A Raisin in the Sun Analysis Responses Essay

A Raisin in the Sun Analysis Responses Essay A Raisin in the Sun Analysis Responses Essay Ryan Pagois A Raisin in the Sun Literary Analysis Questions Question #1: Beneatha’s two suitors, Asagai and George, both contribute very opposing viewpoints of American life and propose entirely different things as Beneatha’s suitors. Asagai reflects on his African heritage with honor and hopes to save Beneatha from becoming an â€Å"assimilationist† in this American society and instead wants her to embrace her ancestral past, and even invites her to move back to Nigeria with him. He teases her with questions about her hair, asking her why she â€Å"mutilate[s] it every week† and refuses to wear it naturally (62). As he presents Beneatha with Nigerian robes, she begins to see her heritage as a beautiful and more majestic idea, and not so much as something to move past or forget about. She later takes Asagai’s words to heart and cuts her hair, which shows the amount of influence that he had on Beneatha’s views on both her past and her present. Along with this, Asaigai sees Beneatha as a very beautiful woman, and a valuable partner, and someone to stand by his side. He views the idea of education as invaluable, and necessary in order to fully understand the ways of the world. George, on the other hand, resents his connection to Africa and focuses more on the present and moving on into the future. He is quite rude and outspoken against Beneatha’s views on assimilationism and her African heritage. When she bri ngs up the subject, he mocks her with sarcastic comments toward the â€Å"great Ashanti empiresÍ ¾ the great Songhay civilizationsÍ ¾ and the great sculpture of B à © nin† and the â€Å"poetry of the Bantu† (81). Along with being a total assimilationist, George views women as someone to support a man and obey him rather than be his partner. He holds education in a high regard, yet he believes more in money than in knowledge. These beliefs enrage Beneatha, and in the end, she rejects George, calling him a â€Å"fool† and resenting both him and his beliefs. Question #2: When Mr. Linder appears at the Youngers’ home, he is initially able to disguise his intentions and hide his racist and offensive proposal to make his idea of having a neighborhood â€Å"a certain kind of way† seem much more reasonable. At first, Mr. Linder pleases the Younger family with his seemingly kind intentions as he talks about how people misunderstand each other much too often and it is simply because â€Å"people just don’t sit down and talk to each other† (116). This peaks the interest of the Youngers as they continue to listen intently to Mr. Linder’s presentation. Soon, however, the Younger family sees through Linder’s careful word choice and come to realize the true purpose of his visit. Linder begins to speak of the people of Clybourne Park having a â€Å"common background† and wanting their neighborhood a specific way. Linder then lets his true intentions shine through as he tells the Younger family that the citizens of Clybourne Park, â€Å"rightly or wrongly†, believe that â€Å"Negro families are happier when they live in their own communities† (118). The Youngers react defensively by expelling him from their home. Despite the negative atmosphere around Linder’s visit, it results in the furthered and strengthened desire to defy society’s expectations and carry out their plan to move into their house in Clybourne Park, and it also helped bring the family closer together as they continue to bond over their experiences as they have been throughout the play. As for Linder and his desire for a perfect neighborhood, his intentions are not completely astray. The inhabitants of a neighborhood have the right to control aspects of their community to an extent. The line is drawn, however, at the point where a person’s way of life is threatened or challenged. Physical features of the neighborhood can be altered, but the inhab itants themselves should not feel pressured into changing their lifestyle to match that of the neighborhood. Question #3:

Educated Mothers essays

Educated Mothers essays Mother has a big role in family.They show very big self sacrifices for their family, for example they can leave their carrer because of their children.Although there are other members of family they do all of the housework.And here is the biggest role of mothers in family '' to educate their children''.So if the mother effecs the members of family or not? Mothers should be educated.They have a big role in family.We grow with them because they are the people who we see the most.We can say that they are our first teachers.Their behaviors are very important because our character is shaping by them.So mothers should be educated in order to know how that she can behave to her child.For example Research shows that educated mothers are more likely to use health clinics and are more likely to return to the clinic if their childs health does not improve. According to a United Nations study in 46 countries, a one percent rise in womens literacy is three times more likely to reduce deaths in children than a one percent rise in the number of doctors.With this example we cam see the difference between educated mothers and nomeducated ones.Educated mothers mostly know what to the in emergency situations.They can teach their childs lots of things like what to da im emergency or how to behave other people.So the child can start to live their life prepared. There is an other idea which defends that it does't matter if mothers educated or not.They think that ''everyone have their own lifes so it's not important if the people around you (for ex:mother) educated or not''.And we spend all of our lifes outside so our mothers doesnt effect us that much.We learn everything from outside. Our mothers are very important for us because we learn so many things from them so it's very important if they are educated or not.Because our character shapes when we are a child so mother is the only person who can do it.It's tr ...

Princess Catherine Ann Buan Gaviola Essays - Free Essays

Princess Catherine Ann Buan Gaviola Essays - Free Essays Princess Catherine Ann Buan Gaviola MAED- Social Studies Regional Differences There are some 120 to 175 languages and dialects in the Philippines , depending on the method of classification. Four others are no longer spoken . Almost all are Malayo-Polynesian languages , whereas one, HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chavacano" \o "Chavacano" Chavacano , is a HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creole_language" \o "Creole language" creole derived from a Romance language . Two are official (English and Filipino), while (as of 2017) nineteen are official auxiliary languages .Including second-language speakers, there are more speakers of Filipino than English in the Philippines. The HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komisyon_sa_Wikang_Filipino" \o "Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino" Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino enumerated 135 Philippine languages present in the country through its Atlas Filipinas map published in 2014. The indigenous scripts of the Philippines (such as the HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kulitan_alphabet" \o "Kulitan alphabet" Kulitan , HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tagbanwa_alphabet" \o "Tagbanwa alphabet" Tagbanwa and others) are used very little; instead, Filipino languages are today written in the Latin script because of the Spanish and American colonial experience. HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baybayin" \o "Baybayin" Baybayin however, one of the most well-known of the indigenous Filipino scripts, is used by the government in some applications such as on the Philippine Banknotes , where the word "Pilipino" is inscribed using the writing system. As well, the Arabic script is used in Muslim areas in some areas in southern Philippines. According to some ethnic and regional studies journalism of the Philippines by Lee S. Dutton : "Language and dialect affiliations are most important aspects of the Philippine there are some special importance of Cebuano, Ilokano , Tagalog and Hilganyon . It is also noted that the Geographic and linguistic diversity of the Philippines is paralled by the diversity of its ethnic and cultural group. Thus resulting to extreme regionalism by the Filipinos. The study conducted by Ronald E. Dolan titled: " Philippine: A country Study" he stated that the Philippine national identity emerged as a blendof diverse and linguistic groups when lowland Christians, called indios by the Spaniards, began referring to themselves as "Filipinos", excluding Muslims, upland triabal groups, and ethnic Chinese who had not been assimilated by intermarriage who did not fit to the category. It was also noted that a societal cleavage among groups in revolting against Spanish rule and later fighting the United States . The troops of the Indigenous people became increasingly conscious of a national unity transcending local and regional identities. A public school system brought at least elementary-level education to all but the most remote barrios and sittios ( small cluster of homes) during the 20 th century also served to dilute religious, ethnic and linguistic or regional differences as did improvements in transportation and communication systems and the spread of English as the lingua franca. Regional Differences do play a major role in shaping a nation for the language is a soul of a country but due to the fast changing times regional differences are more an expression of time lags and bound to diminish on the long run and we do see the gradual decline of it because the improved in transportation and mass media.

French Terms Related to Movies and Film Festivals

French Terms Related to Movies and Film Festivals Whether you love attending film festivals, watching movies, or just reading reviews, youll want to learn some French vocabulary related to movies.le film - film, moviele cinà ©ma - movie theaterle Festival de Cannes - Cannes Film Festivalla Croisette - little cross, promenade which is the center of activity during the festivalla sà ©lection officielle - official festival selectionUn certain regard - Cannes category for particularly innovative filmsla Palme dOr - golden palm, highest award given at Cannes Genres la comà ©die - comedyle documentaire - documentaryle drame - dramale film daction - action moviele film daventures - adventurele film dà ©pouvante - horrorla science-fiction - science fictionle western - western Acteurs - Cast un acteur - actorune actrice - actressla distribution - cast listle / la figurant / figurante - extralinterprà ¨te (m or f) - actor/actressle premier rà ´le - male lead, leading actorle premier rà ´le fà ©minin - female lead, leading actressle second rà ´le - supporting actorle second rà ´le fà ©minin - supporting actressla silhouette - walk-on part/rolela vedette - star Équipe -  Crew le / la bruiteur / bruiteuse - sound-effects engineerle camà ©raman, cadreur - camera operatorle / la cinà ©aste - director, film-makerle / la coiffeur / coiffeuse - hair stylistle / la dà ©corateur / dà ©coratrice - designerle directeur de la photo(graphie) - cinematographer, director of photographyle / la maquilleur / maquilleuse - make-up artistle metteur en scà ¨ne - directorle / la monteur / monteuse - editorle preneur de son - sound engineer, sound recorderle / la producteur / productrice - producerle producteur exà ©cutif - executive producerla productrice exà ©cutivele / la rà ©alisateur / rà ©alisatrice - directorle rà ©gisseur - line producer, assistant directorle scà ©nariste - screenwriter Scà ¨nes et Plans -  Scenes and Shots larrà ªt sur image - freeze framele cadre - framedans le champ - in shoten dà ©cor, studio - on seten extà ©rieur - on locationle fondu - dissolve, fadehors champ - off-camerale panoramique - panningun plan rapprochà © / serrà © - close uple raccord - continuity Verbes - Verbs bruiter - to add sound effectscadrer - to frame a shotcouper - to cutdiriger - to directinterprà ©ter - to perform, actmonter - to editproduire - to produceprojeter - to project, showtourner (un film, une scà ¨ne) - to film, shoot (a movie, scene) Miscellaneous laffiche - showing, playing, on screenla bande sonore - soundtrackle bruitage - sound effectsle dà ©coupage - story boarddoublà © - dubbedlà ©clairage (m) - lightingle gà ©nà ©rique - credits, theme musicla grue - cranele mà ©trage - lengthle montage - editingle scà ©nario - screenplaysous-titrà © - subtitledle truquage - special effectsVF - version franà §aise (dubbed into French)VO - version originale (in the original language with French subtitles)

