Tax memorandum and dividend Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Tax memorandum and dividend - Essay Example She makes 16 to 17 hour trips for every trip and takes naps at suitable locations where she stops. While Mark captains a ferry boat that takes up to 15 to 17 hours journeys with 6 to 7 hour overlay. During the over lay Mark takes a four hour nap at the cot restored in the pilot house. The applicable law in these two cases is the overnight rule which is found in section 162(a) (2) of the internal revenue Code of 1954. Specific issues Is Tracy allowed to deduct the cost of meals purchased during the trip? And is Mark allowed to deduct the cost of meals purchased during the trip? The overnight rule only applies if the nature of the taxpayer’s employment is such that it requires him to sleep or rest when away from home. His expenditures which include incidental expenses such as tips are deductible travelling expenses this under section 162(a) (2) of the 1954 Code. It however does not include the brief period of time whereby an employee may be released from duty for the purpose of eating rather than sleeping. In normal circumstances meals are normally nondeductible under section 262 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954. For meals to be deductible as travelling expenses the petitioner has to prove that the meals were eaten while they were travelling away from home in carrying out their employment duties or trade as well as to show they slept substantially away from home. Conclusion Tracy was therefore not eligible for a deduction under the overnight rule, as per the Frederick. J. Barry, pro se. She was only eligible for tax deduction on entertainment expenses during the trips that she made. While Mark was eligible for tax deduction as the layover was mandatory after a 15 to 17 hour shift so as to get the passengers safely back to shore. He was however not going to eligible during the peak season. Support In Marks case, a Ferry captain qualified as being â€Å"away from home† in Code Sec. 162 (a) (2) purposes during off-season tours that were completed w ithin 24 hours and included 6 to 7 hours layovers. This is because of the demanding nature of taxpayer’s job since the captain needed to be alert during the long work hours to ensure passengers and crew safety. This was evidence enough that is was reasonable to obtain sleep and rest to be able meet job exigencies and demands. A 6 to 7 hour layover is more than sufficient duration to reflect increased expenses incurrence. This was not applicable though during peak season tours because rest periods during those hours were not part of the layover released time. The Ferryboat captain deduction for M&IE incurred during off-season tours that were 15 to 17 hours long were subject to Code Sec. 274 (n)(1) deduction limitation. Expenses, which taxpayer computed and substantiated pursuant to operative revenue procedures and federal rate, were treated as food and beverage expenses within meaning of Code Sec. 274(n) (1). In Tracy’s case Frederick J. Barry, pro se. Barry argued that the meals paid for during the 17 hour to 18 hour trips he made to see his clients was deductible under section 162(a), independently of section 163(a) (2). Barry made this trips and stopped at a suitable place to rest in the car before he went back home. He kept a blanket and a pillow in his car for this purpose. The petitioner did not substantially show that his meals where under the ordinary and necessary provision section 162 (a). The case was found to be indistinguishable from Correl. The petitioner was therefore not away from home when section 162(a) (2) was considered during his one day trips during 1966. The petitioner kept detailed records of amounts spent on meals during his one day trips in 1966, this amounted to $, 348.47. From that amount $1, 535. 26, was deductible as entertainment exp

Catholic Church Essay Example for Free

Catholic Church Essay The church remains to be one of the most powerful and influential social system which affects our day to day living. As such, controversies involving church authorities have always attracted utmost social attention. Such issues are even incorporated in many literary works. One of the most esteemed literary pieces tackling church-related controversies is John Patrick Shanley’s â€Å"Doubt†, a play which yielded the Pulitzer Prize. Basically, the play presents the depressingly typical scenario of pedophile priests. However, although the story tackles an abuse scandal involving a church authority, it is important to note that the plot does not indulge in exposing amoral activities within the respected institution. Rather, it diverges from its particular plot by exploring a range of interrelated dilemmas faced by the Catholic Church. Analyzing the various themes that were vaguely discussed in the play’s plot through smart dialogues and characterizations, Doubt appears to be more than just a formula-based story mimicking a real event derived from the newspapers. On the whole, the play is more of a twisted portrayal of the hierarchy, male dominance, and conservatism that embraces the practices of the Catholic Church. Battle between the sexes and male dominance In the play, Sister Aloysius, the principal of the grade school suspects that Father Flynn has molested the first and only black student of the school. Examining these two major characters presented in the story, Doubt somehow becomes a picture of a battle between the sexes, within the grounds of the Catholic Church. Being the head of the school, Sister Aloysius supposedly has absolute power over her territory. As the principal, she is in charge of maintaining order within the school and protecting the children from harm so she is also entitled of subjecting the teachers to disciplinary actions whenever she deems fitting. However, in Father Flynn’s case, everything takes a different turn. Suspecting that something is wrong with Father Flynn’s actions, the principal does not directly call on the priest or immediately report him to a superior for questioning and punishment. Rather, Sister Aloysius chooses to confide to Sister James and narrates a somewhat similar experience that she has encountered before. Eight years ago at St. Boniface we had a priest who had to be stopped. But I had Monsignor Scully then who I could rely on,† the principal notes, stressing her need for a male ally. She further states that the situation with Father Flynn is quite different because â€Å"there is no man† that they can go to and that â€Å"men run everything†. At the end of their conversation, Sister Aloysius suggests that it is up to them to stop the peculiar Father. This proposition, along with the apparent cry for help from the naive nun and the student’s mother, only suggests that Sister Aloysius recognizes that the Church is a patriarchal system and that there is a need for women to unite and work together in order to expose a priest’s wrongdoing. During the confrontation of Father Flynn and Sister Aloysius, it is also obvious that the priest recognizes the male dominance within the church. When the principal tells him that she has sought the assistance of other parishes that the priest has served before, the fuming father states that despite the authority she holds over the school, she is still a member of the religious order, so she should be obedient to her superiors – who were men, of course. As anticipated, the priest brings himself to an untouchable position, between Sister Aloysius and the Monsignor, simply using his gender as the basis for the claimed authority. Furthermore, the end result of the confrontation – the transfer of Father Flynn to another parish, and his promotion as a parish priest only proves that the fear of Sister Aloysius and the haughtiness of the priest in question are well-substantiated. A Conservative Church vs. the Liberal Ways Based on the idea that the church is patriarchal and that male superiors often turn a blind eye to the wrong doing of priests, it somehow appears that Sister Aloysius is the protagonist and that Father Flynn is the unobvious antagonist. However, taking into account the conservative versus liberal scenario also embodied by the two major characters, it seems that there is more to the story than an outcry against a patriarchal system. In the play, it is clear that Sister Aloysius is the embodiment of the traditional and conservative church. She represents the old ways – inflexible, definite, and authoritarian. She is not fond of those who, like Father Flynn, attempt to be different and applies their distinctiveness in the way they preach and interact with the parishioners. In stark contrast with the nun’s character is the witty and playful Father Flynn who is fond of hugging his students, making jokes, and ultimately working against the principal’s idea that moral authority suggests social isolation. Assessing the clash between the two in relation to their symbolizations of the traditional versus the liberal, it seems that the principal’s suspicions are largely a product of her attempt to restore order in her Catholic school. It may be that Sister Aloysius’ qualms are just manifestations of her anger and fear against the threat that is Father Flynn, nothing more. Conclusions: Doubts†¦. And more doubts Apart from the question of whether Father Flynn was really a child predator, the play raises many other doubts about the Catholic Church. It engages the audiences in the dilemma if they should struggle for a social structure that is impartial and unprejudiced to a certain gender. Also, the play explores the idea of whether the church should maintain the old ways, or they should just go with the flow of modernity and adopt liberal methods of preaching and relating to their parishioners. Overall, the play also touches on power play within the system, with regards to the maintenance of long practiced values like social isolation and patriarchy. Thus, it is safe to conclude that analyzing the characters and dialogues within the play, themes in the story only show that Doubt is also about church scandals, but only to the least degree. As noted by Shanley in a feature article for the Huffington Post, he wasnt interested particularly in writing about the church scandals† nor did he had the interest to write mystery novels. True to his purpose, Doubt exists to make people realize that they are indeed living in a world that’s full of doubts – doubts that are ever present even within the church that they lean upon for certainty and deliverance. Works Cited Falsini, Cathleen. â€Å"Beyond The Shadow of a Doubt. † Huffington Post. 2003. 24 July 2009. http://www. huffingtonpost. com/cathleen-falsani/beyond-the-shadow-of-a-do_b_150496. html Shanley, John Patrick. â€Å"Doubt†

The Dark Side of Facebook Essay -- Social Networking, Pro Con Essays

Today, students rely on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram more than they rely on food to nourish their bodies. An average Facebook user wastes over 18.5 hours a month on social networking sites. It is noticeable that the more attention students are giving these social networks, the more poorly they do in school. Younger students carelessly expose all their personal information on these social networks. Also, as these sites continue to grow so does cyber bullying. Schools that contain grades k-12 should block internet access to social networks because they have a negative impact on the academic performance of students, they make students more prone to dangers on the internet, and they are the main locations of cyber bullying. Social networking sites frequently have a negative impact on the academic performance of students. Sanzhar Nayzabekov says in her article â€Å"Negative impact of social networking sites on academic performance of students†, found on the website Academia.edu, â€Å"Despite the fact that a relatively large number of social network sites including Facebook were initially created for learning purposes, there is some evidence that most social network site users show almost no attitudes towards finding academic information† (6). In fact, the use of these social networks often results in lower grades. For example, Naizabekov also says a large amount of Facebook users check their Facebook a significant amount of times throughout the day while updating their statuses more than 5 times per day (4). With that being said, it is quite hard for a student focusing on status updates and what’s new on the social media during class period to be focused on what is be ing taught in class... ...ality of cyberbullying laws: keeping the online playground safe for both teens and free speech." Vanderbilt Law Review Apr. 2010: 845+. LegalTrac. Web. 15 Nov. 2014 . Kirschner, Paul, and Aryn Karpinski. â€Å"Facebook and Academic Performance.† Computers and Human Behavior 26.6 (Nov. 2010): 1237-1245. ACM Digital Library. Web. 10 Nov. 2014 . Nayzabekov, Sanzhar. â€Å"Negative impact of social networking sites on academic performance of students.† Academia.edu. N.p., 20 Apr. 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2014 . "Scams Online." All Hands 09 1999: 42-3. ProQuest. Web. 18 Nov. 2014 Tarantino, Kristen, et al. â€Å"Effects of Student Engagement with Social Media on Student Learning: A Review of Literature† StudentAffairs.com. StudentAffairs.com, n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2014 . Wolak, Janis, et al. "Online â€Å"predators† and their victims." Psychology of violence 1 (2010): 13-35. Web. 10 Nov. 2014 .

