Reading log Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reading log - Essay Example tural in the sense that they constitute human technological advancement, but that this advancement is operating in a paradigm that is oppositional to the structure of the human brain. There are a number of insights that can be gleamed from the discussion. One of the primary considerations is Morgan’s (2006) belief that mechanization is necessarily a negative for human progress; such a debate dates back as early as Rousseau’s ‘noble savage,’ with the reality remaining anywhere but clear. In either regards, it seems that at the least one can embrace the argument in that for many individuals there is oftentimes a longing for such ‘naturalness’ and that an organization only implementing mechanized inputs can only expect to produce mechanized outputs, effectively alienating this human longing. One of the prominent such considerations then is establishing objective means of avoiding such mechanization. It is clear that, to an extent, for Morgan (2006) this involves developing organizations that are more in accordance with natural human physiology. His main understanding of the brain as a form of organizational design seems contin gent on the central insight that traditional organizational mechanization is rooted in a cause and effect chain of events, whereas an organization linked to the human brain would be composed elements that act with slight independence while also containing a semblance of the whole. There are a variety of applications for such an approach. One considers Burnes’ (2009) examination of Oticon. For Burnes (2009) the critical success factor for Oticon’s turnaround was first the establishment of an overarching vision that contained strong values as a means of promoting a new organizational culture. The organization then established a learning organization wherein internal innovation and change became the fabric of the work process. One considers that these critical success factors relate directly to Morgan’s (2006) notions of the

Drug Use Amongst Police Officers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Drug Use Amongst Police Officers - Essay Example It also shows that key causes of the drug use that does exist include job-related stress, unique opportunity, and features of police culture. The effects of such drug use have negative impacts not just on the using officer, but also on colleagues and family. Durkheim's paradigm of functionalism is useful in analyzing this phenomenon. It helps explain how a poorly-functioning system can lead to increased police drug use, and a well-functioning system can reduce police drug use. Brunet (2003) surveyed a wealth of drug literature published from 1984 to 2002. Most found that low numbers of officers used illegal drugs. Several studies showed that anywhere from .31% to 20% of tested police officers in departments across the US and Australia used drugs. By comparison, a U.S. Department of Justice survey (2008) found that, while 8.2 % of full-time workers across America are regular drug users, those in protective service occupations, such as police were least likely to be users, with a rate of 3.4%. While the number of officers who use drugs may actually be quite small, the cases the public finds out about often cause terrific backlash. Effects of such use are felt by the individual officer, the police department as a whole, and the officer's family. The consequences impact public safety, public trust, and the ability of police to assist in the prosecution of criminals. Other consequences include the potential for greater corruption, reduced job productivity, and more civil liability for departments. Police officers who use drugs also place their families at greater risk for dysfunction and put their jobs at risk. Durkheim's paradigm of functionalism is beneficial in understanding drug use amongst police. It also provides insights into why some who are sworn to uphold the law break it in the very worst ways. Durkheim focused on the interactions and interdependence of society. He proposed that a smoothly functioning society had roles for individuals and norms to guide behaviors. When there is equilibrium in the system, individual needs are met and society works. When there is disequilibrium, society and individuals in society can suffer greatly. It is just this situation with drug use amongst police. Causes of Police Officer Drug Use As with the rest of the population, the causes of drug use amongst police officers are wide and varied. Stress, opportunity, and police culture are cited in many studies as central causes of drug abuse by police. According to Gorta (2008), police in Australia indicated that stress in their work and personal lives sometimes led to drug use. Many officers cited stressful situations such as killing someone in the line of duty or chasing someone in a high-speed pursuit as causing inordinate amounts of stress (Brunet, 2003). Many note that organizational rules, regulations, and procedures are stressors. Shift work and working irregular hours, as well as

Biopsychosocial Perspectives of Learning

Biopsychosocial Perspectives of Learning John Sweeney Abstract Human-beings are ever learning throughout their lifetime. Many processes go into the formation of the material in which they learn. There are many aspects in learning from biological to psychological factors as well as social and environmental factors. Some learning is inherited genetically for survival while other forms of learning are through psychological cognitive processes while other types of learning can be accidental or incidental. Human-beings also tend to learn from the environment in which they inhabit as well as through social interactions. When an individual chooses to understand how the fundamentals of the learning process works the biopsychosocial model is best for explaining these reasons. When most people think about learning they think about student- teacher roles and educational classroom setting. Many people do not realize all that goes into an individuals ability to learn behind the scenes. It’s what is going on inside of the individual which is unseen that makes human learning a unique extraordinary process. From genetics to mental functions of the brain and social influences an individual is equipped with the necessary genetic make-up, mindset and settings to be an ever learning product of their environment. There are various theories of psychology which suggest what an individual learns, when an individual learns, where an individual learns, why an individual learns and how an individual learns. These theories in themselves show the unique ability of the human thinking, reasoning, perspective and learning processes in which the human brain is capable of. Biological Factors Biological factors such as genetics suggest that brain chemistry, brain structure, and genetic abnormalities are responsible for human behavior. Effects of how an individual learns begin before he/she is even born. While still in the womb the fetus is still forming to develop as is the foundation being set for the child’s learning ability. For example there are many different types of intelligence in which a child will inherit from their parents. This inheritance of biological genes from the parent will set the foundation for the child’s personality, temperament, intellectual potential and cognitive abilities among other traits. An evolutionist will argue learning is biologically inherited for survival of the species. Recent years and technology has shed light on the genetic makeup and some of the genes which are responsible for being involved in an individual’s ability of learning. One such example of a genetic inheritance is the dopaminergic genes in which human genetic polymorphism (DRD2-TAQIA), a neurotransmitter modulates dopamine D2 receptor density. Probabilistic learning, task, behavioral and computational results stem from this dopaminergic neurotransmission. Researchers have been able to pinpoint both positive and negative learning outcomes which can be predicted in genes associated with Polymorphisms striatal dopamine function (Hutchison et al., 2011). It has long been argued if learning stems from nature or nurture. Nature is involved through genetic imprinting in which an evolutionist would explain mammal behavior in which a mammal would mimic the parent’s behavior by autoshaping of an experience such as with avoidance and acceptance behaviors. Human-beings however differ as they learn through biologically predisposed associations. For example scientists have tied fear to the basolateral nucleus of amygdala (BLA) region of the brain. A behaviorist would argue that conditioned stimuli (CSs) when associated with unconditioned stimuli (UCs) would cause the undesired outcome association of fear. The same can be assumed that any stimulus could be associated with another stimulus with equal ease such as in the case of learning. However, scientific evidence of biologically predisposed associations needs to be taken into consideration of the adaptive function of selective associations such as within the learning process. Researche rs suggest amygdala neurons have specific microcircuits and cell signaling dynamics which ensure that associations provide significant survival benefits which activate neurons in a convergent fashion and generate prompt learning (Chung et al., 2011). This would explain a more complex theory opposed to simple conditioned stimuli (CSs) and unconditioned stimuli (UCs) associations. Psychological Factors There are many theories on the psychology of learning from Behaviorism, Cognitive theory, Humanistic perspective, Social learning perspective and Instructional theories. Since Cognitive theory is the most widely accepted theory this approach will be utilized. Cognitive psychologist look at four general principles of the human learning process which consist of an assumption of a limited capacity of one’s ability to learn, a control mechanism that is required to regulate one’s learning, a two-way flow of information between the learner and the material being learned and being genetically prepared to process and organize information in specific ways. These psychological principles set the foundation of an individual’s ability to learn. Since the mental system has limits on how much information can be processed the encoding, transformation, processing, storage, retrieval and utilization of information of the mental system must be overseen by a control mechanism to regulate processing power of a newly learned task. The mental system is also responsible for information gathered and stored in memory and distinctively separates the information by what information is real and what information is imagination or fantasy as well as inductive and deductive reasoning (Huitt, 2013). Other learning theories suggest the conceptual framework in which human-beings interpret what they learn and observe. For example Behaviorism focuses purely on observational learning whereas Cognitive theory explains the brains processes of brain-based learning goes beyond observations and associations. Constructivism on the other hand focuses on the learner’s process of learning through creativity and individual constructed ideas or concepts. One way of looking at learning would be to combine all three of these theories into one. A theory of learning which comes close to doing so is the Transformative learning theory in which human-beings are believed to revise and reinterpret meaning. Since interpreting and meaning varies among individuals in the way they see their worlds, Transformative learning theory focuses on cognitive processes in which human-beings may reject emotions, associations and concepts which are not compatible with their own personal values (Taylor, 2001). Ho wever, just like with any other theory there are limits and critics of Transformative learning theory. Social Factors As mentioned earlier the long time debate of whether nature or nurture was responsible for learning, nurture indeed does play part just as nature does in the human learning process. Social, cultural and environmental factors influence an individual’s learning in many ways such as with interactions, perspectives and content of the new material being introduced. It is believed nurture is responsible for many mental functions such as memory, attention and the capacity to make associations for individuals to make sense of their surrounding environments. Natural mental functions such as the ones mentioned above can be acquired through the process of incidental learning. Incidental learning is the process in which new material was learned in which no learning was ever intended. Children for example are easily susceptible to incidental learning due to natural mental functioning (Kristinsdà ³ttir, 2008). Other social factors that contribute to an individual’s learning process can be environmental such as the individual’s socioeconomic status as well as sociodemographics. An indicator of an individual’s ability of learning and education level is largely associated with the individual’s environmental setting. Stimulating environmental settings has been shown to significantly promote learning. Research has shown experiences a child experiences at home will influence and transfer to the classroom. Sociodemographics of children of lower socioeconomic status tend to have poor transitioning into the educational system. One reason for the poor transitioning from home to school of these children may be due to socioeconomic disparities among families which largely effects family and school relationships which results in inconsistencies of childhood learning (Crosnoe et al., 2010). Conclusion Human-beings are unique and complex in the way they learn when compared to other species as they are consciously aware of themselves. All factors of biological, psychological and sociological aspects have an impact on how an individual will learn. From early childhood to late adulthood and beyond, one thing for certain is human-beings are constantly learning. Human-beings learn from one another, their environment, technology and natural instincts. Whether it is due to hereditary genes, psychological mental processes or social interactions, human-beings have the ability to learn, interpret and decide what they choose to or not to learn. Human-beings also have the unique ability of perceptiveness of what they learn. In result an individual’s perspective can alter or change another individual’s perspective of the way new material is learned, obtained or altered. References Chung, A., Barot, S. K., Kim, J. J., Bernstein, I. L. (2011). Biologically Predisposed Learning and Selective Associations in Amygdala Neurons. Learning Memory, 18(6), 371-374. Crosnoe, R., Leventhal, T., Wirth, R. J., Pierce, K. M., Pianta, R. C. (2010). Family Socioeconomic Status and Consistent Environmental Stimulation in Early Childhood. Child Development, 81(3), 972-987. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01446.x Doll, B., Hutchison, K., Frank, M. (2011). Dopaminergic genes predict individual differences in susceptibility to confirmation bias. The Journal Of Neuroscience: The Official Journal Of The Society For Neuroscience, 31(16), 6188-6198. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.6486-10.2011 Huitt, W. (2003). The information processing approach to cognition. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved August 13, 2014 from, http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cognition/infoproc.html Kristinsdà ³ttir, S., (2008). Social factors of learning and education. Retrieved August 16, 2014 http://mennta.hi.is/starfsfolk/solrunb/socfac.htm Taylor, E., W. (2001). Transformative Learning Theory: A Neurobiological Perspective of the Role of Emotions and Unconscious Ways of Knowing. International Journal of Lifelong Education 20 (3): 218–236. doi:10.1080/02601370110036064

