Spartan and Persian Ideology Essay -- Ancient History

Good afternoon, I’ve been asked to speak with you about the historical accuracy of recent popular culture incarnations of both Spartan and Persian ideology and in particular I’ve chosen to evaluate Zack Snyder’s 2007, movie 300 in order to demonstrate to you it’s compatibility between ancient sourced depictions of both Spartan and Persian philosophy. From this evaluation and historical representations given by philosophers and historians during approximately the same era that is represented within 300. It is argued that the popular culture incarnations of Sparta as the ‘Noble, selfless fighters with a warrior mentality’ and the Persians as the ‘Evil, tyrannical, overindulgent, oppressors’ were not entirely historically accurate. As with most historical re-enactments, 300 places significant exaggeration on each civilizations central city-state ideologies and this is reflected in each scene by the actions of the individuals throughout Zack Snyder’s film. The representation of the Spartan warrior mentality through scenes depicting young Spartan children throughout their childhood participating in multiple life threatening challenges; are seemingly accurate as the primary purpose of Spartan schooling was to produce perfect soldiers, through strictly disciplined military training that began for all boys at the age of 7 as they left home to join the agoge. The agoge was set up in order to weaken family ties and create personal identity. These children were usually allotted no shoes, little clothing and educated through a vigorous training schedule of boxing, wrestling, javelin and discus throwing. They suffered through harsh conditions and were taught to take satisfaction in enduring pain and hardship, as w ell as to value strengt... ...ender them more dexterous in securing provisions, and better qualified for warfare. ...I must also say something of the boys as objects of affection, for this likewise has some reference to education.... Lycurgus thought proper, if any man (being himself such as he ought to be) admired the disposition of a youth, and made it his purpose to render him a faultless friend, and to enjoy his company, to bestow praise on the boy; and he regarded this as the most excellent kind of education... An honourable death is preferable to a dishonourable life.... At Lacedaemon everyone would be ashamed to allow a coward into the same tent as himself, or allow him to be his opponent in a match at wrestling...." John Paul Adams, CSUN, January 26, 2010, 1:47pm. Xenophon on the Spartans, Lycurgus viewed 29th, February, 2012. Sourced from http://www.csun.edu/~hcfll004/sparta-a.html.

Explaining the Goal of Financial Management and the Role of Ethics Essay

It has always been the goal of the financial managers to maximize the wealth of the shareholders of the firm. That is to say, we maximize the potential benefits that the firm’s stakeholders get by increasing the value of the firm in which these shareholders have taken the risk of investing to. According to Ingram (1992), the worth of a company is dependent on the capacity of the assets to produce cash flows over a period of time. This means that if the firm is able to generate a positive net cash flow including a reasonable dividend to its owners, then it said that value is created. Firms face two kinds of profits. They are accounting profits and economic profits. Maximizing accounting profits normally refers to the general corporate goal of maximizing profits as maximizing economic profits generally refers to maximizing the shareholder’s wealth. Ingram (1992) has distinguished them by defining accounting profits as the income accumulated after the overall cost is deducted from the overall revenue before the payment to shareholders is considered and economic profits as the income accumulated after compensating for the factors of production such as capital, labor and others. Moreover, she differentiated the two by saying that accounting profit does not consider all the factors of production as economic profit does and that it also does not consider compensating the shareholders for taking the risk in investing in the firm. Maximizing wealth does not consequently mean that the firm has to face an unethical decision making. It is still up to the firm as to how it will perform this task. As according to Goizueta (1997), everyone in the company would be better of if it plans for a long-term goal rather than a short-term goal. Through this, the firm can still plan on how it will maximize the wealth and at the same time be consistent with ethical standards.

