Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline Essay Example for Free

Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline Essay Although significant oil reserves have been found in the early 1970s, these could not be developed because: 1- Chad is a landlocked country with limited domestic demand; 2- civil war prevented the creation of a stable investment environment and caused the departure of several investors. Since peace was established in 1990, investors and the World Bank returned to Chad for developing its oil reserves. In order to justify the large investment, access to the world market was sought via a pipeline through Cameroon, which is also a relatively poor country that can benefit from the investment and transit revenues. The World Bank has been supporting natural resource extraction based development around the world and, in particular, in Africa as the primary driver for economic growth and poverty reduction in these countries. But, the Bank has also been heavily criticized for failing to achieve these goals as the revenues from resource development do not reach the majority of the society. With the Chad-Cameroon pipeline and oil development in Chad, the Bank and the companies are following a novel partnership and revenue management approach. How is the project financing different? How will this new approach work? Will Chad and Cameroon benefit from this approach? Background1 Upon getting its independence from France in 1960, Chad has been involved in 30 years of civil war. The peace was finally restored in 1990, and the country drifted towards multiparty democracy, until rebellion broke out again in the north of the country. In January 2002 peace treaty was signed confirming de jure reign of northern ethnicity. Chad is one of the least developed nations on earth with GNI per capita of around $200. Republic of Chad is ranked 165th of 175 countries in UN’s Survival Ranking. The agricultural sector accounts for 36% of Chad’s GDP. Cotton exports account for 50% of foreign currency earnings. Chad’s government is concerned about this dependence on cotton and wants to diversify its economy in order to mitigate vulnerability associated with volatility of the international price of cotton. Chad’s only significant natural resources are oil deposits. Being independent since 1960, Cameroon has developed a rather stable political system, based on ethnic oligopoly. Despite of vast natural resource base (including oil, natural gas and aluminum) the country is one of the poorest in the world, with GNI per capita of roughly $600 in 2002. According to World Bank classification Cameroon is an HIPC (heavily indebted poor country) with total debt of $4. 9 billion and outstanding short-term debt over $950 million. Cameroon is in Top-15 countries with highest HIV rate (around 12%) and in Top-30 infant mortality rate. Economic and social development information on this section comes from the World Bank web site, CIA Fact Book, and U. N. Human Development Report. Â © Center for Energy Economics. No reproduction, distribution or attribution without permission. Chad-Cameroon Pipeline 1 1 Case Study From Since 1990, being faced with a fall in GDP due to unfavorable prices on major exported goods; Cameroon has been engaged in several World Bank and IMF programs, aimed at poverty reduction and acceleration of economic growth. As a result annual GDP growth averaged 2. 1% through 1990-2001, compared to 3. 4% in 1980s. Oil Development Conoco became the first foreign oil company to undertake significant oil exploration in Chad with acquisition of the Chad Permit H concession in 1969. Between 1973 and 1975, oil was discovered in varying amounts in the Doba, Doseo, and Lake Chad basins, that led to the creation of a multinational consortium comprising Conoco (12. 5% and operator), Royal Dutch/Shell (37. 5%), Exxon (25%), and Chevron (25%). In 1981 all the exploration projects were stopped due to escalating civil war. In 1988 a convention was signed between the government of Chad and the consortium, granting exploration permit with term of validity until early 2004. Conoco withdrew from the project, and Exxon took over operations, discovering the Bolobo field in 1989 with estimated 135 million barrels of reserves. 3 Chevron, in its turn, sold its share (20% interest in the Block H hydrocarbon license containing the three fields) to Elf Aquitaine, in 1993.

Socio Cultural Environment Line With Its Sustainability Drive Marketing Essay

Socio Cultural Environment Line With Its Sustainability Drive Marketing Essay Abstract This is a case study on Unilever business strategy. It would seek to analyze the strategic position of the group with the help of SWOT, PEST and BCG Matrix models. The paper would critically assess the competitive situation of the company in relation to other major product based companies in the market and companys financial performance and key issues. In the end it would submit few recommendations. The case study is my first effort towards analyzing the business strategy of Unilever and its success in the market. Since Unilever is so famous and its products so widely used all over the world, it is of great interest for me to carry out a case study on its business strategy. The paper would greatly help me and the readers to understand some key issues concerning Unilever in todays business world. Introduction 2.1. About Unilever Unilever is a multi-national corporation, formed of Anglo-Dutch parentage that owns many of the worlds consumer product brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. Unilever employs nearly 180,000 people and had worldwide revenue of almost à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬40 billion in 2005. Unilever is a dual-listed company consisting of Unilever NV in Rotterdam, Netherlands and Unilever PLC in London, England. This arrangement is similar to that of Reed Elsevier and that of Royal Dutch Shell prior to their unified structure. Both Unilever companies have the same directors and effectively operate as a single business. The current non-executive Chairman of Unilever N.V. and PLC is Michael Treschow while P Mr Paul Polman is the Group Chief Executive. The company is widely listed on the worlds stock exchanges (About Unilever: 2008). 2.2. History Unilever was founded in 1930 through merger by the British, Lever Brother; and the Dutch, Margarine Unie; now Unilever PLC in London, U.K and Unilever N.V in Rotterdam, Netherlands respectively. In 1872 before the merger, Jurgens and Van den Bergh, the Dutch, built factory in Netherlands for the production of Margarine made from milk and fact. In 1927, they formed Margarine Unie (margarine Union) together with two European Businesses, Centre and Schicht. Lever Co on the other hand was founded in 1884 by British William Hesketh Lever and his brother, James, and was producing soap Sunlight soap for people in England especially for women. William Lever wrote: to make cleanliness commonplace; to lessen work for women; to foster health and contribute to personal attractiveness, that life may be more enjoyable and rewarding for the people who use our products. In 1890, Lever Co become limited company known as Lever Brothers (Uhomhoabhi, Fredrick Albert: 2008) Unilever, Unilever N.V and Unilever PLC comprise Unilever group. Both companies have the same directors. Its annual turnover in 2005 was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬39.672 billion and employs206, 000 employees around the world.1 Unilever brands consist of Food, Beverage, and Home and Personal