The truman show response Essays - Articles, Philosophy,

In the movie "The Truman Show", the main character Truman is living a life in which all of his experiences are simulated. Truman un knowingly lives on a TV set where everything is set up, but he believes that he lives in the real world . This resembles what the prisoners went through in "The Myth of the Cave" , when they were stuck in chains and could only see the shadows on the wall . Truman' s reality is staged for him by the directors of the show , j ust like how the prisoner's reality is made up by the people creating the shadows. Both Truman and the prisoners are presented with a reality, and they have no reason not to believe in this theatrical world. They are fooled into believing things that are untrue. The prisoners identified shadows with things that they are not. Also, everything in Truman's life was made up such as his job, where he lived, his friends, his family, and his relationships . The people narrating these false realities have the power to alter the mind of the people they are fooling. The narrators can make them believe in whatever they want them to , allowing the narrators to create an entire alternate reality. One quality of the ideal state is the idea of wisdom. Being wise requires knowledge of self-discipline by using reason. The wise people in the ideal state are outnumbered, but they naturally prudent, so they are the governors. This is similar to how man's soul is ruled by wisdom and reason. The second quality is Courage. To be courageous one must be able to persevere through tough and fearful situations. Also, one must withstand the training and follow the teaching created by the law. The third quality of Plato's ideal state is temperance. Plato begins by describing temperance as a sense of control that man has over the indulgences in life. A person governs their own soul, and it is solely up to that person to make the right decisions. A person's soul works similar to the ideal state, they both are responsible for leading themselves through good and bad. Aristotle recognizes four causes, material cause, Formal cause, efficient cause, and final cause. These causes must be acknowledged in order to acquire the correct knowledge of whatever object is being studied. The first of the four causes, material cause, is the first source of information you can get from the object. It defines the material out of which the object is made, literally what substances make up the object. The second cause respectively, describes the shape or design of the object. It depicts exactly what the object is trying to portray. The efficient cause is by whom was the object was made. This cause represents who the creator is and states that the creator is the sole reason this object exists. The last of the four causes is the final cause, which speaks to show the magnificence of the object as a whole. This cause is the reason for the objects existence, to be admired. I agree that there is a connection between happiness and virtue, I believe that one cannot be truly happy without living a somewhat virtuous life. Aristotle uses a great analogy with plants, describing how in order for a plant to flourish, it's internal functions must follow a natural state. This correlates to humans, by demonstrating that if we do not follow our righteous human nature, then we cannot flourish and grow into happy human beings. Having virtue also requires a decent upbringing, in which one is taught how to be respectful, and to not partake in shameful behavior. This is essential because everyone has natural inborn desires that can lead us astray from good nature. Choosing to give into these desires might bring someone a short-term happiness, but eventually the happiness this person feels will fade. Aristotle depicts which goods are necessary for happiness in someone's life, and which are unnecessary and solely trappings. Things such as good health and life ar e necessary, but other things such as wealth, friends, and fame are just add-ons. The only real happiness someone can achieve requires an honorable

What to Do When You Feel Overwhelmed in College

What to Do When You Feel Overwhelmed in College Not everyone graduates from college; doing so is a huge deal because its an incredibly difficult journey. Its expensive. It takes a long time, it requires a heck of a lot of dedication, and there often never seems to be any rest from what other people expect of you. In fact, its sometimes easier to feel smothered by your responsibilities than it is to feel in control. So just what can you do when you feel overwhelmed in college? Fortunately, being in college means that you have both the desire and ability to figure out how to make things work even if you arent feeling like you can. Take a deep breath, start simply, and then show em what youre made of. What to Do When You Feel Overwhelmed in College First, be bold and block off 30 minutes from your schedule. It can be right now; it can be in a few hours. The longer you wait, of course, the longer youll feel stressed out and overwhelmed. The sooner you can make a 30-minute appointment with yourself, the better. Once youve reserved yourself for 30 minutes, set a timer (try using the alarm on your phone) and use your time as follows: 5 Minutes: Grab a pen or use your computer, tablet, or smartphone and make lists of what you have to do. And while this may sound easy, theres one catch: instead of making a long, running list, divide it up by sections. What do you need to do for your Chem 420 class? What do you need to do as a club vice chair? What do you need to do for your financial paperwork? Create, in essence, a bunch of mini-lists and organize them by topic.5 Minutes: