the banks of the river Onon. When he was 9 years old, he met his father’s death, poisoned by Tatars, who were the dominant tribe in eastern Mongolia at that time. None of his father’s followers want to be led by a 9 years old boy, but neither did they want to kill Temujin for fear of starting a feud with his father’s relatives. His father’s followers left Temujin and his mother by the clan, who are afraid of him succeeding to his father’s position. After that, Temujin began survival. He became the youth who fought for survival of him and his mother, abandoned by his father’s followers after the murder of his father. (Historic World Leaders, 1994) When he was 14, he was taken prisoners by the Taichi’uts. However, he escaped successfully. Then he soon married to his first wife, Borte. Unluckily, his wife was later captured by his enemy. He then united Jamuka, who is his blood brother, and Toghrill to rescue his wife. But after this rescue, the gap between Temujin and his blood brother was becoming more and more large because both he and Jamuka are persons who are eager to be the leader of clan. They both want to be the Khan who can unite the Mongol. They cannot stand to become the leader assistance. In 1185, he Mongol princes acclaimed Temujin as their ruler. After that, he experienced tremendous setbacks and overcame. (Historic World Leaders, 1994) In 1206, Temujin united all the tribes in Mongol, he was proclaimed to the emperor of all Mongols, and given the title Genghis Khan, which means † Universal Monarch†. After that, Genghis Khan began his conquering to Asia and Europe. During the followed two decades, Genghis Khan would lay the foundations for the largest empire ever known. (Xu, 2002) In 1213, the Mongolian crossed the Great Wall, spreading out to northern part of China. Genghis Khan’s army sacked Beijing in 1215. In 1219, He began his bloody slaughters, moving westward. In 1227, it is said that he died because the internal injury suffered after falling from his horse. At that time, the land he conquered was from the borders of Turkey to Russia to northern India to China.(Schlager and Lauer, 2001) However, it is undeniable that Genghis Khan is a slaughter when he was conquering. It is said that every time his army conquered a city, they would kill all the men whose height is over the height of wheel and put all the women, elderly, and children into slavery. There is a statistics states that the Mongolian army led by Genghis Khan killed 30 million people in China, 200 million people in total including Asia and Europe. In 1122, there are 93.47 million people in China. However, in 1274, when the Yuan dynasty was established by Genghis Khan’s descendants, there were only 8.87 million people in China. () There was once a rumor, which proved to be not real, said he killed 1,748,000 people in one hour. (Qing, 2011) Leadership Traits Genghis Khan has a majority of leadership traits, which does not change as him moves from situation to situation. I will analyze three aspects traits of Genghis Khan, which are physical or background traits, personality of ability traits, and task or social traits. Physical and background trait From the perspectives of physical and background trait, he is always being an energetic person. He spent his whole life on integrating different tribes in Mongolia and conquering lands as large as possible. When he died, his emperor controlled a region that stretched from the borders of Turkey to China to Russia to northern India. However, he is illiterate all his life, not ever educated. Personality or ability trait From the perspective of personality or ability traits, Genghis Khan is the person who has a unique personality and charisma. He is a very creative person. The nomadic tribe was a backward tribe at that time. The weapons they mainly used are bow-and-arrow and sword. Genghis Khan developed different kind of technology during the conquest. He invented central Asian compound bow, which had the same power as to the European crossbow. He combined powder to the arrow, which did a great contribution to destroy the heavy European armour. Also, He invented the Mongol military tactics and organization helped the Mongol Emperor to conquer nearly all of continental Asia, the Middle East and parts of eastern Europe. In many ways, it can be regarded as the first â€Å"modern† military system. (May, 2007) He is self-confidence, but not ego. He did not need any comments on his self-confidence because when one third of the world is under your control, you did not lack for self-confidence. As a tactician and strategist, he was initiative and superb at seizing opportunities. He was also flexible in adapting to change situations. Genghis Khan once saw the new needs of his policy he had created, he responded. Social trait From the perspective of social traits, he is famous for cooperating with his followers to come up with the strategy or new inventions. His inspirational leadership made his followers loyal to him. Genghis Khan has excellent organizational skills and he is talented in sociability. He is a disciplined person, same as his army. Because of his organizational an strategic skills, he created one of the most highly effective armies in history, he was given birth to administrate this army. (May, 2003) Leadership Behavior A good leader is someone who does not make plans for the group, but to influence the group members toward the achievement of group goals in which the members view the influence as legitimate. A good leader is not only organizing the group, but to unite the group members to generate great effectiveness. Throughout Genghis Khan’s life, he used several leadership behaviors to influence his followers. Directive Leadership Behavior Genghis Khan has a vision that defines and articulates clearly where he wants to go. He sets goals for followers, planning and coordinating followers’ work. As a commander and a statesman, he is always far-sighted strategic thinking. For example, Genghis Khan’s ultimate goal is to conquer the central part of China. However, after establishing his own regime in eastern Mongolia, contrary to expectations, he did not to attack the Jin Dynasty, which took over the northern part of China during that time by Jurchen people. Because he knew that even if he could win in the beginning, he would be attacked by other tribes in the middle west of the Mongolia. So, he did not attempt a direct attack on northern China, but to desire to concentrate on integrating Mongolia.(Qing, 2011) Charismatic Leadership Behavior I think the own charismas of Genghis Khan is the key reason why he could become success. Genghis Khan has a unique personality and charisma. It has been remarked that one of Genghis Khan’s greatest assets was his personal charisma, what R. P. Lister called â€Å"the power to arouse exaltation in his followers, so that they are no longer moved entirely by thoughts of self-preservation, but become slightly mad.† (Historic World Leaders, 2011)It is surprised that all his comrades showed long time loyalty to him, no one ever betray him. He never doubt about his comrades’ loyalty. After every time success, he always awarded his ministers. He never killed them in order to gain more power, but to assign the power to his ministers. Leader Reward and Punishment Behavior One of the obvious leadership behaviors of Genghis Khan is that he reward success. He advocated that if they defeated the enemy, everyone should be assigned spoils. He always rewards those people who have done great contribution to success. He punished those people who disobey his law or rules. Every followers need to clear his rules, and rigorously obeyed. For example, if a soldier deserted his troop, he was executed. If a soldier failed to stop to help a fellow warrior whose baggage fell from his horse, he was executed. If two or more members of a troop made a great advance, but were not supported by their comrades, the latter were executed. (Man, 2009) Participative Leadership Behavior Unlike other rulers, Genghis Khan involved in conquest every time. He spend all his life on conquering, even to his death. In history, there are few rulers who can participate in the conquest as he did. He is also good at taking counsel from other people. He shows great respect to people who counsel. He always involve followers in the decision-making process. He can always get the right people, and use them well. For example, during his early years conquest, he had simply killed everyone who stood in his way. A former official of the Chinese emperor told Genghis Khan that they could pay him valuable tax money to finance further warfare if he would not continue killing people in the lands they conquered. Genghis Khan accepted this advice. (Schlager and Lauer, 2001) Genghis Khan’s Leadership Behavior in Hospitality Industry As a ruler of the empire which had the largest territory in the world ever. Genghis Khan’s greatest assets was his personal charisma. How can I use Genghis Khan’s leadership traits and behaviors for my career in hospitality industry? Can his leadership traits and leadership behaviors be used in hospitality industry? In the following paragraph, I will mainly analyze on how to apply his charismatic leadership behavior and his leader reward and punishment behavior in hospitality industry. There are mainly three attributions of Genghis khan’s charismatic behavior have strong influence on his follower’s attitudes, behaviors, and values. First, Get a Vision. In hospitality industry, even the same as the other industry, it is a great deal for a leader to have a vision. Genghis Khan has a great vision ability, he always clear what to do next. When Genghis Khan began to conquer the Mongol, he had a vision that unity could defeat any singles. In the end, his tribal unity threatened all his rivals. With time going on, his vision is becoming larger and larger: unite nation, build up an empire, even conquer the world. (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 1998) The general manager, as a leader in a hotel, needs to have a right vision and influence followers to dream it up. A general manager of a hotel should analyze the hotel objective, and then have a vision that what this hotel needs most at this time. A hotel general manager should have a vision by considering questions like these: How to use the efficient administration to ascend the RevPar? What kind of marketing strategy does the hotel need to have under the specific circumstances? Do customers enjoy our services? What is the relevance stuff between the needs of employees and the needs of the hotel. A hotel general manager should also have the vision changed with situation goes on. Second, employ the best, use the right person. One of the most charismatic traits of Genghis Khan is that he is brilliant in using people, no matter who they are. For example, he once found one of his prisoners, who has the administrative skills he lacked, but needed. His companions are people from different places, including Mongolian, Jurchen, Chinese, Jin etc..Choosing the right man, Mongol or non-Mongol, was one of Genghis’s supreme talents. (Shelton, 2005) However, in nowadays world, so many leaders do not like the people who are better than them because they are seen not as an asset but a threat. In hospitality industry, since the service is intangible, perishable, inseparate, and variable. Customers valued the hotel not only from the scales, but also the service. It is very essential for a leader in hospitality industry to use the right person in different positions to expand the profits. Employ good employees is only the first step for a manger to go, the more significant is to use employees well. Moreover, the turnover rate in hospitality industry is usually very high, employees always change jobs because of not satisfy with their jobs. Employees would not make commitments to employers if managers do not treat the relations with employees well. Managers should recognize that every employees need to be satisfied with their basic demands, which are not the money, honors, or high-positions, but to discover their own value. Third, perseverance. During Genghis Khan’s childhood, he risked for survival. When he was grown up, he kept on conquering till the last day of his life. Genghis Khan focus on one purpose in his life, which is to see his enemies brought to justice. He insisted on achieving this purpose all his life. He was never distracted by a desire for possessions or wealth as he became more powerful. In nowadays hospitality industry, perseverance also plays a significant role to a leader. In China, hospitality industry is a fast developing industry in recent years. Those international hotel brands, such as, Marriott, Hilton, and Carlson, are increasing star-scale hotels in China every year. Though there are a majority of opportunities in this industry, a lot of people choose to leave this industry but contribute to other industry, such as, finance or accounting. As a hotel leader, or even the employees in basic unit, persistence in hospitality industry can make you success. Because there are more opportunities in this industry than others. For example, the finance industry is almost saturated, it is very hard to move forward in this kind of industry. In China, a hospitality major student may start a basic salary, which is usually lower than other industry, in a hotel. However, this industry is having a lot of opportunities and less risky. In the same uncertainty situation, choose less risky industry would bring more return. So, it is necessary for a hotel manager to hold on consistently and persistently in this industry. Genghis Khan’s leader directive behavior can be applied well in hospitality industry. Genghis Khan has a great vision of what he and his Mongol hordes need to do. Genghis Khan made clear and firm rules for his hordes. Everyone has to obey the rule, even the royal family. This is also a significant step in establishing Genghis Khan’s hold over all the people and aligning them in support of his expansionist policies. He distributed different work to his followers and all of his followers made great commitments in return. In hospitality industry, the reason of some of the employees’ bad performance of services is that they are nor clear for their goals or not clear about the rules. At this time, a directive leader is certainly needed to pursuit followers, make a task-oriented, and specify rules. Also, Leader reward and punishment behavior is needed in hospitality industry. Hotel managers or supervisors should clear about the merits and achievements of their followers. They can build up a salary system to reward and make theLeaders should distribute fairly to followers so that followers will follow them loyally. Conclusion Genghis Khan was not only a ruler, but a unifier. Because of his conquest, he build up his empire stretching from Korea to Western Russia in the north and from Burma to Iraq in the south, opening up the road from eastern world to western world. Even, he made the foundation of the Eurasian history. Due to Genghis khan, the travel between East and West became relatively safe, which had not been exist for a very long period. However, he was also know as a harsh and mercilessly conqueror in history. In terms of leadership, Genghis Khan is a charismatic leader. He was exactly clear of his purpose, having a great vision, and insisting on that. He was humble, accepting criticism. He has a great ability of using the right people. His strategic and organizational skills created one of the most highly disciplined armies in history. Even in the hospitality industry, his leadership behaviors and traits can also be applied, and have contributions to it. People could learn from him in order to gai n the benefits in their career.