Care. Some of these products are Knorr, Breyers and Magnum, Lipton, Omo (detergent) etc. Knorr has the biggest sales of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬2.3 billon in 2005.In May 2007 it became the first tea company to commit to sourcing all its tea in a sustainable manner, asking the Rainforest Alliance, an international environmental NGO, to start certifying its tea estates in East Africa. It declared its aim to have all Lipton Yellow Label and PG Tips tea bags sold in Western Europe certified by 2010, followed by all Lipton tea bags globally by 2015. Covalence, an ethical reputation ranking agency, placed Unilever at the top of its ranking based on positive versus negative news coverage for 2007. In 2008 Unilever was honor ed at the 59th Annual Technology Engineering Emmy Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Advanced Media Technology for Creation and Distribution of Interactive Commercial Advertising Delivered through Digital Set Top Boxes for its program Axe. Strategic position of the company The strategic position of the company shall be analyzed through following techniques: 3.1. S.W.O.T Analysis The overall evaluation of a companys strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats is called SWOT analysis. In general, a business unit has to monitor key macro environment forces (demographic-economic, technological, political-legal, and social-cultural) and significant microenvironment actors (customers, competitors, distributors, suppliers) that affect its ability to earn profits. The business unit should set up a marketing intelligence system to track tends and important developments. For each trend or development, management needs to identify the associated opportunities and threats. Strengths Recognized as a global company. Strong brand portfolio. Strong relationship with retailers Economies of scale. Corporate social behavior Variety of products Weaknesses Dual leadership Limited costumer connection Inefficient management of brands Inability to maximize acquisitions Lack of control in the market Reduced spending on RD Opportunities Changing consumer preferences Increasing need for healthy products Low income consumers Rapid increase in population Threats Decrease in revenue Strong competition(PG) Tougher business climate Exchange rates Economic crisis Increase in production and labor cost 3.2. BCG Matrix Stars(High market growth share) Lux Sunsilk Walls ice cream Fair lovely Rafhan Energile AXE Vasline PG tips Dogs(Low market growth share) Wheel detergent Supreme tea Lifebuoy shampoo Cash cows(Low growth High share) Surf excel Ponds Lipton Close up Blue band Dove soap Rexona Knorr Question marks(High growth low share) Clear shampoo Rin Comfort Ben Jerrys Persil 3.3. PESTEL Analysis 3.3.1. Political/Legal environment Unilever, as a matter of policy, set a standard as to the way of tackling political issues. Unilever has its tactical way of handling political issues. First, in the 1960s, many countries began to nationalize foreign firms which also affected Unilever. This was a call for local equity participation in foreign firms. Thus, so many companies were subject to local control on prices, imports, employment of expatriates and so on. As a result of the adverse effect of nationalization policy, in the 1970, many US companies e.g. IBM and coca cola left India. There was fear by foreign companies uncertain issues such as knowledge leakage, loss of trademark etc. this was also hazardous for Unilever as its control over operation in the market was reduced. For example UAC, a subsidiary of Unilever, whose operation was in many African countries (Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, etc.), was focused on as its profit margin and rate of easy remittance of profit to its Anglo-Dutch parent was enorm ous. Nationalizing UA Chambered Unilevers control over the market where UAC operates. However, Unilever uses its experience and goodwill to make contacts in many countries to bargain with government so as to modify their regulations. In central and south America, Unilever only engaged in lobbying rather than active politicking. In other words, Unilever never get involved in sponsoring political parties. Today, Unilever has gained political ground using its tactical strategy and experience. Unilever is a member of many organizations all over the world. The aim is to create favorable business environment, and also facilitate corporate reputation management. 3.3.2. Economic environment Unilever market environment is becoming highly competitive especially in the Western Europe. Procter Gamble (PG) is one of the major competitors in the European market. More so, there are so many discounters in the European market resulting from EU free trade policy. This has had adverse effect on Unilevers profit potentials. Retailers are pressurizing FMCG producers to reduce prices of their products. Consumers on the other hand would not want to buy expensive product or brands due to current economic tide. Competition in EU has grown so strong that Unilever is facing difficulties in places like France, Netherlands. In the developing countries and the emerging economies (Asia and Africa), where there are political instability, Unilever has adopted its company strategy to ensure that its profitability drive is sustained. Some Products are packaged in small size for low or regular income earner, for affordability. In some developing countries, Nigeria to be precise, there was uncertainty about duties to be paid by companies due to inflation and fluctuation of currency. The effect on Unilever was a decrease in profit in 2005 compared to 2004, though there was increase in turnover. 3.3.3. Socio-cultural environment Unilever has continued to maintain momentum in its socio-cultural environment in line with its sustainability drive. The company is working relentlessly to bring improve hygiene and better nutrition to people in Asia, Africa and Latin America, especially the poor and obesity. Over 30% of Africa population lives on less than $1 per day. By this, Unilever strengthens it goodwill. However, the low literacy of consumers affects marketing vehicles such as advertisement in print media. This therefore requires employment of more resources, for instance to enhance face-to-face communication. Besides, Unilever employs about 100 nationalities. It ensures that diversity works for everybody both employees and consumer alike. In order to achieve and ensure that diversity works amongst employees, Unilever employed the strategy of so as to manage and leverage diversity. Unilever is focused on building an exclusive culture and embracing difference, which resulted in high demand of its products in th e developing and emerging markets. 3.3.4. Technological environment Right in the 1930s, Unilever continue to diversify. Business continue to boom in the1950s with new technology being invented to boast production and enhance quality products for consumer, competitors improving their products using new inventions. Unilever did not give up its effort in RD. Since 2000, Unilever has been spending on IT to improve its business especially in the area of e-business so as to improve brands communication and market through internet, making transaction simple along chain. Today, Unilever is trying to minimize cost through IT efficiencies at global level. In addition, Unilever Technology Venture works in collaboration with Unilever RD group to help Unilever meet consumers needs. Area of concern is genomics, advanced bioscience, advanced materials science and nanotechnology. In 2003, Unilever installed and commissioned pallet live storage system from Bitto Storage System Ltd. This was meant to store its frozen products. The facilities include: pallet live storage systems, carton live storage systems, pallet racking, boltless shelving, plastic bins and containers, wide span and heavy load shelving, cantilever racking, and multi-tier shelving systems. 