Mentally walk through your schedule for the rest of the week (or, at the very least, the next 5 days). Where do you absolutely have to be (like class) and where do you want to be (like a club meeting)? Use whatever time management system you have to mark down what you have to do and what you want to do.10 Minutes: Break down your calendar using your micro lists. What must be done today? What must be done tomorrow? What can wait until tomorrow? What can wait until next week? Be brutal with yourself, too; there are only so many hours in a day and o nly so much you can reasonably expect yourself to do. What can wait? What cannot? Assign to-do items from your lists to various days in a way that sets reasonable expectations about how much you can get done in a certain amount of time. 5 Minutes: Spend a few minutes to specifically break down how you are going to spend the rest of your day (or night) today. Allocate as much time as possible in your schedule, making sure to account for things like breaks and meals. In essence: How will you spend the next 5-10 hours?5 Minutes: Spend your final 5 minutes getting yourself and your space ready to work. Do you need to go for a brisk walk? Clean up a workspace in your room? Head to the library? Get some water and coffee? In essence: get yourself moving and prepare your environment so that you can hit the ground running. Once your 30 minutes are up, youll have made to-do lists, organized your schedule, planned out the rest of your day (or night), and prepared yourself to start. This, ideally, will allow you to focus on the tasks at hand over the next few days; instead of always worrying about studying for an upcoming exam, you can tell yourself, Im studying for my exam on Thursday night. Right now I must finish this paper by midnight. Consequently, instead of feeling overwhelmed, you can feel in charge and know that your plan of attack will allow you to finally get things done. You got this!

Corporate law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Corporate law - Essay Example The aspects that Corporation Law takes care of in relation to the activities of the companies are its formation and operations including fundraising and activities of the officer’s involved1. The Corporations Act already defines remuneration in Section 9 noting it to be â€Å"any benefit that is given to an officer or employee of a corporation is remuneration if and only if the benefit, were it received by a director of the corporation, would be remuneration of the director for the purposes of an accounting standard that deals with disclosure in companies’ financial reports of information about directors’ remuneration†1. This discussion intends to recognize the laws relating to director’s remuneration particularly in Australia. Moreover, the effectiveness of these laws safeguarding shareholders’ interests will also be determined in the discussion. Legal Issues Prevalent to Laws of Directors’ Remuneration There had been a public enquiry that was conducted by the Productivity Commission of Australia for the purpose of regulating the framework of the directors’ remuneration for the companies falling under the purview of Corporations Act. The commission was specifically requested to consider a few points namely; The Australian trend followed with respect to the remuneration of directors along with executives The strength of the regulatory framework in practice over the transparency, responsibility as well as oversight of the remuneration practices of the executives and directors The role of various bodies like the retail and institutional shareholders in various aspects of the remuneration practices like setting, development, reporting and consideration The possibility of mechanisms that would be helpful to enhance the alignment of the boards’ and executives’ interests with the broader community The strength of effects of the responses received internationally about the various issues of remunera tion that tend to arise out of the financial crisis globally2. There were certain changes brought about in the Corporations Act with regards to the remuneration of executives and directors especially in Australia. These changes were passed through the Corporation Amendment Bill 2011. The changes include the following points: The ‘No Vacancy’ Rule: This change was set with intent to be applicable for public companies following a board limit less than the higher limit specified in their organizational constitution4. Proxy Voting: This is set for all the companies. According to this, the proxy holders shall have to direct every alternative as directed for all the resolutions4. The ‘Two Strike Rule’: This sets for the listed companies which signifies that any vote for the directors in order to compete for re–election shall be needed in case a board proceeds with proposal for remuneration even after obtaining 25 percent or more vote at two successive gene ral meetings conducted annually4. Remuneration Consultants: This is for the companies that tend to disclose every detail in the report in connection with the remuneration provided by the company to the directors4. Voting by Key Management Personnel (KMP): This affirms that KMP as well as their close associates would be prohibited from partaking in the non-binding votes particularly in the case of listed

Staff Report on Special Permit Request Assignment