Biblical References in Pulp Fiction Essay -- Film Movie Quentin Tarant

Pulp Fiction Throughout the movie Pulp Fiction, directed by Quentin Tarantino, there are many hidden references to religion and the Bible. The movie starts off, introducing our two main characters, Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield, as two cheap hitmen in search of a package belonging to their boss, Marcellus Wallace. The package is retrieved, and they then began their job of returning it to their boss. Along the way, they ran into difficulties, such as Vega's so-called "date" with his boss' wife, Mia, during which she overdosed on heroin, and Vega was forced to take her to the drug dealer's house to save her life, as well as the robbers in the restaurant, who try to take the suitcase from Winnfield, but were unsuccessful. The whole movie serves as a warning to all mankind to avoid the temptations of the Devil, as well as a warning to not try to play God, because the two boys who stole the suitcase play the role of the Devil, as do the drugs, and they were almost the downfall of the whole attempt. The movie wasted no time in introducing the first biblical reference when the two men try to retrieve the suitcase containing Wallace's belongings. When Vega opened the suitcase, he used the combination "666" to open the suitcase, and when he opened it, the contents glowed a golden-orange color. This was obviously an introductory attempt to show the audience that the suitcase held Marcellus' soul. Perhaps Tarantino was trying to show that the people that stole the suitcase were the devils pawns, and these two hitmen were angels trying to retrieve stolen property. After Vega and Winnfield had obtained their "treasure," Winnfield quoted the Bible, specifically Ezekiel 25:17, the passage about destroying the evil members of the society that try to harm others for no reason. Part of that passage was "..and you will know my name is the Lord, when I lay my vengeance upon thee." This quote shows that Winnfield sees what he is doing as heroic, or maybe angelic, and by carrying out his duties, he is following the word of the Lord. As Winnfield shot the boy, Brett, an orange-golden glow enveloped the screen, representing Brett's soul leaving his body. This whole part of the movie is to warn the evil-doers of the world to cease their wrongdoings, because there are people out there who will stop them. The next main scene of... ...od, sometimes what he does is not right, and he is trying to be the one that always does the right thing: the shepherd. This is another reason why Jules is not killed off. He realized that he cannot play God, and therefore he is forgiven. Vincent, however, never fully realized this, and he is punished at the end of the story by being killed by Butch. Although cleverly hidden, the signs of biblical inference and the power of God are extremely prevalent in the film. Elements of the plot such as the realization of wrongdoing by Jules, the general feeling that the Wallaces are trying to be all knowing and all powerful, the drug dealer being the downfall as well as the savior for Mia, and the way that Jules and Vincent try to control others lives and are punished for it all show us something. These signs show us that we must do as we think we should, and not try to control anyone but yourself, because if you are busy trying to control others, you may not be tending to yourself, leaving yourself wide open to manipulation by others like yourself. If we mind our own business and take care of ourselves, the world would go a lot smoother, and have many fewer conflicts.

Prg420 V10 Week 4 Individual Assignment Essay

PRG420 (Version 10) – Week 4 Individual- Simple Commission Calculation Program Part 3 Modify the Week Three Javaâ„ ¢ application using Javaâ„ ¢ NetBeansâ„ ¢ IDE to meet these additional and changed business requirements: * The application will now compare the total annual compensation of at least two salespersons. * It will calculate the additional amount of sales that each salesperson must achieve to match or exceed the higher of the two earners. * The application should ask for the name of each salesperson being compared. The Javaâ„ ¢ application should also meet these technical requirements: * The application should have at least one class, in addition to the application’s controlling class. * The source code must demonstrate the use of Array or ArrayList. * There should be proper documentation in the source code. Source Code: /** * Program: Simple Commission Calculation Program Part 3 Purpose: to calculates and display the total annual compensation of a salesperson. Programmer: Class: PRG420 Instructor: Creation Date: Programmer Modification Date: Purpose: to add name of sales person and also functionality to manage the list of sales persons an comparing their annual compensation Program Summary: This program will calculate and display the total annual compensation of a salesperson. Here in this program the salary of the salesman and its commission rate is fixe and program accepts sales amount. */ import java.util.ArrayList; import java.util.Scanner; import java.text.NumberFormat; class SalesPerson { private final double fixed_Salary = 35750.00; private final double commission_Rate = 12.0; private final double sales_Target = 125250.00; private String name; private double annual_Sales; //default constructor public SalesPerson() { name = â€Å"Unknown†; annual_Sales = 0.0; } //parameterized constructor public SalesPerson(String nm,double aSale) { name = nm; annual_Sales = aSale; } //getter method for the name public String getName(){ return name; } //setter method to set name public void setName(String nm){ name = nm; } //getter method for the annual sales public double getAnnualSales(){ return annual_Sales; } //method to set the value of annual sale public void setAnnualSales(double aSale) { annual_Sales = aSale; } //method to calcualte and get commission public double commission (){ double commission = 0; if(annual_Sales>= (sales_Target*(80/100))) {//80% of the sales target if(annual_Sales>= sales_Target){ commission = sales_Target * (commission_Rate/100.0) + (annual_Sales- sales_Target)* (75.0/100.0); } else commission = annual_Sales * (commission_Rate/100.0); } return commission ; } //method to calcualte and get annual compensation public double annualCompensation (){ return fixed_Salary + commission(); } } public class Main { public static void main(String args[]){ //array list to have a collection of sales persons ArrayList sales_Persons = new ArrayList(); //create an object of Scanner calss to get the keyboard input Scanner input = new Scanner(System.in); do{ //prompt the user to enter name System.out.print(â€Å"Enter salesperson name (stop to EXIT) : â€Å"); String name = input.nextLine().trim(); if(name.equalsIgnoreCase(â€Å"stop†)) break; //creating an object of SalesPerson class SalesPerson sales_Person = new SalesPerson(); //set name of sales person sales_Person.setName(name); //prompt the user to enter the annual sales System.out.print(â€Å"Enter the annual sales : â€Å"); double sale = input.nextDouble(); //set the value of annual sale of sales person object sales_Person.setAnnualSales(sale); //add sales Person to array list sales_Persons.add(sales_Person); //read a blank line input.nextLine(); } while(true); //getting the 2 minimum annual compensation double min = -1; double secondMin = -1; if(sales_Persons.size()>=3){ //intilization double firstValue = sales_Persons.get(0).annualCompensation(); double secondValue = sales_Persons.get(1).annualCompensation(); //intechanging if in reverse oreder if (firstValue < secondValue) { min = firstValue; secondMin = secondValue; } else { min = secondValue; secondMin = firstValue; } double nextElement = -1; //compring the 2 to n values for (int i = 2; i < sales_Persons.size(); i++) { nextElement = sales_Persons.get(i).annualCompensation(); if (nextElement < min) { secondMin = min; min = nextElement; } else if (nextElement < secondMin) { secondMin = nextElement; } } } //displaying result NumberFormat nf = NumberFormat.getCurrencyInstance(); //All salespersons and their total annual compensation System.out.println(â€Å" †); System.out.printf(String.format(â€Å"%-20s%-20s†,†Name†, â€Å"Total annual compensation† )); System.out.println(); for(SalesPerson salesperson :sales_Persons){ System.out.printf(String.format(â€Å"%-20s%20s†,salesperson.getName(), nf.format(salesperson.annualCompensation()))); System.out.println(); } //dipslyaing the all sales persons additional amount of sales other the 2 memebrs who have minimum sales System.out.println(â€Å" †); for(int i=0; i< sales_Persons.size();i++){ double compensation = sales_Persons.get(i).annualCompensation(); if(compensation == min || compensation == secondMin) continue; System.out.println(â€Å"Name of Salesperson : â€Å"+sales_Persons.get(i).getName()); System.out.println(â€Å"The total annual compensation : â€Å"+nf.format(compensation)); System.out.println(â€Å"Total Sales Total Compensation†); double sale = sales_Persons.get(i).getAnnualSales(); for(double j =sale; j