3.3.5. Environment In recognition of local legislation and to keep its corporate responsibilities, Unilever designed management system. Unilever has respect for consumer health and safety. This policy is to ensure all Unilever operators establish a formal environmental management system. Training programs are being arranged in various regions/business groups to ensure compliance with the company Standard for Occupational Health and Safety Environmental Care (SHE). This framework is based on the ISO 14001 management standard. Unilever had also worked in conjunction with government of countries of its operation as regards waste management. For instance in Ghana, 2004, over 21 tones of wastes were supplied to small and medium size recycling businesses in Accra, Ghana, by Unilever to reduce the amount of plastic waste sent to landfill. Financial performance Underlying sales growth of 7.4% was partly offset by movements in exchange rates (4.8%) and the net impact of disposals and acquisitions (1.4%). Including these effects, turnover was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬40,523 million for the full year, increasing by 0.8%. Operating profit increased by à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1,922 million to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬7,167 million, including a higher level of profits on business disposals. These generated a pre-tax profit of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬2,190 million in 2008, compared with à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬297 million in 2007. Net profit was 28% higher than last year, boosted by the profits on disposals. Earnings per share were à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1.79, including a net gain of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬0.36 from RDIs. This compared with à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1.35 last year, which included a net loss of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬0.07 from RDIs.Net cash flow from operations at à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬3.9 billion was in line with last year. Total cash returns to shareholders in the year wereà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬3.6 billion, made up of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬2.1 billion of dividends and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1.5 billion of share buy-backs. 4.1. Consolidated income statement (Highlights for the year ended 31 December) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ Million 2008 2007 Turnover 40 523 40 187 Operating profit 7 167 5 245 Profit before taxation 7 129 5 184 Taxation (1 844) (1 128) Net profit from continuing operations 5 285 4 056 Net profit 5 285 4 136 Combined earnings per share from total operations à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1.79 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1.35 4.2. Consolidated balance sheet (As at 31 December) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ Million 2008 2007 Non-current assets 24 967 27 374 Current assets 11 175 9 928 Current liabilities (13 800) (13 559) Total assets less current liabilities 22 342 23 743 Non-current liabilities 11 970 10 924 Shareholders equity 9 948 12 387 Minority interests 424 432 Total capital employed 22 342 23 743 4.3. Consolidated cash flow statement (For the year ended 31 December) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ Million 2008 2007 Net cash flow from operating activities 3 871 3 876 Net cash flow from/ (used in) investing activities 1 415 (623) Net cash flow from/ (used in) financing activities (3 130) (3 009) Net increase/ (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 2 156 244 Cash and cash equivalents at 1 January 901 710 Effect of foreign exchange rate changes (697) (53) Cash and cash equivalents at 31 December 2 360 901 4.4. Financial Objectives Unilevers ambition is to top Third Total Shareholder Return, over a 3 year rolling period out of peer group of 20 other companies. Its outlook for year 2010 is: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Un-geared free cash flow in the period 2005-2010 to be à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬25-30bn. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Improvement in Return on Invested Capital. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Underlying sales growth of 3-5% p.a. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Operating margin of over 15% by 2010 after normal restructuring. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Improved capital and tax efficiency. Market share and competition 5.1. Top Unilever Competitors Company Location Proctor Gamble Cincinnati,OH Kraft Foods Northfield, IL Nestle Vevey, Switzerland 5.2. Competitor Comparison Unilever P G Kraft Nestle Top Segment C/G Foods Consumer Care Food Food Top Brand Dove Tide Mac Cheese KitKat CEO A.Burgmans A.G.Lefley R.Deromedi P.Letmathe Stock per share $66.03 $53.76 $30.70 $66.90 Growth 15.55% 9.25% 8.2% 11.23% Revenues $42.942m $28.2BL $31,010m $69.BL Revenue Growth -11.93% 19% 4.3% -1.93% International 100+ 42 150+ 86 Business Segments 3 5 5 6 Employees 234000 110000 10600 253000 (Source: Hoovers business Intelligence guide) 5.3. Category position in the market Strategic Issues Following are some of the key strategic issues which Unilever faces today: 6.1. Leadership Unilever maintains two business entities i.e. Unilever PLC and Unilever N.V. Due to dual chairperson approach; it faces following problems in their business strategy: List stock separately Shared board of directors Typical management; wear two, three hats Conflict in Board and Business responsibilities Company remains fragmented Reduced effectiveness Slow decision making process( Bureaucracy) Unilever believer (believe in Unilever) Unilever should create a sense of belief amongst its consumers. It should try and focus on program that focuses on brand initiative to the consumers. Use advertising that connects with consumer needs: Consumers demand high quality products that are both convenient and delicious Consumers look for new ways to use the product Large population of single parent house hold More females are working full-time jobs Increase consumer focus on health and nutrition Strategy Justification 7.1. Recommendation 1 Make an initiative to create an overall umbrella brand across all Unilevers brands that will eventually consolidate various businesses under one name. Unilever Plc Unilever NV One Unilever Provides a greater clarity of leadership, responsibility, and accountability Allows Unilever to focus on the needs of their customers and consumers thus reigniting growth and increasing sales potential Provides the ability to leverage scale of operations Create a strategic platform for brand management Recommendation 2 It should implement Unilever Believer product and brand extensions. The related example in this case is of Lipton tea. It should try and create an extension to this famous brand by focusing on energy drinks. Justifications are: Energy drinks jumped 56% in sales last year Market has exceed $100 million in the recent years Main Competitor: Red Bull Positioning Statement: A Healthier Alternative to Energy Drinks Unilever should cash in this opportunity by: Target Market: Young adults 18-32 Uses: stay up all night and/or start a night out Main Ingredients: Caffeine, Vitamin B, Guarana Advertisements: Highlight healthier ingredients of the product while showcasing its ability to give energy and revitalize body