Inditex Report Essay

Introduction The aim and objectives of writing this report is to analyse the business strategies or models adopted by the Inditex Group and to review whether this strategies will support its operation in accomplishing their future obligation. Furthermore, it aims to evaluate the strategic option of the organization in either from a corporate strategy view or strategic business unit (SBU) perspective that could be adopted by the Inditex Group. This report will also highlight the vision, mission and objectives of the Inditex Group Company. In addition, the report will go further by accessing the group human resources and management in order to clearly pinpoint any management changes in the organization, if there is any, and to know who the management are and their position in the decision making process of the company. In order to achieve the principle objectives of this report, the report will be categorised into Internal and External analysis. This is done in order to fully analyse the current po sition of Inditex Group in the market from all perspectives, also to access if Inditex is a healthy company to invest in, and also accessing the current strategic adopted by the company. The company Internal analysis will be based on the following; Financial Analysis: This will focus on all the financial aspect of the company. Human resources and Management Analysis: focus on the management system of the company. Market Analysis: This will focus on the company’s current market position. Operations Analysis: This will focus on how and where the company perform it day-to-day activities. Prioritized Strength: This will analyse the strengths of the company internally. Prioritized Weakness: This will analyse the internal weakness of the company that can hinder them from achieving their goals. The company External analysis will be based on the following; Pestel Analysis: this will analyse the possible influence of the failure or success of the company strategies. Porter 5 forces: this will help in analysing the way of attractiveness of the Clothing Industry. Critical Success Factors (CSF’s): This will focus on some unique resources that make the company  successful. Prioritized Opportunity: Prioritized Threat: Company: Inditex Group. The Inditex Group Company, a textile design Industries is a Spanish Multinational clothing company. Inditex have its headquartered based in Arteixo, Galicia in Spain. The Inditex Group was founded and created by Amancio Ortega Gaona the wealthiest man in Spain and third richest man in the world in 1985 and by 2001 they went public and listed on the Bolsa de Madrid stock exchange market1. The Inditex Group which is now considered as the world’s largest clothing apparel company in terms of sales is made up of over 100 companies operating in textile designs, manufacturing, and distributions. Inditex currently have 8 strategic business units operating in four geographical market segments2 which includes Spain. These strategic business units includes; Bershka, Massimo Dutti, Oysho, Pull & Bear, Stradivarius, Uterque, Zara, and Zara Home. Inditex strategic business units collectively occupied about 6249 stores in 86 markets. Company Vision: Good Faith, Dialogue, and Transparency. Company Mission: Is to respond with agility to the demands of the market. This means that Inditex focus highly on the customers’ needs and combines these needs with high degree of vertical integration across all their business area. Internal Analysis Financial Analysis: The key profit driver for Inditex Group Company is Zara, contributing 66.11% of the total net sales and 68.5% per square metre in 2012, while Bershka comes 2nd with 9.31% of total net sales in 2012. In terms of geographical region, the Europe (excluding Spain), and Spain accounted for 45% and 21% of the total net sales respectively. While the Americas and Asia (Including rest of the world) represents a significant lower amount of 14% and 20% respectively. In 2012 saw Inditex Group stores increases massively from 4264 stores in 2008 to 6009 stores in 2012. This shows an increase of 40.92% in  stores from 2008 to 2012. Inditex Group Profitability, Liquidity and Efficiency Net sales increases year over year from 2008 to 2012. This shows an increase of 10.3% from 2007-2008, 6.2% increase from 2008-2009, 13.40% from 2009-2010, 10.2% from 2010-2011, and 15.61% from 2011-2012. This is boosted by the increase of sales, higher profits margin and numbers of new stores opened3. Overall, net sales show an increase of 53.22%. While the Net profit soared by a massive 87.26% between 2008-2012. Prior to this, Inditex growth rate has maintained an average of 16% sales growth and net income of 12% for the past 10 years. The decreasing pattern of ROCE from 2008-2009, and also in 2011 is due to a proportionate increase of operating expenses. The Gross Profit Margin (GP%) has seen a slow increase from 2008-2012. This is due to the slower increase of cost of sales (COS). EBITDA increases by 20% when compared to the previous years and EBIT also increased by 24% when compared to the