History of Japan Essay

1. What are the key features of the Tokugawa settlements that were worked out under Ieyasu and Iemitsu? What is the rationale behind this system? In what ways might it be considered `centralized feudalism`? The Tokugawa settlements that were worked out under the rule of Ieyasu and Iemitsu were mainly forms of centralized feudalism.   The Tokugawa period, particularly the Ieyasu Shogunate, was based on a strict class hierarchy.   This was based on the old structure created by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (Bryant 2005).   It was comprised of the warrior-caste of samurai who were at the top of the hierarchy and they were followed by the farmers, the artisans, and the traders. The key feature of the Ieyasu Shogunate was the implementation of the feudal military dictatorship by Tokugawa Ieyasu.   This system of â€Å"centralized feudalism† was the key tool which helped the ruling body in restoring political and social order after a long period of warfare and chaos.   The system was such that there were feudal lords who controlled their own domains but they subject however to the whims of the Shogun who was characterized as the defacto ruler for Japan.   The ascension to Shogun was hereditary and thus led to the control by the Tokugawa Shoguns from the 1600s to 1868 (Sadler 1937). Tokugawa Ieyasu was able to gain control of the entire country through this method.   Though once a Daimyo himself, he soon became a Shogun and began exercising power over the 250 other daimyos all over Japan.   This was the centralized system that the Tokugawas were able to establish and relevant to this system was the â€Å"Alternate Attendance System† or the sankin kà ´tai (Sadler 1937). This system simply meant that every daimyo had to live every alternate year in the capital city of Edo under the penalty of permanently living in the city and leaving his life and heir behind in case such a task was not fulfilled.   Needless to say, this had immense implications for the history of Japan.   It meant that there were huge transfers of wealth since the daimyos had to finance their trips.   It also led to the fostering of a sense of loyalty to Edo as every daimyo after 1700 felt drawn to Edo as a native of the city (Sansom 1961). The situation was not so different during the time of Tokugawa Iemitsu who was the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu (Bryant 2005).   Iemitsu’s rise to power was predicated by the abdication of Hidetade in his favaor.   Hidetada installed all of his advisors and veteran daimyo in the service of Iemitsu but soon after, Iemitsu appointed most of his childhood friends and was soon able to carry on the installation of a strong and centralized form of administration similar to that by his grandfather Tokugawa Ieyasu.   While there were those who opposed such an act, Tokugawa Iemitsu simply removed all opposition and remained in power (Sansom 1961). The reason that these periods were considered as â€Å"centralized feudalism† was the fact that though there were different domains that were ruled by the daimyos, all power still emanated from the Shogun (Bryant 2005).   The Shogun ruled under the authority of the emperor and in fact ruled over most, if not all, of the activities of the realm.   This was eventually overthrown and replaced during the Meiji Renewal. 2. How would you characterize Meiji Japan`s economic development? In what ways was it distinctive? What role did the state play? Meiji Japan’s economic development was characterized by the Meiji Renewal which was a series of events that led up to major changes in Japan’s political and social structure (Beasley 1995).   The arrival of the Black Ships of Commodore Matthew Perry ushered in a direct response from the Shogunate and thus the Meiji restoration began.   It was during this same period that Japan established itself as an Imperial Power. The foundation of the Meiji Renewal was the formation of the Satsuma-ChÃ… shÃ… « Alliance between SaigÃ…  Takamori, who was the leader of the Satsuma domain and Kido Takayoshi, who was the leader of the ChÃ… shÃ… « domain (Jansen 2000).   Initially brought together to challenge the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate and installing the emperor into power, the Satsuma-ChÃ… shÃ… « Alliance succeeded in altering the political structure of Japan.   The two leaders, SaigÃ…  Takamori and Kido Takayoshi, were supported by Emperor KÃ… mei (Beasley 1995). The distinct characteristic of this period was the fact that it ushered in the industrialization of Japan (Jansen 2000).   It also led to the emergence of Japan as an island nation that possessed military power by the year 1905.   The slogan for Japan during this time was fukoku kyohei, which translates into â€Å"Enrich the country, strengthen the military.† The manner in which this Renewal was accomplished was by creating a group in which all the power was consolidated against the remnants of the Edo period government, the shogunate, daimyo, and the samurai class.   Thus the Meiji Oligarchy was formed.   During this period, the Tokugawa lands were seized and placed under the direct control of the government.   Some of the Daimyos who protested such an act eventually relented and returned their domains to the Emperor which lead to the creation of a central government in Japan for the first time in its history and also allowed the new centralized government to exercise direct power throughout the entire realm (Beasley 1995). The pivotal point came in 1871 when all the Daimyos were brought before the emperor and it was decreed that all domains were now to be returned to the Emperor (Jansen 2002).   These â€Å"returned† domains were converted into prefectures that were under the control of a government appointed governor. The next step came in the abolition of the four divisions in Japanese society that had previously existed.   This led to the abolition of the Samurai class, which at that time numbered nearly 1.9 million, and led to the development of the Japanese military which was now open to peasants (Beasley 1995).   Nationwide conscription was now established in order to fill in the ranks left by the former Samurais and every male was mandated to serve in the new armed forces of Japan for four (4) years upon turning 21. The state therefore played a very critical role in all of this as it was under the state that the abolition of traditional political structures was engineered and the abolition of the social classes was commenced.   The establishment of a strong Japanese Imperial Army also played a great role as it provided the state with the power that it needed in order to institute the reforms that is sought to implement (Jansen 2000).

“How Jews Became White Folk” by Karen Brodkin Essay

In her book â€Å"How Jews Became White Folk†, Karen Brodkin examines the question of how Jews came to be regarded as White. She does this by first explaining how Jews were racially categorized prior to this time, and how they were considered to be inferior to the white race. Whiteness is and has always relied on continually renegotiated interpretations; that has more to do with ones social class rather than skin color. The argument that Brodkin presents is that the claim of whiteness are extended to certain races or ethnic groups at certain times, and that the past experiences of these groups cannot wipe away such indisputable social facts. Brodkin believes that the only way to successfully assimilate into the United States is by becoming â€Å"white†. What does it mean to be â€Å"white†? The history of the United States clearly â€Å"shows changing notions of whiteness to be part of America’s larger system of institutional racism.† (Brodkin, 1994). Being â€Å"white† has its advantages, just as it has its downfalls; I guess you can say it is a double edge sword. To be accepted into the dominant class one may have to shed part of their identity; yet, the rewards for doing this are not what one expects them to be. Yet, what is interesting is how the shift of Jews from being categorized from racial other, to not-quite-white, to white shows us how race in the United States has been constructed. She then goes on to insist that after WWII Jews had increasingly profited from the assortment of social policies set up to aid the rising middle class, like providing them with financial support to pay for their education and loans for houses from the Federal Housing Administration (Brodkin, 1994). She describes the G.I. Bill as â€Å"†the most massive affirmative action program in American history† (Brodkin, 1994). What we need to take into consideration is that these social policies were not extended in the same proportion to African Americans and Latinos. Both groups were denied loans to buy their houses and when they were approved for a loan, they would be approved for lesser amounts; therefore restricting them from living amongst â€Å"whites†. While Jews have in fact been successful in assimilating into the white America, others have not been successful. One example of this is Latino  immigrants, not because they don’t want to but rather it comes from bad past experiences. They are expected to assimilate, but at the same time they are denied legal status and even worst they face the change of being deported at any time. In addition, what many fail to understand is the Latinos, especially Mexicans and African Americans have a much different and unique role within the United States, quite different than Jews or Italians will ever have. To begin, those of us with Latino blood in us have a history that in one way or another originates from this land, something that no white person can claim. As a conquered people we will always remain a threat to whites. African Americans on the other hand were brought by force from another continent only to become slave labor and although their roots are in Africa; this is the only land they have ever known. How Jews Became White Folk does an excellent job at making the reader reflect these unique roles that we have had to take with our society, I would have wanted for Brodkin to elaborate a little more on the definition of whiteness. We can only make that conclusion on our own. Works Cited: Karen, Brodkin (1994). How Jews Became White Folks & What That Says About Race in America. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press.