Culture Of Marina Bay Sands Of Singapore Cultural Studies Essay

Culture Of Marina Bay Sands Of Singapore Cultural Studies Essay Marina Bay Sands is located at 10 Bayfront Avenue that is in the heart of Singapore Central business district area. The building is a landmark to Singapores attractions. It is the newest destination for tourists from all around the world. Marina Bay Sands consists of three hotel-towers. Each tower is 55-storey and has more than 2,500 luxurious rooms in total. It is a one-stop attraction with high-class hotel, shopping, and many fine restaurants in the three hotel-towers itself. This place will definitely leave beautiful memories to visitors. Different Cultural Background One of the hardest communication malfunctions is having different cultural background staffs. Staffs came from many different countries. Some of the staffs may not be as sensitive to the others while working or even while communicating. This is a serious problem as it may provoke or irritates ones culture without realizing. As a result, working together may be very difficult as unhappiness may be consistent. Because of this, some staffs might be afraid to communicate with each other to avoid insulting other staffs cultures and this will highly increase the rate of communication break down between the staffs. Working Experiences As mention, many staffs came from different countries and in different countries, staffs were trained in different methods and ways. Staffs with different level of working experience make working together a big difficulty. Again, unhappiness may arise and communication will break down eventually. Although the work is the same, every different staffs may want to do in a way that they were taught and that would definitely not have the fullest result of their work. New employees are also put into consideration, as they have not much knowledge in their work yet. Blocked Mind There are certain staffs that have blocked mind. Blocked mind means that the person is unable to accept new things and always rejecting new ideas. When other staffs or higher management wants to do something new, opinions, attitudes and own beliefs starts to set in ones mind. People who have blocked mind are certainly a point that really affects the companys growth. Language Imperfections A place like Marina Bay Sands requires many staffs. They came from all over the world and one thing that causes communication breakdown seriously is their differences in language. Every staffs has this different standard of English language. Between the staffs, many might not understand each other that well due to the slangs and standards of the other staffs. A simple communication breakdown can lead to many problems either big or small. Eventually, staffs will start to communicate minimally so that miscommunication is avoided which is a wrong mentality. When staffs starts to avoid communicating with each other, information are not being able to pass correctly. Task 2b: Solutions to minimize (318 words including titles) Different Cultural Background There are many ways to minimize different cultural background problem. The company can organize simple lessons for every staff that would teach the different cultures to others so that every staffs can understand each other more and that will make their work more efficient and productive. The company can also categorize the same country staffs to work together to have minimal communication breakdown and that will certainly reduce the mistakes and time wasted. Working Experiences The solution to minimize working experiences problem is to give time to new employees to learn about their job scope. Company can also appoint mentors to new staffs to assist for the first few weeks so that the new staffs get more confident in their work and know what to do in their work. Again, the higher management can conduct lessons so that all employees will have a common working style and that will benefits the staff as well as the company. When all start to work together as one, company will achieves more. Blocked Mind The solution to minimize blocked mind is to listen to other ideas more. Allow everybody to give his or her own opinions and ideas. Personal improvements lessons can also be conducted to improve ones ability and potential so that they can release their full potential and abilities when they are working. Language Imperfections The solution to minimize the language imperfections problem is to ask secretary, colleagues, superiors or anyone in department to read the message before passing to a typist or fax operator. Alternatively, the sender can expand more information as much as possible. Be sure that the receiver fully understands. If you have received message from a person and found that it is difficult for you to understand, ask the sender immediately. As a result, communication breakdown can be minimized through all these methods. Task 3: Concept of Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism (723 words including titles) Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism is a state of mind where the people in the society beliefs in their cultures with respect and superiority. They despise other cultures and thinks that their culture is the best. As a result, that leads them to become very narrow minded. Ethnocentrism not only has negative impacts but also have positive impacts. It helps to bring internal unity among the people and gives the people a sense of belonging to their society. Singaporean Chinese are firm belief in the practice of pragmatism and meritocracy. Singaporean weights results, consequences, utility, and practicality higher and people are often judged by their talents and abilities. Malaysian Malay are given higher status in Malaysia compared to other races and treated with more advantages and privileges. The main difference between them are Singaporean Chinese will go all out to work for the results and often trying to show their talents and abilities whereas Malaysian Malay tends to work things out slowly. The Malay employees will gather among the other Malays as they think that their culture is more superior than other cultures. An example to Singapore Chinese employee will try his/her best to outshine other employee but this Singapore Chinese employee will also respect other culture and other races among him/her. This Singapore Chinese employee will also be concern about consequences of his/her work and the results he/she produces. Understanding that Singaporean Chinese does not compare among races and treated equally in Singapore, communications with other colleagues regardless or races are often more effective. An example to Malaysian Malay employee will do his/her work averagely and will have a strong bonding among his/her Malays colleagues. This Malaysian Malay employee will also have more loyalty to the company compared to other races as feel the sense of belonging together with other Malay employees. Trust between this employee and other races employee may be lower compared to his/her fellow Malay colleagues. This Malaysian Malay employee tends to have more arguments or unhappiness with other races and cultures colleagues due to their thinking of