Contemporary marketing Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Contemporary marketing Assignment - Essay Example With such keen interest in building a strong brand, two issues usually come up. One has to do with the components of a strong brand and the other has to do with ways of developing a strong brand (Farris et al., 2010). While customer loyalty is mainly described by what individuals do, brand loyalty usually is defined by the feelings and impressions of individuals (Dawes, 2009). A number of global brands can boast the kind of loyalty and passion shown by generations of certain companies like Disney. Disney Company is going to be the basis of this paper on which examples will be drawn on how the company has come up with strategies to build a strong brand that leads to increasing customer retention and loyalty. For more than eighty years, the company has experienced and maintained a lasting and comfortable position in the market. There are numerous reasons as to why the company has managed to be as so, but one of the main reasons is because of the creation of a strong brand (JZMcBride an d Associates, 2011). This document will scrutinize various ways through which Disney Company has built a strong brand, which has helped the company retain millions of customers and their loyalty thus increasing profits. The paper will cite specific examples of how the company has managed to do this. There are different ways through which Disney is able to keep its customers happy and loyal. One of the ways through which the company has accomplished this is through the creation of a brand promise. The company has been able to narrow down its promise of brand to a single action, which is using heart to entertain (JZMcBride and Associates, 2011). Studies suggest that loyalty includes some level of pre- dispositional commitment in a brand. Loyalty to a brand is seen as a construct that is multidimensional. Such loyalty is dependent on a number of distinct psychological processes and it involves a number of measurements, the perceived value of customers, trust in brands, satisfaction of customers and commitment are all thought to be key influencing entities of loyalty to a brand (Fournier, 2007). As it follows, the strategy of Disney to use heart or feelings in entertaining the customers fulfils all these requirements and ensures that the company maintains the loyalty of its customers. Another way the company builds its brand and retains customers is by controlling its brand. By being true to its brand in numerous ventures is what differentiates the company from other brands in the market. For instance, the company owns ABC, which broadcasts numerous programs. For instance, ABC broadcasts a show Called Pan Am that is based on the lives of individuals in the 1960s. One thing that one notices is that the show does not include scenes of smoking even though they were increasingly common during this time. This shows that the company wishes to stick to its promise of broadcasting shows that are family friendly (JZMcBride and Associates, 2011). According to a number of st udies, commitment to behaviour of repeated purchase are considered as necessary elements for creating brand loyalty and customer loyalty, followed by satisfaction, perceived value and brand trust. Several scholars claim that enhancing customer

Education and Freedom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Education and Freedom - Essay Example De-monopolizing public educational institutions would ensure that standards are raised, students and teachers are better motivated, greater innovation would be allowed, costs would be brought down and specific needs of children would be met (Ayse, 2012). Public education is not consistent with responsibility and freedom. Public education in fact wears away personal freedom and that is why it should be replaced with market solutions, competition, and parental choice. Since parents are charged with their children’s education, then it means families would be best suited in a free market to decide which educational institutions are best suited for their children. Education being an economic commodity should be bought in the marketplace dictated by valuation and preferences of consumers. Thus in an education market that is free, students and parents would be at liberty to make a decision on the basis of perceived benefits and costs of each available option. Essentially, education procurement does not vary from acquiring any other private commodity. Schools that are market-based have got incentives that provide quality education at a price that is competitive. Thus the separation of education and state would reinstate academic inte grity, intellectual freedom as well as individual accomplishment. The free market can best furnish the public with high quality education services. The finest school choice plan therefore is the one based on free market (Harry, 2013). Colleges should prepare people to be good citizens. The purpose of education has been debated world over by teachers, scholars, statesmen and several considerate men and women. There has always been one predictable answer; knowledge acquisition. Even more complete is the utterance made by the Archbishop of York that â€Å"the true purpose of education is to produce citizens.† This statement sounds true not only the day it was uttered but also today. However in the modern day society, it’s a main

