Consumer Engagement with Self-Expressive Brands - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 8 Words: 2440 Downloads: 3 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Marketing Essay Type Analytical essay Level High school Did you like this example? Consumer Engagement and Brands 1 Consumer Engagement with Self-Expressive brands: Brand love and Word of Mouth (WOM) Abstract Self-expression in brands nowadays is being understood as the capability of the brand to allow the customer to alter it as per his own identity The following study strives to understand consumer engagement with self-expressive brands leading to brand advocacy by consumers using positive Word Of Mouth and Brand Acceptance. Its main objective is to determine whether brand advocacy for self-expressive brands is performed well with Word of Mouth or by Brand Acceptance. This study will be carried out using surveys, interviews, internet depictions and several research studies already conducted in this regard. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Consumer Engagement with Self-Expressive Brands" essay for you Create order Table of Contents 1. Introduction 1.1. Background of the Study 1.2. Problem Statement 1.3. Research Questions 1.4. Objective of the Study 1.5. Significance of the Study 2. Literature Review 2.1. Previous Works 2.2. Literature Gap 3. Conceptual Model 3.1. Variables of Interest 3.2. Appropriate Model for the Study 4. Research Methodology 4.1. Population 4.2. Sample and Size 4.3. Data Collection Method and Sources 4.4. Instrument 4.5. Time Schedule 5. References Consumer Engagement with Self-Expressive brands: Brand love and Word of Mouth (WOM) 1. Introduction 1.1. Background of the Study Consumer engagement is being considered nowadays as an important research topic as it is proving to be providing an improved academic insight into the behavior of consumer in complicated, shared and co-creative environments (Koller, 2009). In theory, consumer engagement is understood to be larger sphere of relationship marketing (Kozinets, et. al. 2010). It is considered largely that consumer engagement is merely the detail of relationship marketing theory. Specified interactive consumer experience formulates consumer engagement. For this reason consumer engagement holds the central position in the marketing system (Kozinets, et. al. 2010). Consumer engagement has been defined as the degree of the presence a customers physical, cognitive and emotional aspects in their relationship with an organization. Consumer engagement with self-expressive brands has an amplified effect. 1.2. Problem Statement Self-expression in brands nowadays is being understood as the capability of the brand to allow the customer to alter it as per his own identity (Keller, Parameswaran, Jacob, 2011). For instance, Freestyle fountain drink machines, were recently introduced by Coke in order to provide its customers with the option to mix selections from more than 100 choices into a drink of their own making. Other than expressing his identity through choice in the brand a customer can also express his identity by modifying the brand. Examples of such a modification can range from selecting the ringtone that one prefers to the personalizing the desktop of a computer. Self-expressive brands have also increased due to the fast increase in social networking platforms and communication between individuals (Keller, Parameswaran, Jacob, 2011). This study strives to understand consumer engagement with self-expressive brands leading to brand advocacy by consumers using positive Word Of Mouth and Brand Acceptance. 1.3. Research Questions The following two questions will be answered in this research: Does Word of Mouth prove to be a better method of Brand Advocacy for consumers engaged with self-expressive brands? Does Brand Acceptance prove to be a better method of Brand Advocacy for consumers engaged with self-expressive brands? 1.4. Objective of the Study The objective of the study is to determine whether brand advocacy for self-expressive brands is performed well with Word of Mouth or by Brand Acceptance. 1.5. Significance of the Study The importance of this study can be understood by the need to understand the impact of rapidly rising areas of self-expression on the sale or promotion of a given brand as it is directly affecting it. 2. Literature Review 2.1. Previous Works The social identities of consumers are enhanced by the environments provided by Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter which allows them to voice their opinions and discover others that share the same opinions (Keller, Parameswaran, Jacob, 2011). Their identities are further expressed, in fact they become capable enough to develop new personalities with the help of virtual reality games, such as Second Life and The Sims. This unparalleled access to personally relevant self-expressive schemes and information raises a potential question; how the rapid growth in the means of self-expression does affect the opinion and decision of the customer about the product (Koller, 2009). This self-expression causes the consumer to develop love for Brand. According to Wirtz, et. al. (2013), Brand love is a predecessor to brand loyalty and satisfaction is an ancestor to brand love. Consequently, brand love ensues as the strong connection between brand loyalty and customer satisfaction (Keller, Paramesw aran, Jacob, 2011). If a person keeps being satisfied with a brand over a longer period of time, then it can be said that satisfaction will get changed into an affecting and passionate connection with the brand. This connection is more like affection, devotion and love. Ismail, Spinelli (2012 state brand love as a mixture of feeling, sentiments, and passion. Another researcher of Batra, Ahuvia, Bagozzi (2012) define it as it is the thing which has long term loyalty to the brand along with feelings and passion. Followed by this, it is believed that loving a brand, not simply satisfaction, is a step on the road to loyalty. For this, marketers need to make a plan to have ways to make satisfied customers love a brand and become loyal customers (Batra, Ahuvia, Bagozzi, 2012). Once brand love takes hold of a consumer his first impulse becomes brand advocacy which can be done by two methods; Word of Mouth and Brand Acceptance. For many years, word of mouth (WOM) has been known as a main power on what people identify, believe and do. Earlier, interpersonal influence was worked on. The book Rhetoric (Aristotle, trans. Roberts, 1924) highlights the influential and convincing implication of three artistic proofs a speaker controls: ethos, pathos and logos. Ethos is the ethical and personal appeals of a speaker (Ind, Iglesias, Schultz, 2013). It consists of various ways in which a speaker can plan his/her characteristics in an attempt to bring forth belief on the listenerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s part. Pathos includes the emotional pleas of the speaker. Logos are the base of logical discussion. Alamgir, et. al. (2011) point out the impact of word of mouth on consumers through his influential review of derived connection between social sciences and consumer behavior. Expertsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢View (2013) works on WOM to persuade ignorant experimental subjects, in spite of clearly noticeable proof to the contrary, marketing management agreed that advertis ing is one of some pressures on a personà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s attitudes and not that much important than such persuasion as personal observation and peers (Brodie, et. al. 2013). In general, this research works as a foundation that declare WOM as more powerful on behavior than other marketer-controlled sources. Undeniably, it has been examined that WOM can be more significant and dominant than neutral print resources like Which and Consumer Reports. It has been analyzed that WOM has a great impact on various situations: consciousness, expectations, awareness, feelings, behavioral intentions and attitudes. Fournier, Lee (2009)wrap up with the view that WOM is more essential than advertising when one wants to increase awareness of an innovation and in making safe the decision in order to test the product. Silverman (2011) concludes that this was because of the elasticity and source reliability of interpersonal communication. He figures out that WOM was nine times as effective as adv ertising at changing adverse or nonaligned tendencies and implementing more affirmative, activists, and positive approaches (Schmitt, 2012). Brand acceptance is the instinct of the customer that comes after he decides he appreciates the brand and falls in love with it (Chu, Kim, 2011). It encompasses the customerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s ability to accept the brand because of its name or reputation rather than judging it by its present or current state. For example, the brand Mcdonalds would never be tested for the hygiene of its products because it is renowned in the world to serve the best quality of all (Hollebeek, 2011). Another type of acceptance that customer adheres is the minor default or flaw in the brand that the customer chooses to overlook in order to maintain a regular consumption of the product (Chu, Kim, 2011). This should not be intermixed with Brand forgiveness as that entails a deeper meaning than acceptance. 2.2. Literature Gap One of the notions that should have been discussed here is that of the Brand Forgiveness. It poses a vital gap in literature which needs to be studied. Brand forgiveness pertains to the customerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s love for the brand being so extensive that he overlooks the fault in the brand or its marketing or its make (Vivek, 2009). It is the step that comes after Brand loyalty because once a customer has indentified a brand the question that faces him is whether or not to make continued used of it. With regard to consumer engagement with self-expressive brands, Brand forgiveness ought to have been kept in mind. 3. Conceptual Model 3.1. Variables of Interest 3.2. Appropriate Model for the Study As this study focuses on the brand advocacy by two methods namely Word of Mouth and Brand Acceptance, it has been inspired by a conceptual model described below: Engagerà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ is a strategic framework for evolving and measuring effective and an encompassing marketing engagement. It expresses the new ways brands and communications have adopted. It generates experiences that are much more strong and involving (Gambetti, Graffigna, 2010). It displays explicit instruction and insight to improve brand relations and increase prospective sale and profit ratios. For contemporary research in brands, Engager provides a great framework. It is a qualitative and quantitative approach both for proper understanding of the customers in the new, modern and rapidly growing world (Gambetti, Graffigna, 2010). Global insight and several studies have been taken into account under this framework. To obtain positive impact on decision making and engaging in fruitful relations, Engager has recognized nine major key areas. 4. Research Methodology This study will be carried out using surveys, interviews, internet depictions and several research studies already conducted in this regard. 4.1. Population It will take the lively population of Islamabad from Pakistan. 4.2. Sample and Size Through random sampling, we will choose a sample of 100 youngsters aged between 18 to 25 years, belonging from middle to upper classes of the population. 4.3. Data Collection Method and Sources The data will be collected using questionnaires in the survey, interviews and internet depictions as primary tools while researches conducted by other authors will be treated as the secondary source of data. 4.4. Instrument SPSS Statistics is software through which one can manage and calculate a wide range of statistics. The clearest use for SPSS is to use the software to run statistical tests. SPSS has all of the most broadly used statistical tests included in it (Hollebeek, 2011). Thus, now people do not have to do any mathematical equations by hand. SPSS is used to have more accurate results that can be justified. SPSS will be used to analyse the collected data. Different tests, like reliability, correlations, Anova and other suitable tests will be run on the collected data to come up with the results. 4.5. Time Schedule Sept, 14 1st week 1st week 1st week 2nd week 2nd week Tasks Define aims and objectives Make research questions Draft research method and strategy Review literature Completed research proposal Further review of literature Construct survey Conducted surveys Analyze data Results and conclusions Prepare draft report Write dissertation 5. References Alamgir, M., Nasir, T., Shamsuddoha, M., Nedelea, A. (2011). Influence of brand name on consumer decision making process-an empirical study on car buyers.The USV Annals of Economics and Public Administration,10(2), 142-153. Retrieved from: https://annals.seap.usv.ro/index.php/annals/article/viewFile/295/302 Batra, R., Ahuvia, A., Bagozzi, R. P. (2012). Brand love.Journal of Marketing,76(2), 1-16. Retrieved from: https://www.rotexcontrols.nl/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/artikel-5.3.pdf Brodie, R. J., Ilic, A., Juric, B., Hollebeek, L. (2013). Consumer engagement in a virtual brand community: An exploratory analysis.Journal of Business Research,66(1), 105-114. Chu, S. C., Kim, Y. (2011). Determinants of consumer engagement in electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in social networking sites.International Journal of Advertising,30(1), 47-75. Retrieved from: https://j.pelet.free.fr/publications/reseausociauxnumeriques/Determinants_of_consumer_engagement_in_electronic_word-of-mouth_ (eWOM)_in_social_networking_sites.pdf Expertsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢View, B. (2013). Brand Identity Development and the Role of Marketing Communications.International Research Journal,11(1), 61-78. Retrieved from: https://www.fm.upr.si/zalozba/ISSN/1581-6311/11_061-078.pdf Fournier, S., Lee, L. (2009). Getting brand communities right.Harvard business review,87(4), 105-111. Retrieved from: https://hbr.org/download/getting-brand-communities-right/R0904K-PDF-ENG/R0904K-PDF-ENG.PDF Gambetti, R. C., Graffigna, G. (2010). The concept of engagement.International Journal of Market Research,52(6), 801-826. Hollebeek, L. (2011). Exploring customer brand engagement: definition and themes.Journal of strategic Marketing,19(7), 555-573. Retrieved from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0965254X.2011.599493 Ind, N., Iglesias, O., Schultz, M. (2013). Building Brands Together.California Management Review,55(3). Retrieved from: https://majkenschultz.com/wp-content/uploads/Acade mic%20Publications/Building%20Brands%20Together.2013.pdf Ismail, A. R., Spinelli, G. (2012). Effects of brand love, personality and image on word of mouth: The case of fashion brands among young consumers.Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management,16(4), 386-398. Keller, K. L., Parameswaran, M. G., Jacob, I. (2011).Strategic brand management: Building, measuring, and managing brand equity. Pearson Education India. Retrieved from: https://cerita-silat.mywapblog.com/files/course-syllabus-gestion-d.pdf Koller, V. (2009). Brand images: Multimodal metaphor in corporate branding messages.Multimodal metaphor,11, 45. Retrieved from: https://books.google.com.pk/books?hl=enlr=id=dodSTYriz2ICoi=fndpg=PA45dq=Consumer+Engagement+with+Self-Expressive+brandsots=DvJILFmRDzsig=3WUm4100DJ_LCSWd_I1HxEL-tKY#v=onepageq=Consumer%20Engagement%20with%20Self-Expressive%20brandsf=false Kozinets, R. V., De Valck, K., Wojnicki, A. C., Wilner, S. J. (2010). Networked narratives: understanding wo rd-of-mouth marketing in online communities.Journal of marketing,74(2), 71-89. Retrieved from: https://www.etnografiadigitale.it/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Networked_Narratives_JM2010_Final_SM.pdf Schmitt, B. (2012). The consumer psychology of brands.Journal of Consumer Psychology,22(1), 7-17. Retrieved from: https://www.183degrees.com/JCS%20Jan12.pdf Silverman, G. (2011).Secrets of Word-of-Mouth Marketing: How to trigger exponential sales through runaway word of mouth. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn. Retrieved from: https://books.google.com.pk/books?hl=enlr=id=NBO-l59EPuUCoi=fndpg=PR5dq=Brand+love+and+Word+of+Mouth+ots=uqs7wDoAMlsig=k9UvAg1xRtyL1KHnYJPGZbDJrWQ#v=onepageq=Brand%20love%20and%20Word%20of%20Mouthf=false Vivek, S. D. (2009).A scale of consumer engagement(Doctoral dissertation, The University of Alabama TUSCALOOSA). Retrieved from: https://acumen.lib.ua.edu/content/u0015/0000001/0000096/u0015_0000001_0000096.pdf Wirtz, J., den Ambtman, A., Bloemer, J., HorvÃƒÆ ' ¡th, C., Ramaseshan, B., van de Klundert, J., Kandampully, J. (2013). Managing brands and customer engagement in online brand communities.Journal of Service Management,24(3), 223-244. Retrieved from: https://bschool.nus.edu.sg/Marketing/Jochen%20papers/WirtzetalJOSM2013OnlineBrandCommunities.pdf