360 Report of Guccio Gucci in China Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

360 Report of Guccio Gucci in China - Coursework Example These strategies include: advertising, craftsmanship, public relations, a touch of mythology, and word of mouth (Marketing Mentor, n.d.). In order to develop effective marketing campaing in China, it is vital to understand the luxry market in China and consumers’ behavior. The Chinese luxury market is huge and is projected to grow by 18% annually from 2010 to 2015, exceeding 20% of the global luxury market (GroupM and CIC 2011). Luxury buyers in China value the status they gain by wearing luxury goods. Chinese consumers like to show their off their shopping achievements and purchasing power. That is why sharing of shopping experience is common in the luxury segment (GroupM and CIC 2011). By developing a business expansion strategy in China, Gucci’s marketers have to focus on the top domestic markets by RMB 10 million-plus population. These cities inlcude: 1) Beijing, 2) Guangdong, 3) Shanghai, 4) Zhejiang, 5) Jiangsu, 6) Fujian, 7) Shandong, 8) Liaoning, 9) Sichuan, and 10) Henan (GroupM and CIC 2011). See the map below. Fast growing luxury market in China captures consumers with different motivations and behaviors. In order to develop effective marketing strategy for this Asian market, Gucci has to consider the purchase drivers common for Chinese luxury consumers. There are indentified four major segments of Chinese luxury consumers: aspirational buyers; quality pursuers; status seekers; trend setters (GroupM & CIC, 2011). Aspirational buyers are mainly white-collars and college students who are very sensitive to price and tend to purchase accessories of famous luxury brands. The purchase drivers include: brand awareness, style and design, and price (GroupM & CIC, 2011). For Qaulity pursuers quality and fine workmanship are the major criteria while purchasing the luxury brands. The purchase drivers include: quality, price, style and design (GroupM & CIC, 2011). The third category of Status seekers implies

The Corporations Production Target Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Corporations Production Target - Assignment Example In line with the purpose of this memo, the beer making process in the application is attached as well as the modified process recommended thereon. Before the main issue is handled, an introduction is done regarding the cause of the problem and then the explanation follows in the inclusion of the recommendations. Saccharine Beers Corporation deals in the production and marketing of malted beers. Currently, the plant supplies the beer market with six million bottles of malted beer on a daily basis, which translates into half a million bottles of beer every hour. The capacity of the plant can slightly be increased to about three hundred bottles of beer every hour in a high season. On a low season, the Corporation reduces production up to a hundred thousand bottles every hour. The low season’s production is set so low, to ensure that production caters for just plant costs than to produce without market sensitivity. During the current high season, the plant expanded its production capacity to hit half a million bottles of beer. Production increments were in line with the increased market coverage and promotional strategies embarked in the recent past. Positive results have been confirmed by the Sales Department, with an all-time high sales record being posted. Enthusiasm within the Corporation’s operations has prompted future projections currently made to illustrate a capacity outstretch, both by demand and production. At Saccharine Beers, the production of malted beers is simplified to enable a process that is as close to the natural brewing process as possible. As illustrated in the flowchart, five main production stages are involved in the entire beer making process. For hygiene regulations compliance, the corporation simplifies the process as much as possible for quality assurance (Cobbett, 22). The main processes are briefly discussed, stating the problem involved and strengths.

Second Assignment PS 321 Introduction to Political Economy

Second PS 321 Introduction to Political Economy - Assignment Example In political science, it simply implies the level of actors at which a researcher will aggregate the data. In any study, the choice of actors or the unit of analysis has a bearing on the final generalization that is given by a study. In this perspective, the emergence of fallacies on the conclusion of a study will be as a result of not properly identifying the unit of analysis. In a study about the geopolitics of a country, for instance, the focus of the research could be trade relations. The selection of the actors in this study due to the interest and ideas about the actor could lead to a level of complications like cross referencing or fallacies (Babbie 2013). This article examines the possible set of units that relate to a research question about the geopolitics of China and its international partners in trade. Specifically, the units of analysis that relate to the research are discussed in details. It also observes the relevance of the units of analysis that will be selected for the investigation on the topic. Depending on the research question and the motivation of the researcher, the development of the appropriate actors or even the units of analysis could be difficult or just impossible. In this case, the use of cross-referencing is used to create a correlation of the available information to the unit of analysis that has been selected. The difficulty in obtaining the data about the unit of study may also lead to the absence of this ambiguity which seldom happens, the choice of the unit of study is simplified. Problems like the ecological fallacy that results from using data that is meant for a group to make generalization is avoided. In the case of geopolitical analysis of China and the trade relations, the major unit of analysis is the country which is China. This choice is provoked by the fact that much of the data that will be collected on the topic for purposes of analysis will have to do

The Arrest Of Vessels Has Long Proven To Be A Controversial Exercise Essay

The Arrest Of Vessels Has Long Proven To Be A Controversial Exercise In The Law Of England And Wales - Essay Example Conclusion 6. Reflective review 7. Bibliography 1. Introduction a) Synopsis Pre-judgement security of claims and post-judgement execution of a suit are of importance in maritime law of any country. In both cases, it is the maritime creditor who is at the receiving end with concerns about the fulfilment of the credit extended to the debtor, as normally, most ships are credited and it is the concern of the creditor to realize the debt amount from the debtor. The concerns of the creditor become manifold when the debtor and the property under debt from the creditor are under litigation in the purview of the concerned admiralty law of the state. This calls for a study of the relevant processes and procedures involving the application of the international maritime laws to identify and evaluate the available methods and impact of the laws on the interests of the creditor and also the other related stakeholders of the ship1. Admiralty law derived from English law and the international mariti me law have relevant sections that state the process and procedures for the arrest of vessels, the ship owner and the ship which will be studied and which will be useful to understand the process of arrests, the ways in which the pre-judgement is carried to ensure that post-judgment is enabled after the suit is accepted and the litigations of the ship owners, creditors, sister ships, and also the issue of payment to the plaintiff and any other claimant of the property of the ship owner is carried with this knowledge. The Arrest Convention of 19522 and the ratified Arrest Convention of 19993,4,5,6 along with the Supreme Court Act 1981, at sect. 20(2)7 and sect. 218(1) will be studied to understand the probable scope and litigations arising out of the arrest of vessels as per the Admiralty law while considering its jurisdiction. This knowledge is used to suggest useful recommendations that can be practically implemented within the ambit of the English jurisdiction. The following secti ons discuss the aims and objectives of the paper, followed by a literature review of the laws of Admiralty, International Maritime Law, and the procedures for arrest, conflicts arising out of the etc. The research is commissioned by The British Shipowners' Federation and the report is targeted at outlining the effectiveness of arrest procedures in the UK and the possibilities for future reforms within the scope of international maritime law. b) Aims and objectives Aims- The aims of the research are to prepare a report for the British Shipowners’ Federation by: Exploring the literature available Admiralty Law and International Maritime Law based on English Law to develop critical competence of the information available and to reflect upon it Identify and evaluate the procedures for arrest of vessels in the British Admiralty Law and any conflicts with maritime laws of other countries Provide evidence for action research and need for critical reflection to recommend improvements to the Admiralty Law Objectives- To explore the different laws existing in relation to the arrest of vessels in the UK To identify any deviations in the British Admiralty Law from those of other countries that distinguishes between the procedures for vessel arrest To understand how the deviations in the laws concerning arrest of vessel impact the creditor or the ship owner To reflect upon the impact of the applicability of laws of the different countries on vessel arrest To plan and design a reflective learning report to improve

Influence of Religion at Literature and Art review

Influence of Religion at and Art - Literature review Example This paper will begin with the statement that the twentieth century was the most discrepant period in the history of mankind. On the one hand that was the epoch of scientific, technical and intellectual progress and great hitches in all spheres of human activity. On the other, the 20th century was the age of deep spiritual crisis. Every person in the world revised old established ideas about good and evil. Thomas Mann called it the age of endless wars and revolutions (Jasper, 1992, p. 54). It assumed collisions not only between countries and classes but also in human minds and souls. The radical experience of the World War I and World War II was described by American writers who came to fight young, full of hopes and returned from the war with destroyed dreams and believes without finding the new ones. Such writers created their own literature - the literature of "Lost Generation". In their works Ernest Hemingway, William Folkner and others depicted disregarded surroundings, estrange ment and deep pessimism caused by cruel reality. Ernest Hemingway wrote " when men fight for the freedom of their country against a foreign invasion, and when these men are your friends, some few friends and some of long standing, you know how they were attached and how they fought, you learn, watching them live and fight and die, you learn that there are worse things than war. Cowardice is worse, treachery is worse, and simple selfishness is worse" (Brian, 1988, p. 73). People, who got the scar of the war did not believe in God any more. The crisis of the twentieth century was one of the social phenomena that had to be acknowledged before it was dealt with. The way out of the crisis was hard and long because the main reason of it was the changing of the attitude towards the Christian dogmas. Outstanding German philosopher Fridrich Nitse wrote: "Concept of God still was the strongest objection against existing We disclaim God. We deny the responsibility in God and due to this we'll save the world for the first time" (Pelican, 1991, p. 83). Another philosopher Thomas Mann said that Christianity was one of the bases on which our civilization lied. In such turbulent times every person who was spiritually free and not only swimming with the stream of the age had an urgent necessity to reappraise his values, to realize them again and stand up for them. The 20th century strictly criticised Christian morality. Nevertheless that criticism touched only the superficial ideas but the deep Christian dogmas that were found once stayed virginal (Jasper, 1992, p. 69). For the last two thousand years you could hardly find a literary work where the theme of religion, faith or God was omitted. These themes were omnipresent. Their variations - Christian images, symbols, allusions, associations, philosophical reflections on God were found in works of different writers, different genres and styles. American literature of the 20th century was not an exception. Till the time Kurt Vo nnegut's usage of Christian motives were not thoroughly examined. The critics had an opinion that Christianity and Vonnegut were almost incompatible. They supposed the writer's attitude towards Christianity was not serious but even negative. Only the last researches of his works showed the role and meaning of Christianity in author's world outlook. Religion played an important role in Vonnegut's artistic world and the Bible was the main element of the author's thinking. Vonnegut emphasised the positive beginning of Christianity, its appeal to universal love. Nevertheless Vonnegut thought that the Christian religion couldn't prevent shocking crimes of the 20th century. J. Lundguist wrote a book dedicated to Kurt Vonnegut and his works. In it he analysed Vonnegut's manner of writing and pointed out "the cosmic irony" as the main feature of writer's method. He also touched the theme of Christian religion especially while analysing the Vonnegut's novel "Slaughter-House Five" (1969). Lun dguist compared the main hero of the novel with Jesus Christ.

