HRM Strategy at the Emirates Airline

Introduction As competition in businesses increase, international companies continue to develop dynamic strategies that can allow them survive in the current global market. Emirates Airline is one such company that enjoys the fruits of proper strategic planning and implementation of employee engagement and retention systems across the globe. This paper seeks to analyse various strategies Emirates Airline employ in human resource sector. Similarly, the paper will seek to outline the benefits of such programs to global business entities.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on HRM Strategy at the Emirates Airline specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Company Vision and Mission All business entities boast of missions and visions for the venture. Emirates group believes in caring for employees, relevant stakeholders, environment, and communities, as well as strive towards ensuring adequate service to these groups of people (The Emirates Group par. 1). However, the company’s visions and missions must accompany such factors to ensure production lies within the expectations of the venture. Emirates airline believes that ambitious and well-calculated decisions made by a stable and strong management team create great organisations. The company does not only believe in ethical leadership for its success, but also caring for the communities it serve and the environment as well. Leadership Style and Human Resource Management at the Emirates Airline Success of an organisation relies on the financial muscles of the entity and the leadership structure in place for successful implementation of strategies that are essential for high productivity. For any organisation to succeed in implementing a strategy, effective and efficient leadership structures are necessary. Leadership an essential element in the success of businesses since it instils a motivating culture and positive attitudes in employees in order to wo rk towards meeting their targets. In order for an entire workforce to engage in activities towards a common goal, a suitable leadership team is necessary to give directions and offer supervision functions (Ilgen and Pulakos 54). The Emirates Airline has an outsourcing partnership with Infosys Technologies from India through it technology solutions arm, Mercator. Apart from hosting other Middle East Airlines, Mercator offers loyalty solutions, cargo operation, and revenue accounting. In essence, the airline company does not outsource services like departure control, reservations, and revenue accounting since its technology solutions arm is tasked with such services. Charismatic style of leadership plays an integral role in the success of Emirates Airline. His Highness Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum proudly integrates patience and consensus building among the work force to come up with the most viable production strategies.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The free-area thinking strategy helps in the development of successful and innovative ideas that thrusts the company into the global markets (The Emirates Group par. 7). These leadership skills continue to propel the Emirates Airline into conquering the flight market. For example, it became the first company to install Audio Video On Demand (AVOD) in the seats of all classes and introduce on-board showers. Systems Development of human resource systems to the business strategy entails a one-way vertical fit. Such an alignment remains conceptualised at Emirates in various ways. Many scholars view this system as a reactive measure. However, it plays a vital role in collaborating with the business strategy to ensure successful business process. Human Resource Torrington, Hall, and Taylor in a study on human resource management strategies indicates that in this strategy, most business entities engage in wide-ra nging methods of acquiring and maintaining a productive workforce (101). Innovation, quality enhancement, and cost reduction systems prove important in the recruitment process at the Emirates Airline. All these factors ensure that the business franchise enjoys a competitive advantage over their rivals in the market, such as Gulf Airlines Etihad, Virgin Australia Airlines, and Qatar Airways. Organisation Different systems of management strategy exist at the Emirates Airline. For example, cost reduction strategy compels workers to invest more energy in production, while innovation strategy demands that workers engage in diverse and quality production systems that enable them develop smart and viable products and services. Innovation as a core production input necessitates freethinking and development of new ideas within the business, hence creating chances for the management to choose the best viable ideas for implementation (Ilgen and Pulakos 57). Culture Within Emirates Airline, the re exist proper systems of performance appraisals and employee motivation. These systems mainly focus on the long-term results and long-term goals and objective of the firm. Ilgen and Pulakos argue that in the company’s liberal job descriptions exist with employees enjoying opportunities to learn across the entire workforce needs (61). Compensation and remuneration systems offer adequate benefits such as the stock options and bonuses. Development of cooperative culture remains the main goal of the company. Human Resource Approach In the past, countries within the Middle East remained with limited competitive advantage in global business. The UAE, in particular, faces many challenges in demographics, unemployment issues, sustainability matters, educational concerns, and mainstream gender needs.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on HRM Strategy at the Emirates Airline specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More To counter act these problems, a nationalisation process dubbed Emiratisation came into perspective. This process aims at reducing the demand for expatriate workers and encourages focus on active participation of women in the commercial society (Randeree 73). Since the joint venture targets the UAE’s market, it will have to engage its available human resource in employment and education in line with both the Arab and Islamic customs and traditional practices. The major target of the employment opportunities remain the nationalisation of the Emirates with focus rapidly shifting to women. Emirates Airline boasts of an established system of employee and mentorship program that is essential for employee development and productivity at the workplace (Randeree 76). Drivers of change within HR External environments provide opportunities for business development. However, it comes with major constraints to the venture; such constraints affect proper functioning of HR departments. At the airline company, external stakeholders such as government, media, environmentalists, local community organisation, and consumer advocates coupled with external factors like legislative regulations, competition, technology, and market trends may influence strategy formulation, thus necessitating changes in the HR department. Similarly, internal organisational culture, continued coalition within the workforce, and employee civil strives also necessitates changes in the HR strategy. Performance Appraisal Emirates employees, especially the workforce in the airline sector play essential functions in the venture. The flying crew, for instance, must exhibit paramount responsibility in transporting clients while making sure that they offer satisfying and enjoyable services. The flying crew believes in maintaining diligence and efficiency in order to satisfy customers and retain them as well. Inadequacies and inefficiencies may result in exodus of customers, thus reducing the profit margins (Carter , Giber, and Goldsmith 142). Optimising performance among the flying crew employee remains a major objective in the Emirate Airlines. To increase service delivery, the company ensures that the selected flying staffs develop their personal and professional skills through specific and inclusive training programmes. The HR department at the Emirates Airline performs frequent performance valuations the workforce to determine their attitudes towards work, skills’ relevance, and personalities. Similarly, such performance assessments play an integral role in recommending promotions, work reallocations, and determining compensation packages.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Performance Development Performance development strategy exits within the Emirates Airline; the section provides a wide range of services aimed at assisting the managers within the business to make overall improvement in the workforce performances. Performance development program aims at facilitating long-term thinking and planning, supporting workforce realignment to production processes and technology, and ensuring that the production process remains simple, innovative, efficient, and effective. Emirates Airline’s management team boasts of wider resource bases for developing talents and supporting production process. At the same time, the personal development program ensures that employees engage freely in innovation processes in order to improve the overall productivity. In the multi-disciplinary facet of the group, cross-functional teams exist to ensure that every aspect of the company remains into perspective in the development of new ideas of production. The management system of the airline firm engages in competitive job allocation process with productivity, innovativeness, and hard work forming the basis of gauging the prospective employees in interviews (Carter et al.149). Communications and Employee Engagement Communication link between employees and the company exist in the Emirates Airline in which team leaders report on the progress of various teams. This link provides an avenue for successful presentation of dissatisfaction and compliments between the two parties. Similarly, it provides an ample ground for employees to express their opinions on the day-to-day management of the production process. On the same note, horizontal communication among employees is vital. Middle level managers and low tier employees involved in cross-functional team continuously engage each other in production segments. This provides an avenue for information sharing and ideas appreciation thus leading to high productivity (Verghese 243). Verghese goes further to note that senior leadership and management team remains responsible for setting out proper communication mechanisms within an organisation (257). Engaging employees at all level ensures employees’ voices remain active in the communication system since this informs the employees on all the on-going issues within the company, thus creating the opportunity for building psychological contracts with the employers. Such a communication system plays an important role in employee engagement resulting into better performance, employee retention, and general well-being of the company. Emirates’ Culture Emirates Airline remains a centralised organisation with the top management defining both decisions and strategies of development (Emirates Group par. 11). The Emirates Group’s CEO and the chairperson, His Highness Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, play an important role as the leader of the group; he believes in workplace diversity, and encourages open communication within the c ompany to strengthen the bond among the stakeholders. Even though these departments have sub-groups and thematic teams for specialised service delivery, the main goal of the entire company remains offering quality services and products. The Emirates Airline invests a lot in intensive training and employee development to ensure that the team achieves the goals of satisfying customers’ needs. Finney in her studies argues that, these factors make the company to enjoy a pool of talented labour force, thus gaining solid ground in the global market (27). Such a strategy enables the company to engage in independent business as opposed to group business, as evident in the flight service provision. The independence of service delivery ensures fast decision-making due to the few stakeholders involved in the process. Such initiatives coupled with intensive corporate citizenship and social responsibility that are needed for international branding and advertisement ensures that the client base remains large in order to maintain a competitive advantage in the crowded market. Behavioural Models Emirates Airline stands out as the most prominent airline in the Middle East. Sustainable business model remains the sole driver of its success. Innovative employees and conducive working environment ensure that the company enjoys a competitive advantage over its rivals. Organisational culture and production environment in the company motivate employees into productive performance, thus facilitating the achievement of the firm’s strategic objectives. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs holds that individual basic needs revolve around motivation and satisfaction. The Emirates Airline ensures that both customers and employees receive these satisfaction and motivation to remain in touch with their products and services. Fulfilling employees’ psychological, safety, social, self-esteem, and self-actualisation needs creates a setting for adequate behavioural strategies i n the company. Similarly, proper customer satisfactions ensure that customers get the value for their money, thus increasing their chances of requiring the same services. All these structures ensure that the company enjoys a competitive advantage in the market (Carter et al. 73). Unique Attires Emirates Airline’s staffs stand out with the world’s most unique uniform. The emirates hat, the red kick-pleat skirts, the service waist coast, a red tie, jackets and tabards chocolate brown suits, light shirt, and a caramel gives the company a powerful brand within the airline industry and outside the industry as well. These attires give the Emirates Airline a unique branding image responsible for proper advertisements and image upgrade (Cockburn par. 6). The airline’s corporate image of innovation has helped it achieve its strategic goals and objectives, thereby earning it a global reputation for excellent services. Independent Global Business In the airline sector, man y ventures revolve around airline alliance services and product provision. However, Emirates Airline developed a business strategy for exploiting the virgin market in the Middle East through independent service provision. This strategy has worked to their advantage since there is an ease with decision-making and planning aspects. The company defines the kind of employees to hire and the remuneration structure to adopt contrary to an alliance setting in which several consultative forums are necessary for single decision issue in decision-making. Kotter Steps in Implementation Independent Global Business Strategy Independent service provision strategy became operational due to bureaucracies in decision-making in the alliance’s airline business ventures. Noting this weakness in the airline sector, Emirates leadership began to offer services from Dubai to Pakistan with a group of hardworking individual in a single leased plane. As the business grew, expansion strategy began to ta ke centre stage and leasing became obsolete (The Emirates Group par. 2). The company use Kotter’s 8-step change model to bring changes in its operations. The management embarked on acquisition of planes to offer services to the growing customer base. Management team developed more focus on satisfaction of customers to withstand the competition from the established airline alliances. Emphasis on employee training and motivation set in as demand for ideas increased to match the rising customer base. As the competition from the airline alliance intensified, the Emirates Airline developed adequate strategies for achieving quick short-term goals and objectives to ensure relevance in service provision. Employees received encouragement and motivation for innovative ideas brought forward. Management team introduced secure employment opportunities and proper compensation schemes to attract more productive workforce. These initiatives are significant in branding and advertisements of t he airlines, thus leading to success as evident in the current market. Leadership Structures and Innovation Emirates Airline leaders highly engage in employee management and developments structures. The company takes into account employees’ needs, environmental needs, as well as the community needs. It is for this reason that the management initiated social responsibility activities without resistances. Such flexible and democratic leadership structures proved vital to the success of Emirates Airline. As Amar denotes, diversity within the workforce in this flight company helps in the creation of an ample and innovative productive environment (97). Strong positive culture within the workforce coupled with adequate space for innovation and necessary rewards for exemplary performance help in propelling Emirates Airline over its competitors. Management structures in the company ensure the diverse and innovative workforce engages in specialised service production towards the compa ny’s specific goals. The company’s slogan, â€Å"Emirates: keep discovering† forms the basis for the ever-rising number of innovative ideas with Emirate Airline. One of the most outstanding ideas in the recent past remains the famous â€Å"Sydney Kangaroo route† which offers non-stop flights from Dubai to Sydney. This service maintains the company’s competitive advantage over other international companies since such flights skip stopovers in busy airports like Heathrow, London, and Paris. Corporate Image and Communication In the entire Emirates Group, all marketing and communication remain the sole responsibility of the corporate communication division. This division boasts of having skilled and professional teams responsible for branding, advertisements, public relations, and promotional activities of the group. Verghese (243) explains that communication systems within an organisation play a vital role by offering a sufficient production environme nt within the production sector. Even though external communication is important for public relations and proper external picture in the global world, internal communication systems within the different tiers of employees is necessary to ensure smooth running of an organisation. Works Cited Amar, Amar Dev. Managing knowledge workers unleashing innovation and productivity. Westport, Conn.: Quorum Books, 2002. Print. Carter, Louis, David Giber, and Marshall Goldsmith. Best practices in organization development and change: culture, leadership, retention, performance, coaching: case studies, tools, models, research. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer, 2001. Print. Cockburn, Barbara. For Uniforms, Emirates Distances Itself from Haute Couture. N.p., 9 July 2009. Web.. Finney, Martha. Building high-performance people and organizations. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 2008. Print. Ilgen, Daniel, and Elaine Diane Pulakos. The changing nature of performance: implications for staffing, motivation, and development. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1999. Print. Randeree, Keith. â€Å"Strategy, Policy and Practice in the Nationalisation of Human Capital: ‘Project Emiratisation’.† Research and Practice in Human Resource Management 17.1. (2009): 71-91. Print. The Emirates Group. N.p., n.d. Web. Torrington, Derek, Laura Hall, and Stephen Taylor. Human resource management. 5th ed. New York: Financial Times Prentice Hall, 2002. Print. Verghese, Aniisu. Internal communications insights, practices, and models. New Delhi: SAGE Publications, 2012. Print. This report on HRM Strategy at the Emirates Airline was written and submitted by user Zayden Tyson to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Othello Act 4 Scene 3 Essays