Intellectual Property Essay

1) Compare and contrast the differing protection offered by the law of patents and the law of copyright. In your opinion, are these differences accidental or do they have a sound commercial or legal basis ? Intellectual property rights are exclusive rights for their owners. Third parties are then generally prohibited from the use or exploitation of what is excluded by these rights. It is to be clarified that it is intended to focus solely on copyrights and patents. Trademark, confidentiality and designs, the other main types of intellectual property are beyond the scope of this essay. There is one simple way to comprehend the two concepts of patents and copyrights. On the one hand patent are rights over an invention. An invention is the result of reasoning. It is the production of some new or improved process or products that are both not obvious for a person skilled in the field and useful. On the other hand, copyrights are rights that protect art in general, art being any products of human's creative activities provided that more than trivial work has been done. The patent law can be seen as a monopoly created by parliament. In the year 1623 the Statute of Monopolies declared that all monopolies are void and of no effect. But an exception was made for the future grand of patent for the term of fourteen years to the first inventor provided it was not contrary to reason of raising price or restrictive of trade. Nowadays, it is basically the same principles that are applied. The copyright law can be seen as a way to restraint trade granted by Parliament. In 1709, the Copyright Act gave an author the exclusive right of printing his work for fourteen years. If the law has extended, the same concepts are still applied. The first point is the difference between what is ruled by patent and copyright. Patent law is protecting inventions. Patent Act 1977 defined an invention as something new thus which does not form part of the state of the art (s. 2(1))1. The state of the art being what was made available to the public in any way before the priority date of the patent (s. 2(2))2, this date correspond to the date of filling on which certain formalities are satisfied. The question to be asked in order to know if it was part of the art is not whether an information has actually been accessed but whether information could have been accessed prior the filling date. An old illustration of this would be the case of Lang v Gisborne3. In relation to a book, the question was whether the information was available and not whether the book had actually been sold. Thus we need to define what is construed as available to the public. In the Windsurfer4 case, a 12 year old boy, who built a sailboard and used it in public during his holidays, had been enough to make this invention available to the public. Moreover, in assessing if a disclosure of information is enough; it will be considered whether the person skilled in the art will be able to carry out trial and experiments to get to the invention (Synthon5). The last main hurdle for the obtention of a patent will be the requirement of inventiveness. An inventive step is one that is not obvious to a person skilled in the art (s. 3)6 and whether there is an inventive step or not has to be decided without hindsight (Haberman v Jackel7). A person 1 Patents Act 1977 s. 2(1) Patents Act 1977 s. 2(2) 3 Lang v Gisborne, 31 LJ. Ch 769 (1862) 4 Windsurfer International v Tabur Marine [1985] RPC 59, CA 5 Synthon v Smithkline Beecham [2005] UKHL 59, [2006] RPC 10 6 Patents Act 1977 s. 7 Haberman v Jackel International Ltd (1999) The times 21 January 1999 2 1 skilled in the art has been described as a graduate or engineer in the field concerned with a few years of experience (Dyson v Hoover8) , it was also held that it should be a â€Å"composite entity†, in other words a team of graduate and engineer (General Tire & Rubber Co v Firestone Tyre and Rubber Co Ltd9). Furthermore, an invention needs to be capable of industrial application which is rarely an issue. It will be analysed as such if it can be produced or used in any kind of industry, including agriculture (s. )10. Finally, an invention is patentable if not belonging to one of the excluded matter. A discovery, scientific theory, mathematical method, a scheme, rule or method of performing a mental act and playing a game or doing business are excluded (s. 1(2))11. Some others interesting exclusions exist, such as a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work or any other aesthetic creation, a program for a computer and the presentation of information. These exclusions are interesting because they form part of what is subject to copyright, so what is protected by copyright. Indeed, copyright subsist in original literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works, sound recordings, films or broadcasting and typographical arrangement of published edition (s. 1)12. As with patent, a copyright need to fulfil certain criteria in order to be granted. There is a requirement of originality that applies to literary, musical, dramatic and artistic works but not to sound recording, films or broadcast. In the case of Univeristy of London Press13, it was established that the work must not be copied from another work but should originate from the author otherwise it will infringe. If the author has spent sufficient degree of skill, labour and judgement to establish originality then his work would be able to be protected by copyright. But often there is no requirement as to that quality. Thus, there is no requirement that a work should actually have literary value (Univeristy of London Press)14, it must be more than de minimis so that single words will not be protected by copyright (Exxon Corp)15. On the same line, there is no requirement of quality or merit of music as long as the sounds are not too simple and trivial. Furthermore, artistic works need not to present any merit (Vermaat and Powell v Boncrest)16. Finally, the protection offered by copyright only protects works that have been expressed in tangible format. In order to have ownership in the copyright, it is important to be able to prove authorship, often by producing the original creation of the work. If the process to get a copyright seems to be a simple and short process the process to obtain a patent is long and complicated. A formal registration is needed, has to be done within the UK Patent Office. One could say that is to allow authors which do not belong to a large company to be protected easily with copyright as soon as they make their original work in a Haberman v Jackel International Ltd [1999] FSR 683 Dyson Appliances v Hoover [1997] RPC 1, CA 9 General Tire & Rubber Co v Firestone Tyre & Rubber Co [1972] RPC 457 10 Patents Act 1977 s. 4 11 Patents Act 1977 s. 1(2) 12 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s. 1 13 University of London Press Ltd v. University Tutorial Press Ltd (1916) 2 Ch. 601 14 University of London Press Ltd v. University Tutorial Press Ltd (1916) 2 Ch. 601 15 Exxon Corp v Exxon Insurance Consultants International Ltd [1981] 3 All ER 241 16 Vermaat and Powell v Boncrest Ltd (No. 2) [2002] FSR 21 8 2 angible format. It is why copyright is an accepted theory and seen as a limited monopoly17. Such monopoly is necessary to promote â€Å"the three level of competition in modern business, which are production consumption and innovation’’18. On the contrary patent protects large companies’ invention. It is fair to require more formalities from them to obtain a protection as they are able to call large resources and facilities. Many steps have to be followed but only a brief explanation will be given as it is a complex area. The most important thing is the specification that has to be made (s. 4(2))19. The specification need to be very precise. It shall describe the invention in a clear and completed way so that the invention can be performed by a person skilled in the art (s. 14(3))20. Therefore the specification should explain what has been created, the problems that the invention solves, how the invention differs from what has been created before. It has been explained previously how the patent and copyright cover different subject, so that, for example, music is protected by copyright and the Dyson mechanism of vacuum cleaner is protected by patent. If they cover different area, they also provide protection in rather different manners. In the patent law, there are two main infringements, infringement of a process, infringement of a product by process patents and infringement of a product. There is an infringement by a party when a party use a process and when the party must have known or it must have been obvious in the circumstance that the use of the process would infringe the patent (s. 60(1)(b))21. For product patents, the intention is irrelevant (Procter v. Bennis)22. Only the patentee has the right to dispose of the product, which is interpreted mainly as the right to sell the product (s. 60(1)(a))23. Note that it does not exclude the right to sell the product at a later date, this is the doctrine of exhaustion. In the same way, he is the only one who can import the product. An infringement will be constituted if someone imports a product when in trade. The right to keep the product for disposal or otherwise is also an exclusive right of the patentee. Lastly, the most important is the right to make the product. It has been held, that modifications or repairs of a patented product could be infringement as well (United Wire)24. It is possible to compare the interpretation in United Wire to the owner's rights of a copyright over adaptations of the original work. The copyright owner of a musical, dramatic or literary work is the only one to have the right to make an adaptation of the work (s. 16(1))25. An adaptation will be interpreted as such only if it relates to a substantial part of the copyright work (Sillitoe)26. The rights over the adaptation are the same as the one over the original work. The question is what these rights are over the original work. First, copying the work is an infringement. An exact copy of the work is forbidden. If not completely identical, a two part test has been established (Francis Day and Hunter)27. Firstly a degree of similarity is required between the two works. A substantial part must have been copied, in order to establish it, a qualitative test and not a quantitative test has to be applied (Ladborke v William 17 The institutionalist theory of law, Neil MacCormick. Copyright law, Monopoly or Monstrosity, by Alan Beckley. (Butterworth and Co 1996) 19 Patents Act 1977 s. 4(2) 20 Patents Act 1977 s. 14(3) 21 Patents Act 1977 s. 60(1)(b) 22 Procter v. Bennis et al. (1887), 4 R. P. C. 333 23 Patents Act 1977 s. 60(1)(a) 24 United Wire v Screen Repair Services (Scotland) [2000] 4 All ER 353, HL 25 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s. 16(1) 26 Sillitoe v McGraw Hill Book Co. (UK) Ltd. [1983] FSR 545 27 Francis Day & Hunter Ltd v Bron [1963] Ch 587 (UK CofA) RR 207 18 3 Hill)28. Secondly, the infringing work must have some casual connection with the original work, which means that the infringing work must have some origin in the plaintiff's work. There are other main forbidden acts, such as issuing copies of the work to the public, performing, showing or playing the work in public, to broadcast the work or include it in a cable program service. It is also forbidden to authorise another to do a restricted act (s16(2))29. As seen previously, there is a wide protection for owners of copyright and patent, but in order to achieve a balance between owners and the public, some defence have been created in both patent and copyright law. In copyright law, there is a defence of fair dealing which allows research and private study only if is not undertaken for commercial purposes (s. 78)30 and only if it is for the person's own use (Sillitoe)31. Moreover, multiple copies will infringe, thus only singles copies are allowed (s29(3))32. The defence of fair dealing allows criticism or review provided sufficient acknowledgment is present which is obtained by identifying the work by its title or any description and by identifying the author o f the original work. Similar defence exists in patent law and provide protection for acts done in private and for non commercial purposes (s. 60(5)(a))33. There is also a defence for acts done in an experimental way and which relate to the matter of the invention (s. 60(5)(b))34. One of the main differences between patent and copyright is the length of protection they offer. A patent is granted for 20 years from the filing date. In literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works copyright protect the work during the author's life plus 70 years from the date the author dies. Why a difference in length between copyright and patent? As said previously, an author is protected by copyright all is lifetime because he is considered to be a weaker party. The 20 years protection offered with patent has been justified because of the time needed in testing of pharmaceutical and similar products for health and safety reason. In the point of view of a customer and the public copyright could be seen as a restriction on trade and patent as a monopoly for 20 years. It is common legal principle to say that restriction and monopoly are only justified to the extent that they are necessary to the public benefit. Lord Sydney Templeman said â€Å"patent and copyright are necessary to ensure that an inventor continues to invent and that an author continue to publish†35. 8 Ladbroke (Football) Ltd. v. William Hill (Football) Ltd. [1964] 1 W. L. R. 273 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s. 16(2) 30 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s. 178 31 Sillitoe v McGraw Hill Book Co. (UK) Ltd. [1983] FSR 545 32 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s. 29(3) 33 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s. 60(5)(a) 34 Copyright, Designs and Paten ts Act 1988 s. 60(5)(b) 35 Lord Sydney Templeman, Abstract Prior to his appointment to the UK House of Lords as a Law Lord. Oxford University Press 1998 29 4 Case List Dyson Appliances v Hoover [1997] RPC 1, CA Exxon Corp v Exxon Insurance Consultants International Ltd [1981] 3 All ER 241 Francis Day & Hunter Ltd v Bron [1963] Ch 587 (UK CofA) RR 207 General Tire & Rubber Co v Firestone Tyre & Rubber Co [1972] RPC 457 Haberman v Jackel International Ltd (1999) The times 21 January 1999 Haberman v Jackel International Ltd [1999] FSR 683 Lang v Gisborne, 31 LJ. Ch 769 (1862) Ladbroke (Football) Ltd. v. William Hill (Football) Ltd. [1964] 1 W. L. R. 273 Sillitoe v McGraw Hill Book Co. (UK) Ltd. 1983] FSR 545 Synthon v Smithkline Beecham [2005] UKHL 59, [2006] RPC 10 United Wire v Screen Repair Services (Scotland) [2000] 4 All ER 353, HL University of London Press Ltd v. University Tutorial Press Ltd (1916) 2 Ch. 601 Vermaat and Powell v Boncrest Ltd (No. 2) [2002] FSR 21 Windsurfer International v Tabur Marine [1985] RPC 59, CA Bibliography Holyoak & Torremans, Intellectual Property Law (5th ed. 2008) Oxford Colston & Galloway, Modern Intell ectual Property Law (3rd ed. 2010) Routledge Bainbridge, Intellectual Property (8th ed. 2010) Pearson Lexis Nexis Westlaw 5

Ethics and Leaded Gas essays

Ethics and Leaded Gas essays This is a comparative study based on articles written in the New York Times and The Nation regarding the manufacture of Monokote by the W. R. Grace Corporation and tetraethyl lead (TEL) by the Ethyl Corporation. Although dissimilar products, they used similar business strategies to promote their products use. While the economic reasons for the production of their products satisfied a need and provided substantial profit, each company and their supporting industries implemented business strategies which put the public health at risk. One business strategy, named the Kehoe Rule, was successfully applied to preserve the self-interests of these two U. S. companies. Consequently, the publics health has been kept at risk for the Kehoe Rule remains a viable business strategy today. More importantly, our expanding world economy magnifies the issues concerning public health. As the automotive industry developed in the early 1900s several events took place creating leaded gasoline. Initially alcohol was the fuel of choice. It was known to produce high engine compression (power) with the benefits of being a renewable resource, non-toxic, and emitting no smoke or disagreeable odors. However, in the formative years of the automotive industry several industrial leaders (Standard Oil of New Jersey, Du Pont and General Motors) banded together and successfully established gasoline as the fuel of choice. New inventions were introduced as the industry expanded including the electric self-starter invented in 1911 and first used in General Motors Cadillac. A knock developed in the Cadillacs gasoline-fueled engine and the electric self-starter was blamed. Research uncovered the cause of this knock to be the premature combustion of the fuel/air mixture.(7) Eliminating the knock by increasing gasoline&...

