Government in Taiwan Overthrowing the Kmt Essay Example

Government in Taiwan: Overthrowing the Kmt Paper Allen Chang Mrs. Gomer Ap Lang Comp 4 November 2009 Government in Taiwan: Overthrowing the KMT In America, the Democrats fight the Republicans for control of the American government. They fight to lead the country the way they want it to be led. In Taiwan, MingJingTang(MJT) fights KuoMingTang(KMT) for control of the Taiwanese government. They fight to make Taiwan either a more independent and democratic nation or a more China-following nation. In recent times, KMT has been in control of the Taiwanese government with President Ma Ying-Jiu. President Ma has recently become politically vulnerable due to a flooding that was supposedly preventable. In his current condition, MJT could easily come forth and overthrow his position of power and reinstate the Democratic, pro-Taiwan party. Taiwan has been seeking an identity as a country independent of China and the reinstatement of MJT as the ruling party would help achieve this goal. Some may say that usurping KMT is not a plausible idea because the public is not only tolerant, but also accepting of the pro-China ruling party. The people of Taiwan have been dreaming of becoming an independent country, free from China’s oppression. We will write a custom essay sample on Government in Taiwan: Overthrowing the Kmt specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Government in Taiwan: Overthrowing the Kmt specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Government in Taiwan: Overthrowing the Kmt specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Having the pro-China party in power will not only hinder the Taiwanese dream of independence, but it will also aid the unification of China and Taiwan. Now, while President Ma is politically vulnerable, it is clearly the time for MJT to strike the pro-China KMT and win the power to rule the growing nation. Background of the Politics To understand the significance of political battles in Taiwan, it is necessary to understand some basic facts and history about the KMT, the MJT, and both of their party leaders. The government of Taiwan is led by either of the two parties, the MJT (MingJingTang) or the KMT (KuoMingTang)(TaiwanDC. rg). They are essentially the Taiwanese equivalents of our Democratic and Republican parties except the KMT is the Pro-China party and the MJT is the Pro-Taiwan party. The KMT is currently the party in power in Taiwan with President Ma Ying-Jeou at its head (ROC). The KMT was founded in China shortly after to Xinhai revolution and later moved to Taiwan in a retr eat from a battle with the Communist party in Mainland China (Knowledge Rush). The KMT established sovereignty as the single governing party in Taiwan and later renamed the island, the People’s Republic of China (Knowledge Rush). The KMT is known to favor Chinese reunification and Chinese nationalism even though they did make a point of ridding themselves of Chinese communists (Knowledge Rush). The KMT is the pro-China party in Taiwan and often times, their decisions and actions reflect their desire to appease China and gain Chinese favor. The KMT’s chairman, President Ma, currently leads Taiwan with a â€Å"no unification, no independence, and no use of force† stance, although some say he does not fully abide by his said stance (ROC). The KMT’s most powerful opponent is the MJT, formerly led by former President Chen Shui-Bian. President Chen and the MJT have worked for the last 3 decades to lead the nation of Taiwan to its goal of becoming independent of China. Officially established in 1986, the MJT, also known as the Democratic Progressive Party, has been working tirelessly to rid Taiwan of China’s oppressive grasp (DPP). In 2000, the MJT made history by instituting President Chen into office and overthrowing the KMT for the first time in the history of Taiwan (Democratic Progressive Part). This success led bolstered the ranks of independence fighters and the MJT gained support from the Taiwanese rapidly. President Chen was later taken out of office for acts of corruption, but the work he did with the help of the MJT had a lasting effect on Taiwan. For the first time since KMT claimed Taiwan, someone had taken the lead and led the people of Taiwan in the direction of independence as a nation. Taiwanese want for independence The people of Taiwan want their independence as a nation just as the Americans wanted their independence as a nation in colonial times. Right now, the KMT is hindering Taiwan’s journey toward independence. By favoring reunification with China, the KMT is taking Taiwan backwards, away from its dream of independence. The MJT has been fighting for Taiwan’s independence for a good 30 years now and if overthrowing the KMT while they are politically weak will help the MJT help Taiwan achieve its goal of independence, then the MJT should go full force in trying to take the KMT out of power. The KMT favors reunification with China (Knowledge Rush). That in itself is counterproductive toward the goal of Taiwan’s independence. Reunification would mean that China would have control of Taiwan once again. Reunification is the equivalent of America falling back under British control. Reunification is no what Taiwan wants. Back in 2005, the KMT sent a representative to China to discuss a 1992 consensus that, in essence, stated that both sides, China and Taiwan, were part of one China (Coates). The chairman of the KMT, Lien Chan, was greeted like a world leader upon his arrival in China (Coates). Chan and President Hu of the China Communist Party spoke of and brought a new plan into light. They called it, the â€Å"common vision to promote bilateral exchanges† (Coates). In dealing with China, the KMT gave proof to the public that reunification was not only present in their plans, but also a priority in their agenda. Unification with China was and still is quite unpopular with the Taiwanese, a nation that seeks a national identity. National identity became the heart of the MJT’s fight for independence. Since 1986, the MJT has been working as the opposition party to the KMT, hoping to gain control of the government and lead Taiwan out of China’s grasp. While the KMT was in China, trying to negotiate about a â€Å"common view†, the MJT was recognized as a formally pro-Independence party that spurned reunification (Coates). Also in 2005, pressures from the U. S imperialism and the pro-China agenda of the capitalist class led to statements from the MJT that hinted at reunification. The public’s outrage at such abhorrent thoughts was evident in the resignation of 4 of President Chen’s advisors (Coates). The public knows what they want. When President Chen started to succumb to possibilities of reunification, the public stepped up and reminded him what his job was. Independence is sought after by the people, even when their government starts to lose heart. As a nation growing in the shadow of Chinese oppression, Taiwan wants its independence. The MJT is the vessel which will allow the public to obtain their wish for freedom, even if there are times when the MJT falters. The KMT has proved its support of reunification through its dealings with China, but the MJT, while not perfect, has been, in general, against the reunification in Taiwan. Just as in all parties, there is dissension, but the MJT works to gain freedom from China. President Ma Not Fit To Lead President Ma currently reigns as the president of Taiwan. His stance is that there should be â€Å"no unification, no independence, and no use of force† (ROC). He has led Taiwan for almost a year and a half now. So far during his reign, he has encountered some political hindrances like Typhoon Morakot and low popularity ratings. Typhoon Morakot struck Taiwan quite recently, burying a village and killing about 500 people. President Ma’s popularity is dropping as he continually blunders through quagmires. His ability is a leader is currently on the table for questioning. Typhoon Morakot rolled over Taiwan and the rest of Southeast Asia early in August of 2009 (Monash). The damage done by the typhoon was nowhere near insignificant. Villages were buried under mudslides and hundreds were killed (Monash). An estimated three meters of rain fell in Taiwan causing floods along with the fatal mudslides (Monash). President Ma was criticized for taking too long to respond to this natural disaster. In an article pertaining to the disaster by Jacob Monash, the author said stated that President Ma initially refused foreign aid to recover from the disaster. Also, when the MJT invited the Dalai Lama to Taiwan to console the victims of the disaster, President Ma and the KMT declined to meet with the honored guest. In his choices pertaining to the typhoon and the Dalai Lama, President Ma was questioned. The first of the questions was why would a â€Å"diplomatically isolated country like Taiwan initially rejected foreign aid? † (Monash). Taiwan is located a whole ocean away from the U. S and a full continent away from the United Kingdom. In rejecting foreign aid, President Ma placed Taiwan in a quandary and possibly, as a result of his inaction, a whole village of Taiwanese aborigines was buried under a mudslide. The second question was why did President Ma meet with the Dalai Lama? Recently, Tibet was annexed by China (Office of Tibet). The Dalai Lama is the leader of Tibet and visitation with him would have angered the Chinese (Office of Tibet). Had President Ma not been in close contact with the Chinese, he may have taken the time to meet his country’s honored guest. His refusal to meet with the Tibetan leader begs the question of whether or not his refusal was made to prevent Chinese disapproval. President Ma’s actions and inactions have generated a cloud of doubt early in his presidency. Not half of an American president’s term has gone by and already, President Ma has endangered his country through inaction. Aside from putting Taiwan in quite a troubled situation, President Ma is also quite ambiguous with his words. He stands by his â€Å"no unification, no independence, no use of force† with a steadfast attitude. The flaw in his stance is in the words. President Ma states that he does not support unification, yet the actually problem that Taiwan faces is reunification or annexation. Unification is the act of bringing together as stated by the Webster’s II New Riverside dictionary. Reunification would, using the definition of unification, be the act of bringing together once again. According to the Webster’s II New Riverside dictionary, annexation is the incorporation of a smaller country or state into a larger country or state. Knowing the definitions of these three words is vital to understanding President Ma’s actual stance. In standing for no unification, President Ma is literally saying that China and Taiwan will not willingly come together as unification entails. Obviously, Taiwan is against unifying with China as much as it is against reunifying with China. Annexation seems to be the proper term to use in this case. President Ma should have said that he will not stand for annexation as annexation is, in essence, what China is aiming to do with Taiwan if a peaceful agreement of reunification cannot be met. Ma slyly states the obvious that there will be no unification as the Taiwanese would never agree to become part of China. Alongside his sly assertion, he tells all that he stands against independence. Once again, his words betray him; this time it is his logic and not the actual definition that undermines his argument. Ma is essentially holding a stance on the fence. He neither supports unification nor does he support independence. By not supporting either one, he supports an island of imagination. There is no middle ground between independence and unification, it is either the former or the latter. If Taiwan is not officially part of China, then it must either be part of some other country or a country in itself. If Taiwan is on a path toward unification, it is still independent but gradually losing its autonomy to a bigger government. Ma creates a contradicting stance when he provides that he is both against unification and against independence. One must live in the absence of the other. His stance is flawed, thereby weakening the assertion built into his â€Å"no unification, no independence, no use of force† stance. With his vague stance, President Ma surreptitiously strikes down possibilities of Taiwanese independence and leaves possibilities of annexation and reunification with China open. As an added note, President Ma was not actually born in Taiwan. According to the Office of the President of the Republic of China, Ma Ying-Jeou was born in Hong Kong and moved to Taiwan a year later (ROC). Although the standards for presidency are different in Taiwan and America, from an American stand point, President Ma should not even be allowed to lead. Arnold Schwarzenegger was not allowed to run for presidency because he was born in Austria. The same rules do not apply in Taiwan, but nationalism and patriotism do stir the hearts of the Taiwanese and having a Chinese born president leading Taiwan is like having a British born president leading America. National pride and the Taiwanese identity slightly undermine President Ma’s presidency. Refuting the Other Side Arguing for the â€Å"better† party is difficult in any situation. While Taiwan’s government is not as fluctuating as the American government is, change is still necessary. In America, the Democrats and Republicans shift positions in the power struggle almost every time a vote occurs. The people vote for the other side when the current power holders dissatisfy the public. In Taiwan, the KMT held power for 40 years before the MJT came along and usurped them. The MJT reigned for 8 years before the public became dissatisfied with them. Just a few years ago, President Chen was, for want of a better term, impeached. Opponents who support the KMT would use this point as a reason why the MJT should not gain power again, but their reasoning can be countered. President Chen’s presidency was marked by great success followed by a remarkably shaming fall from grace. President Chen Shui-Bian was impeached and resigned from office in August of 2008 on accounts of embezzlement (Wines). His wife had apparently wired 21 million dollars of campaign funds to accounts in Singapore (Wines). President Chen made some brainless choices, but his success before his fall portrays the otential a MJT president has. President Chen was the first non-KMT president to rule Taiwan and in his 8 year presidency, he led the MJT in the fight for independence (Wines). Condemning the MJT off former President Chen’s corruption is illogical. In making that argument, one could say the whole human race is evil by the actions of one person. The MJT is currently the opposition party, and as the President Ma stumbles throu gh his presidency, a need for change arises. Having the MJT rise to power once again would bring about the necessary changes needed in Taiwan. Even though some people would see the counterargument for Chen’s corruption, others would go further and say that the KMT is the more experienced party and is better fit to lead. The KMT has ruled Taiwan for over 40 years, starting from their retreat to Taiwan after losing the Chinese civil war, to the present day (Knowledge Rush). Having led for such an extensive period, one could say that their experience makes them the better leaders for Taiwan. While the KMT may be more experienced, it has also been shown many times through history that change and variation can be beneficial to a country. An example of â€Å"out with the old, in with the new† is the American government. The Revolutionary war was the turning point at which a new country came into existence. Since then, America has thrived and become a world power. As geneticists have noted, it is variation and change that allow humans to be so successful evolutionarily speaking; the same applies to governments, variation is the key to success. Experience is excellent, but so is change. Experience cannot be a sufficient basis to support the KMT’s continued ruling. Summation The KMT has been in control of Taiwan for over 40 years, broken only by the MJT for an 8 year period. Even though the MJT lost power in disgrace, their contribution to the overall dream of Taiwanese independence cannot be overlooked. Now, while President Ma leads Taiwan, the KMT is acting under the pressure of Chinese approval. Most, if not all, of what the KMT does is aimed to appease China. The Taiwanese people want independence, not unification, not reunification, not annexation. President Ma is currently going through politically vulnerability. His inaction and action has endangered his country and his political stance is in itself a fallacy. Now is the time for the MJT to usurp the KMT and President Ma. Change is needed. Just as America underwent a massive change with Barack Obama as the first African American President, Taiwan needs to undergo some massive change and reinstitute the MJT, the Independence Fighters. Leaning toward China will not get Taiwan the independence it craves. A new party and a new power are what the Taiwanese need to attain their dream of independence. Now is the time to strike. Now is the time to grasp the office, the power, the right to lead Taiwan to a better future.