Othello Act 4 Scene 3 Essays Othello Act 4 Scene 3 Paper Othello Act 4 Scene 3 Paper At the beginning of this scene Othello does not engage in conversation with Desdemona, he simply tells her to go to bed. Get to bed on thinstant; I will be returned forthwith. Dismiss your attendant there. Lookt be done. Here we can notice Othellos use of imperatives; this implies that he has lost all respect for Desdemona. The audience know why he has lost respect for her however; she is completely oblivious to the accusations being made behind her back. Shakespeare is presenting her as a tragic figure as she has no idea what she has done wrong and is falsely accused. Inevitably, she will loose the man she loves and her own life due a complete lie. There is a terrible poignancy in almost every line that Desdemona utters in this scene. Shakespeare has portrayed Desdemona as a tragic figure as even though Othello has treated her terribly she still wants to please him. We must not now displease him. Desdemona is respectful and faithful towards her husband and continues to be so even after his terrible behaviour. No, unpin me here. Here Desdemona realises she is more vulnerable in her night clothes. Shakespeare is showing that Desdemona undressing is like her removing her armour. This gives the audience a sense of foreboding as it seems like Desdemona is aware of what is to come. Desdemona speaks to Emilia about the Willow song this reflects her own sadness and points to her own death. She feels abandoned as she sings and is aware of her impending death. This shows Desdemona as tragic as she knows what is going to happen inevitably however she still does not know why. The Willow song is a dramatic device as willows symbolise disappointed love, which is exactly what she is experiencing. She is anxious and her tale of her mothers maid and willow song foreshadows her own death. The willow scene relaxes the tension comparative quietness and calm before the storm of the last scene. The song reinforces the melancholy atmosphere and prepares us for the tragic outcome; in the song the woman refuses to blame her lover and approves his scorn. Desdemona is a complete contrast to the woman who stood up to her father in defence of Othello; she now seems weak and unable to defend herself. In Act 2 Scene 1 Desdemona dismisses Iagos remarks as old bar-room jokes. These are old fond paradoxes to makes fools laugh ithalehouse. That miserable praise hast thou her thats foul and foolish? Here Desdemona is engaging Iago in debate. She is standing up for herself and what she believes in; this is tragic as the audience can see a clear change in Desdemonas personality. Let nobody blame him; his scorn I approve Nay, thats not next. Hark, who ist that knocks? Here Desdemona has added a line to the song suggesting that she is nervous and on the edge. Emilia and Desdemona continue to talk and they are discussing the act of committing adultery, Desdemona says she would not do such a wrong thing. Emilia argues that mens treatment of their wives is often the cause of womens falling. She states that women have desires and weaknesses just as much as men. Men should beware or women will learn from how they are abused to abuse them. However, Desdemona perseveres in her view and shows Emilia and the audience that she would rather learn to improve from, rather than copy and abuse. Here we see the complete contrast in characters. Desdemona is completely faithful to Othello which makes their situation all the more tragic. Emilia does not seem phased by being unfaithful whereas Desdemona is shocked by this idea. That there be women do abuse their husbands in such gross kind? She is appalled by this idea and this adds to the fact that she is completely innocent. Desdemonas fate is unfair and unearned, yet she is the tragic female heroine who ends up being sacrificed to satisfy the fates. Aristotle taught that tragedy is composed of six elements: plot-structure, character, style, spectacle, and lyric poetry. The characters in a tragedy are merely a means of driving the story; and the plot, is the chief focus of tragedy. It is the imitation of action arousing pity and fear, and is meant to affect the catharsis of those same emotions. In Aristotles definition of tragedy Shakespeare has definitely portrayed Desdemona as a tragic figure. If the characters are a means of driving the story then the play wouldnt have a plot if it werent for Desdemona. Othello, Desdemona and Iago are the three main characters involved to form the plot along with others. The plot is the chief focus of tragedy therefore Desdemona is playing part in creating the tragedy for the play. S. N. Garner elucidates Desdemonas character, maintaining that Shakespeare carefully balanced the other characters accounts of her as goddess or whore to present a complex portrait. Othellos sensual view is countered by Brabantios idealized concept in Act 1 and Roderigo and Cassios romanticized vision is opposed by Iagos coarse innuendo in Act 2. Garner then points out that Desdemonas liveliness and assertiveness are confirmed by her marriage to Othello and that these positive traits become a fatal. Here we can see that Garner believes that eventually Desdemonas traits became fatal to her character. This links in with Aristotles definition of tragedy as he also says that their downfall is caused by a series of bad choices caused by tragic flaws in their character. This could suggest that it is partly Desdemonas character that has increased the tragedy between Othello and herself.