Balkanize

Balkanize Balkanize Balkanize By Maeve Maddox A word one hears and sees a lot these days is the verb to balkanize. Especially common are impassioned warnings about something described as â€Å"the balkanization of America.† Note: the Merriam-Webster entry for balkanize is lowercase, with the notation, â€Å"often capitalized.† Balkanize was coined about 1918 as a geopolitical term to describe the political fragmentation of a specific area of the world: the Balkan Peninsula. Located in Southeast Europe between the Adriatic Sea on the northwest and the Black Sea on the east, the Balkan Peninsula is also called â€Å"the Balkans.† The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains. It’s a very large area257,400 square miles (about the size of Texas)occupied by numerous ethnic and religious groups. Following World War I the old powers that once ruled the peninsula were replaced by numerous new states. Because of ethnic and religious differences among their populations, these new â€Å"Balkanized† states were often hostile to one another. The verb coined to described the situation in the Balkans is still used to describe actual political conditions in other regions of the world: Experts Warn of Balkanization of Libya ArabSaga: Iran-Iraq pushing for Syrias balkanization Hydropolitics Propel Balkanization in Africa A Balkanized Middle East Set To Blow In addition to political connotations, balkanize and its noun balkanization have acquired an extended meaning of fragmentation that can apply to just about anything: Balkanization Of America Accelerating We Can’t Let the Internet Become Balkanized The Balkanization of English Language and Literature Signs of Balkanization in L.A. Unified [schools] Pat Buchanan Warns against â€Å"Balkanization and Disintegration† A Warning Against Rights Balkanization Ex-KGB Analyst Predicts Balkanization of US The idea of hostility implied in the term makes balkanize a popular rhetorical choice to express negativity. The allusions to the balkanization of America focus on what seems to be a growing reluctance among legislators and various segments of the population to compromise on issues that affect the country as a whole. Note: the Balkan States are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Macedonia, Romania, Slovenia, and three states that have emerged from what used to be known as Yugoslavia: Serbia, Montenegro, and Kosovo. A small part of Turkey also lies on the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan States in Southeast Europe are not to be confused with the Baltic States in Northern Europe. Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are the countries usually meant by â€Å"the Baltic States,† but Finland and Poland also lie along the Baltic Sea. 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:Wether, Weather, WhetherWriting the CenturyHonorary vs. Honourary

Being Virtuous Though Confucius, Krishna and Socrates Essay Example for Free

Being Virtuous Though Confucius, Krishna and Socrates Essay From the beginning of time, the quest of all humans has been to discover how to live the good life. What is a good life exactly? This term will mean different things to different people, and yet I believe there are the same ingredients that all â€Å"good lives† share, even from the classic Eurasian time until present day. Virtues of character, which are also called ‘moral virtues’, seem to be more complex and are an integral part of the completeness of life that is said is necessary for a good life. There seems to be a pattern with people of always trying to achieve being a good person. Is being a good person the answer to having a good life? The Author, Robert W. Strayer makes the point that Confucius, Krishna and Socrates had opinions of ways to a good life but they are all different from one to the other. I will argue that there is a pattern between the three and that the belief to the good life is the same throughout the writings. The saying that history repeats itself is certainly true, but it is also true that people all want to live good lives. Confucius believes living a good life is being virtuous and treating others with respect creates the kind of person that then is given the good life. Being a leader he believed that ruling under an iron fist didn’t create people that respected him and that listened to the law, instead using kindness and sincerity gave the people an example of how to live. He says, â€Å"Let him be ? nal and kind to all; then they will be faithful to him. Let him advance the good and teach the incompetent; then they will eagerly seek to be virtuous† (pg. 218). He also goes on to describe forgiveness which is an essential component in all of the opinions on what is a good life. If one is not being virtuous they can change, which tells us that people are never intended to be perfect but to continue to strive for goodness is always better than to never attempt to be good. That same ideal is true to our modern world. â€Å"To subdue one’s self and return to propriety is perfect virtue. If a man can for one day subdue and return to propriety, all under heaven will ascribe perfect virtue to him† (pg. 219). According to Confucius seeking to be virtuous will bring the good life. In Strayers words he associates the ideas of Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita as being different than those of Confucius. I believe that essentially they are one in the same. Krishna says, â€Å"a man possessed of a pure understanding, controlling his self by courage discarding sound and other objects of sense, casting off affection and aversion, who frequents clean places, who eats little, who’s speech, body, and mind are restrained who is always intent with meditation and mental abstraction and has recourse to unconcern who abandoning egoism, stubbornness, arrogance, desire, anger and all belongings, has no thought that this or that is mine, and who is tranquil becomes fit for assimilation with the Brahmah† (pg. 21). Krishna is telling us that controlling one’s self and the environment one keeps one’s self in, the abandonment of being stubborn and arrogant all contributes to a virtuous soul, which in turn leads to the good life. This point is exactly what Confucius and Krishna share the same opinion finding that mean or middle ground, that balance or yin and yang, is essential to establishing a completeness which develops virtue is vital in order to lead a successful, fulfilling life ultimately leading to happiness. Socrates also collaborates these same thoughts He states, â€Å"For I do nothing but go about persuading you all, old and young alike, not to take thought for your persons and your properties, but ? rst and chie? y to care about the greatest improvement of the soul† (pg. 223). He spent his life trying to convince people to strive to be better people. This is one of the most important things to do in order to find happiness. Socrates believed that the state of one’s soul is the answer to happiness and that there is always improvement that can be made to one’s soul. His mission was to encourage people to think for themselves and thus become more virtuous. Socrates was sentenced to death and as he is near his final moments He says, â€Å"The dif? culty, my friends, is not in avoiding death, but in avoiding unrighteousness† (pg. 223). He also shared the same ideas of Confucius and Krishna that living righteously is the key to the good life. In conclusion what creates a good life for an individual person? It appears to be the same answer that Confucius, Krishna and Socrates had during each of their lives. They learned the same thing that people look for and believe in today. We continue to search for the same answers, but I think the answers are very clear in what history tells us and we learn from these brilliant men, Confucius, Krishna, and Socrates. To be virtuous is having a life with moral integrity and having or showing moral goodness or righteousness. It means being honorable to others and yourself in which will gain the honor and respect from others. Virtue is a belief used to make moral decisions. It does not rely on religion, society or culture; it only depends on the individuals themselves. Virtue has more to do with the character of a person than their earthly riches and possessions. As people continual strive to become a better people, practicing virtuous acts regularly helps develop the good life and they are examples to others striving for the same thing. I believe in what Confucius, Krishna and Socrates taught us, that being a good person is the foundation on which everything else in life is built on, and this I believe is the answer to having the good life. Being Virtuous Though Confucius, Krishna and Socrates. (2016, Oct 02).

Engineering Design Flow Contributing To the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster Essay

Engineering Design Flow Contributing To the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster - Essay Example The researcher suggests that perhaps April 1986 was the worst tragedy in the global nuclear history, considering that Russia was among the leading nations as far as nuclear energy production was concerned. However, the Chernobyl plant encountered the worst engineering disasters that led to its decommissioning barely a decade and a half into operation. One of the nuclear reactors under test exploded under intense pressure, spewing tons of nuclear waste into the atmosphere. Several people, including plant technicians and engineers, absorbed significant levels of radiation from the accident. The team from Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and some government operatives initially briefed the locals about the impending disaster. Although the local people were told not to worry because the explosion was a slight problem that the plan engineers dealing with it, nuclear waste was already spreading across the entire area. The government had to evacuate all the residents of Prypiat city within 24 hours because of the radiation effect that resulted from the leakage of nuclear waste into the atmosphere. By magnitude, the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster was the worst accident in global nuclear history. Nuclear experts believe that Chernobyl and the area around it are still contaminated with nuclear waste presently. To understand the events and circumstances that led to the unfortunate accident, it is worth examining the real causes of the accident, whether it was human cause or the causes were beyond human control.

Health Care Campaign Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Health Care Campaign - Essay Example To begin with, the Lets Move campaign should focus on media programs designed to promote healthy lifestyles among children and adolescents. Media campaigns, as a program for public health, are an effective approach because of the large number of people likely to be reached through the media (Mazzeo, Arens, Germeroth & Hein, 2012). Additionally, television and the Internet are becoming increasingly popular among the young people as attributes of advancements in information and communication technologies. Media programs for promotion of the Lets Move campaign should aim at informing parents and their children on healthy lifestyles. The design of the media messages and images should be performed effectively to capture the attention of the target audience. More significantly, the messages must be convincing to the young people by demonstrating the reasons for practicing healthy lifestyles and proper diet. Education programs within learning institutions are recommended as a strategy of fu rthering the goals of the Lets Move Campaign. It is in this sense that the government policies on education should support the campaign against obesity among the young people. ... It has been argued that childhood obesity can best be prevented through proper formal education programs. In addition to the formal education in classrooms, it is recommended for community education programs to target the parents of the young people. The community education programs should aim at informing parents on healthy eating for their children, the nutrition content of various food products within stores and the management of the eating habits of their children. They recommend scientific studies on the social, economic, and cultural behavior patterns in regard to food purchase and consumption as a way of preventing obesity among young people. The recommended studies will provide evidence based information that will aid the decision-making process with the creation of government policies in the manufacture and the retail of various food products. Therefore, the government policies on funding should be supportive of the financial incentives directed on the recommended studies. I n addition to the investigation of consumer behavior, the environmental aspects, such as lack of exercising enabling environment, must also be researched upon. The research findings should be presented to the parents, teachers, policy makers, food producers, and retailers in an effort of reducing the prevalence of obesity among the young people. Furthermore, the recommended research must be involved in the assessment of the health condition of the young people. The health assessment must be aimed at determining the current health status of the obesity predisposed children and the factors that are likely to increase their risk of developing obesity. It is through research that the issue of obesity can be investigated, and evidence-based knowledge used to control the problem