Enders Game :: essays research papers

Ender’s Game: A Brief Depiction I.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Setting:  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Staged in mainly four places. Ender Wiggins childhood town, where he is monitored as a prospective third. He is sent to Battle School, which is a satellite of the earth. Then he ends up on Eros where he attends command school and eventually defeats the buggers. He spends the rest of his days with Valentine on the first human colonization, approximately 50 light-years away from Earth.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The book takes place in 2190-2200 approx. The advancement of information transportation is significant, in that the ansible is able to transmit information faster than the speed of light, in fact, exactly instantaneous. The starships and fleets they have been able to advance are full on equipped for space and space tugs are similar to barges we have on rivers, and they are used to hull large amounts of materials about space. The fear of buggers is installed within the readers first glance at the book, and maintains constant until the very end when we learn that the buggers are in fact peaceful and loving creatures, unable to communicate that. II.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Protagonist:  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The main character, Andrew (Ender) Wiggin is a young child who endures some of the hardest turmoil any human could undergo. He is very brilliant, cunning, paranoid, determined, and above all loving child who becomes mature and eventually saves the world. We see his brilliance from the start and through his days he has become the god-child, and messiah to all who know his name. His paranoia grows steadily throughout the book, due to his lack of trust in any figure he encounters. Any time they show any hint of compassion or any true emotion, ender assumes its all part of the game and plan to make him the best commander alive. His determination comes at us through many different wavelengths. He is at first solely determined to survive against playground bullies. It evolves into winning the battle games and soon after takes a curve and becomes determination to never play the game again. His most admirable trait though, is without fail the love he rarely but deeply shows for Valentine, his sister and partly companion through and through. He often says in the text that he is not a killer and has never meant to hurt anyone, simply to win the fight and never fight it again. He realizes his true love for the queen-bugger when he hosts her into eventually multiple buggers to start a new world of them.

External and Internal Environmental Analysis Essay

â€Å"Environmental scanning is the internal communication of external information about issues that may potentially influence an organization’s decision-making process† (Albright, 2004, p. 34). For organizations like Fresenius Medical Care, a worldwide company, the awareness of external environmental factors is vital to maintain competitive on the dialysis industry. Even though there are multiple external factors to analyze, in recent years the government works as an element of change on the medical industry with the biggest health reform in United States history. The health reform will affect the way Fresenius makes business because the company needs to adapt the new payments-per-service coverage and sustain quality of service as well as profitability. External Environmental Scan Remote Environment â€Å"The remote environment comprises five factors that originate beyond, and usually irrespective of, any single firm’s operating situation: economic, social, political, technological, and ecological factors† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 87). The organization has no control or regulation over these factors. The remotes environmental factors influence the way Fresenius Medical Care offers dialysis services, especially the economic and political factors. The economic factor describes the organization awareness of the â€Å"general availability of credit, the level of disposable income, and the propensity of people to spend† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 87). Fresenius target market is end-stage-renal-disease patients with health care insurance. The economic factor will affect Fresenius target and the ability to pay for dialysis treatment and medications. The â€Å"political factors define the legal and regulatory parameters within which firms must operate† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 90). A good example of political factor is the Obama Care Law or Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The president Barak Obama signs the law in 2010 with the purpose of providing accessibility to affordable medical care to the Americans and to reduce the government expenses. For-profits entities like Fresenius Medical Care have to adapt the new regulations and create a strategic plan to avoid the potential reduction on profit. Industry Environment â€Å"Industry environment is the general conditions for competition that influence all businesses that provide similar products and services† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 97). There are five forces that Michael E. Porter, a Harvard University professor, uses to describe the industry competition (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012). These forces are entry barriers, supplier power, buyer power, substitute availability, and competitive rivalry (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012). Fresenius Medical Care major competitor in the United States is Davita Dialysis Center. Fresenius recognizes and study the competitor’s strategies to strength the organization. The Obama Care law affects the dialysis industry by changing the medication coverage. Fresenius competitor owns pharmaceuticals with capability to serve the dialysis patients as soon the law becomes active in 2016. Fresenius identifies the threat of substitute of the competitor and create a program that provides medications to the patients and increase the company profitability even before the law is effective. The goal for Fresenius is to enroll a 100% of patients with Medicare in Fresenius Rx program by the end of 2013. So far Fresenius is at 20% of the goal in California. Operating Environment The external operating environment seems to be closer to the firm than the remote and the industry environments. Operating environment includes the following factors: competitors, creditors, customers, labor, and supplier (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012). The proximity of these factors implies that the company may have more interaction and more awareness of the environmental changes. For example, Fresenius study the effect of the new health reform on the main competitor, Davita Dialysis, the patients, the employees, the pharmaceutical suppliers, and medication distributors. Fresenius uses this information to create new strategies and reform the internal environment. Internal Environmental Scan Strengths â€Å"A strength is a resource or capability controlled by or available to a firm that gives it an advantage relative to its competitors in meeting the needs of the customers it serves† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 151). Fresenius Medical Care is a German company with more than 70 years of experience in the dialysis industry. The company operates worldwide and has â€Å"more than 2,100 dialysis facilities in North America† (Fresenius Medical Care, n. d. , p. 1). In addition to the experience and knowledge, Fresenius is â€Å"the continent’s top producer of dialysis equipment, dialyzers and related disposable products and a major supplier of renal pharmaceuticals† (Fresenius Medical Care, n. d. , p. 1). Another important strength is the high quality standards on the services and products that the company provides. Weakness With the strength comes the weakness. â€Å"A weakness is a limitation or deficiency in one or more of a firm’s resources or capabilities relative to its competitors that create a disadvantage in effectively meeting customer needs† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 151). The weakness that the company confronts with the new health care reform is the pharmaceutical capability. The pharmacy should be ready to serve â€Å"hundreds of thousands of people throughout the United States† (Fresenius Medical Care, n. d. , p. 1) by 2016. Fresenius has two pharmacies that provide services to more than 2,000 facilities. The prescription delivery time fluctuates between two days and two weeks, which gives advantage to the competitors. Another weakness that Fresenius has is the pressure putting into the employees to meet the project deadlines. This pressure may cause work accidents, employees’ exhaustion or the reason for knowledgeable employees to move and work with the competitors. Competitive Position and Possibilities Competitive advantage is the â€Å"company’s unique skills and resources working to implement strategies that competitors cannot implement as effectively† (Olsen, 2013, p. 1) Fresenius Medical Care (FMC) has a competitive advantage position because the company keeps the vanguard on dialysis product innovation and quality of service. FMC is the major product provider of the competitors in United States as well. A strategic alliance between FMC and the competitors may help the industry to survive the new health care reform and the implications to dialysis treatment payments. This alliance may reduce the cost of the medications and improve customer service by delivering medications the same day of the prescription order. If an alliance is impossible, the knowledge, and experience in strategic planning that characterize Fresenius, will lead the company to a new plan to keep profitability while doing business. Other possibilities may be open more pharmacies around the United States, and diversify the medications inventory. In this way Fresenius will be able to fill any medication prescription to the patients as well as improve delivery time. Organizational Structure and Performance â€Å"Organizational structure refers to the formalized arrangements of interaction between and responsibility for the tasks, people, and resources in an organization† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 321). Fresenius Medical Care has a traditional matrix organizational structure â€Å"in which functional and staff personnel are assigned to both a basic functional area and to a project or product manager† (Pearce II & Robinson, 2012, p. 326). This type of structure helps large companies to concentrate in projects like the creation of strategic plan to meet the government health reform and meet the company’s goal. Conclusion The external and internal environmental analysis brings information to Fresenius Medical Care (FMC) that the company uses to strengthen the company and be aware of potential treats and opportunities. For example, the external remote environment factor that influences the company’s structure is the new government health care reform or the Obama Care Law by changing the amount of payment per dialysis treatment. The external industry and operating environments analysis provide information about the competitor’s strategies in relation to the new regulations. Davita Dialysis Center represents FMC biggest competitor. Fresenius strengths are experience, knowledge, innovation, biggest producer of dialysis materials, and high quality measures. Fresenius weaknesses are the pharmacy capability, deadlines, and pressure. Fresenius uses the strength to improve pharmacy services; decrease employees work pressure, and maintain competitive, and profitable in the dialysis industry. Fresenius organizational structure helps the company to meet the company’s goals, mission, and mission. The matrix structure permits functional employees to work in special projects, perform a functional work, and meet the company’s expectations. For example, Fresenius has the Registered Dietitians working on FMC Rx (Company’s pharmacy) enrollment project and performing regular dietitian job. The dietitian reports to the manager of operations as well as the Clinical Manager. References Albright, K. S. (2004, May/June). Environmental scanning: radar for success. Information Management, 38(3), 38. Retrieved from http://www. arma. org/ bookstore/files/Albright. pdf Fresenius medical care. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://jobs. fmcna. com/ Olsen, E. (2013). About. com. Retrieved from http://homebusiness. about. com/od/growing/a/comp_advantage. htm Pearce II, J. A. , & Robinson, R. B. (2012). Strategic Management (13th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