Lesson Plan in Classroom Program Essay

In our modern epoch, the time when the only things that are needed for effective learning are the teachers and students is long gone. At the turn of the millennium, the equation to successful teaching also has the variables of classroom schedule, room assignment and even proper assignment of teachers. Although these factors may seem insignificant, all of those can be the telling elements as to whether the highest possible level of edification is attained. During our first teaching episode in our cooperating school, Tagum City National Comprehensive High School, I quickly took notice about the schedule of our CT. Mam Mercado’s schedule is obviously loaded, with only a few minutes of break or rest in between. Her class schedule as well as room assignment was relatively reasonable (in the Philippines’s educational setting). As she is assigned to teach English which is her major, it can be concluded that her students will acquire adequate learning. All these factors greatly contribute to the effectiveness of teaching as well as learning. Having stated that, I realized that for a lesson or a curriculum will be best implemented and taught if all the necessary components, which in this case are the class program, teacher’s assignment and room assignment, are present and well organized. Proper organization can greatly influence and even pad up the interest and enthusiasm of the students. On the part of the teacher, it eases up the tasks to be done knowing that most of these portions which he/she can’t control are put right in place. With that considered, the educational institution can be confident that the zenith of the teaching-leaning process is achieved. Due to some obvious reasons, we were not able to interview our CT about her Class Program. However, she shared to us how important it is to prepare a class program and implement it adaptably. With that, both the teacher and  the learners will know what to do expect as well as do next. With all that has been learned, I realized that there are many dynamics to be considered before effective edification can be professed. Most importantly, proper preparation and implementation of the class program should be given due concern for it can immensely affect learning.