Stakeholder Theory in Organisational Management

Stakeholder Theory in Organisational Management Matt Miller Questions for discussion: Is it unethical for a city employee to make recommendations based on his or her experience? There is a danger that this may be interpreted as bribery-inability to provide evidence of quid pro quo payments still leaves the question open and therefore there is no transparency-additionally, the experience of the individual may only be from an advisory and not consumer position-what qualifies the employee to make the recommendation? This could influence the consumer decision and is therefore inappropriate and unethical and possibly illegal. Would Garys actions have been acceptable if he had not engaged in a quid pro quo? It still brings the employees motives into question as outlined above-there is no transparency as to why Gary is making the recommendations and additionally, what qualifies Gary to make the recommendation? It is therefore still unacceptable. What action should Wendy take with Gary? With other department employees? In the absence of written documentation outlining the issue, Wendy would have to make the decision as to whether he should have been aware that his actions are unethical and possible illegal and act accordingly. That Gary actively solicited the firms, it is reasonable to assume he was aware that his actions were illicit and therefore despite specific written rules, it would be reasonable to subject Gary to a disciplinary hearing as per the departments policies and procedures. Is there anything the city manager might do to prohibit this type of behaviour? Update the Standard Operational Procedured and rules of business and ensure sign-off within the training and competency assessments of relevant personnel to ensure that they are aware of the rules and implications of failing to follow them. Ensure that the employees are aware that all document changes regarding policy have to be acknowledged to remove plausible deniability. Finally, it would be prudent to audit activities of all staff responsible for imparting this information to consumers, in order to ascertain if this is a single case or endemic among the culture of the office. What do you think? Stark (1997) outlines the issue quite well stating that contracting or procurement are prime examples where ethical codes are paramount. Public sector processes Government processes are lengthy in that they have to encourage transparency and impartiality. If efficiency was the sole rationale for judging, then it could become subjective and easy for the employee to act inappropriately. If however the key is impartiality, then it is easier to monitor and control as patterns of contract awarding would be evident. Stakeholder theory Stakeholder theory is a theory of organisational management in business ethics concerning ethics morals and values, coined by R Edward Freeman. A stakeholder approach identifies the stakeholders in the organisation and describes methods by which management can address all issues from the stakeholders. Traditionally, the shareholders are important and the companys primary goal is to put their needs first (shareholder theory). Stakeholder theory reworks this by including employees, customers suppliers competition, governmental bodies, unions etc. into the mix and stating that the company should be run not only for the benefit of shareholders but of stakeholders too The nature of what is a stakeholder is debatable with many reclassifications. The stakeholder theory incorporates both recourse and market based view. This is used to define the relevant stakeholders to each company and the conditions in which each group should be treated. According to Key (1999), the traditional model to describe companies is the economic model which employs both contract and agency theory to describe and predict the behaviour of the company. Stakeholder theory extends the relationship to encompass the company and its external environment have produced a stream of literature in the area of corporate social responsibility. According to Gomez (2006), Freeman described a stakeholder as any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of an organizations objectives. Kaler (2003) describes three different aspects to stakeholder theory; the descriptive aspect which serves to describe the nature and operation of organisations, the instrumental aspect which describes the instigation of stakeholder theory within the organisation, and the normative aspect wich provides definition of function and the ethical code that should be adopted concerning operations. Studies have shown that companies that embrace stakeholder theory, are more successful than their shareholder counterparts. Hack (2011) described protests in 2000 where activists pointed out that the Coca Cola company provided AIDS prevention, protection, testing and treatment of its employees in Africa, this was not extended to employees of its bolting affiliates. The Coca Cola Company encompassing stakeholder theory, visualised the effect on the supply chain if the affiliates employees were affected and rescinded the decision. Ultimately, Coca-Cola supplied AIDS services for the affiliates employees across Africa with each stakeholder group contributing to the payment. There are criticisms of the theory-Key (1999) stated that Stakeholder theory provided no adequate explanation of the firms behaviour within its environment. This was mirrored by Gomez (2006) who stated that there is a lack of clarity regarding stakeholder theory, as it does not sufficiently explain the intricacy of the relationships between a company and individuals, groups and other organizations from the same environment. References: Gomez, R. (2006). Stakeholder management in the local government decision-making area: evidences from a triangulation study with the English local government. Brazilian Administration Review. Retrieved February 19, 2017, from http://www.scielo.br/pdf/bar/v3n1/v3n1a05.pdf Hack, N. (2011). How deeply engaging stakeholders changes everything. Retrieved February 19, 2017, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/85broads/2011/05/03/how-deeply-engaging-stakeholders-changes-everything/#4e0b35801808 Kaler, J., (2003). Differentiating stakeholder theories. Journal of Business Ethics: JBE; Dordrecht 46.1 (Aug 2003): 71-83. Key, S., (1999). Toward a new theory of the firm: a critique of stakeholder theory Management Decision; London37.4 (1999): 317-328. Stark, A., (1997) Beyond quid pro quo: whats wrong with private gain from public office? The American Political Science Review. Vol. 91, No. 1 (Mar., 1997), pp. 108-120