Identify the Japanese tourism's promotional strategies Essay

Identify the Japanese tourism's promotional strategies - Essay Example Other than the government, Japan Tourism Agency, JTA has been instrumental in promoting tourism in the country. The Japan National Tourism Organization, JNTO, a government’s independent institution runs tourist information centers and a website that give information on transportation, accommodation and tourist destinations. Private sector players also collaborate with the government in various ways to boost tourism in the country. Promotional strategies According to JTA’s commissioner, Hompo (3), Japanese strategies to attract tourists from across the globe have been based on three pillars. The overseas promotion encompasses establishing the Japan brand by promoting it as a premium destination based on its diversity. The second pillar involves enhancing the hospitality and accommodation facilities in the country with the aim of satisfying its foreign tourists. The government in this regard ensures effectiveness in the transport system and addresses visa related regulati ons, guide signs and immigration control. The third strategy involves attraction of more international conferences, having been ranked fifth and eighteenth in 2007 and 2006 respectively in this regard. According to the Japan Tourism Agency, JTA 1,000 journalists have been invited to reassure the world of the viability of the country as a viable tourism destination. There have been massive media campaigns and advertisements promoting the country as a tourist destination. Movies have also been produced to promote the culture of the Japanese. The government urged hotel owners to upgrade their facilities, the quality of the tour guides it employed and make proper arrangements for its visitors when visiting critical attraction sites. Indeed, these strategies have been successful with McCurry noting that by August 2011, the number of international visitors visiting the country had rose to 547,000 from 296,000 by the end of the year 2010. Target market The promotional strategies employed b y the government of Japan and relevant tourism agencies and partners aim at attracting foreign tourists across the globe. The Japan Tourism Agency aims at attracting over 20 million tourists from across the globe by the year 2020 (Hompo 3). But Ochterbeck (5) notes that these promotions mostly target visitors from great western powers to prove to them the civilization of the country. The priority markets for Japan according to the Commissioner of the JTA include the United States of America, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, China, France, Hong Kong, Singapore, Germany, Thailand, Taiwan, Thailand and South Korea. Tourist attractions According to the JNTO, the tourist destinations that the government and relevant agencies promote in Japan cluster around Tokyo, the capital city as reported by Schoenberger. This makes the tourism circuit of visitors convenient. These destinations encompass both the traditional and modern sites. Shinjuku, a skyscraper district offers shopping and night life opportunities. The film ‘Lost in Translation’ made Park Hyatt popular providing a penthouse for drinking and having a superb view of the city. Shibuya and Harajuku districts provide tourists with the opportunity to learn Japan’s teen culture. The former capital city Kyoto provides architectural beauty and

Surprising reversal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Surprising reversal - Essay Example This plan is supposed to take care of the soldiers’ children in times of deployment. Many a time, this does not work the way it is supposed to. Often a soldier has to assign temporary guardianship to a relative. Soldiers are also sent back home to reconstruct a new FCP, because the previous one has failed and the time a soldier gets to complete this task is just not enough for such an important exercise. FCPs are something that soldiers need time to put together. This is not a task to be taken lightly. It takes a lot of time, thought and effort to put together an effective Family Care Plan. Instead the military gives only thirty days for them to find someone to entrust their loved ones. FCP helps the military maintain its level of readiness for deployment. On the face of it, it is a deceptively simple exercise but from the soldier’s point of view, it is a rigorous task that is not easily completed by a long shot. There are several factors that must be addressed when imp lementing the FCP. The ‘person of choice’ to entrust children is to me, the biggest choice a soldier has to make. Someone that appeared to be a prime candidate might have issues/flaws that would keep that person from being able to take care of the soldiers’ loved ones. ... The soldier found herself charged with desertion, which is a very high wartime crime. If it had not been for the local media in her home town, this soldier might have even been convicted. FCP exercises are hard to complete and most of the time, they don’t even hold up. Everything is documented and placed into the soldiers’ files. Everyone knows that deployments come and go, but no one knows when. Knowing when and where a soldier will be deployed is one thing, but not everything goes according to how it was planned. When the time came for me to activate my FCP in which I named my mother as the preferred guardian, she was ill with cancer – an unforeseen factor. She was unable to provide the necessary care to my children due to her illness. When I tried to get one of my sisters to take my mother’s place in my FCP, I was unsuccessful; she had marriage issues that she was dealing with at the time, which made her not a very good candidate for the job of care of my two boys. Such unforeseen factors reduce the efficacy of FCPs. I was separated from the armed forces recently, in March of 2009 for a collapse of my FCP. Of course, I was honorably discharged. In conclusion, despite the military’s best intentions and beliefs, FCPs are not what they appear to be. They have been known to trap soldiers into legally binding contracts, which in some cases are not in the best interest of either the soldiers or their families. On the other hand, FCPs appear to have been designed to free soldiers from any obligation that they might have, so that the military does not have to lose them from its deployment readiness. Reference Engler, A. (2011). â€Å"Deployed military parents: Choosing custody or duty†. Good Housekeeping, April 3, 2011. Available

Whistleblowers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Whistleblowers - Essay Example sible member of the Littlebury community in which I have lived all my life, it is imperative for me to report the health and safety lapses on the part of Wooden to the concerned statutory bodies. 2) In case I choose not to report the situation, it will be because Wooden is a source of livelihood to a majority of the people in Littlebury. Any legal or statutory action leading to the closure of wooden will jeopardize the livelihood of many people at Littlebury, most of who are either known to me or are related to me. Also, I have worked for 10 years at Wooden. Being a senior and loyal employee, I feel that I do enjoy a measure of intimacy with the top management and can convince them to ameliorate the situation at the earliest. 3) My reporting the health and safety lapses at Wooden could perhaps end up saving the lives of many of my friends and colleagues. Besides, once the situation at Wooden is brought to the attention of a statutory body like Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the organization may take the appropriate measures to improve the health and safety scenario at Wooden. This will certainly better the things for all the employees serving at Wooden. 4) My failure to report the health and safety lapses at Wooden could result in debilitating and dangerous consequences in both a long term and short term perspective. The abundance of wood dust at Wooden’s premises could seriously jeopardize the health of many of my co-workers in a long term perspective. Also, as Karen has reported sparks at her work station, going by the fact that wood dust is highly inflammable, this could certainly lead to a serious accident that may put to risk the life and well being of many of the employees serving Wooden and the town residents. 5) In a technical context, a whistleblower is a person serving as an employee at a government organization or at a private agency who chooses to disclose the wrongdoing, mismanagement, corruption, or illegality at one’s