Staff Report on Special Permit Request - Assignment Example The money circulation, good infrastructures, supporting services has made the town to have the best suitable entrepreneurial environment for businesses and firms. According to the 2008 community survey of the city of East Lansing on satisfaction levels of city services showed that about 90% of the residents agree that there is better services and good quality of life in the town. Majority of people are in support that the town is the excellent place to bring-up children (City Center II pp. 1). The city of East Lansing does provide a number of economic development initiates to majority of business which includes: Brownfield redevelopment which is a tax increment financing, downtown development which is an initiative by the down town development authority which does support projects redevelopment in urban sites and create a mix use projects that is carried out using assistance like public infrastructure and direct support for projects, entrepreneurial support by giving a technological based incubators to business in down town. Other loan programs are also offered by down town development authority locations in the town (City Center II pp. 1). 2.1 Zoning and uses of properties. ... ain an attractive community appearance and providing desirable living environments for residents by preserving the owners’ characters in the neighbourhood. The zones in Lansing do exceed expectations of the majority of the people living in the community. Within the town, one will be able to find diverse cultures, talents which go hand in hand with affordability, diverse and quality of services. Proximity to Michigan University provides enough workforces to the town. The population in the Michigan capital city does provide enough demand for goods and services. The council provides other services to the people around; the town contains river trails, excellent hospitals and other institutions like Lansing community college. The town is strategically located with Chicago being 220 miles away. Majority of the properties are used only as one family residential area (City Center II pp. 1). 2.2 Suitability of property to restricted zone residents The properties were to support the res idents of the region in a number of ways: it would support the city councils management in setting or laying down comprehensive city plans, housing plans, and downtown development and strategic plans. It would support west plan by providing a 5 year parking master plan. In support of the housing and residential sectors, it would provide quality to home owners by helping in renovations of obsolete buildings and providing residential houses for the emerging growing urban populations. The set up will provide a vertical urban development which will portray a number of mix uses including: restaurants and hostels. Socially it would integrate arts and cultures of the diverse populations living in the down town urban environment. The project will be beneficial to the transport and infrastructure

The Bmw As A Manufacturing Company Marketing Essay

The Bmw As A Manufacturing Company Marketing Essay The main headquarters of the BMW group is based in Munich, Germany. It produces premium-class cars in eights of manufacturing plants globally. A successful strategy to target huge market provide huge amount of income for the company.BMW dealerships send trade-ins to wholesale auctions and made all their money from car sale, parts and service. The supply and distribution of finished cars to the global markets provide income to the company. The company determines the investments needed in production departments by using the self-financing strategy, and obtaining operating investments mainly from cash flow. Therefore, its yearly cash flow determines its yearly investment budget, which is the upper limit for investment expenditures. Investments budgets are reduced accordingly in order to replace equipments. Financial services segment focuses on leasing automobiles and financing credit for customers and dealers. BMW Manufacturing opened an onsite pharmacy for its associates.The on-site pharmacy will allow BMW to continue to offer competitive pharmacy benefits for associates and help curtail rising drug prescription costs, stated Bunny Richardson, a spokeswoman for BMW. Costs: The BMW as a manufacturing company made costs when upgrading its plants and other facilities globally. The BMW experience high running costs in keeping with the quality of the craftsmanship of the products, as they have a good reputation known for their better value.Free maintenance costs provided to customers which normally covers everything except tires so as to keep its reputation with regard to cost of ownership.there is high costs in allocating a new product to a certain plant, for buildings, and for expanding equipment that the new product shares with existing products, hence, high levels of automation are not profitable in countries with low labor costs.raw material costs: Natural fiber display excellent mechanical properties are light in weight and nevertheless stable and they reduce the burden on the environment but they are very expensive. What measures of performance are applicable to the industry? Reliability of Delivery: The BMW group introduced an online ordering system in 1998 which gives dealers the option of showing customers their desired car on the screen and confirming the delivery date on the spot. It takes only less than three months to build a car according to user specification including delivery. Delivery leads time: In 2000 BMW strengthens its position as the market leader in the premium segment of automobiles. By 2002, BMW stood second in the premium segment automobile market, next to Lexus. Quality and reliability of product: BMW is USING new ways to give their product a more unique identity and provide to clients products that gives them satisfaction.BMW makes sure that qualified personnel are available in a foreign countries and the positive effect on its image of production in Germany (made in Germany). Capacity to produce required volumes: BMW adopted a product offensive strategy TO flood the automobile market with a new product every three months and use d edicated assembly lines for mass production. Product flexibility: Allocating several products to one plant makes it easier to balance its utilization, and producing large-volume gives the firm the flexibility to cope with varying demand. Price: to achieve good financial status BMW offers prices that are unique from the price offering the competitors offer. Cars are priced very differently in the various national markets. The customers that are in the target group are happy to pay a premium price for what they perceive as a premium product (Thompson, (1996). Value chain for the industry(BMW) Value system for BMW Environmental factors that may influence the industry Political: Politics can have an influence on companies in an industry (Cheverton 2004). One example is the German value added tax increase from 16 to 19.BMW company makes sure they are aware of the political situation of the country so as to get good reputation, and trust .Economic In Germany, challenges such as currency fluctuations, above-average raw material prices AND the increased petrol prices lead to a reduced car demand (Bernhardt and Kinnear 2006, BMW Group 2006). However, The Company can be said to be economically stable for the past years, thats why they try to improve their products to give the best to their clients. Socio-Cultural: on average older population in European countries forces car manufacturers to develop new strategies in relation to their target groups (Cheverton 2004, FTD online 2006b). A generally lower average income may lead to lower demand for cars, especially in the luxury segment Technological: The Company offered new innovations in the technological sector and introduced new concepts with regards to the car engine industry. The company makes sure that the products they have are updated with regards to technology and if new technologies emerge they can compete with these products. Activity 2: Establishing Company Direction (10 marks) How would you describe the Ethos and Aims? The aims of BMW are to sell and make money and be ahead of the competition.BMW company aims to make driving a pleasure. The driver must always be in the loop, thats central to the BMW ethos, people buy an m5 because its fun to drive and those impulses wont change. Our cars must also be safe, stylish and reliable. says Freymann. The marketing plan for the entire company aims to outline and analyses opportunities for the company to be recognized as the automobile market leader globally so as a way of strengthening its competitive position. Based on this, recommendations for the future direction and implementation of the marketing-mix will be given. BMW group aims to support products through financial products and services offered to consumers throughout centers globally. In addition, customer relationship is enhanced by offering comprehensive banking and insurance services tailored for the prospective customers. The aims are very important to BMW because they shape the personality of the organization. They affect the way the company work, provide services and products, and support to the people. There is a clear aim for the BMW organization in providing quality long lasting customer service. Employees and customer are regarded as the first priority in order to continue successful growth and reputation of the company. How would you describe the Strategic Vision? The vision statement of BMW read as follows uniqueness through diversity, leadership, taking risk, courteous. The statement clearly implies that the company has a great commitment by providing professional management by carrying out and aiming to support complicated industrial production systems. The company encourages employees to work professionally and always aiming for the success of the company. The vision clearly shows that employs are trained in a very successful and highly innovative place to maximize the strong relationship to employee and customer satisfaction. What can you deduce from their Mission Statement about what they are seeking to achieve? The mission statement of BMW read as follows to become most successful premium manufacturer in the car industry. This clearly shows that the company has been for many years continued to keep its own reputation as a leader in production of premium cars with high quality. The purpose, mission and future success of the company focuses on the provision of high customer service satisfaction. Employees are very committed and work together as an integrated organization to represent a community that will be able to represent a BMW automobile company with pride and always ahead of the game. Describe the apparent Corporate Strategy for the implementation of that Mission and Vision. In the competitive compact where there is very high customer demands and hope from automobile manufacturers, the BMW proved to customer that it is a premium manufacturer by launching new products such as sports car. The corporate strategy is good but some implementations need to be included such considering adjustments for the marketing needs. The products possess a very good specification but the potential problem can be caused by the prices of the products in relation to what the competitors offer. The mission shows that serious suggestions can be included to increase the sustainability of the company as the premium manufacturer in this highly competitive sector. Hence increasing the long term customer relationship, good opportunities for technical development by the support of research and development measures, an strengthening