Explain why perfectly competitive firms cannot make supernormal Essay - 1

Explain why perfectly competitive firms cannot make supernormal profits in the long run but monopolies can - Essay Example Producers are only interested of taking their cost and resources are easily mobilized. Thus it makes a perfect combination. The most interesting part is that Perfect Competitive market has growth levels to improve their quality and revise their prices which make them vulnerable and devoted towards their product. This is observed and practice because a lot of firms comes in and introduce their new may be advanced product to customers and if you fail to offer something equivalent then customers simply turns their backs. These are some positive gestures which you receive from the market to improve further or bring something new to attract the customers. All conditions are to be fulfilled to make it a Perfect Competitive Market. Monopolistic Market: It is a place where only one party holds the system and moulds it accordingly. There are several other problems that occur for consumers if the market is monopolistic like supply constraints are faced often and prices are fixed according to their will, mostly high and excessive barriers are being laid for new comers which is a hindrance in getting new offers and sufferers are only customers as they can’t help buying the product available. This type of markets are usually said to be in telecommunication or media industry sectors as they lay strong foundation by investing a huge amount which cannot be easily challenged. But they are bad for themselves in a way that they do not face competitor, which does not make them realize to go for innovations or advancements. The best example here is American Software Company known as Microsoft which ruled the software sector for decades because of its Windows Operating System. They were later challenged by Apple with extra ordinary efforts for which Apple waited for years and today it is in dominance. Remember efficiency is not the only factor affecting monopoly. Monopolies can still achieve a good profit ratio then Competitive markets in the long run. This term can

Managing in a strategic context Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Managing in a strategic context - Case Study Example Generalisability refers to the application of certain policy or practices over a large section of population. The main advantage of generalizability is the implementation of certain practices to a wide range, which may lead towards creative solutions to the common managerial limitations often witnessed in the current phenomenon (NCBI, 2009). Correspondingly, the objective determined for this paper intends to identify the qualities of Lincoln Electric business model, which in turn defines its Generalisability to other industries and countries considering the HR policies and practices implemented by the company. Lincoln Electric practices the strategy of reducing the prices of its products by controlling the cost of production. The company has introduced several HR policies which mainly focuses on the employee’s satisfaction, and thus leads to retaining the existing employees resulting in the reduced cost of production. An overall understanding of the strategic intent and direction taken by the company, it can be observed to be continuously upgrading its technology for the improvement of its products to further suffice the market demand (Siegel, 2008). The organisational strategy of Lincoln Electronics was unique with innovative and creative ideas. In order to motivate the employees of the organisation, a special form of incentive system was introduced for properly distributing the profits within the organisation. The system comprised of four components, viz. piece work pay, annual bonus, guaranteed employment and limited benefits. Of these four components, the piecework was the most beneficial as every employee had to prove his/her quality and earn maximum according to his productivity. Another most important element of the employment system of Lincoln’s was the annual bonus scheme. According to this scheme, the employees

Fundamentals of Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Fundamentals of Management - Essay Example IT industry is one of the giant industries of the world (Justa, 2009). Our company not only develops efficient software applications but also provide valuable consultancy to other IT firms and multinational companies in solving their IT related issues. Mind Technologies is a dynamic information technology company that uses state of the art communication and information technologies in order to develop a variety of products related to the areas of interactive media, cell phone software, and business software applications. Our company has been successful in building a good reputation for quality and reliability. Mind technologies Inc. is the name of quality, inspiration, and innovative ideas that make it one of the world’s most reliable software companies. Our employees work on innovative ideas in order to provide something new to the customers. They thoroughly study every aspect of every new software or business application in order to insure authenticity and genuineness of the applications. We have been building software applications for the last 12 years servicing many valuable clients all over the world. Our team of professionals produces high quality software and hardware products with a high level of reliability and speed. ... We have also developed web applications for some companies, which have automated the key business process of those companies. Our software developers possess sufficient experience in a wide range of database tools and programming languages such as VB.NET, ASP.NET, C-Sharp, C++, Java, PHP, 4D, and Microsoft SQL Server. We not only develop software products based on our own innovative ideas and concepts but also develop the applications on the requests of our customers. Our developers accurately focus the requirements of the customers while developing their requested software applications. Mind Technologies Inc. has three offices located in different states of the United States of America. Main office of the company is located in Washington D.C. whereas other two sub offices are located in New York and Chicago. Each office consists of almost 20 to 25 employees. For every office, there is a manager, who looks after all activities related to the office. Apart from the office manager, eve ry department has also its own manager who has the responsibility to report all activities related to the department to the office manager. The office manager holds the responsibility to contact top management of the company. â€Å"A corporate structure is essentially the layout of the various departments, divisions, and job positions that interact to conduct the business of the company† (Tatum, 2010). There is a partnership mode of business in the company shared by three persons. Mind Technologies Inc. is not like traditional IT companies rather it holds a distinct structure that makes it attractive to the employees of the company. In traditional IT

Explain why perfectly competitive firms cannot make supernormal Essay - 1

Explain why perfectly competitive firms cannot make supernormal profits in the long run but monopolies can - Essay Example Producers are only interested of taking their cost and resources are easily mobilized. Thus it makes a perfect combination. The most interesting part is that Perfect Competitive market has growth levels to improve their quality and revise their prices which make them vulnerable and devoted towards their product. This is observed and practice because a lot of firms comes in and introduce their new may be advanced product to customers and if you fail to offer something equivalent then customers simply turns their backs. These are some positive gestures which you receive from the market to improve further or bring something new to attract the customers. All conditions are to be fulfilled to make it a Perfect Competitive Market. Monopolistic Market: It is a place where only one party holds the system and moulds it accordingly. There are several other problems that occur for consumers if the market is monopolistic like supply constraints are faced often and prices are fixed according to their will, mostly high and excessive barriers are being laid for new comers which is a hindrance in getting new offers and sufferers are only customers as they can’t help buying the product available. This type of markets are usually said to be in telecommunication or media industry sectors as they lay strong foundation by investing a huge amount which cannot be easily challenged. But they are bad for themselves in a way that they do not face competitor, which does not make them realize to go for innovations or advancements. The best example here is American Software Company known as Microsoft which ruled the software sector for decades because of its Windows Operating System. They were later challenged by Apple with extra ordinary efforts for which Apple waited for years and today it is in dominance. Remember efficiency is not the only factor affecting monopoly. Monopolies can still achieve a good profit ratio then Competitive markets in the long run. This term can

Fundamentals of Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Fundamentals of Management - Essay Example IT industry is one of the giant industries of the world (Justa, 2009). Our company not only develops efficient software applications but also provide valuable consultancy to other IT firms and multinational companies in solving their IT related issues. Mind Technologies is a dynamic information technology company that uses state of the art communication and information technologies in order to develop a variety of products related to the areas of interactive media, cell phone software, and business software applications. Our company has been successful in building a good reputation for quality and reliability. Mind technologies Inc. is the name of quality, inspiration, and innovative ideas that make it one of the world’s most reliable software companies. Our employees work on innovative ideas in order to provide something new to the customers. They thoroughly study every aspect of every new software or business application in order to insure authenticity and genuineness of the applications. We have been building software applications for the last 12 years servicing many valuable clients all over the world. Our team of professionals produces high quality software and hardware products with a high level of reliability and speed. ... We have also developed web applications for some companies, which have automated the key business process of those companies. Our software developers possess sufficient experience in a wide range of database tools and programming languages such as VB.NET, ASP.NET, C-Sharp, C++, Java, PHP, 4D, and Microsoft SQL Server. We not only develop software products based on our own innovative ideas and concepts but also develop the applications on the requests of our customers. Our developers accurately focus the requirements of the customers while developing their requested software applications. Mind Technologies Inc. has three offices located in different states of the United States of America. Main office of the company is located in Washington D.C. whereas other two sub offices are located in New York and Chicago. Each office consists of almost 20 to 25 employees. For every office, there is a manager, who looks after all activities related to the office. Apart from the office manager, eve ry department has also its own manager who has the responsibility to report all activities related to the department to the office manager. The office manager holds the responsibility to contact top management of the company. â€Å"A corporate structure is essentially the layout of the various departments, divisions, and job positions that interact to conduct the business of the company† (Tatum, 2010). There is a partnership mode of business in the company shared by three persons. Mind Technologies Inc. is not like traditional IT companies rather it holds a distinct structure that makes it attractive to the employees of the company. In traditional IT