Theoretical Issues Related to Human Resources :: Human Resources Essays

This essay will discuss the theoretical issues related to human resource management strategies, human resource planning, employment relations, diversity management and recruitment and selection. The essay will compare the differences in human resource management between two airlines, American Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Finally the essay will put forward recommendations to the two airlines in the human resource area. The human resource needs of today’s organisation need to be continually analysed due to constant changing conditions. This analysing is known as human resource planning (HRP) and it ensures that the right number and type of people are available at the right time for the organisation (Dessler et al 1999). There are many factors that contribute to HRP and trends that influence the organisation’s external environment. These factors are workforce diversity, outsourcing, globalisation, technological development, new organisational structures, casualisation and the shift from manufacturing towards service and knowledge-based work (Dessler et al 1999). Workforce Diversity Workforce diversity is divergence from an assumed norm or set of expectations. The government have created legislations confirming the right of all members of society to experience comparable life and work opportunities, irrespective of difference of sex, age, sexual orientation, religion, physical abilities or whether they belong to the dominant culture or language group (Human Resource Management Study Book). The reasons that these legislations were introduced were due to the changing of the workforce. More women joined the workforce as did people of differing ethnic origins. The workforce has become older because of the legal ruling of voluntary retirement age (Human Resource Management Study Book). Due to these changes and legislations employers have had to re-think their employment policies and procedures in areas such as selection, training and promotion (Human Resource Management Study Book). Some forward thinking organisations have looked beyond the government’s requirements and have used the changes to benefit themselves in the long term. These organisations have taken this opportunity to better understand and serve the wider community, to gain a competitive advantage over more traditional organisations. They have also tried to gain more knowledge of the needs and preferences of specific groups in society and discovered the things that might help to make the workplace more productive and satisfying for all their employees (Human Resource Management Study Book). Outsourcing. Outsourcing is where organisations use external providers for those activities that are either non-essential or demand an injection of management resources and capital. This allows the organisation to focus more on the core of the business operations (Dessler et al 1999). Outsourcing is extremely important where HRP is concerned. It can be used as a strategy when skilling of resources will be expensive and time consuming and it can also make forecasting easier if the

Are video games educational Essay

Video games are something that many people all around the world play. But are video games educational? The answer is yes, video games develop many of our skills, give us the relaxation we need and as technology is developing the number of educational and social aspects of games are increasing greatly. While video games are typically cast off as a waste of time and simply recreational activities, when it comes down to it, video games are actually one of the best and most successful ways to encourage teenagers to learn. The reason simply is that it is a fun way to learn. In video games, there are constantly problems and puzzles that need solving in order to move onto the next stage of the game. These problems makes us think with an open mind and can sometimes take a long time to overcome these challenges, but aspects in games such as these, which are found nearly in every video game, help our brains work faster. Although many games are created with the specific purpose of being educational, many video games which seem to be pure fun have hidden educational purposes and help our problem solving skills, reflexes and persistence. Some games are set in a historical era, such games broadens our knowledge of history and can pique our interest of historical matters. Even simple games such as Tetris help us gain skills in problem solving and quick thinking. Teenagers who play video games have been found to have better, more developed memory and playing these games makes the brain work hard and in turn helps the teenagers hone their skills. It makes the player think hard to solve problems and look at things with different views and perspectives in order to get the answer. It works the brain in many different ways and generally a gamer is good at overcoming challenges and problems thanks to playing games such as these. The idea may seem a slight oddity, but it subconsciously is helping young adolescents use their brain more efficiently and help them view their life with an open mind. Playing games can also drastically help with hand-eye coordination; developing greater mental focus and help young adolescents multitask with more ease. It has also been stated by some, that video games promote and glorify violence. I believe that this statement is fundamentally incorrect and that it lacks the necessary evidence needed to prove that this theory is true. Researchers that have observed teenagers reactions to violent video games such as, ‘Grand Theft Auto’ to test if the theory that such games can trigger aggressiveness or depression. The results of these tests have found that a majority of the reactions from the young adults differ greatly from that which was the expected one. Playing video games shockingly had a slight settling effect on a vast amount of the teenagers and helped reduce any negative or aggressive behaviour that they may have had before playing. As people, we have freedom of rights and should have the ability to play whichever games we like. Video games are not promoting violence outside of the game. It provides an escape from reality and focuses solely on entertaining the teenagers of our generation. Playing video games are good for young adolescents in multiple ways. When a teenager is stressed, playing games is an effective way to help them relax and escape from realities. Everyone has the right to relax and have fun once in a while do they not? Today’s generation have many different ways to have fun and enjoy themselves, and it is only fair that they should have the choice to spend their leisure time how they please. It is a good way to spend leisure time and it provides plenty of entertainment for people of all ages. While playing video games has in the past been condoned, with technology developing as fast as it currently is, the educational benefits in the games are sky rocketing. In time will this change our perspective on video games? A high percentage of today’s generation play video games and spend a considerable amount of time on the internet, is this going to shape and change the future of our society? Video games are often seen as an unsociable act but in fact many games of today are actually multiplayer or more commonly give you the opportunity to play with other people online. The evolution of technology and how far it has come in recent years is astonishing. The features in games which allow you to communicate with other through gaming consoles are effective in making friends or allies in a game. On different gaming consoles there are now plenty of options you can use to communicate or play with friends such as Xbox Live, PS Vita Party and many others. These are brilliant, because it does not cut the player off from the outside world and successfully makes gaming more enjoyable. The bottom line is, playing video games are a positive and educational way to spend leisure time. While there are some games, made entirely to entertain, from every game played, you learn something new. Video games are stimulating for the brain, a great way to relax and good for social interaction. Is it not better to learn while doing something that you love, compared to being stuck learning with outdated techniques and uninteresting classes? Today’s generation is changing and technology has already become an enormous part of society, should we not begin to include more technology into our education system seeing as it both impacts and benefits the younger generation so greatly?

