Foster Parenting and Foster Care in Louisiana Research Paper

Foster Parenting and Foster Care in Louisiana - Research Paper Example Foster parents need to develop for the child a ‘family-like environment’ (Department of Children and Family Services, Foster Parenting 2012), ensuring that the vital needs of the child, in terms of food, clothing, health and education, are fully covered. Foster parents also need to support the personal development and growth of the child (Department of Children and Family Services, Foster Parenting 2012). It should be noted that foster parents do not have parental rights, at least not at the same level as the birth parents; for this reason, foster parents need to cooperate with the local authorities and the birth parents for identifying the needs of the child in terms of daily care. The above rules are common in foster parenting schemes developed across USA. In Louisiana, authorities have focused on the support of foster parents so that the care provided to the children, in the context of foster parenting, to be as appropriate as possible. In 2003, the number of children in foster care in Louisiana has been estimated to 4,541 (Foster Care Month Organization 2005). Among those children, 53 are male, while the average age of children in foster care is 10 years (Foster Care Month Organization 2005). As of September of 2003, the average period that a foster child stays in a foster family has been estimated to 29 months, which can be characterized as rather long (Foster Care Month Organization 2005). In 2004, the number of certified foster homes in Louisiana was estimated to 2,822 (Foster Care Month Organization 2005). In order for a family to provide foster care, it has to ask for a foster care certification. The requirements of this certification are the following ones: a) provision of information to foster family in regard to the needs and the demands of the program, b) the submission of a relevant application, c) fingerprints are provided by all members of the foster family, meaning those members who are

Persuasive Analysis Animal Tesing Essay Example for Free

Persuasive Analysis Animal Tesing Essay For centuries animals have been experimented on for human benefits. People tend to forget that millions of animals are being tortured and even killed during the process of these extremely painful experiments. There are many other, more humane ways to test products that do not result in animals being harmed. For years now millions of helpless animals are suffering for our benefits. It is not fair for these harmless animals to live their entire lives in agony. Bleeding, blindness, liver problems, and ulceration, these are just some of the serious side effects of animal testing. The animals go through days and days of painful experiments, only to result in their deaths. About 50% of the animals used in these experiments die within the first two weeks and only 31% of those are euthanized to stop their suffering. â€Å"Beauty is pain† is a phrase that is commonly heard. But this saying has a whole new meaning in cosmetic testing labs where animals are being tested on all around the globe. Most women do not think twice when buying a cosmetic product. When girls put on their mascara in the morning I doubt they wonder â€Å"which animal suffered to make this?† The truth that no one wants to face is that the human race is extremely selfish. Are cosmetic products that important that we need to kill innocent animals just so we can safely wear them? Testing cosmetics on animals is not necessary. There are many others ways to test products that would not result in animals being harmed. Technology has become so advanced; scientists could run their tests through computers instead of testing on animals. The way in which animals and humans react to their environments, both physiologically and behaviorally, can be drastically different compared to humans. Animals have smaller blood vessels than humans that are distributed differently throughout their bodies. Makes you wonder why scientists in the testing labs bother testing on animals in the first place. Animals are living creatures that are experimented on against their free will. When will this animal cruelty stop? It is no different than someone beating their dog, and they get charged in caught.

Essay --

The Indian Entertainment and Media Industry has performed better in the Indian economy and is considered one among fastest growing sectors of India. It is increasing on the base of economic growth and accelerating income levels that our country has been witnessing in the last few years. This is indeed proving useful to the entertainment and media industry in India as this is a rather sensitive one and it prospers faster when it is an expanding economy. An added advantage to the entertainment and media industry in India is from the point of view of demographics where the spending of the consumer is increasing as a result of increase in disposable incomes due to sustained growth in income levels and reduced income tax in the last ten years. The present size of the industry is estimated at US$ 7 billion in 2004 and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 14 per cent to US$ 13bn by the year 2009. The Filmed Entertainment and Television segment rules the industry succeeding to Print, Radio and the Music segments. The overall Indian economy observed a slack in 2012 due to both external and domestic factors. The fiscal and monetary stimulus given by the Government of India after financial-crisis resulted in strong growth in consumption and demand in 2009-10 and 2010-11. However, this has led to higher inflation and a powerful monetary response that reduced consumption demand. Moreover, infrastructure and corporate investment were also rallied down by the strict monetary policy and the policy bottlenecks. Externally, a slow global economy weighed down by the incessant crisis in the Euro area and prevalence of uncertainty in the US fiscal policy also increased risks to development. The Central Statistical Organization’s (CSO’s) estimates show a... ...this increasing number is eventually resulting in the growth of internet advertising, which today is standing at about INR 1 billion. †¢ The internet is being utilized for a variety of purposes, besides work, like as chatting, doing transactions, leisure, blogging etc. †¢ This serves as a large potential to marketers in the sale of their products. †¢ And with wireless and broadband becoming popular, internet reach is expected to increase in leaps and bounds. BARRIERS TO INVESTMENT The following are certain barriers to investment in the media industry; †¢ Piracy. †¢ Lack of a uniform media policy for foreign investment †¢ Level playing field with incumbents †¢ Content regulation †¢ Price regulation in the television industry †¢ Cross-media ownership rules †¢ Lack of empowered regulators †¢ Merging of the FII and FDI caps †¢ Tax treatment of foreign broadcasting companies