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Reaction to Siddhartha essays Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse, is the story of the life journey of the main character, Siddhartha, after which the book is named. Throughout the novel, Siddhartha questions many aspects of life including wisdom, love, and happiness, which causes the reader to reevaluate life as well. At the beginning of the book, Siddhartha begins to question the Brahmin faith. He feels, however, he is better off looking within himself for answers to his questions, rather than looking to others for help. I can relate to Siddhartha in this respect because when I am going through a difficult time in my life, I like to go through it on my own. I have found I learn more about myself this way. Siddhartha is trying to reach inner peace. He feels that knowledge is something that he needs to do this, but knowledge does not always lead to peace. There have been times in my life when I wanted to find out the truth about something, and upon finding out the truth, I wondered if I were better off not knowing it. Siddhartha comes to the realization that he does not desire knowledge, he desires wisdom, and wisdom only comes when you are ready to receive it. By the end of his spiritual journey, Siddhartha matures and achieves wisdom. During his journey, Siddhartha meets Kamala and falls in love. "Beneath heaped-up black hair he saw a bright, very sweet, very clever face, a bright red mouth like a freshly cut fig, artful eyebrows painted in a high arch, dark eyes, clever and observant, and a clear slender neck above her green and gold gown." She represents all that is beautiful in the world. She promises to teach him the art of love. The only part of his life that Siddhartha feels truly involved in is the time he spends with Kamala. It is easy be consumed by love. I was in a relationship where I felt like Siddhartha. Throughout the entire relationship, nothing else seemed to matter to me. I began to lose sight of everything else, just as...