Five Forces Analysis-US Express Mail Industry Essay

Question 1 asked to complete a five forces analysis of the US Express Mail Industry. A five forces analysis is done to rate the attractiveness of an industry. Threat of new entry is low because the barriers to entry are high. Newcomers to the industry would require an enormous amount of up front capital to set up the distribution networks and infrastructure, such as establishing hubs, and acquiring aircraft and a large amount of ground transportation vehicles (vans, trucks, ect). Economies of scale are significant and would deter new firms from entering because initial sales volumes would be low do to the fact that existing brands already have strong brand identification, and there are no cost advantages to entering, like government subsidiaries or favorable locations. There would also be aggressive reaction from the three main players (FedEx, UPS, Airborne) since the level of rivalry is already so high. Buyer power (customers consisting of businesses and the general public) is high mainly because the large volume of customers have no brand loyalty in the express mail industry. Customers base their selection of a carrier on reliability, price, and convenience and there is not much product differentiation in any of those areas between carriers so customers can bounce around between carriers, essentially playing the competitors against each other, forcing prices down and demanding higher quality and services. Supplier power is high overall. The main inputs, or supplies, for the express mail industry are fuel, airports, aircraft, ground transportation, and the employees. The employees are unionized and have the power to demand higher wages and benefits, they may not always get that, but then there is the potential for strikes, like with UPS, which costs UPS $700 million in revenues and hurt their reputation. Fuel is another supplier power that is high. Fuel is a key component and there is limited bargaining when it comes to negotiating fuel prices. Another key product is the airports, there are only a few in each major city, and the carriers have to go where they have to go, hitting those hubs in major cities, thus causing there to be little bargaining power with airports. The airports and the aircraft suppliers aren’t only relying on the express mail industry, so that also gives those suppliers more power to charge what they want (landing fees, cost of planes). Ground transportation vehicles is the only input that would allow for more bargaining power since there are numerous alternatives available, there is more room for the  industry players to negotiate price. The availability of substitutes is medium mainly because there aren’t a large number of substitutes out there for express mail outside of the industry. Most next day deliveries are business documents, parcels, letters, ect, not typically cargo. So substitutes could include email and faxes, both are faster and cheaper than express mailing. Depending on the nature of the business, video conferencing or the old fashion telephone could be used. If the parcel is going somewhere local maybe could use bike messengers, or just hand deliver. There are also the second tier players, like RPS, DHL and TNT, while they are still in the delivery industry; they tend to specialize in areas other than express mail. With RPS, it is second day service at 40-50% less, and a business that does a large amount of overseas or international express shipments may want to substitute with DHL or TNT, who specialize and differentiate themselves in the international market. The Intensity of rivalry is high. The domestic express mail industry only consists of three major firms, UPS, FedEx, and Airborne, and six second tier firms, such as DHL, RPS, and the U.S. Postal Service so there isn’t a high level of concentration. The big three make up 85% of the U.S. express mail market. There is intense competition, when one company lowers prices, so does another, leading to price wars. When one company improves it technology or offers more service, so do the others, leading to difficulty in differentiating products. Fixed costs are high (planes, hubs, transportation) and when fixed costs are high it causes companies to want to reduce prices in order to sell more and generate more revenue, but the revenues have not kept up with falling prices and has caused the industry growth to be slow so the companies are all fighting for market share. The exit barriers are also high, financially and non-financially. Financially because of the enormous amount of capital that has been invested (fleets of planes and/or trucks, set up of the distribution networks and infrastructures), and non-financially, mainly due to social costs. People conduct business everyday and rely on urgent delivery of time sensitive information (documents, contracts, and perishables like medical samples) and not having the services of the express mail industry to deliver those time sensitive parcels could cripple the economy, for example when UPS when on strike for 16 days, there was a â€Å"noticeable disruption† to the economy as a whole. So in conclusion, based upon this analysis, the US Express Mail Industry in terms of profitability is very unattractive and would be considered unattractive by any firms considering entering as well.

The Easter Rising Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Easter Rising - Research Paper Example The first day of the rebellion was Monday, April 24, 1916, with approximately 1200 rebels participating in the fight against the government. The men were all volunteers but were less than what was expected due to the extreme secrecy of the group and the doubts some did have about the plan of attack. The plan was to use the General Post Office as their center of command due to its solid structure and ease of defense. As was to be proved later on while the GPO did have the advantage of defense, it would prove difficult to command the rebellion factions from it or plan attacks (Friedrich 10). Debate has risen over the significance of the GPO with some experts arguing that it was due to its symbolism of British imperialism that it was taken. The GPO was one of the largest buildings in the city and having being built by the British many saw it as a symbol of their superiority only comparable to Dublin Castle. By Noon on Monday most of those who had volunteered to fight took their position s divided into 4 battalions. The first battalion was led by Ned Daly who was to take control of the 4 courts with 250 men while the second Batallion led by Thomas MacDonagh was told to take charge of a biscuit factory South of the city center (Ciment and Russell 291), the factory was possibly to be a source of food as the fighting continued. The third battalion comprised of 130 men and was led by Eamon de Valera who were to control a bakery and Eamonn Ceannt was in charge of the 4th battalion that was made of 100 men and were to take charge of the Dolhpins barn in Emerald square in the town center and to prevent a counterattack by the Irish Army. The British government as well as most of the Irish population was taken by surprise at the commencement of the attack and responses were disorganized especially since Britain was at the time at war with Germany. The squad that was in City Hall with Conolly came under intense fire and soon had to surrender, Sean Conolly who was the commande r of the group was shot dead in the fight and several others were arrested. The fourth battalion also faced some fire from the British army but they managed to hold their positions ("The 1916 uprising..."). On Tuesday April 25th the battle of Mount street canal was fought between the British soldiers and the insurgents. The British infantry had been commanded to take the most direct route to the Dublin Castle as this was where the British headquarters and so was a point of political and strategic importance. The castle was where the then incumbent Viceroy Lord Wimborne resided in and was also where commands were dispatched from. Sherwood Foresters had to pass through Northumberland Road in spite of the dangers that the place would pose as members of the rebellion had captured neighboring territories. As the group cut into Haddington Road, they were attacked by rebels resulting in Captain Dietrchsen being injured. This also signaled the other rebels to inform them that an attack had begun and they too began to fire on the foresters (Mcnally 76). The foresters attacked the group that was located in No. 25 that was behind them and had initiated the attack. The rebels had however prepared for this and had barricaded the doors and windows resulting in the British Foresters being cornered in the open road. Attempts to escape by dodging to the other side of the street were countered by a brigade that pushed them

Guy Fawkes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Guy Fawkes - Essay Example The political activism of Guy Fawkes, also known as Guido Fawkes, clearly conveys that an individual always has an intention to establish his own understanding about society and politics. Sometimes, such understanding or conceptions take forms of orthodoxy, depending on which a person learns to believe that his method is ultimately beneficiary for the society and its inhabitants. Though development of such understanding is a cumulative and communal process, an individual attempts to rage against any of such policies that violates his own ideologies. A violent form of defiance of such ideologies ultimately gives birth to acts of terrorism, aimed against destroying all forms of socio-political mechanisms which the individual or individuals consider existing in contrary to their respective ideological observations. Such belief of Guy Fawkes and his associates led to planning of the Gunpowder Treason, by which they attempted to bring an end to rule of King James I and the new policies th at he wished to implement for further development of the English society during the 1600s. Guy Fawkes was born on April 13th, 1970 in York as the only son of Edward Fawkes and Edith Blake. Though his early childhood was quite simple, soon he encountered series of tragedies in the form of death of his father and secret remarriage of his mother in a catholic family (â€Å"Guy Fawkes, On the Trail of the Gunpowder Plotters†, 2). Though he was basically from a protestant family, he never really appreciated the protestant religious outlook since his childhood. It seems that the main reasons for his Catholic orientation were his upbringing and education at St. Peter’s School at York. During his education in this school he came into close proximity with several other students, some of whom, later on, became active participants of the Gunpowder plot. The phase of 1582

Communication mix Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Communication mix - Essay Example Communication mix is one of the most important promotional tools, or marketing functions used in the implementations of marketing campaigns. Modern commercial advertising is the persuasive force that aims at changing customers' attitudes and pattern of behaviour to a product or service in ways, which would be favourable to the seller. This is necessary as the needs and wants of consumers continually change as they pass through the different economic stages of the family life cycle. The relative importance of advertising has been determined by the qualities it can add to a marketing campaign in the travel and tourism sector. Additional elements of the communication mix compliment advertising however they are not significant or effective enough to replace advertising within this sector. The essential process of communication involves sending messages to potential consumers using a variety of methods in order to create awareness and understanding of why people should purchase a specific product or service. If the method of communication is the most appropriate, then there is a possibility that the potential consumer will buy the product or service. The simple aim being to raise awareness levels, generate interest and to enhance brand development amongst consumers. Advertising is just one element of the 'communications mix'. The simple aim being to raise awareness levels, generate interest and to enhance brand development amongst consumers. Advertising is one of the most important promotional tools, or marketing functions used in the implementation of marketing campaigns. This is due to its persuasive force that aims at changing customers' attitudes and patterns of behaviour to a product or service in ways, which would be favourable to the seller. This is necessary as the needs and wants of consumers continually change as they pass through the different economic stages of the family life cycle. Advertising, along with other components of the 'communications mix' also helps to identify brand identities, the idea being that customers see these identities as being tantamount with quality and dependability. To inform potential customers and users of the existence of the product which can be valuable to the prospective customer To remind existing users of the continued existence of the product and improvements. To regain lost customers and accounts. To stimulate enquiries Analysis Bad Communication Plan: Red Bull How should Red Bull market its brand in the future even though Red Bull has been very successful in the pervious years , but now times have changed thus the organization as well as products must change as well , or else red bull will most likely lose market share to the numerous competitors in a matter a few years . In the early morning and mid night, Red Bull energy drink was once the selected by the people of every field. But nowadays it marketing communication plan has become worn-out, it is old fashioned and not

Manuel Castells perspectives on the challenges of the network society Essay

Manuel Castells perspectives on the challenges of the network society - Essay Example This paper is a response to the final chapter of Manuel Castells’ work The Internet Galaxy. It will provide an overview of the author’s perspective on the challenges imposed by the network society and Castells’ judgment will be analyzed by comparing with other scholarly sources on the same topic. Manuel Castells has no qualms in admitting the fact that the network society â€Å"offers as many opportunities as it raises challenges† (2001, p.275). In his opinion the beneficial aspect of this network society were features like innovation and freedom of thinking that it encouraged but these were gradually overtaken by oppressive and restrictive ways. Instead of encouraging freedom of expression, it provides the means of controlling information as well as prompts the biased and monopolized use of the data (2001, p.277). This is an honest take from the author regarding the potential and somewhat long-term aftereffects of network society. Chris Kitchen argues by assuring that the most incredible fruit of network society â€Å"is the role of social media in the recent social movements and uprisings, particularly the momentous events of 2011 starting in North Africa and the Middle East† (2012). From this perspective rapid information sharing and globalization that is primarily regulated by information technology has induced awareness among people regarding their human, civil and political rights. On the contrary, Luke Tredinnick disagrees by providing the example of the democracy protests in Buran during 2007.