the development of new distribution and dealership channels Can you identify any Strategic Inflection Points that have affected the sector? As the bigger contributor to the manufacturing sector in German the company achieved its success and trust from a long time but this long tradition was not easy. Dating back to around 1945 the company was doing well in manufacturing and production of aero engines but in later years the market for engines was not good and promising as the company experienced some financial problems. While German recovery form economic recession through the 1950s, the company was not able to be productive as it faced financial problems and it depended on Mercedes Benz company financial recourses in order to keep its sustainably position in the manufacturing sector. The BMW was later helped by Herbert Quant as a strong partner and this finally enabled the company to find a highly productive market such as saloon cars. The saloon cars market almost strengthens the position of BMW as we see, today, the BMW business is structured to maximize its retail margins. Designers continue to use the materials and technologies to improve performance and ensure safe passage BMW is an example of a survivor who stood the test of time and developed from a failing company to one of the most successful firm. Activity 3: Industry and competitive analysis (15 marks) Carry out a competitive analysis of your industry sector from the perspective of your chosen company or organisation: What are the dominant economic factors for the sector? Market size: nowadays, the current car manufacturing sector is so big and there are different main automotive manufacturers such as BMW, Audi, Acura, Mercedes Benz, and Lexus. Other competitors include Volkswagen, Toyota, Ford, and Honda. There was economic recession prior to the world war caused small automobile companies such as Toyota, Honda, Ford to come together and share the market in automobile manufacturing. After the period of war there was a rapid automobile growth as the new infrastructures were being set up such as roads and countries continued to become more developed. Scope of competitive rivalry: in the nineties automobile manufacturing sector increase tremendously to be more globalised because there was new openings of international plants and extensive strong link between big automobile manufacturers such as BMW and Mercedes Benz. It is an industry that encompasses the entire globe, as well as the areas of production and distribution, aftermarket. Rivals and their relative size of rivals: BMWs main competitors are Audi, Acura, Mercedes Benz, and Lexus. BMW has successfully set the benchmark for prestige motoring since the 1980s, creating a standard now fiercely contested by other manufacturers such as Mercedes, Lexus and Audi. Standardised products: all the products produced by BMW, are of the same high standard throughout the world, the opening of international plants provided a good service and support the production of quality automotives similar to those offered by the parent branch in Germany. The company makes sure that it set the standard to all its associated new and existing companies in regard to the manufacturing of car engines.Rapid technological change, technology in the automobile sector is very high so it is the responsibility of manufacturers to keep pace with technical aspects of manufacturing so that their products can be in demand to compete even when new technologies emerge. The automobile manufacturers must adapt the new technologies that are environmentally friendly and does not put society health at risk. Assess the competitive position of the company by reviewing the strength of each of the five competitive forces. Porters five forces Potential entrants: BMW company uses a strategy to respond quickly and flexible to provide customer satisfaction, thus, reducing the influence of potential competitors. The company provide new innovative techniques to serve the clients so that the company can provide a unique product as compared to other competitors, THUS, PREVENTING THEIR INFLUENCE. Competitive rivalry: the competitive rivalry highly influences the company.. The company offer goo d customer relation services, hence, gaining good advantage over rivals. Provision of quality prices prevent client away from competition. The other way to attract customers is to provide promotional services so that customers get a well informed decision about BMW Company. Substitutes: BMW Company proves to clients that they offer quality products and service that is far much better than substitutes so as to prevent substitutes to cause much competition. The company also tries to offer products and services superior than substitutes so that they can attract more clients by offering superior products. Bargaining power of buyers: the company has good customer satisfaction , it keeps customers relationship strong by introducing some new benefits to buyers such seasonal free maintenance where the customer will be assigned with a special employee who will deal together up until the time where the customer is satisfied. the bargaining power of BMW company is very high as it is trusted and tremendously popular among the targeted customers worldwide. Bargaining power of sellers: BMW demonstrate the value of their suppliers so that it can attract other companies to purchase the suppliers products thus their bargaining power increase. This is shown by BMW Company having dealerships, who sell the company cars in wholesales. What is causing the competitive structure and business environment in the sector to change? Technological change: the company offers new technological innovations by introducing new