Importance and Scope of Commerce

Since the second part of the 20th century, the world is entered in the new era of the globalization. This era began with the creation of the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) in 1947 which finally lead to the creation of the WTO (World Trade Organization) in 1995. Those organizations have for objectives to accelerate, in the world scale, exchanges of goods, services by limiting the barriers of the commerce between the countries. In this era of globalization, the commerce has a central place. The importance of the commerce is in the fact that it provides goods and services which are easing the life of the consumer all around the world. Commerce is a preponderant vector of economics development and growth for countries. Indeed, the countries the most powerful, on an economical point of view, are the countries which dominate the world’s business, like the United States of America, China or Arabic countries due to the oil’s market. The opening of economies to the rest of the world and the trade liberalization (which can be reach thanks to the GATT and WTO’s work) are essential steps to improve the well-being of populations. It contributes to reducing poverty and helping countries to accelerate their progress (developing countries). The final objective of commerce is to make all the countries economically independent, in a sustainable way. Due to the importance of commerce in the present day world, there is a constant development of businesses and specific jobs in relation with commerce. That means that more and more people are engaged in commerce and concerned by this activity. So, the scope of commerce is very wide and is still changing day after day. Indeed, since the world is growing (new consumers, new way of life [†¦]) and the technology are changing, there is new businesses which open every day worldwide. Furthermore, there is a change in the world’s economy which influences the scope of commerce. For example, in one hand we can see that all the manufacturing companies are moving to developing countries to benefit of the low-cost labor force, in China or India for example. So it changes the frontiers of commerce by create new players in the world business. In the other hand, the developed countries have to find new opportunities for maintain their importance. So they explore new fields for business like the Internet. Thus, most of the companies from developed countries are moving toward the internet by the creation of a new way of make business: the e-commerce. With this opening on the virtual world for commerce, it expends more and more the scope of commerce. And you can guess that in the near future, with the development of new technologies, companies from developed countries will find other field to continue their business. So, we can conclude that the importance of the commerce in our society is very strong and that his scope is as wide as commerce is important in the 21st century. But we have to keep in mind that the current limits of commerce won’t be the same tomorrow and are not the same as yesterday because the scope of commerce is in constant evolution: each day, new entrants are coming to the business replacing other players who disappear.

Sino Soviet Split

Communism in US was embraced as an ideology but in China it was seen as an alternative)bureaucracy, different levels of productive force, dominant role of peasantry,( in china, they had no clue, so the role of town workers and farmers in US and China) different perspective to imperialism ( when communism was instilled in SO, Stalin etc was interested in bringing about a strong US empire, so they felt that other countries should subordinate to theirs, because they feel they were the leader. US volcanically and militarily aided the countries to spread communism-China, believed strictly In sovereignty, no Interference In domestic policies.Mao received extremely Limited aid, he spread It Individually. Hence, China did not see why they should have to succumb to SUE leadership. He refused to conform. In the long march to the mountain, when he recruited and spread communism, the used the farmers, and the loyalty was instilled thru how communism could help their socio economic problem. China has plenty of cheap labor. So Mao Sedona took into account all this factors. -As a result of all the difference in ideology, dominant players, ways, what happen is that when Mao finally established communism in China, he felt independent, he did not feel obligated to SO.They did not respect US s the supreme leader of communism as opposed to Eastern European countries. Ideological – approach + practice difference ( policies headed of , 2 different directions – personality , challenges to USSR supreme leadership. Communist Crises 1) Sino soviet split 2) Chinese Economic Reforms (1978) -by 1980 china was already full on economic reform. Resulting in a major crises June 4th mass demonstration and Attainment Square massacre 1 ) agriculture and farming -leasing land to the farming, in return a fixed quota, incentive to increase farming. Decentralized party power. Province power increased to make decisions.Adoption of household responsibility system. 2) industry- as china be gan to reform, how are you going to measure economic efficiency? What measures were taken to modernize Industry 1) gradual approach 2) pilot project XSL Chuan, starting with the smaller SEE, they were given autonomy. More than 6000 See's were given power. All the state Industrial, manufacturing and production of Industrial products, they were also supposed to be financially independent. They were supposed to increase the among the farmers. But the SEE failed, because of corruption, lack of training of skilled people, lack of enterprising managers. 3) open door policy 4)