superiority in their culture. Biasness and favoritism may appear to other employees even there is none. Thus, effectiveness of communication with the other races employees is lower. Cultural Relativism Cultural relativism is a state of mind where there is a common respect in other cultures. No culture is any special or superior to other culture. This includes religion, ethical, aesthetic, and political. They think that every culture is as worthy and equal as their culture and there is certainly no judgment between other races. It is more of personal opinion than an absolute correct or incorrect. Thailand is a collectivist country. They weight relationships and respect more than anything else. This has also led to unwanted human rights issues. Many take advantage of this as it is more towards accepting the inequality of the races as something natural and that promotes racism. American weights respect only to their fellow Americans most. They believe that they are the most superior due to their countrys achievements. The main difference between Thai and American employee is Thais are tend to be more close to their fellow Thai colleagues where American treats American equally but has no respect to other cultures. An example to Thai employee is friendlier towards his/her other Thai colleagues. He/She does not judge or criticize other colleagues and often bias to his/her fellow Thai colleagues. He/She makes exceptions to his/her fellow Thai colleagues too. This Thai employee also gives respect to all his/her colleagues. He/She also gives due respect to his/her superiors regardless of the culture differences due to the position level. It is easy for this employee to get along with other colleagues. As a result, the effectiveness of communication of Thai employees is better than the American employees. An example to American employee is often more commanding. He/She does not give enough respect to his/her superior if he/she is not an American. As mention, they have this mindset due to the countrys achievement. This American employee belief in his/her own skills and refuses to learn from any other employee from other countries or cultures. It is difficult to mix this employee with different nationalities and cultures employee. He/She does not listen to instruction given by others and that leads to a very ineffective communication. Task 4: Five Cultural Dimensions (825 words including title) Power Distance The first of the five dimensions of national culture called Power Distance. Human inequality can occur in many areas such as physical and mental characteristics (basic fact of human existence), social status, prestige, wealth, power, laws, rights, and rules. In different societies, give weights differently in this area. In some countries, politicians enjoy status and power without wealth or businesspersons enjoy wealth and power without status. This inequality is usually happening to the relationships between subordinates and their bosses. Singapore Marina Bay Sands exercises a relatively equal weight between the physical and mental characteristics. Bosses and subordinates do have their own power, rights, and wealth. Bosses do have higher power and rights to control the company. Individualism Every individual person in society has their own ideas and patterns for living up to society, unequal society and some people does not consider the social or feelings of those around them. Individualism people rely on legal rights and do not concern cultural and social concerns. Collectivism people do respect to the feelings of others or their own group members whereas individualism concerns over only the laws. Collectivism focus more on families and workmates, Individualism focus more on their own good and business. As explained, in Singapore Marina Bay Sands, there are also different people with their own ideas and patterns for living. Singapore society is Collectivism and believes in equality between man and women. While some countries such as New Zealand, Ireland, Sweden, and USA are individualism societies, which mean the staffs in Marina Bay Sands who came from these countries are most slightly does not consider the social or feelings of those around them. Masculinity Men and women is a big issue for any culture, society, or even companies. The opposite meaning of masculinity is feminine. In working terms, different countries have different cultures. Some have equal job opportunity for the men and women but some have very specific appointments. Some countries such as Japan and Islamic societies usually have this issue, as the women are regard as feminine, which will not be appointed as a leader. However, after time, many of these societies have changed and women have been given the equal opportunities to be leaders. Thailand is an example for now they have equality at work between genders. Previously the Thai culture was women have to be at home taking care of the house while the men will go work to support the family financially. Every different country has different speed of cultural change. Singapore Marina Bay Sands is a society, which has equal rights for man and women. Generally, women leaders can be found widely in Singapore and this has be en going for many years. Uncertainty Avoidance The opposite meaning of uncertainty avoidance is uncertainty-accepting cultures. This group of people is more towards tolerating different cultures from them. They minimize rules as much as possible to allow many cultures to be beside them. As a result, this will make the employees focus on the success of the work. Coming back to uncertainty avoidance, these people oppositely create many rules and are often very emotional in their work. These people are mostly motivated by themselves. Society like Japan, Belgium, and America are countries, which implements many rules and laws to avoid uncertainty avoidance where as country such as Thailand looks more on uncertainty accepting cultures between the employees to the supervisors to create a more focused relationship work. Singapore is also a country like Thailand, which also promotes uncertainty accepting cultures as this will certainly boost up the staffs morale while working as a team and eventually this will boost up the business great ly as well. Long-Term Orientation Students in 23 different countries found this dimension in a study. Humans have different dimension in terms of getting along with each other in working place. Some of them take longer time, which is known as long-term orientation, and some of them take little time, which is known as short-term orientation. People determine relations through factors while working together. Long-term orientation people have many difficulties to work with new people while short-term orientation people have no problem with that. However, after the long-term orientation people get to know the new people better, they will have a long and firm relationship and for short-term orientation people they will have no commitment in the relationship after awhile. For Thai Society, Sex discrimination does not cause a problem but it is favoritism that causing problem. Because of the hospitality culture in Thailand, it is quite difficult to do not help others. Singapore also could not avoid but to have people that ar e long-term orientated and short term-orientated. Certainly, Thailand, and Singapore do not have any sex discrimination and in addition, Singapore does not encourage favoritism. With a good balance of long-term and short-term orientated staffs in Singapore Marina Bay Sands, it has resulted to achieve great heights.