Deregulation and Shipping Industries Essay Example for Free

Deregulation and Shipping Industries Essay Regulation in economy is a process characterized by control, monitoring and managing of rules, processes, operations and methods in order to obtain and yield more positive results and attain an environment that is more convenient to consumers and businessmen (Boyson). Deregulation, which is the opposite of regulation, when used in different aspects and sectors of business have affected directly and indirectly the various business industries and companies. For instance, transportation deregulation has greatly impacted the shipping industry here and around the world. Changes are brought depending on how shippers used the systems of transportation. Globalization is a phenomenon the no one can deny is happening now. Industries and businesses are experiencing wide range of growth as they reach out different regions around the globe, and just like other businesses shipping and carrying industries have their eyes keen towards globalization. Thus a company, for instance, does not solely need to attend to its New York-Chicago transportation affairs, they now must also consider the inbound flow and tracking of ships from Asia and the outbound flow from other continents such as South America and Africa (Boyson). For this reason, there now exists a growing complexity in the networks and channels of transportation systems. Furthermore a challenge to effectively manage and control the local goods combined with the imported products are also observed. The challenged that arises from the complexities of network transportation has then prompted authorities to regulate systems of transportations. The increasing number for international needs of inbound and outbound flow of logistics and shipments had yield to large number of trucks and carriers. Authorities then deemed that a regulation that would minimize the increasing number of truckers and carriers that would enter and leave the US harbor is necessary and significant. Shipment and freight industries have seen enormous change and face lifts through the years. From the late 1970’s advocates of deregulation have called for the removing of federal economic regulation (Brenner). According to them by exposing freight and shipping industries to exit and entry regulation, industries failed to perform to their utmost potential. They are not able to maximize their resources as rate on inbound and outbound flow of shipments are controlled. They call for a deregulation as they believed that industries can perform better with out these laws that hold and breathe down their neck. By lifting various regulations, competition industries can exists that eventually would leave to better service as they searched for different strategies and mediums that would satisfy their customers and followers. Attesting this claim was the significant growth experienced business growth in terms of volume by the shipment and trucking companies under the deregulated market, from 1982 up to 1997 (Brenner). With deregulation, rates in which the companies provide their services are also lowered. This event happens as more ships are made available to travel and with ease of entry restrictions. Companies do not have to require large fees as the risks of inability to dock or set sail is stricken off. Circuitous routes made the shipping vessels are also eliminated which provides ease and convenience to the industries. Furthermore, deregulation encourages freedom in pricing. As a result, lower rates are observed. Deregulation laws in transportation have impacted the shipping industries greatly. From the structure and functions in how companies delivered their services up to the vision they gladly want to fulfill. However, of all those encouraging results obtained from deregulation none could be more important to its affect to the flow of goods here and abroad. With the deregulation, sufficient supply of goods is stimulated locally and internationally which has major effect in international commerce. Work’s Cited Boyson, S. Managing Effective Third Party Logistics Relationships: What Does It Take? Journal of Business Logistics . 1999. Brenner, M. A. World Seatrade Service. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Companies. 1999.

Final Solutions by Benjamin Valentino

Final Solutions by Benjamin Valentino This research paper discusses the main problem of â€Å"Final Solutions† by Benjamin Valentino. It also considers theories of mass killing origin. The stimulus for mass killing usually initiates from a relatively little groupings of forceful leaders and is often realized without any approval of society. When the average American is asked to name the conventional reasons for genocide and mass killing he is certain to indicate ethnic enmity or accuse the contradictory society. But in Final Solutions: Mass Killing and Genocide in the 20th Century (Cornell University Press), author Benjamin A. Valentino claims that ethnic harassment and the dysfunction of out society are unequal elucidation. Though Valentino considers these elements as factors, he notices that pervasive intentional cruelty is typically stimulated by small minorities of military or political leaders, their intentions and plans are realized without the approval of the community. There is something strangely tender about Benjamin Valentino’s book, on the wholly distenderless topic of genocide and mass killing in the twentieth century. If the Valentino is right about the crucial role of relatively small ethnic or military groupings in the cruelest offences of the twentieth century, then genocide/mass killing may appear not to be the secret it would seem. And if its nature can be seen in lucid terms that refer to a wide range of examples, then maybe something can be carried out to avert it. This is, first of all, the real aim of all genocide scientists. By the way, they care about the pragmatic consequences of their work in stopping the killing as they are with its purely scientific value (Miller). Summing up all phenomena connected with human activity especially genocide all over the world in the twentieth and nineteenth century – one can surely feel blue and disappointed. Though in a sarcastic manner, Valentino has evaded this partially by incl uding in his work what he calls mass killing, or the intentional killing of a massive number of noncombatants (Valentino). You are surely interested how massive these killings are? Here Valentino gives the definite figure of at least fifty thousand intentional deaths over the course of five or fewer years, though if his theory is proved to work, he claims, this figure should reduce as well (Valentino). The main point is not in definite number (and one of the cunnings of the UN’s Genocide Convention is that it does not require any researches revealed in specific numbers on a genocide studying). The main point is to understand how the mass killing of guiltless, defenseless people becomes the policy of some states. Valentino is surely not the only scientist who researches the causes of genocide/mass killing origin. His profound studying, nevertheless, allows him to make some rather well-reasoned and sensible refutation of earlier explanations such as social segmentation and raw governmental power. Opposing the plural society theory that Leo Kuper and others have suggested to explain genocide, for instance, he shows us that in Cambodia trespassers and sufferers belong to the same social and ethnic layers, and that many sufferers, actually, referred to dominant ethnic groups (Valentino). Similarly, Valentino catches reader’s attention by describing such examples as French behaviou in Algeria to refute the mind that genocide/mass killing depends on government. He appoints that democracy stimulates and gives a push to violence. He is also uncertain of scapegoating as the main motivating reason, quoting Michael Mann’s recent research of Holocaust offenders as evidence that private comp laints were rarely necessary to sketch behavior. Considering these researches, Valentino says they have strong intuitive appeal they are simply too common to serve as accurate indicators of this relatively rare kind of violence (Valentino). The author next opposes another overall presumption concerning the reason of genocide/mass killing: that it is sought after and supported by the major part of the society. Most scientists, I believe, won’t argue with the author in the chapter The Perpetrators and the Public,(Valentino) which views such classic works in this area as Christopher Browning’s â€Å"Ordinary Men†(compared very graciously with Daniel Goldhagen’s critically different consequences for the same grouping of men); the despotic individualism experiments of psychologists Stanley Milgram and Philip Zimbardo; and explores of what makes warriors readily risk their lives for things that don’t influence them in a direct way (Miller). Valentino as sumes that the course of mass killing lies in situational elements and the plans of relatively small but forceful groups, but not in wide public backing and deep-seated ideological odium. This is well proved by the chapter’s variable number of evidences. Actually, this chapter could be titled as a representation of the wide range of scientists theories about the question what makes people kill. But the main question is why people kill each other. In order to answer this, during the left three quarters of the book, the author provides thorough studying of the specific situations, goals, and conditions that lead political and/or military leaders to embark upon a policy of genocide/mass killing (Valentino). In chapter three, the author, defines six main courses of mass killing and genocide: communist, ethnic, territorial, counterguerrilla, terrorist, and imperialist (Miller). Considering communist, ethnic, and counterguerrilla mass murdering as the most dominant and fatal, his work then dedicates chapter to each reason. Moreover, as regards the common examples of ethnic genocide such as Armenia, the Holocaust, and Rwanda. Valentino devotes the whole chapter to the Soviet Union, China, and Cambodia, as well as the guerrillas’ mass murders in Guatemala and Afghanistan. In addition to this, in order to give profound reasoning, he finishes every chapter by studying duties t hat were much less cruel and never turned into genocidal such as Cuba, South Africa, and the Philippines during its counter revolt against the Huk rebellion of 1947-1953 (Miller). The outcome of all these examples, some of which could make up deserving abstracts for university or school teaching, is that, with the exclusion of Cambodia, genocide/mass killing is rarely a policy of first resort (Valentino). It is better to say that it is a deliberate and expedient strategy chosen to reach a definite goal. The Fascists made several attempts to vanish Jews from their captured territories, including compulsory emigration and deportation. In some time this methods were substituted by extirpation. The famous soviet ruler Stalin released the famine in Ukrainian. He did it by keeping to the policy of agricultural collectivization. And the author describes a parallel process with reference to the Guatemalan regime’s increasing violence against its village people considering the villag es population rising for the riot. The average reader is not familiar with Guatemalan example, but historians claim and approve the accuracy of the stated events. The main point of the book is that the leaders exploit genocide/mass killing in order to achieve their political or ethnical goals. Valentino contends that, assassinating innocent people in wide numbers is clarified as a tactical step based on a lucid vision of the end outcome. Indeed, Valentino leads us beyond the limits of what prompts people to kill other people, to the more important question of what moves their leaders to command them to act this way. It is an insuperable, profound and, of course, significant argument. Nevertheless, like most arguments it assumes some examples that cannot be brought into correlation with the author’s six motivational range. View, for instance, the often fatal behavior of the soldiers who act in accordance with the command of Bosnian Muslim Naser Ori in the Serb villages surroun ding Srebrenica. Now on trial in The Hague for war crimes, Ori was operating without the authority of the Bosnian leadership in Sarajevo and very much in response to the aggression of the Bosnian Serb army (which was receiving aid and directives not only from their civilian leadership in Pale, but from Belgrade itself) (Miller). Valentino may contradict that Ori’s deeds, as those of similar insurgents will never achieve the level of mass killing that is appropriate in their opinion. Moreover these rebels act only in accordance with their leader policy and views. They did, nevertheless, intimidate the Bosnian Serb people near Srebrenica. Similarly, the Guatemalan villagers intimidated by their own authorities. And despite that the Bosnian Serbs certainly did not need any additional motivation for their clearly conceived program of ethnic cleansing and genocide, Ori’s actions were, we know now, on their minds when they entered Srebrenica in July 2005 (Miller). Valentino’s research is not limited by the seven motives definition, it goes deeper. It does, nevertheless, point out that profound and deep reasons such as vengeance or simply terror, can also stir up cases of genocide/mass killing, especially when a current government is absent or does not have the real power. I have mentioned this because Valentino’s proofs can sometimes seem abundantly positive in effort to describe policies that forecast and avert genocide/mass killing. I understand that author tries to consider genocide not as something scheduled, but rather as the thoroughly chosen tools to reach goals that are desired for the state or certain group. Surely Valentino’s work is based on the investigation of others. Though his sources belong to scientific ones and his work is fully footnoted, his conclusions are based on impressive mixture of investigations that were carried out during the past half century, but not on any original reviews, original works, o r other investigation programs. For instance in chapter three he considers some rather intuitional causes that make genocide/mass killing more likely, including: the higher the priority that communist leaders assign to the radical transformation of society; the more rapidly ethnic cleansing is carried out; and the greater the physical capabilities for mass killing possessed by the perpetrators (Valentino). Similar example can be referred to the author’s believe the Holocaust was unique because each of the millions of lives it extinguished was unique, never to lived again â€Å"(Valentino). I cannot agree with this statement because every person in our world is unique. And one will not become unique only for the reason of being killed during the Holocaust. According to Nazi world view the Jews belonged to the lowest group of the human rung hierarchy. Actually the Hitler’s ideology regarding conceived of Jewish people was carried through the ages. Fascists were afraid o f their Aryan blood being contaminated. Valentino’s book has prospered in providing readers not only with a reasonable interpretation for genocide/mass killing, but also with many valuable proposals for what we should do to prevent it. Benjamin A. Valentino thinks that ethnic enmity or harassment, anti-democratic policy of government in community do not influence mass killing and genocide that is generally accepted. He affirms that the stimulus for mass killing usually initiates from a relatively little groupings of forceful leaders and is often realized without any approval of society. Mass killing, to the author’s mind, is a savage political or martial plan worked out to achieve leaders most significant goals. Leaders use this technique to overcome menace to their power, and resolve their most complicated problems. Valentino does not confine his research to mass killing aimed against ethnic groups. He characterizes mass killing as the intentional killing of 50,000 or more innocent people during five years. The book concentrates on three kinds of mass killing: communist mass killings like the ones carried out in the Soviet Union, China, and Cambodia; ethnic genocides as in Armenia, Nazi Germany, and Rwanda; and counter-guerrilla campaigns including the brutal civil war in Guatemala and the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan (Miller). Valentino finishes the book by disputing that attempts to prevent mass killing should be aimed on disarmament and shifting from governing the leaders and small groups in charge of initiating and arranging the killing. As for me the main conclusion of this book has been the clear gospel truth in all times. The problem that I consider the main – is contradiction of society. There will always be those leaders, and small groups that are aimed to reach their personal goals. But these leaders are the children of society. But on the other hand people need somebody to manage them, that is why they agree to all leaders requirements. All in all, Valentino has r aised a very important problem that alarms people all over the world. The author sets very vivid and arresting examples that simply catch your attention. But one thing I can say with certain that this book was not written for the average reader. To develop one’s reasonable mind on this book one should be good at history, sociology and psychology. Bibliography Miller, P. â€Å"Final Solutions.† H-Genocide 14.09 (2005): 34-38 Valentino, Benjamin. Final Solutions: Mass Killing and Genocide in the 20-th Century. Cornwell University Press, 2004.