Organizational Culture and Its Importance Essay Example

Organizational Culture and Its Importance Essay Example Organizational Culture and Its Importance Paper Organizational Culture and Its Importance Paper There is no single definition for organizational culture. The topic has been studied from a variety of perspectives ranging from disciplines such as anthropology and sociology, to the applied disciplines of organizational behaviour, management science, and organizational communication. Some of the definitions are listed below: A set of common understandings around which action is organized; finding expression in language whose nuances are peculiar to the group (Becker and Geer 1960). A set of understandings or meanings shared by a group of people that are largely tacit among members and are clearly relevant and distinctive to the particular group which are also passed on to new members (Louis 1980). A system of knowledge, of standards for perceiving, believing, evaluating and acting . . . that serve to relate human communities to their environmental settings (Allaire and Firsirotu 1984). The deeper level of basic assumptions and beliefs that are: learned responses to the groups problems of survival in its external environment and its problems of internal integration; are shared by members of an organization; that operate unconsciously; and that define in a basic taken -for-granted fashion in an organizations view of itself and its environment (Schein 1988). Any social system arising from a network of shared ideologies consisting of two components: substance-the networks of meaning associated with ideologies, norms, and values; and forms-the practices whereby the meanings are expressed, affirmed, and communicated to members (Trice and Beyer 1984). This sampling of definitions represents the two major camps that exist in the study of organizational culture and its application strategies. The first camp views culture as implicit in social life. Culture is what naturally emerges as individuals transform themselves into social groups as tribes, communities, and ultimately, nations. The second camp represents the view that culture is an explicit social product arising from social interaction either as an intentional or unintentional consequence of behaviour. In other words, culture is comprised of distinct observable forms (e. g. , language, use of symbols, ceremonies, customs, methods of problem solving, use of tools or technology, and design of work settings) that groups of people create through social interaction and use to confront the broader social environment. This second view of culture is most relevant to the analysis and evaluation of organizational culture and to cultural change strategies that leaders can employ to improve organizational performance. BEHAVIOUR AND ARTIFACTS We can also characterize culture as consisting of three levels. The most visible level is behaviour and artifacts. This is the observable level of culture, and consists of behaviour patterns and outward manifestations of culture: perquisites provided to executives, dress codes, level of technology utilized (and where it is utilized), and the physical layout of work spaces. All may be visible indicators of culture, but difficult to interpret. Artifacts and behaviour also may tell us what a group is doing, but not why. One cartoon which captures this aspect shows two executives sitting at their desks in an office. Both have large billed black and white checked hats. One is saying to the other, I dont know how it started, either. All I know is that its part of our corporate culture. VALUES At the next level of culture are values. Values underlie and to a large extent determine behaviour, but they are not directly observable, as behaviours are. There may be a difference between stated and operating values. People will attribute their behaviour to stated values. ASSUMPTIONS AND BELIEFS To really understand culture, we have to get to the deepest level, the level of assumptions and beliefs. Experts contend that underlying assumptions grow out of values, until they become taken for granted and drop out of awareness. As the definition above states, and as the cartoon illustrates, people may be unaware of or unable to articulate the beliefs and assumptions forming their deepest level of culture. To understand culture, we must understand all three levels. One additional aspect complicates the study of culture: the group or cultural unit which owns the culture. An organization may have many different cultures or subcultures, or even no discernible dominant culture at the organizational level. Recognizing the cultural unit is essential to identifying and understanding the culture. Organizational cultures are created, maintained, or transformed by people. An organizations culture is, in part, also created and maintained by the organizations leadership. Leaders at the executive level are the principle source for the generation and re-infusion of an organizations ideology, articulation of core values and specification of norms. Organizational values express preferences for certain behaviours or certain outcomes. Organizational norms express behaviours accepted by others. They are culturally acceptable ways of pursuing goals. Leaders also establish the parameters for formal lines of communication and message content-the formal interaction rules for the organization. Values and norms, once transmitted through the organization, establish the permanence of the organizations culture. ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE IS ALSO A SYNTHESIS OF SUBCULTURES Sociologists discuss how distinct societies are composites of interacting subcultures rather than a single overarching culture. Organizations consist of subgroups that have specific characteristics and a sense of identification. Within organizations, people can easily classify themselves and others into various social categories or groups based on identification with their primary work group, occupational or professional skills, union membership, or age cohort. Subgroups in organizations can and do create subcultures that comprise specific networks of meaning; yet, at the same time, they remain associated with the ideologies and values of the organizations leadership. For example, at a macro level the culture that is attributed to the Department of Defense comprises the distinct cultures of the different military services and the corps of civil servants assigned to each service agency. A closer examination of each service culture reveals still greater cultural differentiation among occupational specialties, specific units within the service, and between line and staff personnel. Yet all of these subcultures adhere to the core ideologies, values and norms of the DOD. Numerous studies of organizational culture have highlighted that the formation and maintenance of culture requires interpersonal interaction within subgroups. For example, research led by Meryl Louis demonstrated the benefits of subgroup interaction to newcomers learning the ropes of the jobs. Survey respondents in their first job experience reported that the three most important socialization aids were: Interaction with peers Interaction with their supervisor Interaction with senior co-workers. Interaction with peers on the job was viewed as most important in helping newcomers becoming effective employees. Interaction is important for the acculturation of newcomers. Organizations do not, however, always have homogeneous subcultures. The explicit social products produced by subcultures within organizations can be widely diverse and even result in countercultures. Countercultures can have both pro ductive and unproductive outcomes. Perhaps the key to a countercultures success (i. e. the promulgation of its ideology, values and norms) is the groups ability to demonstrate how its idiosyncrasies are consonant with the core ideologies, values and norms of the dominant culture. THE SYMBIOSIS BETWEEN THE ORGANIZATIONS OVERALL CULTURE AND ITS SUBCULTURES Some people may debate which comes first in an organization: the organizational culture or the organizations subcultures. The question that is relevant to the definition of Organizational Culture is how do the ideologies, values, and norms of subcultures compliment the organizational culture advocated by leadership? Explaining this relationship requires an understanding that cultures provide members with a reliable means to interpret a highly ambiguous environment. It is the leaders responsibility to specify the features of the environment that are relevant to the organization and then provide the supporting assumptions and rationale for its operating strategies. The leaders cultural messages should address ambiguities that are beyond the scope of any organizational subculture to explain to employees. Leaders should recognize that their cultural messages should specifically address cultural ambiguities associated with subculture practices within the organization, and limit their attempts to eliminate distinctions that are important to subcultures identities. In other words, leaders have a better chance of creating or transforming an organizational culture if they accept and foster productive organizational subcultures and consistently communicate how employees must perform in order for the organization to achieve its objectives. Cultural change then relies on leaders communication techniques that cross subcultural boundaries and carry messages about ideologies, values and norms that can be internalized by all employees. Memos and vision statements cannot achieve all of these objectives. Leaders, however, have a variety of sophisticated cultural communication techniques at their disposal to link subcultures to overarching cultural objectives of their organizations. The importance of Organizational Cultural can be derived from its definitions. An understanding of Organizational Culture can help a manager understand what the core value system of the company is and how is it a derivative of its culture or vice versa. The importance of Organizational Culture can be felt in all the spheres of an organization. Some of these are listed below. Mission- e. g. , What is the organization’s core purpose? Vision-e. g. , What is the organization’s overriding orientation? Planning- e. g. , What processes does the organization use to actualize ideas? Strategy for implementation of mission and vision- e. . , What kinds of concrete means for implementation of mission and vision does the organization utilize? Measurements of success- e. g. , Does the organization have a system for continuous improvement? What kind of system(s)? Overall organizational structure- e. g. , Does the organization have a flat structure? A hierarchical structure? What influence do staff have? Supervisory system(s)- e. g. , Do staff receive regular sup ervision? What is the content and context of the supervisory relationships? â€Å"Everyday† language- e. g. What are the insider terms that staff members use? Status and rewards- e. g. , Do staff get bonuses? Are they acknowledged in staff meetings for jobs well done? Concepts of time- e. g. , Do meetings usually start on time, 10 minutes late? Concepts of space-e. g. , Do staff have their own offices, do people usually keep their doors opened or closed? Communication systems-e. g. , Is there an intranet, a staff newsletter? Relationship(s) to external culture(s)- e. g. , Does the organization have a competitive relationship with other similar organizations? Individual/Group focus e. g. , Is the organization oriented more to individual or group needs? Views on difference- e. g. , Are differences in race, sex, etc†¦ talked about? Role delineation-e. g. , Are staff clear on what their job description is or their roles in particular projects? As an employee in any type of o rganization can attest, organizational culture is as prevalent and as varied as individuals themselves. Organizational culture is enduring and complex, and may have both a positive and a negative effect on the staff and the workplace. In many ways culture will determine the survival of an organization over the long term, especially in volatile industries. Cultures that can be a liability to an organization include those that create barriers to change, create barriers to diversity or barriers to mergers and acquisitions. Understanding the organizational culture can help you to understand why change does not take place, or why a project fails. It will also help you to determine where to strive to make changes to the culture. As managers, why do we need to get a sense of the prevailing organizational culture? It is essential to understand the organizational culture if you want to make changes to how work is done, what type of work is being done, or at the broadest level, to affect the organizations standing in its industry. Understanding the culture and, as required, changing it, can mean the difference between attracting and retaining good employees and driving away the best employees with an environment that doesnt encourage, challenge, or reward them. For a new leader or manager, understanding the organizational culture that is in place is essential for success in providing direction, especially when the direction is different from what has come before. Are staff willing and eager to take on new challenges and to follow a new direction, or will they provide passive or active resistance to any changes? What is important to people today, based on their view of where the organization is and where it should be? Where are there disconnects between espoused values, such as the mission statement, and the over symbols and culture type? For example, if the organizations mission is to provide expert customer service, yet the strong hierarchical structure means that employees are not empowered to assist customers by providing creative solutions or dont have the required authority to provide responses or results, there is a disconnect. If an organization was eager to see positive change and the time was right for providing impetus to staff to follow a new path. The assessment of culture of the organization can reveal the opposite, however, which is just as valuable to managers. If there is resistance to change, if the espoused values of the organization dont match with the staff perceptions and prevailing culture, you must try to change the culture or change the objectives and mission to reflect reality. As a manager, it may not be possible for you to change the organizations overarching culture. Understanding the culture, howeverespecially if you want to adapt your departmental culture to create a more positive cultureis possible. Departmental cultures may differ greatly in organizations, depending on the leaders and the staff within those departments. You may not be able to have an effect on the organization overall, depending on your position in the organization and how large it is, but with work you will be able to make a difference at the library level. Some ways that you can try to change the organizational culture include reviewing the mission and vision for the firm with the staff to ensure that they are accurate. If changes are needed to reflect the reality of what you want to do and what you can do, then it should be done. For a start, make sure that departmental statements and staff actions reflect the type of culture you want. For example, to increase the market culture, try increasing the measurements of service activities and have staff involved in developing metrics and outcomes for services (as part of the performance management system, for example). Reward staff of particular service areas who respond to changes in customer demands through developing new programs or services. To reduce hierarchical culture, for example, begin by empowering staff to provide suggestions and to help implement their new ideas. You should also empower staff to make more decisions for their own areas of expertise. As the leader, one should always be aware of one’s actions and model the behavior one expects of the staff. Ensure that the statements one makes are consistent with the values and the symbols of the culture one would like to develop. One may not be able to change the overall organizational culture immediately, but the positive results and positive impact at the departmental level should have some level of spill-over effect onto other departments. Moreover, it will make it a more pleasant culture for everyone to be working in. CONCLUDING THOUGHT An understanding of organizational culture, and how important it is, is a crucial skill for leaders trying to achieve strategic outcomes. Strategic leaders have the best perspective, because of their position in the organization, to see the dynamics of the culture, what should remain, and what needs transformation. This is the essence of strategic success. BIBLIOGRAPHY Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligence. Bantam Books: New York, New York, 1995. Stephen P. Robbins. Organizational Behavior, 8th edition Schein, Edgar H. The Corporate Culture: A Survival Guide. Jossey-Bass Books: San Francisco, California, 1999. www. wikipedia. org