7- eleven supply chian Essay Example for Free

7- eleven supply chian Essay Jim Keyes, the 4-year veteran CEO of 7-Eleven, is flying his Beechcraft A36 Bonanza. He is ascending to 10,000 feet, and despite the good weather he remains vigilantly focused on the instrument panel, and on the bright skies around him. â€Å"Flying is a great distraction,† he says. â€Å"You can’t think about anything else when you’re in the cockpit.† It is May 2004, and Keyes has a lot to think about. Since 2000, he has been leading a successful transformation of 7-Eleven, the global convenience store retailer with 5,784 stores operating across the United States and Canada and 19,501 international stores in 17 countries. (See Exhibit 1 for a biography of Keyes.) Focusing on what he calls â€Å"Retailer Initiative,† Keyes has overseen the transformation of the company’s distribution model, the steady redefinition of relationships with key suppliers, and the incorporation of technology and data-driven decisionmaking throughout the chain. Overall, he is pleased with the successes of his strategies. Earnings have been rising, up 15.6 percent during 2003.1 Same-store merchandise sales have increased for 29 consecutive quarters through the end of 2003. As a result, the company’s stock price grew from $9.14 in April 2002 to $16.91 two years later. (See Exhibits 2 to 5 for company financials and stock price history.) â€Å"We’ve had quite a rebirth of the company,† Keyes says, â€Å"but it’s been a slow, steady rebuilding of the company, basically reinventing ourselves.†3 Despite his many successes, Keyes continues to confront large challenges. He faces strong resistance from some of his largest suppliers to 7-Eleven’s evolving re-stocking and distribution systems. He also worries about people management issues: hiring and managing a workforce in the low-paid convenience store business; and working with franchisees to ensure implementation of key corporate initiatives. In addition, Keyes must manage the chain’s increasing international expansion and its efforts to reposition the 7-Eleven brand in the highly fragmented domestic convenience store industry. This case was prepared in May 2004 by Eleanor Broad (MBA ’05), Paul Kihn (MBA ’04) and Steven Schneider (MBA ’04) under the supervision of Professor Alan Kane as the basis for class discussion, rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a strategic situation. Copyright  © 2004 Columbia Business School. 1 Keyes levels off at his cruising altitude. Despite the clarity of the day, he feels some turbulence and wonders what corrective action he should take. Convenience Store Industry The convenience store industry represented approximately $290.6 billion in total sales in 2002, 62.4 percent of which were motor-fuels sales.4 The industry differentiates itself through convenience – of location and product offerings – and speed of service.5 Historically the industry has been highly fragmented and very competitive with low barriers to entry. Single store companies account for 60 percent of the 132,000 convenience stores across the U.S.6 There are also 100,000 combination convenience-store/gas stations owned by major oil companies which are run by a network of independent dealers and distributors. 7-Eleven, with 4 percent of the total U.S. market, remains the largest corporate entity in the convenience store industry.7 Most of 7-Eleven’s direct competitors are regional convenience store chains. Circle K has 2,000 stores in the South and Southwest, Casey’s General Stores operates 1,800 in the Midwest and The Pantry has 1,400 stores in the Southeast. Inefficient supply chains and â€Å"high-low pricing†8 also characterize the industry, according to Keyes. Stores need to stock very wide but shallow product assortments. For example, an individual store may keep only four bottles of ketchup on hand at any given time. Since 1999 the industry has been undergoing a structural transformation with consolidation occurring through acquisitions and a number of bankruptcies among the smaller regional chains. In December 2003, Circle K was sold to Canada’s largest convenience store chain, Couche Tard. In 2004 the Midwestern chain Hale Halsell, the parent company of Oklahoma based 115-store convenience retailer Git-n-Go, declared bankruptcy. In March 2004, Kansas-based Sav-A-Trip announced it was entering Chapter 11.9 Despite these changes, one-store companies continued to gain market share, up five percent from 2001 to 2002.10 Overall, the convenience store industry was facing increasing challenges. According to an industry report published in May 2003: The convenience store sector is poised for drastic change as players respond to depressed profit margins and intensified competition. Profitability and survival will depend on the ability of convenience store operators to offer value-added benefits to their convenience services, either by targeting the emotional needs of consumers or by adopting niche operating strategies.11 Company Background The 7-Eleven chain was born in 1927 as the Southland Ice Company in Dallas, Texas. From this single location it soon began operating convenience stores under the name Tote’m. In 1946, it changed its store names to 7-Eleven to reflect their new, extended hours of operation from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.12 The chain continued to expand rapidly, adding gas stations to its stores, opening locations across America and franchising overseas. (See Exhibits 6 to 7 for current domestic and international store locations.) In 1983, Southland acquired Citgo, an oil company, in an effort to pursue a vertically integrated strategy with ownership of its own dairy operations and distribution centers. Keyes, who began his career with the company at that time, recalls that the move backfired miserably. â€Å"We were great retailers but terrible refiners and dairy farmers,† he says. In 1987, stymied by debt, the company sold most of its non-retail businesses and its remaining 50 percent stake in Citgo. In 1988 management borrowed heavily to buy 100 percent of Southland’s stock in a leveraged buyout. However, in 1990, Southland defaulted on $1.8 billion in publicly traded debt and filed for bankruptcy protection. The company persuaded bondholders to restructure its debt and take 25 percent of its stock, clearing the way for the purchase of 63 percent of Southland in 1991 by IYG Holding, formed by Ito-Yokado (51 percent owner) and Seven-Eleven Japan (49 percent owner). From 1991 to 1993 sales declined as Southland closed stores, renovated others, and upgraded its merchandise. In early 2000 IYG raised its stake in 7-Eleven to nearly 73 percent. (See Exhibit 8 for 7-Eleven’s Board of Directors.) IYG currently owns or guarantees 80 percent of 7-Eleven’s outstanding debt. The company’s debt to total capital ratio is just above 91%. Also in 1999, the corporation changed its name from the Southland Corporation to 7-Eleven, Inc., in order to better reflect its primary business.13 In 2002 the company closed 133 under-performing stores and opened at 127 new locations in North America. At fiscal year end, 2003, domestic sales at 5,784 stores (2,457 of which also sell gasoline) was $10.8 billion ($3.4 billion in gasoline sales). (See Exhibits 9 and 10 for sales trends.) Interestingly, 7-Eleven’s percentage-of-sales ratios for merchandise (70 percent of sales) and gas (30% of sales) are the inverse of the convenience store industry’s as a whole. Worldwide, the company owned, franchised and licensed 25,796 stores that generated $36.5 billion in sales.14 (See Exhibit 11 for global store count growth.) Company structure There are three types of 7-Eleven stores: corporate, franchised and licensed. The company began franchising in 1964, signed its first United States area licensing agreement in 1968, and entered into its first international licensing agreement (with Mexico) in 1971. Corporate stores are owned and operated by the corporation, and run by store managers who are employees of 7-Eleven, Inc. About 2,480 of the 5,784 stores in the U.S. and Canada fall into this category. Franchises are run by independent contractors who enter into an agreement with 7-Eleven in order to operate one or more stores. 7-Eleven leases or owns the facilities and the store equipment, which are in turn leased by the franchisee. A typical franchisee pays a franchise fee averaging about $66,000, while the corporation retains ownership of the property, plant and equipment. 7-Eleven then requires an initial cash payment, averaging about $83,000 depending on the area, for the starting inventory and supplies.15 In some cases, the company will loan this amount to new franchisees. It is a franchise model, Keyes says, that provides â€Å"the best of both worlds†: the capital and support of the corporation, and the initiative and sweat-equity of individual entrepreneurs. Approximately 3,300 stores in the U.S. and Canada are franchised. 7-Eleven also enters into license agreements with partners, almost exclusively in foreign countries.16 A licensee is typically a retailing organization that owns or leases several 7-Eleven stores in areas where the company does not do business. In these cases, 7-Eleven does not own the PPE, and imposes a set of contractual obligations on the licensee to ensure consistency of signage, store design elements and store offerings. The licensee has access to brand equity and proprietary products. Specifically, 7-Eleven, Inc., grants the license to use the 7-Eleven trademarks, trade dress, and business information system. The company additionally provides ongoing business consulting services for a fee based on a percent of monthly gross sales and a commitment from the licensee to grow the 7-Eleven convenience store business in a specific geographic area on an exclusive basis for a set period of time. At the end of 2003, the company had 19,501 licensed stores operating internationally, an increase of approximately 1,400 locations over the prior year. In August 2003, Seven Eleven Japan, the largest international license holder, opened its 10,000th store. The New 7-Eleven Redefining Retailing In the Spring of 2003, speaking to the Retailing Leadership class at Columbia Business School, Keyes described the transformation in retailing he foresaw at 7-Eleven. â€Å"In the U.S., you say 7Eleven and people think sticky floors, surly salespeople and old product,† says Keyes. â€Å"In Japan where convenience stores sell sushi and pantyhose, 7-Eleven is known for service and for fresh, high quality product.† This vision of the potential for 7-Eleven stores in part drives Keyes’ ideas for change across the company. He continued: Twenty years ago when I was an MBA student at Columbia Business School there was no Retail class nor was Retail considered a worthy profession to go into – that is all changing. Retail is undergoing a massive transformation in the US right now. Retailers are seizing control of their own destiny. Keyes went on to explain how about 15 years ago Wal-Mart was the size of 7-Eleven. Wal-Mart has since grown to be the largest retailer in the world. â€Å"At 7-Eleven we are carrying out our own transformation,† said Keyes. â€Å"We have only just started.† Working with the Japanese owners and borrowing heavily from ideas generated by Seven Eleven Japan, Keyes has been leading a major cultural shift within the company, which he is calling the â€Å"Retailer Initiative.† At the heart of the initiative is 7-Eleven’s use of technology to empower the store operator (the person closest to the customer) to make key decisions. Keyes explains: Wal-Mart is very proud of their replenishment model. Its directly intended to take the thinking out of the store. Ours is exactly the opposite. Its intended to provide easy, funto-use and informative tools in the hands of store personnel. Its a fascinating use of technology. We become incredibly nimble. We can put a new product on the shelf, and by tomorrow we know how the customer is responding. Within a week, we can say with pretty good confidence whether it will be successful. We can tweak it or make it bigger or change the price. Its the heart of how we differentiate ourselves.17 With this fresh customer data in hand, 7-Eleven is working with suppliers to develop new private label products it knows its customers want. Overall, â€Å"Retailer Initiative† works to leverage the company’s scale, infrastructure and the entrepreneurial energy of its store-level operators. As Keyes wrote in the 2003 Annual Report: â€Å"[The store operators’] focus on item-by-item management – deleting slow-selling merchandise and introducing new items at every store, every day – allows 7-Eleven stores to satisfy their customers in ways that few retailers can match. In the simplest terms, we enjoy the power of a global retailer, but maintain the store-level focus of a single-store operator.†18 Retailing Leadership The New 7-Eleven stores while minimizing inventory and transportation costs. The company utilizes combined distribution centers (CDCs) that are strategically located near concentrations of 7-Eleven stores. In all, the company uses 23 CDCs across the United States that each can serve up to 700 stores. Driving time from the CDCs to the stores is usually no more than 90 minutes. Prior to the CDC approach, most vendors delivered directly to 7-Eleven stores at sporadic times, often no more than once per week. The cost of making more frequent stops could not be justified by single store sales. Further, 7-Eleven parking lots were frequently crowded with huge delivery trucks and more stops per week would only worsen this issue. As a result, each store needed to carry at least a week’s worth of inventory at any point in time. This drastically increased both inventory costs and storage space requirements while decreasing the freshness of the products offered to customers. 7-Eleven has the majority of its fresh products now delivered directly to the CDCs. By combining the demand of 200 stores, more frequent deliveries to the CDCs can easily be justified by the improved economics of the transportation costs. These CDCs, in turn, consolidate product from different vendors and combine them all on to one truck headed for each local 7Eleven. The company also runs their back-end supply chain very efficiently. 