The History of Containment Policy

The History of Containment Policy Containment was a foreign policy strategy followed by the United States during the Cold War. First laid out by George F. Kennan in 1947, the policy stated that communism needed to be contained and isolated, or else it would spread to neighboring countries. American foreign policy advisors believed that once one country fell to communism, each surrounding country would fall as well, like a row of dominoes. This view was known as the domino theory. Adherence to the policy of containment and domino theory ultimately led to U.S. intervention in Vietnam as well as in Central America and Grenada. Containment Policy The Cold War began after World War Two when nations formerly under Nazi rule ended up split between the conquests of the U.S.S.R. and the newly freed states of France, Poland, and the rest of Nazi-occupied Europe. Since the United States had been a key ally in liberating western Europe, it found itself deeply involved in this newly divided continent: Eastern Europe wasnt being turned back into free states, but rather being placed under the military and political control of the Soviet Union. Further, western European countries appeared to be wobbling in their democracies because of socialist agitation and collapsing economies, and the United States began to suspect that the Soviet Union was deliberately destabilizing these countries in an effort to bring them into the folds of communism. Even countries themselves were dividing in half over the ideas of how to move forward and recover from the last world war. This resulted in a lot of political and military turmoil for the years to come, with such extremes as the establishment of the  Berlin Wall  to separate East and West Germany due to the opposition to communism. The United States developed its policy of containment to prevent communism from spreading further into Europe and the rest of the world. The concept was first outlined in George Kennans Long Telegram, which he sent from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. The message arrived in Washington, D.C., on February 22, 1946, and was circulated widely around the White House. Later, Kennan published the document as an article titled The Sources of Soviet Conduct - which became known as X Article because Kennan used the pseudonym Mr. X. The policy of containment was adopted by President Harry Truman as part of his Truman Doctrine in 1947, which redefined Americas foreign policy as one that supports the free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or outside pressures. This came at the height of the Greek Civil War of 1946-1949 when much of the world was waiting to see which direction Greece and Turkey would go, and the United States agreed to help both countries to avoid the possibility that the Soviet Union would lead them to communism. The Creation of NATO Acting deliberately (and at times aggressively) to involve itself in the border states of the world and prevent them from turning communist, the United States spearheaded a movement that would eventually lead to the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The group alliance represented a multi-national commitment to halting the spread of communism. In response, the Soviet Union signed an agreement called the Warsaw Pact with Poland, Hungary, Romania, East Germany, and several other nations. Containment in the Cold War: Vietnam and Korea Containment remained central to American foreign policy throughout the Cold War, which saw rising tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. In 1955, the United States entered what some historians consider a proxy war with the Soviet Union, by sending troops into Vietnam to support the South Vietnamese in their battle against the communist North Vietnamese. The United States involvement in the war lasted until 1975, the year the North Vietnamese captured the city of Saigon. A similar conflict took place during the early 1950s in Korea, which was likewise divided into two states. In the fight between North Korea and South Korea, the United States backed the South, while the Soviet Union backed the North. The war ended with an armistice in 1953 and the establishment of the Korean Demilitarized Zone, a 160-mile barrier between the two states.

Typography and Square Brackets Essay

Typography and Square Brackets Essay Typography and Square Brackets Essay - Harvard Style Referencing 2008 Contents Page No. 1. Why do I need to reference my work? 3 1.1 So tell me briefly how it works 3 2. Referring to an author’s viewpoint in your text 4 2.1 Single and multiple authors – summarising and quoting 4 2.2 Author published 2 items in the same year 5 2.3 Author is an organisation (corporate authors) 5 2.4 Author’s name not given 5 2.5 Secondary referencing (authors quoting other authors) 5 3. Writing your reference list for printed texts - general notes 6 3.1 Books with one or more authors 7 3.2 Works by one author, translated/edited/commented on (etc.) by another 7 3.3 Chapters in edited books 8 3.4 Journal articles 8 3.5 Conference proceedings and single conference papers 9 3.6 Government or other Official Publications 9 3.7 British Standards 10 3.8 Theses 10 3.9 Unpublished (informal) works, including handouts 10 4. Referencing films, illustrations, maps, music and sound 11 4.1 Films and videos 11 4.2 Illustrations – physical and computer generated 11 4.3 Maps 11 4.4 Published music and recorded sound 12 5. Referencing electronic sources - general notes 13 5.1 Home pages on the web 14 5.2 Entire documents or services 14 5.3 Specific parts of documents or services 15 5.4 Contribution to an item within an electronic document or service 16 5.5 Electronic journals – the entire publication run 17 5.6 Electronic journals – whole issues 17 5.7 Electronic journals – articles and other contributions 18 5.8 British Standards 18 5.9 Bulletin boards, discussion lists and messaging systems 19 5.10 Individual electronic messages and phone calls 19 5.11 Television programmes, contributions and advertisements 20 6. Referencing unrecorded sources 22 7. Example of a reference list 23 8. Further help 23 1. Why do I need to reference my work? ï‚ · Good referencing enables readers to find any publication referred to in your document quickly and easily – which gives you credibility. ï‚ · If you don't do it, your work is immediately downgraded in value. ï‚ · If you do it badly, you lose respect (and easy marks). ï‚ · If you intend doing research, you either use a proper referencing system or change careers. ï‚ · In short, it's important - and this guide will help you to get it right. Wolverhampton mainly supports the Harvard referencing system, but other systems do exist. Check with your School for the one they recommend. Whatever style you use, it is important to be clear, consistent and correct, making sure you include all the relevant details. 1.1 So tell me briefly how it works If you summarise, refer to, or quote from an author's work in your document, you must acknowledge your source, otherwise you are guilty of plagiarising (a form of cheating). In Harvard, you do this by putting these brief details before or after your quote: Author's surname, followed by the publication year of the document in round brackets E.g: Stollery (1997) But your readers will need more information if they want to look at that source personally. So you put the extra details in a reference list – usually placed at the end of a chapter, or at the end