Our Role in Consumption and Recycling Essay examples -- Recycle Enviro

Our Role in Consumption and Recycling We all know that this country produces quite a lot of "stuff." Goods and services, we’re the economically-dominant country in the world. U.S. corporate power makes, the world takes. But with all this production, all these goods, comes a need to dispose of what we consider to be no longer useful. Some of it is in fact useful, some of it isn’t. But the fact is, we throw away a lot of stuff. Compared to the rest of the world, we dispose of goods much like we market them –tremendously disproportional. Each American produces about 4.4 lbs. of trash every day, costing our municipalities a total of $23 billion annually; this is far more waste than that of any other Westernized nation. (Columbia Encyclopedia.). But there is a good, or "not so bad," side to this: a sizable portion of this refuse is single-substance, recyclable material. Considering this fact and our continuously-shrinking landfill space, numerous local governments began some years ago to adopt recycling p rograms. It was seen as a necessary solution to reduce further waste. We recycle many different materials now. One which we are all familiar with is paper. Most recycled paper is a mixture of post-consumer waste, which is simply used paper, and pre-consumer waste, consisting of unsold magazines, newspapers, and the like. While there is certainly nothing wrong with making new product out of leftover paper, it is a tremendous waste to continuously produce pre-consumer waste- that is, constantly producing much more than will actually be sold - especially when that margin of excess is expected in every circulation. It would cut down costs and energy of printing presses everywhere - as well as countless trees - if the publications wo... ...e resources and money." 24 Feb 2000. (http://www.hooked.net/users/ verdant/handson.htm). "Sources of Toxic Air Pollution." Vermont Air Toxics Web Page. 27 March 2000. (http://www.anr.state.vt.us/dec/air/airtoxics/Pages/sources_of_toxic_air_pollution.htm). "Steel Recycling for the Environment." 24 Feb 2000 (http://www.autosteel.org/facts/ recycle/environ/environ.htm) "Ten Reasons Why Dams Damage Rivers." American Rivers. 1997. 27 March 2000. (http://www.amrivers.org/ dam10ways.html). "Waste Tire Recycling Technology." ERT Environmental Recycling Technology Inc. 1997. (http://www.globalserve.net /~ertnet/2.html). "What to Do." 24 Feb 2000. (http://www.amalthys. com/consumer/do.htm). "Why Vegan." Vegan Outreach 1998: 8. "World’s First Breakthrough in True Rubber Recycling." 1 Jan 2000. 2 Feb 2000. (http://owinok.hypermart.net/ index2/Quattro.htm). Our Role in Consumption and Recycling Essay examples -- Recycle Enviro Our Role in Consumption and Recycling We all know that this country produces quite a lot of "stuff." Goods and services, we’re the economically-dominant country in the world. U.S. corporate power makes, the world takes. But with all this production, all these goods, comes a need to dispose of what we consider to be no longer useful. Some of it is in fact useful, some of it isn’t. But the fact is, we throw away a lot of stuff. Compared to the rest of the world, we dispose of goods much like we market them –tremendously disproportional. Each American produces about 4.4 lbs. of trash every day, costing our municipalities a total of $23 billion annually; this is far more waste than that of any other Westernized nation. (Columbia Encyclopedia.). But there is a good, or "not so bad," side to this: a sizable portion of this refuse is single-substance, recyclable material. Considering this fact and our continuously-shrinking landfill space, numerous local governments began some years ago to adopt recycling p rograms. It was seen as a necessary solution to reduce further waste. We recycle many different materials now. One which we are all familiar with is paper. Most recycled paper is a mixture of post-consumer waste, which is simply used paper, and pre-consumer waste, consisting of unsold magazines, newspapers, and the like. While there is certainly nothing wrong with making new product out of leftover paper, it is a tremendous waste to continuously produce pre-consumer waste- that is, constantly producing much more than will actually be sold - especially when that margin of excess is expected in every circulation. It would cut down costs and energy of printing presses everywhere - as well as countless trees - if the publications wo... ...e resources and money." 24 Feb 2000. (http://www.hooked.net/users/ verdant/handson.htm). "Sources of Toxic Air Pollution." Vermont Air Toxics Web Page. 27 March 2000. (http://www.anr.state.vt.us/dec/air/airtoxics/Pages/sources_of_toxic_air_pollution.htm). "Steel Recycling for the Environment." 24 Feb 2000 (http://www.autosteel.org/facts/ recycle/environ/environ.htm) "Ten Reasons Why Dams Damage Rivers." American Rivers. 1997. 27 March 2000. (http://www.amrivers.org/ dam10ways.html). "Waste Tire Recycling Technology." ERT Environmental Recycling Technology Inc. 1997. (http://www.globalserve.net /~ertnet/2.html). "What to Do." 24 Feb 2000. (http://www.amalthys. com/consumer/do.htm). "Why Vegan." Vegan Outreach 1998: 8. "World’s First Breakthrough in True Rubber Recycling." 1 Jan 2000. 2 Feb 2000. (http://owinok.hypermart.net/ index2/Quattro.htm).