previous years. Debts A very low geared company, as Inditex Group Company managed to pay back some substantial amount of debts through cash reserves. The Group has 0.08% of debt to capital ratio which means that the company pay little attention when it comes to using debts to finance projects. Investors Related Market Capitalization of 66.883 bn euro. Share price 106 euro as at 06/03/14 Earnings per share has been increasing significant from 2008-2012. Dividend per share increased by 12.5% from 2011 to 2012. Inditex Group Company has a slow increase of sales volumes over the years; while some of the key ratios reported a decline pattern during some period. Inditex mostly depends on the Europe excluding Spain and Spain market, however, with an optimistic future growth in the Asia market. The company also has a low gearing ratio which gives them more financial edge in terms of future expansion. Funding Inditex Group Company funds for its company through the issuing of ordinary  share equity, debt financing, credit facilities and self-financing. The company have been profitable over the year which makes them assumed reasonable responsibility of not securing enough debt to finance its operations. So therefore, in terms of liquidity, the company is not exposed to any significant liquidity risk as it maintains sufficient cash and cash equivalent which meet the outflows of its daily operations. More so, the group are not as concerned about credit risk as they have a policy in place that cover any sales franchises and as their majority of revenue is made from retail sales, so they make use of cash collections or credit payment. Inditex Group Company also funds its business by investing in marketable securities which includes short and long term debts with a maturity of 90 days and 12 months respectively. This helps the Group in meeting its short term obligations. The group also have cl ose to 50% stakes in each of the five Economic Interest Groupings they invest in, these groups are involves in leasing of assets. Human Resources and Management Inditex is a multi-cultural and multi-racial company with 120,314 employees and also created about 10,802 jobs in 2012. 82% of Inditex staffs works under an indefinite contract.  In terms of its multi-cultural pedigree, Inditex employees are of over 130 nationalities and 45 working languages. Inditex has a young workforce with an average age of 31 years old and 78.7% of its employees are females. Pablo Isla Alvarez de Tejera is the Chairman and Chief Executive Chairman of Inditex Group Company along with his Deputy Jose Amau Sierra has transformed the fashion industry and created the world’s largest clothing and apparel company in terms of revenue, and the also developed a strong distribution model which helped the group to minimise their design to distribution process within a week. Overall, the Inditex board consist of 9 directors which include 4 executives’ directors and 5 non-executives directors. Inditex Group Company operates a multidivisional structure which helps them in supporting their global operations. At Inditex, the board of directors are the highest decision maker; they supervise and control the body of the company apart from the matters that were reserved to the general meeting of the shareholders. Inditex board of directors are also entrusting with  direction, administration, management and representative of the company and management of the day-to-day activities of the company to the executives. They also manage the team and focusing its efforts on general supervising function which include directing Inditex policy, making relevant decisions and acting as a link with the shareholders of the company. Market Analysis Markets and segment Most attractive market segment is Asia market Market segment by age. Young and middle age group. Products Inditex have constant changes to its products lines. They have identical products in all market segments. Inditex maintain health and safety products standard4. Customers’ orientation: they analyse customers’ feedbacks in order to be able to identify customer trends. Price Inditex has a standard price in all markets segments. The pricing could be different in terms of exchange rate factors due to globalization. It also gives seasonal discount5 like December sales. Inditex price is considered to be medium with an exception of Massimo Dutti. Inditex Amongst Competition. Promotion Inditex has a strict policy and zero advertisement. Online website for each business unit which systematically updates It has an Affinity card for customers: this influences customers’ loyalty6. It communicates with its customers through social networks. Place Location: All of Inditex stores all located at the main shopping streets. A unique design which is influence by the culture of the markets. A display tailored of the product They have excellent customers service Online stores for all its 8 business units available in some major country7 The key strategy of the Inditex marketing departments are performed through customers’ orientation and satisfaction. Inditex main sale-point