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Birds Eye And The UK Frozen Food Industry Marketing Essay

Birds Eye And The UK Frozen Food Industry Marketing Essay INTRODUCTION: Birds Eye Foods Ltd was incorporated in the United Kingdom in 1938 in response to the interest that Robert Lucas, the chairman of Winget Ltd developed in the product while in the USA. On incorporation, it was owned by General foods corporation (their parent company in the USA), Robert Lucas and Chivas and sons Ltd (a British canner and jam maker). Birds Eye was subsequently acquired in March 1943 by Unilever, who identified its potential to serve their current business interests in the three main categories: fish (Mac fisheries), fruits and vegetables (Batchelors peas), and poultry (Poulton Noel Ltd). Their strategy was to grow the business along those 3 areas and to push for global expansion. The dearth of infrastructure and the meticulous needs of quick-freezing implied that to guarantee the quality of their products, Birds Eye had to invest across their entire supply chain and build their own system. In essence, they were geared towards establishing an organisation that was fully integrated from controlling food production (raw materials sourcing, harvesting equipment, production equipment, location and construction of plants) to distribution up to the retailers frozen food cabinet (cold storage, insulated vehicles) via their sister company SPD (Grant, 2010). Birds Eye is considered to be one of the founders of the modern frozen food industry and, is credited with many innovations in food processing, freezing techniques, quality management, vegetable cultivation techniques and harvesting equipments as it sought to secure competitive advantage. Some of the other players in the frozen foods market included: Smedleys (National Canning), Smethurst Ltd, Mudd and Son, etc. From humble beginnings, Birds Eyes market share reached 70% in the 1950s and 1960s. Their RoCE in the same period was highest in the industry, with 16.2% in 1964. 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What should Birds Eye have done in 1979? LITERATURE REVIEW: Corporate level strategy is the conduct of drafting, implementing and evaluating cross-functional decisions that will enable an organization to achieve its long-term objectives. It is the process of specifying the organizations mission, vision and objectives, developing policies and plans, often in terms of projects and programs, which are designed to achieve these objectives and then allocating resources to implement the policies, and plans, projects and programs. Firms can develop strategies that ensures that they have a competitive advantage in the market and this can be done in the following ways Internal development: This is a process where the firm looks within itself and builds up its own resources and capabilities internally. The problem with this approach is that it might take a lot of time to build up the required capacity. Some of the reasons why a firm would want to internally build up its capacity are: they might want to develop product internally to form core competence. they may seek to avoid culture clash with the merging partner. they might be unable to find a suitable acquisition target. Mergers and Acquisition: This is a process where a firm either merges with other firms or out-rightly acquires the firm in question to increase their capacity. Some of the benefits of MA are stated below: Economies of scale: This refers to the situation where a firms cost can be reduced due to expansion. The expansion results in a decrease in per unit cost associated with production. Economies of scope: This is similar to economies of scale but its related to the efficiencies derivable from the production of two different goods together, rather than separately and it can be attributed to the products using common technology or common marketing channel. Create value/Increased revenue or market share: When a firm merges or acquires another firm it is probably a competitor or a firm along its supply chain. Integrations like these help firms to secure their supplies, reduce transaction times and create revenue and savings opportunities across the chain. So the buyer is basically increasing its revenue market share when it takes over another. STRATEGIC ALLIANCES: This is a cooperative relationship between firms involving the sharing of resources in pursuit of common goals. Firms can go into a contract/relationship with another firm in the actualization of its goals. These alliances could be in any of the three forms: Analytical Framework: Birds eye joined the UK frozen food industry when it was novel and stayed on till it became mature and saturated. For strategic reasons Birds Eye opted for a vertically integrated business model as shown in figure 1.0. Given the changes that continued to hit the UK frozen food industry in the time under consideration it was paramount that Birds Eye continued to assess its position in the market relative to other players and emerging factors. For much of the 1950s and 1960s, the barriers to entry were prohibitive enough to restrict the number of players. Factors ranging from the cost of setting up machinery, distribution costs, marketing costs were significant enough to deter other investors. The Porters 5 Forces Analysis shown in figure 2.0 shows how Birds Eye was squeezed from all sides as all the forces worked against them simultaneously: The farmers grew developed the capabilities needed to raise high quality vegetables. Technological innovations reduced the costs of raising and processing food, this led to new entrants. Most entrants couldnt afford massive investments in marketing so they aimed to deliver mainstream or even unbranded foods that will compete on functionality. Changes in the retail industry introduced customers to more options and more savings. The caterers who bought in bulk preferred the basic brands that werent expensive. Verdict = The industry had become saturated and unattractive. The BCG Matrix The BCG matrix helps us to dissect a business into its different component parts and evaluate them objectively on the basis of the state of the market (whether there is growth, low or high) and the firms share of the market (whether low or high). Table 1.0 in the appendix summarises the position of the different aspects of Birds Eyes businesses across its supply chain. On the strength of the analysis and the case we make recommendations in the next section. Recommendation: Birds eye develop as vertically integrated producer for the following reasons: Firstly, adequate infrastructure for deep freezing was absent at the time so Birds Eye had to develop theirs. This warranted them investing across their supply chain. Secondly, Birds Eye needed to control their entire supply chain to guarantee consistent supply of high quality raw materials, and also regular supply of products to customers. Thirdly, they wanted to ensure that all process within the production and supply chain is efficiently optimised. Fourthly, the structure of their supply chain delivered economies of scale that helped to optimize costs. In sourcing raw materials, explain why Birds Eye adopted different arrangements for peas, fish, and meat?: The sourcing arrangements that Birds Eye adopted for the different raw materials was dependent: Vegetables: Birds Eye adopted their chosen strategy for vegetables because the seeds, cultivation, fertilization, treatment and harvestation practices available to farmers of the time could not guarantee a high quality final product. The farmers didnt have the equipment to harvest vegetables fast enough for them to be freezed in good time. Fish: Due to the nature of whitefish and where they are found, Birds Eye couldnt control their production. Inability to control their breeding left them with the option of sourcing for the best of the available supplies; buying fish fresh from dock side auctions or buying fishes that were frozen at sea. Between 1965 and 1969 they had a majority stake in a fishing company in a bid to ensure their cod supplies. Meat: Meat was primarily poultry and because this process could be controlled from start to finish Birds Eye acquired poultry farms and subjected them to their strict standards. Why did specialized intermediaries emerge?: The specialized intermediaries in this case refer to the specialist storage, freezing and transportation companies. Some of the reason for their emergence include: The availability of infrastructure: invention of blast freezers: The invention of blast freezers among other technologies made production cheaper and more efficient. This meant most of the costly barriers to entry had disappeared. Diversification to create value and spread risk: Companies who had competitive advantage in a certain segment of food production merely started offering their products in frozen form to enter the growing market. Processing to increase value added: Firms that originated from agricultural cooperative realized that if they added value to their produce they could command more returns on them. Most of the intermediaries were flexible: The intermediaries offered their services on very flexible contractual terms. The costs of building a vertically integrated was high so firms concentrated on one or two parts of the supply chain. Vertically integrated producers: Vertically integrated suppliers were better placed than vertically integrated producers of frozen food in the 1980s. In the early days of the industry owning all aspects of the supply chain was expedient as there was a dearth of infrastructure; firms needed to build competitive advantage on the basis of their products quality and also control their costs so, it was key to own the entire chain. However, the 1980s ushered in new and cheaper technologies that made production cheaper and more efficient. Also, competition grew from more specialized and efficient firms entered the market to compete thereby reducing margins. Therefore, we believe it would have paid Birds Eye more to concentrate on its core capabilities, seek to control its supply entire supply chain by means of long term contracts with firms specialized in areas where it was weak in, instead of owning them. What should Birds Eye have done in 1979?: Having identified that the vertically integrated approach to supply chain management that helped them grow in the 1950s and 1960s was no longer the best (as shown above), Birds Eye should have sold off their under-performing divisions and concentrated on the profitable sections as shown by the BCG matrix in table 1.0. In detail, Birds Eye should have sought to: Divest its physical investment in the fish/meat/seed sourcing, cultivation and harvesting , and instead activate a contractual strategic alliance with the co-operatives. Free up its resources tied up in the distribution business and instead contract the distribution out to other more efficient firms. Among their brands, they should concentrate on the frozen foods that they have a competitive advantage and leave the British grocery segment. Stop cutting prices. Appendix: Figure 1.0: Birds Eye Supply Chain Figure 2.0: Porters 5 forces analysis Portfolio Management Analysis: The BCG Matrix: Table 1.0 HIGH MARKET SHARE LOW LOW MARKET GROWTH HIGH Stars Question Marks Prepared meals Transport Distribution Freezing Processing Cash Cows Frozen fish Frozen meat Storage Dogs Vegetable Fruit