Sulphuric acid is dibasic Essay Example

Sulphuric acid is dibasic Essay Example Sulphuric acid is dibasic Paper Sulphuric acid is dibasic Paper Demonstrating that sulphuric is dibasic: Aim: The aim of my plan is to demonstrate that sulphuric acid is dibasic. Introduction: Acid is a substance that reacts with a base to form a salt and water similarly a base is a substance that reacts with an acid to form a salt and water. Lewis (a scientist) states that an acid is a compound that accepts a pair of electrons from a base and a base is a molecule or an ion that donates a pair of electrons to an acid. Acids taste sour and are corrosive and bases are slippery. ? Acid + Base i Salt + Water Acid + Metal i Metal Salt + Hydrogen gas Prediction: I predict that sulphuric acid, H2SO4 is dibasic because it forms two hydrogen (H+) ions in an aqueous solution. It is the molecule of sulphuric acid which changes to sulphate ions (SO42-) and hydrogen ions (H+) when dissolved in water. However, hydrochloric acid is monobasic as it only forms one hydrogen (H+) ion in an aqueous solution. To prove this, I am going to carry out two different experiments that involve a titration and collection of a gas. I assume that it should require me half a volume of sulphuric acid to neutralise sodium hydroxide, NaOH than HCl in titration. In the collection of gas, I expect to collect double the volume of gas when metal reacts with H2SO4 than that of produced in the reaction with HCl. To prevent irritant substances from coming in contact with my skin Method: Titration: 1. Pour in 100cm3of sulphuric acid and 100cm3of Sodium hydroxide in two separate beakers and label them with their corresponding names, H2SO4 and NaOH. 2. Rinse burette first with distilled water then with small amount of H2SO4 while tap is still closed. Leave some of the acid and run it through the tap. 3. Close the tap and clamp the burette. Make sure it is secure. 4. Using filter funnel, fill burette with H2SO4. 5. Also, rinse conical flask with distilled water first and then with NaOH. 6. Bind pipette filler with pipette and fill in 25 cm3 of NaOH and read lower meniscus. 7. Hold pipette above conical flask and remove the pipette filler which will allow NaOH to run down into it. 8. Put a whit tile underneath burette. 9. Add few drops of phenolphthalein in the conical flask containing NaOH and place it on the tile. 10. Open the tap fully and allow the acid to flow and at the same time swirl the conical flask. 11. If the colour of solution is going lighter, twist the tap so that only drops of acid flow into the conical flask. 12. Keep adding the drops until one last drop changes the colour of the solution to colourless. 13. Close the tap with that last drop and record the reading of the acid that was used in a table. 14. Repeat the same procedure 3 more times and find the average volume of acid used. 15. Carry out exactly the same procedure from step 1 to 13 but using HCl instead of H2SO4. 16. See the figure below for how to set up the apparatus.

Hack, Hacker and Hacking

Hack, Hacker and Hacking Hack, Hacker and Hacking Hack, Hacker and Hacking By Maeve Maddox A reader is puzzled by a new permutation of the word hack: The word hack, until recently, meant to break into someones Internet account or system. Now I see it meaning tips or suggestions.   Am I correct? Like this reader, the only meaning that hack held for me in regard to computers was as a verb meaning â€Å"to illegally enter a computer system.† I too was surprised to come across headlines like the following: 100 Life Hacks That Make Life Easier 23 Inventive Hacks That Every Parent Should Know Millennials Are Ditching Delivery for This Dinner Hack Best Travel Hacks 17 Thanksgiving Hacks For The Best Meal Of Your Life How did hack go from â€Å"illegal computer activity† to â€Å"a tip for making things easier to do†? Looking a little further, I find that hack and hacking to connote only malicious unauthorized access to computer files may reflect general usage, but not that of programmers who are proud to be known as â€Å"hackers.† The OED has ten entries for the word hack: five as a noun, four as a verb, and one as a combining form. The verb hack in the sense of â€Å"to cut with heavy blows† has been in the language since the early 13th century, but the use of hack in the context of computer programming dates from the 1970s. Note: Hack in the sense of â€Å"to cope with† dates from 1955: â€Å"I can’t hack all this extra work.† The etymology of the computer term hack is not certain. According to one theory, it derives from the noun hack used as tech slang for â€Å"one who works like a hack at writing and experimenting with software, one who enjoys computer programming for its own sake. (OnlineEtymologyDictionary). The noun hacker does not carry a connotation of illegal activity in the following OED citations from 1976: The compulsive programmer, or hacker as he calls himself, is usually a superb technician. The compulsive programmer spends all the time he can working on one of his big projects. ‘Working’ is not the word he uses; he calls what he does ‘hacking’. The earliest citation that associates the word hacking with illegal activity is dated 1983: Hacking, as the practice of gaining illegal or unauthorized access to other peoples computers is called. Because hack, hacker, and hacking have such varied connotations, writers should consider the intended audience when using them. In the programming community, hacker and hacking are good things, or at least neutral. Using an adjective to describe the bad kind might be useful when writing for programmers, for example, â€Å"malicious hacking† or â€Å"illegal hacking.† As for the noun hack meaning â€Å"tip,† â€Å"suggestion,† or â€Å"work-around,† I expect the usage will become embedded in computer-speak. The trendy use of hack in the context of cooking, parenting, and other non-computer-related fields, however, will probably eventually revert to tip or suggestion. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Possessive of Proper Names Ending in Sâ€Å"As Well As† Does Not Mean â€Å"And†The Difference Between e.g. and i.e.?

Discuss Hurricane Katrina Impact on Bermuda and International Research Proposal

Discuss Hurricane Katrina Impact on Bermuda and International Insurance Markets, and Explain How Storm Affected Our Attitudes Towards Insurance - Research Proposal Example We observed the complete lack of communication between federal government, state government, and the cities, officials. Inefficiency, no initiative, no clear leadership, delay in every action, and overall chaos can characterize the behavior of those who should try to prevent and minimize the damages. And on top of everything, most of the areas and people hit and affected by the Katrina were not prepared for the scale of disaster. Katrina was hugely devastating and the magnitude of its damage will linger probably for some time, in areas affected and in minds of people who witnessed that disaster. However, the federal and state officials, as well as ordinary people can derive a lesson from Katrina. This was not the first such disaster, and it surely was not the last one (Hayhurst, 2007). According to earth scientist, due to changes in climate and global warming, hurricanes and other natural disasters will appear more frequently. How can we, ordinary citizens as well as officials on different levels, prevent such after-disaster crisis? How can we better manage crisis? Are there ways to diminish peoples suffering? And mostly importantly, who should pay for everything? Money is always crucial issue and in situation of such crisis it takes another meaning. We have to be aware of the fact that we cannot rely always on the others for help. In many critical situations, we have to come up with our own solutions to the problems. In this case study, the situation of an average family living in the hurricane-prone area is analyzed. The analysis is performed on different levels. First, we closely look at the prevention and avoiding severe crisis due to disaster. We, as humans, cannot control nature, but we can and should take every measure to protect human life in the face of a disaster. Therefore, what measures people should take to protect themselves and their personal

The Evolution of the Leadership Archetype of Female Essay

The Evolution of the Leadership Archetype of Female - Essay Example The Devil Wear Prada MovieThe Devil Wear Prada Movie With the growth in the global economy, female leadership levels stabilized. This 2006 movie shows female power based on relationships of career, friendship and love in complex and at times paradoxical opinions. Female power relationships detailed in the movie, portray that women use power appropriately to ensure they maintain their business competitiveness. This surfaces when Andrea acts loyal to Miranda when she attempted to alert of the coup that intended to overthrow Miranda for a younger woman. However, love and friendship linkages depreciate as women become successful professionally. In spite of relationship drawbacks, such movies portray optimism and stable female figures for young females in the workforce (Danya 70).The Girl Next Door movie With the high and improved economic standards, their enhancement occur in life and consequently, because of westernization, social evils such as prostitution and production of pornographi c materials have sprung up. In this 2004 American teen film, the main actor Matthew (an honour student), decides to love for the first time a girl next door, but in the process meets challenging circumstances after he learns of her former porn work.  The Patriarchal Archetype of Women Heroines According to the producers of The Girl Next Door movie,’ the female character, Danielle (Elisha Cuthbert) contrasts to her male counterpart Matthew Kidman (Emile Hirsch) in a way that Matthew holds a higher leadership level due to his higher education. Unlike in the comedy, ‘Baby Boon’ and in the Devil Wear Prada movie, where the female figure confers upon a high social class and at the same time cares for life (caring for the child). On the other hand, Danielle is portrayed as a reformed porn star. It is unclear whether she has any significant form of education. She underwent this social vice in order to sustain herself. During the

DNA is the most important for life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