is where managers received feedbacks from customers, the managers then report to the design departments in order to identify and carried out what the customers’ value. Another factor that did the trick for Inditex is their glamorous stores, where customers’ access its latest products which are always updated four times in a month. The product lifecycle and BCG matrix as you can see on the charts indicates an accurate balancing position within the Inditex portfolio. However, since just one business unit is placed on as a Cash Cow, so therefore, numerous investments might be needed so as to transform the Question Marks into Stars. Inditex Product Lifecycle. Inditex BCG MATRIX. Operation Analysis: Value Chain- Primary Activities Approximately 1000 designers are responsible for recognising any changes in fashion and they are in charge of developing new models to satisfy customers’ desires. Most of the production takes place in the Group’s own factory. The group take full responsibility control of fabrics supply, marking and cutting of the fabrics till the finish goods. Over 50 percent of Inditex manufacturing is carried out by local suppliers. By the end of 2012, Inditex already had a total of 1434 suppliers and all suppliers must agree to adhere to Inditex Code of Conduct. The cost of merchandise includes the cost of raw materials and consumables8. The Inditex Group has its own logistic centre, where all production is received and carried out, and then distributed to various stores worldwide9. Inditex operates 8 logistic centres, at least one for each brands and all of which are in Spain. Stores play significant roles in Inditex business model10. Value Chain- Secondary Activities Research and Development using advanced technology11. Operates manufacturing and procurement12. Research and Development of eco-efficiency13. Human Resources and Management14. Firm Infrastructure15. Corporate Social Responsibility16. Joint ventures and Strategic Alliances17. Inditex unique management business model is based on flexibility and innovation, and its vision of fashion along with quality design and creativity, together with a rapid response to customers demand has resulted in Inditex fast international expansion and an excellent performance of its commercial formats. Inditex business model is centred to its customers, stores, design/production, teams, and logistics. However Inditex group adopted a high degree of vertical integration business model when compared to its competitors. This allows Inditex to cover all phases of its fashion process which includes design, manufacture, logistics and distribution. The group also incorporated a degree of flexibility structure with a strong focus on customers’ demands in all its business areas. Inditex views social and environmental variables as a strategic factor for growth and sustainment for customers demand. The key to Inditex model is its ability of attending to customers desires in a shortes t amount of time possible. This is a key value added activities of the Inditex group Company. Inditex Business Model Structure. Inditex Logistics Centres Prioritized Strengths Inditex is the world largest clothing and apparel company in terms of revenue. Inditex has a great organization knowledge and expertise. This stands for unique resources and core competences of the company. It also has a strong business model (core competence) It has strong brand (unique resource) Inditex has a diversifying marketing strategy (core competence) Prioritized Weakness Inditex depend on one global brand (Zara which generate 66.11% of its total revenue). It also depends on two geographical regions (Europe excluding Spain and Spain). Inditex is exposed to commodity inflation, It has a centralized logistic centre which may cause some problems in future expansion. High training cost. External Analysis P.E.S.T.E.L Analysis Political Global trade agreement18 National trade relationship19 Value added tax (VAT) and foreign taxation policies. Change in government. Pressure group20. Economical Exchange rate: related to GBP, Us dollars, Japanese Yen: As the crisis in Europe area might cause the Euro to be weaker than the Yen, so the company is likely to have exchange loss. Year on year change in GDP21. Financial market uncertainty. Unemployment Commodity price inflations: for instance, the fuel price increase in the Middle East due to the civil unrest may affect the company margins and also increase the cost of transportation. Inflation22 and Interest rate23. Socio-Cultural Social dimension, corporate social responsibility24 and reputations. Consumers’ complaints. Changes in consumers preferences. Changes in lifestyles and trends. New trends among the younger generation in Europe and America. Technology Spending on research and development Information system Eco-efficiency25 E commerce26 Environmental Kyoto protocol Waste and Recycling: more focus on the attention of areas such as sustainable development. The effect of global climate to the production of organic cotton. Toxic chemicals: this includes carbon footprint. Legal Employment law: this