An Inquiry to the Nature and Causes of the Influence of Adam Smith

Many people, when asked what pops into their mind with the word economics, they mostly say â€Å"capitalism†. Indeed the field deals a lot with capitalism. In fact, the three great names mentioned in Heilbroner and Thurow (1982, 17)—Adam Smith, Karl Marx, and John Maynard Keynes—have capitalism as the base of their different ideologies; and it is in how they view capitalism that within economics, several school of thought sprouted, enabling the further development of the field. The influence that Smith, Marx, and Keynes are incalculable: each inducing their own set of followers that continue polishing up their works long after they are gone, each idea continuing on as legacies, influencing political decisions all throughout the world. But for now, let us content ourselves with examining the influence of Adam Smith, the father of economics himself. In the opening statement of Adam Smith’s celebrated work, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (Smith, Skinner, 1986), he wrote: â€Å"How selfish soever man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles in his nature, which interest him in the fortunes of others, and render their happiness necessary to him, though he derives nothing from it, except the pleasure of seeing it† (Smith, 1986). Back in Smith’s day, this statement, along with the ideas contained in the Wealth of Nations, raised many eyebrows. The book, a first-of-its-kind defense for the free-market and a direct attack to mercantilism, argues that the selfish motives of individuals does not necessarily lead to detriments; in fact it could actually benefit the society. It is based from this belief that he further postulated that the free market, though looking like unrestrained and chaotic, will be eventually guided to the right direction by the â€Å"Invisible Hand†, which in turn is guided by individual human motives that are most commonly selfishness and greed. It being termed as a free-market, Smith abhorred any kind of intervention coming from the government, believing that for the market to function efficiently, it should be left to work on its own—thus, the idea of laissez-faire (www.econlib.org). Smith also was a firm believer that it is labor, and not land that is essential in increasing production and thus highlights the importance (but also warns against the peril) of division of labor. Just how influential Smith’s ideas are can be readily seen in the field of Economics through the years and especially in this day and age: free markets have been made the ultimate goal of many a government of today; specialization has never been more stressed as a major strategy in production; capitalism is fast becoming the only model for economies today; and mercantilism have long disappeared in favor of Smith’s proposed free trade (although the degree of freedom in trade in some countries is a matter worth questioning). Selfishness and greed, although still contested by some groups, are still viewed in a much more positive light, and is justified in the field of economics so long as they serve the society’s over-all benefit. Several followers have also polished on the economist’s basic ideas, extending them to meet the different quirks that come up through time. Smith has been a household name for any person with at least average knowledge on economics; in fact he is ranked 30th in Michael Hart’s list of the most influential persons in history (1992). Also his portrait appears on the twenty pound note in UK. (Talk about influence that you cannot buy!) Greed that fosters growth and division that promotes efficiency. Once taken aside but now are lived and breathed and experienced worldwide. And as long as there are supporters who hang on to the basic tenets of the famous Adam Smith, the great economist’s legacy shall forever live on and endure. References Hart, M. (1992). The 100: A ranking of the most influential persons in history. Carol Publishing Group. Henderson, D. (2002). Biography of Adam Smith. Retrieved March 3, 2008, from Heilbroner, RL., Thurow, LC. (1982). â€Å"Three Great Economists†. Economics explained. Prentice-Hall. p.17. Smith, A., Skinner, A (Ed). (1986). An inquiry to the nature and causes of the wealth of nations. Penguin Classics.