7-Eleven partners with third party logistics providers to run the CDCs. Each of these centers is approximately 20,000 square feet and ships 60,000 units per day—a very high number of orders given the size of the warehouses. Franchisees and corporate store managers make local vendor selection decisions. On average, store operators purchase 80 percent of their products from corporate recommended vendors using 7-Eleven’s internal systems. The remaining product can be purchased from suppliers outside of this network. By centralizing their buying for all of its stores, 7-Eleven is able to wield its purchasing power and negotiate better pricing, further contributing to their margins. Use of data and technology 7-Eleven takes a different approach to purchasing than traditional supply chain behemoths such as Wal-Mart. Rather than having a system decide what to order and taking the human element out of the process, 7-Eleven seeks to provide a set of tools for its local stores to make informed decisions on product ordering and assortments. The company effectively treats its local owners and operators as retailers. The corporation has developed a technology suite for its stores that helps local stores manage their purchasing. This system allows store managers to customize their product offering by ordering online and creating a suite of reports. Each local manager can track their total progress versus other 7-Eleven stores—which helps them determine if they are not taking appropriate steps to drive traffic (e.g. assortments, price points, etc.). Specific product reports are available to help managers determine their appropriate product mix and predict demand. Weather forecasts are provided as another tool to assist in the ordering process. The New 7-Eleven In addition, the huge amount of sales data and immediate response time help 7-Eleven make improved corporate decisions. The company is able to track trends at stores to understand how customers’ preferences are changing. Sales data helps the company understand the impact of opening up new stores and assists in location decisions. In addition, it allows the corporation to predict customer demand and helps in central purchasing decisions. Finally, this technology provides an immediate feedback loop for 7-Eleven on new products—within a matter of one or two days the fate of a new item becomes very clear. This information helps 7-Eleven drive key space in the store, innovate new products, and stay a step ahead of the competition. As Keyes points out, â€Å"Retailers are closer to customers than manufacturers,† even though the large suppliers traditionally drove the decisions on shelf space and location. Not all store owners and operators take advantage of this data and technology. Currently, the percent of product ordered through the online system by franchisees ranges from 100 percent to 20 percent. This raises the question of whether the right people are in place in 7-Eleven to make such localized decisions, and whether the company would be better served just ordering product for them. 7-Eleven is also faced with issues of brand consistency as a result: with different product assortments in each store, customers may be confused about what 7-Eleven stands for. Products Product innovation is another avenue through which Keyes is transforming the convenience retail industry. 7-Eleven tracks customers’ changing product purchasing habits and Keyes’ goal is to leverage this to create better quality products in the future. â€Å"We have the benefit of convenience, not price, being our main selling point. This gives us a lot of leeway to create higher quality, better products,† he says. 7-Eleven stores offer a wide range of products, from beer to beef jerky and cigarettes to cereal. The average store carries 3,000 SKU’s. About 70 percent of these are recommended by the head office and the remaining 30 percent are picked by local store managers to cater to specific local needs.19 For example, the 30 percent discretion allows a manager to stock up on beer if he knows that a local football game is playing, or to stock specific ethnic products if appropriate to a neighborhood. Merchandise mix Overall, tobacco products represent the largest selling product category at 7-Eleven, accounting for 29.3 percent of merchandise sales in 2003. (See Exhibit 12 for a breakdown of sales by product category.) Beverages represent 23.1 percent of sales, followed by beer/wine at 11.4 percent. Fresh foods account for 7.2 percent. Gasoline sales account for 31% percent of sales. The stores’ highest selling product is coffee – it sells thirty million cups a month.20 This is followed closely by beer (with sales of $64.58 million per month), the unit sales of which are The New 7-Eleven more than half single beers.21 The next highest selling product is the Slurpee, with over eleven million sold per month.22 Private label products 7-Eleven creates private label products to differentiate itself from the competition and boost its margins. The company’s most famous product, the flavored, crushed-ice beverage called Slurpee, was created in 1965. The company now sells 11.6 million Slurpees a month and introduces new flavors every year. Overall, the company creates 1,500 to 2,000 private label products each year, or 10-15 percent of its merchandise mix. Approximately 22 percent of its sales are proprietary products.23 If a product is not available in a conveniently sized package or is unknown in another country, 7-Eleven’s category managers will work with suppliers to create a new product. For example, in early 2004, 7-Eleven launched a low-carb category, primarily comprised of nutritional bars and snacks. It has also recently introduced the first mentholated gum in the U.S. after spotting the success of the product in Japan. (See Exhibit 13 for sample proprietary products.) Not all propriety products have been successful. In 2003, the chain launched its own proprietary imported beer brand, Santiago, brewed in El Salvador by an independent subsidiary of SAB Miller. Priced at $5.99 for a six-pack, a price roughly equivalent to Budweiser, Santiago suffered from oxidization and â€Å"taste† problems and is quietly being withdrawn after 10 months on the shelves. A reformulated version with improved taste and quality will be reintroduced later in the year.24 7-Eleven is also launching its first premium wine brand, Regions, in 2004. Packaged in 375-ml half bottles and finished with a natural cork stopper, Regions will retail for $4.99 compared to other wine selling in 7-Eleven stores at an average price of $6.25. Another new product 7-Eleven is launching is the EZ-D. Utilizing a new technology, this vacuum-packed DVD begins to oxidize upon exposure to the air. After 48 hours, it is no longer functional. As Keyes explains: We know we can sell DVDs. We know well never have the assortment of a Blockbuster, but if we can come up with a more unique way to sell movies, then we think theres an opportunity for us to be relevant. Were shooting for this to be priced like a rental with no returns at $5.99. Its a great example of how instead of waiting for the industry to catch up, we go to the manufacturer and say we need this.25 Services Currently, store sales from the Services category comprise 3 percent of overall sales. With new VCom Inc. terminals installed at 1,000 stores, the company provides financial services and Eretailing to in-store customers. The VCom units combine ATM capabilities with nonstandard features such as dispensing coins, cashing checks, and providing money orders. 7-Eleven also added E-retailing features allowing customers to buy products from retailers such as 1-800Flowers, eBags.com, and TopWebBuys.com. The goal is to have two kiosks in every store, Keyes says. Other services include 7-Eleven convenience cards – chargeable cards that work like cash – and pre-paid phone cards. As an extension to these phone cards, 7-Eleven started selling pre-paid Nokia wireless phones in April 2004. Customers will only be able to purchase additional minutes for these phones at 7-Eleven stores.26 Gasoline Tobacco Product categories which may be cause for concern in the future are gasoline and tobacco sales. From Dec. 2003 to March 2004 retail gasoline prices surged more than 25 cents per gallon from $1.48 to $1.73. The winners from this hike were oil refiner retailers such as Shell, BP, Exxon Mobile whilst the losers were convenience retailers, such as 7-Eleven. Such convenience retailers are required to pay refiners the higher fuel prices yet can not pass all of these increased fuel costs onto customers and thus sacrifice their gasoline margins. According to the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS) gross retail gasoline profit margins plunged by more than 37 percent in the December, 2003-to-March, 2004 period, falling from 16.8 cents per gallon to just 10.6 cents per gallon nationally27. With 31% of 7-Eleven’s sales coming from gasoline, the volatility in gasoline prices over the last year highlights the risks of such dependence. While quarterly volatility is a risk with most commodity based products, 7-Eleven’s annual earnings stream from gasoline has been quite stable with gross profit margins of at least 13 cents per gallon in each of the past 10 years. Along with other convenience store retailers, 7-Eleven faces an increasingly tough regulatory environment surrounding the sale of tobacco, its best-selling product category. This environment includes a potential rise in the minimum age to purchase tobacco, an increase in â€Å"sin taxes† and growing health concerns. Ultimately, these issues could put downward pressure on tobacco sales and 7-Eleven’s margins. Distribution and supplier relationships 7-Eleven has forged strong relationships with its suppliers, though many challenges still remain for the corporation. These relationships are critical elements of 7-Eleven’s operational efficiency and strategy. Technology allows 7-Eleven to seamlessly integrate ordering and delivery scheduling. Key suppliers to 7-Eleven, however, have remained resistant to participating in the company’s evolving distribution system. These consumer packaged goods manufacturers have extensive 26 The New 7-Eleven distribution networks of their own to deliver goods and control in-store shelf space. By controlling in-store product placement, they are able to drive sales and get a solid advantage over the competition. They are reluctant to give up such an advantage. 7-Eleven has been changing this model. The company believes that they can increase their own profitability by consolidating shipments from a variety of suppliers in their warehouses, and distributing to their own stores based on in-store sales data. While many of the smaller manufacturers have conceded and switched to this CDC model, many of the larger suppliers are still fighting. Companies such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Budweiser have such a vested interest in their distribution networks that they have not yet been willing to transition. They do not want to relinquish control over floor and shelf space. Keyes, however, feels that they will eventually come around as a result of pressure from key players such as Wal-Mart and 7-Eleven. Further, this centralized distribution model – which is effectively breaking down the barrier to entry of 100-year-old distribution networks – is providing opportunities for new suppliers to enter the market. Customers Traditionally 7-Eleven’s core customer was a male, blue-collar worker purchasing coffee before work or beer at the end of the day. More recently, the 7-Eleven customer demographic has shifted as the products and services it offers have changed. Describing the relationship between demographic and product mix, Keyes explains: â€Å"7-Eleven’s gasoline island today is over 50 percent female because we were one of the first with self-service, pay-at-the-pump gas pumps and it was easier for moms.† The customer base has shifted from largely blue-collar male to a broader demographic mix, including more female customers. Keyes says of this shift: Inside, the store isn’t 60 percent blue-collar male anymore, but we don’t want to run off our core customer. We still sell a lot of beer and beef jerky, and we plan to continue. Our new approach is subtle. When you know that you can get a good, healthy, fresh sandwich then well get you, not by advertising and telling you what a great place we are. As with most retailers, the key is having the right assortments. This strategy involves selling a wider range of products than the traditional beer and beef jerky alongside pork rinds. Broadening the product mix encourages a demographic broadening of the customer base. People Management People management remains an ongoing challenge at 7-Eleven. â€Å"There are huge labor issues,† says Keyes.28 Specifically he points out: â€Å"The people represent the company.† 7-Eleven has 70,000 employees worldwide, 6,000 of whom are staffing stores on overnight shifts. Keyes 28 Jim Keyes, Columbia Class Video, February 6, 2002. 10 Retailing Leadership The New 7-Eleven worries about the customer service provided by these front-line employees, and by franchisees who operate as independent contractors. â€Å"You cannot execute Retailer Initiative without retailers,† says Keyes. To help its store managers, both franchisees and corporate employees, 7-Eleven began a 12-week certification program in 2002. By the end of 2003, almost one-third of its store operators had been certified. In addition, more than 2,700 store sales associates had completed a two-day training module on the essential elements of the Retailer Initiative strategy.29 Franchisees 7-Eleven remains active in managing and supporting its franchisees. Each franchisee undergoes an initial 6-week training program in operating and managing a 7-Eleven store, and is subsequently assigned a field consultant who provides on-going support during weekly visits. In addition, the company hosts an annual â€Å"7-Eleven University† during which franchisees and corporate-store managers are introduced to new products and company initiatives. Historically, the franchises have been more successful than corporate stores. â€Å"We think this is because they’ve got skin in the game,† says Keyes. Now, however, the franchises have begun to fall behind corporate stores. While all corporate initiatives are immediately implemented in corporate-run stores, franchisees are not required to use the new inventory system. As Keyes has moved to change the way 7-Eleven operates, the existing group of 3,300 franchisees are proving to be a â€Å"challenge.