DNA is the most important for life - Essay Example This essay argues the DNA is the most important molecule for life. Deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA is a nucleic molecule that functions as one of the most central aspects of living organisms. Contained within DNA are the fundamental aspects of all living things; in these regards, DNA functions as a sort of encyclopedic instruction manual for all elements within the human genetic system. Another way of viewing DNA is as a blueprint for the living organism. When new components, including RNA or proteins need to be constructed, it is the DNA that determines how these elements will be constituted. Figure 1 below demonstrates the basic DNA genetic components. It’s for these reasons it’s clear DNA is more important to the construction of life than these components. While DNA is recognized as an essential blueprint for all living organisms, it all contains a number of important live creating and sustaining functions within these organisms. One such function is that of transcription. Within DNA there are genes, which are strands of material that influence the constitution of living elements (Cooper). These genes contain genetic components influence the organism’s phenotype through transcription processes. This transcription process functions through informing the sequences of RNA and protein. During this process the codons of a gene are implemented in transcribing RNA polymerase (Pollard). This process is then decoded through ribosomes that read the base-pairing messenger elements. This process occurs in a great variety of life producing ways, with sixty-four possible combinations, making DNA a core element for daily life. This process is witnessed below in Fig. 2. Fig. 2 Transcription Another core function of DNA that makes it the most important molecule for life is witnessed in its interaction with protein in the body. All components of protein interaction rely on DNA. Some of the most notable elements in terms of life-producing components occur in the domain of structural proteins. In the interaction between DNA and structural proteins, the important life-producing element of chromatin is produced (Van Holde). This element is used for the important life functions of mitosis and meiosis. Ultimately, it’s the combination of these elements that make DNA the most important molecule for life in living organisms. In conclusion, this essay has demonstrated that Deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA functions as the most important molecule for life in living organisms. While DNA functions in countless and complex ways, this essay has considered what it considers to be the most prominent such aspects. In these regards, DNA’s function as the blueprint of the living organism is considered as its primary function. In addition to this component, DNA also functions in transcription processes and in the development of chromatin. Ultimately, it’s the combination of these elements that makes DNA the most important component in living organisms. References Cooper, Geoffrey M. 2000. The Cell, 2nd edition, A Molecular Approach. Pollard, T. 2002. Cell Biology. Saunders. Van Holde KE. 1989. Chromatin. New York:

Academic Sucess Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Academic Sucess - Essay Example Success in education is determined by the interplay of many factors that contribute to an individual’s success both in academics and life. To be successful, extreme effort needs to be applied to reach your goals. Purpose, responsibility, hard work all lead to success. Students who apply these principles have a greater chance of achieving success. Therefore, this paper focuses on discussing the necessary steps an individual has to take to ensure or increase the probability of success in academics. Purpose in life is the greatest motivator in life, a life without purpose is at most meaningless because it lacks direction and the passion necessary to live a fulfilling life. When this is applied to academics, it plays the same role of charting a path for the student and determining the kind of attitude that a student is going to have towards achieving their academic goals. For a student to be able to properly harness the true capacity that is induced by purpose, they should first evaluate what motivates they desire to excel in academics and apply these motivators on self (Moon, 2008). According to Moon, students should endeavor to understand that excellence can only be achieved through individual commitment and participation and that no external factor can influence their success without their direct involvement. Applying oneself to the objective of excelling requires an individual to have a healthy self-esteem by thinking highly of themselves and being worthy of the high aspirat ions that they desire (Moon, 2008). Lack of self-esteem in individual confines the limitless potential that can be realized by the belief in one self. A student should be capable of identifying the reasons behind their aspirations and justify them as being able to satisfy their desired objective. The need to lead a better life, through improved living standards, can be cited as the drive towards achieving academic excellence because

Homicide Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Homicide - Essay Example However, Daly and Wilson state ‘we lose the conceptual unity of intention that was the rationale for including attempted murders by defining homicide in this way’ (1988:14). Richards (1999) provides a clearer definition of homicide and refers to it as the interpersonal assaults and other acts directed against another person (e.g. poisoning) that occur outside the context of warfare, which prove fatal. This definition is supported by The Law Commission (TLC) who indicate homicide as ‘the unlawful killing of a human being by another human being’ (2005: 3). Homicide offences include murder, manslaughter and infanticide. In England and Wales, the structure of law concerning homicide centres on two broad offences; murder and manslaughter (TLC, 2005). Murder is classed as the most serious form of homicide, and has traditionally been associated with pre-meditated thought on the part of the perpetrator. However, TLC (2005) states that there doesn’t have to be an intention to kill or even a pre-meditated intention to kill to class a person guilty of committing murder. The Homicide Act (1957) introduced the concept of conviction for manslaughter and a person can be convicted of committing manslaughter rather than murder if they intentionally kill a person as a result of losing self-control through being provoked or if a ‘reasonable person’ would have reacted in the same way. ... nlawful killings whose offender intended to cause harm unlawful killings whose offender realised their actions involved unjustified risk of causing death but went ahead with their actions offender provoked, diminished responsibility or duress Manslaughter Comprises unlawful killings where the offender ; kills through conduct that is gross neglect (involuntary) kills though intending to cause harm (voluntary) How is Homicide Reported by Police Statistics? Richards (1999) claims that homicide is one of the few crimes that really get under-reported, and so homicide rates reasonably provide accurate measures of crime levels. However, it is also important to note that how government data counts homicide rates varies between Scotland and England and Wales. In Scotland for example, a single offence is counted for each act of homicide, regardless of the number of victims or offenders, e.g. Lockerbie in 1988 is closed as one act of homicide, rather than 270. In England and Wales however, each act of homicide is counted as an individual act. Richards (1999) also notes that a homicide case is generally presented in official statistics in the year in which the police record it. This however isn’t always the year in which the crime in committed, or when the accused is brought to trial, or when the suspect is either found guilty or innocent of homicide. During the past 50 years Parliament has barely touched the law of murder (TLC, 2005). The irregularity that exists in the way a person is convicted (as either murder or manslaughter) has resulted in seriously flawed homicide laws, which lack proper structure to convict people appropriately. However, police statistics relating to homicide rates do provide a number of useful information. For example, they let us measure murder and

Academic Sucess Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Academic Sucess - Essay Example Success in education is determined by the interplay of many factors that contribute to an individual’s success both in academics and life. To be successful, extreme effort needs to be applied to reach your goals. Purpose, responsibility, hard work all lead to success. Students who apply these principles have a greater chance of achieving success. Therefore, this paper focuses on discussing the necessary steps an individual has to take to ensure or increase the probability of success in academics. Purpose in life is the greatest motivator in life, a life without purpose is at most meaningless because it lacks direction and the passion necessary to live a fulfilling life. When this is applied to academics, it plays the same role of charting a path for the student and determining the kind of attitude that a student is going to have towards achieving their academic goals. For a student to be able to properly harness the true capacity that is induced by purpose, they should first evaluate what motivates they desire to excel in academics and apply these motivators on self (Moon, 2008). According to Moon, students should endeavor to understand that excellence can only be achieved through individual commitment and participation and that no external factor can influence their success without their direct involvement. Applying oneself to the objective of excelling requires an individual to have a healthy self-esteem by thinking highly of themselves and being worthy of the high aspirat ions that they desire (Moon, 2008). Lack of self-esteem in individual confines the limitless potential that can be realized by the belief in one self. A student should be capable of identifying the reasons behind their aspirations and justify them as being able to satisfy their desired objective. The need to lead a better life, through improved living standards, can be cited as the drive towards achieving academic excellence because

Corporation As a Legal Entity Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Corporation As a Legal Entity - Case Study Example After carrying on a leather business for sometime, Mr. Salomon turned his business into a limited company. At that time the law required the number of shareholders to be essentially seven. Mr. Salomon held 20,001 shares with his wife and five children holding six remaining shares, making him the majority shareholder of the company. He also acted as the sole director of the company. Mr. Salomon sold his previous business to the company and received the payment in the form of debentures. The debentures were worth 10,000, which were secured by him with the charge, making him a secured creditor of the company. After some time his business failed and he had to liquidate the company. The debentures were paid off out of the remaining assets but nothing was left to pay the unsecured creditors of the company who sued Mr. Salomon to be personally liable for the debts of the company. The court's decision however went in the favour of Mr. Salomon on the basis that he had not committed any fraud and that he could not be held liable for his company's debts as a company is a separate being from that of its owners and directors, even when the majority of shares and debentures were held by him (Griffin, 2000) It is therefore evident from above illustration that a company's owners, shareholders, directors, and management cannot be termed as the same entity as the company itself, because in the light of law, these are distinct from each other. Therefore, the claim of the Bensons Carpfit Ltd's unsecured creditors that the owners and shareholders of the company should personally pay to them other than the company's assets is vague and has no legal obligation on the owner as commented by Cheffins (1997, p147), "in the ordinary course, a company's shareholders, directors, and officers are not personally liable for the company's debts". The case of Salomon v Salomon & Co validates this point and the court's verdict proved that director and shareholder could not be held liable for the debts of the company. The claim of unsecured creditors that Ben who holds the majority of shares, is the sole director and rest of the shareholders being his trustees in the company, should be held liable for the company's debts because he seems to have traded the company solely. The same was the claim raised by the creditors in the case of Salomon v Salomon & Co that Mr. Salomon being the majority shareholder and sole director of the company should be responsible for the company's debts. However, the court disagreed that even if that had been the case, Mr. Salomon could still not be held liable. Thus, the claim of the creditors of Ben's company holds no validity in the eyes of law. In the case of Levy V Abercorris Slate and Slab Co, the court enjoined that debenture entails existence or recognition of a debt. Ben also held debentures worth 10,000 having charge over the company's assets. The charge on Ben's debentures need to be determined by the court concerning their nature as being floating or fixed. In the case of Re Mamagh shoes ltd (1982), the court disregarded the parties' consideration of document as a fixed charge and reckoned it to be a floating charge. It means that the Ben's loan to his company was secured and in case of liquidation he was much in a