How to Create Effective Blog Posts That Convert Like Crazy - CoSchedule

How to Create Effective Blog Posts That Convert Like Crazy When you’re creating content for your blog, what are you hoping to achieve? More than likely, you’re working to attract qualified leads for your business. Unfortunately, though, this can be easier said than done. Business blogging comes with its challenges. Maybe you’re dealing with a bounce rate thats higher than ideal. Perhaps people aren’t clicking on your calls-to-action or converting through your forms. Its possible you’re attracting an audience, but they aren’t interested in your products or services. You may even be spending resources on creating valuable offerings, but they aren’t attracting qualified leads. There has to be something you can do about this, right? You shouldn’t give up on your blog, but rather optimize your content for lead generation. After reading through this guide, you’ll be able to do just that. How to Create Effective Blog Posts That Convert Like CrazyDownload Your Free Blogging Resource Bundle This post is jam-packed with advice. Put it all into practice with these free bonus templates, guides, and reports. Heres what weve included: A Blog Post Outline Template to write thorough content every time. A 28-page Blog Writing Process Bonus Guide to dig even deeper into how to create comprehensive content. A How to Write a Call to Action Bonus Template to craft CTAs that convert crazy amounts of traffic. A Content Calendar Excel Template to plan and schedule all your blog posts. 5 free Google Analytics Custom Reports to measure the effectiveness of your content promotion in just a few clicks. Have One Main Goal When Planning Your Content Hint: that one overall goal should revolve around lead generation. To start, you need to clearly define this goal. It’s not enough to just say you want to generate leads. You need to follow a process for making that goal work. You have two ways of doing this: SMART  or CLEAR  goal setting. SMART stands for: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. With SMART goals, your focus is on making a goal that provides enough information to make reporting on results easier. A SMART lead generation goal could be: "We want to increase qualified, sales-ready blog leads by 50% this quarter compared to last quarter." CLEAR stands for: Collaborative, Limited, Emotional, Appreciable, and Refinable. The CLEAR goal-setting process is the more recent alternative to SMART goals. Adam Kreek, an entrepreneur and motivational speaker, developed this alternative to fit a more up-to-speed, agile environment. A CLEAR lead generation goal could be: We want to work as a marketing team to bring 5 new qualified leads from marketing blog objectives for sales readiness through quality content offerings. With your blog content, you want to decide on one of these goal-setting options, or create your own way, so that you can clearly understand your path. Your goal, regardless of methodology, should be set up in a way that allows you to see a beginning-to-end process for your work. CLEAR vs SMART Goals: which do you use for your #content #marketing?Yes, your blog should be designed around your readership’s needs and pain points, so you should have subgoals for that. However, your overall, most important goal should always be what lead results you want to see from your efforts. In addition to setting up your goal, you have a choice for how you’ll follow your content’s results. You can use calendar software, such as what you’d find with , or choose a do-it-yourself (DIY) calendar system  in Excel or Google Sheets. By following a calendar, you’re better able to see how your content is leading to or falling away from your established goal. Recommended Reading: How To Get Crazy Organized With A Comprehensive Content Calendar (Free Template) The Complete 14-Step Content Strategy That Will Boost Your Results by 434% Use The Right Tool(s) For Contact Information Collection And Follow-Up The best way to turn your blog into a lead generation tool is to have a system in place for quick and easy contact collection. You want to acquire at least an email address. Ideally, you’ll want more information to help you create a personalized lead nurturing experience. You’ll want to find the tool or tools that’ll help you with this process. The tool(s) need to help you develop a seamless system for both marketing and sales to work together. Whichever system you put in place should help you take a blog subscriber and follow their path to a sale. Some of the best lead acquisition and nurturing tools, depending on your needs and budget, are: MailChimp: Best for contact collection and email marketing HubSpot’s CRM: Best for lead nurturing and monitoring When using MailChimp, you can add sign-up widgets for your blog sidebar so that it is always visible to your readers. You also have the option of creating a pop-up form to appear when readers visit your blog. Add the MailMunch  integration to create these widgets and pop-ups. Watch this video to see how: You’re given options for copy, design, form fields, and other elements. This integration is free, but it means the MailMunch name will appear with your form. Using these forms allows for contact information to go straight into your chosen MailChimp list. It’s an easy, automatic way to bring leads to your email marketing platform for further contact. MailChimp is primarily an email marketing platform, so it doesn’t give you a full picture of where each contact stands in your sales funnel. That’s when you need to find a tool that can take your contacts further along. HubSpot has a CRM that offers what you need to collaborate and monitor your contacts as they proceed through the sales funnel. You can use this tool to track the emails you send to your leads, if you use Gmail. Or, you can use MailChimp for email and HubSpot’s CRM for taking your marketing activity and passing it along to sales. HubSpot’s CRM gives you thorough information collected from each of your contacts. This information is found automatically, when possible. You can learn where the contact works, their phone number, and even their social media accounts. All of this information is available in one place along with your contact’s timeline. If you want to take your lead generation one step further, try using a full-service, all-in-one platform. HubSpot has a marketing platform  that’ll help you track leads from source to sale and beyond. It offers ways to engage with leads from when they’re just visiting after they’ve made a purchase. You’ll know which blog elements resonated with them to help you create a truly personalized lead nurturing experience. Whichever tool(s) you select, make sure it works well enough to remove any barriers between contact collection and sales follow-up. You’ll want tools that work seamlessly together or just one tool that does it all. This system of having a lead nurturing tool(s) will help you truly see a successful return on investment (ROI) with your blog activity. Recommended Reading: How to Be More Successful With the Right Content Marketing Tools Make Your Content Relevant To Your Buyer Personas Your blog is an opportunity for dual benefits. You want to bring in leads on your end, but to do this, you also need to give your readers worthwhile content. To see the right audience convert on your content, you need to create highly-relevant blog resources that benefit your buyer personas. This pinpointed readership  will help you create articles that bring in the right audience for conversion. To create these personas, you can follow your own process, use a template, or follow these steps: Clean up and finalize your data. You likely now have an overwhelming amount of data for your personas. It’s time to filter and clean this up to a more manageable document. Focus on the critical data, such as what is working instead of what should be put aside. Keep your focus on creating reader personas that have data about what they like and what they want to see. Everything else can be removed. Ask your current readers for their input. When you’re looking for what is working versus what is missing, one of your best opportunities is to ask your current readership directly. Use a tool, such as Google Forms, to reach out to them via email, or add a survey to your social media accounts. Twitter polls, for example, are great for multiple choice questions. Your readers are eager to be heard, and asking them for their input is largely effective for that very reason. Evaluate how your readers behave. Use Google Analytics  for this because the tool gives you so much information about how your website visitors are behaving on your site. You can track which blog posts have the most visitors versus which ones have the longer time on-page data. Take advantage of this information to see what’s working for you so far versus what needs improvement. Compare your real data with your ideal data. Take what you know about your current readership and compare it to who your ideal reader would be. This is a hypothetical reader that you’d want to see visit your blog. They are contacts that fit with your conversion goal. Collect initial demographic data. Where do they work? What is their age and gender? Where are they located? These are all examples of the demographic data you should collect. This data should describe your current readership to help you understand your status now for better decisions in the future. An example of a tool you can use to collect this information is Google Display Planner. It provides detailed information about your audience via search results and website activity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiGfgo4RJDA Find your target audience’s pain points. Do some research on social media and review sites to see what your target readers are complaining about. Tracking mentions, hashtags, and keywords can help with that. This will give you important information about problems you can solve via blog content. The more relevant and timely your content is, the more conversions you’ll see. Ask your sales team for their findings. Your sales team acquires a great amount of data on your customers and prospects when they’re taking each one through the sales process. They can offer valuable information for your use as you build your personas. Take the information you acquire to develop personas based on what you know is effective so far. Audit your current content. Look at your current content to see if it’s getting any engagement. Blog comments and social shares are two ways to determine your content’s value. Check your bounce rate in Google Analytics. Analyze social media metrics to see how people are reacting to your content on each platform. Are they retweeting? Do they add a comment? Are you getting a lot of link clicks? These are all ways to determine whether your readers are enjoying or skipping your content. Apply the data into a persona document. You can use a tool, such as Xtensio, to create a manageable document for your personas. Or use your own Excel, Google Sheets, Word, or Google Docs template. To make your content relevant to the right audience, you need to know who they are and what they want to see from you. Your personas can help you with that. Personas aren’t permanent or final, however. They’re fluid as your target readership changes. As trends change, reader interests change. Your blog content and personas need to adapt with these changes. Recommended Reading: How To Find Your Target Audience And Create The Best Content That Connects Spark Your User Persona To Life With These 9 Important Tools Take The Time To Fully Prepare Your Content To truly make effective blog content, it’s not enough to just dive right in. You need a plan for what you’re going to write and how you’re going to present your ideas. Otherwise, you risk creating scattered content. It will confuse your readers and likely make them leave without converting. That’s why it’s so critical for you to do the necessary research and planning before you start to write your draft. If you're looking for conversions, planning and researching your #blog #content is critical.First, Identify Your Topic. Finding a topic that will resonate with your target readers can be a challenge. You not only need to know what you’re going to write about but also how you’re going to present the idea in your article headline. You have tools available  to you that can help you with this process: Impact’s Blog Title Generator With BlogAbout by Impact Branding Design, you choose a keyword, such as â€Å"marketing† to help you fill out the headline prompts. The keyword is more for your reference as you receive the prompts, but the headline ideas can apply to any keyword you choose. When you receive a headline idea that you like, you can click on the heart to save it in a list for future reference. When you have enough options, you can request the list be sent to you automatically by email. To add to this tool’s value, you also have the option of free writing using their â€Å"writer’s block† section. It’s a blank canvas you can draw in to get your thoughts onto â€Å"paper.† This tool has one noticeable glitch though. Exporting your list does not always work. It might be best to type out your favorites into a separate document. This will also make it easier for you to work with the content instead of having to copy/paste from the email. Portent’s Content Idea Generator Unlike BlogAbout, Portent’s Content Idea Generator does not have an export feature. However, it does have several helpful features to make up for it. This tool gives you especially creative (sometimes controversial) headline prompts using the keyword you chose. It adds your selected keyword into the headline along with the rest of the text. With your prompt, Portent adds commentary to the words to help inspire you or simply to make you laugh. The comments can give you more ideas for the visible headline or help you create an entirely new one. HubSpot’s Blog Topic Generator HubSpot’s tool for discovering topic ideas is different from the other two tools. With their Blog Topic Generator, you insert 3 noun-based keywords. The tool will then give you 5 headline ideas based on those words. You can mix and match the headlines on your own, but HubSpot doesn’t let you do it in the tool. Instead, export the list via email or copy/paste them into an editable document. When you’re considering a topic generated from these tools, keep your reader personas in mind at all times. Even if you think the headline sounds funny or appealing, you need to stick with the ones that will attract your target readers. Pick the topics that mention or at least will cover a specific pain point in your readers. When they read content that truly speaks to their needs, they are more likely to follow-through on your call-to-action to convert into leads. Have you tried these content idea generators from @Portent, @HubSpot, and @impactbnd?Then, Create An Outline You now have a topic picked out. It’s time to start writing your draft, right? No. You always need to take the necessary step of creating an outline. Why? You’ll create structure out of your various points. You’ll make it easier on yourself when writing your draft. The outline will ensure your article’s readability factor. To create the best outline, make sure you’re creating one that has plenty of detail and all your points listed. Have your headings and subheadings ready to go. Include any research you’re going to cite, placed where they belong in your article. Add your main points, even if in fragments, to each heading and subheading. This all will make creating your first draft a lot faster, easier, and more efficient. Writing #blog post outlines will make creating your first draft a lot faster, easier, and more...Focus Your Content  On Reader Benefits Now that you know the importance of reader personas, your next step is to create content that benefits them. You want to create content that gets found in search results, but your priority should always be on helping your readers. There’s nothing worse than putting in all the effort in creating your article just to see your bounce rate increase. The important thing to remember is that your content can either put off your readers  or get them wanting more. When they choose the latter, that’s your chance at converting them via your call-to-action. When you’re writing your article, your focus should be on the following: Readability.  Is your article easy to scan and read quickly? Are your points easily understood? Use Hemingway  or the Yoast SEO plugin  to help you with this. Benefits. Does your article provide value to your readers? Are they given instructions they can take with them and apply with their own work? Readability  is key when you’re trying to keep your readers from beginning to end. To keep your blog post focused on this, it needs to follow these best practices: According to Yoast, it’s important that you write in simple English so that younger audiences would be able to understand what you’re saying. This is known as the Flesch reading ease score. Using transition words helps your readers by dividing one point from another. This makes your content easier to digest. You can use words such as â€Å"and,† â€Å"but,† â€Å"or,† â€Å"because,† etc to separate your points. For example: â€Å"The article was 5,000 words long, so the writer divided it into a series of posts.† Use enough subheadings  to make scanning your article easier. For example, if your article is 1000 words, divide it into 3-5 subheadings. Too much text per subheading, such as 500 words in block text, will make it harder for your readers to scan through. Keep your paragraphs short to keep reader focus. Shorter paragraphs help readers understand your point quicker than longer paragraphs. Make sure your sentences are short.  Longer sentences are inevitable, but you don’t want too many of them in your article. The ideal sentence length should not exceed 20 words. Avoid using passive voice  when possible. Otherwise, you make your sentences harder to read: An example of passive voice: â€Å"The article was written by Annaliese.† Switching it to active voice: â€Å"Annaliese wrote the article.† Use plenty of bulleted lists, white space, imagery, and other breaks from your block text. This will help your readers understand your points without losing focus. Benefits  are what make your content worth readers’ time. If you’re too focused on what you want from your post, you’ll neglect providing value to your readers. Blogging is about helping your readers first, so self-promotion should always be secondary. Along with giving people a reason to read, you also want to give them actionable takeaways. This is the end benefit you should offer your readers. They are looking for assistance with their own needs and efforts, so they expect to have ways to apply what they’ve learned from you. articles focus on reader benefits by ensuring that every article includes thorough explanations, step-by-step instructions, and applicable takeaways. Each of their articles includes content readers can download to further enhance the experience. Another blog that does a good job is from Buffer. Their articles are also thorough, and they regularly update them to ensure readers learn the latest trends and techniques for their efforts. No matter what: focus on your readers first, and give them what they came for in the first place. Recommended Reading: How To Communicate Effectively With Your Blog Readers To Keep Them Reading Be Strategic With Your CTA Wording, Design, And Placement Your call-to-action or CTA has to be convincing enough to get your readers to click on it. You may be wondering: how can I accomplish this? The answer: you create a CTA that follows these best practices. This is how you’ll get people to give you their contact information and convert. This is how you’ll get people to give you their contact information and convert.Nail Your CTA Copy Your call-to-action copy needs to be short but still give readers a reason to click on it. It should be focused on real benefits and not serve as clickbait. Use power words  to convince visitors that this action they’ll take will be worthwhile. Make it clear why and how they should act on your CTA. As you can see from the example below, uses strong wording in their CTAs, such as â€Å"get,† â€Å"now,† and â€Å"free.† They’re expressing a sense of urgency and making their CTA a command to help visitors take action. Also, makes the value clear in what they’ll provide in exchange for the visitor’s information. They tell visitors that they offer the â€Å"#1 Marketing Calendar,† which clearly shows that their product is worth considering. When you’re working on your CTAs, make sure you’re using strong words, such as commands or value-based terms, to give your visitors a reason to click through. When you're working on CTAs, use emotional words to give your visitors a reason to click through.Pay Attention to CTA Design Use different text colors or use images to help your CTA stand out, but be careful that your design doesn’t confuse or annoy your readers.  Check to see that your CTA design stands out without interrupting the flow of your article. You want your CTA to be noticeable without being intrusive. That’s why experimenting with your CTA design is key. You’ll want to find the right method for best lead generation results. Let’s look at this example from a recent HubSpot article. Their call-to-action displays a preview image and bold colors. The text is large enough to be easily noticeable. Their CTA stands out from the page’s white background. As it is located at the end of the article, it doesn’t interrupt the reader. Experiment With CTA Placement Many times, you’ll see a CTA that’s in-line with the article copy. Other times, it may be a clickable image with text overlay. Regardless, you want to use a placement that stands out from the rest of your article and page as a whole. You want your CTA to fit naturally with your article without getting lost in the flow. Whether it’s at the beginning, middle, or end of your article page, you want to choose wisely. It’s important that you experiment thoroughly with which placement converts the most visitors. There’s not one best placement for everyone, so test it until you know what works for you and your visitors. Also, don’t be afraid to add it more than once per article. You just want to make sure it doesn’t take away from your article’s readability. If your readers can’t stay focused on your article, they may leave before considering your CTA. In the above example from the Convince Convert blog, this CTA is placed at the end of their articles. It takes a wide space to really stand out to readers who made it to the end. It doesn’t interrupt the article content but rather gives readers a reason to seek more. This is a prime example of a strategically-placed CTA. How To Test Your CTAs for Copy, Design, and Placement Optimization Only make one change at a time. Continue this process until you start seeing a decline in leads generated. If you don’t see improvement with a change, revert back to the last setting and make a different change. Use your available analytics to see if the change produced more leads, the same, or less. Testing is never over. Your readership changes over time, so your CTAs should adapt as a result. The best way to stay in tune with what works for your readers is to experiment regularly with your CTA copy, design, and placement. Although you have these three elements to work with, always remember to only make one change at a time. Otherwise, you won’t know which change was the winner. Recommended Reading: How To Write A Call To Action In A Template With 6 Examples How To Create Opt-In Forms: 5 Ways To Convert Traffic Like Crazy 11 WordPress Plugins To Inspire Visitors To Take Action Provide A Gated Content Upgrade Relating To Your Post In the last section, you learned about CTAs and saw examples from a blog article. If you look at the in-line and pop-up CTA examples again, you’ll see that they lead to what’s called a â€Å"content upgrade.† It’s an additional resource related to the article’s topic. It often serves as a way for readers to apply what they’ve learned from your article. uses content upgrades in almost all of their articles. It’s a quick and effective way to get more conversions than a simple CTA would provide. With a content upgrade, you want to ask for an email address at a  minimum. However, to fully optimize your further contact with readers, ask for a name and other personalized information. This will help your email outreach and also any sales-based contact. Recommended Reading: How To Create Amazing Content Upgrades For Your Blog Have A Content Promotion Plan In Place Before you finalize your blog draft, and before you publish it, you should have a plan for how you’re going to promote it. Your first focus should be on optimizing your content for social sharing. Then, you can plan how, where, and when to share your new content online. First: Optimizing Your Content For Sharing To see your content reach a larger audience than your own, you need your readers to share it with their networks. They won’t share if you don’t make it easy for them, so you want to pay attention to this when finalizing your draft. There are several tools you can use to make social sharing a breeze: ’s   in-line tweet prompt Sumo’s image sharer AddThis’s social sharing buttons uses social sharing buttons and Click-To-Tweet to give people more than one way to share. Make sure your content is optimized for social sharing by including options in the form of in-line engagement and sharing buttons to give your audience a quick, simplified process. Next: Plan Your Own Promotion Schedule Your own content promotion is important for notifying your existing fans and followers of new content. It’s important that you know what you’re doing, when you’ll do it, and how you’ll do it effectively. What you’re doing.  What platforms are you using for your content promotion? When you’ll do it.  What days and times are you going to publish your content promotion? How you’ll do it.  What format will you use on each platform, and how will you make it engaging? Use your content calendar to organize your content promotion strategy to make it more manageable. Otherwise, you’ll lose track of where and when you’ve already promoted your content, risking future repeats and mistakes. Recommended Reading: How To Promote Your Blog With 105 Content Promotion Tactics How To Develop An Effective Content Marketing Promotion Strategy How To Promote Your Content Marketing Like A Public Relations Genius What Next? You’re now better prepared to use your blog to generate leads. You have seven pieces of the puzzle that you need to use together to get the full picture. Apply each of these lead generation tactics in your blog activity to achieve the ROI you’re seeking. What tactics have worked best for you from this list? What tactic or tactics would you add? Let us know in the comments!