Analysis of I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died and Because I Could Not Stop

Analysis of I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died and Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Emily Dickinson Emily Dickinson wrote many poems in her lifetime. She writes two of my favorite poems. They are: ?I heard a Fly buzz when I died? and ?Because I could not stop for Death?. They both have similarities and differences from each other. There are similarities in these two poems such as the theme and the observentness of the narrator. Both of the poems themes involve death. In ?I heard a Fly buzz when I died?, the poet writes, ? And then the Windows failed ? and then I could not see to see- ", which means that the narrator?s eyes would not open no more; they had died. In ?Because I could not stop for Death? it shows the theme even in the title. In this poem, the poet writes in a clearer way that her theme was of a deathly tone. ?Because I could not stop for Death- He kindly stopped for me?. The narrator in these two poems is quiet observant. In ?I heard a Fly buzz when I died?, the narrator can hear the buzzing of a fly just before he/she dies. The poet writes, ?-a...

Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum :: essays papers

Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum This AD is about an alcoholic beverage called Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum. When you first see this AD you can clearly see that the focus of this ad is to make you want to drink. It jumps out and says â€Å"drinking is cool†. It’s saying not directly but indirectly. The focus of it is to make you want to buy this beer because those people are drinking it. They’re having a fun and great time, so the ad can get those people that want to have a fun and great time. The tone of this ad is pretty funny. As you can see the headline of this ad says, â€Å"take off your pants and stay a while†. You can make different interpretations of this ad which makes it even funnier. The voice is also very funny, because of that line. The language is quite funny to me, but some people that do not understand it probably would not enjoy this ad. Some people might think the language is ridiculous and inappropriate. Most young people would find this ad very natural to them. I am not saying that old people wouldn’t like this ad, but some of them might not get it or understand the humor of the ad. It all depends what your definition of humor is. The audience is mainly designed for younger people. I can conclude this by seeing that all the people in cabin are young, maybe in there 20’s. Also they could be snowboarding and not a lot of old people snowboard. So this ad is mainly to attract the younger folks. The design of this is pretty thought out. The whole logo is in red, and the ad is in black and white so they try to catch your attention by doing that. You turn the page in the magazine and all of sudden you see â€Å"take off your pants and stay a while† you probably are going to see what the ad is all about. I think its smart advertising that they have the main logo in red and the alcohol colored but the background in black and white.

Classical vs. Keynsian Economics Essay

There are several significant factors that differentiate Classical from Keynesian economics. Classical economics stays true to the laissez-faire concept of no government mediation in businesses with the assumption that the economy will work itself out. Keynesian economics, on the other hand, revolves around deficit spending and the belief that essentially â€Å"in the long run, we’re all going to die†. Both schools of economics take a different stance on the behavior of consumers, fiscal policy, and government spending. Classical economists, in essence, monitor what is currently transpiring in the economy. They believe that the economy is stable and self-sustaining because in the long run, the market supposedly automatically adjusts to â€Å"booms† and â€Å"busts†. This principle is heavily influenced by the epoch of industrialization – during and after. In a Classical economic model, economists consent individuals’ actions and desires, thus allowing prices to fluctuate based on that individuals’ needs. Say’s Law explicates this phenomenon by saying that supply creates its own demand and in result, the economy is stimulated when more goods are produced. Furthermore, Classicalists do not act with fiscal policies and strongly believe the notion that government spending impedes a nation’s economic growth Keynesian economists believe that the government is imperfect and is not able to sustain itself so government intervention is not only beneficial, but also crucial to mediate the economy. Their stance on fiscal policy is to either contract or expand the economy with specific tools depending on the gap in the economy. In a Keynesian economic model, economists rely on government spending to jumpstart an economy if it was dragged down into a depression. When there is a lack of growth, the government should stimulate demand. Personally, I would agree with Classical economics, but with all the assumptions present it is nearly impossible to side with them. Most of the assumptions are not true and are essential to accurately find a solution to economic problems. For instance, President Ronald Reagan was big on the  theory of hands-off business, yet he plundered the nation into the most drastic deficit; more than all of his predecessors combined. Not having government intervention is nearly impossible since there is always a need to mediate the economy. I would side more with Keynesian economics since there is almost always a practical solution to a problem. In other words, it is like an algorithm: you need so much to get the desired output. For instance, in the Great Depression of 2008, the government efficiently used expansionary fiscal policy to boost the economy. Government spending was vastly increased, as well as taxes. Our economy was gradually remedied by the policies that were enacted upon, thus my reason for siding with Keynesian economics.

Abuse of Woman’s Rights

ABUSE OF WOMAN'S RIGHTS A man once approached me and asked, â€Å"Could you describe a woman in three words?† I than asked â€Å"A woman from which century, the 15th or the 20th?† He than said â€Å"Both!† After a moment of thought I replied, † A woman from the 15th century would be, gentle, loving and inspiring† than I paused†¦ and confidently continued † However a woman from the 20th century would be, greedy, greedy and greedy†. You might all be wondering why I have such pessimistic views towards the woman of the 20th century even though I'm a woman, right? Since 1848, the birth of the Woman Liberation Movement, many women of the world have changed their traditional feminine ways just to obtain what they call as ‘equal rights'. I have no objections to the term ‘equal rights' as every human being despite female or male deserve to be treated equally. However due to the expansion of this movement many beliefs have been misunderstood, for example a woman's age is everything. In this century, the 21st century, if a woman is less than 20 years of age they have no responsibilities, they call it freedom. If a woman is less than 30 years old their career is everything and marriage should just be a distant dream. However if a woman were less than 40 years of age they would have to juggle a family life and their career but soon confronted with a need to lead a free life. As woman gradually grow older they ‘free' again just like they were when younger than 20. This is the message that ‘Hollywood' brings forward to every woman of the world, but if you were to compare movies of the past to those of today the personality and role of woman have changed dramatically. The Woman Liberation Movement did finally achieve their long wished dream, and that is to obtain equal rights. After awhile the movement was misunderstood and women of the world started rebelling/ protesting against nothing. All these women were just greedy for fame, money and mostly power. For many years these women demanded equal rights. However in the book of law it states that ‘women should be protected as they are the weaker species'. Where is the just in that? If woman are the weaker species and every woman of the world agreed to this law why do they ask for equal rights? The equalization in opportunities, why? If they wanted equal rights so badly the first thing that should have protested against was this law. Why was this law made in the first place? That is because it was designed to protect woman, to protect woman from the outside world and this weaker gender could be very vulnerable if caught alone. That is why this law was designed. Why haven't they rebelled against this law? That's because they are all very aware of the dangers that lie before them if this law wasn't present. The risk of anything happening to them would be twice the amount. When Eve was first made wasn't she made from one of the ribs of Adam? Eve came from a part of Adam. Doesn't that make her not as equal in everything compared to Adam? Eve just came from one tiny part if compared against the rest of Adam's body. Why do you think God made it that way? A woman is the carrier of life; they were designed for that one purpose. A woman's body is not made built like a man's, which restricts a woman from doing a man's job. Perhaps woman are bored doing nothing at home, not being able to obtain and education, or money to support them self. My point is not to go against any of this issues, my purpose is to restrict the obsessions in believing that woman deserve more at this current century. We, the women have asked for more than we can ever afford. If a woman was a president and she was pregnant does that make her exempted from her duties? Won't that affect the country if she has to juggle parenting and ruling a country? A man doesn't go through that phase, that's why males are the leaders of the world, that's the secret behind that. I'm begging every single woman of the world right now, to get an education, get a start in your career but don't let it affect anything especially your children, return the natural feminine ways that woman are created to be and don't be greedy for more than you already have because if the Woman's Liberation Movements really did care about the woman of the world less women would be raped every year, less women would suffer financial problems, less women would be illiterate and less women would die due to just being a woman. I'm now pleading to everyone to take a stand, don't follow the temptations, and follow the true path because that path would lead you to the greatest success you can ever achieve. Thank you.