The dangers of genetically modified organisms Research Paper

The dangers of genetically modified organisms - Research Paper Example The benefits of this technology accompany risks that are associated with it. The dangers of producing genetically modified organisms portray the other side of this picture. The risks of this technology have been analyzed and categorized in this essay in a systematic order. This essay depicts analysis of the dangers of this technology. First of all there are some fundamental Weaknesses in this Concept. This technology can’t exactly be defined precisely. The process of genetic modification involves gene transfer from one organism to another. A specific gene can be precisely isolated from DNA; however, the insertion of that isolated gene into the target DNA is basically random so this can cause interruption in the functioning of other genes that may be essential to the sustainability of that organism. This imprecision has further implications as well. This procedure can certainly cause mutations which may harm the environment. â€Å"Genetic engineering is like performing heart surgery with a shovel. Scientists do not yet understand living systems completely enough to perform DNA surgery without creating mutations which could be harmful to the environment and our health. They are experimenting with very delicate, yet powerful forces of nature, without full knowledge of the repercussions† ("What are the, "). Genetic engineers have genetically modified crops and plants to have specific desired characteristics. The firms that produce such crops have patents for their products. Here is a scenario to ponder upon. Since the seeds of such plants and crops have the same genetic structure and are being produced on a massive scale, the widespread crop failure of these crops is not unquestionable incase these crops are attacked by a virus or a pest that they are not resistant to. Moreover, this is not just limited to bioengineered farms. Plants reproduce by cross-pollination with the help of insects, birds and even wind which act as the

The impact of the CISG on international business transactions Essay

The impact of the CISG on international business transactions - Essay Example 1.2. Thesis statement Recent years have been proved to be challenging for financial markets all over the world due to a spread in the international business transactions as well as the risks behind it. Starting from this idea, and also the past customs in international trade, this paper proposes to analyze the impact of contracts for international sale of goods (CISG) on the international business transactions. 1.2. Literature Review According to Ferrari (2009) contracts for international sale of goods was a huge success. In his paper he has argued that it is one of the greatest legislative or governmental achievements in the process of harmonizing the classified commercial law. Within a short span of time a total of 70 countries became the member of CISG. A number of eminent scholars have highlighted the importance of CISG in the international arena. In order to cite an instance according to Fletcher (2009) the Contract for International Sale of Goods is one of the most successful a ttempts to harmonize the international trade. He further quoted that CISG project was a successor of the 2 substantive international sales agreements. The agreements were ‘Uniform Law on the Formation of Contracts for the International Sale of Goods’ and ‘Uniform Law for the International Sale of Goods’. It has to perform a number of functions. Some of them are highlighted below:- It administers the international sales agreements if both the associated parties are belong from the member countries. To manage the conflicts between the member countries with respect to international trade. It also tries to safeguard the private sovereignty of the member parties. Chapter 2 Building on the CISG 2.1. International... In general United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods is a necessary convention for the member countries that provide rules to administer the cross border sale of goods. It mainly seeks to lessen the problems of international trade pertaining to law. It is also a fact that whenever a cross border transaction takes place some form of disputes is bound to happen. Hence in order to reduce it and facilitate smother transaction process harmonization of international trade took place. This has also led to the formation of CSIG. It offered easier ways to carry out foreign trade when compared with the complex laws and bodies found in most of national rules and regulations. After the incorporation of CSIG the system of international trade witnessed drastically changes. There were hassle free transactions, and the process become easier. Apart from that it was also notices that the transaction cost got highly reduced thereby offer benefits to both the parties inv olved. Furthermore after its incorporation there were also large relaxations in the international trade law. Hence on the basis of the recoded data and reviewing the literatures about the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, it can be concluded that CSIG played an extremely important role in facilitating smoother international trade. Hence it has been able to impact positively on the international business transaction.

Decision Making and Appropriate Problem Solving Tools Essay

Decision Making and Appropriate Problem Solving Tools - Essay Example As the manager of a county clinic faced with a budget cut, an appropriate problem-solving tool should arrive at the best decision for the scenario. This essay aims to resolve the issues through the utilization of appropriate tools in decision making. The case scenario presented the following, to wit: â€Å"you are a manager in a county clinic that provides care to Medicaid clients. Your department budget was recently cut by 15%. From a statewide health policy standpoint, given a defined budget constraint, what clinical services should be eliminated or introduced to best address healthcare needs of a Medicaid population?† Different studies present varying models of a typical decision-making process depending on their perspectives. Some models follow eight steps, others five. For purposes of making intuitive choices, the following six steps in decision making are utilized, in conjunction with the cause and effect approach in problem-solving. The six steps of this natural, intuitive decision-making process, according to Ethics Resource Center (2009, 1) are: â€Å"Step 1: Define the problem; Step 2: Identify available alternative solutions to the problem; Step 3: Evaluate the identified alternatives; Step 4: Make the decision; Step 5: Implement the Decision; and Step 6: Evaluate the decision†. The county clinic manager determined how to best address the delivery of healthcare services to a Medicaid population given a budget cut of 15%. The financial problem evaluates the possibility of streamlining or eliminating identified clinical services. The budget cut would have serious repercussions for the county clinic in terms of its ability to deliver the same level of quality health care as initially projected. The first step that the manager should do is to envision what would be the effects of the budget cut in addressing the health care needs of his clientele. The alternative courses of action are identified at this stage. A cause and effect analysis should detail the characteristics of the Medicaid population who would be affected by the budget cut.

Organizational Culture Amazon Case Study Term Paper

Organizational Culture Amazon Case Study - Term Paper Example The Amazon Company exhibits a market culture since it gives utmost focus to market stability and control but with an external orientation. The company constantly motivates the employees and ensures stability and control of the market. The company considers companies’ ways as poor habits and, therefore, teaches its employees to learn how to solve problems. Besides, the secret phone directory ensures that every employee and boss is ever doing something geared towards increasing the company’s productivity. The company’s gross attention is on the customers that the company gives little attention to the employees. Most employees resign after few years of working with the company. Other employees get fired after suffering minor or major personal crises as these are unproductive. The company is result oriented, and the employees who experience or suffer from miscarriages, cancer, and other personal crises have reduced productivity detrimental to the company’s obj ective of attaining the best competitiveness in the market. Additionally, employees toil till late in the night to ensure complete customer satisfaction. The organizational culture of the Amazon.com has been transferred from generation to generation of the employees. Numerous objects are available to ensure the transfer. Immediately an employee passes an interview, interviewers tell the new employees to leave their old work habits learned from previous workplaces and instead learn new Amazon singular working procedures.