My Personal and Professional Development Plan Essay

It is a journey of the self to contemplate all the happenings going on around. I can say that I have reached the middle of the road with regard to my journey in life. I am now entering a new phase of my life. My graduation is almost near. I have to face the new world in order for me to continue my journey on this earth. I remember when I first entered this university. I do not have friends before; I also remember the times when I am longing for my parents. I miss them so much but because of my determination to study here, I managed to cope up with my new environment. I remember how I felt whenever I’m alone. I also remember the hard times during my first day here. The way of life, the attitudes of the students and of course, the expectations from my instructors and professors gave me some intense feeling of being new to this university. But as days passed I learned how to mingle with them and cope with my new environment. Now, the time is near to end my journey in this stage of my life. My journey in college is coming to an end. I am so excited to face a new period in my life. As I move on to my journey, I want to spend time with my family and catch up with my friends. I want to go out on a vacation where I can loosen up a bit. I am planning to go to a place where I can relax and think of nothing but myself. By the time I graduate, I will visit my family back in Brazil and I will visit all the places that I’ve been. This will give me time to think about my future; on what path would I take. I will also visit my old friends to reconnect with them, and try to enjoy my vacation there. By the time I go back to work, I will see to it that I will be promoted after five months. I will instill in mind that I need to be promoted, this is my way in motivating myself to achieve what I have planned. I will also enroll in a university to get a Master’s degree. I plan to get a management degree because I want to have a managerial position in my workplace. We know for a fact that having a greater education gives you a chance to compete in the market that is, having a higher position in a company. I believe that the adult tasks, unique to each period and era of the adult life are intertwined with the issues and problems inherited from our childhood, and are mediated by dynamic pressure from socioeconomic and historical aspects of life from within the cultures and societies where we live. Helping put our adult lives back in balance with our inner resources, and understanding the contradictions and conflicts built into our life patterns — between who we are and who we want to be, between what we love and what we must do, between our often clashing commitments — this is often the task that underlies the resolution of psychological symptoms and suffering. With these challenges in life, an individual learn to know himself/herself better and try to do something about it. Each and every one of us has experienced this kind of situation and we try to solve it as soon as the problem arises. Going back to my previous papers I mentioned that I have been into sorrow but I think of positive thoughts to divert my attention and see to it that these challenges in my life will help me grow. I am grateful for the incidents in my life that I have experienced. It made me who I am— a stronger woman. Forgetting and learning from your experiences, makes you more knowledgeable about realities of life. As human being, we have differences and similarities. Thus, according to Levinson, â€Å"human life cycle is universal, yet each life is different†; that both sexes have developmental histories to some extent unique to their own gender, but the overall pattern in the adult development. This follows the same structure of eras and alternating periods. Adult Development Theory helps us see more of our connectedness to the rest of life, primarily through our experience of living within the limits of a relatively invariant, species-specific life cycle, containing nevertheless within it, the creative potential of individual variability (Kitrrell, 1998). My plan in achieving my goals: personal and professional I mentioned earlier that I first planned to graduate for me to get a decent job. In order for me to get a high grades I would have to keep in mind that nothing is more important than finishing all the requirements needed for me to graduate. One of my mottos this school year was to graduate and find a job that will help me enhance my knowledge about my course. And time is near for me to accomplish my goal with regard to my education. One of my personal goals is to develop my profession and apply the knowledge that I have learned during my stay here at the University. I want to help others in building their own dreams. I want to have smooth relationships with my co-workers. I want them to know me better. In helping them with their tasks, they will also help me with mine. thus, my growth with regard to personal and professional life go hand in hand, that is, i can develop my relationship with others by making them my friends and at the same time, they help me enhance my professional growth—making good at my job. Doing your job is not good enough to say that you are growing professionally. An individual needs a harmonious relationship with people surrounding him/her to understand and do his/her work better. In it, the individual will not have any conflicts with his/her co-workers. S/he will be happy and enjoys his/her tasks in the office. Adjustment is the key in making a harmonious relationship with others. It is very important in work and also with personal life, rather than likability, meaning it is more important to interact within your co-workers than to impress them. If a person wants to impress others, s/he must communicate will with others s/he must mingle with them. In this way, s/he will be understood by them and they may help him/her in his/her endeavor in work. Being friends with your co-workers makes your work load more fun and you will not feel the pressure in doing your assigned tasks. So, I must adjust to the people in my workplace and in the society that I belong. I will see to it that I will not have any conflict with them. I will befriend them to help me cope with the new environment that I enter. I will share my thoughts to them for them to understand me better and try to use it as an instrument in accepting me as part of their company. I also want promotion, so I am planning to have a higher education, I will enroll for masteral and at the same time do good in my work. I will attend conferences if necessary to help me gain more credentials for the promotion that I want. I just want to achieve this in my first two years of work. After attending masterals, I plan to have my PhD to have a higher position in my recent workplace or maybe I can have a career move where I can improve my ability and skills with regard to what I have studied. But before I achieve these goals, I will develop a clear and highly specific career goals and objectives for myself. I believe in the goodness and attainability of my goals— I being accountable for the consequences that may occur. I will strive towards reaching my goals and dreams one day at a time. I see my career as a vehicle that will help me take my goals. I will commit myself emotionally and psychologically to turn my dreams into reality. But first, I need to focus on what I want to do, that is, to have a vacation for myself. I will plan my goals base on its attainability—short- and long-term goals. Second, I need to eliminate excuses for not moving forward toward my goals. I will put my career plan that maps out specific moves I can make toward my goals on a daily basis. From what I have found on my assessments, I now develop an awareness of what I want to do. Two years from now, I want to finish my Master’s degree. Five years from now, I want to have a child and have a beautiful family of my own. And ten years from now I want to have a top position in a company and make a name in the business industry. My ideal job would enable me to grow personally and professionally. This job will help me enhance my ability and skills in communicating with others. As I graduate from this university, I will step-up for more formal education in order for me to attain my goal. We all know that having a higher education will give you a chance to compete on the job market. This way, I can improve my personality. Having a good job is not enough. I want to get more than what I have. At my recent job, I will try my best to do my job for me to be promoted. Being a CSR, I won’t try arguing with unhappy customers. If I can’t handle them, I better call my manager. I also want to receive feedback about my performance at work once a week. I will use these feedbacks to improve my work, and to be more efficient employee. I will use my resources to my advantage. Performance is a very important factor for every individual. It is created to assess individual action with regard to how s/he conducted his/her own acts. Interacting with others help someone assess his/her action on how and what should s/he do to act accordingly, that is, behaving in a manner where s/he is supposed to act. Each and every one of us is expected to act in every situation we encounter. An individual could maintain an ideal role within the situation. As a student, I must study hard and do all my assignments to conform to the rules and regulations of the school. I must act as a student in order for me to perform my role as a student. By doing this, I learned how to assess my work according to the standards of the University. The road to success Happiness is connected to personal effectiveness wherein you feel contentment within yourself. For me, personal effectiveness is doing what you want, getting yourself from where you are to where you want to be, that is, achieving what you want in life. Thus, it takes a lot of effort to say