has something to do with Child labour and rules and regulations that relate to labour. Consumer law: this regards law and regulation which relates to fashions and clothing Patents and trademarks Supplier rights Health and safety law European companies will be assisted by the abolition of textile and clothing import quotas (ATC) in order to enter into the emerging market of Asia which undoubtedly counted for a huge significant amount of the population of the world. However, due to the uncertainties associated with political and economic situations, this could increase the risk of further expansion strategies. Although the price of cotton has increases by more than $5 over the years while unemployment has risen high especially in Greece and Spain with 28% and 26% respectively which force textile companies to potentially increase their market prices, while disposable income on clothing has decrease because the ongoing problem in the Eurozone consumer gives negatives signal to consumers which affect their confidence, but the confident level in the emerging market (Asia) is optimistic. However, the price deflation of cloths which has been dated back to the 1990s till the start of the financial crisis, the reversing t rends now after the financial crisis have an effect on the overall productivity of the apparel industry positively. Porters 5 Forces Threats of New Entrants There is economic of scales It involves large capital investment There is a brand loyalty in the industry There is a product differentiation Patent and protection tariffs Moderate force which can be overcome Threat of Substitute Price/performance ratio Inditex other brands There is zero switching cost Weak force The Bargaining Power of Buyer Decentralized and Centralized Buyer There is a low switching cost There is zero buyer competition threat Moderate force The Bargaining Power of Buyer There is fewer supplier in the industry There is a low supplier competition threat Suppliers of textile and raw materials Weak force Competitive Rivalry There is existing retailers equally sized Slow growth in the apparel industry Great differentiation Moderate force Three moderate forces and two weak forces make the clothing and apparel industry unattractive for new competitors to break into the industry. However, changes to substitute depends on the consumers’ preferences according to their perception of taste, style and budget, therefore it is high to switch to other providers. Competitive rivalry is the strongest force assisted by the slow growth of the market. Prioritized Opportunity There is still room to grow in the emerging market in this industry. The abolition of quotas Organic market development Technological Innovation New strategic Alliance Prioritized Threats There is high competitive rivalry in the industry There is slow market growth in the industry Increase in commodity inflation Changes in consumers’ taste or trends Exchange rates. CORPORATE STRATEGY Strategic Position Zara which is Inditex main source of revenue because of the amount it generated in terms of sales is ranked on the 4th option of the Bowman strategic clock, it implement a broad differentiation strategy. It offers products to customers at an affordable and reasonable price or a little higher because of its good perception of quality, enriches customers’ satisfaction and loyalty. However, the excellent deployment of its unique resources and its core competences assist Zara to considered as the first mover in the industry27. One of its key value added activities is its focus on customers’ needs and a constant change in its product lines whilst maintaining the same level of price allows Zara to achieve a competitive advantage. Inditex has expanded and grown, according to the Ansoff matrix. By product development: (EcoFootDesign) Systematic changes in products line and innovation. Market penetration: it has increase shares of its key existing markets. Market development: in 2010 saw Uterque one of Inditex business unit opens its first store in Russia which also pave way for Zara home and Zara to follow through. By related and unrelated Diversification: Zara and Massimo Dutti entered into the Indian market in 201028 and 201329 respectively and Inditex enters the furniture retail industry30 through unrelated diversification. Inditex method of pursuing its strategies. Organic development: Inditex continuous performance and innovation is acquired through their knowledge and experience according to their existing  resource and capabilities. Through Acquisition and Takeover: in 1995-1996, Inditex acquired the whole of Massimo Dutti in a 100% acquisition. Form a Strategic Alliance: A Joint Venture with the Tata Group to open the first Massimo Dutti stores in New Delhi, India. Inditex license to other companies: production of finished goods through external suppliers. The Inditex Group Company adopted a parenting role by providing a clear vision of its company objectives, it also assists employees by providing continuous training and facilitating, and enhancing through synergies. Improvement in all Inditex departments is