Aeon History

History Company JAYA JUSCO is set up in Malaysia In 1984, Jaya Jusco Stores Sdn. Bhd. was established in Malaysia, in response to the Malaysian Prime Minister Dato' Seri Dr. Mahathir's request to help modernize thee retail industry in Malaysia using the world's most advanced management expertise. Dr. Mahathir believed that the modernization of the retail industry was crucial for the country's economic growth. Prior to this, in 1983 Dr. Mahathir visited Tokyo and met the then JUSCO Co. , Ltd. President, Mr. Takuya Okada to discuss the proposition of bringing the JUSCO name to Malaysia. The talks ended on a positive note and Dr.Mahathir invited JUSCO to set up store in Malaysia. All this was part of Dr. Mahathir's Look East policy for Malaysia. Year| Description| 1984| JAYA JUSCO STORES SDN BHD established, in response to a request from Prime Minister Y. A. B. Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad, to help modernize the retailing industry in Malaysia. | 1985| The first pilot store, JAYA J USCO Dayabumi, opened. The second pilot store, JAYA JUSCO Taman Tun Dr. Ismail opened. | 1989| JAYA JUSCO Dayabumi closed. The first Superstore, JAYA JUSCO Taman Maluri, opened. | 1991| JUSCO Melaka was opened and fully operated by Malaysian staff. The ?ON Group's â€Å"Hometown Forest† programme was launched simultaneously at the inauguration of JUSCO Melaka. | 1992| JUSCO Wangsa Maju (Alpha Angle Shopping Centre), our first Shopping Centre, opened. | 1994  | Our Distribution Centre began operations. Japanese Trainee Programme begun. | 1995  | JAYA JUSCO Taman Tun Dr. Ismail closed. JUSCO Bandar Utama (1 Utama Shopping Centre) opened. JUSCO Bandar Baru Klang (Bukit Raja Shopping Centre) opened. | 1996| JAYA JUSCO STORES BHD was listed on the Main Board of the KLSE. | 1997| JUSCO Ipoh (Kinta City Shopping Centre) opened. | 1998  | JUSCO Melaka Shopping Centre reopened. 1999| JUSCO Mid Valley opened. | 2000| JUSCO Taman Maluri Shopping Centre re-opened. JUSCO Bandar Puch ong opened. | 2001| Launch of WAOH Charity Fund / JUSCO Fest / JUSCO's 17th Anniversary. 22 Malaysian students and 2 former participants from the 1990 batch were invited to Japan as ‘Ambassadors ‘through the ? ON â€Å"1% Club† Programmer. | 2002| Establishment of JUSCO-OUM Retail Centre in Alpha Angle Shopping Centre, at Wangsa Maju. JUSCO Taman University opened, Japan Management Training Programmed reactivated. | 2003  | WAOH Charity Bazaar. JUSCO Home Centre opened in 1 Utama Shopping Centre. ,000 seedlings were planted in the vicinity of the JUSCO Permas Jaya store as part of ? ON's environmental campaign, ‘Planting Seeds of Growth'. JUSCO Permas Jaya Shopping Centre opened. | 2004  | JUSCO Metro Prima Tree Planting Ceremony was held. 2,000 seedlings were planted. JUSCO Metro Prima Shopping Centre opened. WAOH Charity Fund officially registered as the â€Å"WAOH† Malaysian JUSCO Foundation. Company authorized share capital increased from RM10 0,000,000 to RM500,000,000. JAYA JUSCO STORES BHD. officially changed name to AEON CO. (M) BHD. JUSCO celebrated 20th Anniversary in Malaysia with Gala Dinner.Official launch of â€Å"WAOH† Malaysian JUSCO Foundation. 30,000 seedlings planted in the Malaysia-Japan Friendship Forest, AEON Woodland, Paya Indah Wetlands. Completed Bonus Issue (1:1) for 87,750,000 new Ordinary Shares. | 2005  | AEON CO. (M) BHD. received a certificate of appreciation from the Prime Minister for its tree planting activities. Charity Gala Dinner was held. The management of AEON CO. (M) BHD. met with the Mentri Besar of Negeri Sembilan, Y. A. B. Datuk Seri Utama Hj Mohamad Bin Hj Hasan. JUSCO Seremban 2 Tree Planting ceremony was held. 3,300 seedlings were planted. JUSCO Seremban 2 opened.JUSCO J-One Supermarket opened at Damansara Damai. AEON Tebrau City Tree Planting ceremony was held. 6,000 seedlings were planted. | 2006  | AEON Tebrau City Shopping Centre opened. Change of financial year end . AEON Taman Equine Tree Planting ceremony was held. 4,000 seedlings were planted. AEON Taman Equine Shopping Centre opened. PASAR RAYA D'HATI (formerly known as J-One) Supermarket in Pearl Point opened. AEON Cheras Selatan Tree Planting ceremony was held. 4,000 seedlings were planted. WAOH Gala Dinner held. JUSCO Queensbay store opened. AEON Cheras Selatan Shopping Centre opened. 2007| PASAR RAYA D'HATI name change ceremony held at Pearl Point Shopping Mall. | 2008  | Completed Bonus Issue (1:1) for 175,500,000 new Ordinary Shares. AEON Careline was launched. AEON Seberang Prai City Shopping Centre Tree Planting Ceremony held. 3,500 saplings were planted. JUSCO Seberang Prai City (AEON Seberang Prai City Shopping Centre) opened. Taman Asuhan Kanak-Kanak Asahi (TAKA) at Bandar Puchong Jaya opened. 24th Anniversary Tree Planting at AEON Woodland. 2,400 saplings were planted. AEON AU2 Setiawangsa Shopping Centre Tree Planting Ceremony held. 4,600 saplings were planted.JUSCO AU2 Seti awangsa (AEON AU2 Setiawangsa Shopping Centre) opened. AEON Bukit Indah Shopping Centre Tree Planting Ceremony held. 3,000 saplings wereplanted. JUSCO Bukit Indah (AEON Bukit Indah Shopping Centre) opened. | 2009  | Pasar Raya MaxValu Pearl Point closed. 25th Anniversary Tree Planting Ceremony at AEON Woodland. 25,000 saplings planted. AEON Bandaraya Melaka Shopping Centre Tree Planting Ceremony held. 2,000 saplings were planted. | 2010  | â€Å"With All Our Hearts† Malaysia JUSCO Foundation changed name to Malaysia AEON Foundation. JUSCO Bandaraya Melaka (AEON Bandaraya Melaka Shopping Centre) opened.AEON Mahkota Cheras Tree Planting Ceremony held. 3,000 saplings were planted. JUSCO Mahkota Cheras (AEON Mahkota Cheras Shopping Centre) opened. | 2011  | JUSCO Bandar Utama reopened. AEON Rawang Anggun Shopping Centre Tree Planting Ceremony held. 3,500 saplings were planted. JUSCO Rawang (AEON Rawang Anggun Shopping Centre) opened. Disposal of Smart Wonder World (SWW) amu sement business completed. | 2012  | AEON Ipoh Station 18 Shopping Centre Tree Planting Ceremony held. 3,500 saplings were planted. AEON unveiled the new brand name â€Å"AEON† and tagline â€Å"AEON Enriching Your Lifestyle†.Card rebranded to AEON Member Card. AEON Ipoh Station 18 (AEON Ipoh Station 18 Shopping Centre) opened. | Social responsibilities Social responsibility  is an ethical  or theory that an  entity, be itan  organization  or  individual, has an obligation to act to benefit society at large. Social responsibility is a duty every individual or organization has to perform so as to maintain a balance between the economy and the ecosystem. A trade-off always exists between economic development, in the material sense, and the welfare of the society and environment.Social responsibility means sustaining the equilibrium between the two. It pertains not only to business organizations but also to everyone who’sany action impacts the environ ment. Ethical Issues Ethics, also known as  moral philosophy, is a branch of  philosophy  that involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct. The term comes from the Greek word  ethos, which means â€Å"character†. Ethics is a complement to Aesthetics  in the philosophy field of Axiology. In philosophy, ethics studies the moral behaviour in humans, and how one should act.Ethics may be divided into four major areas of study. Introduction At AEON, we believe a green environment is the basis for a better life, as such we have developed a comprehensive ecology programme to address the global warming issue and aim to significantly eliminate carbon dioxide (CO? ) emissions. To create higher environmental awareness and educate younger generations on the importance of environment protection, we have involved the participation of various parties, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), government agencies and other communities, in eve ry programme initiated by the company Green Initiatives Malaysia-Japan Friendship Forestry at Paya Indah Wetlands * On 13 September 2004, AEON held a special dinner in gloryof Tun Dr. Mahathir bin. Mohamad, the former Prime Minister of Malaysia. Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad was invited to sign a plaque, together with Mr Takuya Okada, for the launching of the Malaysia-Japan Friendship Forest. This tabletwas placed at the forest site, which was named the AEON Woodland, a special area about eight hectares set aside in Paya Indah Wetlands. * Aeon Green Fund AEON Green Fund was established in-conjunction with the â€Å"No Plastic Bag Day Every Saturday† campaign. Customers requesting plastic bags on Saturdays will be charged 20 cents for each plastic bag. The fee will serve as a deterrent to shoppers against the use of plastic bags. Proceeds charged on the plastic bags will go to the Green Fund which supports all AEON's environmental and corporate social responsibility activities. * Aeon Eco Fair 2010 * AEON Co. (M) BHD had launched an eco-event called ‘Eco Fair 2010' on 20 April 2010 at AEON Bandaraya Melaka Shopping Centre.The main purpose of this event is to educate and inspire the general public and the community about the importance of sustainable practices. Green Award * Green Leadership Award 2010 * AEON won the Green Leadership Award at the Asia Responsible Entrepreneurship Awards (AREA) held in Kuala Lumpur. The award recognizes AEON for their environment protection efforts through the ‘Planting Seeds of Growth'. Reduction in Energy Consumption' and recycling campaigns. AEON planted more than 400,000 saplings in 25 years with the ‘Planting Seeds of Growth' activity which is now a tradition that follows the opening of each new store.They reduced energy consumption by installing inverter systems in their offices and outlets and also encourage recycling by establishing AEON Community Recycling Centres (CRC). AEON pledges its commitmen t to uphold corporate social responsibilities in Malaysia. The company has always been perceptive towards conserving the environment for the sake of future generations and will continue endorsing the importance of a greener tomorrow. Green Awareness * IGEM 2010 * The Tree of Life, moulded from corrugated box material and standing proudly in the centre on the booth, is designed to reflect AEON's ecological work towards preserving nature.With AEON's core philosophy of ‘Planting Seeds of Growth', the tree not only represents seeds that have reached their potential, but highlights how trees sustain life by moderating the climate, providing a wildlife habitat and improving air quality. To remind IGEM 2010 visitors of this philosophy, a free packet of seeds is available to take home when they make a pledge on the Tree of Hope. The AEON Chairman Dato’ Abdullah b. Mohd. Yusof He are pleased to present AEON Credit Service (M) Berhad (AEON Credit) Annual Reportand Audited Financi al Statements for the financial year ended 20 February 2012.When the slower growth in global economy in 2011, the Malaysian economy remained resilient with sustained growth in domestic demand supported by mainly higher expenditure from the public sector along with growth in both business andhousehold spending in an environment of continued positive consumer sentiment. Planning The meaning of planning is the process of thinking about, organizing the activities required to achieve a desired goal and developing plans to integrate. Planning is also called forethought. Planning involves the creation and maintenance of a plan.As such, planning is a fundamental property of intelligent behavior. In the organization creation and maintenance of a plan is very important. This is because the manager in the organization have creativity that mean that the manager ability to develop new idea and to discover new way of looking at problem and opportunity. Develop the new idea is the proses activity to the manager become successful to managerial the employee to become creative and behavior to an organization. In the Aeon Corporation manager is very successful moving from an idea to an organization to become the bigger market in Melaka.Aeon Corporation is using the classifying manager tools managerial the employee. The top manager is making organization – wide decision and establishing plans and goals that affect the entire organization. After, the top managers making decision with past to middle manager to managerial the first – line manager. Middle manager past to first – line manager to managerial the non-managerial employee. All the employee in Aeon Corporation very honest and ethic is because they have a top manager to share their conceptual skill to think all the best toward the organization goals.After that, middle manager will share their human skill to work with other people. After thought, first – line manager will share technical skill show ed their knowledge to employee. Aeon Corporation management is very successful in coordinating and overseeing the work activities of other so that their activities are completed efficiently and effectively. Besides that, follow management role to develop the best customer relationship and customer service. Organizing Organizing  is the act of rearranging  elements following one or more  rules or principle.In anything is commonly considered organized when it looks like everything has a correct order or placement. It's only ultimately organized if any element has no difference on time taken to find it. Not only can that, organizing also be defined as  to place different objects in logical arrangement for better searching. Organizations  are  groups  of people organized for some purpose, such as business or political activities. Dato’ Abdullah bin Mohd Yusof the Aeon jusco chairman he regardless of how times may have changed, is to serve the  Ã¢â‚¬ËœCustomer Firs t ’.He always mindful of the three keywords which make up the essence and character of the retail industry and must be considered in any development:  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœpeace’,  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœpeople’ and  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœcommunity’. Because ours is a person-to-person business and our existence is deeply intertwined with the people of the regions and societies in which we serve. These precepts remain the same wherever we do business, where we act as a contributing member of the local community. 