Explore The Relative Advantages Of Both Market Driven Marketing Essay

Explore The Relative Advantages Of Both Market Driven Marketing Essay In marketing research and literature, debate has been surrounding two approaches of market orientation that firms could adopt: market-driven and market-driving. Some argue that market-driving behavior is superior to market-driven behavior in creating customer values that contribute to growth and profitability, such as IKEA, Dell and Southwest Airlines, to name a few. (eg. Kotler et al., 2000) On the other hand, majority of authors stresses that these two behaviors are complementary. (e.g. Jaworski et al., 2000; Sheth and Sisodia, 1999) Such controversy leaves open questions to practitioners: Which is the winning approach for the firms to adopt? Should these two the competing approaches or complement each other? This essay begins with an introduction of market orientation, along with the market-driven and market-driving behavior. The next section will explore the relative advantages of these two behaviors from the marketing perspective and then to draw a conclusion to suggest that these two behaviors are complementing each other of which both play important roles in generating sustainable competitive advantage in todays dynamics business environment. Overview of Market Orientation Since late 1980s, significant amount of research in marketing suggesting that market orientation is the most effective strategy of achieving and maintaining long term competitive advantage and continue to stress its importance to the firms superior profitability. (e.g., Day, 1994b; Jaworski et al., 2000; Kohli Jaworski, 1990; Kotler et al., 2000; Narver and Slater 1990) Jaworski and Kohli (1996) defined market orientation as the organization wide generation of market intelligence pertaining to current and future customer needs, dissemination of the intelligence across departments, and organization-wide responsiveness to it. (see figure 1) On the other hand, Narver and Slater (1990) defined market orientation as an organization culture committed to the continuous creation of superior value for the customers and thus, continuous superior performance for the business. Narver and Slater (1990) classified the market orientation into responsive and proactive. The responsive approach, a typical response of a firm that exhibits a market driven behavior, is customer led, considering the market structure and customer preferences as given and focusing on the satisfaction of expressed customer needs. In contrast, the proactive market orientation, a typical response of market-driving firm, aims towards the satisfaction of latent needs, reshaping the customer preferences and market structure to enhance the competitive position of the company. (see figure 1) Figure Market Orientation Process (Neuenburg, 2010, p.49) Figure 2 below provides a framework adopted from Neuenburg (2010), which shows the whole spectrum of market-oriented behaviors that summarizes the discussion above. Figure 2 Marketing driven behavior vs market driving behavior (Neuenburg, 2010, p.46) In a nutshell, although there are differences in the precise definition, the market orientation is a fundamental approach for a firm to understand its markets, which represent an additional strategic dimension (Narver and Slater, 1998) and the implementation of the marketing concept (Jaworski and Kohli, 1990) that focuses the firms efforts on the needs of the market, learn about market developments, share this information within the organization and adapt the offering to the market. (Jaworski and Kohli, 1990) The Market Driven and Its Advantages Figure Conceptual Framework: Two Forms of Market Orientation (Jaworski et al., 2000, p.130) According to Jaworski et al. (2000), the term market-driven refers to learning, understanding, and responding to stakeholder perceptions and behaviors within a given market structure. (see figure 3) Specifically, the focus of a market-driven approach is to keep the status quo on existing customer preferences and behavior within an existing market structure. (Day, 1999a; Day, 1999b; Jaworski et al., 2000) The key element of market-driven behavior is to monitor customer satisfaction and analyzing customer needs, finding competitive advantage and strategic targeting. (Cravens and Shipp, 1991) Monitoring customer satisfaction allows firms to get an early indication about changing customer needs and preferences and the identification of future customer needs. Analyzing these needs helps the firms to prevent bad decisions or overlooking important parts of the customer value proposition as well as identifying its current or potential competitive advantage. (Cravens and Shipp, 1991) Firms gain advantage by matching the requirements of market segments with its capabilities to identify the best opportunities to serve its customers. (Cravens and Shipp, 1991) As markets become more fragmented the decision about which segments to target becomes increasingly important because each segment represents its own specific needs. (Neuenburg, 2010) Understanding of Markets, Customers, and Competitors Successful companies like Nestle, Procter Gamble, and Unilever are market-driven which reflects the conventional wisdom of marketing philosophy wherein they establish a clear understanding of markets, customers, and competitors. (Day, 1994b) Market-driven firms gain advantage to have good understanding of the market and how it is likely to change in the future. Furthermore, they hear the voice of the customers and develop differentiated products or services for a well-defined segment and then create combinations of marketing mix to adapt its offerings to satisfy customer needs. (Hills and Sarin, 2003; Kotler et al., 2000) As Day (1994b) argues, market-driven organizations are superior in their market-sensing and customer-linking capabilities, which enable them to understand, attract, and keep valuable customers. (Day, 1999a) When these two capabilities are deeply embedded within the organization, all functional activities and organizational processes will be better directed toward a nticipating and responding to changing market requirements ahead of competitors. (Day, 1994b) Therefore, market-driven firms are well equipped to achieve high levels of performance (Day, 1994b) and are expected to be more adaptable and perform better than less market-driven competitors because they stay in touch with existing and potential customer needs and competitor moves better than more internally focused firms. (Day, 1990) They are also predicted to be better and more successful at introducing new products to the market than their competitors. (Narver and Slater ,1990) They may not be the most innovative firm in their industry but, they will excel at adapting technologies to meet current and future customer needs. Thus, they often exhibit the adaptive characteristics of the Analyzer organization. (Miles and Snow 1978) Home Depot and Cisco Systems represent two examples of firm successfully adopting market-driven strategy of which their business focuses on putting customers first and sees themselves engage in the relationship business, not the transaction business. They strive to provide superior customer value through unprecedented customer service to increase customer satisfaction. This is how Home Deport leads with home improvement mega-stores by offering low prices and low frills but excellent services. IBM, on the other hand, failed to recognize market changes and customer preferences for personal computers which had resulted with a record loss for the fourth quarter of 1992 of $5 billion. IBM set a record for the largest annual loss in an American corporation in 1992 with a loss of $4.97 billion. Brand Portfolios as Assets In term of brand, companies with strong brands have more loyal customers, get greater return on marketing investments and are rewarded with attractive price premiums. As such, market-driven firms view their brand portfolios as assets to be leveraged and market development activities as investments rather than expenses. (Day, 1998) According to Day (1998), to manage a brand as an asset requires the deep market insights, organizational commitment and reasoned investment decisions that come naturally to market-driven firms. Moreover, the focus on long-run return from marketing investments enables market-driven firms to understand which customers are profitable to pursue, and knowing how to encourage loyalty by reducing customer acquisition costs. (Day, 1998) Creation of Permanent Value of the Existing Products or Services As quoted from Stoclhorst and Van Raaij (2004), customers do not always strive towards new and technologically superior products or services, but towards permanent value of the existing products or services so that the competition would find it hard to imitate. Hence, it is possible for market-driven firms to become irreplaceable for customers if the firms put serious focus on customers attempts constantly to offer something that are better and faster than the competitors and make the accessibility to the products and services easier. Importantly, there is support from research findings (Stull et al., 2007) validating that market-driven companies are 31% more profitable, twice as fast to bring products to market, twice as likely to lead, and enjoy 20% higher customer satisfaction rates. Furthermore, empirical results of another study (Vorhies et al., 1999) demonstrated that, the 43 market-driven firms outperformed the 44 less market-driven firms across adaptability, customer satisfaction, growth, and profitability dimensions. This finding supports the marketing literature about the capabilities of market-driven firms (Day, 1994; Day and Wensley 1988) and extends the findings on empirical research of market orientation. (e.g Jaworski et al.,1993; Narver Slater 1994) The Market Driving and Its Advantages Figure Conceptual Framework: Two Forms of Market Orientation (Jaworski, Kohli, and Sahay 2000, p.46) The term market-driving refers to changing the structure or composition of a market and/or the behavior(s) of players in the market. (Jaworski, et al., 2000) (see figure 4) It matches a proactive business logic that enhances the competitive position of the business (Tuominen et al., 2004) of which it involves the shaping of the market structure via deconstruction (eliminating competitors in the value chain), construction (adding players into the industry value chain) or a functional modification (shifting the functions performed by players in a market), and the shaping of market behavior by creating or reversing new customers or competitors preferences. (Carrillat et al., 2004; Jaworski, et al., 2000) Schindehutte et al. (2008) presented a different view of market-driving construct clarifying that it is an entrepreneurial phenomenon. They argue that the interface between the entrepreneurship and marketing offers a unique perspective on the market related decisions of firms and the observed impact of these decisions in achieving sustainable competitive advantage. Schindehutte et al. (2008) further argued that the market-driving behavior reflects a strong entrepreneurial orientation (EO). It has both the dynamic advantage that creates capability and a disruptive advantage that destroys the performance outcome. (Schindehutte et al., 2008) Despite the many different views on the notion of market-driving behavior, it has appeared as an alternative to market-driven strategy which has been recognized as a successful strategy for a number of established firms such as Amazon.com, BodyShop, CNN, IKEA and Dell, all of which has a clear brand image, a strong market position, and exhibit sustainable international business growth whereby success is based on radical business innovation, ventured into new markets, revolutionized existing industries by changing rules of the game. (Kotler et al., 2000) Kotler et al. (2000) indicate that the success of market-driving firms is based on two dimensions of radical innovation a discontinuous leap in the value proposition and the implementation of a unique business system (see Figure 5 and 6). Kotler et al. (2000) define value proposition as the combination of benefits, acquisition efforts/costs, and price offered to customers. While, unique business system refers to the configuration of the various activities required to create, produce, and deliver the value proposition to the customer. Figure Types of Strategic Innovation (Kumar et al., 2000, p.130) Figure Leap in Customer Value (Kumar et al., 2000, p.130) Therefore, the market-driving advocates argued that the market-driving firms gain more viable competitive advantage with greater performance and reap vast rewards than those that are not in a number of ways. Delivering Superior Value Kotler et al., (2000) suggested that the leap in customer value involve either breakthrough technology or breakthrough marketing enables firms to create a product and service experience that overwhelms customer expectations and existing alternatives. (Kotler et al., 2000) For example, FedEx constantly led its customers to ever higher expectations for quick delivery times, leaving competitors struggling to meet the spiraling demands. (Kotler et al., 2000) According to Carrillat et al. (2004), successful market-driving firms deliver superior value that best matches with their capabilities and by exploiting the competitors weaknesses. It also allows firms to exploit opportunities that competitors cannot (Hamel and Prahalad, 1994) and that includes addressing the deep-seated, latent or emerging customer needs. (Kotler et al., 2000) The study results in the paper of Market-driving in retail banking (Martà ­n-Consuegra et al., 2008) revealed that the two characteristics of market-driving: driving the market structure and shaping the market behavior if combined together contribute positively to overall performance of retail banks, particularly in terms of enabling them to satisfy their customers latent and expressed needs better. (Martà ­n-Consuegra et al., 2008) This study further suggested that bank-marketing managers should emphasize customer understanding in pursuing proactive market orientation, which will lead to improved performance. Market-driving behavior also enables firms to benefit from free advertising via buzz network through strong brand attachment. Customers are delighted by the leap in customer value of the offerings and are excited to share their customer experience with friends and public. Traditional printed media and online social media are often publicizing the review on radical new innovation. While early adopters and opinion leaders who are enthusiastic and committed to new innovation products and services has the influential power to generate excitement and emotional attachment among their followers. Consequently, The advertising-to-sales ratio is often less than that of their established competitors. (Kotler et al., 2000). Nike is one of the examples provided by Kotler et al. (2000) Nike didnt run a single national television ad until they had 1 billion dollars in sales. Phil Knight observes they instead used word-of-foot advertising by getting the best athletes to wear their products. Further more, study of Tuominen et al. (2004) revealed that market-driving behavior contribute to higher customer intimacy and is associated with generative (explorative) learning. On top of that, market-driving firms gain the advantage to establish new industry price points for the quality or service levels they deliver, either towards higher performance at lower price points or to charge a price premium that is higher than typical in an industry. Firms like Swatch and Southwest Airlines set the prices much lower than their competitors for similar products and services. (Kotler et al., 2000) For example, Southwest Airlines charged $15.00 for a trip from Dallas to San Antonio when Braniff, the next most inexpensive competitor, was charging $62.00. (Kotler et al., 2000) Such significant price gap and low price policy has successfully attracted many of the ground transportation users to choose Southwest Airlines. Their focus to compete on the ground transportation enable them to create new business opportunities in a market segment that has been ignored by their competitors. (Kotler et al., 2000). On the other hand, CNN, Starbucks, and FedEx are those market-driv ing firms that have a value proposition that is significantly more compelling than the existing alternatives, which enables them to set prices considerably higher than the standard in the industry. (Kotler et al., 2000) Implementation of Unique Business System According to Kotler et al. (2000), the success of IKEA and Dell is not only by just delivering discontinuous leap in customer value but also is attributed to the implementation of unique and radical business system which is hard to imitate by their competitors. Kotler et al. (2000) argued that such business system creates a more sustainable advantage, as it takes time for a would-be competitor to assemble the intra-organizational and inter-organizational players needed to replicate that unique system architecture. In term of distribution and channel management, market-driving firms focus a wide range of innovative practices within their industries. For example, Southwest Airlines handles its own ticketing instead of make seats available through the standard industry computerized reservation systems such as Sabre and Apollo. As a result, only 55 per cent of its tickets are sold through travel agents compared to 90 per cent for the industry, adding up to substantial savings on travel agents commissions. (Kotler et al., 2000) Reshaping the Customer Preferences and Market Structure Market-driving firm could lead customer value opportunities in new directions to achieve superior business performance by destroying the existing market segmentation and replacing it with a new set of segments reflecting the new altered landscape. (Kotler et al., 2000) For example, Southwest Airlines destroyed the market segmentation between ground transportation and airlines, attracting many ground transportation user who would not otherwise traveled by air. Jaworski, et al. (2000) suggested that firms could shape the market behavior directly or indirectly. One of the indirect options is by changing the existing preferences of customers or other stakeholders from a positive (negative) to a negative (positive) evaluation (Jaworski, et al., 2000). Examples of products that were formerly negative but are now positive are Skoda in automotive industry and Adidas in fashion and accessory industry. (Jaworski, et al., 2000) The proactive behavior of market-driving firms would also contribute to more innovative products and services, and more new product success (Narver et al., 2004) that enable firms to pioneer new markets, which would eventually lead to market ownership. In the case study about De Beers in China, Harris and Cai (2002) explored the advantage of market-driving behavior in practice and incurred, as cited from Neuenburg, (2010), firms gain significant market control in environments where markets are immature and product preferences are not yet formed. Conclusion Clearly, each of the market-driven and market-driving behavior has its own advantages and the notion of these two is highly relevant for business marketers (Tuominen et al., 2004). It is suggested that firms should well aware of the business logic they are applying (e.g. proactive or reactive) then it should be a match with the type of market orientation they emphasized. That is, according to Tuominen et al. (2004), the implementation of the specific strategic logic presumes matching marketing capabilities and learning capability. However, to sustain success in the long run, Sheth and Sisodia (1999) provided a more convincing argument, that firms need to be market-driven and market-driving simultaneously. Jaworski et al. (2000) echo such argument and proposed that truly market-oriented firms combine both behaviors of which these two are complementary. In other words, firms should devote effort in market-driven activities, such as incremental innovation and traditional market research. Nevertheless, firms should also continue to search for their next radical business innovation to drive them into new competitive position or the market leader risks being leap-frogged and deposed by upstart market drivers. (Neuenburg, 2010)