Leadership Styles And Leadership Style - 1026 Words

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Lessons From Teaching Millennials Free Essays

Their Comfort Zones and Ours Kenneth Stewart, one who professed at college and taught high school, wrote an article about his learning with teaching called â€Å"Lessons From Teaching Millennial†. In the article, he told us about his 2005-6 classes. He wanted to share his observations about their behavior, his teaching mistakes while working with them, and his beliefs about how we can best work with the current generation of college students. We will write a custom essay sample on Lessons From Teaching Millennials or any similar topic only for you Order Now He believes that students should be both challenged and patiently taught while the teachers and students move outside their comfort zones. Stewart told us that when a big gap developed between his expectations of the students and theirs of themselves, he asked them their reactions to the course. Most of them agreed that the course was more demanding then they thought It would be even though he had the same standards he had asked of students he taught In the asses, ‘ass, and ‘ass. He noticed that they were less motivated and thought that he was responsible for their learning instead of themselves. For the next semester, he decided to move his expectations closer to what his students thought they would expect. He gave them ore options like whether they wanted to present their research to the entire faculty. He also agreed to the classes suggestion of written versions of his oral pre-exam reviews and the average grade on the tests climbed to mid-level Bi’s. Stewart noticed that many students submitted brief drafts and rarely seemed to be proofread. He soon learned reviews helped them to memorize for exams but didn’t cause thoughtful reading or understanding. At the end of the course, he concluded that moving the class closer to their comfort zone, was successful for their opinions of them and their grades, but they didn’t really learn the content. When Stewart was focused so much on his students’ actions and attitudes, he realized he presented an image of teaching that was incomplete. He was so distracted by the classes issues that he lost touch of the less vocal students. He read a review from a female student that made him open his eyes and discover that he made many mistakes in planning the spring course and his instructional decisions. Stewart agreed to the fact that it was easier to describe his students’ flaws than his own. The main mistake he made in the planning of his spring course was that he was attempting to gain back his self confidence as a teacher. He never considered that the reviews encouraged less understanding. He stated that he shortchanged the students who benefited more from challenging expectations. After considering both the students and his teaching, Stewart decided that it was important to find an appropriate balance between challenge and support which Is difficult when students demonstrate differences In academic talent, motivation, and readiness for university work. He said that we should acknowledge today’s students need teachers who are apparent but all of them need teachers who expect them to meet high standards. In conclusion, Stewart lives that it remains critical that we ask all students to meet standards worthy of a university degree? even if it means they must sometimes move outside their comfort zones and we must move outside ours. The course was more demanding then they thought it would be even though he had the same standards he had asked of students he taught in the asses, ‘ass, and ‘ass. Challenge and support which is difficult when students demonstrate differences in should acknowledge today’s students need teachers who are apparent but all of them university degree– even if it means they must sometimes move outside their comfort How to cite Lessons From Teaching Millennials, Papers