Islam a Religion of Peace Essay Example for Free

Islam a Religion of Peace Essay And then there is the question of characterizing Islam as â€Å"peaceful† and doing so under duress. That is, when you are being pursued and hounded by people who brand you as totally irrational and uncontrollably violent. So, you have a knee-jerk reaction, purely defensive and purely self-protective and blurt out that you are a â€Å"peaceful religion. † And you are absolutely and one hundred percent right in saying that. For, Islam is all about peace and truth and justice and kindness and compassion. But that is not what your accusers and tormenters are saying. They are pointing to all the violence that is going on in different parts of the Muslim world, violence in which Muslims are involved in one way or another, and saying that it is all Islam’s fault. But what some of these people conveniently forget is that there are all kinds of background factors and conditions that lead to violence in individuals, groups, nations and societies. They forget that peace is one state of human life and reality. Another is strife and conflict. A third reality of human life is force. Peace is the ideal state to which we all aspire and toward which we all work. Strife is the sad and gloomy reality in which human life is all too often mired. Legitimate, lawful and societally sanctioned force is the instrument that human beings have devised for minimizing and controlling strife and for maximizing peace. The foundation of true and lasting peace on earth and in any society is justice, love, compassion, integrity, truth, reasonableness and sound morality. Where this foundation is absent or weak, and where people’s most basic needs and legitimate rights and aspirations are not met, and are persistently and blatantly denied, chances of stable and lasting peace are minimized or jeopardized. All too often, then, those who have been systematically denied their basic and legitimate rights, and who are not allowed by nations, societies and governments any rightful recourse to the redress of their lawful grievances, begin to resort to force and violence as an instrument of resistance to their domination, subjugation and exploitation by others and for the amelioration of their situation. There are all kinds of university books, full of all kinds of theories, that explain why and how people develop violent tendencies and behavior.

Can Sri Lanka Apparel Industry Face Future Challenges?