† â€Å"They t hink that we’re trying to force them to be employees, and we’re not,† he says. Specifically, franchisees have been unhappy with the gross profit â€Å"split† between themselves and the company. Under the existing franchise agreement, franchisees retain 48 percent of their gross profit margin, and give 52 percent to the corporation. In turn, the corporation has become unhappy with the rate at which existing franchisees have been converting to the Retailer Initiative and the new, company-wide SKU-picking system in particular. In order to address these concerns, 7-Eleven has recently offered a new franchise agreement. Under this new agreement, the gross profit split is now 50-50. Under the new agreement, franchisees must now repay the corporation for advertising expenditures, equivalent to between 0.5 and 1.5 percent of the franchisee’s gross profit. To address the company’s concerns, the new agreement phases in a further requirement for franchisees to order 85 percent of their SKUs from recommended vendors. The new agreement will affect the 34 percent of all franchisees whose agreements were up for renewal on December 31, 2003, along with all new franchise holders. The remaining franchisees will be eligible to sign the agreement starting in 2004. 29 7-Eleven, 2003 Annual Report. 11 Retailing Leadership The New 7-Eleven Diversity As a further effort to address 7-Eleven’s human resource issues, the company has attempted to re-brand its diversity as an asset. Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the company experienced antagonism directed at several of its front-line store employees who were thought to be of Middle-Eastern origin. The company responded to this crisis by attempting to define the diversity of its workforce as a strength. 7-Eleven produced and aired commercials that highlighted the immigrant origins of franchiseowners. In one commercial, a Thai franchisee is shown working hard to build her 7-Eleven franchise, followed by shots of her welcoming her two children to America in an airport waiting area after a long separation. Additionally, the company held its 75th birthday celebrations on Ellis Island in New York City, the former gateway to the U.S. for immigrants. â€Å"America was built by immigrants who came here to live the American Dream† says Keyes. â€Å"7-Eleven represents that opportunity to be your own boss.†30 Differentiation Continuing people management concerns also rest in part on the lack of training and on-going support for the hourly workers, particularly those that work in franchises where franchisees are responsible for the hiring and training of employees. According to the company, store-level employee turnover at over 100% is in line with industry norms, and 7-Eleven has seen two consecutive years of improvement.31 Keyes believes that 7-Eleven’s front-line employee issues can be resolved in part through differentiation. Just as 7-Eleven has to differentiate products, he says, it also has to differentiate the store for employees. Why work at 7-Eleven for $8-$9 an hour, rather than at McDonalds? Currently, says Keyes, â€Å"We have people looking for an hourly wage, not a challenge.†32 There are currently two drivers of employer differentiation at 7-Eleven. The first is staff development and ongoing training. At 7-Eleven University, franchisees and store managers are exposed to ideas for motivating and teaching employees. Keyes often visits stores and concludes that franchisees often do not work with their hourly employees to help them understand customer service. Hourly workers are told, for example, that the retail cost of an empty cup is 70 cents (a function of retail vs. cost accounting), so when customers come in and ask for a cup of water, they are told the cost is 70 cents. â€Å"They don’t know that the actual cup cost is only a nickel and that it would make more sense to build customer goodwill by giving them the cup and writing it off,† says Keyes. â€Å"We can turn an $8-9 dollar an hour employee into a retailer by giving them the tools, like performance-building skills.† Additionally, Keyes would like to see store franchisees and managers do more to create a positive work environment for hourly workers. You can â€Å"fire up† a group of hourly-wage employees, believes Keyes, thinking back to his own college job at McDonald’s. He was 30 Jim Keyes, Columbia Class Video, 2003. 7-Eleven. 32 Jim Keyes, Columbia Class Video, February 6, 2002. 31 12 Retailing Leadership The New 7-Eleven enthusiastic, he recalls, both as an entry-level worker and when he was promoted to run staff training at new stores. His managers and his peers, he believes, helped to create an atmosphere where people wanted to work. The second driver of employee differentiation is â€Å"social capitalism.† Keyes attempted to differentiate 7-Eleven stores as workplaces by building up the idea that the company can give back to the communities in which its employees work and live. In 2002, 7-Eleven set up the Education is Freedom Foundation, sustained through company gifts, website donations, and collection boxes at store cash registers. (See Exhibit 14 for the Foundation’s website.) The Foundation was expressly intended to provide money for the higher education of employees and their children. This idea intended to leverage 7-Eleven’s long identification with the American Dream – as a place where recent immigrants and others could run a business as a franchisee with little capital investment – into the idea that working for 7-Eleven is a good place to get an education. Overall, the Foundation distributed $2000 scholarships to 223 students, after receiving 30,000 applications.33 The impact on employee turnover, however, seemed negligible. â€Å"I was waiting,† says Keyes, â€Å"for my HR team to pick up the ball.† Despite wanting to differentiate itself in the eyes of employees, 7-Eleven, like other players in the convenience store industries, worries about an increase in the minimum wage. Labor expense accounted for 42.1 percent of gross profit in 2002 for the convenience store industry as a whole.34 For example, the New York Association of Convenience Stores noted that a proposed increase in the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.10 by 2006 would increase convenience store costs in the state by 38 percent.35 Finally, 7-Eleven faces the challenge of maintaining security in its stores, many of which operate 24 hours a day. A Learning Organization Keyes would like 7-Eleven to become a â€Å"learning organization† from top to bottom. As he works to reinvent the company, and to move away from traditional methods of retailing, Keyes would like to engender an environment of continual learning in franchises, corporate-run stores, and in HQ. Recognizing that 7-Eleven is not considered an attractive place to work for newlyminted MBA’s and others, Keyes wants to turn 7-Eleven into the â€Å"Procter Gamble training ground† for the convenience industry. Specifically, Keyes worries about creating a management team to succeed him. He talks about being in â€Å"leadership 101† as he looks back and realizes that he is so much of a hands-on person that he did not make enough effort to develop people as he was moving up through the ranks of the company. 33 7-Eleven news release, January 21, 2004. EDC Economics, An Overview of the US Convenience Store Industry, December 2003. 35 New York Association of Convenience Stores (www.nyacs.org). 34 13 Retailing Leadership The New 7-Eleven Search for new HR Director In order to develop employer differentiation ideas, manage the image of 7-Eleven’s front-line retailers and develop ways of making 7-Eleven’s corporate side a more attractive place to work and develop as retailers, Keyes instituted a search for a new Director of Human Resources. (See Exhibit 16 for a company organization chart.) After looking at many resumes, he remains unimpressed. â€Å"They don’t go above the baseline,† he says. So many of the candidates miss the point about differentiation and customer service, and do not understand that all employees must be able to fill in the blank: â€Å"I want to work for 7-Eleven because _______.† Growth 7-Eleven is expanding rapidly. In the U.S., store growth is balanced between new franchises and corporate-run stores. Internationally, the company enters into license agreements with partners in foreign countries. Domestic Expansion 7-Eleven is adopting an urban strategy learned from successful licensees in Japan and Taiwan, ceding high-traffic corners to others and looking for more unconventional locations. These types of selections decrease the cost of real estate and, as a result, increase the company’s return on investment. In addition, the company is upgrading both its technological and physical infrastructure to continue to redefine its brand image. 7-eleven spent over $500 million over the last five years to upgrade its technology platform (See Exhibit 16 for pictures of current stores.) In 2004, the company plans to open approximately 100 new retail outlets in the United States while continuing to close unprofitable stores. Keyes believes this is vastly undershooting their expansion potential. In Japan, the company netted over 1,000 new stores during 2003. He believes that 7-Eleven could easily add 500 to 1,000 stores per year in the U.S. market. Areas of focus include cities and airports, as well as further penetrating some of their existing markets. Questions remain, however: Can 7-Eleven justify the relatively high cost of real estate in these areas? What effect will cannibalization have on the economics of both their new and existing stores? Further, based on their highly leveraged balance sheet, can they even afford to do it? International Expansion Keyes also sees great opportunities in new markets. South America, Beijing and the rest of China are all examples of key markets that the company is looking to expand into.36 7-Eleven hopes to secure local partners that are familiar with the markets to increase the chances of success. While convenience transcends cultural differences, the definition of convenience will certainly vary by culture. 36 Associated Press, April 6, 2004. 7-Eleven, through a joint venture arrangement between licensee Seven-Eleven Japan and two Chinese partners opened its first store in Beijing on April 15, 2004. 14 Retailing Leadership The New 7-Eleven International expansion is facilitated through the use of license agreements. Such agreements give 7-Eleven, Inc., legal control over the use of trademarks, trade dress and business information, and attempts to establish mutually beneficial relationships in order to ensure additional control over licensees. Japan represents 7-Eleven’s greatest international success. The stores are consistently clean and well-organized, with a very wide and high-quality product line. Working closely with suppliers and providing first-class service to customers Seven-Eleven Japan has experienced phenomenal success. It now has over 10,000 stores. While the Japanese experience represents strong success, it remains to be seen whether 7-Eleven can replicate that model in other countries. Conclusion â€Å"It’s been a fascinating experience to take a company that was an icon in an industry and transform its economic model over the last 10 years,† says Keyes. He admits, however, that the transformation is on-going and not complete. He worries about the continued holding-out of his dominant suppliers like Coca Cola and Pepsi to the CDC model. Underlying these difficulties with his reinvention of 7-Eleven, the people management issues loom large. What should he be looking for in his new HR director? Why is the right person so hard to find? â€Å"The sky’s the limit in terms of what we can create,† says Keyes. â€Å"As I look around the landscape of retail all of my competition are playing the same game.† In his Beechcraft, as Keyes adjusts his altitude to compensate for the turbulence, he sees much blue sky in front of him. He also can’t help noticing the clouds off in the distance. 15 Retailing Leadership Exhibit 1 The New 7-Eleven Biography of Jim Keyes Jim Keyes is president and chief executive officer for 7-Eleven, Inc., the world’s largest convenience store retailer. Mr. Keyes served in a number of senior management positions before being elected to his current role in 2000. He joined 7-Eleven stores’ former subsidiary Citgo Petroleum in 1985 as general manager of marketing and business strategy. A year later, he became general manager of 7-Eleven’s national gasoline, with responsibility for the company’s retail gasoline business in the United States and Canada. He was named vice president of national gasoline in 1991. Mr. Keyes served as the company’s senior financial officer in 1992 and was named chief financial officer in 1996. He was elected to the company’s board of directors in 1997 and promoted to executive vice president and chief operating officer in 1998. Before joining 7-Eleven, he held various field and corporate positions at Gulf Oil Corporation. Mr. Keyes earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Holy Cross College in Worcester, Mass., where he was named to the Phi Beta Kappa honor society and graduated cum laude in 1977. He also attended the University of London and received a Master’s of Business Administration degree from Columbia University in New York City [in 1980]. Mr. Keyes is founding chairman of Education is Freedom, a public charity dedicated to helping hard-working young people reach their full potential through higher education. He serves on the national board of directors of Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE), the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Latino Initiatives for the Next Century (LINC) and on the board of trustees for the Boys and Girls Club. Mr. Keyes also is on the board of directors for the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS). He was recognized by the Network of Executive Women for his efforts to promote diversity in the workplace. Mr. Keyes serves in a leadership role within the local Dallas community as well, as an executive board member of the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce, a member of the Dallas Citizens Council and a member of Southern Methodist University’s Cox School of Business and chairman of the Dallas Symphony Association. Mr. Keyes was born on March 17, 1955 in Grafton, Mass. He and his wife Margo live in Dallas.