Causes of the Revolutionary War :: American America History

Causes of the Revolutionary War The haphazard and disorganized British rule of the American colonies in the decade prior to the outbreak led to the Revolutionary War. The mismanagement of the colonies, the taxation policies that violated the colonist right's, the distractions of foreign wars and politics in England and mercantilist policies that benefited the English to a much greater degree then the colonists all show the British incompetence in their rule over the colonies. These policies and distractions were some of the causes of the Revolutionary War. The interests of England within the colonies were self-centered. The English were exploiting were trying to govern the colonies by using the mercantilist system. Mercantilism is when the state directs all the economic activities within it's borders(Blum 31). England was not attempting to make any changes that would help the colonists. They limited the colonies commerce to internal trade only(Miller 9). The English were exploiting the colonies by demanding that the colonies import more from England then they exported to the colonies. They were importing raw materials from the colonies and making them into exportable goods in England. They would then ship these goods to foreign markets all around the world including the colonies(America Online ). Throughout the seventeenth century the English saw America as a place to get materials they didn't have at home and a market to sell finished products at after the goods had been manufactured. This was detrimental to the colonies because it pr evented them from manufacturing any of the raw materials they produced and made them more dependent upon England. In addition to the unrest caused by their mercantilist policies, domestic political issues distracted them from the activities of the colonies. Throughout the sixteen hundreds, Great Britain was more involved in solving the Constitutional issue of who was to have more power in English government, the king or parliament. When this complex issue was finally resolved in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, England turned its attention back to the colonies and found that colonists had developed their own identity as American. There was no central office in England to control what was happening in the colonies. The executive authority in England was divided among several ministers and commissioners that did not act quickly or in unison. Also, the Board of Trade, the branch of government that knew more about the colonies than any other governing body in England, did not have the power to make decisions or to enforce decrees. Causes of the Revolutionary War :: American America History Causes of the Revolutionary War The haphazard and disorganized British rule of the American colonies in the decade prior to the outbreak led to the Revolutionary War. The mismanagement of the colonies, the taxation policies that violated the colonist right's, the distractions of foreign wars and politics in England and mercantilist policies that benefited the English to a much greater degree then the colonists all show the British incompetence in their rule over the colonies. These policies and distractions were some of the causes of the Revolutionary War. The interests of England within the colonies were self-centered. The English were exploiting were trying to govern the colonies by using the mercantilist system. Mercantilism is when the state directs all the economic activities within it's borders(Blum 31). England was not attempting to make any changes that would help the colonists. They limited the colonies commerce to internal trade only(Miller 9). The English were exploiting the colonies by demanding that the colonies import more from England then they exported to the colonies. They were importing raw materials from the colonies and making them into exportable goods in England. They would then ship these goods to foreign markets all around the world including the colonies(America Online ). Throughout the seventeenth century the English saw America as a place to get materials they didn't have at home and a market to sell finished products at after the goods had been manufactured. This was detrimental to the colonies because it pr evented them from manufacturing any of the raw materials they produced and made them more dependent upon England. In addition to the unrest caused by their mercantilist policies, domestic political issues distracted them from the activities of the colonies. Throughout the sixteen hundreds, Great Britain was more involved in solving the Constitutional issue of who was to have more power in English government, the king or parliament. When this complex issue was finally resolved in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, England turned its attention back to the colonies and found that colonists had developed their own identity as American. There was no central office in England to control what was happening in the colonies. The executive authority in England was divided among several ministers and commissioners that did not act quickly or in unison. Also, the Board of Trade, the branch of government that knew more about the colonies than any other governing body in England, did not have the power to make decisions or to enforce decrees.