Can Sri Lanka Apparel Industry Face Future Challenges? 1. Sri Lanka has traditionally been an agro-based economy from the ancient time. With the Industrial Revolution taking root in Europe and later spreading to the rest of the world, Sri Lanka too had to take its place in this scenario. Factory scale production of ready made garments in Sri Lanka had its beginnings in the early 1950s to become the largest industry in the Sri Lankan economy. During the pre-liberalization era (pre-1977), the domestic textile industry was essentially an import substitution industry confined to a few large-scale textile industries run by the government. The textile industry did not make much progress during this period. The garment industry has its origins in the mid- 1960s, but unlike the textile industry, the former was mainly run by the private sector. Initially, almost all of the garments produced were for the domestic market and there were hardly any exports during this period. A large share of the industry was in the hands of few companies. Since the importation of textiles was either banned or restricted, locally produced textiles mainly fed the garment industry. GARMENTS: All external and internal finished common clothing items such as shirts, T shirts, pants, dresses, sports clothing, fashion garments, under garments etc. APPAREL : finished clothing that can be considered as supporting clothing or accessories such as jackets, lingerie, leather clothing, knitted garments, shoes, hats, gloves, fashion accessories etc. 2. The period after the late 1970s saw a rapid expansion of the garment industry in Sri Lanka. The phenomenal growth during this period can be attributed to three major factors: a. The first is the market-oriented liberal economic policies introduced in 1977, which placed greater emphasis on the export-led industries. b. The second is the supportive measures taken by the government through the Board of Investment, such as duty free importation of industrial inputs, off-shore borrowing facilities, tax holidays or concessional taxation, etc. These measures together with the availability of labour- intensive industries such as garments. c. The next important factor which contributed to the Sri Lankan apparel industry is the Multi Fibre arrangement ( MFA ). AIM 4. The aim of this research is to discuss about the apparel industry in Sri Lanka and analyse the future challenges. CHAPTER TWO METHODOLOGY STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM: 1. The apparel sector had grown tremendously after introducing the open economy. Now it has become the leading export industry replacing the traditional tea and rubber. It is the most significant and dynamic contributor of Sri Lankan economy. 2. The major drawback in the Sri Lankan apparel industry is that it has not upgraded with latest technologies and modern consumer demands to compete with the other countries, mostly the South East Asian countries. National economy will definitely be affected if the country fails to address the drawbacks in the industry. 3. The aim of my research is to identify the weaknesses in the apparel sector and to suggest favourable and appropriate solutions to secure the industry. RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS 4. It is hypothesized that the reason for not upgrading with the latest technology and consumer demands is lack of capital, incompatible demands and high competition.    SCOPE OF THE STUDY 5. The scope of the study covers an assessment of the ready made garment industry in Sri Lanka taking three well known factories in to consideration. Factors that had been an impact to the industry will be identified through the research and the root causes of the problem will be then be identified. Recommendations will be made for the improvement. METHOD OF DATA COLLECTION 6. The required data for the research will be drawn from the following sources; a. Primary sources Primary sources will include information collected by interviewing resource personnel in the garment sector. b. Secondary sources Information will be gathered from relevant books, journals, the internet, treaties, conventions as well as international and local enactments of relevance. CHAPTER THREE OVERVIEW OF THE APPAREL INDUSTRY HISTORY   1. The textile and clothing industry had emerged from a modest beginning in the early 1950s A few pioneering industrialists who started out on an uncertain course at this time , confident their manufacture to only some popular items of garments and catered essentially to local demand. By the end of the 1950s there was a reversal in policies and the economy moved towards restrictions on imports and a policy of import substitution in industry began to be perused. While the major basic industries were reserved for the state; a wide range of consumer goods industries were opened to the private sector , which was provide with various investment incentives and a protected market. Over the decade of the 1960s as many as 300 categories of industrial products began to be manufactured locally. Among this range of products a major item was textiles and another ready made garments, though from the outset raw materials required for the garments industry were imported. 2. It was in the late1960s that Sri Lankas ready made garments began to break into export markets. Sri Lankas shirts had found acceptability in markets such as the UK and Soviet Union and a leading shirt manufacture began exporting up to Rs:2 million worth of product annually to the USSR, within the bilateral trade agreement between Sri Lanka and the USSR. 3. Around 1972 there was a change in outlook towards the industry as existing policy was altered to allow certain sectors to adapt an export oriented approach. Special foreign exchange allocations and other fiscal and tax incentives were offered to selected export oriented industries under this package. In the first six years of the 1970s over 2500 industrial units received approval from the Local Industries Approve Committee (LIAC) and of these nearly 2000 were in the product group of Textiles and Textile based industries. By the mid 1970s wage/ pries inflation and imposition of trade quotas on exports of traditional Asian Suppliers of made-up garments such as Hong Kong , Taiwan, South ,Korea and Singapore made Sri Lanka more attractive location for the industry. New units began to be established in collaboration with foreign capital/marketing, while production was being upgraded through import. 4. The period after the late 1970s saw a rapid expansion of the clothing industry in Sri Lanka. The impressive growth witnessed during this period can be attributed to two major factors. The first is the market-oriented liberal economic policies introduced in 1977. The market friendly economic reforms, which identified the private sector as the engine of growth, places greater emphasis on the export-led industries. 5. The second important factor which contributes to the remarkable expansion of the Sri Lanka textile and clothing industry is the Multi Fibre Arrangement ( MFA ). Sri Lanka is one of the countries that benefited from the quota hopping investments. The overseas manufactures of garment who relocated their production facilities in Sri Lanka include firms from both and Newly Industrialize Countries ( NICs) in East Asian and Europe. While the NIC firms moved their operations mainly as a means of quota hopping the motivation for producers of countries such as Germany and the UK to move into Sri Lanka was the rising production costs in their home countries. Given the ability to separate to different stages of the clothing industry, these overseas producers were able to disintegrate their production lines into low-cost countries like Sri Lanka without much difficulty. Investments by these two categories of foreign manufacturers fuelled the growth of the Sri Lankan clothing industry to a lar ge extent. In fact, the factories set up as joint ventures and wholly owned foreign companies account for almost half of the total exports earning from garments. MULTI FIBRE ARRANGEMENT 6. The Multi Fibre Arrangement (MFA) is a system of quotas designed to protect garment industries in first world countries by slowing down the pace of globalization. The MFA does not apply to the expanding garment trade between rich countries. 7. The MFA has had a complex but crucial impact on the development of the garment industry. In the Third World, by imposing limits on poor country exports, it encouraged investors to shop around for new countries. This because of the increase in volumes of ready made garment entering developed countries caused concern and eventually led the developed countries to seek the occurrence of The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ( GATT) to protect their markets. The reason for this concern was due to the fact that the industrialised countries never caused to be textile and garment manufactures because the industry employed a large number of women specially minorities and immigrants in the USA and Europe. GATT,s solution to the dilemma of the industrialised nations was the Multi Fibre Arrangements (MFA) which imposed quota restrictions on certain garment categories, there by limiting the quantity of apparels that could be exported to the developed countries by any single developing cou ntry. This curtailed the potential of countries like Hong Kong, South Korea, Mexico and Yugoslavia which were advanced textile manufactures. In turn it allowed countries like India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to enter the industry with guaranteed markets. It was first introduced in 1974 and will end in 2005. As a result there was a world wide boom in the textile and apparel export industry in the mid 1980s. 200 GARMENT FACTORIES PROGRAMME (200 GFP)   8. In view of the infrastructure facilities and close proximity to the port and airport facilities etc. most textile and clothing manufacturers concentrated their operations in or around the Western province, where the countrys capital is located. As a result, unemployment one for the major problem faced by Sri Lanka continued to remain high in the other parts of the island. Growing unemployment resulted in youth unrest in most of the rural areas. Thus, in 1990,a Cabinet Sub-Committee recommended that garment factories should be opened in provincial areas other than the Western Province. Consequently, the 200 garment factories programme (200 GFP) was launched with the idea of opening at least one garment factory in each of the 200 Assistant Government Agent (AGA) divisions. The main incentive which encouraged the private sector to take part in this programme was quotas. For this purpose, the remote areas of the country were classified into three categories, namely non-difficult, difficult and most difficult. Quotas were allocated on the basis of the location for the industry. The more isolated and difficult the area, the higher was the quota allocated. While about 40 percent of the areas were identified as difficult, just over 40 percent fell within the most difficult category. The rest, just fewer than 20 percent, were classified as non difficult. In addition to quotas, the factories setup under the 200 GFP were also offered various other incentives such as tax holidays or lower corporate taxes, duty-free importation machinery and raw materials, loans from foreign currency banking units, etc. as the main thrust behind the 200 GFP was the high unemployment in the rural sector, each factory was intended to employ at least 500 workers. By the end of 1996, there were 154 factories in commercial operation under this programme, providing 76,821 employment opportunities.   CHAPTER FOUR THE ROLE OF TEXTILE AND CLOTHING INDUSTRY IN THE SRI LANKAN ECONOMY 1. The common features of developing countries are high rates of population growth, high rates of unemployment, low savings, insufficient capital formation, low investment, high capital output ratio, rudimentary technology and cheap skilled and unskilled labour. These countries are also mainly exporters of primary agriculture products. Further being too small to achieve economies of scale in their domestic markets, these countries have adopted export led growth policies which are designed to generate foreign exchange and expose the productive factors of the country to the stimulus of competitive influence. 2. The textile garment industry there for became the initial response of developing countries to this call for export led growth. Being a labour intensive industry requiring a small capital base. Production of textile and apparel shifted to developing countries in the 1960s. It provided employment for a large number of persons earned foreign exchange allowed for diversification of the export industry and paved the way for industrialization. Some countries attracted foreign investors by opening up free trade zones. Many critics called it textile led growth. 3. At the time Sri Lanka began to pursue liberal economic policies in 1977, the textile and clothing industry played only a minor role in the countrys economy. In the light of the broad based economic liberalisation and the benign impact of the MFA, the industry since then has recorded a remarkable growth and assumed a key role in the economy. While garments accounted for the largest share of all commodity exports (27 per cent) in 1986, it became the largest foreign exchange earner (US$ 0.4 billion) by 1992, by 1995; garments export exceeded US$ 1.5 billion, nearly half of all commodity exports. 4. Of the 21 percent contribution made by the manufacturing industries to the countrys economy in 1996, 40 per cent was from the textile and clothing sector. The growth of the garment industry was particularly rapid in 1992 and 1993 due to the attempts taken by the government under the 200 GFP decentralise the industry away from the Western Province. Although the textile and clothing sector registered a slow growth of 5.1 per cent against 14.8 per cent in 1995, it still accounted for 33.7 per cent of the growth witnessed in the private sector industrial output. (The slow growth in 1996 was primarily because of the continued power cuts due to prolong drought). According to the Ministry of industrial Development, there has been a total of 859 garment factories at the end of 2001 while the number of textile manufacturing firms stood over 140, with less than 10 companies accounting for most of the output. The largest garment factories (in terms of employment) were located within the free -trade-zones (FTZs) run by the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka (BOISL) the authority responsible for the promotion of foreign direct investment. 5. Today the textile and clothing sector has replaced the tea industry the traditional front line export industry as the leading foreign exchange earner. Specially, the growth of garment export has been highly impressive. For instance during the period 1980 to 1990 the value of apparel export increased from US $ 100 million to US $ 620 million. In terms of quantity, the exports grew from 52 million pieces to 212 million pieces during the same decade. Exports of garments, which were only 10 percent Sri Lankas total export in 1980, reached nearly half in 1993, registering in average annual increase of 30 percent. In 1996 the textile and clothing sector accounted for 46 percent of the countrys total export earning. Its share among the industrial exports reached as high as 63 percent. The highest growth, (21 percent) was in the woven fabric categories. 