2010 whiles the public sector. lly He is organizing the Accelerating Shopping Center Development and Aggressive Pursuit of GMS Stores.He organizes to establish a solid competitive position and achieve continuous growth. Accelerating Shopping Center Development is channel in the resources towards developing attractive, integrated commercial facilities which the customers can fully enjoy, such as regional shopping center and neighborhoods shopping center. This segment can also involve lea sing shopping space and facilities to tenants. The Aggressive Pursuit of GMS Stores is the General Merchandise Stores (GMS) in the Aeon Jusco with combine supermarkets and departmental stores under one roof to operate as full-line retailers.The Products was offered range from food and other daily necessities, apparel and household goods also include bedding and bathroom products to specialized products such as home appliances, sporting goods and cosmetics. The goal of the organization is to operate as an â€Å"international-scale retailing group†. The Aeon Jusco Chairman Dato’ Abdullah bin Mohd Yusof to recognise for excellence not only in Japan also in other nations like Hong Kong and China. In the international recognition Aeon work to achieve is not only measure merely in quantifiable terms of size, growth and profitability.The chairman also hope to be competitive at the global level in intangible aspects such as can making the customer satisfaction and corporate ci tizenship. He dedicated to the idea of â€Å"quality management† to further enhance our capabilities. Leading ‘Leading' can comes from the metal-type when it typesetters inserted thin  strips  of  lead   to increase the spacing between lines. Then it for legibility or stylistic effects. Lines of normal text without leading are said to be set solid, and usually give a dense and dark  appearance  to the text block.The 5th batch of trainees who successfully completed the Japan Trainee Programmed returned to Malaysia on 17 January 2007. They are holding positions as leaders in their respective stores nationwide. In the Japan Trainee Programmer is designed to help selected leaders prepare for the every changing retail environment to overseas working conditions. One of the vital ways to increase their knowledge and skills in retailing to given them some experience in AEON Japan. This programmed also teaches them to be independent, in preparation for their future r oles as leaders in the Company.AEON also have publishes the AEON Business School to intense course for the benefit of merchandisers, store managers and deputy store managers was organized by AEON. AEON Business School to celebrate the successful completion in the course and in the special closing ceremony was held on 22 September 2006. Chairman Dato’ Abdullah bin Mohd Yusof to train and develop new leaders from within the Company, AEON CO. (M) BHD. He has created a New Leader Development Program (NLDP). The Participants were asked to present a project that applied all the skills and knowledge they gained during the one-year course.He train the new leader to help the AEON future develop to accomplished the company goal. He has train the new leader to help to direct the staff working. He saying the â€Å"CUSTOMER FISRT’, uses the new leader to train the more quality staff. AEON CO. (M) BHD. Is organized a number of team-building activities to throughout the year to deve lop attitudes, motivation and unity within the Company. Team-building Program was also held for Blue Wave for the supervisors and assistant supervisors at Kem Bina Semangat Yayasan Selangor. To give them more experience to operate the manage line. ControllingControlling is the basic  management  function  of establishing  benchmarks  or standards, comparing actual  performance  against them, and taking  corrective action, if  required. Name AEON is derived from the Latin word which means ‘eternity'. JUSCO has become a household name in the Malaysians and has been growing together with our nation since its first presence in Malaysia. The slogan ‘Customer First' has always been the driving in the philosophy for the AEON group. Now, AEON CO. (M) BHDis moving towards globalization by taking on the global brand name for all its stores and shopping centers.It is also the perfect opportunity for AEON to further strengthen its position in the market and to esta blish a clear brand identity. AEON is organizing a press launch, series of campaign posters, TVC, radio contest, customer engagement activities, and special merchandise. Furthermore, AEON will introduce a new tagline, ‘AEON ENRICHING YOUR LIFESTYLE' to the public. The dynamic new brand name and logo are part of the company's strategy to increase its profile as a leading retailer in Malaysia, added by Dato' Abdullah bin Mohd Yusof, Chairman of AEON CO. M) BHD.. He believes that we have established the foundations not only for sustainable growth but also for excellence in delivering values and customer service to our customers. Dato' Abdullah bin Mohd Yusof, Chairman of AEON CO. (M) BHD to the entire one million J CARD holders. The member cards will be upgraded to the new AEON Member Card that retains some of the previous J CARD benefits plus some added new ones also including all existing accumulated points will be transferred to the new AEON Member Card.Every Members can repla ce their card at the AEON Member Card Customer Service Counter for FREE starting from 15 March 2012 – 30 April 2012. Nonetheless, new members can enjoy a new fee rate at RM24 for a 3 years membership. Besides, AEON stores will also undergo face lifting consistent with the new AEON corporate identity while still retaining the familiar JUSCO feel. All the JUSCO signage and pylon signage will be replaced in phases during the two years rebranding exercise. AEON is ambitious to improve our customer services.The various programs will be initiated in order to increase and upgrade the company's customer services to higher levels. We will ensure and strive to continuously provide our customers with improved and better services. Finally, we at AEON promise to continue deliver a great shopping experience that will enrich our customers' lifestyles. Opportunity In the consistent new growth and a vigorous program of constant renovation at existing market in the region. AEON MALL has now op ened its doors to retailers for the all esteemed organization to be a part of a large business opportunity in AEON MALL's in the future developments.In the well-established retail developer in Japan was rapidly developing in large scale shopping centers in South East Asia countries including Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia and even in China. we have arranged a solid business presentation about our expansion plans in these states. We are in charge of developing businesses and directly involved with the rapid emergence and operations over 60 shopping malls nations over. AEON MALL was looking ahead to aggressive shopping mall development as the AEON Group's core company was responsible to aim sustainable growth.In the same time, we find to strengthen initiatives that will accelerate the pace of openings and the development of sites for this endeavor. From the capacity to open new shopping on the listed countries is frightening. We are pursuing nonstop value improvement. By saying an â€Å"ALL NEW AEON MALL,†. We are making everything new also include renewing on hand shopping malls. This is reflected in the frequency of strong name that AEON MALL commands among many area store companies, which regularly name its malls as desired locations to shop and spend.We intend to open more malls in the near future, with a quickening of pace planned from time to time. Going forward, we will aggressively expand openings of our shopping malls tailored for commercial areas and expanding business opportunities. At accessible shopping malls, AEON MALL is hurrying renovation initiatives in order to increase earnings and achieve projection by enhancing the ability of these facilities to attract customers. Sales at the average shopping mall start to soften a few years after its start business. We will make constant adjustment to maintain the good looks of our malls to customers.In the strong economic growth in this region has also sparked positive economic opp ortunities that to us indicate the dawn of the age of the shopping mall. We intend to further expand our shopping mall development business even further, thereby enhance corporate value. We Regardless domestic or overseas in the AEON MALLs would and should be supported and beloved by local residents continuously. Developer versed in the retailing industry to aim build towns that are indispensible 50 years on or even 100 years into the future always see the things from the customer's standpoint.Finally, we will work on contributing to local communities, creating comfortable and safe shopping malls and even carrying out activities that will pass on a pretty environment to the next generation. We see real market potentials for the mall business for respectable entrepreneurs. In the our policy in going forward is primarily to gain a dominant position in the key markets of Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia and China, while at the same time pursuing development ventures thro ughout the nation.We will also focus on developing new malls over other potential ASEAN region and aiming to increase the number of our facilities or more. Conclusion Aeon Corporation is the successful supermarket in Malaysia. This is because there have the good manager to develop the new idea to managerial the employee in the organization. So that the AEON corporation business also very successful increase every year. This nice results is not a manager have good skill to managerial people, employee also cooperation toward the organization goal can be accomplish.AEON Corporation is the good example to their managerial skill and the ability to do the better and think the good toward the organization. Although, management function such as, planning, organization, leading and controlling, this management function is an important way that show ability of manager can be successful or not to managerial the organization to become successful. But Aeon have today status, is because their man ager have conceptual skill to do all the best toward the organization. This past few year, we can see that the Aeon corporation income statement has beautiful number; it means that Aeon Corporation has earned money.In Melaka everyone will famous that the Aeon this bigger shopping Centre, this will prove the Aeon Corporation to improve their best attitude toward their customer. In the Malaysia normally people famous they think is the think that the customer wants to test it to satisfied their want and need. The best way for the one organization much have training class to all employee to improve himself knowledge to joint in the social and the best attitude to learn moral value to improve personal self-cultivation. Aeon corporation manager already doing the think right to showed their ability in the organization.REFERENCE 1. AEON CO. (M) BHD (2012). History company. Retrieved 13 MARCH 2013, from aeonretail. com. my 2. AEON CO. (M) BHD (2012 ). social responsibility. Retrieved 25 marc h 2013, from http://aeonretail. com. my/ 3. AEON CO. (M) BHD (2012). Management function. Retrieved 20 march 2013, from aeonretail. com. my 4. Wikipedia (2009). AEON. Retrieved 24M ARCH 2013, from Wikipedia. org 5. AEONCR (2013). chairman statement. Annual report AEON 2012  (pp. 18-19). malaysia: AEON publisher credit service