Higher education Essay Example for Free

Higher education Essay Ancient philosopher Confucius, who was considered the first professional teacher in China, opened an old-style private school in his hometown. The school enrolled more 3,000 students, and those students just paid a symbolic tuition fee as some crops and meat. The old-style private school has been followed for more than 2000 years. Therefore, the simplest and best way to disseminate knowledge is free education. China had a nine years’ compulsory education but it is not advance with the times now. China should extend years for the compulsory education that free education to senior high school students. With high school free education, students will have equal opportunities to be educated, focus on learning and improving, and improve the standard of living. Let’s look at those benefits of high school free education. Provide equal opportunities Free education of senior high school can also provide equal opportunities as the normal kid to the poor. In the past time, only wealthy people had chance to receive education, but some poor people could not. Now, everyone has right to get knowledge. Free education is a key to open the doors of hope for some smart and poor teenagers. They can have the equal opportunity as the riches to be educated. In the article, â€Å"Free education provides equal opportunities† reported that the government of China had released a newly plan of education that providing equal opportunities in education. The government will expend more power to resolve ingrained problems as extend free education. In many Chinese parents’ mind, if their children have a good and equal beginning in education, it will have a lot of means and benefits for a child’s future (Zhang Jingya, 2010). We can assure that some intelligent and poor students can gain the equal chances through free education. Free education provides some advantages to those people who deserve it and cherish it. In today’ society, everybody wants to have a brighter future, so it is not humanized to lose the better future because of the economic problem. Everyone has the chance to have a comfortable life and the only way to make it come true is to have enough knowledge. If the society can provide an equal chance for the teen that do not have the condition to be educated, they will offer society a better tomorrow. Focus on learning and Improving Free education of senior high school will help the teenagers focus on learning and improving. China promulgated the law on compulsory education in 1986. The government should provide a nine years compulsory education that school should be free of tuition fees and other expenses for all young people. If China extends years for the compulsory education to high school students, it will help some students without worry about the payment of tuition fees and other expenses. They should focus on learning and receiving more knowledge. For example, in the article â€Å"China pledges elimination of rural compulsory education charges in two years†, author says that in some places that particularly in the impoverished rural regions, the law of compulsory education didn’t executed because local government couldn’t cost. Many schools are forcing for continue to collect expenses and charge various miscellaneous fees on their students as voluntary donations, fund-raising for school construction, and after-school tutoring fees (March 5, 2006). Free high school education will help students to pay more attention to learning not the economic hardship of their family. Furthermore, teenagers in senior high school age are about the puberty. That means they are not mature enough in their body and mind. They can’t distinguish the right or wrong in a very advisable way like the adult. As the reason of that, if they give up attending high school because of the economic problem and entering society too early they may lose their way. It is so easy that they make a mistake which will influence their entire life, like involved in a crime. The free education of high school can change this situation. It is better to keep the teenagers in school so they can learn more knowledge and mature their outlook on life. Improve the standard of living Free education of senior high school can improve the standard of living. Francis Bacon said â€Å"Knowledge is Power†. This kind of power should make people’s life more wonderful and colorful because knowledge can produce many things. Free high school education would help more people have higher education. In the article, â€Å"Knowledge Changes Fate†, the author said that knowledge becomes the most significant content of human’s life. It contributes a lot in the economic, welfare and culture of the society. The foundation that supports the movie â€Å"Knowledge Changes Fate† wants to express the theme that the only way to change your fate is to be educated and get more knowledge (Li kasheng, 1999). When people are high educated, they would have more chances to achieve their dreams and plans. Obviously, higher education can help people to win the fierce competition and earns more money. They can live the life better by being successful. When people have higher education, people will think about to improve their personal cultivation after eliminate the struggle for basic needs. As they feel satisfied about their own life, they will do some society works and volunteering and concern more issues which like the society problems and environment problems. Therefore, more free education would have positive and upward influences for the overall quality and minding in the society. Conclusion As all of the content of the essay states, free education of senior high school can advantage our society by many different ways. It can provide an equal opportunity to the teen that cannot bear the cost of education, help the teen to focus on learning and improving, and improve the whole living standard of the society. Although China is a powerful and prosperous country today, our education system still has many leaks need to improve and the most urgent is the free education. If the expectation of free education comes true, China will step in a brand new future. The ancient philosopher Confucius enrolled almost 3000 students and he only charged the tuition fee of some crops and meat as the free education. How the ancient can do this kind of free education, but we cannot? The knowledge is invaluable because it help people to change their whole life. On another hand, senior high school education should be free in China. References China pledges elimination of rural compulsory education charges in two years. (2006). Retrieved March 5, 2006, from http://english. peopledaily. com. cn/200603/05/print20060305_248042. html Jingya, Z. (2010). Free education provides equal opportunities. Retrieved August 6, 2010, from http://english. cntv. cn/program/china24/20100806/100804. shtml Kashing, L. (1999). Knowledge changes fate. Retrieved from http://www. lksf. org/en/project/education/knowledge/main01.