that an individual is successful in doing the things that s/he wants. Defining personal effectiveness is the same as how we define success. We individuals seek success being intertwined with happiness. We can say that success is having the things that you want—earning money for yourself and your family, getting the highest paying job in town, having all the things that the world offers, and the likes. We define success with regard to tangible and intangible factors— the materials that we use in determining success and the feeling that we feel inside in getting that success. As I mentioned in my previous paper, I defined happiness as a pleasurable satisfaction, a state of well-being and contentment—being happy of what you have. Regret is a way of depressing yourself of not getting what you want or doing what you should have done. Seeing my mistakes and my weaknesses enables me to improve my worth as an individual. This made me more effective citizen, student, daughter, friend and a partner. And I try to live one day at a time in order for me to achieve my goals in life. In this way, I can avoid myself of feeling too overwhelmed with my limits and emotions. I will be entering a new page in my life, as I go on with this great transition, I realized that my experiences and the people around me have a great impact of who I am today and what will I be tomorrow. My future depends on how I plan to go on with my life—my future! I can say that I am contented of what I have right now but I am not satisfied of where I am today. I want to explore more of my world. I want to excel from my job and I plan to have a very good life, that is, being successful and all the people around me are happy with what they have, especially my family. Prior to graduation, I plan to have good, if not better grades. I want to make it better for me to land a job that will help me earn enough money that is salary that will enhance my way of living. I don’t want to have a failing mark. This will reflect my personality as individual. Failing mark means I didn’t do my best to pass my course. In order for me to achieve this, I will read all my reading assignments and complete all the requirements that are needed to be submitted. I will see to it that I will pass my entire exam. I will love and enjoy my course and look at every single test as a challenge in making me more responsible individual. Taking responsibility in all your actions make an individual is more assertive of what s/he wants to achieve. My family is very important to my life, I want them to be happy with their own life and be successful with their chosen field. I want my mother to be more understanding and I will see to it that she is happy right now. I want her to feel that we, her children love her very much. I want my family to be complete and witness my graduation. I want to share my achievement with them. They are my strength and joy. Without them, I cannot overcome all the obstacles that came my way. They are the one whom I run to whenever I have a problem. They gave me good advices on how to handle my problems. Even though they are not with me, they are always here in my heart. Daniel Levinson’s theory of adult development Adult development theory presents a vivid understanding of life cycle. Daniel Levinson worked out his theories of adult development in two landmark studies, Seasons of a Man’s Life and Seasons of a Woman’s Life. He argues essentially that the adult portion of the human life span is divided into three eras: early, middle, and late adulthood. Each of these broad eras are themselves divided between entry or initial stages and ending or more-or-less stable stages. Think of the difference and quality of the life structure and goals of a 24 year old as compared with a 34 year old, and you will get a sense of the internal changes that occur within otherwise specific eras, i. e. , both a 24 year old and a 34 year old would be considered young adults within the Levinsonian perspective. The divisions between the life eras are marked by significant transitional periods that can last for some years. Life during these shifts can be seen as rocky or smooth, noisy or quiet, but the quality and significance of one’s life commitments often change between the beginning and end of such periods. I chose this theory to plan my future because it enables me to think of the differences and similarities of characteristics between the two sexes and also to compare the experience of the adulthood with the late-adulthood stage and the other stages of life as discussed by Levinson. This theory reflects essential changes that adults undergo. Thus, it provides a clearer view of what reality is. This theory can be applied in planning on with your life. It will make you aware of the things that you don’t bother to know. This will help you analyze your work and performances as part of the society. This will enhance your knowledge about your role in the society. This will enable you to view things in a broader way, i. e. , having a positive outlook in life in entering the new phase of your life. This theory also presents a good foundation for understanding goal setting of individuals entering into particular adult stages (Minter & Samuel, 1998). If you know your goals, probably you will know where you are heading to. This perspective on adult development is important for us, adults to understand. This will enable us to resolve important transitional issues during the vital periods in our lives. Thus, each transitional period is needed so that changes in individuation and relationships are attained by concerned individuals (Wheeler-Scruggs, 2008). This model is created to promote individuation and build relationships among individuals that they may use in getting what they want in life. These changes bring greater sense of autonomy and give a greater expression and achievement of one’s self-potential (Wheeler-Scruggs, 2008). Thus, individuals go through the various stages and transitions in order for them to become more self-reliant. Its nature is focused on building characteristics that would help the individual attain his/her personal and professional goals. It is also used to create rapport with each and every individual concerned. This would help the individuals reach their goals. Building rapport is very important in making your goals attainable. If you communicate well with other, they will help you achieve your goals by giving you information that you need. For instance, as a CSR I need to build rapport to the customers for them to give a positive feedback in which they will be nice to me thus, making my work easy. And with regard to my co-workers, I need to build rapport for them to help me in my job, giving some advices if I experience some difficulties in my job. Thus, this will help each and every one to improve their work and at the same time develop personal relationships. As I have mentioned earlier, we need each other in order for us to grow. With the help of others, we will achieve the set goals we planned for ourselves. As I assess my performance, I see my potentials to be growing. These potentials include my leadership ability and interpersonal skills which I can use in communicating at work. I will try to develop my weaknesses into strengths for me to improve myself, personally and professionally. This will also be of help to us in communicating with each other. Every student must know that they need their teachers for them to gain knowledge and improve their way of thinking. The teachers may help their students in developing their potentials and skills which they will use in communicating with others, most especially with regard to their work. Conclusion After planning all my walks in life, I would like to slowly acquire my goal. I will stick to my plan. As I have said earlier, I want to achieve my goal one step at a time. I believe that all my plans are reachable. I divided my plans into two: long-term goal and short-term goal. I would focus first on short-term goal: to be promoted in my work, to have a vacation with my family in Brazil, to visit my friends, to extend my family by having a new French bulldog in my house, and to graduate; and then work on to my long-term goals: having a good life with my own family and for my mom to be happy with what we, her children have achieved in life, and be one of the best Psychologist in town. This assignment enables me to reflect on how I manage my life after graduation. I have learned that in order to succeed in life, an individual must look at all the aspects of life before planning his/her future, that is, reflecting on the experiences s/he had and planning the future. Thus, development means assessing your own life and making all the necessary steps to achieve my goals. I learned that in order to achieve your dreams, you must decide to for Utopia, which means going beyond the reach of the society until we overcome the obstacles that stand in our way. These obstacles include negativism, fear, depression, and the problems they create— discouragement, economic stagnation, crime, drug dependency, family distrust, etc. At this moment in my life, I can say that I have achieved something for myself—overcoming the obstacles that came my way. This helped me have a positive outlook in life. Thus, I will prioritize myself, of what I want to do and where I want to go. Through this process I will know that I will be a successful psychologist someday. References Kitrrell, D. (1998). A Comparison of the Evolution of Men’s and Women’s Dreams in Daniel Levinson’s Theory of Adult Development. Journal of Adult Development, 5(2), 105-115. Minter, L. E. & Samuel, C. A. (1998). The Impact of ‘the Dream’ on Women’s Experience of the Midlife Transition. Journal of Adult Development, 5(1), 31-43. Wheeler-Scruggs, K. S. (2008). Do Lesbians Differ from Heterosexual Men and Women in Levinsonian Phases of Adult Development? Journal of Counseling & Development, 86(1), 39-46.