concepts with regards to the car engine industry. It also set the standards for car engine manufacturing so that all products will keep pace with technology and be able to compete with new emerging technologies offered by other competitors in the automotive industry. Changes in societal concerns, attitudes and lifestyles: The Company makes sure that the product they create will emit low emission that can reduce pollution. BMW emphasizes safety among the production of their goods. They make sure that the proper safety standards are followed and there are no hazardous chemicals in the production. Increasing globalization of industry: BMW produce products to meet the global market as it have partner associates and dealerships in all major continents. Regulatory influences and governmental policy changes: BMW makes sure they comply with what the law states in the country; they make sure that they comply with the regulated standards of the country. The company makes sure they are aware of legal needs of the country so as to keep its current reputation to success in the competitive world. Which companies are in the strongest and weakest positions? Companies in the strongest positions: main competitors are BMW, Audi, Acura, Mercedes Benz, and Lexus. Weakest positions: include the like of Toyota, Honda, and Ford. What are the key factors for competitive success in the sector? The automotive industry needs an efficient dealer organization and tight control of manufacturing costs all these are important success factors, using success factors as a filter; the management can then identify the information that is most important to make critical enterprise decisions. Accordingly the decisions made in this manner should be more effective because they are based on data that is specifically linked to the organization linked to the organizations success factors. Activity 4: Evaluating Company Resources (15 marks) Carry out an analysis of the resources and competitive capabilities from the perspective of your chosen company or organisation: How well is the present strategy working? Porters Generic Strategies: The cost leadership strategy of BMW is focused on making sure that the company earns more and spends less. The cost leadership strategy of the company takes a look at how expenses can be minimized without sacrificing the production of the companys product and the quality of product sold to clients. The differentiation strategy of BMW is focused on making sure that the company produces products that are unique. It makes sure that the logo of the company is not only the one that makes products of the company different. It makes sure that the internal and external characteristics of the product make it unique. The segmentation strategy of the company makes sure that it has a selected market that can provide huge amounts of income for the company. What are their resource strengths and weaknesses? Weakness BMWs heavy cost German base might affect the profitability of the company in the long run as more and more competitors shift product development activities to lower cost countries. BMW might be forced to negotiate a way to maintain cost competitiveness and its reputation for German engineering excellence. The planning procedure required a great deal of effort, limiting the comparison of different strategies and the performance of sensitivity analyses with varying data. Planners needed to consider separately capacity for assembling bodies, which is dedicated to single products, and capacity for the paint shop and final assembly line, which all products share. In allocating products to the global production sites, planners did not consider the effects on the global supply chain, in particular the flow of materials from the suppliers to the plant and the flow of finished cars to the markets. BMW realised the deficiencies of its planning process and research employees worked on the proje ct. In first phase, PETER HENRICH (2002) developed a mixed-integer programming model. In a second phase, Sonja Ferber (2005) extended the model to include investment decisions. Strengths: the BMW Group is one of the most successful multi-brand premium cars manufacturers in the automobile industry. The Rolls-Royce phantom holds the number one position in the super-luxury car segment. Moreover, BMW is the only automobile manufacturer possessing three non-overlapping premium car brands in its portfolio. The BMW group on an average spends part of its revenues on research and development, which is one of the highest in the industry. The keen focus on research and development is evidenced by the number of new models the company has released over the past few years. BMW has also developed an innovative array of engines. A companys strengths is its ability to create unique products and to providing high-level customer service. What are the external opportunities and threats facing them? Opportunities: The expansion of the European Union to foreign countries, has converted the European Union into the worlds biggest trading block with a combined population. This offers ample opportunities for BMW to leverage its strong European position in the premium car segment to garner more market share across new and expanding markets. BMWs concerted forays into the Chinese luxury car market portends to an increase in the earnings of the company over the coming years. China already ranks as the third largest market for BMWs 7 Series luxury limousines. BMW predicts that robust growth will place China among the companys seven largest markets in a few more years. This is a significant improvement over the 12th position held by the Chinese market for BMW in 2002. Threats: The continuing decline of the dollar