Importance of Supply Chain Outsourcing Free-Sample for Students

Question: Discuss about the Business Research Methodology. Answer: Introduction Govindan et al. (2015) mentioned that there are many organizations to prefer outsourcing some of their business functions to a third-party organization so that they can focus on critical business operations. This third- party then take all the liabilities to accomplish the business operation. Wisner et al. (2014) however highlight that the most usual business approaches that many marketers considered for outsourcing are- marketing, sales, human resources and accounting. However, in recent times, outsourcing supply chain management to some other organization has become a trend. Experts also believe that unanticipated costs, potentiality for setbacks, poor quality work and Integration Difficulties are the risk concerning outsourcing the SCM while better focus on other business aspects, meeting customer demands, minimization of overall cost, flexibility in business and more business networks are advantageous factors in SCM outsourcing (Sodhi and Tang 2012). The prime objective of this assessment is to compare and contrast on related peer-reviewed articles on supply- chain management outsourcing and to draw the ideas and concept discussed in those articles. The risk and advantages along with their conclusion for their research identified by these scholars will also be illustrated. Discussion Outsourcing life-cycle In the article Outsourcing within a Supply Chain Management Framework, Hila and Dumitrascu (2014) describes that SCM outsourcing resembles the buyer-seller relationship. In this peer journal, it is mentioned that the outsourcing process should be implemented by following a systematic outsourcing life cycle that comprises of 7 steps- strategic assessment, needs analysis, Supplier assessment, contract management, project initiation, relationship management and continuance of the partnership. Figure 1: Outsourcing life-cycle (Source: Hila and Dumitrascu2014) The research scholar also highlights that the advantage of supply chain outsourcing is greater business flexibility, low investment risk, improved cash flow and low labor costs. It is also mentioned in this research paper that outsourcing is majorly done by forming long-term relationships with competent companies, who can effectively accomplish their businesss objectives. Factors like freeing resources for other purposes, infusion of cash, lack of internal resources, a better capability of external supplier and the desire to focus more tightly on core business influence marketers to outsource their business operations. Waters and Rinsler (2014) also depicted that risk of choosing inefficient suppliers, longer lead times, leakage of intellectual property and loss of control over process are some of the common disadvantages in business function outsourcing. The conclusion drawn here is that whether or not a marketer intends to outsource their business operations, in order to attain hig h quality, collaboration between buyer and seller and sharing rewards and commitment ensures the improvement in costs, quality, delivery, time and performance. Relationship of Supply Chain Management and Outsourcing Moreover in the research journal Relationship between Supply Chain Management and Outsourcing Mazlan and Ali (2006) explains that in order to enhance organizational performance, Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Outsourcing are considered as important tools. The research scholar here mentioned that outsourcing the supply chain management procedures provide competitive advantage to an organization as the third- party on which SCM is outsourced are expertise in this field and the logistics process of the business will be handled hassle-free. Sodhi and Tang (2012) furthermore suggests that these outsources companies comprises of two parties- upstream parties and the downstream parties. Upstream parties signify an organizations functions, processes and network of suppliers; on the other hand, distribution channels and processes signifies the downstream functions. Mazlan and Ali (2006) furthermore highlighted that in outsourcing, marketers have to align their business objectives with that of their SCM third- party, so that mutual understanding can be reached. Thus, the disadvantage in SCM outsourcing is the proper execution of complex and complicated management system due to more number of associated people. Christopher (2016) moreover argues that practice of outsourcing is sustainable and businesspersons are satisfied with the overall business outcome in outsourcing their logistics procedure. The benefits in this process are to reduce costs, improve employee productivity, expand services and expertise as marketers got more time to focus on their core business. Compared to the first article, in this research paper, it is mentioned that business contacts are also enhanced in this way, as these third parties are also liable to handle the SMS functionality of more than one organization. Another different aspect in this journal articles highlighted is the overlapping aspects among three factors- people, process and technology (Mazlan and Ali 2006). The conclusion that i s drawn from this research article is that outsourcing can be an element of magnitude in SCM. This can be achieved through effective collaboration with downstream and upstream parties. Logistics outsourcing in retailing for fresh products The third article is Fresh product supply chain management with logistics outsourcing, where it is mentioned that the presence of third-party logistics (3PL) provider in the supply chain has a significant impact on the business performance. One of the greatest advantages of outsourcing the SCM is that marketers can overcome the geographic separation between the production base and the target market (Cai et al. 2013). These 3PL providers handle all the transportation costs and time to deliver the final goods from the manufacturers to the end-customers and the level of freshness can be maintained. This article majorly focuses on the retail business, where customers intended to get fresh products from an organization. The risk in logistics outsourcing is the variation of transport time depending on the transportation distance (Johnson 2014). The problem arises when the time taken to deliver products to the users takes longer than the usual time and the products will not remain fresh. Th us, compare to two of the research articles, this journal highlighted the risk of quantity loss and quality loss in retail business for perishable products. Another reason for the occurrence of this adversity is lacks experience in the employees or lack of knowledge in marinating the organizations objectives. Adversities like using cheaper items, cuts corners and improper adoption of risk factors in business also create hassle in the entire process and customer might not get their desired products on time. The conclusion that is drawn in this article is that retailers should adopt third- party supply chain associates for transferring their products to long-distance. However, motivation plays a crucial role in making their third- party service providers and thus incentive scheme should be implemented to facilitate their coordination. Supply chain outsourcing for fresh products The next article that is taken into consideration is Global Supply Chains: Factors Influencing Outsourcing of Logistics Functions. In this research article, it is mentioned that nearly all large multinational companies associated with third-party logistics providers to freight forwarders (Rao and Young 2014). Johnson (2014) also highlight that the factors that drive the tendency to get associated with a third-party logistics provider are- achievement of risk liability and control, formulation of market relationships, attaining centrality of the logistics functions to core competency and operating cost/service tradeoffs. In the context of the risk that is associated with this SCM providers are- product complexity, process complexity and Network complexity (Rao and Young 2014). Process Complexity resembles the time sensitivity of transactions within the supply chain, order cycle times and manufacturing cycle times for customer orders and components and products respectively. Network co mplexity furthermore signifies geographic dispersion and intensiveness of transactions. Brandenburg et al. (2014) moreover stated the major reasons for this complexity are- selecting an effective number of distribution trading partners, appropriate selection of the region where the logistics process needs to be performed, maintenance of stock-keeping unit (SKU) and origin/destination (OD) pair permutations. In this case, the problem arises due to nature of the traffic dispersion that is when all the firms products are distributed among the major regions of the world. Moreover, Brandenburg et al. (2014) also portrays that unanticipated cost, potential for setbacks, maintaining quality of products and integration difficulties are some risk in outsourcing the supply chain operation to others. In context of unanticipated costs, it can be said there are always hidden fees that a third party does not reveal like increased shipping costs and associated taxes on cost projections. These fluc tuations results in conflicts and poor communication and less priority. Moreover, problem in unrealistic timelines throughout distribution also hosts many problems that can lead to revenue loss and glitches in the supply chain process. Lastly, in the context of the product complexity, it is important to analyze the environmental information like temperature and humidity for transportation, storage and handling. These details are assessed effectively by the third- party according to the sensitivity of the business products of the host company. Warehouse, IT and Customs Brokerage Outsourcings Moreover, in Role of logistics outsourcing on supply chain strategy and management the prime topic for discussion is to analyze the effect of logistics outsourcing. In this article, (Hilletofth and Hilmola 2010) mentioned that there are several types of 3PL providers- standard 3pl providers, service developers, customer developers and customer adapters. The advantages of this outsourcing are the ease of order intake, procurement, inventory management, fleet management, warehousing, and distribution of the products and the goods. Hilletofth and Hilmola (2010) moreover depict that the underlying disadvantage in SCM outsourcing is the lack of needed competency and resources for proper logistics distribution among the third parties. Wu et al. (2013) also affirm that large organizations on performing other business operations have to put less effort on their distribution process as 3PL providers do the same for the concerned organization. The conclusion drawn from this research article is that warehousing and customs brokerage outsourcing are two major aspects of supply chain outsourcing (Hilletofth and Hilmola 2010). However, in recent times, the IT applications of logistics information system are mostly valued as everything in the business is automatic but customs brokerage outsourcings are considered as the core strength of the logistics. The only difference that is found in the local and international supply chain outsourcing is that in the former case, the customs brokerage outsourcing is mostly preferred; while, in the latter case, the IT outsourcing is preferable. Importance of supply chain outsourcing In the research report Supply chain outsourcing: More choices, tougher decisions, Byrne (2006) highlight some of the major business issues due to which marketers prefers 3PL providers to formulating their own supply chain department. These issues are- organization specific issues like ineffective supply chain leadership, improper knowledge in boom and bust cycles and lack of skills in information technology as a competitive differentiator long with the inability to implement long-lasting changes. Moreover, Johnson (2014) affirms by depicting that financial issues are the major reason for which businesspeople wants to outsource their SCM process. These financial issues comprise of factors like- incapable of handling the increased cost of SC costs, proper management to free- up the investment costs and consistently missed services or availability targets (Mena et al. 2013). On the other hand, Pagell and Shevchenko (2014) argue that supply-chain specific issues are the important aspect that enforces a businessperson to hand over their distribution process to third- party. Wang et al. (2015) furthermore portray that improper monitoring of the inventories across different departments, visibility of orders in transit, lack of knowledge in global integration of supply chain processes and inconsistency in adopting best SCM practices among the organizations different departments along with the purchasing of effective supply chain resources. However, all the three factors- organization specific issues, financial issues and supply chain issues can be overcome by selecting efficient 3PL providers and resembles the benefits of outsourcing the supply chain function to them (Stadtler 2015). Byrne (2006) moreover, highlighted in the article that key decision criteria for frequently outsourced supply chain functions are- transportation, warehousing, network planning and procurement. E-commerce companies also outsource their SCM for better and fast distribution services. Wang et al. (2015) on the other hand mentioned that an organization have to take initiatives for helping their clients to perform higher by collaboratively managing the strategies, processes, technologies and synergies so that both the companys and its outsourced suppliers business objectives can be aligned. The disadvantages in this context are that distribution is an important function and the company has to rely for their products delivery on them. Arise of conflicts and poor management of the customer handling may results in poor brand recognition due to inefficient 3PL providers. In addition to that, Mena et al. (2013) depicts that outsourcing results in losing control over the processes due to which delay in delivery and ineffective customer satisfaction occurs. Moreover, proper integration with the supply chain services provider cannot be attained easily as an organization intends to associate with organization who have expertise in every field of logistics and this become tough for 3PL to fulfil. Conclusion Thus, it can be concluded that the major benefits that can be attained by outsourcing the business performance are to coordinate the core business operations efficiently. This assessment focuses on the supply chain management outsourcing that is to handle over the distribution approaches of the business products and services on a third party enterprises or providers. This process ensures that the final goods will be delivered to the end-users without any delay. A total of six research articles are taken into consideration and the common facts that were found are that businesspeople outsource their supply chain procedure to 3PL providers in order to get more business contact, overcoming infusion of cash, lack of internal resources and better capability of external supplier. These factors ensure attainment of high quality and effective collaboration between buyer and seller. Moreover, it is also found that outsources companies comprises of upstream parties and the downstream parties th at are liable for handling the network of suppliers and distribution channels. The major disadvantage that is found by analysis all the research articles are that businesspeople face difficulty in executing complex and complicated management system and in the identification of the variation of transport time depending on the transportation distance. Thus, the major topic of discussion that can draw is to find out the impact of supply chain outsourcing on effective business performance that can be addressed in future. References Brandenburg, M., Govindan, K., Sarkis, J. and Seuring, S., 2014. Quantitative models for sustainable supply chain management: Developments and directions.European Journal of Operational Research,233(2), pp.299-312. Byrne, P.M., 2006. Supply chain outsourcing: more choices, tougher decisions.Logistics Management,45(5), pp.24-26. Cai, X., Chen, J., Xiao, Y., Xu, X. and Yu, G., 2013. Fresh-product supply chain management with logistics outsourcing.Omega,41(4), pp.752-765. Christopher, M., 2016.Logistics supply chain management. Pearson UK. Govindan, K., Soleimani, H. and Kannan, D., 2015. Reverse logistics and closed-loop supply chain: A comprehensive review to explore the future.European Journal of Operational Research,240(3), pp.603-626. Hila, C.M. and Dumitrascu, O., 2014. Outsourcing Within A Supply Chain Management Framework. InProceedings of the INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE(Vol. 8, No. 1, pp. 328-336).Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania. Hilletofth, P. and Hilmola, O.P., 2010. Role of logistics outsourcing on supply chain strategy and management: survey findings from Northern Europe.Strategic Outsourcing: An International Journal,3(1), pp.46-61. Johnson, P.F., 2014.Purchasing and supply management.McGraw-Hill Higher Education. Mazlan, R. and Ali, K.N., 2006. Relationship between supply chain management and outsourcing.InConfrence I CCO. Mena, C., Humphries, A. and Choi, T.Y., 2013. Toward a theory of multi?tier supply chain management.Journal of Supply Chain Management,49(2), pp.58-77. Pagell, M. and Shevchenko, A., 2014.Why research in sustainable supply chain management should have no future.Journal of supply chain management,50(1), pp.44-55. Rao, K. and Young, R.R., 2014. Global supply chains: factors influencing outsourcing of logistics functions.International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management,24(6), pp.11-19. Sodhi, M.S. and Tang, C.S., 2012. Strategic approaches for mitigating supply chain risks.Managing Supply Chain Risk, pp.95-108. Stadtler, H., 2015. Supply chain management: An overview. InSupply chain management and advanced planning(pp. 3-28). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Wang, Y., Wallace, S.W., Shen, B. and Choi, T.M., 2015. Service supply chain management: A review of operational models.European Journal of Operational Research,247(3), pp.685-698. Waters, D. and Rinsler, S., 2014.Global logistics: New directions in supply chain management. Kogan Page Publishers. Wisner, J.D., Tan, K.C. and Leong, G.K., 2014.Principles of supply chain management: A balanced approach. Cengage Learning. Wu, D., Wu, D.D., Zhang, Y. and Olson, D.L., 2013. Supply chain outsourcing risk using an integrated stochastic-fuzzy optimization approach.Information Sciences,235, pp.242-258.