From Brand Values to Customer Value Essays

From Brand Values to Customer Value Essays From Brand Values to Customer Value Essay From Brand Values to Customer Value Essay From brand values to customer value Martin Christopher Recently there has been a growing tide of articles, papers and even conferences devoted to the question of the future of marketing (see, for example Brady and Davis, 1993; Coopers Lybrand, 1993; Mitchell, 1994). Essentially, the point at issue is whether â€Å"traditional† marketing is appropriate for the conditions that now prevail in the late twentieth century. The basic principle of marketing still applies, that is the focus of the business on the satisfaction of customer needs, but, it is argued, the way in which marketing is practised may need to change fundamentally. It has to be recognized that there have been some radical changes in the marketing environment since marketing first came to prominence in the early 1960s. Organizations which had even the most rudimentary understanding of the marketing concept were able to reap the harvest of fast-growing markets comprising customers who had money to spend. In such conditions it was easy to believe that the company’s marketing effort was the main driver of this success. In reality that success was due as much to the fact that the business was being carried along with the tidal wave of market growth. The most significant change to impact western companies has been the maturing of the markets in which they compete. Mature markets have certain characteristics which mark them out as being significantly different from growth markets. Chief among the characteristics of mature markets are: Customer sophistication. In the majority of western economies, today’s customer and consumer has seen it all, they have been there and â€Å"bought the T-shirt†. In industrial markets, as well as fast-moving consumer goods markets, the supplier is now faced with a buyer who is much more demanding and less easily persuaded by marketing â€Å"hype†. One consequence of this change is the gradual decline in brand loyalty in many markets (Industry Week, 1993). Decline in the impact of advertising. It has been suggested by some industry commentators (Maddox, 1995) that, with the decline of the mass market and the consequent fragmentation of markets into smaller segments, conventional media-based advertising, particularly TV, is costing more and more to deliver the requisite ratings. This is causing a rethink in many organizations as to how they allocate their marketing budget. For example, it is reported that in the UK, Heinz is planning to divert most of its arketing communications budget from TV and apply it instead to direct marketing. From brand values to customer value 55 Journal of Marketing Practice: Applied Marketing Science, Vol. 2 No. 1, 1996, pp. 55-66.  © MCB University Press, 1355-2538 JMP: AMS 2,1 56 Perceived product equality. Mature markets exhibit similar characteristics to commodity markets in that customers pe rceive little difference between competing offers. In such conditions, while customers might have brand preferences they have less brand loyalty – meaning that if the preferred brand is not available, they will willingly accept a substitute. : Even product/markets with high rates of innovation do not seem immune from this tendency to â€Å"commoditization†; take, for example, the personal computer market, where clones and â€Å"me-toos† now account for significant market shares. Price competition. Almost by definition the combined effect of the previous three factors is a downward pressure on price. As a result, there is a temptation to seek to achieve tactical gains in sales volume through discounting in one form or another which is compounded by the continuing demands for price reductions by powerful customers. Paradoxically, the more that organizations compete on price, the more they reinforce the customers’ view that they are indeed commodity suppliers. Concentration of buying power A further significant difference in today’s marketing environment, compared to the past, is the continuing concentration of buying power in many markets. Concentration has occurred as organizations merge or grow through take-overs, and as the inevitable result of a competitive process that leads to the â€Å"survival of the fittest† (The Economist, 1993). This process of concentration seems to be present in just about every industry. The grocery retail market is a very visible example. Figure 1 shows the percentage of the total market in western European economies accounted for by the top five retailers in those countries. In that same market, there are beginning to emerge pan-European buying groups which will add to the concentration effect. These groups seek to use their combined buying power to gain better prices than they might be able to achieve by acting alone (Thornhill, 1990). The process of concentration in other industries in western Europe has been further accelerated through the process of European economic integration. Previously, countries had tended to develop their own industrial base independently from their neighbours, but now that the barriers to trade have mostly been removed there exists significant over-capacity in many industries. If a comparison were to be made between the USA and the countries of the European Union – in total the size of their populations are roughly similar – then it will be found that in many comparable industries there tend to be more players in Europe than in the USA. A good example is provided by the turbine generator industry where there are ten companies competing in that market compared to only two in the USA (Cooper et al. , 1991). 120 100 96. 7 From brand values to customer value 80 70. 2 65 62 52. 9 50 46. 7 80 57 45. 2 45. 1 42. 5 60 40 20. 4 20 12. 7 10 0 SF SW Key SF SW A CH UK A CH UK IRE IRE B D NL FR B D NL FR DK SP DK SP P I P IT = Finland = Sweden = Austria = Switzerland = United Kingdom = Ireland = Belgium = Germany = The Netherlands = France = Denmark = Spain = Portugal = Italy Source: AIM report Figure 1. Market share of top five retailers The fragmentation of consumer markets Paradoxically, while buying power in business-to-business markets is tending to concentrate, in consumer markets the trend has been to fragmentation. By fragmentation is meant a transition from the old idea of a uniform, homogeneous, â€Å"mass market† to much smaller segments where consumers seek individual solutions to their buying needs. The emerging idea of â€Å"micromarketing† (Kotler, 1994) is an attempt to focus marketing strategies on ever smaller groupings of customers. In the fragmented marketplace the conventional tools of mass marketing no longer have the same effect. National advertising campaigns through the mass media, for example, may no longer be the most cost effective way of communicating with these micro-markets. At the same time there is evidence that the more sophisticated consumer is influenced less by traditional advertising and that more purchase decisions are actually made at the point of sale (Dickson and Sawyer, 1990). The transition from brand value to customer value Much has been written about the changed nature of brand loyalty (Aaker, 1991), how the continued rise of private label products is further challenging JMP: AMS 2,1 58 conventional brands (Glemet and Mira, 1993) and how the â€Å"company† brand may be taking over from the individual brand (Barwise, 1992). Underlying these discussions is the view that brand â€Å"values† may not be as strong in the eyes of the consumer as they once were. The concept of brand values implies that what makes a brand a brand is its â€Å"personality† which distinguishes it from others and that the presence of this personality imparts some utility – however tangible – to the consumer. There is a strong body of research supporting the idea of brand personality as a source of value to the consumer (King, 1973). However, what seems to be happening is that the changes in the marketing environment summarized earlier are tending to diminish the strength of that value. The thrust of this article is that the original concept of brand value is in need of extension, and needs to be embodied within a wider concept of customer value. The customer value concept recognizes that marketplace success in the new competitive environment described above will require not only continued investment in the brand but also investment in customers. The underlying philosophy is that customers, not just consumers, have goals that they seek to achieve and that the role of the supplier is to help customers achieve those goals. Defining customer value Put very simply, customer value is created when the perceptions of benefits received from a transaction exceed the costs of ownership. The same idea can be expressed as a ratio: Perceptions of benefits Customer value = Total cost of ownership The marketing task is to find ways to enhance customer value by improving the perceived benefits and/or reducing the total costs of ownership. Both the numerator and the denominator of this ratio should be measured relative to competitive offers. Total cost of ownership rather than price is used here because in most transactions there will be costs other than price involved. For example, inventory carrying costs, maintenance costs, running costs, disposal costs and so on. In business-to-business markets, as buyers become increasingly sophisticated, the total cost of ownership can be a critical element in the purchase decision (Ellram, 1993). Life cycle costs, as they are referred to in the military and defence industries, have long been a critical issue in procurement decisions in those markets. The concept of customer value is of equal importance in consumer marketing as it is in business-to-business environments. In 1993, 2 April was termed â€Å"Black Friday† on Wall Street, New York because of major falls in the share prices of most branded goods companies. The trigger for this collapse had been the decision by Philip Morris to cut the price of its Marlboro cigarettes by 20 per cent or 40 cents a pack in order to counter competition from low price own-label products. The reason suggested by commentators for the fall in the share price of branded goods companies was that the Marlboro episode signalled the beginning of a revolt by customers who were starting to question the worth of paying significantly more for branded products which were no longer seen as delivering a commensurate amount of added value (The Economist, 1994a). Lowering the price (which had been increased ahead of inflation year after year) enabled Marlboro to restore the customer value it had been progressively eroding. Since taking this action its market share in the USA has increased dramatically. In seeking to deliver significantly superior customer value the marketer must clearly define, communicate and deliver a â€Å"value proposition† which is recognized by the target market as a better proposition than that presented by competitors. It should also be recognized that in most markets there will be different value segments but that to be successful in any one of them the customer value ratio must be seen to be superior to competitive offers. Figure 2 highlights how this idea might be applied to parts of the UK car market. Focusing on the value proposition forces the marketer to define clearly the two dimensions of cost and value shown in Figure 2 in terms of â€Å"what you give† and â€Å"what you get†. It must also be recognized that these dimensions are perceptual, meaning that continuing customer communication will be important if the value proposition is to be understood clearly by the target market. The sources of superior customer value are many. Treacy and Wiersema (1993) identify three value disciplines which can provide competitive What you get (perceived benefits) Superior value BMW Lexus From brand values to customer value 59 Fiat Uno Inferior value Different value segments What you give (total costs of ownership) Figure 2. Value segmentation JMP: AMS 2,1 60 advantage: operational excellence, product leadership and customer intimacy. Operational excellence is achieved through a focus on systems, costeffectiveness and speed so that customers are provided with the service they require, but at less cost. Product leadership as a strategy requires a commitment to continuous innovation, high levels of research and development, and a willingness to take risks. Customer-intimate companies are those that focus on building long-term relationships with customers particularly through a focus on service. While these strategies are not mutually exclusive, successful companies tend to follow predominantly one or other of these value disciplines. The emerging philosophy of relationship marketing (Christopher et al. , 1991) is a reflection of the growing recognition that long-term competitive advantage is gained by creating superior perceived value for customers. The argument is that customers are more likely to stay with suppliers if they