The Miller introduces the character of Absolon Essays

The Miller introduces the character of Absolon Essays The Miller introduces the character of Absolon Paper The Miller introduces the character of Absolon Paper In the Millers Prologue and tale, Chaucer describes each character in great detail. The Miller is also graphically described to us in the general prologue to the tales. Key characters such as Alisoun, Nicholas and John are all described in detail, and Absolon is no acceptation.  This section is important as it introduces and describes Absolon. He is introduced by a lengthy detailed description. We learn he has many talents such that he can play songes on a small rubbile and song som time a loud quinible. However, although this lengthy section does describe Absolon, it has far more significance than just introducing him to the tale, he is characterised as the satirised courtly lover; a deliberate device used by Chaucer in his bawdy fabliau.  Firstly, Chaucer depicts Absolon as attractive but with a feminine slant. To some this may be attractive, but to Alisoun, it certainly isnt. His hair is described; Crul was his heer, and as the gold it shoon. We also learn he eyes were as greye as goos and that he has Poules window corven on his shoos. This description is important because he is described similar to a courtly lover. Clearly, he is ridiculous and fails as the ideal courtly lover, which lies at the heart of Chaucers deliberate use of satire. There are some elements of Absolons character that fit the ideals of courtly love, although he is still an object of satire, such as his appearance but there are also other aspects of his character in this section that clearly dont conform to those of a courtly lover.  In the section, we find out that Absolon takes an interest in women, however his interaction with them doesnt match that of a courtly lover, again highlighting Chaucers important use of satire in this section and throughout the tale. When we learn that In al the toun nas bewhous ne taverne that he ne visited with his solas, there any gailard tappester was we can establish that this wouldnt be typical behaviour of a courtly lover. The ideal courtly lover would woo their lady by charm and by worshiping her; they would appreciate that she is a lofty creature, worthy to be served. This is further demonstrated when we are told that Absolon abuses what authority he has within the church. When we read that to look on hire him thoughte a mirie lyf it could be suggested that Absolon isnt prepared to go any further than simply gaze at her. In a way, this could be true of a courtly lover as Absolon could be said to be showing respect to the lady. However, this could also be for another reason; that he is squeamish towards bodily functions; again, the satirised courtly lover as a true courtly lover wouldnt have been that feminine. Conversely, in the next two lines we read that if she hadde been a mous, and he a cat, he wolde hire hente anon. Whilst this shows some reference to gratifying Absolons sexual desires, Chaucer lacks to write in the same detail as he does when he writes about Nicholas satisfying his sexual desires. When Nicholas is wooing Alisoun, his language is far more vivid and descript, this is clear when he caughte hire by the queynte. This contrast is important in the section because it again demonstrates that Absolon is hopeless. Although it is hard for Nicholas to be described as a courtly lover, he is getting far more female attention than Absolon, who could be described as conforming to the rules of courtly love more closely than Nicholas. This again, could be suggested that Chaucer is using satire in this rather subtle point, and possibly foregrounding the unrealistic nature of courtly love. A few lines later Chaucer reveals that Absolon took noon offringe from Alisoun because For curteisie, he seide, he wolde noon. This translates to Absolon not taking offerings from Alisoun because good manners forbade it. Here, Chaucer uses good manners as an excuse for Alisoun not paying the church and the only reason she doesnt pay is because of how Absolon feels about her. It could be said that Chaucer simply writes about good manners and courtesy to protect himself, as it could have a deeper meaning. It could be suggested that Chaucer is making a point about the church, and even using it as an object of satire through Absolon. It could be said that the idea of courtly love and wooing a woman is placed before the church, as in this case, courtly love and wooing has defeated and come before the church. Therefore, it could be said that he is showing a certain weakness in the church and religion, and that courtly love or the power of woman triumphs over the church. As highlighted previously, Chaucer possibly puts this in a very subtle way to protect his own identity in real society. It could then be suggested that this mirrors that of the context of the tale. On the pilgrimage, society as a whole would have been represented. There would have been religious figures such as the priest and the nun, and less religious figures such as the Miller and the Shipman. By making his point subtle, it would ensure there would be no objections at the end of the tale. Ultimately this is what happens, the pilgrims show the opposite to objections and in fact all laugh. This cuts across social boundaries and brings the pilgimrs together as one community.  Therefore, in this sense the section describing Absolon is highly important, and even central to the Millers prologue and tale. Chaucer uses it as a springboard to explore many wider issues that avail in society, such as the satire of the courtly lover and the possibly criticism of the church.

Analysis of Pricing and Distribution Strategy at British Airways The WritePass Journal