6. The textile and clothing sector has also been an outstanding source in generating employment opportunities. Being a highly labour intensive industry, this sector has been successful in absorbing a fairly large number of workers. By end of 2001, garment sector provided direct employment to approximately 391682 personal. The garment sector as whole represented about 14 percent of the 5.5 million of the countrys total employed work force. Approximately 40 percent of which was engaged in the textile and clothing sector. Of the total work force employed in the textile and clothing industry, more than 60 percent was with the clothing sector. CHAPTER FIVE PRESENT POSITION OF THE SRI LANKA APPAREL INDUSTRY MAJOR MARKETS OF SRI LANKA 1. Since more than 90 percent of exports from the Sri Lankas textile and clothing industries consist of ready made clothing, the focus here is on clothing. Sri Lanka currently maintains bilateral textile agreements in the context of the MFA with Canada, the EU and the USA. More than 90 percent of Sri Lankas exports of clothing are accounted by only two markets, the EU and the USA. The USA continues to account for about 60 percent of total clothing exports from Sri Lanka. About 90 percent of exports (by value) to the USA consist of quota items. The bilateral agreement between the US and Sri Lanka contains more than 30 quota categories, covering over 50 clothing items. While the quota performance against the US market is generally high, utilisation rate of certain quota categories such as knitted shirts and blouses, trousers, underwear, coveralls, and overall, terry and other pile towels etc. has reached almost 100 per cent during the recent years  [1]  . 2. The EU has been absorbing about 35 percent of Sri Lankas total exports of clothing every year. The largest buyer of Sri Lankan garments within the EU is the UK (about 45%) which is followed by Germany (about 20%), the Netherlands (about 9%), France (about 5.5%), Belgium- Luxembourg (about 5% ) and the rest Sri Lankas exports to the EU has been subject to quotas under four categories namely, trousers, blouses, shirts and jackets. The utilisation rate of quotas of the first three categories (most sensitive ones) during 1996 was 84 percent, 100 percent and 73 percent respectively, while the rate of the fourth category was nearly 30 percent. Canada continues to account for about 1.5 percent of Sri Lankas total exports of garments. While Sri Lankas bilateral textile agreement with Canada contains about 15 product categories under quotas. THE ABOLITION OF QUOTA SYSTEM 3. Sri Lankas apparel industry is now a major contributor to the countrys economy after its modest beginnings in the seventies. It represents 54% of our total exports and 71% of Sri Lankas total industrial exports. The garment exports make a direct contribution of 7% to the overall economy. The rapid growth of this industry could be attributed to the followings: a. A stable market because of the quota system. b. Low labour cost. c. Liberal economic and trade policies. d. Tax benefits and the concessions granted to the industry. 4. From its inception the quota system was a boom to Sri Lankas apparel industry. The availability of a stable market eliminated the danger of competition from established industrialists in the international field, and attracted direct foreign investment and helped Sri Lanka prosper in this industry. 5. Although the abolition of quota system in 2005 had a negative impact on the industry it also opened up an expanded free market. As such the future of the garment industry in Sri Lanka will depend on our ability to face competition. One third (1/3) of the total exports from Sri Lanka are done by 25 large scale manufacturers. These organizations are in a position to restructure and sustain themselves in a competitive market according to surveys. But the survival of the other small and medium scale industries is at stake, making the situation critical because these small and medium scale manufacturers are the biggest employers in the apparel industry  [2]  . SWOT FOR THE APPAREL INDUSTRY 8. Strengths.   The product quality level for the current market segments is considered high Reputation as a country which follows labour laws and good working conditions. The product price ranks second with large customers confirming that price quality relation of Sri Lanka is good On time delivery is the third best strength with effort towards reducing lead-times. Availability of skilled labour, educated and trainable work force and management of production capacity and ability to handle high volume orders are also considered strengths the Sri Lankan industry presently possesses. Apart from those the geographical size of the country facilitates easy movement with in the country serves a further advantage  [3]  . 9. Weaknesses. The weaknesses in the Sri Lankan industry can be listed down as follows; a. Lack of marketing skills with over dependence on buying officers, and allocation of quotas. b. Low level of marketing information, and knowledge about export marketing with hardly any marketing activities. c. Lack of fabric base and over dependence on input suppliers with long lead times d. Lack of a strong work ethic along with high absenteeism and labour turn over. e. Warm climatic condition of the country which reduces productivity f. Increasing cost of labour and availability of employment in other industries and foreign employment opportunities 10. Opportunities. To overcome the loss of orders due to the expiry of Multi Fibre Arrangement after year 2005, the position in the traditional export markets in the USA and UK by should be strengthened by establishing a strong relationship with distributors and buyers and developing an expansion strategy for the markets with good potential. Thereafter the opportunity exists to gain a higher market share by implementing an aggressive marketing strategy in the markets, where Sri Lanka has a weak positioning. Further there is a very good opportunity to capture a bigger market share in the EU: As at present Sri Lanka is not with in first 15 exporters to the EU. 11. Further opportunities exists in capturing the South Asian Market especially the High Price garments with designer wear and Intimate garments, a market where Sri Lankan Manufactures are now experts in producing and marketing. The available free trade agreements should be exploited in trade between India and Pakistan to export finished garments and to import fabric and accessories. It is also important to establish and identity for of Sri Lanka as a destination, which manufactures very high quality garments   12. Threats. The threats to the present Garment Industry are as follows; a. An intensification of the competition, especially from the sub Asian member countries, before and after the phasing out of the MFA. b. Improvement of the former socialist economies, who have a good textile industry and a large domestic Market which are highly potential and geared to meet the quality and delivery requirements especially from EU. c. The arrival of new competitors in the Asian sub continent such as Vietnam, Cambodia , Myanmar and Laos. d. Special advantages created for the USA market by the NAFTA, consolidation and other regional economic cooperation e. The increase in Sri Lankas labour costs at a faster pace than productivity f. The necessity to reduce lead time from the manufactures to the shop, and the distant suppliers inability to deliver the value added garments on time g. Successive government has not addressed the issue of low productivity, and even at this stage a government funded garment manufacturing and production management training institute has not been established and this posses a threat to the industrys future h. Geographical location of the country. Sri Lanka is located at the furthest end of the Indian Ocean, when compared with other competitive garment exporting countries, which export to the USA, EU and other wealthy nations. Almost all the countries, which are geographically located close to Sri Lanka are under developed and, low income countries struggling to survive. CHALLENGES FACED BY THE SRI LANKAN APPAREL INDUSTRY 13. In the recent past, the global garment industry has been subject to significant changes in terms of changes in consumer demands, changes in technology, and fierce competition. These changes have also filtered down to the Sri Lankan garment industry and there is now considerable pressure on the industry to each higher standard of production and service. 14. As the garment industry is a relatively low skilled and labour intensive operation, over time there has been a shifting of production from countries such as Hong Kong. South Korea and Taiwan to low wage countries such as Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. As this process of shifting (or shifting comparative advantage) has continued, Sri Lanka has gradually lost its low labour cost comparative advantage. 15. As the majority of Sri Lankan manufactures currently produce standard garments where competition is primarily based on price, Sri Lanka faces stiff competition from other developing countries of South and South East Asia where production cost is low (India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam). China has also emerged as a dominant force in the global apparel industry with its massive supply capability and low costs of production. These countries have a lower ranking in terms of cost of production in comparison to Sri Lanka. Given this situation, there may be a need for Sri Lanka to move some of its exports to the top end of the market as a reputable and dependable supplier of quality apparel in Asia. In the higher value clothing segment, countries such a Malaysia, Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan are serious competitors  [4]  . 16. While Sri Lanka s global market share has been recorded at 1.5 percent, more recent estimates indicate that there has been a marginal increase, and stands at 2 percent of the global garment market. During the period 1995 to 2000, Sri Lanka maintained a 19 percent export earning growth in the garment industry. If there is a lifting of the US tariff barriers for Sri Lankas apparels, then according to some commentators there would be a significant increase of exports. As mentioned earlier, although over 90 percent of Sri Lankas garment exports are destined for the USA and the EU, Sri Lanka does not rank amongst the top exporting nations to the EU. Sri Lanka ranked 20th and 16th place among suppliers of apparel products to the EU and the USA market, respectively, in 1998. The positive feature is that the Sri Lankan garment manufacturers, in general, have built up a good rapport and sound reputation the world over. It is a great advantage when compared to her competing neighbours. 17. Buyers now have a range of sources from which to choose, and countries such as Mexico (supplying to the USA) and Turkey (supplying to the EU) have the added advantages of being in close proximity to their major markets, lower transport cost and shorter turn-around times. Moreover, Mexico and free of quota restrictions access to their major markets. 18. One factor contributing to this reduced level of price competitiveness is the increasing cost of labour in Sri Lanka compared to other garment producing nations. Labour costs have been steadily increasing and currently constitute between 15-30 percent of total production costs in the average Sri Lankan garment manufacturing firm, highlighted the hourly wage rates of a number of garment manufacturing nations and indicated that Sri Lankas competitors currently have relatively lower wage cost structures. For those competitors who gave higher wage cost structures (and higher global market shares), their strengths lie particularly in their high levels of productivity. HOW SHOULD WE FACE THE COMPETITION? 18. The researcher recommends the following changes to preserve the garment industry in Sri Lanka. Developing Skills Of Labour Force The skill level on high speed machines have been found to be in sufficient. This resulted in low efficiency levels and low Needle Down Time. Which are two important performance measurements in the garment industry. Intensive training to upgrade skill level, parallel to technological advancement is important to gain a competitive advantage in the garment industry. b. Establishment of a Government Administered Garment industry related training institute. It is recommended to the government, at least at this stage to focus on this issue, and establish a dedicated training institute for all levels of employees in the apparel industry, as the future of thee industry and employment of 350000 personnel will purely depend on countries competitiveness on productivity and cost of labour. e. Increasing Needle Down Time (1) Use of Modern Machinery Needle down time could be increased through training and use of modern advanced machinery. Introduction of modern machines as under bed trimmers and computerised machines will speed up the sewing process and assist the operator to use other advanced facilities of the machines. (2) Reduction of secondary activities Needle Down Time (NDT)could be further increased by following General Sewing Data Standards, which indicates the ideal movements by machine operators to reduced idle time and speed up the sawing process. f. Backward Integration. Due to lack of modernisation and technological advancement in the textile manufacturing sector the garment industry has to depend for its requirement on imported fabric. Therefore to be competitive backward integration is necessary, but it requires high capital expenditure- is around US $ 25-30 million. In Sri Lankan terms this is a huge investment. Therefore it is prudent for Sri Lankan to concentrate from processing stage onwards and import grey fabric from abroad. Given proximity to Asian producers fabric can be soured with minimal lead time. Joint ventures, strategic alliances, etc. will be ideal if can be so arranged. g. Export Alliance. A group of small / medium sized companies with not so unique products and only limited funds available for export market development can form an export alliance. This group of entrepreneurs exporting can exploit the market much more professionally than an individual. In addition they can benefit by sharing the very heavy marketing expenses and the orders received from buyers. h. Product Quality. As the cost of fabric constitutes a major share in the unit cost of garments, a great deal of attention has to be paid for quality controls at the fabric level. An integrated approach in quality assurance in the process from fabric to garments can be a powerful tool in using quality as a differentiation strategy for competitive advantage. i. Management of Lead Time. Lead-time taken by Sri Lankan exporters around 60-120 days is a