Strategic Management Report For The Campbell Soup Company Marketing Essay

Strategic Management Report For The Campbell Soup Company Marketing Essay 1.0 Introduction The report discusses the application of strategic process and stages such as strategic analysis; strategic formulation, and strategic implementation in the food processing industry. The company chosen is Campbell Soup Company. 2.0 The Campbell Soup Company Profile Campbell Soup Company is a global manufacturer and marketer of high quality, branded convenience food products. The company profile and its position within food processing industry are discussed at appendix 1. 3.0- Strategic Analysis External Analysis- Scanning Competitive Environment Conducting an external analysis to scan the company competitive environment which focused on predicting the dynamics of competitors actions, responses and intention, can help a business in understanding the dynamics of its industries and markets in order to compete effectively with its rivals in the marketplace. (Henry, 2008) 3.1.0-Porter 5 Forces Model Porters Five Basic Competitive Forces (1996) analysis which deals with microenvironment and related to the competitiveness of an industry has been conducted to find out five featured competitiveness existing in food processing industry. The factors that are considered in this model are according to the analysis of The Campbell Soup Company. Figure 1. Porters 5 Forces http://student.dcu.ie/~slejhad2/pics/porter.jpg 3.1.1-Competitive Rivalry within Food Processing Industry The rivalry among companies in the food processing industry is high and intense. These food processing companies are competing on price, quality, taste, health factors, product innovation, and product benefits (The Food Processing Industry 2006). Campbells major rivals are General Millis Progresso, Heinz and Kraft Foods. As a multinational food processing company, Campbells faces an extremely competitive market in internationally, nationally and locally due to the similarities between each soup producer and wider selection of products provided by other food processing company. (Ellison, Sarah 2003) On the other hand, various types of generic soup brands in the existing market which offer products in lower price have raised the competitive pressure. However, the Campbells high quality of soup products and the ability to keep low production costs weaken the rivalry of the generic soup brands. For instance, Campbells price their soup products only 20 to 25% higher than generic brands while maintaining a level high quality. Campbells would have to continue developing superior healthy food to distinguish itself from Progresso and smaller soup maker companies. 3.1.2 Threat of New Entrants The threat of entry depends on the presence of entry barriers and the presence of new entrants to a food processing industry typically bring to it new capacity and the want to gain market share. (Wheelen Hunger J.D 2007) Campbells major rival- Kraft foods and General Mills, create high entry barriers in food processing industry through their high levels of advertising and promotion. Besides, the intense competition in the food processing industry makes it hard to access in the market. Smaller food processing companies often have difficulty obtaining supermarket shelf space for their products as large retailers charge for space on their shelves and give priority to the established companies who can pay for the advertising needed to generate high customer demand. According to Ghemawat Collis (2001), the economy is a major factor as if the company wants to be a part in this food processing industry it must be able to face high costs for strong competition. Moreover, the slow market growth rate for the food processing industry causes acquisition between companies, resulted the barriers to entry are high with so many food processing companies and little to zero capacity remaining for any more companies. 3.1.3-The Threat of Substitutes Products The rivalry from firms of other industries which offer substitute products is intense as they are producing, supplying and serving the same food products that the food processing companies are. For example, Dunkin Donuts is in the foodservice industry and Campbell Soup Company is in the food processing industry, yet Dunkin Donuts serves soup and Campbell Soup sells soup. Consumers can still go to Dunkin Donuts and acquire the similar soups that Campbell sells. (Wall Street Journal 2003) 3.1.4- Bargaining power of buyers Consumers affect the food processing industry through their ability to force down prices, bargain for higher products quality and services, and play competitors against each other. The bargaining power of buyers is high as there are huge tendency of new entrance with new and variety of products. Besides, consumers prefer choosing products which offer lower prices. For example, Campbells soup products price is relatively 20 to 25% higher than generic brands in grocery stores, hence some consumers would choose generic brand products in the market rather than Campbells. Besides, the profitability obtained by the company is also determined by consumers. Food processing companies would be forced to lower prices if consumers think that the prices are too expensive as consumers tend to stop buying their products or switch to supplements. 3.1.5- Bargaining power of suppliers Suppliers can affect the food processing industry through their ability to raise prices or reduce the quality of purchased goods and services. In case quality products the suppliers face an important factor. Due to the inflation the overall price of materials has been significantly increased. Campbell has always purchased high quality ingredients produced from local farmers. In 2006, Campbell launched Campbells Supplier Diversity Program to grow its diverse supplier base and to ensure that the supplier base better reflects the markets served. In 2007 the Campbells goal to spend with diverse suppliers was $121 million, but the actual spend with diverse suppliers was $129 million. (Campbells CSR 2008) So for Campbells, there is a cost exists to get the reliable supplier. There is a tendency the world nowadays makes a backward integration and wants to minimize the cost of suppliers. 3.2.0- Swot Analysis A swot analysis allows the Campbell Soup Company to determine the extent of the strategic fit between its capabilities and the needs of its external environment. According to Henry(2008), the company can seek to match its strengths and weaknesses to the opportunities and treats it faces in current competitive food processing industry. The Campbells products portfolio includes soups, sauces, biscuits and chocolates and has a strong research function with high capabilities in new products development. 3.2.1-Internal Analysis-Strengths Innovative Campbell has always applied the spirit of innovation in every aspect of its business. At Campbells manufacturing plants in Napoleon, Ohio, and Paris, Texas, an innovative method called overland flow is used to treat wastewater. In terms of products introduction, the company has been consistently quick to come up with new products in the market. For example, the first portable soup product, Soup at Hand, the new microwaveable products such as Chunky and Select. Besides, Campbell frequent updates the products appearance with more contemporary design and new photography. Its popular gravity fed shelving system have been installed at 24,000 retailers nationally and credited for rejuvenating the soup aisle, expanding the category and vastly improving the shopping experience. Campbell is innovative to gauge consumer satisfaction and expectation. (Campbells Corporate Social Responsibility Report 2008) 3.2.2-Weaknesses Declining Market Share The Campbells market share in soup drop from 60% in 2007 to 49% as of October 2009. This is due to more and more private labels continue to enter the market by providing quality products in lower price. Some consumers have switched to try private labels and resulted private labels have gained 11%of the market share. On the other hand, Campbell has also faced stiff competition from brands such as General Mills Progresso and Nestle. (Campbell Soup Co Form 10-Q Quartery Report 2010) 3.2.3-External Analysis-Opportunities Demand for Wellness Products In recent years, the trend towards being more health-conscious has arisen from two main consumer groups. The younger generations currently focus more on low calorie content and on the go meals. For the more mature age group, their diets require health-consciousness in terms of limiting their sodium intake due to increased risk of ailments. Campbells Soups core product categories, notably soup and bakery products, are widely perceived as healthy and are compatible with the further development of health-oriented products, such as the existing and expanding line of Select Harvest and Healthy Request soups. In conjunction with the product improvement, Campbell has announced to expand its industry-leading sodium reduction program and to reduce the sodium content in 23 of its condensed soups by up to 45 percent in fiscal 2011.(Campbell Growth Plans for U.S 2010) 3.2.4-Threats Intense Competition Campbells main profitable core soup category has been facing intense competition and also been losing market share to its strong competitors, particularly General Mills Progresso and private label brands produced by companies such as Wal-Mart. Moreover, Campbells other segments have not produced consistent profits. According to Wolpert (2002), shifting consumer habits and preferences indicate the need to constantly innovate their products and minimize costs, in order to retain loyal consumers and keep up with the fast-changing consumer environment Extensive Laws The company is governed by a multitude of local and international laws and regulations with regards to food safety and environmental standards. For instance, in accordance with the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, Campbells food products must be inspected before they can be marketed. The company faces the risk of fines, injunctions, recalls or asset seizures, and criminal sanctions if it violates these laws and regulations. ( Campbells CSR 2008) 3.3.0- Benchmarking Campbell understands the importance of using benchmarking to evaluate performance. Hence, the company analyzed few top companies which mainly involved in food and beverage processing manufacturing company in a few aspects such as sustainability, supply chain, consumers, community and workplace. Moreover, Campbell have also highlighted the primary ways that companies are implementing their goals as well as select initiatives and key past achievements. In terms of community, Campbells have chosen to focus on nutritional and environmental programs by partnering with nonprofit organizations, universities and Think Tanks to conduct RD for new products. Besides, it also partnered with environmental experts to develop innovative solutions to protect the environment. For instance, Nestle has been launching malnutrition and obesity programs targeting children and adolescents of lower-income families while General Mills has been contributing 5% of pretax profits to charitable causes. The Campbells benchmarked the best practices by promoting nutritional and hunger elimination programs. Besides, Campbells also promote micronutrient products to attend lower income families and develop environmental initiatives. (Campbells Annual Report 2009) In terms of workplace related programs, Nestle, Coca Cola, Pepsi.co, General Mills, have done excellent job. For instance, Pepsi CO has been providing job opportunities for people with disabilities while General Mills, the company has reduced lost-time injury rate by 25% over five years. Hence, Campbell benchmarked and developed workplace programs by focusing four key areas: Ensuring diversity of the workforce thereby bringing a broad range of talents and perspectives to the business Helping employees achieve both personal and professional development Ensuring the health and safety of employees both at home and at work Ensuring that employees have a fair work environment Campbells strived for an injury-free workplace through a strong health and safety program supported by high employee engagement. They train their employees to conduct their activities in a safe and environmentally responsible manner. (Campbells CSR 2008) 4.0 Strategy Formulation For Campbells to achieve sustainable competitive advantage in food processing industry, strategy formulation which derived from the objective and mission is undertaken. Porter (1980) argues that competitive strategy is about developing a defendable position in an industry which enables a firm to deal with the five competitive forces and thus generate a superior return on investment for the film. 4.1 Business Level Strategy-Differentiation To achieve superior value that is recognized by the consumer, Campbells needs to provide unique and superior value to the customers in terms of its products quality and value added up services. It is appropriate to relate differentiation strategy to the Campbells Soup Company as the companys goal is very straight forward, which is Together we will build the worlds most extraordinary food company by nourishing peoples lives everywhere, every day. Campbell has always focused on providing superior, healthy and nutrition food by expanding their icon brands in simple meals (especially soup). The Campbells latest plans are to enhance more than 60 percent of its condensed line with product improvements, further sodium reduction, more contemporary packaging, improved shelving systems and new marketing aimed at the simple meals category. ( Campbell Growth Plan 2010) Nowadays there are increasing numbers of consumers who are very concerned with nutritional values of foods they eat. The Campbells Soup Company which is having superior research abilities has been taking advantage of this avenue and further develops this product line. According to Douglas R. Conant, Campbells President and CEO, Campbell is going to fire up the important condensed soup business and step up the competitive posture of their ready-to-serve products. (Campbells 2009 annual report) The improvements and innovations of Campbells has made over the past several years has made Campbell outwit most of its rivals in the condensed soup category. Low-sodium products are pivotal to Campbells long term success as the majority of Campbells consumer base is  baby boomers. The majority of baby boomers diets are comprised of low sodium. A recent study shown that high cholesterol, attributed to high levels of sodium intake, is the number one diagnosed health condition for the baby boomer generation.  