“Naked Economics” by Charles Wheelan Essay

Economics is on fundamental level of the study of scarcity. Human desires are unlimited, but resources aren’t and every society tries to figure out how to allocate its resources for maximum benefit. The field of economics attempts in large part, to help understand these resource allocations and decisions. Resources allocated largely according to the forces of supply and demand, and prices serve as incentives to determine how much of a product a company wants to produce and how much people want to buy. Economics can also be looked at as the study of incentives or the study of household business making. Due to such a large variety of information, economist begin to attempt solving a problem by stating â€Å"it depends†. These two words are widely used in the field of economics and foremost the most important two words we see in the book â€Å"Naked Economics† by Charles Wheelan. These two simple, yet widely used words are portrayed and used greatly through out each chapter by the author giving a simple explanation of how certain scenarios differ and are different from one another based on certain situations. The first four chapter of the book are and understanding of introducing you to what economics and giving you a brief understanding of how it works, such as the importance of incentives, and the ways economist tackle certain scenarios. The first few chapters introduce many questions, but most importantly ask â€Å"Is the Government making our economy better†? This is highly debated throughout and it all boils down to the two words â€Å"it depends†. When the government owns a certain part of a part of business, the government has no motive to â€Å"do a good job†. For example companies owned and run by the government such as places including the DMV, public health facilities, and hospitals used by people who have insurance given to them by the government, have no incentive to â€Å"do a good job† and make the visit  quick, painless, and easy. This proves that government regulation is a bad thing, but there are many ways to avoid this if looked deeper into†¦ Companies could buy out these small time businesses and provide better assistance and quality help. But the government is mainly focused upon two things which are taxation and regulation with trade offs. Chapter four introduces examples of the New Delhi situation, which was when factories and large plants were shut down by the government solely because the pollution got so bad. Many people were extremely angered by this because it left many unemployed and with nothing to do. This caused many problems throughout the society and grew into a large dispute between the people and the government. A skeletal summary of chapter five is that it introduces the economics of insurance. One question introduced is â€Å"how much information is too much information† which insurance agencies and courts take into consideration. If your applying for health insurance and you’re a middle aged man with a history of family health conditions or a history of early death solely due to health issues then filing a claim for life insurance is extremely difficult and sometimes extremely expensive. On the other hand if you’re a person with no history of bad medical records and have a steady and safe job insurance isn’t something to hard to obtain from a company. This question is greatly used with insurance companies. They will ask basic question and have some questions referring to the things listing above asking for a brief explanation or answer to the following question, not looking out for the person, but looking out for there company so the insurance company can have the highest profit margin possible. The question of â€Å"how much information is too much† depends on the person and who you are in the situation. In last bunch of chapter the question of wealth is brought up and talked about with how economist look at the situation, the question of â€Å"how rich am I†. A commonly asked question by many people is â€Å"how rich are you† or â€Å"how much money do you have†, but this isn’t something that economist look into. They solely look into the GDP per capita which often shows a nations wealth, but is often criticized by many people, even economists. People often don’t realize that a nations GDP per capita can increase while unemployment, and the infant mortality rate increases as well. This is very plausible for an  economy. Inflation plays a huge role in wealth for every person and â€Å"it depends†. If home developer earned a gross income of $450,000 per year, you cannot say you are richer than someone in the early 70’s early a gross income of $300,000 per year due to inflation and the economy. The question of your wealth all depends on how you look at the situation and how you define what wealth is to you. If wealth means how much money you have and you don’t consider inflation and certain scenarios then your most wrong. Our economy is every changing and someone earning $300,000 a year in the year of 2009 compared to that of a person in 2001 situations were completely different and may have been easier for that person due to â€Å"good† economy. Throughout the chapters, Wheelan talks about many different scenarios and addresses different questions. In Chapter four Wheelan addresses how the government is helping to promote the growth of the economy. In Chapter ten, he addresses the federal reserve and certain scenarios