Analysis of Pricing and Distribution Strategy at British Airways Introduction Analysis of Pricing and Distribution Strategy at British Airways Introduction Company’s outlookPricing Strategy Distribution Strategy Evaluation Conclusion and Recommendations  ReferencesRelated Introduction British Airways is the flagship airline carrier for United Kingdom, formed in 1974. With significant presence at Heathrow, Gatwick and London City with over 20 million people living within commuting distance. BA has a fleet of more than 238 aircrafts in service as of March 2010 and flies to 41 different destinations in America, 9 in the UK, 67 in Europe, 16 in the Middle-East and South-Asia and 7 in the Asia Pacific region, carrying around 32 million passengers between 2009 and 2010 as well as operating a large air cargo business alongside. BA, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific and Qantas form the Oneworld airline alliance which is now the third largest airline alliance group. In 2011 BA merged with Iberia forming IAG with 408 aircrafts flying to 200 destinations and carrying 55 million passengers and allowing the two companies to enhance their presence in the market whilst retaining their own brands and allowing their customers to benefit from a larger network of travel (iairgroup.com/ 2011). Company’s outlook British Airways sees itself as a vital link for trade and investment, specialising in short to medium length international journeys which has seen revenue of  £8 billion in 2009/10. This figure is down 11% on the previous year due mainly to price of fuel and the recession. BA’s main activity revolves around passenger travel which accounts for 87% of 2009/10 revenue, supposed to 7% from cargo and 6% from other means. The acquisition of Iberia in 2011 has allowed BA to increase its capabilities in the cargo market and diversify their operations. Both companies float on the Spanish and UK stock markets as one under IAG, which floated in late January 2011 at 282p a share; this has dropped to a price of 224.3p per share as of 4th April 2011. The future for British Airways and IAG will be largely affected by its ability to weather the downturn, but with its promise of drastic expansion and a strong market share within the European market (3rd biggest by revenue) (www.bbc.co.uk/new s 2011) Pricing Strategy British Airways prices its products in a way that allows consumers to decide the level of services they want. For example return flight to New York, purchased online is  £376 in economy yet consumers pay a huge increase to  £2728 for the same flight, (www.britishairways.com 2011) but in first class. BA’s premium and medium strategies offers superior quality for greater price allowing the airline to compete with other quality airlines such as Virgin and American Airlines, and base price on customer valuations The price â€Å"is set higher than others to reflect better product quality and exclusivity.† (Brassington and Petitt, 2003: 1106). However in recent years the arrival of low cost carriers and economic turmoil forced BA into providing a low cost formula to remain competitive. The first step towards this was in generating ancillary revenues by introducing a fee per one way flight for passengers booking a seat in advance for all seats except first class. (GMID 2011) Even in the low cost formula, BA are still upholding their image of quality and good customer service as unlike the low cost carriers, where ancillary revenues are the money makers with food, drink and priority boarding all costing extra, BA still provide some level of on board service in the cost of their product. Despite the introduction of a low cost formula, British Airways generally bases prices on perceived value of its brand, and aims to deliver product quality leadership strategy. (www.britishairways.com 2011) The executive club encourages loyalty to the airline and rewards consumers with double airmiles, priority boarding, additional baggage allowance and access to the BA lounge as well as giving the appearance of high quality and good value. However BA recently lowered the price of their business class ticket due to the recession. It has been recognised the company has had to reduce the price of its business class tickets, to remain competitive alongside such competition as Virgin, who have helped battle down the price, along with it’s cliental that have become less willing to pay higher prices during economic hardship. This has help attract more customers, smaller businesses in particular, who are able to do deals and meet contacts around the world. (Times Online 2011). An excellent strategy that has allowed BA to get away from just large organisations and into the smaller/medium sized business market (GMID 2011) is their Face to Face campaign which, on submittance of a business plan, small/medium sized businesses can apply for free business travel. The marginal cost of one more passenger is relatively small, as the majority of costs are largely in fixed costs of running the flight (cost of aircraft, fuel, airport duties etc.). According to Chris Tarry, transport analyst for Commerzbank Securities, BA’s selling cost per passenger in March 2002 was just 10.9% of its average ticket price (insights.org.uk 2011). This allows BA to sell tickets at lower rates when demand is less and higher rates during peak season. For example an economy class ticket to New York would normally be  £376 return but almost doubles over the peak bank holiday period of the Royal Wedding at  £616 (www.britishairways.com 2011). The airline aims to get as many people on the plane as possible, even at a lower price, and make some profit, than the plane taking of near empty and making a loss. Distribution Strategy British Airways tickets are available to purchase from travel agents physical locations and online via their websites, and through BA’s dedicated website, travel shops and reservations staff. With e-commerce radically changing distribution strategies (Solomon et al, 2009), BA and various other airlines are trying to reduce costs to ensure they continue to effectively compete against other players within the airline industry and still provide each customer with their superior service by eliminating their use of various ‘traditional intermediaries’ (Solomon et al, 2009) within their distribution channels. Globally 20% of British Airways tickets are now sold via ba.com, with 54% of these online bookings accounting for their total short haul sales stated by docstoc (2010). It’s recognised from these statistics that the convenience of purchasing airline tickets online is attractive, due to the ability to securely acquire a flight ticket without leaving the comforts of your own home, as well as that purchasing tickets direct from BA.com is significantly cheaper than leading travel agents, for example an economy class ticket flying from London to New York can be purchased for  £368 straight from BA where as Expedia offer the same flight for a staggering  £432.10. However, there is still an area of the market who enjoy purchasing their airline tickets from travel agents physical locations, this is due to travel agencies providing the customer with the same options as to the airline website itself, in such areas as seat preferences, along with the additional personalised service w hich the customer is able to discuss the range of options available to them when booking all areas of their holiday, be their hotel or hire car. An attempt to create a more direct distribution channel process, BA also provides the recognised ‘travel agent’ service options to its customers, through offering a range of hotels, car rental and various other holiday package choices. The various options available to consumers when purchasing BA airline tickets are either through travel agents, or alternatively buy their ticket straight from the BA website, travel shops and reservations staff. It’s seen that prices do vary depending on where tickets are purchased, for instance if a consumer were to purchase their ticket directly from BA’s website, they would commonly pay a lower price, due to the direct business to customer distribution channel, eliminating the need for BA to pay commission to travel agents which is ‘traditionally between 8% and 10% of the ticket price’ (tourism insights, 2002) and for the use of Global Distribution Systems (GDS). GDS is used by airlines to sell flights, through connecting both the airline and the travel agents to sell the tickets. Airlines pay GDS to connect them to travel websites and travel agents to enable their flights to be sold via these organisations, GDS segment fees average at around ‘$10 to $12 per booking’ (tourism insights, 2002). With BA’s distribution costs accounting for 16%-17% of the cost of selling each ticket, no wonder they want to reduce distribution channels to help become more competitive in the growing low fare airline industry, especially due to the ‘travel and tourism industry fast becoming the biggest growth industry in e-commerce payments,’ (docstoc, 2010). Evaluation Overall it is clear that British Airways are aiming for a much more direct distribution channel. They are investing huge amounts of money in improving their online services to try to encourage people to buy online rather than at the extra cost of the middle man travel agent. This also allows the airline to gain vital information about their consumers and their wants and needs, allowing the company to differentiate and target their services appropriately. This will ensure they enhance their competitive market position, through enabling them to provide special offers to different customers, for example in the form of special discounts, special seats with more leg room and passes for their lounges, allowing them to build better relationships with their customers.   The high growth in e-commerce selling in the travel and tourism market is further proof of how important it is for BA to perfect this particular method of distribution. The lower costs from eliminating a middle man, includi ng both online and shop based agents will also allow the firm to appear more competitive in comparison to low cost carriers (LCCs). The introduction of ancillary products and reduction in price of business class tickets has been key in promoting the price competitiveness of the airline alongside the strong brand image of quality and reliability. The low marginal cost of an extra passenger also gives the airline the ability to lower costs depending on the demand for their product at the time of year; this means that BA can offer their business clients lower prices when it is not peak season such as school holidays. Conclusion and Recommendations By providing more ancillary goods and a reduced cost of the seat, BA will give consumers the options of what they want and become more competitive with the LCC’s, who are extremely popular for short haul flights. For example providing the option to charge extra for food and drink or extra baggage on short haul flights as well as an all inclusive option. Many of the LCC’s only distribute tickets online. To uphold BA’s strong brand image it’s important for them to stay accessible through other distribution systems as many of their more wealthier cliental who spend the most via business and first class tickets, may desire a travel agent. By marketing their online travel agent services they may be able to increase their current 20% online distribution. This will provide a more direct channel to their customers allowing them to market events such as the BA January sale, flights to cheaper destinations and cheaper times to fly that consumers may otherwise be unaware of. Marketing the executive club more effectively to new customers and ensuring that by being a member, consumers actually receive some benefits, they’re likely to remain loyal and recommend the airline. BA could also improve their services by providing questionnaires to passengers. For example, on long haul flights when consumers are more likely to fill them in, and providing a reward – such as a draw for a bottle of champagne. By doing this the company will be able to find out if consumers choose them for their prices, customer service, quality or the routes that they operate under and use this to market the company accordingly. It is clearly important for BA to remain competitive with the LCCs by providing an alternative to the high quality and high price product they currently provide but still keeping their high quality image and providing a service that current, loyal customers expect. Effective online distribution and optional ancillary products are key in achieving this alongside accurate customer research from current and potential consumers. The airline should continue to use their low marginal costs to their advantage when promoting the airline to businesses and off peak travellers.   References Balmer, J.M.T, Stuart, H Greyser, A.S (2009) Aligning Identity and Strategy: Corporate Branding at British Airways in the Late 20th Century, CALIFORNIA MANAGEMENT REVIEW VOL. 51, NO. 3 BBC News: bbc.co.uk/news/business-12265332 [Accessed 4th April 2011] Brassington, F, Pettitt, S (2000), (2nd Edition) Principles of Marketing Harlow, Prentice Hall British Airways (2011) www.britishairways.com [accessed 19th March 2011] British Airways (2011) Buy Travel [Online] britishairways.com/travel/fx/public/en_gb?eId=111011timestamp=0315023921 [Accessed 15th March 2011] Docstoc (2010) Visa Case study: British Airways come buy with me –worldwide airline offers worldwide online protection [Online] docstoc.com/docs/26949398/britishairways [Accessed: 6th March 2011] Expedia (2011) Flights [Online] expedia.co.uk/pub/agent.dll [Accessed 15th March 2011] GMID portal.euromonitor.com.chain.kent.ac.uk/Portal/ResultsList.aspx [Accessed 7th March 2011] Insights (2011) insights.org.uk/articleitem.aspx?title=The+Changing+Face+of+Airline+Distribution [Accessed 20th March 2011] International Airlines Group (2010) iairgroup.com/   [Accessed 4th April 2011] Solomon, Marshall, Stuart, Barnes Mitchell (2009) Marketing: Real People, Real Decisions. Essex, Pearson Education Limited. Times Online (2011) http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/transport/article5477962.ece [Accessed 17th March 2011] Tourism insights (2002) The Changing Face of Airline Distribution [Online] insights.org.uk/articleitem.aspx?title=The+Changing+Face+of+Airline+Distribution [Accessed: 6th March 2011]

Scaling Study Statistics Project Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

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Diagnostic Radiography Medical Imaging Exam Question Essay

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