Secret Recipe Essay Essay Example

Secret Recipe Essay Essay Background Secret Recipe. a popular life style coffeehouse concatenation. has become a family name following its introduction in 1997. Secret Recipe has successfully established in brandname in Malaysia. Singapore. Indonesia. Thailand. China. Philippines. Pakistan. Brunei and Australia by virtuousness of its all right quality bars. merger nutrient and typical service. A prima and largest coffeehouse concatenation in Malaysia. with Halal enfranchisement awarded by Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia ( JKIM ) . Secret Recipe in committed to go on frog here to the criterions of readyings of all nutrient and processing works in the eating house in conformity to the regulative guideline including HACCP and VHM guidelines. We will write a custom essay sample on Secret Recipe Essay specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Secret Recipe Essay specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Secret Recipe Essay specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Customers can ever bask in assurance from more than 20 types of merger nutrient. 40 bars creative activities and pastries. with a flavorful scope of ice pick and drinks offered in all Secret Recipe mercantile establishments. In a short period of 13 old ages. Secret Recipe has experienced a rapid growing of over one hundred and fifty ( 150 ) coffeehouse throughout the part. Secret Recipe continuously strives to surplus its ain achievements and to be recognized as a leader in the industry. Strengths 1. Brand Secret Recipe has strong term on trade name edifice earlier on by constructing easy to retrieve logo. corporate coloring material. selling schemes. uniforms. bill of fare layout. Interior design and client service criterions to differ than others. 2. Merchandise The merchandises offered at Secret Recipe are high in standard and quality. which specially crafted and tailored by the Secret Recipe. The merchandises are besides closely monitored to keep their quality at their production works in KlangValley and the eating house besides offers broad choices of secret formula of homemadecakes. baked sweets. drinks. merger nutrients and many others 3. Selling Secret Recipe have the strength in footings of cost every bit good as the selling channels. They have utilized assorted methods of advertisement and selling through cyberspace. booklets. catalogues. circulars. newspapers and telecasting advertizement and many others. They besides offered particular bars and bill of fare during particular juncture such as Valentine’sDay. Mother’s Day and others. 4. Franchised System Franchise system is advantageous for Secret Recipe as they have the rights and entree to informations from the central offices. All the trim operational systems. buying systems. hive awaying. merchandises. service s criterions. selling and many others has bring easiness of operations for Secret Recipe and minimise the drawbacks.

SHALL WE OR SHALL WE NOT HIRE POLICE OFFICERS BASED ON GENDE essays

SHALL WE OR SHALL WE NOT HIRE POLICE OFFICERS BASED ON GENDE essays SHALL WE OR SHALL WE NOT HIRE POLICE OFFICERS BASED ON GENDER OR MINORITY ISSUES? We should not hire people based on gender or minority issues because everybody has different skills and capabilities to perform specific tasks. If we talk about gender issues... well, women are very good in certain aspects, for example, organization and communication... when men have other traits, such as physical strength. If we talk about minority issues... well, people is different... there are many different cultures in the world. Its call diversity. So, if we hire diverse people, we have more probability to find a solution for an specific problem with specific people... For example: An east Indian has decided to kill himself by jumping from a building. The police arrives and surrounds the building. The guy is about to jump, while the cops yell at him orders... But the guy doesnt understand a word... he doesnt speak English very well. So, what to do? Just call the east Indian officer (which is woman, haha) and let her talk with him. She will probably save his life. That is another reason to hire women in the police department. Women tend to use dialogue most of the time to solve their conflicts. Men dont. Men are usually more aggressive, and tend to use their physical strength. So... it is better to have diverse people to develop different tasks. Depending on the situation. At the end I believe that the real question would be... should we hire police officers, or should we hire big guys? If we think about it, it doesnt matter how physically strong is a police officer when you have a problem like in the example. In that case what you need is a person that has good communication skills, that is intelligent, (and last but not least), that is bilingual. Variety is good. Joining different people with different capabilities will give us a stronger police department (or whatever is the case) as a re ...