as a result of a great focus in performance evaluation and monitoring. Inditex adopted different portfolio management for each of its business units. According to the results of the strategic analysis, financial analysis, and SWOT analysis above, it has been well documented that the Inditex Group Company has a strong portfolio which make the company likely to overcome any future uncertainties, as it was evidence in its financial performance that they keep growing even during the financial crisis of 2008-2009, they still achieve a significant increase in revenue. However, the problem which the Inditex Group could be facing regarding their adopted strategies will be the over dependence of its other seven (7) business units which includes Bershka, Massimo Dutti, Oysho, Pull and Bear, Stradivarius, Uterque, and Zara Home over Zara which is the unit that generates over half of its total sales (66.11%). The Group should also find a way to increase the percentages of sales to geographical region like America which is has the lowest sales geographically and also in Asia which is an emerging market other than Europe. FUTURE STRATEGIES Proposed strategy for the strongest SBU (Zara) Product development: the company should produce better quality of future product lines. Market development: the company should go on with further expansion in Europe market and the US market. Diversification: the company should enter into the apparel sport wear industry. Market penetration: the company should enter into the Australian market. Corporate Market penetration: further expansion in the Asia market. Backward integration: to acquire a fabric supplier Consolidation: weaken business units should be strengthen Forward integration: manufacturing and logistic process should be decentralised. Do Nothing: continue with the current operations. References Inditex SA, Bloomberg Market, [Online] Available at: http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/ITX:SM Accessed on 20th of February, 2014. H&M (2014), â€Å" H&M Opens first store in East Asia† [Online] Available at: http://about.hm.com/en/About/facts-about-hm/people-and-history/history.html Accessed on 23rd of February, 2014. Inditex, (2008) Inditex annual report 2008, annual report 2008, A Coruna: Inditex. Inditex, (2009) Inditex annual report 2008, annual report 2008, A Coruna: Inditex. Inditex, (2010) Inditex annual report 2008, annual report 2010, A Coruna: Inditex. Inditex, (2011) Inditex annual report 2008, annual report 2011, A Coruna: Inditex. Inditex, (2012) Inditex annual report 2008, annual report 2012, A Coruna: Inditex. Index Mundi, [Online] Available at: http://www.indexmundi.com/commodities/?commodity=cotton Accessed on 20th of February 2014. Unemployment Statistics, [Online] Available at: http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Unemployment_statistics Accessed on 20th February, 2014. Textile and Clothing, [Online] Available at: http://www.companiesandmarkets.com/MarketInsight/Textiles-and-Clothing/Global-Apparel-Industry/NI7468 Accessed on 22nd of February, 2014. The Economics Times, [Online] Available at: http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-04-29/news/38904773_1_brand-massimo-dutti-foreign-investment-promotion-board Accessed on 24th of February, 2014.

News Corp Media Giant essays

News Corp Media Giant essays News Corp is highly involved in many facets of the media but I will focus on the film industry, their cable channel holdings, and their Satellite distribution networks. All these parts are a major part of News Corp but the satellite companies allow them to more News Corp owns many companies world wide that are involved in the film industry. Some of the US companies that are owned by News Corp are 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures, And Blue Sky Studios. 20th Century Fox Is the Flagship of News Corps Film Holdings. In the last year they were nominated for many academy awards and won several for the movie Master and Commander. They are also responsible for such new movies as Girl Next Door and Welcome to Mooseport. Another part is Fox Searchlight Pictures, which was started in 1994 to give new and up and coming filmmakers a venue to enter the industry. They are responsible for such movies as Slums Of New York, Banger Sisters, and One Hour Photo. Blue Sky Studios is a company that specializes in computer generated animation. They were acquired in 1997 to give the Fox studios an in into this new market of feature length computer animated films. This acquisition paid off for them with the hit Ice Age. Another part of News Corp is their cable networks. A large part of this division is the Fox Sports Networks. This network of sports channels includes many regional sports networks, the Speed Channel, the Outdoor Life network, and the Golf Channel. They plan to start a new nationwide sports channel to more closely compete with ESPN. In 1996 News Corp started the Fox News channel, a Hard nose Pulls no Punches, news source that right now has a larger market share than its competitors CNN and MSNBC. News Corp Also has many othe...