The condensed soups have one of the highest sodium contents of all processed foods in existing market. Therefore Campbells low-sodium products have differentiated themselves with many rivals. Besides sodium, Campbells also has to focus on other aspects such as MSG and low calories of its soups by hoping that these healthier offerings will help gain market share among younger, more health conscious consumers. (Campbell CSR Report 2008) Besides, Campbell understands that creating a quality product begins with quality ingredients. Campbell purchases most of the ingredients from domestic farmers in countries where they manufacture products and also obtain certain ingredients from carefully selected suppliers around the world. Any ingredient that does not meet the quality requirements will not be used in a Campbell product to ensure superior product quality. On the other hand, providing value-added services help Campbells to outwit its existing rivals. Campbell continually experiments with new programs to provide consumers with useful information on meal ideas, health and wellness, and other tips. For example, each day their Campbell Meal-mail program delivers nearly 500,000 recipes electronically to busy Americans who are hungry for convenient, great-tasting meal ideas that will please their families. Consumers can access the Campbells Kitchen website at any time to download recipe ideas that have been tested and approved by Campbells nutritionists. Consumers also have the opportunity to share their ideas and comments on recipes with one another on the Campbells Kitchen website. ( Campbellsoupcompany.com) It is suggested that the Campbell Soup Company to improve the flavour of its soup products to attract more demand. Besides, Campbell can try to create more contemporary design for its existing soup products instead of the familiar red and white colour design in order to stand out from various types of products in the market. 4.2 Corporate Level Strategy-Diversification The corporate level strategy of The Campbell Soup Company deals with three key issues: i) The firms overall orientation toward growth, stability, and retrenchment. ii) The market in which the company competes through its products and business units iii) The manner in which management coordinate activities and transfer resources and cultivates capabilities among product lines and business units The Campbells operates with four products divisions and has expanded its product to microwavable soups to make customers more convenient for preparing soup without container. (Campbells annual report 2009) Obviously, the Campbell Soup Company, which is a decentralized company, has been using a related diversification multiproduct strategy. Its strategy is to diversify its business to produce several products, and expanding its market share. Campbell used its engineering support and diversified production to support customers with convenient, good taste and quality food. To support its operating system, department such as Research Development (RD), product development, engineering systems, are required to produce high quality and stable operating system to avoid the unexpected shut down. Campbell has tried to use unrelated diversification strategy under the leadership of McGovern as Campbells CEO with the aim of rapidly expand product line to increase profits and revenue. Campbell has tried to acquire other firms to quickly gain access to new products and new markets. Instead of acquiring only food products, Campbell began to use the unrelated diversification strategy to acquire firms that it felt were positioned to capitalize on the consumers trend and also bought firms involved in all types of business. For example, the triangle Manufacturing Company, a fitness products maker, which is clearly unrelated to the firms core products. (Ireland, Hoskisson Michael 2006) A major reason for Campbells failure to generate financial economies while using the unrelated diversification strategy is that the firms approach to managing its core products divisions never changed. At the same time, corporate headquarters personnel didnt implement the strong financial controls necessary to efficiently manage an internal capital market. David Johnson who replaced McGovern decided that Campbell should not longer use the diversification strategy but to reduce the level of diversification by using related constrained strategy to create value through operational relatedness. Campbells related constrained diversification strategy involves transferring core competencies which lead to competitive advantage and start with value chain analysis to identify ability to transfer skills or expertise among similar value chains and on the hand, to exploit ability to transfer activities. Campbell should enhance more than 60 percent of its condensed line and be more committed to ac celerate the performance of their existing portfolio, most notably in U.S. soup, and continuing to lay the foundation for superior long-term growth. (Campbell Growth Plan 2010) 4.2.1 External Acquisitions and Partnerships Through value-creating external development, Campbells is able to increase its market presence throughout its product lines. For instance, Campbells Baking and Snacking segment is positioned to grow due to the companys recent acquisition of Ecce Panis, a manufacturer of artisan breads. This acquisition allows Campbells to enter into the thriving artisan bread market. With the ever growing foreign population in America, it is suggested that Campbells should consider products that have more of the ethnic background of these immigrants. The brand could quite possibly extend the depth of the line with consideration to the vast number of different tastes in the society today. 5.0- Strategy Implementation A clear mission statement helps in providing focus to an organization and is essential for effectively establishing objective and formulating strategies. (Haberberg and Rieple 2001) In order for the Campbell to proceed into a future where competition is highly competitive, they need to define who and what they truly are, their concerns, their philosophies, and what gives them the competitive advantage over their competitors. This must be clear throughout all areas and divisions, at all levels in the company, in order for the implementation of the mission statement to be successful.   The Campbells strategy implementation includes designing the organizations structure, allocating resources, developing information and decision process, and managing human resources, including such areas as the reward system, approaches to leadership, and staffing. According to Wheelen and Hunger (2007), the strategy implementation process includes the various management activities that are necessary to put strategy in motion, institute strategic controls that monitor progress, and ultimately achieve organizational goals. 5.1- Management Issue Restructuring In food processing industry one year is relatively indiscernible from the next from a macroeconomic point of view. Campbells corporate strategy and the companys management structure have undergone several restructuring since 1980. On April 28, 2008, the company announced a series of initiatives to improve operational efficiency and long-term profitability, including selling certain salty snack food brands and assets in Australia, closing certain production facilities in Australia and Canada, and streamlining the companys management structure. As a result of these initiatives, in 2008, the company recorded a restructuring charge of $175 millions. The charge consisted of a net loss on the sale of certain Australian salty snack food brands and assets, employee severance and benefit costs, including the estimated impact of curtailment and other pension charges, and property, plant and equipment impairment charges. The cost of restructuring activity is shown at Appendix 2 Workforce Diversification The Campbell strive to uphold their promise of Campbell Valuing People, People Valuing Campbell by providing employees with the resources required to do their jobs well; competitive compensation and benefits; the opportunity to learn; and grow through their work. At present, the Campbells Board of Directors consists of 14 independent members and one company executive, the CEO, Doug Conant. Board operations are managed by an independent, non-executive Chairman. The Board believes that diversity in the backgrounds and perspectives of their directors contributes to sound corporate governance. Currently, three of their directors are women, one director is from India and one director is African-American. The Campbells Board of Directors is shown at Appendix 3. The CEO believes that workforce diversity is essential to be a mainstay within the company overall strategic objectives. Hence, Campbells is committed to attract a diverse group of talented employees and providing all their associates with development opportunities and a culture in which they can flourish and provide their employees with career development and quality-of life enhancements that make Campbell a special place to work. Campbells diversity and inclusion strategy is focused on five specific goals: -Firmly establishing leadership support and accountability -Linking diversity and inclusion to performance management -Integrating diversity and inclusion into talent management -Building diversity and inclusion into business practices. -Educating and training to advance diversity and inclusion ( Campbell Annual report 2009) The directors receive annual fees equal to the median directors compensation paid by peer food and consumer products companies. Approximately 50 percent of each directors fee is paid in cash and 50 percent is paid in common stock. Director stock ownership requirements have existed at Campbell since 1993. Currently, the directors beneficially own more than 44 percent of the companys common stock. (Carlin, M Harris R 2008) Though the Campbells has successfully implemented workforce diversification strategy, it is recommended that the company offers stock options to their rank-and-file employees too. By offering employee stock options, workers are given the chance to buy shares in their company at a specified price. The grant or strike price, should be pegged to the value of the stock when it is offered to employees. Employees have the option of buying the stock at a set price then selling it after a period of time. Employee Engagement The Campbell believes that employees will feel most valued when they are fully informed, understand the companys business goals and plans and are invited to offer their feedback on a regular basis. In 2007 and 2008, Campbell was recognized by Gallup as one of the Best Places to Work in America. The company believes that its work environment has contributed to their relatively stable retention rate and their improved marketplace performance. (www.euroinvestor.co.uk) Campbell conducts annual employee survey to develop work group action plans, empower individual employees to improve the workplace and to strengthen the companys business practices. 5.2 Marketing Issues The Campbells understands that successful marketing implementation is affected by marketing variables. 5.2.1 Market Segment The companys 2009 financial reports segment their business into four key categories: US Soup, Sauces and Beverages, Baking and Snacking, International Soup, Sauces and Beverages, and North American Foodservice. With sales approximating $3.8 million, US Soup, Sauces and Beverages accounted for approximately half of the sales in FY 2009 and drove the bulk of profits for the company. Core brands like Campbells, V8, Swanson and Prego delivered a combined 4% growth through a combination of innovation, consumer trade downs, and improved distribution channels.( Appendix 2) 5.2.2 Marketing Strategies Product The Campbells positioning is providing healthy and nourishing products within the product line. The product line width come in many different options. This being said, the depth of the product line is in fact the largest. Each product comes in a multitude of different sizes and flavours. The brand offers adequate products for the consumers. In addition to the size and flavours, the packaging is well organized for that of single or multiple item purchasing. The packaging also achieves an accurate perception in the consumers mind. They use well known athletes to convey the message of health to the consumer. Price The pricing of the products within the brand name are consistent with that of the positioning. They provide the perception that to eat healthy the consumer should not have to pay more. The Campbells brand is typically priced at twenty cents above that of their major competitors. This is the act of swaying the consumers mind to the perception that Campbells is of a higher quality than the competitors. While operating in an elastic market, Campbells employs special event promotional pricing strategies in order to remain competitive. The company also offers discounted pricing on certain seasonal items and during holidays. In addition to these promotional strategies, they employ the odd even strategies to convey the message that their brand is that of higher quality. Distribution Campbells brand is distributed intensively throughout all geographic locations within the United States and many foreign countries. In the distribution process, Campbells deals with wholesalers and retailers thus creating the supply channel. This is a very profitable concept as long as the lines of communication remain opened. Catalog marketing is also another form of distribution that is employed. This is easily achieved due the fact that the shelf life of the products is long. The products are very easily purchased at any marketplace at any given region of the US. Promotion In using the most recent athletic figures in their advertisements, they are successful in maintaining their position of health. In the use of the retailers to help marketing, they are employing the cooperative advertising technique. This helps to advertise their products from numerous different angles. The effectiveness of the  marketing  strategies  employed by Campbells has made them recognized as the premium brand within their product lines. In comparison to the competition, Campbells focuses a great deal on interacting with the public with such efforts as sweepstakes and giveaways and also education. Their public relation efforts have ranked them as one of the most society conscious brands in the business. 6.0 Conclusion A strategic analysis is most applicable to strategic management at the business unit level of large multinational firm such as Campbell Soup Company. At the strategic analysis stage, internal and external environmental scanning by using Porters 5 forces model and Swot analysis are conducted. Besides, benchmarking is used to evaluate performances. Strategy formulation which derived from the Campbells objective and mission is undertaken to outline the business level and corporate level strategies. Strategy at business level deals with which market the company chooses to compete while strategy at the corporate level is more concerned with managing the portfolio of business. The final strategy implementation stage includes the management issues, staffing and marketing variables which can influence the profit margin of the company. ( 4498 words) Prepared by _______________ ( NG LIN JIA) List of References 1. Campbell Soup Company, About Us, online, retrieved 2 March 2010, http://www.campbellsoupcompany.com/about_us.asp 2. Henry, A 2008, Understanding Strategic Management, Oxford University Press, New York United States 3. Porter, M. E. (1996) What is Strategy,  Harvard Business Review, 74 (6):61-78 4. Food Processing Industry,2006, retrieved 6 March 2010, http://www.miti.gov.my/cms/documentstorage/com.tms.cms.document.Document_7674150a-c0a81573-2d952d95-c9439446/Chap%2019.pdf 5. Wheelen T.L, Hunger J.D, Concepts in Strategic Management and Business Policy, 2007, tenth edition, Pearson Prentice Hall, United States of America 6. Ghemawat, P., Collis, D., Pisano, G. and Rivkin, J. (2001) Strategy and the Business Landscape: Core Concepts, Upper S