The Role Of The Form Tutor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Role Of The Form Tutor - Essay Example This is because education is seen as a social factor and also as an economic activity that should be embraced by every member in a society. The finest individuals in a society are regarded to be those who are educated. Tutors can also be referred to as teachers who are a major part in every child’s development. This is because the time that they spend with the students matters a great deal in terms of their behaviours, morals and understanding. The above study will show the common roles of the tutor and how these roles have been changing over time. This will involve the use of different theories used in educational research. The study will also show the understanding that the pupils have in terms of the roles and responsibilities of the form tutor. Tutors are of different types for example private tutors comprise of those who are for academic development and coaching. There are also those who conduct tutoring online or at home. A private tutor mostly helps in academic activities for example if a student does not understand a particular subject then they can approach their partners for more explanation. Online tut oring is where the students share their views with a tutor who is always ready to help. To access this tutor a student has to register for easier communication. Some of these techniques used include chat, web conferencing and teleconferencing. The main role of tutors is to instill personal, social and health education (PSHE) and this training takes place outside the school setting. It is important to encourage students to develop physically through exercising and eating the best diet. Socially the tutors engage students into groups so that they may share their experiences at home or in the school compound. This makes the students feel at home and it also avoids other kinds of discrimination for instance racial, demoralization for instance in cases where pupils are mistreated at their homes they rebuild through

The U.S. Military Fighting Forces in World War II (European vs Research Paper

The U.S. Military Fighting Forces in World War II (European vs. Pacific Theaters) - Research Paper Example However, some of the technological differences made the United States more superior than most of their enemies. Furthermore, despite the disunity in the American military forces, the military of such countries as Japan, which was the strongest force in the eastern bloc, also exhibited such severe disunity thus contributing to the American victory. 1) Geographic and Environmental Conditions (i.e., effecting the style of warfare) Climatic condition played important role in earning America the victory in the war, with an effective knowledge of the pacific climate in summer, the American forces prepared adequately with appropriate attire and carried drugs and mosquito nets to cushion the soldiers from the adverse weather in the continental region. The warm and humid climatic condition of the pacific in summer presented several challenges to the Japanese who did not have adequate information of the climatic condition in the pacific region. The humid condition hastened the pace of metallic . The Japanese did not prepare for such radical ramifications and therefore lost most of their artillery as they rusted fast thus proved inefficient. Additionally, more Japanese soldiers died of rom such tropical diseases as malaria, which they had not prepared effectively for. The warm and humid climate in the region required light attire a feature that the American forces had learnt of thus leaving their Japanese counterparts ill dressed for the combat thus the ensuing inconveniences in the battlefields. The jungle environment in the pacific required specific tactic of warfare, the American formed small patrols hat would maneuver through the jungle more efficiently often relying on the efficient backup owing to the efficient communication among the small troops. Additionally, the American soldiers relied on the marines after they learnt that the terrain would not permit large military formations. American and Japanese soldiers would therefore run into each other unannounced in the ir daily patrols thus resulting in open warfare. The military combat with the infantry and artillery type of fighting this implied that fighting was at close range requiring the use of effective weaponry. 2) Type of Enemy (i.e., German's vs. Japanese soldier & tactics used); The American success in the war portrayed that the country invested a lot of resources in understanding their enemies. Information is often key in military since it helps formulate both the offenses and defenses. With the adequate information about the enemy, the American government often employed the best tactics in either attacking or resisting the advances of the enemy. Technological advancement in the war was important in the ending the war. America had to prove technological advancement in order to end the war. The eastern bloc had a renewed determination to foster the war but their evident technological inferiority influenced their decision to stop fighting. The nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki pr oved to the eastern forces that the United States had the best military technology and could annihilate their population thus influencing their decision to end the spirited fight. The Germans also proved greater

Summary Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 51

Summary - Assignment Example Further, the firm has established a team of caring and genuine people, which contributes in winning trust from its clients. This aids in ensuring that the firm does not face challenges in conducting its business activities. These persons also have the essential skills and knowledge to ensure that they have the ability to deliver the best results as expected. Moreover, the firm embraces the concepts of effective communication. This ensures that there is a two way channel of interaction in terms of winning trust and communicating effectively. The communication strategy, which is adopted by the firm, ensures that customers get satisfied with the information they get. It is this communication strategy that supports effective interaction through the social media where individuals can gain immediate feedback on their queries. Moreover, the communication strategy eliminates issues of delay and client dissatisfaction, which may have negative impacts on the business activities of the