The Cask of Amontillado Essay Essay Example

The Cask of Amontillado Essay Essay Example The Cask of Amontillado Essay Essay The Cask of Amontillado Essay Essay Rocio Cruz Professor Fred Kille English 102 February 3, 2013 The Cask of Amontillado Essay â€Å"A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally unredressed when the avenger fails to make himself as such to him who has done the wrong† Some people are driven to do wrong by enviousness and Edgar Allan Poe’s short story â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† is one good example of such. The story tells the event of the murder of Fortunato in the hands of Montresor, the narrator. Although many critics argue that Montresor acted out of self- righteousness, one cannot conclude such due to the lack of credibility that can be accounted to him and his malice. Montresor is an unreliable, malicious narrator who shows to have contrasting feelings of guilt and remorse towards his crime against killing Fortunato. Montresor, through his own telling of the events, showed not only that he is not accountable for credibility but he also showed that his main motif to kill Fortunato was enviousness. Perhaps the most revealing reason to asses that Montresor is not a just person is that he lacked evidence to condemn Fortunato. For instance, Montresor opens the story by saying â€Å"the thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge. † These latter lines are all the reader knows of Fortuno’s presumed crime which suggests that there was no concrete wrongdoing from Fortuno after all; therefore revealing that Montresor acted without proof and out of malice. In further support of the claim that the narrator is bad-natured is that he also shows to be a cynic. Throughout the story he constantly refers to Fortunato as â€Å"my friend†. The fact that Montresor does not use negative words to refer to Fortunato tells the audience that he is attempting to protect his self-image and that he acted with hypocrisy. By the same token, the way Montresor talks about Fortuno conveys that he was somewhat envious. While they were already in Montreso’s mansion, he admits to Fortuno â€Å"your health is precious. You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as once I was†. This words are enough to disclose that Montreso was jealous of the place that Fortunato held in society; perhaps implying that Montresor himself once occupied the same place. Not only does Montresor show that he murdered Fortunato unjustifiably but he also seems to live with mixed feelings of guilt and remorse. Following his atrocity, the narrator of the story seems to live with guilty responsibility of killing Fortunato counteracting what many people believe. Montresor’s remorse came right after the crime was committed. â€Å"There came forth in return only a jingling of the bells. My heart grew sick-on account of the dampness of the catacombs,† says Montresor. To clarify, the narrator first admits that he felt unease in his heart and then, almost like trying to convince himself, he attributes this feeling to the â€Å"dampness of the catacombs† showing that his conscience was the true causer of this heart â€Å"sickness†. Another clue that tells the reader that Montresor felt guilty is that, although no one certainly knows who the intended audience of the story is, he is conceivably justifying himself to God. In the first paragraph of the story, Montresor says, â€Å"You, who so well know the nature of my soul, will not suppose, however, that I gave utterance to a threat†. By admitting that â€Å"You† knows â€Å"the nature of [his] soul† the reader can draw the conclusion that it might be someone divine who he is talking to for who else would know him so well? In the same manner, he is asking this divine being to not judge his crime so heavily for he did not simply â€Å"give utterance to a threat†. Likewise, another fact that serves as evidence that Montresor is that he is telling the events fifty years later. This goes to show that the event has haunted the narrator for half a century since he not only recalls everything but is taking the time to tell the story. The narrator of â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† showed, through his own telling of the events, not only an unreliable narrator but also an envious man that is now living in remorse. The events that led to the assassination of Fortunato do not excuse Montresor as he believes they do. From the way in which Montresor â€Å"brags† his â€Å"perfect crime† the reader can draw the conclusion that he is not but a malicious member of society who tries to justify his wrongdoings by attributing them to the honor of him and his famiy.