believe that the relative customer value received from a current supplier is higher than that on offer elsewhere. Furthermore, there will often be considerable switching costs which would make a change of supplier unattractive. There are a growing number of examples of organizations that are establishing market leadership positions through a focus on customer value. Companies as diverse as Procter Gamble, British Steel, DHL and Milliken have all demonstrated that enduring customer relationships can be created through an understanding of the importance of operational excellence, product leadership and customer intimacy. The sources of marketing advantage In the new competitive environment, it is increasingly evident that successful marketing strategies are based on an amalgam of three critical elements: the creation of a consumer franchise whereby end-users are attracted to the product/service in question because they perceive a superior offer; a strong customer franchise where intermediaries want to do business with us because of a tangible economic benefit and, third, an under-pinning supply chain effectiveness that delivers superior service at less cost. Figure 3 summarizes the three sources of competitive advantage. Each of the three dimensions requires a clearly defined strategy, but developed as part of an integrative package to deliver superior value to customers and consumers alike. The consumer franchise While brand loyalty may no longer be as strong as it once was, the need to build a contract with the end-user is still a vital prerequisite for marketing advantage. Brand value is still a critical element in many purchase decisions although it seems that there has been a return to a concept of value based on traditional tangible or core benefits rather than the more emotionally-based, intangible benefits that seem to have fixated many marketers in the last quarter century. Now it seems that consumer loyalty more often is based on â€Å"hard† rather than â€Å"soft† dimensions. So, value for money, convenience, reliability, safety and functionality become the drivers of product or service choice. We buy a TV set Consumer franchise Brand values Corporate image Benefit focused From brand values to customer value 61 Marketing advantage Customer franchise Cost of ownership Value-adding relationship Service quality focus Supply chain effectiveness Network management Quick response Low cost supplier Figure 3. The sources of marketing advantage more for its features and the reputation of its manufacturer for reliability than we do for its image, for example. The impact of own-label, retailer-branded products in many categories is further testimony to this development. Coca-Cola, regarded as the world’s most recognized brand, has seen its market 30 Britain 25 20 15 France 10 Spain 5 Italy 0 1980 Note a 1986 1992 1993 Figure 4. Percentage of own-label market share Germanya Figures do not include Aldi Source: Boston Consulting Group JMP: AMS 2,1 62 share in the USA and the UK (and elsewhere too) under attack by own-label products which are seen by customers to deliver better value for money. Figure 4 shows the growing penetration of own-label products in major European markets. What this means for twenty-first century marketers is that in order to strengthen the consumer franchise, the focus of marketing effort must increasingly be on delivering solutions which can be translated into hard, tangible benefits by individual consumers. In many cases this will mean a transition to micro or one-to-one marketing whereby a greater degree of tailoring/customization of the product offer is achieved (Pine et al. , 1995). The customer franchise Because the power of intermediaries has strengthened in many markets, it is of paramount importance to make the customer – not just the consumer – an integral part of marketing strategy. Whether the intermediary be a retailer, a distributor or an original equipment manufacturer, without their support it is unlikely that even the strongest brand could achieve its full potential. Not only has the purchasing power of the customer increased as a result of concentration, but there is a growing trend towards single-sourcing by those customers. In other words, whereas in the past the practice was to spread the total purchase of an item across several suppliers, now the aim is to reduce the size of the supplier base and to seek further cost reductions as a result (Hines, 1994). While to many suppliers such developments may be perceived as a threat, to others they present an opportunity. If the supplier can offer a superior value package with a measurable positive economic impact on the customer, then the likelihood is that they will win the business. Today’s customer is a more sophisticated buyer, used to working with concepts such as total cost of ownership, life-cycle costing and cost/benefit analysis. Indeed, many customers now actively pursue a partnership sourcing concept (Lamming, 1993) whereby they seek to establish long-term relationships with preferred suppliers based on win-win philosophies. It can be argued that a preferred supplier, continuing to deliver superior customer value, has in effect the advantage of a barrier to entry that in many respects is far more difficult to surmount than more conventional competitive defences. Supply chain effectiveness This author has suggested elsewhere (Christopher, 1992) that individual companies no longer compete with other standalone companies, but rather that supply chain now competes against supply chain. The rationale for this viewpoint is based on the fact that when organizations work independently of their up-stream suppliers and down-stream customers, costs and inefficiencies tend to build up at the interfaces (Houlihan, 1985). The need for co-ordination between partners in the supply chain has increased as the network organization becomes more common. The network organization comprises a complex web of linkages between focused partners each of which adds value through specialization in an activity where it can provide a differential advantage. A company like Apple Computers, for example, relies heavily on other companies to supply components, to manufacture hardware, to create software and to distribute its products around the world. Something like 90 per cent or more of the cost of an Apple computer is going to outside suppliers. It has been suggested (Webster, 1992) that marketing as a function may even disappear as the strategic focus shifts towards network management. This progress towards the idea of supply chain integration as a source of competitive advantage will be accelerated as the growth of time-based competition (Stalk and Hout, 1990) accelerates. In markets that are increasingly volatile, responsiveness becomes a critical competitive requirement. Companies like Benetton and The Limited have gained significant advantage through their ability to respond rapidly to fashion changes in the markets they serve. Through the use of highly co-ordinated logistics and supply chain structures, driven by the real-time capture of sales data, these companies, and others like them, can adapt their product range and their volumes in weeks rather than months. Supply chain management should not be seen as something separate from marketing. Indeed in the new competitive paradigm supply chain effectiveness becomes an essential prerequisite for marketplace success. Delivering customer value Once it is recognized that customer value provides the basis for successful differentiation the next issue is how might that value best be delivered? A profound change is taking place in many companies as they review the appropriateness of their organizational structures for the changed marketplace of the late twentieth century and beyond. The traditional, functional organization structure is thought by many to be unable to meet the challenge of today’s volatile, time and cost-sensitive markets. Instead, the organizational imperative is to become market-facing and to break away from tightly constrained functional departments. The horizontal organization, as it has come to be called (Ostroff and Smith, 1992), is oriented around the management of cross-functional processes. Processes are the fundamental tasks which have to be achieved in order to create and deliver customer value. In any business there are a number of core processes that should be managed on a crosss of core processes would include: brand development (including new product development); consumer development (primarily focused on building loyalty); customer management (creating relationships with intermediaries); From brand values to customer value 63 JMP: AMS 2,1 64 supplier development (strengthening up-stream relationships); and supply chain management (including the order fulfilment process). The transformation from a functional to a horizontal organization has major mplications for the management structure of the business generally and for marketing management in particular. In effect, in the horizontal organization, marketing is no longer a series of activities performed within a marketing department. Indeed in many companies that have made the transition from vertical to horizontal organizations the marketing department has disappeared (The Economist, 1994b). However, this is not to assume that marketing is dead, indeed the reverse is the case – the need for market-driven businesses is as strong now as it ever was. Rather, we are seeing the transformation of marketing from a narrow set of functional skills based on a conventional â€Å"4Ps† marketing mix, to a broader business orientation where the delivery of superior customer value becomes the key objective. However, this being said, it must be recognized that there are still important functional skills that marketing must continue to develop, for example, research to provide in-depth market understanding and knowledge of consumers’ buying patterns, motivations and so forth. Strategic marketing planning also takes on a different form in the horizontal organization. Essentially the task of marketing planning in this new organizational model is to translate strategic goals into process plans, for example one major brewing company established the strategic goal of â€Å"a perfect pint in every pub†. The marketing planning task now becomes one of translating that goal into specific programmes for each process. So, for instance, what does â€Å"a perfect pint in every pub† imply for the brand development process, the customer management process and so on? Because each process in this company is now managed by a cross-functional process team a wider, more integrated perspective is brought to bear on the issue. Some might argue that this underpinning, integrative process of strategic marketing planning might better be termed strategic business planing. This is really only semantic and, in reality, it does not matter what we call this critical process, only that we manage it and recognize its central importance. Figure 5 summarizes the radically different shape of the process organization and the central role of strategic marketing planning. Moving to a process orientation clearly implies significant change for the business. The benefits of the transformation though can be considerable, particularly in the improvement of market responsiveness, the shortening of lead-times and the re-engineering of processes to deliver more customer value at less cost (Hammer and Champy, 1993). Conclusion In a world where the customer has become ever more sophisticated and experienced, where competition comes from new global players, alternative technologies and lower priced generics and me-toos, the focus of marketing Brand development process From brand values to customer value Customer management process Consumer development process Supplier development process Strategic marketing planning process 65 Supply chain process Figure 5. Marketing in a process context strategy must be on differentiation through superior customer and consumer value. Value is perceptual but comprises the customers’ understanding of what they are getting compared to what they are giving. In other words the functionality of the product and any emotional or intangible value plus the hard, tangible benefits must be set against the total cost of ownership. The task of marketing, therefore, has to be expressed in terms of the creation and delivery of customer value. It begins through an understanding of the value requirements of market segments or even individual customers; it then seeks through cross-functional processes to deliver that value through customer specific solutions. As many organizations are now learning, to become a customer value focused business requires a fundamental transformation of the way we manage. This transformation requires a shift from a compartmentalized view of the business where marketing is seen as the responsibility of the marketing department to a view that recognizes that processes deliver customer value and, hence, should be managed accordingly.