20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management and More Free Time

20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management and More Free Time You’re banging your head against the desk trying to multitask, but you just don’t feel like it’s working. Here are 20 life hacks that can actually help drive up your productivity and help you get your incredibly efficient bottom out of the office and onto the beach where you belong. 1. Automate your life when possibleThe Internet is your friend. For almost any daily task or errand you can think of, there is probably an app or automated option that will not only save you time, but save you the hassle of having to do things you don’t enjoy (and save you dragging your feet). Set up autopay  on your accounts to pay your bills. Grocery shop online. Streamline your wardrobe to eliminate guess work. Spend the time you have doing things that excite you or that help you keep advancing.2. Cross tasks off your listIf you can complete a task in two minutes or less, do it immediately. Blast through these as soon as you notice them on your list. Remember: the longer y ou wait, the longer it will take.3. Don’t tax your brainYour ability to make clear decisions is not something you should take for granted. You can’t always rely on your clarity and willpower. It is possible for you to get exhausted and to overwhelm your faculties. Try making big decisions in the morning when you’re freshest. And if you aren’t feeling sharp, save your next decision for the following day when you’re back in your groove.4. Streamline your morning routineIf you listen to music when you’re getting ready in the morning, limit yourself to four songs max. Brush teeth, shower, dress, and do your finishing touches. One task per song. Then get out the door and get to work.5. Hide your temptationsOut of sight, out of mind. If you clear your worst distractions from your desk, it will be much easier for you not to get sidetracked by them.6. Don’t be â€Å"on call† all the timeTurn your phone on silent and return your calls w hen it’s convenient for you and fits into your workday- rather than immediately after getting each call. You can even save up a few to make all at one time, rather than bleeding out little bits of your day for each one.7. Follow the waitress ruleNever go anywhere empty handed. Something can always be tidied or sorted. Complete half of your smaller tasks just by spreading them out over the course of the normal back and forth of your day.8. Limit your personal email checkingThis can derail even the most concentrated concentrators in the work world. Try to limit yourself to checking your personal email just three times a day, rather than every three minutes.9. Schedule sleepYou don’t want your sleep schedule to be random. Set yourself a schedule and stick to it and this will help you keep your work hours from being random too.10. Use Self ControlNot just the lower case kind we’re all supposed to have, the productivity app. Limit your access to the websites that are the most distracting for you. You can set time limits for yourself to be your most productive.11. Practice what you preachIf you want to excel at something †¦ you have to work at it. Every day.12. Say noIf you don’t actually want to do something or to accept an invitation. You might piss off an acquaintance or two, but you’ll have a lot more time on your hands to work on things that matter.13. Keep a to-do listWrite tasks down and enjoy the thrill of crossing them off when completed. This way you’ll never forget a task and you’ll keep yourself honest about just how long you put certain things off.14. Go PomodoroGive the â€Å"Pomodoro† technique a try. There’s an app for it. 25 minutes on, 5 minutes off. Total dedication to your task in tiny increments. Watch and see what you can accomplish.15. Tackle the big stuffPick the meatiest, most important tasks on your to-do list and tackle those first. You’ll be more driven to work on these things and will free up space on your list for more things to get accomplished!16. MeditateSeriously. Just 10 (to as many as 60) minutes a day can make a huge difference over a period of months in your mental clarity and focus. Clear your mind every day and see what greatness you can manifest.17. MultitaskIf you’re a fan of podcasts or audiobooks, consume them when you’re otherwise occupied, but with tasks that don’t require a great deal of concentration. Exercising, commuting, cooking, etc. Triple what you can accomplish in a span of time.18. Don’t sit without a planEvery time you sit down at your desk or your computer, make sure you have a plan for what you intend to do while your butt is in that chair. Set an intention (even one as simple as â€Å"ten minutes on Facebook†). But make sure you stick to it. That way, when you sit down to do real work, you’ll honor your goal.19. Fold over tapeThis is a good and practical thing to do, an d perhaps also a metaphor for leaving projects in the middle. If you’re using a roll of tape, fold over the loose end before putting it away. It will save you time and energy when you need to use it again without having to find the seam.20. Plus oneWhenever you sit down to cross a task off your to-do list, add one. If every time you set out to accomplish one thing, you actually knock through two things, imagine what you can get done throughout your whole career.