WAR And PEACE And How It Effected The World :: essays research papers

If your computer starts up in the 24 bit version of the game with fuzzy looking graphics, try re-selecting the screen mode from the F11 menu. This should cure this problem. High colour GTA uses a built-in version of the "univbe" display driver to provide its multitude of 15, 16 and 32-bit display modes. If your video card is not recognised by the univbe check, or if you change your video card and the check does not update to it, try running uvconfig.exe in the gtados directory. If that doesn't work, try running 24-bit GTA by typing "gta24 -nounivbe" in the gtados directory. This will cause it to skip univbe and use your video card's native drivers instead. Alternatively, get hold of the latest version of univbe from SciTech Software, and run it as a TSR before running GTA. Windows Drivers ( Grand Theft Auto DirectX ) --------------- GTA DirectX will only work correctly if you have the latest Windows 95 Direct X Microsoft-certified driver for your video card. Your video card vendor should be able to supply this. Some of the latest versions of drivers will allow the use of High colour / Low resolution screen modes (recommended). An example of this is the Matrox Millenium. Gravis Ultrasound ----------------- The DOS version of GTA, run under Windows 95, will not play any sound effects with an Ultrasound, UNLESS you shut down windows into MS-DOS mode, or change the PIF from DOS-Box to MS-DOS mode. DOS Version - CD Sound ---------------------- To allow CD audio to play on the DOS version of GTA, when run under a bootable version of DOS, make sure that you have the MSCDEX driver loaded. On a Windows 95 machine, if you play the DOS version through Windows, or in a DOS box, you should get CD audio. Sidewinder Control Pad - In DOS GTA ----------------------------------- The Microsoft Sidewinder pad is not compatible with DOS GTA. However, it can be used with Windows (DirectX) GTA. Voodoo Graphics (3Dfx) Users ---------------------------- GTA supports 3Dfx Glide 2.

‘Lady Lazarus’ by Sylvia Plath. Essay

The poem ‘Lady Lazarus’ gives us an insight into the troubled life of the poet Sylvia Plath. She lost her father at an early age. Supported solely by her mother she went through a very rough childhood. In fact, Sylvia Plath escaped a near fatal accident in her childhood and went on to attempt suicide twice in the following years of her life. In the poem, Plath lets her emotions flow and sheds light on her distress. In this poem, Sylvia Plath uses Holocaust imagery extensively. The Holocaust, as is widely known, refers to the inhuman torture and exploitation of the Jews by the Nazis. The first mention of the gruesome Holocaust comes in the form of a comparison between herself and a Nazi lampshade. Unbelievable as it may seem, the Nazis used the skins of the Jews to make lampshades. Plath feels that she has been used in a similar manner. Throughout her life Plath had been in and out of hospital. So much so that she felt like an object on display; a mere, inconsequential living thing on which the doctors happily carried out various experiments. The Nazis used to take away all valuable articles from the Jews, including expensive fabrics like linen. Plath refers to her skin as Jew linen, again indicating that she was used as an object. Plath suffered a nervous breakdown in her childhood. To cure her, doctors had no choice but to use shock treatment, subjecting her to unbearable pain in the process. In the poem, Plath uses the word ‘charge’ which has a pun on it, referring to the brutal pain inflicted on her by the doctors. In this instance, a parallel can be drawn to the inhuman torture experienced by the Jews. In the poem, Plath refers to herself as a ‘valuable’ and a ‘pure gold baby’, which is again an example of Holocaust imagery. It is widely believed that the Nazis were so cruel that they not only used the Jews to do physical work but also used their bodies to make objects like soap. Their golden teeth were plucked out and melted to make valuables such as wedding rings. Their corpses were then burnt to erase all trace of their existence. The mention of all this in the poem makes us believe that Sylvia Plath considered herself to be stifled, oppressed and exploited, just like the Jews. Finally, a striking similarity is noticed in the manner in which Plath chose to end her life and the methods used to exterminate the Jews. The Jews were killed in gas chambers where poisonous gases devoured their internal organs. Plath committed suicide by putting her head inside an oven, and died as a result of gas poisoning. In my opinion this was perhaps because she felt herself so alike the Jews that she preferred to end her life in the very same manner. Thus, we can safely conclude that Holocaust imagery forms a significant part of Sylvia Plath’s poem ‘Lady Lazarus’. b) After critically analyzing the poem, the Holocaust imagery which has been used widely, seems fairly effective in conveying the poet’s message. It is clear from the poem that Sylvia Plath felt she has been driven to suicide by society as a whole. Evidently, she believed that life had been too unfair to her. This feeling stems from her childhood, when she lost her father. This horrific incident left a gaping void in her life. A major part of her moral support had been cruelly snatched from her. To add to this, Plath had a pitiable medical record. She made frequent visits to the hospital throughout her life. The excruciating shock treatment she received shook her completely. Once Plath got married, her personal life suffered even more. Her husband had been unfaithful to her, further aggravating her pitiable condition. Overall, Plath’s life was depressing to say the least. Plath was consumed by self-pity throughout her life. In this regard, the Holocaust imagery used by Plath is very effective and appropriate. It reminds us of history’s most vicious tale of cruelty. This justifies its use to depict Plath’s life. However, in other respects, the Holocaust imagery cannot effectively portray Plath’s life. An important reason being that the Jews always had the will to survive. They were members of an affluent community who were stripped off all their possessions by the Nazis. Plath on the other hand had attempted suicide twice. This is a glaring difference between Plath’s life and the Holocaust, making it quite ineffective in conveying her message. Another important difference is that the Holocaust was a planned genocide which involved the death of approximately six million people. Plath’s comparison seems quite irrelevant in this aspect, as she talks about the death of a single person (herself). Finally, one of the most important differences is that Plath considered death to be a performance. At the end of the poem, Plath says that she was about to rise like a phoenix, referring to her own death. To her, attaining death was like being resurrected, as she would be freed from her troubled life. Plath believed death to be a means of attaining victory over life. She clearly mentions that when she survived her second suicide attempt, it was a theatrical comeback. In comparison, the Holocaust was only about forcing people into giving up their lives. Thus, in my opinion, taking these factors and many more subtle differences onto consideration, the Holocaust imagery is fairly effective in conveying Plath’s message.