Hitler vs. Martin Luther King essays

Hitler vs. Martin Luther King essays The following is comparison between two very famous people in history. Although they were both completely different, they both had a great impact on people. I compared Adolph Hitler and Martin Luther King. Future generations will always remember both, Hitler as the incarnation of absolute evil and Martin Luther King for his courage, achievement and high moral leadership. Adolph Hitler knew how to please, impress and charm his supporters. The savior admired by his own as he dragged them into his madness, the Satan and exterminating angel feared and hated by all others, Hitler led his people to a shameful defeat without precedent. His endless hatred of Jews, whose survival enraged him. He invested so much energy in his hatred of Jews. He had night trains that took them to their death. Even up the end Hitler still had the mind to come up with the Final Solution. In his testament, drafted in underground bunker just hours before his suicide in Berlin, Hitler returns again to this hatred of the Jewish people that had never left him. His kingdom collapsed after 12 years in a war that remains the most atrocious, the most brutal and the deadliest in history. Whenever evil is mentioned among the first names that will surge to mind will be that of a fanatic with a mustache called Hitler. Three decades after King was gunned down on a motel balcony in Memphis, Tenn., he is still regarded mainly as the black leader of a movement for black equality. For all King did to free blacks from the yoke of segregation, whites may owe him the greatest debt, for liberating them from the burden of America's centuries-old hypocrisy about race. It is only because of King and the movement that he led that the U.S. can claim to be the leader of the "free world" without inviting smirks of disdain and disbelief. Had he and the blacks and whites that marched beside him failed. Even after the Supreme Court struck down segregation in 1954, what t ...