Historical Background Of Foster Care In Ireland Social Work Essay

Historical Background Of Foster Care In Ireland Social Work Essay In order to fully appreciate the present situation of foster care in Ireland, an insight into the past history of foster care will be told. There has been a long tradition of fostering in Ireland. Foster care was present in the past, it was known as fosterage. It can be seen during the Brehon laws. Children from families of all classes were put into care of other families. This form of care was to lighten somewhat of the pressure for space in the home. This may have been as families were quiet large in the past and also financial difficulties. It also included children who were abandoned and needed the support and protection (Robins). The Brehon laws acted as the legal laws in Ireland and created two types of fosterage on where no remuneration was given and the other where a few is given (Shannon, 2005). Foster parents in both cases were to maintain their foster child to there rank. It was under a legal contract to keep and for the child until the period of was fosterage was not being cared for sufficiently, the chid was to be returned to there family home (O Higgins, 1996). Foundations of the present law around foster care were developed with the introduction of the Poor Law Amendment Act 1862. This provided children being boarding out to families who were not in work houses (O Higgins, 1996). The Infant Life Protection Act of 1897 presents where our recent system has originated from. This involved the appointment of females to inspect the conditions in which the children lived in, it also gave power that if not up to standards the child could be removed and placed in with families. Under the Health Act of 1953, health boards were empowered which provided for a major shift towards foster care. The arrangements that were introduced in boarding of childrens regulations in 1954, included provisions around the issue of being boarded out, placement in an approved school or if over 14 placed in employment (Task Force, 1980). Providing to be an important piece of legislation was the childrens act of 1908. It stated that a child who was neglected or abuse could be placed in the care of a fit person (O Higgins, 1996) Foster Care Foster care as previously discussed was a main expression towards the need for recognition of the rights of the child. Development in this area for acceptance that the child has needs of their own has led to the system of foster care that provides personalised family care that the workhouses and institutions could not provide. (Kelly and Gilligan, 2000, pg 7-8) Offers care in family setting Offers care in communication Offers opportunity to make attachment relationship to committed foster parents It can permit children to be attached and identify with family of origin It can include the childs family in care of child It can provide care and support into adulthood It can channel extra support from the agency for the child and carers (Kelly and Gilligan, 2000, pg 8) Modern child protection procedures are not sufficient as to make up a childs placement plan alone. It is more complex, as child care professionals now see the importance of individualisation and providing not only the physical care but the attachment and emotional needs ought to be provided for also (Kelly Gilligan, 2000). Children need to be placed in an environment where there needs are met, wishes can be supported and they can make individual choices for the future (Coakley, Cuddleback, Cox, 2007) Foster care is not a simple method of caring for a child; most children have experienced some form of trauma, may have been hurt or may have health or behaviour problems (Task Force, 1980). This calls for foster carers to be understanding and accept their emotions through being sensitive and caring. This can be a basis for the start of developing a relationship with the child (Fahlberg, 2004). The emergence of relative care in Ireland has proved beneficial to families. Keeping in with familys tradition and connection helps the development of childs identity, the surfacing of partnership as a key principle in child care (Broad, 2001). Legislation in Foster Care Firstly the researcher will examine the legislation in relation to relative foster care in Ireland. Child Care A ct 1991 There is a clear promotion for the welfare of children in the Child Care Act 1991. The health board has a statutory duty to identify children who are not receiving adequate care and protection (RWGFC). The welfare of the child is paramount and where appropriate the board is to give consideration to the wishes of the child based on their age and maturity (RWGFC). If social services are to meet the needs of children going into foster care then they must, among other things, listen to the child and include the children where possible in the decision making process (Kelly Gilligan, 2000). A plan is made which outlines aims and objectives for the placement and detailed guidelines for support to be given to the child, foster parents and natural parents (Shannon, 2005). UN Convention on the Rights of the Child The UN Convention was ratified in Ireland in 1992. It includes articles providing rights that relate to the childs life. It involves protection of the child from any form of discrimination and states the best interest of the child shall be held where possible when action is being considered which involves the child. It recognises the childs right to be protected and provided for. Foster care is mentioned in Article 20, stating that it is a substitute care provider when the parent or guardian fails to do so. This shows that foster care is a recognised as a suitable and appropriate form of care. Children Act 2001 The health board as stated in Section 23P requires at least 30 days notice for a private foster care placement to be arranged ad for an emergency foster care arrangement the health board requires notice within 14 days according to Section 23P2 (Shannon, 2005). At the time of notification, the health board has to be provided with the sufficient information around the foster placement (Shannon, 2005). It is said that the welfare of the child should be a primary concern to the foster parent. Section 23U allows for three interventions which the health board are obliged to use if the following occur. If it comes to the health boards attention that a private foster care arrangement has been arranged without notification to them or that the carers are not providing for the safety and welfare of the child then the interventions which can be implemented include a supervision order, an order to take the child and put into care or an instruction to terminate the order (Shannon, 2005). National Standards of Foster Care The national standards for foster care were devised following concerns around the quality of foster care services. These concerns were highlighted by the Report of the Working Group on Foster care, Foster Care: A child Centred Partnership (NSFC). The standards were developed by a committee who gathered information from experiences from individuals and organisations who work in the area of foster care and from a representative group of young people currently in foster care (NSFC). The National Standards for Foster Care 2003 provide guidelines on the provisions of quality foster care within the existing legislative framework (Shannon, 2005) There are 25 standards in all; the first 13 standards take into consideration the standard of care of the child including quality of response to factors around the childs needs and services required, whilst sticking to the relevant legislation (NSFC). The 2nd section involving the standards 14 to 17 are in relation to the assessment process of possible suitable foster carers and the training and support they require to provide for successful foster placements (NSFC). The final 8 standards are aimed at the duties and responsibilities of the health board. These standards provide guidelines which aim to promote the quality of services provided by the foster care professionals and Health Board (NSFC). The Child Care (Placement of Children with Relatives) Regulations The Regulations where put in place in 1995 as section 39 of the Child Care Act 1991 requiring the Minister for Health and Children to make regulations in relation to foster care. These regulations are directed at children who have been placed with a relative. The health board must pay attention to the rights and duties of the parents but the board must consider and consult with the child on his or her preferences (Shannon, 2005). Certain procedures must be implemented and fulfilled prior to the placement of a child in a foster care setting (Shannon, 2005). In relation to the welfare of the child needing to be considered, being placed in a family members home can cause conflict between relative carers and the birth family, so if this conflict cannot be settled then other placement should be considered (Shannon, 2005). Once the relative carers have lawful custody of the child, Article 16 of the regulations directs that the relatives take all reasonable steps to ensure the promotion of the childs health, development and welfare. In addition to the above many other factors contribute to the regulations. A relative intending to care for the child, must in according to Article 5 give in certain information regarding their health, two referees, examine into the relatives background such as criminal charges and any other relative information to the Health Board (Shannon, 2005). According to Article 12, the Health Board has to keep records of the children in foster care, including personal details of the child, an up to date case record containing certain documents (Shannon, 2005). In addition to this, the health board may visit the child as stated in the care plan. Whatever the arrangements made, Article 17 calls that the foster placement has visitation from an authorised member of the health board at least once every three months for the first two years (Shannon, 2005). To ensure the above aims of the childs placement, it is recommended that the case should be reviewed in terms of the successive of the placement and the possibility of the childs return to their natural familys home (Shannon, 2005). A foster care arrangement will end when the child reaches 18 years. Other possible reasons are that the child returns to their family home or at the request of the relative carers (Shannon, 2005). Assessment Process in Relation to Relative Foster Carers There are certain issues around the assessment process that are a cause for concern. Certain developments and amendments need to be applied to provide the best opportunity for foster care placements to be successful. In traditional foster care the assessment process lasts for a length of nine months usually, this process has to occur before the child is placed in the foster home. In comparison relative care, this process of assessment usually occurs after the child is placed with relatives due to the rapid movement of the child (Kelly Gilligan, 2000). A decision for the child to be placed with relatives is usually in the midst of a crisis. The family can be approached by the agency or the family themselves may contact the agency. As there are different regulations for traditional foster care and relative foster care, and the placement of the children occurs at different times, then it is questionable that there should be different assessment criteria (Kelly Gilligan, 2000). In recent studies, it shows that birth families themselves had preference to relatives caring for their children rather than with a home outside the family. Depending on the route to which the child entered relative care, either by agency approaching the relatives or the relatives approaching the agency, this can cause conflicting tensions between families (OBrien in Broad, 2001). The decision to take on the care of a grandchild is not an easy one. If the birth parents are not happy with the Health Service Executives decision to place their child in care, it can become a dilemma (Climo et al, 2002). The model of assessment of relative care is the same used for traditional foster parents. This is not right for relative carers as they have a connection with the child and family, the process is different to which they become known to the agency and the fact the placement is already made (OBrien in Broad, 2001). The assessment process of placement of a child with a relative usually occurs in two stages. The first is a preliminary assessment of the relatives; if the agency is content with the outcome then they proceed with the placement of the child. When the child is residing in the relatives family home the formal assessment process occurs (Kelly Gilligan, 2000). The following issues were found in a study done by David Pitcher assessing grandparents. The grandparents felt confused when being assessed and feared giving aware giving certain answers would result in their grandchildren not being placed with them. The process needs to be explained and the grandparents informed on the reason behind it to allow the process to be carried out in an honest manner (Pitcher in Broad, 2001). As grandparents have not planned to take on the full time care of a child, the can feel unprepared. Placement of the child usually occur mid crisis so it can cause the grandparents to feel stressed as they face meeting the criteria that is expected of them (Coakley et al, 2007). Social workers need to work with the grandparents in preparing them to cope with the challenges to promote successful placement and to alleviate these pending placements (Coakley et al, 2007). If the process is not explained properly this can lead to difficulty between the social worker and the grandparents. The grandparents can feel overwhelmed by the depth their private lives are being looked into. They can find this process negative and very intrusive and also it can be a frightening experience for them (Kelly Gilligan, 2000) As the process begins the grandparent should be given a written copy of the format of the interview. The social worker needs to give an honest explanatory description to the grandparents to prepare them for the process ahead. The aim of the social worker is to get an idea of the carers personality, to look at practical issues i.e. housing schools and to discuss together the perceived length that the placement will be (Broad, 2001) It can be of some reassurance for the birth parents that the child is going to live with people they know and may trust. The child can have different feelings of moving homes as in a study by Terling, 2003; found that trauma can be reduced when the child knows the person that will care for them rather than a stranger. Although the grandparent must acknowledge that while the child does know the grandparent, it does not reduce all of the stress and trauma that the child may experience when moving into another form of care (Broad, 2001). Also, the relationship between the grandparent and child must be looked at, questions need to be asked by the social workers such as does the grandparent actually like their grandchild and is there a sense of belonging for the child (Broad, 2001). Training should be specific to the carers needs. Parenting the Family Cycle The individual life cycle takes place within the family life cycle which is the primary context of human development (Carter Goldrick, 1988, pg 4). In early adult hood it can be expected that a couple will become parents of the younger generation, this can be an exciting period in a persons life. This new role that they adopt can involve responsibility in the childs developmental process and having authority in acting out parental roles to their children (Carter Goldrick, 1988). Perspectives of the role in later life are viewed as having less responsibilities and more time to reflect and relax. An older person is thought to experience retirement, dependency of others preferably their children or younger relatives, a sense of financial insecurity, possible loss of friends through death and the difficult time when a spouse dies (Carter Goldrick, 1988). Although this is a much generalised view, these experiences do occur. Grandparenthood can offer a person a sense of being and bring joy to their life. Becoming a grandparent can create new motivation and add fulfilment to an elderly person life. It creates opportunities for them to experience a new role and to develop a special close relationship (Carter Goldrick, 1988). Grandparents have a good position in their family network because they are not the parents of the children but they have a caring and considerate interest in their grandchilds development (Brubaker, 1985, citied in Bernades, 1997). A grandparents role has no clear guidelines, they can adopt rules but in remembering that they do not have the same authority that they had with their own children. Instead, grandparents can spoil and indulge in their grandchildren (Bernades, 1997). There are different styles of grand parenting involving different characteristics. The types of relationships they hold with their grandchild can vary from being distant to authoritarian and being involved in their life with assuming responsibility but having love and care (Hammer Turner, 1990). This can have an effect when a grandparent becomes a full time carer for their grandchild. If the grandparent was distant then it can be harder to develop a bond that has been absent. In comparison if a grandparent has been involved and caring, then to gain authority and create rules it can take some time and adjustments (Hammer Turner, 1990). It involves a lot more responsibilities than previously needed. They will have to set routines, assume responsibility in daily tasks and educate the child with essential skills and attend to the needs of the child (Hammer Turner, 1990). Grandparent hood can be seen as a second chance at parenting. This can be seen for grandparents when their own child has failed at their duty of parenting, the grandparent can become the main carer due to the fact that they feel part to blame. They may feel that in helping, they can fix the problem that they may have blame in (Hammer Turner). Another possible reason presented by Climo, 2002, seen that grandparents felt a commitment to the value of family continuity, they agreed to take care of the family. Their commitment to both generations their child and grandchild meant they felt it was their responsibility to step in (Climo, 2002). Also grandparents may not want their grandchild to be placed with strangers and fear that they may lose contact with their grandchildren (Climo, 2002). Factors Attributing to Relative Care It may be hard for the grand parent to deal with conflicting issues between themselves and the birth family so by introducing skills this can assist in managing family dynamics. This can essentially result in ensuring the best outcome for the childs welfare (Coakley et al, 2007). These include boundaries with birth parents, adopting care plan and following guidelines around maintaining a good relationship with the birth family (Coakley et al, 2007). If the grandparents allow continuous contact with the birth family, it can have a negative effect. This can be said when the reason for placement was abuse, if constant communication is occurring then the child may be put in danger. Also, the grandparents will never be able to gain responsibility, authority or develop a routine if the parents are interfering and not sticking to access plans that have been drawn up (Terling, 2001). Some argue that relative carers are not capable of meeting the childs needs (Sparr, 1993, Dubovitz, 1994 citied in Terling, 2001). There are assumptions that a child experience of parenting from their parents can be transmitted from one generation to another (Pugh De Ath, 1985). The grandparents capability needs to be questioned, looking also at their suitability of caring for their grandchildren, as they are the ones who raised the troubled parent (Gladstone Brown, 2007). Parental failure can be seen as a result of learnt behaviour from previous generations poor parenting (Davidson, 1997, citied in Climo, 2002). As characteristics run through the family, it can prove that the relative carers might have similarities in parenting to that of the birth parents. Especially in this case considering that the grandparents raised the birth parents. It can be said that if the reason for placing the child in care is due to abuse or neglect this can be a worry and should be considered (Terlin g, 2001). Implications can occur when a grandparent takes their grandchild into care. They can find it hard dealing with the childs emotional, behavioural, physical problems, issues of attachment or loss, perceived agency inadequacy, dealing with authority of the child welfare system and dealing with birth parents (Coakley et al, 2007, pg 93). A custodial role can affect the grandparents health as they need to alter their routine and plans, they can feel physical tired, have less time for themselves and have extra duties to do around the house with the addition of a new person (Gladstone Brown, 2007). As they are then busier, relationships can be affected. They have less time to interact and enjoy doing things with their friends, this can cause them to become socially isolated (Broad, 2001). Other relationships include the grandparents other grandchildren who can become jealous at the thought of their grandparent being closer to one grandchild and providing them with more attention (Jendrick, 1993, citied in Climo, 2002). Depending on the grandparents employment status, they may have to quit their job as they will be responsible for the child, this can have an affect on their financial income. They will have more to payout as an extra person, with less money to do this with (Gladstone Brown, 2007). It was found that grandparents can become to resent the situation they are in and it showed they felt they were incapable of keeping up with the child (Climo et al, 2002). Role of the Social Care Worker Relatives who foster care tend not to receive as much support, can ask for less help and it is believed that social workers feel they need less help than traditional foster care workers. The worker and grandparent need to draw up a support plan that will ensure the above do not occur (Broad, 2001). The social worker needs to assess what it was like for the grandparent when they were parenting their own children. They need to reflect on what worked for them when raising their children, try to identify possible mistakes they made and acknowledge how it will be different raising their grandchild (Broad, 2001). They need to understand it may be difficult in altering their role towards their grandchild, possibly identifying their idea of discipline as it may not be appropriate in terms of child welfare, for example corporal punishment was norm years ago but times have now changed. Also as the hope is that the child can one day return to their birth family, the parents own beliefs in raisi ng a child has to be made aware to the grandparent so they do not confuse the child (Broad, 2001). The grandparent may find parenting hard if they have to deal with social services monitoring them. It can be difficult for the grandparents as now there are many factors to be considered which put increases in the demand of them (Pugh De Ath, 1985). In comparison to parenting in the elderly persons time, the knowledge around the needs of the child in terms of physical, intellectual, social and emotional development has become more recognised. All of these will be monitored by officials in the case of relative foster care. As before a parent would not receive this type of pressure to ensure that their child is constantly receiving care and having there needs met (Pugh De Ath, 1985). Grandparents can feel inadequate under the high expectations of their role in the childs development. It can be quite a comparison as when the grandmother was parenting there was little demand to satisfy social demands. The importance was to run the household and the saying mother knows best was the pare ntal ethnic (Pugh De Ath, 1985). In comparison to traditional foster care, relative carers are said to not receive as much support as needed. Possible reasons for this are because the social care workers may have the idea that the relatives do not require the same level services (Dubowitz, Feigelman Zuravin, 1993, citied in Mc Coakley, 2007). According Schlonsky Berrick citied in Mc Coakley, social workers may be influenced by the relationship that is already present within the family. As the child is under the care of their family, the social worker may feel it is the families right to raise the child without the intrusion of them (Coakley et al, 2007). Another possibility is that the grandparents themselves either refuse or do not request support from services (Coakley et al, 2007). Grandparents may feel that asking for help or showing a need for help may be perceived as a weakness in their ability to cope. In the findings conducted by Mc Coakley 2006, it can be seen that mutual goals should be drawn up in the a ssessment process so that the best possible care for the child can be achieved. In addition to this, if the agency can show how committed they are in tailor making the families intervention and meeting the needs specific to the child and family then the family may welcome support more openly (Coakley 2007). Gladstone Brown (2007) identified the following factors which contributed to a positive relationship between the social worker and grandparent. It was found that firstly if a social worker presented as a friendly, considerate personality and the grandparents felt that they could connect and talk to them then they were more likely to open up to them. Social workers need to show an understanding to the situation, and allow the grandparents to feel appreciated for the contribution they are making (Gladstone Brown, 2007). Grandparents appreciate when a social worker responds to their needs and offers them informative advice and support on child management issues and referrals of other services that could offer support (Gladstone Brown, 2007). For a grandparent being informed can help them with their new role of parenting. As they are monitored and assessed, receiving feedback can allow them to know where they stand and how they can improve and also know what they are doing right. Also as their situation changes they need to know about entitlements that they can receive (Gladstone Brown, 2007).