against the euro threatens to undercut BMWs top line thereby tempering its profitability. The rising price of raw materials such as steel threatens to offset the companys earnings. BMWs Used Cars Help to Sell New Cars. In the meantime, dealer margins on new-car sales are thinner than they used to be because of tougher competition and better-informed customers. Therefore, used cars have become a more  important profit center for luxury-car dealers. From your assessment of the resources and competitive capabilities assess the strength of their competitive position Worldwide, the BMW Group is one of the most successful multi-brand premium car manufacturers in the automobile industry. The Rolls-Royce phantom holds the number one position in the super-luxury car segment. Moreover, BMW is the only automobile manufacturer possessing three non-overlapping premium car brands in its portfolio. The company produce a mass production of quality cars within few consecutive years by coming up with creative innovations to satisfy the customer needs and keeping the pace with technology development. What is your assessment of the culture within the company? Will it be supportive to change or not? Miles and Snow published an early article on the cultural classification of organisations in 1978. They classified companies as either defenders or prospectors: therefore, the culture in BMW Company is described as prospectors because the headquarters is located in Germany with many openings around the world, the managers in Germany are always ready to use ideas suggested by their partners in other foreign companies for the development and future successful profits. The automobile market is characterized high sales and profit potential (Muztagh, 2004. Hence the organization is innovative, values risk in order to succeed. So this shows that the culture and spirit of BMW must be kept to continue in order fully compete in the automotive manufacturing sector. Activity 5: Strategy and Competitive Advantage (10 marks a maximum of 2-3 pages per activity) Review the options facing your chosen company in creating a strategy for the future. Review the generic strategies available to your company. Which would be suitable? Porters Generic Strategies: The cost leadership strategy of BMW is focused on making sure that the company earns more and spends less. The cost leadership strategy of the company takes a look at how expenses can be minimized without sacrificing the production of the companys product and the quality of product sold to clients. The differentiation strategy of BMW is focused on making sure that the company produces products that are unique. It makes sure that the logo of the company is not only the one that makes products of the company different. It makes sure that the internal and external characteristics of the product make it unique. The segmentation strategy of the company makes sure that it has a selected market that can provide huge amounts of income for the company. Looking into the future, how may the company seek to achieve cost competitiveness? On the production front, BMW is all set to vamp up its manufacturing capabilities to aid production of new models over the coming years. Overall, the company is set to invest over million pounds in production facilities in Oxford, UK. Further, the company has decided to invest million Euros in its Steyr engine facility over the coming years .Through the introduction of new models, the Group has gained access to new customer groups. Despite challenging economic conditions, the company is the most successful in its history due to record sales volume and earnings. With respect to the auto industry, while some growth is expected in the traditional markets of Europe and Japan, growth is expected to be flat in the largest luxury car market of USA. However, the major emerging markets of Asia and Latin America are expected to witness a robust growth in terms of total number of vehicles sold. The company predicts that the premium car segment will experience stronger growth than the volume segment over the coming years. In this backdrop, BMW is looking to further expand its presence in both traditional and new markets. The high number of models set to be launched during the years is expected to boost the companys top line. Analyses the current core competencies of the company. Skills in manufacturing a high quality product: One of core competencies is the development of combustion engines. During recent years the company has significantly reduced both fuel consumption and emissions in its engines, while simultaneously increasing performance and torque. The latest milestones from these efforts are the first-ever variable- twin-turbocharger diesel power unit in a road vehicle. After-sale service capability: trained team of after-sales consultants and technicians make up the companys best equipped and most experienced service centre. Our Seasonal Inspection Program With BMWs Value Service Packages pricing program, only original BMW warranted parts are utilized, and all packages include a one-year unlimited mileage warranty on parts and labor. Expertise in gasoline engine technology and small engine design; BMW hydrogen technology has already come a long way. Now, together with politicians and the energy industry, the company turned its vision of sustained mobility into reality. BMWs hydrogen engine for its premium saloon is built for dual mode operation. The company provides superb marketing-distribution skills and Research and Development capabilities. Using the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats identified in Activity 4, develop a SWOT matrix to determine a set of strategic options for the company.