Effects of Domestic Violence on Children

Effects of Domestic Violence on Children The effects of domestic violence on children and how they could be protected 2. Chapter 1 1.1 Introduction This thesis highlights the instances of domestic violence at home and its effects on children. The social, psychological, physical and emotional impact of domestic violence could be studied from a broad perspective although domestic violence has a significant effect on children and especially in their psychological development and the way they react to their social world at a later stage of life. The thesis discusses how children could be protected from domestic violence and what are the measures that the government or social organizations could take to control or stop domestic violence. The description of domestic violence in all dimensions is followed by an analysis of the different types of domestic violence and who are the people affected by domestic violence or how domestic violence could have an impact on the children. The long term and short term influences of domestic violence are studied after a careful analysis of research papers. 3. Chapter 2 2.1 Background Domestic violence is threatening behavior or some sort of violence or abuse between adults who are or were in relationships as also violence between family members and could affect anyone irrespective of gender, age, ethnicity or sexuality. Domestic violence could be psychological or physical, sexual or emotional or even financial. It could range from forced marriage and genital mutilation to physical abuse and assault. Domestic violence usually takes place within intimate family type relationships and could form a pattern of coercive and controlling behavior in which one family member of partner tries to control the other family members or partner. Domestic violence can mean a range of behaviors and some may not be typically violent and could fall under domestic abuse. Research has indicated that one in four women face domestic violence in their lifetime and usually happens when the abuser has a desire for power and control over their partner. Domestic violence can be life threateni ng and could be harmful to the lives of men and women if their partners are engaged in repetitive violence. Domestic violence is mainly carried out by men and experienced by women although it could be the other way round and there could be repeated physical or sexual assaults and this could result in injury or death. It has been projected that men could be violent towards their partners or might face violence although women get violent as an attempt towards self defence as they try to move out of controlling behavior. Domestic violence has a direct adverse effect on the children in a family and more than 75% children are considered at risk when they have abusive parents in their family. Children are also sometimes abused by the family member. Domestic violence exists within all kinds of relationships and in some cases older children could get violent or abusive towards their parents and so the equation between the parent and child could be abusive both ways and in either case there are possibilities of domestic violence. Some common factors have been identified in defining the experiences of abusive relationships and identifying these factors could help in preventing the abuse. Domestic violence could take many forms of destructive criticism and verbal abuse as in threatening, mocking, abusing and name calling. Abusers also use pressure tactics and could give threats or could break trust by being in other relationships or withhold information, show disrespect or could subject their victim to isolation and harassment. Physical and sexual violence are the usual forms of domestic violence although verbal attacks are most common. Domestic violence could affect anyone regardless of age, gender or social background or ethnicity and it could happen at any stage of a relationship and incidents of domestic violence could become increasingly severe over time. Domestic abuse is a result of the desire for power or control and could directly cause or be caused by individual experiences. The responses of society are contributory factors in domestic violence although men can easily get away with it. Domestic violence would have direct impact on children and there could be both long term and short term impact on children. Developmental perspectives could consider direct or indirect abuse effects on infants and adolescents, school age children and teenagers. The next part of the review highlights domestic violence and its impact on children as noted in literature review and research studies. The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children 2.2 Developmental Perspective 2.3 Short and Long term impact 2.4 Impact of intimate partner abuse on Children The developmental perspectives of domestic violence could be studied by measuring the impact of violence on children, infants, toddlers, adolescents and teenagers and would also suggest how the impact differs in each case. The short and long term impact of domestic violence could also be analyzed and in case of children the long term effects are usually mental illness or psychological problems, chronic health problems and in some cases poverty and homelessness. Developmental Perspectives Kennedy et al (2010) studied the clinical and adaptive features of juvenile offenders who were violent towards their parents and compared this with children who had no history of violence against their parents and the groups were compared on mental health issues, relation ship findings and intellectual abilities. Children who face domestic abuse are more likely to show gang behaviors and could have trouble relating to parents and other members. There were no significant differences noted in emotional symptoms and in personal adjustments. In the context of domestic violence, Lapierre (2010) studied mothering and womens experience of mothering and how this was related to domestic violence. There seems to be a lack of research on womens experiences in mothering in the context of domestic violence and this study highlights the difficulties that abused women face during mothering. The author argued that motherhood itself could pose a challenge as difficulties of interaction arise within broader situations. Women have at the same time increased responsibilities to motherhood and loss of control over their children and therefore this would be a major challenge. Mothers are required to be vocal about their concerns as intimate partner violence faced by mothers would affect not just them but also the well being of their children ho may be exposed to the violence and its after effects (Rhodes et al, 2010). In a study with 39 adult women, mothers raised concerns on the negative effects of partner violence on their children. In discussions on the barriers to prevent violence and abuse by partners, the victims expressed their conflicts and how children could facilitate and inhibit leaving of an abusive relationship as the mothers could worry that children will be adversely affected if they remain in a violent family but could also be affected if they stay away from a family environment. This suggests that victims with children were always very conflicted as children could both facilitate and inhibit leaving relationships that are abusive. Mothers are thus in conflict as to whether they should spare their children from harmful effects of violence and leave or whether they should spare their children from any instability caused by separation or divorce. The mothers also suggested that fear of involvement of child protection services prevented them from seeking help with social service agencies. Social service agencies will have to understand the conflicts faced by mothers and should be able to help them. There could be individual differences and personality patterns that would suggest why some children show unstable behavior when exposed to domestic violence and why some other children are more resilient (Howell, et al 2010). Resilience was characterised by emotional regulation and prosocial skills, and was studied by a research group who observed mothers and their 4 to 6 year old children. The study suggested that better parenting, fewer maternal mental health problems and less severe exposure to violence could predict better emotional regulation and prosocial skills and this was negatively correlated with maladaptive child behaviors. Gardner noted the experience of children who live in families affected by domestic violence and collected information on children who continued to remain in parental home after child maltreatment (Gardner et al, 2009). There is a high policy oriented interest in domestic violence and is an important aspect of child mal treatment concerns. There are how ever several challenges inherent in the interaction of domestic violence and this could affect outcomes of how children are treated by family members and social service agencies. Short Term and Long Term consequences of domestic violence Domestic violence now has greater recognition in public policies in the United Kingdom. Devaney (2009) suggests that more than 1 million children may have been exposed to domestic violence that are perpetrated by adults family members. This sort of violence could have short term and long term consequences and could affect the social and emotional adjustment of the children. As male perpetrators of domestic violence are not held to account, the children will have to be given special care and protection by social services. It is however suggested that it is the women s responsibility to protect their child from any harm and this is done when they either leave or force their partner to leave. Devaney suggests that the women of the household are held responsible for having to protect their children and typically they are expected to leave or force their partners to leave and women are also responsible for making men realize their responsibilities as father and also by making them account able for their behavior. External environment, the causes and immediate correlates of psychological problems in children are considered although Carrell and Hoekstra (2010) suggested that measuring data could have its methodological limitations. However the authors tried to correlate childrens school records with cases of domestic violence to estimate the negative effects of domestic abuse. The results from the study indicated that children from troubled families could have decreasing grades and along with falling grades there is a possibility of misbehavior in the classroom. Achievement scores are however affected by family differences so domestic violence could not be the only factor for determining grades but the family environment is also important. In many cases when women face domestic violence at home they are asked to stay with their husbands for the children. Although Emery (2009) suggests that the concept of marriage could benefit men, women and children. The relationship between marital stability, husband violence, and childrens behavior problems was studied and the married women who reported husband violence also indicated child behavioural problems although this negative behavior reduced when violence was controlled. Witnessing, participating or being subject to domestic violence would all have negative consequence and especially adverse consequences for children. There are socio demographic correlates of children who witness domestic violence and this could have an association with mental disorders both as children and as adults (Meltzer et al, 2009). The traumatic effects of experiencing domestic violence were found to be related to biographic, socio-demographic and socio-economic characteristics and the report stated that at least 4% of children are regularly subject to domestic abuse. The factors hat could cause greater likelihood of domestic violence would be mixed ethnicity, physical disorder, several children in family, divorced parents, living in rented accommodation, poor neighbourhoods, the mothers emotional state and family dysfunction. A greater likelihood of the child witnessing domestic violence has been associated with conduct disorder although this was not associated with emotiona l disorders and there has been an association of domestic violence and emotional disorders so that with witnessing of domestic violence social workers and policy makers could identify the needs of the children who witness domestic violence. Impact of Domestic Violence on Children Young people caught in negative family experiences could be adversely affected by gap in knowledge of issues related to domestic abuse (Templeton et al 2009). Young people sometimes create the circumstances they live in and in the study by Templeton 8 young people were interviewed from five families (Templeton et al 2009). It has been suggested that research in which the opinion of young people are taken directly would be needed and in this case data from five families helped understand the lives of young people who lived with parental alcohol misuse and violence. Links have been found between parental drinking and domestic abuse with verbal aggression and physical violence. The young people noted a range of strategies in which they tried to cope with their home environments and one of the ways they received support was from friends, family and other professionals. The practice and policy responses for children living in family environments will have to be changed significantly. It has been suggested that intimate partner violence is not just a distinct and unitary phenomenon and could be differentiated according to partner