Case 6.11 whitewater west industries limited Study

6.11 whitewater west industries limited - Case Study Example In order to meet their demand, relatively larger area of at least 6,040 to 6,970 square meters is required. Upon the analysis of WhiteWater West Industries Limited, three production sites are investigated. Further analysis is required as to which production site needs to be acquired which must fulfill the company’s strategic objectives. Due to increase in the demand in volumes for the fiber water slides, WhiteWater West Industries Limited needs a production facility of around 6,040 to 6,970 square meters. In order to acquire that much place, three different site locations namely Hiram-Walker, Build Option and Abbotsford Site were narrowed down by the management of WhiteWater West Industries Limited. In the following paragraphs, each site will be analyzed briefly. This site is not too far from the existing production site. In nine months time, this location can be prepared for the commercial production of the fiber water slides. This site benefits that in future if expansion is required, this site can provide more area to expand the production plants and facilities. Cost totaling around $1,571,875 will be required to avail this production facility. This option requires WhiteWater West Industries Limited to build a manufacturing factory, which is perfect in every sense. However, in order to find such site which is so perfect, is a hectic matter which could cause substantial time of around one year and a total cost of $,4464,425. This site has its own benefit of being near Vancouver, Seattle and Portland markets, so the customers from those areas can be catered easily if this site is selected. However, some drawbacks also pertain to this site such that hardships in mobilizing the labor from the existing place to this place. For those workers who do not want to work on this place, need other financial assistance causing more cost to WhiteWater West Industries Limited. Along with this, this site will not provide any

Internatinal aria studies(survey of world history) Essay

Internatinal aria studies(survey of world history) - Essay Example We will discuss the political development in China after 1600 and in Japan after 1600. Africa was the first haven for our apelike ancestors, since then humans have spread far and wide conquering almost every part of land that’s habitable. The reason for the survival of human beings has been their capability to adapt to the changes. As has been explained by John McNeill and William McNeill, â€Å"protohumans were unusually versatile†. Besides, the savannas, the first habitat of human, provided an opportunity for human survival. Savannas are dry and grassy plains with drought resistant trees which provided secure sleeping places and the alternating rainy seasons provided for the source of water. As humans spread out from their basic haven to different places about a million year ago, they started adapting to the various conditions they faced. The basic factors that led to the growth and adaptability was their ability to communicate which was the main reason for our ability to form networks and hence to get organized. Their ability to communicate in abstraction and to store memories and pass on technology allowed humans to survive. Also, the fact that our cranial capacity grew steadily meant we became more intelligent and hence the many discoveries that we made in the meantime about fire and the ability to use tools ensured our survival. Agriculture was another important tool that ensured continuous source of energy for humans. As the humans continued to survive by developing various means, they also developed binding with people in their own groups and with other people in other groups. The earliest form of interaction included the hunter-gatherer societies. The human menstrual cycle changed which allowed humans to produce more offspring. However, this also meant that females had lesser contribution in the production of food, further with the onset of agriculture and domestication, the condition only grew worse. The various bands

Case Study Analysis Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Case Study Analysis - Annotated Bibliography Example He also argues about the issue of organization and how it affects public administration. In this book, Bekkers et al (2006) tried to look at the problem of innovation and how it relates to public administration. The authors look at the process of innovation in the context of IT. They relate this to the use of IT in the public administration and how the technology can be used to create collaboration between the public and government. This book was important in this study with regard to understand the issue of technology and how it could be used to enhance public services. Denhardt (2011) looks at public administration departments as an organization and then tries to apply the theory of organizational learning. What he is trying to identify is if the government departments can acquire a learning model. The author also looks at the various models that can be used for public administration. The author looks at some of the most effective ones, especially in light of organizational learning. This book was very useful in this study because it provides a new dimension of organizational learning to the debate of effective public administration. Fang (2002) looks at the issue of government and how technology has assisted in the delivery of services by the government. Ho looks at both the upside and the downside of things with regard to IT technology in delivery of public services. This journal article is especially important as a source of information on how the challenges of using technology in the implementation of public administration. Garson (1999) tackles the issue of information technology in the context of public administration in the following regard. One, he tackles the issue of contemporary technology in public administration. More importantly, the book discusses the issue of information privacy with regard to the use of electronic service delivery. This is important in understanding how IT relates to public administration and many challenges

Research paper. Project Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

. Project - Research Paper Example When relating this to personal life, it is evident that the world created a lot of pollution that has resulted in climatic changes. However, with the induction of such businesses, the world has been recording impressive performance in regard to pollution. As a matter of fact, this has heightened the activities which are geared towards improving the world. This has taught people that they can have different approaches in accomplishing their missions. For example, many businesses have enhanced their sustainability though they are engaging in society responsibility. Similarly, it has taught people to embrace better ways of production while reducing pollution and environmental hazards. The most common business formation in the recent times is the Benefit Corporation. This is a business that is formed by entities whose first objective is not to realize financial profits but to fulfil ethical goals such as transparency and accountability. These businesses are formed to consider the good of the society as well as the environment. Benefit corporations have redefined what is considered as being a successful company in the present climate that supports transparent and ethical business practices. With such preparations, the corporation is likely to reflect a positive impact on the community and the society (Pakroo 12). In terms of the impact on society, a benefit corporation is accountable to general public and issues an annual benefit report. The consumers and the general public then use the results of the corporation to determine if the benefit company has had a positive impact on its society (Lyons 10). After these, the public has to agree or disagree if there has been positive impact on the community. On the other hand, there has been formation of the low profit limited liability corporations in the world. This type of business aims to limit the gap between for-profit business and non-profit business entities. There are some businesses that are solely formed make prof its, while others are formed without any interest in realizing profits. However, low profit limited liability companies have structured investments in an environment that is socially beneficial. Consequentially, they factor benefits of profitability while complying with the revenue collecting bodies which reinforce the national government's revenue generation while also functioning in the capacity of debt collectors. The only difference is that, L3c’s do not seek to consolidate their revenue. Therefore, they will work under the legal frame work and tax acceptance to run the businesses. Most of these corporations rely on market positions, branding, and the positivity accrued from social enterprising methods such as advertising. There are a number of reasons for formation of these corporations. First, there are limited numbers of companies that are formed solely to provide social benefits. Therefore, there is a limited supply of such services, yet, they are vital in running an economy. Apparently, most companies are formed for the sole purpose of realizing profits. As such, they will maximise their revenue and not participate in activities that bring social benefits to the society. Therefore, supporting the formation of such companies is of greater benefit to the society (Lyons 9). So, they will be able to benefit from the products and services of these upcoming companies. Without such an approach, it is possible that there will be no social