Natural environment Essay

History depicts that in the past, apartheid and Christian national education policies meant that races and cultures were segregated in schools and resources were unevenly distributed, making the role and the task of the teacher extra difficult in terms of balancing between the workload and catering for all learners needs. Education is inherently political as it involves values and goals in relation to such fundamental questions as what kind of individual and society are we trying to shape? These questions cannot be answered in a factual or technical way because they are questions of opinions, values and ideology and they are inevitably disagreements and conflicts (Carter, Harber & Serfi, 2003). The nature and reality of educators is that, it places so much importance on the teacher to ensure that learners succeed at the end of the day, although there are some factors external such as the environment, socio-economic and resources issues and resources which disturbs or defeats the purp ose of education. The teacher can either make or break the progress of the learner, meaning the teacher should cater equally for all the needs of the learners, as learners themselves are different in terms of race, gender and class. This means that the teacher should not be bias or discriminate towards a certain gender, race or class, as this will have a negative impact on the success or progress of the learners. In this essay I will discuss my experiences with the teachers who made a difference, the role they played in terms of perceiving gender, race and class in my life, and the reasons why they were significant and finally I will discuss the role I will play as a future teacher regardless of gender, race and class of the learners. The most features in class or school environment, is for the teacher to understand his or her learners and mostly interact with them on continuous basis, as problems learners encounter arise from time to time. These problems tend to distract learners and need the intervention of the teacher themselves. Sometimes learners struggle with the content required, a problem at home or moreover a personal problem. A good teacher must anticipate and have insight of foretelling and differenti ate amongst learners that are showing signs of encountering problem

Summary of Pmi Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct

Home-Work #4 SUMMARY for PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct The PMI ‘Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct’ articulates the ideals to which a project manager should aspire and specifically outlines the mandatory behaviors which are essential in a professional as well as a volunteer role. It describes the moral and professional expectations we have of ourselves and fellow colleagues in the project management community. In short, don’t cheat, steal, lie or abuse power! The code of ethics focuses on four core values which should be upheld by the project managers around the globe: responsibility, respect, fairness and honesty.The code clearly defines the scope of each of these values, their aspirational & mandatory standards and outlines a rough framework of the regulations and legal requirements for the same. The code is applicable to all PMI members, non-members who either hold or are in process of acquiring PMI certification or anybody who directly serve s PMI in a volunteer capacity. These values have become the foundation of the code and each of them is discussed at length in a separate section. It emphasizes on exercise of responsibility and on taking ownership of one’s decisions that they either made or failed to make.The code requires the individuals in project management community to show respect to self, others and the resources available and entrusted to them, to apply fairness in decision making and act impartially and objectively and finally practicing honesty in both the communication and the conduct. The aspirational standards identify the moral conduct and general expectations whereas the mandatory standards establish firm requirements which can limit or prohibit a practitioner’s behavior in some cases.Mandatory standards also suggest a disciplinary procedure before PMI’s Ethics Review committee in case of charges of non-compliance by a practitioner. The purpose of this Code is to instill confidence in the project management profession and to help an individual become a better practitioner. The PMI’s envisions that the current version of the code of ethics and professional conduct will serve as a precursor to further deliberation and application of ethics and values in the global project management community.