Diversity Audit

DIVERSITY AUDIT Diversity Audit at Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is a multinational company based in United States. It was founded in the year 1971 and is headquartered at Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is engaged in the business of selling coffee, coffee beans and different types of bakery products all over the world. The company also has a division known as Starbucks Entertainment division which is utilized for marketing films, music and books (Yahoo Finance, 2012). The coffeehouses owned by Starbucks are known for its relaxing atmosphere and the stores are mostly located in places where there is high traffic.This study entails about the diversity audit that have been conducted for Starbucks. The findings of such diversity audit, its assessment and subsequent recommendations have been presented in this study. Findings Diversity audit was conducted for Starbucks through an online survey of the company’s website and other information required for the purpose of conducting th e audit was mostly available over the internet. In addition, some of the employees present in few Starbucks stores were also interviewed to collect relevant facts regarding the cultural diversity prevalent in the company.The key findings of the diversity audit conducted at Starbucks are given below: Starbucks operates its business and stores in different parts of the world. Hence it is obvious that people from different cultures of the world are a part of Starbucks. The people connected with Starbucks can be any of its stakeholders, including its employees, suppliers, etc. As indicated in its website, it can be found that cultural diversity is given high priority and due respect in the company (Starbucks, 2012a). Apart from selling coffees, Starbucks is also engaged in the business of building up new human connections and relationships.Celebration of cultures and community involvement are also part of Starbucks activities. At Starbucks, diversity is defined as the composition of thr ee different aspects. They are: a) Inclusion, b) Accessibility, and c) Equity. Inclusion means human relationships and their engagements in the company. Accessibility refers to removal of barriers for all kinds of people associated with the company and the ease with which people can perform their activities within the organization. Equity represents equal treatment for all with justice and fairness being the two important virtues associated with the company.The strategy of diversity being followed by the company is considered to focus on four main areas. They are: partners, suppliers, customers and communities. The employees of the company are termed as partners here. The company management is involved in the activity of engaging people belonging to different regions and following varied cultures. The people working at Starbucks come from diverse family backgrounds. Starbucks organizes different activities meant for the development of its partners or employees by educating them and engaging them in different kinds of activities.Starbucks is also committed towards giving high levels of satisfaction to its customers by catering to their unique needs. Starbucks is prompt in its service and values the preferences and tastes of its customers. Starbucks tries to build relationships with its customers through adoption of different cultures as required for the purpose. Starbucks also arranges different community development programs as well to show their concern for the community. Starbucks also creates strategic partnerships by investing in companies in the local neighborhood.It also provides different kinds of opportunities for economic development which helps to build a strong relationship between the company and the communities in which it is operating its business. As regards the suppliers of Starbucks, it conducts a program termed as supplier diversity program. This program is meant for increasing the presence of minority groups and women as suppliers of the com pany (Starbucks, 2012a). The diversity effort of the company is mainly directed through a strategic plan formulated by them which is known as Global Diversity Strategy Plan.According to New York Times, nearly 24% of the corporate officers working at Starbucks comprises of women. Women represent around 31% of the population in Starbucks, and 13% of them are people of color. The team members of the Global Diversity team are engaged in different activities in Starbucks. Employees of Starbucks working in different parts of the world and their working environment are assessed and evaluated by the global strategy team of Starbucks. The company also tracks the progress made in the field of diversifying vendors and suppliers of the company. All these are done through an accountability scorecard prepared for he purpose by the global diversity team (The New York Times, n. d. ). The diversity program run by Starbucks named as Starbucks Supplier Diversity Program is meant for encouraging divers ity amongst all the suppliers of the company. The company has set criteria for the suppliers who want to be a part of this program. The two criteria being, a) More than 50% should be owned by either minority people or women, and b) It should be certified by any of the government public agencies like National Women Business Owners Corporation (NWBOC), National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC), etc (Starbucks, 2012b).Results of Audit The interview conducted with the Human Resource Manager of Starbucks suggests that diversity is encouraged at all levels and departments of the organization. The women and minorities are given preferences. There are certain criteria laid down by the company regarding recruitment of minorities and women as a fixed percentage of the total employees recruited by the company. The findings from the interviews carried out in Starbucks store includes the employees comprising of different cultures, working together and having a good relationship with each other.It has been observed that the employees of Starbucks love to share their cultural information amongst each other and want to know more about each other. People from different communities come together at Starbucks and they are encouraged to work as a team. The employees seem to be happy while working in the relaxed and friendly atmosphere at Starbucks. Customers are always greeted with smile as they enter the Starbucks stores. Employees get rewarded for their good performance in the company. Everyone seems to encourage diversity in the company and have due respect for each other.People are found to be highly motivated to work for the company and wish to have a long term relationship with the organization. Most of them are found to be loyal to the company. Employee turnover is low and everyone likes to be a part of the Starbucks brand. People are found to be enjoying their work in Starbucks and do not feel any kind of compulsion being imposed on them. Assessment All the f indings mentioned above suggest that diversity is encouraged in Starbucks in almost all aspects of its business operations.Special initiatives are taken by the higher officials of the company to bring about cultural diversity in their organization. The company feels diversity to be the key towards being successful in their strategy of expansion of its business in different parts of the world. The corporate culture at Starbucks is multicultural in nature. The morale of the employees working in the company seems to be high and people coming from various cultural backgrounds are found to work together quite efficiently in the company.The working environment within the organization is also good. Everyone is found to be happy doing their work in the Starbucks stores. The customers visiting the stores are also found to be having a relaxed time and satisfied with the services offered by the company. The company has made a huge progress in the field of imparting cultural diversity in the co mpany through the implementation of various types of initiatives and programs. Hence the managers of Starbucks have been successfully dealing with the diversity issues related to the company.However, it has been argued sometimes that the steps taken by Starbucks regarding cultural diversity was more of a reactive type than being a proactive one (Grodan, 2008). It implies that Starbucks developed all these diversity initiatives only after they found it necessary for running a sustainable business in different parts of the world. Recommendations As evident from the findings and assessment of the diversity audit conducted for Starbucks, it has been successful in implementing multicultural activities within the organization.It is recommended that the company should continue giving value to diversity at all levels of its operations. This would help the company to maintain its competitive advantage in the market. It would also help the company to expand its business successfully in other nations of the world where it does not have presence now. Diversity in the organization would ensure that all the employees working for the company are treated equally. Hence, it would bring about a healthy competition within the organization which would in turn result in increased fficiency of the employees. Apart from the employees, the company should also continue to encourage diversity for other stakeholders of the company like its suppliers and the customers. It would mean customers from different backgrounds and culture could be easily acquired by the company, thereby leading to increased revenues for the company as well. References Grodan, G. (2008). Issues Facing Starbucks and Bank of America. Retrieved from http://voices. yahoo. com/issues-facing-starbucks-bank-america-1901086. html. Starbucks. (2012a).Diversity at Starbucks. Retrieved from http://www. starbucks. com/about-us/company-information/diversity-at-starbucks. Starbucks. (2012b). Starbucks Supplier Diversity Progra m. Retrieved from http://www. starbucks. com/responsibility/diversity/suppliers. The New York Times. (no date). Leading with Diversity: Starbucks Coffee Company. Retrieved from http://www. nytimes. com/marketing/jobmarket/diversity/starbucks. html. Yahoo Finance. (2012). Starbucks Corporation (SBUX): Profile. Retrieved from http://in. finance. yahoo. com/q/pr? s=SBUX.