dynamics, context and consequences and the four patterns of violence described are coercive controlling violence, violent resistance, situational couple violence and separated instigated violence (Kelly et al, 2008). Gender symmetry and asymmetry in intimate partner violence could be studied although there would be methodological limitations. Differentiation in the different types of domestic violence would be possible with procedures as explained in family, criminal courts with characteristics of different types of partner violence. Parenting plans tend to ensure outcomes for children and parent child relationships. Spilsbury et al (2008) discussed adjustment problems in community program samples with the school children being exposed to domestic violence. Children with internalizing and externalizing problems are the majority in domesti c violence cases although children could also have externalizing problem without internalizing problem. However there are a small group of children with internalizing problems only. The demographic and violence characteristics showed that profiles of domestic violence and children affected by it could differ by child gender, mothers education, childrens lifetime exposure to violence and contacts with community programs (Spilsbury et al, 2008). When children are exposed to domestic violence the focus becomes child neglect according to jurisdictions and DAmbrosio (2008) suggests that not all domestic violence is the same and not all families are affected with domestic violence issues. The several factors of domestic violence could be the frequency and intensity of violence, the frequency and intensity of childs exposure to violence, the family members unique experiences and characteristics. The parents who participate in counselling services help in the promotion of health and safety of their children and also support removal of children from any exposure to domestic violence. Child protection agencies examines domestic violence and also helps in mitigating the effects of childs exposure to domestic violence and in some cases could provide an opinion for or against removal of children from homes exposed to domestic violence. In advanced welfare states, the abuse of mothers by their adolescent male children has been found to be prevalent (Hunter et al, 2010). However as Hunter el al claim, mother to child abuse remains a very under researched form of family and domestic violence and not much is studied about child to parent violence and usually it is the other way round. There are issues of stigma or shame when children are violent with their parents and studies on this usually focus on the interventions that could deal with anti social behavior and adolescent violence towards mothers is a prevalent issue. This brings in the different disciplines of youth justice, child welfare and domestic violence into focus and the behavior of children and young people towards their mother could highlight issues of responsibility. However there is also a failure of service providers to respond to such destructive forms of intimate interpersonal violence. In another study that showed resilience among children who were exposed to domestic violence, mother-child dyads were examined when the children were 2-4 years of age. The study suggested that the young children who were exposed to domestic violence were more likely than the other group who were not exposed to domestic violence to show symptoms of internalizing and externalizing problems (Martinez-Torteya, 2009). However among the children who were exposed to domestic violence, 54% showed positive adaptation and non depressed mothers and thus greater resilience when compared with their non resilient counterparts. Domestic violence on a prolonged basis was associated with maternal depression, difficult child temperament and internalizing or externalizing symptoms. Heterogeneous outcomes among children exposed to domestic violence would involve influence on childrens adaptation. The perspectives of individuals and their relationships with each other and their lives and identity have been examined by Castelino (2009) and the focus was on family violence intervention programs. The study was on mens behavior change as they worked closely with their partners or children for their own safety. Within this organizational context, the childrens experiences at home with domestic violence have not been explored and although there is a framework for engaging in therapeutic work, the context of family violence tends to highlight work exploring safety and well being along with the complexity of family environment. The childrens experiences in domestic violence situations have been considered as significantly important. Berrick (2009) has argued that child welfare in the US is in a state of crisis and intense family problems such as drug addiction, domestic violence and criminal behavior bring greater problems to child behavior. When children are however removed from thei r homes they could be in a state of impermanence or transience without being in a stable family. Childrens well being and health should not be compromised in extended family relationships and the governments role is important in defining the vulnerability of childrens lives. Children are prevented from ill-treating their parents and this is done by placing them with carers also as Berrick argues these carers may not meet the qualifications for providing adequate care. However the primary mission of children would be an emphasis on protecting children who have been harmed by parents. The impact of exposure to domestic violence could be studied in terms of effects on health and well being of children and young people and Holt (2008) studied the impact of domestic violence across separate and interrelated domains as in domestic violence exposure and child abuse, impact on parental capacity, impact on child and adolescent development and exposure to additional adversities (Holt, 2008). The practices that would best suit childrens needs have also been highlighted. Holts study used databases through an 11 year framework and the results suggested that children and adolescents living with domestic violence could face increased risks of emotional and behavioural problems and could experience physical and sexual abuse with the presence of adverse conditions at home. The protective factors that could possibly reduce the impact of domestic violence on children would a strong and supportive relationship with one parent and in most cases it is the mother who provides support to children who may be facing emotional problems although in some cases the children are best removed from the home and given separate shelters by the social service providers. Children and young people are affected emotionally and behaviourally when they face domestic violence and the effects could be long term and would continue to ensure safety of the children. Children also construct their own social world and timely and individualized personalized responses have been considered as more appropriate. Timely and appropriate individually tailored responses to build resilience in the childs life could mean significant implications for responses. The relationship between domestic violence and different forms of child abuse show that exposure to domestic abuse could have different levels of impact on children and some children are more vulnerable than others and there could be potentially very harmful emotional, behavioural and physical effects in such children. The protective factors that could influence impact of exposure and outcomes for the child would suggest the need for a holistic child centred approach to service delivery and for this there is a need to focus on the assessment as well as the need to understand the individual childs experience and how it would be necessary to be responsive to the childs individual needs. Chang et al (2008) studied the association of partner psychological abuse and child maltreatment after using a sample of mothers with children aged 0-17 years and the mothers were asked about the occurrence of neglectful or abusive behaviors towards their children or abusive behavior by their husbands and partners. Outcome measures for abuse could range from no abuse to mother as perpetrator, father as perpetrator, to both parents as perpetrators. The results indicated that children were at greater risk of maltreatment when parents psychologically abused each other although some factors which affected children were mothers level of education, child age and gender. When the father of the family abuses the mother, the impact on children is greater than when there is no psychological abuse. Partner psychological abuse is thus strongly related to maltreatment of the children and an increased risk of maltreatment was found with partner psychological abuse. Prevention of abuse is only poss ible with education about the serious impact of partner violence. Domestic violence and child welfare agencies should be aware of the link between partner psychological abuse and child maltreatment (Chang et al, 2008) and work towards identifying and alleviation of these problems. How professionals protect children from domestic violence. 2.5 Different services or interventions that can protect children Several social work and social service agencies are responsible for taking care of children especially children who are abused and the different interventions that can protect children from domestic violence highlight not just the complexities of social work practice but also child behavior. In a study by Healey and Darlington (2009), it was suggested that participation of children and parents in child protection service could be complex and sensitive in social work practice as children and parents would have different issues in child protection cases and could voice varied concerns. In most cases participation would be separate and distinct. Child protection policies are closely associated with prevention of domestic abuse and promoting direct participation of children is a sensitive issue in social work practice. The child protection legislation policies promote ideals of service user participation although the principles and methods of achieving participatory practices in child protection will have to be elaborated and identified. However as Healey (2009) claim, the methods for participating in child protection services are not well developed. Child protection could refer to child and family welfare services and the prevention of child abuse, including through domesti c abuse and possible neglect and the social service agencies seem to have a responsibility in protection of children in all contexts . The services included in child protection are family support, domestic violence, statutory child protection, child and family advocacy services and a participatory practice in child protection. A qualitative analysis of interviews with child protection services show five domains of child protection work and core principles of participatory practice as given by Healey et al, (2009). The potential of social workers to shift from child protection to child welfare practice would show how social workers respond to child care problems (CCPs). Hayes and Spratt (2009) examined the potential of social workers from child protection to child welfare practice orientation and related child care problems. Social service trusts have usually responded to social policy goals to balance the protection of children and meeting welfare needs through reducing child protection investigations. Social workers tend to address perceived child protection risks and tend to balance social policing and supportive functions in practice as given in Every Child Matters (Chief Secretary to the Treasury, 2003) Ferguson (2009) highlighted the core experience of doing social work and the emotions and challenges of accessing children in social services. The methodology of child protection suggests that home visit is ignored and the emphasis is on policy and practice texts that happens in inter agency collaboration. The primary problem in contemporary child protection services for social workers would be the process of meaningfully engage with children. The practice through sociology and psychodynamic social work theory provides an understanding of social work experience. The concept of containment suggest ways in which practitioners could provide child protection for the benefit of children and other service users. 2.6 Barriers to services- and how children can overcome that. Services and interventions that can protect children include social work child protection services, and some of the barriers to service in child protection would be lack or shortage of resources and lack of understanding how child protection works. Barriers to service could also be about lack of cooperation and the children could overcome the barriers by actively cooperating with the social services and the parents and children should be able work together to cooperate in child protection issues. All risks will have to be identified and the children and parents and other relevant service users will have to ensure that social services agencies are able to provide the right kind of protection to the children. If the children have problems with custody or staying at a place with high levels of domestic violence, the social services may well take legal help to have them relocated to other shelters which would be safer for the children if the home environment is not safe enough. 4- Chapter 3 3.1 Limitation or findings- Critiquing the researchers about good and bad on their findings according to their aims. 5. Chapter 4 4.1 Discussion 4.2 Conclusion