Online Course Materials and Online Educational Tools Essay

Online Course Materials and Online Educational Tools - Essay Example Some courses are therefore available through a face to face teacher interaction which is supplemented by online course material and other educational tools. There has been some debate about the effectiveness of the online courses per se or of the supplemental course materials to add to the students’ understanding of the subject (Allen and Seaman, 2006) .Moreover, previous research has also found that teachers’ perceptions about the effectiveness of the online course or course material differs vastly (Dawley, 2007) which may in turn impact on their enthusiasm to adopt their teaching to the new requirements entailed by the online mode of learning. This research therefore aims to assess what teachers in college X at the University of Y, in Jeddah, KSA think about the online course material that the university uses to supplement the classroom teaching. As such, the main research questions are: 1. What do the teachers think are the advantages and disadvantages of the online course material? 2. What are some of the barriers and challenges that teachers face while developing and managing the online content for their courses? 2. Literature Review According to Allen and Seaman (2006), online education is not restricted to the fringe anymore instead the popularity of online education is increasing rapidly (Dawley, 2007). In fact, it has become crucial to the long term plans of any institution to incorporate online courses for both local and international students. As more and more teachers begin to adapt to this method of teaching, it is necessary to understand their perceptions about moving to an online approach. This paper takes at look at the perception college teachers have about online... As the report declares two teachers are interviewed from a University in Jeddah, and their opinion sought on the impact on student learning that the online course content that the University uses to supplement regular classes. The teachers are selected on the basis of convenience sampling from among the acquaintances of the researcher. The interviews are conducted over Skype, and the responses are analysed in a reflective manner. The findings are discussed to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of the online course content, and recommendations made for the improvement of the same.This paper highlights that online education is not restricted to the fringe anymore instead the popularity of online education is increasing rapidly. In fact, it has become crucial to the long term plans of any institution to incorporate online courses for both local and international students. As more and more teachers begin to adapt to this method of teaching, it is necessary to understand their per ceptions about moving to an online approach. This paper takes at look at the perception college teachers have about online course materials and online educational tools.  Many researchers have made the observation that in spite of the high demand of online courses, faculty members are not very keen to shift their mode of teaching to an online medium.  One of the major concerns of adopting an online approach is pedagogical – whether the process of teaching would be as effective as that of a classroom.

Research paper. Project Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

. Project - Research Paper Example When relating this to personal life, it is evident that the world created a lot of pollution that has resulted in climatic changes. However, with the induction of such businesses, the world has been recording impressive performance in regard to pollution. As a matter of fact, this has heightened the activities which are geared towards improving the world. This has taught people that they can have different approaches in accomplishing their missions. For example, many businesses have enhanced their sustainability though they are engaging in society responsibility. Similarly, it has taught people to embrace better ways of production while reducing pollution and environmental hazards. The most common business formation in the recent times is the Benefit Corporation. This is a business that is formed by entities whose first objective is not to realize financial profits but to fulfil ethical goals such as transparency and accountability. These businesses are formed to consider the good of the society as well as the environment. Benefit corporations have redefined what is considered as being a successful company in the present climate that supports transparent and ethical business practices. With such preparations, the corporation is likely to reflect a positive impact on the community and the society (Pakroo 12). In terms of the impact on society, a benefit corporation is accountable to general public and issues an annual benefit report. The consumers and the general public then use the results of the corporation to determine if the benefit company has had a positive impact on its society (Lyons 10). After these, the public has to agree or disagree if there has been positive impact on the community. On the other hand, there has been formation of the low profit limited liability corporations in the world. This type of business aims to limit the gap between for-profit business and non-profit business entities. There are some businesses that are solely formed make prof its, while others are formed without any interest in realizing profits. However, low profit limited liability companies have structured investments in an environment that is socially beneficial. Consequentially, they factor benefits of profitability while complying with the revenue collecting bodies which reinforce the national government's revenue generation while also functioning in the capacity of debt collectors. The only difference is that, L3c’s do not seek to consolidate their revenue. Therefore, they will work under the legal frame work and tax acceptance to run the businesses. Most of these corporations rely on market positions, branding, and the positivity accrued from social enterprising methods such as advertising. There are a number of reasons for formation of these corporations. First, there are limited numbers of companies that are formed solely to provide social benefits. Therefore, there is a limited supply of such services, yet, they are vital in running an economy. Apparently, most companies are formed for the sole purpose of realizing profits. As such, they will maximise their revenue and not participate in activities that bring social benefits to the society. Therefore, supporting the formation of such companies is of greater benefit to the society (Lyons 9). So, they will be able to benefit from the products and services of these upcoming companies. Without such an approach, it is possible that there will be no social

Total Quality Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Total Quality Management - Essay Example The truth of this statement and those facts that disagree with this statement are thoroughly examined in this research to offer an avid discussion of how to achieve success with the implementation of TQM in a business. A major element in world market competition is quality. During the 1970’s and 1980’s, the Japanese and their U.S. companies demonstrated that high quality is achievable at lower costs and greater customer satisfaction (Heaphy & Grusky 1995). These were consequently the results of utilizing management principles of total quality management (TQM). U.S. companies have demonstrated that such achievements are possible using TQM as a way to manage business now, in present times. Also, many international companies have come to realize that when everyone pulls in the same direction it brings improvement in management skills in all forms of business, which TQM has made become a way of life in the many business sectors throughout the world (Laszlo 1999). In order to implement a strategy like TQM into a business requires an Upper-management change in both philosophy and behavior. Research has shown that business managers in any area, even within the realm of a mortgage brokerage company, must adopt the objectives of customer satisfaction and continuous improvement if they are going to rise to the top of the business chain both nationally and internationally (Wilkes & Dale 1998). They must implement the change to achieve these objectives through their personal and continuous involvement and through providing reeducation services for everyone within an organization. It is of course definitive that the organization should focus on solely TQM principles and practices so that the philosophy of management can work reasonably well. This is specifically true if a company wants to gain dominance in the world market and have outstanding success internationally (Wilkes & Dale