A Great Composer Essays -- essays research papers

Inspiration may be a form of super-consciousness, or perhaps of subconsciousness—I wouldn’t know. But I am sure it is the antithesis of self-consciousness.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Only one man could claim the title as probably the greatest composer in American history for writing so many unforgettable works: Aaron Copland. He lived a life inspired by many things as well as inspiring people all across the nation, and it really led to the opposite of being drawn into himself, as he described in the quote above. He was born in Brooklyn, New York on November 14 in 1900. He was the youngest of five children to Sarah and Harris Copland. A musical spark came out in Copland already at the age of 11 as he began piano lessons with his sister. His musical talents needed tutoring from a higher level of teaching and so he studied with a professional piano teacher, Ludwig Wolfsohn, at age 14. Copland said later, â€Å"No one ever connected music with my family. The idea was entirely original with me. And unfortunately the idea occurred to me seriously only at 13 or thereabouts—which is rather late for a musician to get started,† (Charles Mo ritz 190). He graduated in 1918 and was able to devote all his time to writing and composing music. Wanting to further his knowledge in music, he was taught harmony and counterpoint by Rubin Goldmark. Understandably, the two men shared different views and Goldmark completely disagreed with Copland’s styles, so to demonstrate his own stubbornness, Copland came back to Goldmark with a piece he wrote entitled â€Å"The Cat and The Mouse,† (Charles Moritz 191). Copland would then attend the newly established American Conservatory at Fontainebleau in Paris, and he was honored in being the first American student of the amazing teacher, Nadia Boulanger. After three years he returned to New York without any knowledge of how a composer got his works published or performed, nor how he planned on keeping himself financially stable. Copland ended his troubling when he was given a grant of from two Guggenheim Fellowships, and some women who found an interest in his compositions that gave him some donations so he could devote all his time to writing. His first major work upon returning to America was â€Å"Symphony for Organ and Orchestra† which he wrote just for the few performances of Nadia Boulanger; the first one in Carnegie Hall in 1925 and another in... ...rs Alliance. He was continually given many awards, like an Academy Award nomination for film score of â€Å"North Star†, an Academy Award for best original musical score in â€Å"The Heiress†, the Pulitzer Prize in music, the New York Music Critics Circle Award for â€Å"Appalachian Spring†, the Gold Medal of the American Academy Institute of Arts and Letters, the MacDowell Colony Medal of Honor, winning the RCA Victor Composer’ Competition with â€Å"Dance Symphony†, the Presidential Medal of Freedom (America’s top civilian honor), the Kennedy Center Honors, the Congressional Medal of Honor, the National Medal of Arts (given to him by President Reagan), the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Merit from West Germany, the Howland Memorial Medal from Yale University, and the Department of Music at Queens College of the City University of New York was renamed Aaron Copland School of Music. After 1970, Copland continued lecturing and so me conducting as he gradually stopped composing. He died at Phelps Memorial Hospital in Tarrytown, New York on December 2 after 90 years of musical genius and American glory. His ashes were scattered at Tanglewood, but the legend of Aaron Copland resides in us all forever.