Student: Finance and Foods Market

FI-516 – WEEK 2 – MINI – CASE ASSIGNMENT Select a major industrial or commercial company based in the United States, and listed on one of the major stock exchanges in the United States. Each student should select a different company. Avoid selecting an insurance company or a bank, as the financial ratios for these financial businesses are different. Write a 7 – 8 page double spaced paper answering and demonstrating with calculations and financial data the following questions: 1. What is the name of the company? What is the industry sector? * The company name is Whole Foods Market Inc. Whole foods market, Inc. is the Food Retailers & Wholesalers industry. * The products include: grocery, seafood, bakery, prepared foods, meat and poultry, dietary and nutritional supplements, vitamins, specialty (beer, wine and cheese) body care products, floral and household products and pet products. 2. What are the operating risks of the company? * Organic foods market has several laws and regulations relating to health, sanitation and food labeling. * FDA, FTC, CPSC, USDA and EPA have set standards for the manufacture, packaging, and advertising of organic products. If failure to qualify these standards could result in the confiscation of marketing and sales licenses. 3. What is the financial risk of the company (the debt to total capitalization ratio)? Debt to total capitalization ratio = Debt / (Shareholder’s equity + Debt) ————————————————- 1,300,770 / 4,292,075 = 30. 31% 4. Does the company have any preferred stock? No, the Whole foods market, Inc. does not have any preferred stock. 5. What is the capital structure of the company? : Short term portion of Long Term Debt, Long Term Debt, Preferred Stock (if any), and market value f Common Stock issued and outstanding? * Capital structure: —————â €”——————————- Total Debt to Total Equity: 0. 60 ————————————————- Total Debt to Total Capital: 0. 60 ————————————————- Total Debt to Total Assets: 0. 42 ————————————————- Long-Term Debt to Equity: 0. 58 ————————————————- Long-Term Debt to Total Capital: 0. 58 * The Whole foods market, Inc. does not have any short-term portion of long-term debt, and there is no preferred stock. Long-term debt: $17. 44 million * The Whole foods market, Inc. has 300,000 share authorized and $178. 89 million shares issued and outstanding at 2011. 6. What is the company’s current actual Beta? ————————————————- * The current actual Beta is 0. 66 7. What would the Beta of this company be if it had no Long Term Debt in its capital structure? (Apply the Hamada Formula. ) ————————————————- BL= B1 [1+(1-T) (D/E)] ————————————————- = 0. 66 / [1+(1-0. 35) (0. 43)] ————————————————- 0. 52 8. What is the company’s current Marginal Tax Rate? —————————— Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- 35% 9. What is the Cost of Debt, before and after taxes? The cost of debt before taxes is 6. 7%, and after taxes is 4. 5%. 10. What is the Cost of Preferred Stock (if any)? The Whole foods market, Inc. does not have any preferred stock. 11. What is the Cost of Equity? ————————————————- Cost of Equity = (Dividends per share/current market value of stock)+Growth Rate of Dividends ————————————————- = (0. 40 / $86. 47) + 0. 56% ———————————————— = 0. 01 12. What is the cash dividend yield on the Common Stock? The cash dividend yield on the common stock is 0. 56 (0. 60%) 13. What is the Weighted Average Cost of Capit al of the company? The Weighted Average Cost of Capital is 7% 14. What is the Price Earnings Multiple of the company? ————————————————- Current market value of stock / EPS ————————————————- = $86. 47 / 2. 21 ————————————————- = 39. 13 15. How has the company’s stock been performing in the last 5 years?In May 2007, the price of common stock was $39. 74 per share, but it dropped to $8. 19 per share in 2009. Although after the recession of price drop, the price begins the raise up to $86. 47 per share now. 16. How would you assess the overall risk structure of the company in terms of its Operating Risks and Financial Risk (Debt to Capitalization Rat io)? Total debt/total equity| 0. 0063| Total debt/total capital| 0. 0063| 17. Would you invest in this company? Why? Or Why not? * Officially I would invest portion of my assets into the portfolio. Since the price has raise from the last two years in an even steady price.Even though they have two small period of time that drop for about 15%. Overall the stock market seems to be passive about the movement of the behavior optimistically. Therefore be hold within the smaller beta that show less variable of the changes. I believe this could be a chance to be rich! 18. The last page of your paper should be a Bibliography of the sources you used to prepare this paper. Bibliography: * http://www. wikinvest. com/stock/Whole_Foods_Market_(WFM) * http://www. thestreet. com/quote/WFM/details/company-profile. html * http://yahoo. brand. edgar online. com/displayfilinginfo. spx? FilingID=8260392-165255- 169255&type=sect&TabIndex=2&companyid=10959&ppu=%252fdefault. aspx%253fcik%253d865436 * http: //www. investopedia. com/terms/d/debt-to-capitalratio. asp#axzz1v5caUyeq * http://www. marketwatch. com/investing/stock/wfm/profile * http://finance. yahoo. com/q? s=WFM&ql=1 * http://www. investopedia. com/terms/c/costofequity. asp#axzz1v5caUyeq * http://www. thestreet. com/quote/WFM/details/growth-rates. html * http://www. wikiwealth. com/wacc-analysis:wfm * http://markets. ft. com/research/Markets/Tearsheets/Financials? s=WFM:NSQ