When Rewards Go Wrong Essay Example for Free

When Rewards Go Wrong Essay At the heart of most performance management systems is a reward program. However, even when we are doing everything else right, rewards can go wrong. Here, we explore five ways that external incentives can damage performance, from destroying altruistic behavior to distracting people from the task. Fortunately, most of these downfalls are avoidable. While not every behavior is suitable for pay-for-performance, we can provide rewards that are rewarding, helping to encourage the behavior we value. THE CARROT AND THE STICK are the starting point for creating the behavior that we want. We reward desirable actions and punish, often by removing rewards, actions that annoy. Rewarded behavior becomes more frequent, and punished behaviors eventually disappear. That, at least, is the idea. From economics, which is largely the study of incentives, to behavioral psychology, which specializes in reinforcers, we have academic reassurance that we are pursuing the recommended path. But as anyone who actually tried to put this simple logic into practice will find, it does not always work out as well as desired. We praise a teenager for doing well in her studies, rewarding her with a shopping trip to the mall, only to find that her grades steadily deteriorate thereafter. We encourage a spouse to try to follow our much more reasonable agenda, only to get him or her to dig his or her heels in opposition. We even encounter this mysterious disconnect when we give gifts. Gift givers typically expect a positive association between how much they spend on a gift and how much their gift’s recipient appreciates it. We reason that more money (i.e., a more expensive gift) conveys a greater amount of thoughtfulness. In fact, gift recipients report no such association between the price of their gift and their actual feelings of appreciation (Flynn Adams, 2009). Much like gift givers who expect a greater, more positive outcome proportional to the size of the gift, organizations often find that external rewards such as pay do not garner the outcomes they expect. In fact, sometimes to our bafflement, an incentive program turns out to be a disincentive program, where we are inadvertently reducing the very behavior we try to encourage. Why does this happen? Sometimes it is due to poor measurement: we do not recognize the proper behavior when it occurs or when we get it confused with something else. Most famously, rewarding CEOs with stock options is seen as a way to get the C-suite (the offices of the most senior-level executives with titles beginning with the word chief) to work harder, but this can have perverse consequences. Stock performance is not the same as CEO performance, and to raise stock prices, we actually incented some CEOs to manufacture or make up favorable financial reports. This is why Peter Drucker (Drucker Zahra, 2003) described the practice as â€Å"the well-meant but idiotic belief that executives should have major stakes in the company, the stock options (which I have always considered an open invitation to mis-management)† (p. 11). At other times, rewards do not work because they are not contingent on performance. To the degree rewards are not reliably delivered, so people feel their hard work will not be dependably recognized, we can stop expecting the target behavior altogether regardless of how large the promised reward becomes. For a performance management system to work, people have to trust it. However, neither of these issues of implementation will be our focus. Performance Improvement, vol. 51, no. 8, September 2012  ©2012 International Society for Performance Improvement Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com) Altruism paints a sunny swath through our society. People act on behalf of others simply for the pleasure of helping. Here we are at our best, whether assisting the disabled or homeless find housing or our coworkers master the company’s new software program. The joy of altruism is inherent in our neurobiological makeup, with separate regions of the brain activated when we are acting altruistically (Fehr Rockenbach, 2004). Unfortunately, this is also part of the problem. There are countless examples of attempts to incent altruistic behavior that in theory should have been effective. Even if someone is intrinsically motivated to perform, adding an extrinsic reward should motivate him or her even more. As it turns out, it does not quite work this way. Frey and Oberholzer-Gee (1997) reviewed the Swiss government’s attempt to get a canton to accept a nuclear waste dump being built near it. Nobody wants nuclear waste, nearby or otherwise. But if you are going to have nuclear power, the waste has to go somewhere, and allowing it to be stored in the vicinity of your backyard is a selfless civic act. Initially, simply on the request of the government, about 51% of the area’s populace was willing to permit its location—altrui sm pure and simple. However, when the Swiss later decided to add a few thousand dollars of yearly stipend to promote more agreement, the percentage of agreement went down, not up, to about 25%. Neurobiologically, by adding an external incentive, the Swiss government framed the question from being an altruistic act, which had sufficient motivation, to one of pleasure and self-interest, which was evaluated in a separate part of our brain and came up short. Under these strictly monetary standards, the few grand that the government was offering was not enough. Later in 2001, Frey along with a new colleague, Jegen, called this motivational crowding theory. Finding scores of examples for everything from the adherence of time schedules in day care services to pay-for-performance schemes, they repeatedly found that extrinsic rewards can push or crowd out intrinsic rewards. Now this is not always a bad thing. If the Swiss government wanted to get agreement well over the 51% that altruism was providing, it could have, but at a high cost. If officials were willing to give every resident a small fortune each year, they might even have people actively moving to that canton. But if you cannot afford the cost of maintaining an extrinsic reward system, then you are likely better off not implementing it at all. The delicate balance between intrinsic and extrinsic motives can be a difficult one to keep. Gary Walters, an expert in psychology and child development, recounts his mistake when trying to encourage his 6-year-old son’s precious interest in chess by giving him a manual on the topic: â€Å"He was reading by then, so I gave it to him. That just killed it. It turned it into schoolwork. There’s a difference between intrinsic and extrinsic interest: the kinds of things you’d do on your own because they’re self-rewarding, as opposed to somebody on the outside telling you† (Bielski, 2012). If he can err, then so can the rest of us. Consequently, if you have people volunteering, developing, self-improving, or engaging in positive organizational citizenship behavior due to intrinsic reasons, you might want to recognize it or celebrate it with unexpected or unofficial rewards but not ones formally contingent on task performance. Leave such altruism as the wonderful gift that people give others. It is not work and should not be treated as such. HOW CAN BE AS IMPORTANT AS WHAT People have desires not only about the rewards they receive but also in the manner they are delivered. For example, company A and company B may pay their workers the same competitive wage, but due to differences in procedure, one is effectively incenting performance while the other is not. But why? There are two major desires regarding the administration of reward programs: a sense of fairness and a sense of autonomy. As the common law adage goes, â€Å"Not only must Justice be done, it must be seen to be done.† This principle extends to reward systems as well (Frey Stutzer, 2005). In the competition for performance between company A and B, you can increase the power of your incentives through three primary mechanisms (Masterson, Lewis, Goldman, Taylor, 2000; McFarlin Sweeney, 1992). First, keep your employees informed about exactly how rewards are administered. Effective reward systems are usually transparent, in that they are well documented, clearly communicated, and easy to follow. The less accessible or understandable a reward system becomes, the less it works. Second, be consistent in its application. Whether the outcome is the same or different, people like to know that there is a process being followed and that it is the same for everybody. The more arbitrary you are and the more exceptions you make for particular people, the less bang you get for your buck or value for your effort. Finally, and probably most important, allow voice. Any reward, large or small, is likely to be accepted as being fair if you give others the opportunity to state their perspective. By denying people even marginal input, they are less likely to buy what you are selling. Often you do not even have to agree with their opinions, but you do have to listen authentically; people desp erately want to be heard. The other mechanism for improving or reducing the power of rewards is whether you emphasize their controlling aspects. We do want to control or at least influence behavior with rewards. Otherwise, why else would you use them? However, many people have substantive needs for autonomy. While the need for autonomy can range from nonexistent all the way up to Patrick Henry’s â€Å"Give me liberty or give me death,† on average it is quite large. Typically we do not like other people telling us what to do, we do not like feeling controlled, and we resent any efforts to coerce. To reestablish a sense of autonomy, we might reject significant rewards, seemingly self-destructively— cutting off your nose to spite your face. Consequently, giving people a degree of choice in reward systems and framing the system as encouragement rather than control reduces the perceived threat to autonomy. For example, Washington, D.C., has a performance system for teachers called â€Å"Impact Plus.† Teachers can voluntarily enroll, potentially doubling their salary, if they are willing to give up some job security provision in their union contract. When his friends do show up, Tom applies himself to the paintbrush with gusto, presenting the tedious chore as a rare opportunity. Tom’s friends wind up not only paying for the privilege of taking their turn at the fence, but deriving real pleasure from the task—a win–win outcome if there ever was one. In Twain’s words, Tom â€Å"had discovered a great law of human action, without knowing it—namely, that in order to make a man or a boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difï ¬ cult to attain.† (p. 1) REWARDS TELL US HOW REWARDING THE TASK REALLY IS Ariely, Loewenstein, and Prelec (2006) suggest what they call the â€Å"Tom Sawyer effect.† They write, In a famous passage of Mark Twain’s novel Tom Sawyer, Tom is faced with the unenviable job of whitewashing his aunt’s fence in full view of his friends who will pass by shortly and whose snickering Perhaps even more notable, this effect demonstrates that the value of a task, real and perceived, is malleable and that rewards can be used quite persuasively to alter this perception. Certainly price in many cases communicates meaning. For example, if a colleague offers you $1,500 to go on a date with her brother, you have just been given a lot of information about that brother, as well as about how the date might be expected to go. Similarly, Plassmann, O’Doherty, Shiv, and Rangel (2008) examined the effects of pricing on the experience of enjoyment of wine. As might be expected, as the price of the wine increased, participants reported a greater level of satisfaction with the wine overall. That is, their attitudes about the wine and self-reported experience were more positive. Impressively, they also showed a greater physiological satisfaction with the wine. On functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans of participants’ brains, a higher level of activity was observed in one of the pleasure centers of the brain. Not only did price provide information that informed attitudes, but it also informed real, physical reactions. Of note, when the same participants assessed the wine in blind taste tests, they gave the cheapest wine (five dollars a bottle) the highest praise. Consequently, if we pay people to perform a task, we also can be communicating that the task is awful. They will hate it simply because that is what the â€Å"price† indicates, countering what natural positive feelings we might have had. For example, economists tried to incent students’ performance by paying them to learn—a cash-for-grades scheme. â€Å"Remarkably,† as Fryer (2010) found, â€Å"incentives for output did not increase achievement† (p. 5). Actually it’s not so remarkable. Good framing can minimize this, where we ensure we are also communicating that this is a desirable job. You could make it clear, as Tom Sawyer did, that the task is coveted and others would be eager to do the same. There are scores of public schools that are incredibly demanding in what they ask of their students, such as SEED schools and the Harlem Success Academy. Perhaps they can ask so much because the competition to get in is so high that it is done by lottery.