Trade Policy, Firm Behavior, and Economic Development in Vietnam Case Study

Trade Policy, Firm Behavior, and Economic Development in Vietnam - Case Study Example The key determinant of Vietnam’s trade policy is the 1986 Doi Moi Renovation Policy, which sought to shift the country from the left to a middle position in terms of economic and governance policy system. Under Doi Moi, the government has two positions; the first is to transform the economy from a centrally planned one to a free market economy and the second is to promote export oriented industries (Auffret 2). The transformation of the nation’s economy was done by the devalution of the currency, breaking state-owned monopolies, privatization and the development of trade policy instruments like tariffs, quotas and licensing. The nation also has mechanisms that seek to support export oriented industries like manufacturing industies. The nation has pegged its currency, the Dong to world market prices and it is fixed by the forces of demand and supply. Due to this, prices of goods and services are standardized. This makes it propitious for the elements of the market economy to function effecitvely and efficiently. Vietnam has a trade policy that supports the establisment of private sector companies. This is done through an incentive structure that utilizes tax discrimination to support some private ventures particularly export-oriented manufacturers (Athukoralan). With strengthened structures within the country, Vietnam seeks to expand its influence into other nations around the globe through multilateral and bilateral trade arrangements with other countries. These policies are meant to create a conducive atmosphere for international trade and also create an unending trend of demand for Vietnamese goods around the globe. Vietnam is a member of ASEAN which gives it economic links with its neigbhbors and causes it to follow the collective actions of these nations to protect national interests. It is also a member of the World Trade Organization which in turn

Identify and compare examples of motivation techniques used within Assignment

Identify and compare examples of motivation techniques used within Cadbury's and Nestle and briefly justify a suitable managemen - Assignment Example Company profiles of Cadbury and Nestle Cadbury limited, founded in 1824 and headquartered in London, is one of the world’s largest candy makers to share 10 percent of the market. It produces and sells confectionary products offering chocolate bags, boxes and tins and chocolate bars and drinks. It is world’s second largest chewing gum makers and has merged to be a multi-million multinational company (Bloomberg Business Week, 2013). Nestle, a food and beverage multinational company headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland, is world’s No-1 food and Drink Company in terms of sales and world’s leader in coffee market. It is world’s top bottled water maker and biggest frozen pizza maker and is one of the most reputed brands name across the world (Hoovers.com, 2013). Objectives and Vision A business organization needs to describe the purpose and major objectives for which the organization exists. Objectives of an organization provide information, direction and inspiration to explicitly outline the future of the firm. The vision of a firm consists of practical ideals that offer certain goals to be accomplished in terms that can be evaluated (Hitt, Ireland and Hoskisson, 2011, p. 18). For Cadbury, quality is its promise as its reputation has been built upon quality and it promises to ensure quality in its six products line- confectionary, candy, desserts, gums, snacks and beverages. Its objectives include delivering superior shareholder returns, managing resources efficiently to ensure growth and achieve high performance. With its vision â€Å"to be the biggest and the best confectionery company in the world†, Cadbury always attempts to deliver supreme values and quality so as to become the best and biggest confectionary company in the world (Bloomberg.com, 2013). Nestle promises ‘Good Food, Good Life’ to provide best tasting, fresh and nutritious choices in a different segments of food and beverage to its targeted marke ts. Nestle’s objective is to become the leader in nutrition, health and wellness trusted by all its stakeholders (Nestle, 2012). Its vision is to ‘be a leading, competitive, nutrition, health and wellness company that delivers improved shareholder value’ (Nestle.co.za, 2013). Organizational Culture and Structure Organizational structure in a firm designates formal relationship including number of levels in the management hierarchy and grouping together of individuals in to departments to ensure effective communication, coordination and integration of efforts among departments (Daft, 2010, p. 90). Organizational culture is a system of shared values, beliefs and assumptions that are established in an organization so as to influence and motivate people towards achieving the desired goals. Cadbury employs more than 4500 employees in over six countries. In 2009, the company has eliminated the regional structure to operate seven business units and leverage the category leadership across its markets. At Cadbury, the board of directors plays vital roles and responsibilities for overall management and performance and for the approval of long-term objectives. As shown in the diagram, the span of control and communication is spread among different