Plant Tissue Culture Essay

Plant tissue culture is a collection of techniques used to maintain or grow plant cells, tissues or organs under sterile conditions on a nutrient culture medium of known composition. Plant tissue culture is widely used to produce clones of a plant in a method known as micropropagation. Different techniques in plant tissue culture may offer certain advantages over traditional methods of propagation, including: †¢The production of exact copies of plants that produce particularly good flowers, fruits, or have other desirable traits. †¢To quickly produce mature plants. †¢The production of multiples of plants in the absence of seeds or necessary pollinators to produce seeds. †¢The regeneration of whole plants from plant cells that have been genetically modified. †¢The production of plants in sterile containers that allows them to be moved with greatly reduced chances of transmitting diseases, pests, and pathogens. †¢The production of plants from seeds that otherwise have very low chances of germinating and growing, i.e.: orchids and nepenthes. †¢To clean particular plants of viral and other infections and to quickly multiply these plants as ‘cleaned stock’ for horticulture and agriculture. Plant tissue culture relies on the fact that many plant cells have the ability to regenerate a whole plant (totipotency). Single cells, plant cells without cell walls (protoplasts), pieces of leaves, or (less commonly) roots can often be used to generate a new plant on culture media given the required nutrients and plant hormo nes. Techniques Modern plant tissue culture is performed under aseptic conditions under HEPA filtered air provided by a laminar flow cabinet. Living plant materials from the environment are naturally contaminated on their surfaces (and sometimes interiors) with microorganisms, so surface sterilization of starting material (explants) in chemical solutions (usually sodium or calcium hypochlorite or mercuric chloride) is required. Mercuric chloride is seldom used as a plant sterilant today, unless other sterilizing agents are found to be ineffective, as it is dangerous to use, and is difficult to dispose of. Explants are then usually placed on the surface of a solid culture medium, but are sometimes placed directly into a liquid medium, particularly when cell suspension cultures are desired. Solid and liquid media are generally composed of inorganic salts plus a few organic nutrients, vitamins and plant hormones. Solid media are prepared from liquid media with the addition of a gelling agent, usually p urified agar. In vitro tissue culture potato explants The composition of the medium, particularly the plant hormones and the nitrogen source (nitrate versus ammonium salts or amino acids) have profound effects on the morphology of the tissues that grow from the initial explant. For example, an excess of auxin will often result in a proliferation of roots, while an excess of cytokinin may yield shoots. A balance of both auxin and cytokinin will often produce an unorganised growth of cells, or callus, but the morphology of the outgrowth will depend on the plant species as well as the medium composition. As cultures grow, pieces are typically sliced off and transferred to new media (subcultured) to allow for growth or to alter the morphology of the culture. The skill and experience of the tissue culturist are important in judging which pieces to culture and which to discard. As shoots emerge from a culture, they may be sliced off and rooted with auxin to produce plantlets which, when mature, can be transferred to potting soil for further g rowth in the greenhouse as normal plants. [1] Choice of explant The tissue obtained from the plant to culture is called an explant. Based on work with certain model systems, particularly tobacco, it has often been claimed that a totipotent explant can be grown from any part of the plant. However, this concept has been vitiated in practice. In many species explants of various organs vary in their rates of growth and regeneration, while some do not grow at all. The choice of explant material also determines if the plantlets developed via tissue culture are haploid or diploid. Also the risk of microbial contamination is increased with inappropriate explants. Thus it is very important that an appropriate choice of explant be made prior to tissue culture. The specific differences in the regeneration potential of different organs and explants have various explanations. The significant factors include differences in the stage of the cells in the cell cycle, the availability of or ability to transport endogenous growth regulators, and the metabolic capabilities of the cells. The most commonly used tissue explants are the meristematic ends of the plants like the stem tip, auxiliary bud tip and root tip. These tissues have high rates of cell division and either concentrate or produce required growth regulating substances including auxins and cytokinins. The pathways through which whole plants are regenerated from cells and tissues or explants such as meristems broadly fall into three types: 1.The method in which explants that include a meristem (viz. the shoot tips or nodes) are grown on appropriate media supplemented with plant growth regulators to induce proliferation of multiple shoots, followed by rooting of the excised shoots to regenerate whole plants, 2.The method in which totipotency of cells is realized in the form of de novo organogenesis, either directly in the form of induction of shoot meristems on the explants or indirectly via a callus (unorganised mass of cells resulting from proliferation of cells of the explant) and plants are regenerated through induction of roots on the resultant shoots, 3.Somatic embryogenesis, in which asexual adventive embryos (comparable to zygotic embryos in their structure and development) are induced directly on explants or indirectly through a callus phase. The first method involving the meristems and induction of multiple shoots is the preferred method for the micropropagation industry since the risks of somaclonal variation (genetic variation induced in tissue culture) are minimal when compared to the other two methods. Somatic embryogenesis is a method that has the potential to be several times higher in multiplication rates and is amenable to handling in liquid culture systems like bioreac tors. Some explants, like the root tip, are hard to isolate and are contaminated with soil microflora that become problematic during the tissue culture process. Certain soil microflora can form tight associations with the root systems, or even grow within the root. Soil particles bound to roots are difficult to remove without injury to the roots that then allows microbial attack. These associated microflora will generally overgrow the tissue culture medium before there is significant growth of plant tissue. Aerial (above soil) explants are also rich in undesirable microflora. However, they are more easily removed from the explant by gentle rinsing, and the remainder usually can be killed by surface sterilization. Most of the surface microflora do not form tight associations with the plant tissue. Such associations can usually be found by visual inspection as a mosaic, de-colorization or localized necrosis on the surface of the explant. An alternative for obtaining uncontaminated explants is to take explants from seedlings which are aseptically grown from surface-sterilized seeds. The hard surface of the seed is less permeable to penetration of harsh surface sterilizing agents, such as hypochlorite, so the acceptable conditions of sterilization used for seeds can be much more stringent than for vegetative tissues. Tissue cultured plants are clones. If the original mother plant used to produce the first explants is susceptible to a pathogen or environmental condition, the entire crop would be susceptible to the same problem. Conversely, any positive traits would remain within the line also. Applications Plant tissue culture is used widely in plant science; it also has a number of commercial applications. Applications include: †¢Micropropagation is widely used in forestry and in floriculture. Micropropagation can also be used to conserve rare or endangered plant species.[2] †¢A plant breeder may use tissue culture to screen cells rather than plants for advantageous characters, e.g. herbicide resistance/tolerance. †¢Large-scale growth of plant cells in liquid culture in bioreactors for production of valuable compounds, like plant-derived secondary metabolites and recombinant proteins used as biopharmaceuticals.[3] †¢To cross distantly related species by protoplast fusion and regeneration of the novel hybrid. †¢To cross-pollinate distantly related species and then tissue culture the resulting embryo which would otherwise normally die (Embryo Rescue). †¢For production of doubled monoploid (dihaploid) plants from haploid cultures to achieve homozygous lines more rapidly in breeding programmes, usually by treatment with colchicine which causes doubling of the chromosome number. †¢As a tissue for transformation, followed by either short-term testing of genetic constructs or regeneration of transgenic plants. †¢Certain techniques such as meristem tip culture can be used to produce clean plant material from virused stock, such as potatoes and many species of soft fruit. †¢Micropropagation using meristem and shoot culture to produce large numbers of identical individuals. †¢Production of identical sterile hybrid species can be obtained. Laboratories Although some growers and nurseries have their own labs for propagating plants by the technique of tissue culture, a number of independent laboratories provide custom propagation services. The Plant Tissue Culture Information Exchange lists many commercial tissue culture labs. Since plant tissue culture is a very labour intensive process, this would be an important factor in determining which plants would be commercially viable to propagate in a laboratory.