Communication Strategy Of Next Plc

Communication Strategy Of Next Plc To sustain a business, there must be effective and efficient communication. This means there must be efficient ways and appropriate channels of exchanging information with the stakeholders of the business, which is core to its corporate strategy. This report evaluates the corporate communication strategy adopted by Next Plc, a UK based retailer with over 180 stores spanning continental Europe, Scandinavia, Russia, Middle-East, India and Japan and with international website serving the USA and 30 other countries worldwide. The report highlights the fact that Next has got an established human resource management which continually develops and implements internal communication strategies to enable all employees receive and understand information that is timely, accurate, relevant motivational. In terms of its image, a report by Susannah Streeter(July 2010), a BBC reporter reveals that Next Plc had been breaching consumer law by not refunding delivery charges on online purchases though returned within seven days. This had a damaging effect on the companys image but they were quick to offer apologies to their customers and retrace theirs steps. Also according to a Mintel report(October 2010), Next clothing are also known for qual ity with which it scores with its customers, but the challenge it faces is that as disposable incomes come under pressure, its many young customers might turn to value retailers. However, if it tries to diversify into third party brands, it may erode the image and values of its brand. Hence, the need for effective communication strategies for corporate and brand repositioning. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 2 LIST OF FIGURES 3 3 INTRODUCTION 4 4 FINDINGS 5 5 Conclusions and Recommendations 14 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.0 Nexts Record of Sales 2005-2009 Figure 1.1 Abergs Total Communications Domain Figure 1.2 Argentis Reputation framework Figure 1.3 Cornelissens Stakeholder Model of Strategic Management Figure 1.4 Hofstedes Framework of cultural dimensions Figure 1.5 Mckinseys 7-S Model Figure 1.6 General structure of Corporate Governance. Figure 1.7 Ulrichs 4 roles of Human Resources Figure 1.8 Harvard Map of HRM theory by Beer et al(1984) Figure 1.9 Horizontal/Vertical structure of communication INTRODUCTION According to Cornelissen Joep(2008 p.5), a likely characteristic of corporate communication is that it can turn out to be complex in nature. For small-medium firms, communication complexity is quite minimal but with large corporations, if due care is not taken, communication can turn out to be cumbersome. Cornelissen J.(2008,p.95) also states that managing corporate communication requires a communication strategy that describes the general image that an organisation aims to project through themed messaging to stakeholders. As a result of this complexity, this report will aim to provide insights and explore the corporate communication strategy of Next Plc. A Proquest(2011) report tells of challenges faced by Next in the four year period to 2009 as a result of laxity over its positioning and recession. By the time it realized that trends were changing, it had lost grounds. The targeted young customers were maturing and reduced their spending due to additional responsibilities. Erosion of its brand due to over-diversification was another issue. Next has lost ground since 2005 but seems to be emerging now from the underperformance period according to the graph below: Figure 1.0: Next UK sales as a share of clothing specialists Source: Next Company Accounts and Annual Reports/Mintel 2010 An industry expert, Raoul Shah, CEO of Exposure evoked that Next should develop a higher brand profile and image and senior executives need to plan new communication strategies, be more visible in the media, give more interviews and build deeper relationships with customers and stakeholders.(Proquest, n.d). Essentially there has to be a corporate identity management in place. This report will seek to investigate the corporate communication strategy of NEXT Plc with regards to its stakeholder management, Corporate image and identity, its Human resource management among others. These will be achieved through research, recommendations and conclusions will be made based on findings from the company website, articles on the company and its industry, journals, their annual reports and other relevant materials. FINDINGS What is Corporate Communications? Corporate communication is the ability of an organisation to effectively communicate to its stakeholders. This definition gives a general overview or understanding of what corporate communication is about. Looking into a more complex and detailed definition, corporate communications would then be defined as: an instrument of management by means of which all consciously used forms of internal and external communication are harmonised as effectively and efficiently as possible, so as to create a favourable basis for relationships with groups upon which the company is dependent. (Van Riel,1995, p.26) Figure 1.1 : The total communications domain(Aberg 1990) Source: Van Riel (1995) Principles of corporate communication. Van Riel(1995) supports Aberg (1990) that all communication activities within an organisation must be integrated so as to support the achievement of the organisations aims and goals. This is where care must be taken so to address communication complexity effectively and efficiently. It is about the reputation of the organisation, people being able to identify with the organisation and about the formal systems of communication at the highest level. Please see Appendix 1 and 2 for a history and timeline of Next Plc. Image Identity and Reputation Image is the picture of an organisation as perceived by target groups while identity is associated with the way in which a company presents itself to the target groups, by the use of symbols, communication and behaviour(van Riel,1992). Argenti (2007) also states that image is a reflection of an organisations identity. These definitions shed light on the fact that there is but a thin line between image and identity as the former sees from the outside while the latter projects from the inside. It was reported that Next was breaching regulations by not refunding online delivery costs to customers even if they return goods within seven working days. This would have damaged Nexts corporate image, but the companys executives were quick to offer apologies to redeem its image.(BBC Business News, July 2010). According to Richard R. Dolphin(1999), people learn to identify with a company by noting everything it does. In terms of image, whether Nexts customers decide to use the Next Directory or website, visit a Next retail store, the strength of the brand continues to be a powerful attraction in terms of design consistency, value and quality their customers know they can trust. To support this, Richard R. Dolphin (1999) says organizations communicate with those that they perceive as stakeholders because they desire an enhanced awareness, understanding and appreciation of their identity and their core beliefs as well as of their products and their services. Next has an outstanding record of achievement as a result of continued success of innovative shopping concept. Nexts greatest assets are its exclusive designs and distinctive styling that have given it a strong brand image. Figure 1.2 Reputation Framework Source: Argenti, Paul. Corporate Communications(2007) George Davies, a retail entrepreneur, believed in the 80s that tailored jacket could establish Next, as long as it represented fantastic value for the price and high quality (identity). This was their brand positioning at the time. In February 1982 Next opened its first seven shops and the sales were two and-a-half times what the company had originally estimated. Davies found a ready market for his merchandise(as customers were able to identify with the positioning) providing what he called affordable collectables, which represented good design at reasonable prices(image). (Fashion encyclopedia) Next was able to give the public a better product in terms of their expectation of quality at the price point. Also, Next logo has been changed from time to time in terms of the use of upper and lower case letters and also background colour probably as a brand repositioning strategy. Even the name Next suggests something to look forward to which essentially says a lot about how the company wants to be perceived or positioned in the minds of its customers hence translating into the image as conceived in the minds of its various stakeholders which over a period of consistency earns the company a reputation. This relationship is supported with Argentis Reputation framework (figure 1.2). Management of stakeholders Cornelissen J. (2008, p.42) defines a stakeholder as any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the organisations purpose and objectives. Next addresses environmental, social, ethical and business related impacts on its stakeholders as a way of managing and bringing value to them. (Next website) NEXT has a strategy of addressing the issue of the organisations reputation as there are different expectations from different stakeholders. The Board at Next represents and promotes its shareholders interests. The Board gives account of the performance and activities of the Group and then communicates this with its shareholders with respect to the business activities.(Ezine Articles 2009). The company recognizes a need to address every kind of stakeholder it has. Figure 1.3 Stakeholder model of strategic management. Source: Cornelissen Joep, 2008. p.39 Next adopts and implements a code of conduct that delivers benefits for its workers across the globe by which means it fulfils its responsibility to uphold international labour laws with its suppliers. The company sources the products it sells from many countries around the world. It recognizes the responsibility it has to work closely with its global suppliers, and is committed to ensuring its products are made in a clean and safe environment, in accordance with all relevant local and national laws and legislation, and by workers who are treated with respect and paid fairly for the work they do.(Nextplc.co.uk). Every company has got its own reasons for being in business. For whatever reason for which a business might be in existence, it must take into consideration its responsibility to the environment in which it trades which includes its stakeholders (Government, shareholders/investors, suppliers, customers, etc) and the world at large. Please refer to the bibliography for a full statement of Corporate responsibility from Next and how it relates with each group of stakeholders. Role of Culture According to Tourish and Hargie (2004), culture can be defined as a collective (for example society, organisation, group or sub-group) interpreted for its sense of social integration, differentiation, and fragmentation. It is the culture of Next to have the interest of its people(including stakeholders) at the centre of its business. Figure 1.4 Hofstedes Framework of cultural dimensions. Source: Hofstede, G. (1994). Cultures and Organisations, London: Harper Collins As a result, the company had its business strategy implemented within a genuine organisational culture and continuous investment in its employees. This in essence gives employees a sense of security and loyalty towards the organisation and in essence help to relax the power distance(Hofstedes power distance) between employees and their bosses. A multi-national organisation such as Next, by reasons of its geographical dispersion will work with and employ people from diverse cultures, hence the need to possess a sensitive communication strategy. Cornelissen J.(2008, p.71) describes an organisations culture as the values as felt and shared by all employees of the organisation. For instance, to contain the situation of cultural differences and language in its countries of operation, Next has a multi-lingual website for its online home-shopping, Next Directory. This is a good step in the right direction in terms of communication strategy. With regards to Hofstedes concept of individualism, Next plc supports collectivism rather than individualism. It encourages employees to be integrated to a single corporate group rather than individual groups. It has in place a training and development team which designs and implements interventions to drive forward the fun, fair and rewarding culture of working together. Role of Technology According to Tourish and Hargie (2004), a torrent in recent years resulting from the surging river of technology is a key feature of the organisational landscape. Technology has proven to be very dynamic in nature and for an organisation that wants to reach and connect with a vast majority of its stakeholders or even expand its customer base in a competitive world, it must also be technologically pro-active. Tourish and Hargie (2004,p.74) supports the views of Clampitt and Downs()993) and Hargie and Tourish(2000), that communication has been at the centre of successful organisations, causing a challenge to create a communication system that is efficient and effective when it comes to addressing the needs of its customers and external and internal stakeholders. Internet popularity and new media reception offers enormous opportunities for NEXT to improve its communication strategy. According to Tourish and Hargie (2004, p.74), technology alone does not solve problems, it only offers opportunities so it must fit into already existing communication strategy. Next increased its customer base to over 2 million with the launch of the Next Directory internet shopping in 1999. The website also has multi-lingual features which helps to translate to other languages to aid user friendliness. This strategy will help Next to influence its customer behaviour. Next is a people oriented organization. Even employees may have instant access to senior managers via their e-mail address, which in essence reduces power distance as Hofstedes cultural dimension illustrates. Human Resource Management Beardwell et al (2004,p.6) supports Legge(1995) that the analysis of HRM in terms of style has revolved around whether it can be regarded as hard or soft. Soft HRM according to him is often viewed as developmental humanism in which the individual integrates into a process of work that values trust, communication and commitment while Hard HRM emphasizes cost minimization strategies. With regard to the Soft HRM, NEXT employs over 58000 people and sees its employees as valuable assets to the organization and is committed to their development by providing a working environment in which they can to achieve their full potential and accessing opportunities for both personal and professional development.(Nextplc.co.uk). Nexts recruitment is done online via the HR department. Figure 1.5 McKinseys 7-S model. Source: www.Mindtools.com Nexts human resource approach is a mixture of both the Hard and Soft approaches in line with McKinseys 7S model(pictured above). Employees enjoy an environment of support and respect, fair treatment, listened to, welfare and motivated to achieve their full potential, which is the core of its human resource management. Next applies the soft approach of recruitment policies, development and training of employees and is also committed to investment of time and resource for support, engagement and motivation of employees to feel valued, developing rewarding careers and want to stay with the company. There are reward systems for employee motivation as a hard approach. As the business continues to develop, Next understands that effective and committed employees will help to continue delivering excellent quality products and services to its customers. This suggests an output-based HRM. Ulrichs model of HRM can be substantiated with Next in that, most of its top people (executives and non-ex ecutives alike ) have been with the company for many years and this is because Next makes its employees feel valued thereby gaining their loyalty and they, over the years, work through the four roles till they become strategic partners. Figure 1.6 Ulrichs 4 roles of HR Source: Ulrich, D.(1998) Human Resource Champions. The Harvard HRM framework as developed by Beer et al(1984) explains that every organization must recognise all groups of stakeholders. Most of Nexts success can be attributed to its business strategy infused with stakeholder centred HRM strategy which can be confirmed with its statement of social responsibility. (Appendix 3) Figure 1.7 Harvard Map of HRM territory, by Beer et al(1984) Source: Beardwell et al(2004) Corporate Governance An enforced and well defined corporate governance provides a structure that works for the benefit of everyone concerned(at least in theory), by ensuring that the enterprise adheres to formal laws, best practices and to accepted ethical standards. Next has got various committees and officers overseeing its many business units in order to ensure smooth running and effective corporate communication flow. Figure 1.3 below further explains the general order or structure of corporate governance which also explains that of Next Plc. Next has a four-member audit committee which reviews the risk management process thereby refering significant risk issues to the Board for handling. Next Board is responsible for major policy decisions whilst delegating more detailed matters to its committees and officers including the Chief Executive. (Next Plc, Corporate Governance). The Board at Next represents and promotes the interests of shareholders (Ezine Articles, n.d) and also other arms including the HR and PR departments are there to help ensure communication strategies are effectively implemented. Figure 1.8 General Structure of Corporate Governance. Source: Johnson et al (2011) Exploring Strategy. Conclusions and Recommendations In conclusion, the organization has to be sustained and successful so effective corporate communication strategy is very essential in tackling its communication challenges. As a result of the unpredictable nature and diversity of stakeholders, drawing up a corporate communication strategy can in fact be very challenging. Sometimes stakeholders still lack commitment to an organization no matter how the organization tries to keep them informed or involved. The management of Next Plc had trivialised this important fact and went on playing on their customers intelligence by breaking consumer law in failing to refund delivery charges on goods bought online even when returned within seven days. The media got a hold of this activity and then made it public. This singular act could make it difficult for Next to achieve its own objectives with its stakeholders. The effect of it was damaging on the companys image and reputation but the management was quick to offer apologies to their customers before any further damages could be made.. Also with the concept of cultural division, Next as a multi-national organization employs and works with people of diverse cultural orientations and backgrounds who sometimes may see different meanings to the same words or statements. Multi-national companies may not always be able to adapt to all the cultural differences and at the same time maintain consistency in portraying their corporate culture but they would have to make strategies that inculcate cultural common grounds. It is sometimes difficult selecting the appropriate channels as well. For instance, Next plc has a multilingual website, though not all languages are included. This also poses a challenge as some cultures might feel left out. Next Plc is committed to abiding by rules and regulations in countries where it operates. Changes in laws and regulations of different countries are also unpredictable as most of the times they may run counter to an organizations strategic interest. These changes sometimes create difficul ty in maintaining its performance culture; for this reason it is confident but cautious at the same time. Against all odds of adverse circumstances and social rethinking, Next has continually moved forward the high standards of quality and processes of improvement using its keen minds. Thereby managing communication complexities arising in relation to it stakeholders. Hence, its ability to synchronise image, identity, reputation and human resource management.