Anti Smoking Essays

Anti Smoking Essays Anti Smoking Essay Anti Smoking Essay On April 23, 1985, Coca-Cola, the largest aerated beverage manufacturer of the world, launched a sweeter version of the soft drink named New Coke, withdrawing its traditional 99 years old formula. New Coke was launched with a lot of fanfare and was widely publicized through the television and newspapers. Coca-Colas decision to change Cokes formulation was one of the most significant developments in the soft drink industry during that time. Though the initial market response to New Coke was satisfactory, things soon went against Coca-Cola.Most people who liked the original Coke criticized Coca-Colas decision to change its formula. They had realized that the taste of New Coke was similar to that of Pepsi, CocaColas closest competitor, and was too poor when compared to the taste of the original Coke. Analysts felt that Coca-Cola had failed to understand the emotional attachment of consumers with Coke the brand. They felt that Coca-Cola had lost customer goodwill by- replacing a popular product by a new one that disappointed the consumers.As a result of consumer protests to New Coke and a significant decline in its sales, Coca-Cola was forced to revert back to its original formula ten weeks later by launching Coke Classic on July 11, 1985. Roger Enrico, the then CEO of Pepsi commented on the re-introduction of Old Coke in these words: I think, by the end of their Coca-Cola nightmare, they figured out who they really are. They cant change the taste of their flagship brand. They cant change its imagery. All they can do is defend the heritage they nearly abandoned in 1985. By 1986, New Coke had a market share of less than 3%. MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I) BACKGROUND NOTE Dr. John Pemberton, an Atlanta-based pharmacist, developed Cokes original formula in 1886. It was based on a combination of oils, extracts from coca leaves (cola nut) and various other additives including caffeine. These ingredients were refined to create a refreshing carbo nated soda. Pembertons bookkeeper, Frank Robinson, suggested that the product be named CocaCola. He also developed the lettering for the brand name in a distinctive flowing script.On May 8, 1886, Coke was released in the market. It was first sold by Joe Jacobs Drug Store in the U. S. The first advertisement of Coke appeared in The Atlanta Journal dated May 29, 1886. Pemberton took the help of several investors and spent $76. 96 on advertising. Initially, he could sell only 50 gallons of syrup at $1 per gallon. To make the drink popular, it was served free for several days only after this that the drink gained peoples acceptance. After Pembertons death in 1888, Asa Candler, his friend and a wholesaler druggist, acquired a stake in the company.Coca-Colas sales soared even without much advertising and as many as 61,000 servings (8 ounces) were Sold in 1889. This made Candler realize that the business was profitable. He decided to wind up his drug business and be associated with Coca-C ola full time. As the business expanded. Candler also invested a higher sum in advertising the drink. By 1891, Candler bought the company for $2. 300. In 1892, he renamed it as Coca-Cola and a year later. Coca-cola was registered as a trademark. Only Candler and his associate Robinson knew the original formula.It was then passed on by word of mouth and became the most closely guarded secret in the American industry. Though occasional rumors spread that cocaine was an ingredient of Coke’s formula, authorities mentioned that this was not true. By 1895, Coke was made available in all parts of the US, primarily through distributors and fountain owners. Coke was advertised as a drink, which relieved one of mental and physical exhaustion, and cured headache. Later, Candler and Robinson repositioned Coke as a refreshment drink. MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I)In the beginning of the 20th century, manufacturing firms in the US were criticized for promoting adulterated products and re sorting to misleading advertisements. Coca-Cola was an easy target for such criticisms. The US government passed the Pure Food and Drugs Act in June 1906. A case was registered against Coca-Cola and the trial began in March 1911. Eventually, CocaCola won the case. But the decision was reversed in the Supreme Court. Finally, the case was settled outside the court in 1917 with Coca-Cola agreeing to reduce the caffeine content of the drink by 50%.In 1919, the company was sold to an investment group headed by Ernest Woodruff for $25 million $10 million in cash and $15 million in preferred stock. Woodruffs major decision after taking over the company was to establish a Foreign Department to make Coke popular overseas. When Coke was released in foreign markets, several problems came up. Initially, it had to rely on local bottlers who did not promote the product with sufficient enthusiasm, or on wealthy entrepreneurs, not familiar with the beverage business. The company also faced problem s regarding government regulations, trademark registration, languages and culture.By 1927, Coca-Colas sales rose to nearly 23 million gallons. Even though Pepsi Cola emerged as its major competitor in the 1930s, Coca-Cola continued doing well. By the time the US took part in World War II, Coca-Cola was more than 50 years old and well established. In 1962, Paul Austin (Austin) became Coca-Colas tenth president and four years later, he became the chairman and CEO of the company. By 1965, soft drink sales in the US had risen to 200 drinks per capita, and Coca-Colas market share had risen to 41% against Pepsis 24%. In 1964, CocaCola also acquired a coffee business.The company developed drinks with new flavors and also targeted food chains, which were fast gaining popularity. In 1970, Coca-Cola faced tough competition from Pepsi. During that year, Pepsis advertising budget exceeded Coca-Colas. During the next few years there was a decline in Coca-Colas market share due to Pepsis rising s ales. In 1978, Pepsi was found to have beaten Coca-Cola in supermarket sales because of its dominance in vending machines and fountain outlets. Coca-Colas sales continued to decline during the late 1970s, as Austin began new ventures such as shrimp farming, water projects and viniculture.The political and social unres countries like Iran, Nicaragua and Guatemala had a severe impact on Coca-Colas market share. The companys poor performance and the increasing discontent of its employees led to Austins exit and the entry of Roberto Goizueta (Goizueta), a 48-year-old chemical engineer, as the companys new CEO in 1980. THE RATIONALE Soon after becoming CEO, Goizueta concluded that the obsession about increasing the market share was futile for Coca-Cola and in certain businesses, the return on capital employed ROCE) was actually less than the cost of capital.As a result, he sold Coca-Colas nonperforming businesses such as wine, coffee tea industrial water treatment and aquaculture. Even a fter this, Goizuetas focus strategy could not stop the decline in Coca-Colas market share, which fell from 24. 3% in 1980 to 21. 8% in 1984 a loss of 2. 5% in four years. The decline in each percentage point amounted to a loss of about $200 million for the company. All this happened in spite of the fact that Coca-Colas annual advertising budget in die early 1980s was higher than Pepsis by an average of $100 million.Despite this, Coca-Colas advertisements were not as effective as those of Pepsi were. Pepsi ads showed that even few Coke drinkers preferred Pepsi in blind taste tests. Coca-Colas market share continued to decline though it had more vending machines, occupied more shelf space and was competitively priced against Pepsi. Coca-Colas distribution was wider than Pepsi, which had enabled it to be the leader in the soft drinks industry. It was extremely popular because of its distinctive taste. By 1984, Coca-Colas overall market share had dropped from 9. 8% in the early 1970s t o 4. %. This became a major cause of worry for the top management of Coca-Cola. During the middle of 1983, the idea of reformulating 99-year old Coke formula struck Goizueta. The purpose was to increase Coca-Colas market share as well as to defend its position as the market leader. A thorough market research was conducted which included interviews with about 2,00,000 consumers. This involved an expenditure of $4 million over two years. The results indicated that consumers who were very fond of Coke constituted 10-12% of the total number of soft MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I) rink consumers. When asked for their reactions to the change in Cokes taste, half of 10-12% loyal Coke consumers said that they may oppose change initially, but would eventually accept it, while the other half said that they would never accept any change. In some cases, the response was contradictory. For instance, some of the consumers, who had said that they prefer Coke to Pepsi, were found to be drinking Pe psi most of the times. Others said Coke was their favorite drink but they drank even Pepsi, or any other drink, which were available at that time.It was discovered that many people preferred Pepsi to Coke because Pepsi was sweeter. Coca-Cola felt that the sweeter taste would appeal more to teenagers and youth. Hence, it decided to launch a sweeter version of Coke, the taste of which would be similar to Pepsi. Coca-Cola also conducted a Focus group research 2 that revealed that many people were willing to try New Coke. However, some believed that Coca-Cola should not alter the taste of the drink. Although both the surveys (Focus group and Survey research) indicated consumer dissatisfaction, their results were contradictory to each other.While the survey result indicated that such dissatisfaction was limited only to a small segment of the market, the focus group research observed a wider dissatisfaction. In September 1984, Coca-Cola introduced a new drink that tasted better than Pepsi and scored 6 to 8 points3 in blind taste tests. The original Coke already exceeded Pepsis popularity by 10 points. The launch of a sweeter version of Coke was expected to make Coke popular than Pepsi by approximately 16 to 18 points. Though the market research had shown customer dissatisfaction, Coca-Cola ignored it and decided to launch New Coke based on the results of the blind taste tests.THE LAUNCH AND ITS AFTERMATH Coca-Cola launched New Coke in April 1985 with the punch line Catch the wave. This change in Cokes formula was publicized through the television and newspapers. The company said that the introduction of New Coke conformed to its efforts to be innovative in its marketing strategies and establish good customer relationships. The announcement reached more than 80% of the American population within twenty-four hours. MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I) The launch of New Coke elicited mixed reactions from the public.The initial response to the product was encouraging with distributors reporting a fairly wide acceptance of it. According to the analysts, the reason for this was that consumers had not tasted the product yet, and were thus curious about its taste. The distributors stocked the product in large quantities due to such an encouraging consumer response. However, the consumers realized that the taste of New Coke was similar to Pepsis and worse when compared to the taste of the original Coke. Gradually, distributors began to accept less stocks of New Coke and later on, they did not stock any due to poor consumer response to the drink.A majority of original Coke lovers criticized the companys act of changing its formula (Refer Exhibit I). Many of them stored large stocks of original Coke at home. Consumers perceived New Coke as a me-too product4 with a sweeter taste like Pepsi. Some said that the original Coke had a unique taste that was stronger than New Coke. Some consumers reportedly complained that the taste of New Coke was similar to sewer water, furniture polish or two dayold Pepsi. An old Coke lover said that the company had spoiled the taste of its 99 year-old soft drink and betrayed the nations trust.Meanwhile, black marketers made a killing as they sold original Coke at an exorbitant price of $30 per six-and-a-half ounce bottle. Some of them even tried to import old Coke from abroad. By the end of May 1985, the scenario had worsened with consumer response at its lowest. After the launch of New Coke, Coca-Cola received more than a thousand calls per week from the Coke drinkers, most of whom informed the company that they were planning to substitute Coke with Pepsi since they found no difference between the two.Coca-Cola had received more than six thousand calls and around forty thousand letters from Coke loyalists from the US and abroad all complaining about New Coke after six weeks of its launch. Due to the protests from a huge number of consumers and a significant decline in the market share from 15% at the time of the launch to 1. 4%, Coca-Cola was forced to revert back to its original formula ten weeks later, by launching Coke Classic on 1lth July, 1985. By the end MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I) of 1985, Pepsi had more market share than the combined market shares of New Coke and Coke Classic.However, in early 1986, Coke again became more popular than Pepsi as the sales of Coke Classic picked up. By early 1986, New Coke had a market share of less than 3% which came down to 0. 6% in 1987 and further down to 0. 1% in the late 1980s. Coca-Cola later re-launched New Coke as Coke IF in 1990 (Refer to Exhibit IV) which soon phased out due to its unpopularity. NEW COKE WHAT WENT WRONG? Analysts attributed the failure of New Coke due to several factors. Some felt that Coca-Cola had failed to understand the consumers emotional attachment with Coke.Reportedly, their attachment with the brand was so strong that one of them went to the extent of wishing his bones and ashes to be preserved in Coke cans after his death. But, after the launch of New Coke, he said that he did not want to be associated with Coca-Cola anymore. Another consumer said that God and Coke were the only two important things in his life. Analysts felt that people had a high regard for Coca-Cola because of its innovative ideas, excellent products launched and the importance it accorded to people and the environment. During the 1970s, one out of every two cola drinks and one out of every three soft drinks was Coke.It was made available in more than 140 countries to 5. 8 million people. These statistics proved its popularity. Also, Coca-Cola was the pioneer in recycling plastic bottles. Analysts felt that Coca-Cola was losing the goodwill of its consumers by launching a product that went against their preferences, taste and opinion. Some analysts also felt that the findings of the market research group were erroneous and late. The research was either in an inappropriate manner or was interpreted incorrectly. Coca-Cola failed to understand that there was much more to marketing soft drinks than winning taste tests.According to the analysts, the research could not have measured the type of consumer feelings that were evoked from reformulation. MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I) Market researchers also felt that Coca-Cola must have gone for focus group testing of a new product concept first and then used individual interviews to verify and quantify the results of focus groups. But, in reality, Coca-Cola carried out individual interviews first and then undertook the focus group testing. Though the company knew that 10-12% of its loyal customers would not appreciate the change in its formula, it totally misinterpreted consumers response regarding taste.The company was totally unprepared for unseen possibilities and this caused its market share to decline rapidly after the introduction of New Coke. A MARKETING BLUNDER OR A PLOY? Notwithstanding the negative consumers response, some media report s claimed that CocaColas act of launching New Coke was actually a deliberate marketing ploy to make people develop a stronger liking of original Coke after they tasted a low quality version of the drink. Coca-Cola used cane sugar and com syrup for the sweet taste of New Coke. During early 1985, Coca-Cola ran short of cane sugar stocks, but had sufficient stocks of com syrup.Cane sugar was sweeter and more expensive than com syrup. When New Coke was introduced in the market, people did not like its sweet taste. Such customer response helped Coca-Cola, and only corn syrup was used while manufacturing Coke Classic. People were so eager to see the original Coke come back that they did not notice the difference between the sweetness of cane sugar and that of corn syrup because they were very similar. Coca-Cola thus saved millions of dollars by using corn syrup rather than cane sugar in its soft drinks. Another report said that the company never believed that New Coke would be accepted by the consumers.They deliberately introduced it with an inferior taste When people got a taste which they disliked they would demand for the original taste and when the original taste was introduced they would purchase it in large quantities. This would help Coca-Cola to regain a part of its lost market share from Pepsi. MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I) Though these media reports remain unconfirmed, there was jubilation among the Coke lovers around the world after the introduction of Coke Classic Coca-Cola received between 18,000 to 30,000 calls of thanks from every corner of the world.One of them said that it was like an old friend had returned home after a long time. The New Coke fiasco did not result into losses for Coca-Cola. The sales of Classic Coke went up to 10 times as that of New Coke soon after its launch. Coca-Colas stock price jumped from $61,875 to $84,500, a 35% increase. By early 1986, the stock hit an all-time high of $110 (Refer Exhibit II) in 12 years, between 197 4 and 1986. At the end of the whole episode, Goizueta was happy man since it resulted in building shareholders value.He said, But the most significant result of New Coke by far, was that it sent an incredibly powerful signal a signal that we really were ready to do whatever was necessary to build value for the owners of our business. Goizueta was rewarded with $1. 7 million in salary and bonuses and almost $5 million additional bonus for the increase in stock price. Questions for Discussion: 1. The launch of New Coke turned out to be a nightmare for Coca-Cola. Discuss the marketing implications of introducing New Coke. Was it necessary to re formulate New Coke? . Market researchers had expected Coca-Cola to conduct focus group testing of a new product first and then use individual interviews to verify the results of the focus groups. What other types of research methods would have been helpful to the company in providing consumer insights? Discuss. 3. Though some analysts felt that the launch of New Coke was a blunder, others thought it was a deliberate marketing ploy. Is the failure of New Coke really a marketing blunder? Give your opinion and substantiate it. MIT-SOB PGDM- 31st Batch (Sem-I)

Healthcare Information systems

Healthcare Information systems Overview of healthcare information Technologies Lack of relevant system-wide healthcare Information technology causes significant expenses that come in the form of the increased number of the workforce and wasted time. Research suggests that lack of appropriate IT platforms to deliver healthcare service contributes to over 10% increase in healthcare costs.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Healthcare Information systems specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Therefore, IT systems are inextricably connected to healthcare costs for healthcare institutions, which trickle down to the population. Increased healthcare costs have prompted healthcare institutions to adopt cost-saving IT systems to optimize their returns while ensuring the delivery of quality service (Rodrigues, 2009). There are many IT applications from which healthcare institutions can choose to improve the quality of service and reduce costs of delivering healthca re services. However, every institution must be able to select an IT base that is relevant and appropriate to its condition. Improving the Quality of Medication Information technology has the potential to improve the quality of healthcare services. Studies show that most healthcare providers believe that adopting clinical IT systems improve the extent to which they can deliver quality patient care. IT systems can solve some of the problems posed by fragmented IT systems. Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) has become of the key clinical IT systems that have gained significant application in most clinical and medical institutions (Rodrigues, 2009). Research shows that the application of CPOE reduces the frequency of repeat tests. The quality of healthcare service is connected with the number of repeat tests that a patient undergoes before a successful diagnosis is achieved. Surveys conducted on patients reveals that patients rated physicians based on the number of unsuccessful diagnosis or tests for their illness. The use of CPOE reduces turnaround times for laboratory, pharmacy and radiography request applications made. Some medical studies have suggested that using CPOE reduces the error frequency during medical surgeries. According to a survey conducted by Bates et al. (1998), the application of CPOE systems had the ability to reduce medication errors by 55%. Out of 11 studies that aimed at estimating the accuracy of medication using CPOE, four studies showed that CPOE achieved to reduce errors, and improved the quality of medication and patient safety. Studies show that the introduction of CPOE as an IT platform is a nonfinancial incentive for healthcare professionals. Surveys conducted in hospitals using CPOE shows that healthcare professionals are motivated to deliver quality service compared to hospitals that did not implement these technologies. It is significant to note that the professionals’ perception of quality service is inextricably linked to availability of alternative IT tools (Bates Gawande, 2003).Advertising Looking for essay on it? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Recent studies have surveyed the value of using CPOE in ambulatory procedures. These studies suggest that a worldwide application of CPOE can improve quality healthcare among patients while saving their money. Reduction of drug events is a key focus by many physicians (Bates Gawande, 2003). Given this need, many clinicians have indicated that CPOE helps to reduce adverse drug events and other related medication errors because it offers cost effective medications, drug prescriptions, and laboratory tests (Bates Gawande, 2003). Reducing the cost of healthcare The use of Electronic Health Record (EHR) reduces the costs of handling medical records and increases the level of access. Studies show that the costs of collecting, storing, and retrieving medical records can have significan t cost implication on institutional costs. One of the main problems facing healthcare professionals is the lack of access to centralized information sharing platforms. Research has shown that the use of EHR has the potential of providing better documentation of patient histories (Bates Gawande, 2003). The extent to which professionals can share medical information with ease enables physicians to use medical histories, which reduces the costs of beginning new diagnosis and medication (Scalet, 2003). Evidence suggests that reduced transcription and medical management expenses are linked with the physicians’ use of electronic health records. According Bates Gawande (2003), financial returns depend on the extent to which a medical organization adapts to effective use of EHR. The paths toward a cost-effective healthcare system stem from getting the critical mass of physicians choosing to use electronic health record systems. Some studies suggest that the use of electronic health records can save up to $20,000 per healthcare professional. The adoption of electronic medical record (EMR) is a centerpiece in reducing the costs of providing healthcare services (Memorial Care, 2010). The use of traditional manila folders is believed to cost many hospitals millions of money due to loss or inaccessibility of critical patient and administrative records. EMR transmits important medical records in real-time and helps medical practitioners to have access to information in a timely manner. This avoids waste of time, which reduces costs of searching and retrieving medical histories (Memorial Care, 2010). Lack of systemized record management increases clinicians time and workload, which exerts pressure and workload.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Healthcare Information systems specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Studies content that it can cost a medical organization over $20,000 per clinician due to error s caused by increased workload and service time. Therefore, implementing electronic medical records has the potential of reducing workloads and extra working hours, which has a significant impact on the quality and cost of providing medical services to patients (Bates Gawande, 2003). References Bates, D. W., Gawande, A. A. (2003). Improving safety with information technology. New England Journal of Medicine 348(25), 2526-2534. Memorial Care. (2010). How electronic medical records reduce costs and improve patient outcomes. Retrieved from https://www.memorialcare.org/about/pressroom/media/how-electronic-medical-records-reduce-costs-and-improve-patient-outcomes-2010 Rodrigues, J. (2009). Health Information Systems: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools and Applications. New York, NY: Idea Group Inc (IGI). Scalet, S. 2003. Saving money, saving lives. CIO Magazine. Retrieved from https://www.cio.com/

Acting and Acting Styles Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Acting and Acting Styles - Assignment Example This provides the viewer with face to face interaction with the actor (Gibbs, 2013). The most common acting styles in film industry are naturalistic and stylized acting. Naturalistic actors are mandated to be in oneness with the character’s dress, mannerism and upbringing. He must have un-distinguishable character. Stylized acting depends on an approach that is more conspicuous to put across the director’s point. They produce comic effect through characteristic hyperbolism through dramatizing (Anderson, 2009). The significant placement of actor is known as blocking. In this style the actors are positioned in a way that can shore the dominance of a character over the other. It also depicts the grandness family and other relationships possible. This is used in the film to show the supremacy of the God Father (Coppola, 1972). The special effect acting style of Rear Projection is often used to give an illusion of a film scene on a location. It involves a combination of present foreground action and pre-filmed background footage. It is common in driving scenes. The un-realistic looking technique of this style is evident in the Romantic comedy by Hudson (Reed,

Gender, Race, and Philosophy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Gender, Race, and Philosophy - Research Paper Example The main traditional, philosophical discourse had been that women were lesser human beings than men. But after feminist philosophers had demonstrated that women too had the capacity to do virtually anything men could do during the second half of the 20th century, predominantly male societies have over the history gradually given women more options in individual and social life (Solomon, & Higgins, 2013). It is then arguable that de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex has had tremendous impacts on womens rights and gender roles by allowing women more authority over their reproductive, educational, career and suffrage rights among others. Apart from de Beauvoir, Schick and Vaugh (2008) said, Mahatma Gandhi was one of the most prominent 20th century figures in India who is credited for acknowledging women’s efforts as imperative to every society. Gandhi had a soft spot for women. He perceived them as complementing men’s contribution in the growth of society. Gandhi castigated stereotyping women as weak and lesser by refusing child marriage and obsession for dowry as well as seclusion (purdah). He, however, believed that proper gender roles demanded that a woman meets the interests of her husband, family and society, in that