Writing Guide on How to Write International Trade Essay Like a Pro

Writing Guide on How to Write International Trade Essay Like a Pro Introduction: General Concepts of International Trade Essay Student tasked with an International Trade essay will get acquainted with an interesting sphere, which has an extremely long history and became a starting point for the establishment of international relations. The development of international trade started with the implementation of the barter system and was used by traders from different countries. These people were exchanging various products including food, jewelry, clothes, and precious stones. In the Middle Ages, various trading paths like the Silk Road were established in different regions. Ancient trade contacts are still being maintained by modern states, and support economic development promoting the powerful position of every separate state in the global system. In fact, the sphere of International Trade is a significant area of state activity that brings profit and provides more sustainability for economies. Generally speaking, an International Trade essay is aimed at analysis of the specific case connected to the market relations between countries, and transnational corporations. International trade is an extremely interesting sphere because it is one of the most active and developed areas of interstate cooperation. International trade is considered by various theoretical concepts and is practically evaluated as a significant aspect of domestic state affairs. While writing an International Trade essay, you will have an opportunity to analyze specific cases that appear within the International Trade market. This guarantees to discover various interconnections and regularities that are basic for modern trading activity. Every student should follow a set of specific requirements of an academic writing style: specific language, appropriate sources, the proper structure of an essay, and the representation of relevant arguments. Plus, it is necessary to pay attention to the statistics, domestic economy data of particular countries, analysis of various markets, and accurate budget information. The student should read and analyze a significant amount of academic reports, economic researches, and other scientific data to complete an accurate analysis of International Trade case. Every student should realize the difficulties of such work and all the challenges s/he is expected to face during the work on the academic paper. This international trade essay writing guide presents effective techniques for analysis of International Trade case and useful tips for writing an essay or report. Choose the Particular Issue in the Field of International Trade As a rule, the topic of your essay and the task itself is offered by the professor. S/he provides detailed instructions on how to work on the particular task and guidelines regarding writing an essay. In case you have to choose the topic by yourself, you should follow several tips to make it simply and quickly. The main rule in choosing an issue for academic research is its topicality and importance in modern conditions. Of course, the topic can be related to a specific historical event or period in the past, but in such a case, it should be somehow important for the modern economic situation of the particular country. The second tip for choosing an object of the study is your interest in the topic. It will be simpler and more interesting to study the aspect of International Trade that you know very well and are interested in. In case you have difficulties in choosing the topic of the essay, you can contact your teacher or professor for advice. A skill of choosing an interesting scientific topic for research is extremely essential for every student. It depends on personal interests, the requirements of the instructor, and also on the subject of the research. There are several useful tips on how to choose the International Trade essay topic successfully: Active Brainstorming. The student has to analyze the course and his or her background knowledge regarding the main concepts of the subject. It is significant to look through course books, or professor’s presentation to find the most interesting and topical aspect. The student should brainstorm several possible variants and create a list of essay topics. It will be more comfortable to choose a topic from such a list. Choosing Literature. This stage is crucial because the literature itself is the basis that you can build your research and writing on. Sources for research should be easy to read, understand, and implement in an International Trade essay. Finally, the student should make us of the source that is credible and relevant to the topic of the research. Check the Sources Availability. In case the student uses online sources, it is important to download the text or ensure that sources are available. This helps to choose sources that are easy to operate and incorporate in the academic work. Narrow Down Your Topic. Make the topic of your research more specific and detailed. Thus, you’ll stay focused and consider the necessary aspects of the research exclusively. Think about the topic in general and define more or less significant issues in it. This will help to make the topic more narrow. Here is a list of topics possible to use when writing an International Trade essay: Institutional Quality, Trade, and Growth Trade Facilitation; The Negative Impacts Faced by the UK after Not Joining Euro; Gender Inequality and Trade; Trade and Transportation Costs; Misconceptions Prevailing in the Global Trading Sector; The Extensive and Intensive Margin of Trade; Potential Solutions to the Challenges Faced While Carrying Business with the Neighboring Countries. Planning Pre-writing Activities to Get You Thinking Choice of Information and Sources Referring to the previous statement, the choice of information is one of the most important stages of an International Trade essay writing. This step helps to evaluate the general picture of the case and decide what aspects are the most interesting and significant. Surf through different databases and compare the reliability of the information provided. Read and analyze the particular source to get background knowledge necessary for writing the International Trade essay. One more essential step of getting ready to write a final essay lies in discovering the statistical data and information about partners in the sphere of the International Trade. This data should refer to GDP of chosen countries, their financial debt, and purchase capacity. Plus, the variety of possible sources for the International Trade essay is quite extensive because it includes different official reports, journal articles, scientific researches, and analytical articles. Using exclusively reliable and credible sou rces is a must. Be attentive to the reputation of the author, date of publication, and information represented in the text. Plan Every Single Step You’ll Take in the Process of Writing Writing a plan of the essay can make the whole process quick and straightforward. First of all, a plan will create the general structure of the essay and depict a sequence of actions in the research. This plan will provide a student with an understanding of interconnections between various aspects of the topic and will show weak issues that require more attention. The plan will also help to preserve a logical structure of the essay and remember the central issue to answer to avoid unnecessary information. Secondly, a significant part of the essay writing is about the creation of the thesis statement as an integral component of the plan. Besides, the thesis statement is a core issue in the analysis of the essay. This sentence shows some specific assumption to prove, the idea to develop, or controversy to argue. It helps the reader to understand the direct aim of the essay and decide if it would be interesting and necessary for the enrichment of personal knowledge. Thirdly, the creatio n of the essay plan will help to form the set of research methods and writing strategies. Specifically, one can use such means of information like description, comparisons, or analysis in an International Trade essay representation. Proper planning will help to develop a timetable of the working process and use time wisely. Finally, the paper can be added with a detailed outline of the general essay structure. Conventionally, an International Trade essay includes the following parts: a title page set in accordance with the requirements of the appropriate paper format; an abstract (in case it is required); an introduction that presents background and includes a thesis statement; the main body that provides for three or more paragraphs describing the main ideas of an International Trade essay; the description of methodological basis and materials used for research; the findings, or the primary results of the study; the conclusions; the page with references. Such structure of the essay can be changed to meet the requirements of the professor, and additional parts can be successfully supplied in the outline. The Structure of the International Trade Essay One of the most critical aspects of an International Trade essay writing is the selection of an interesting and attractive title. It’s the title of the essay that will attract the attention of the reader and convince to read your academic work. In fact, there are several tips on how to choose a perfect title for the essay. First, the title should correspond to the content of the essay and represent the general aim of it. Chose the topic that would help the reader to understand the subject of the study and realize its role in the sphere of the International Trade. Secondly, provide a clear title without using obscure and trivial words or phrases. Remember that you are working on academic work, and it is obligatory to use formal language. Thirdly, the topic of the essay should be relatively informative and provide the audience with information regarding the data discussed in the essay, explored period, or events analyzed in the text. Finally, you should avoid using the question as a title of the essay because this kind of titles mainly refers to an informal style of writing. Using this title in the International Trade essay means that your paper may not be evaluated as relevant academic work. The second significant aspect of an International Trade essay writing refers to the use of transitional words in the body paragraphs. Such words and phrases will help to establish a structure of the paper and create interconnections between different issues. With the help of such structures, the paper will be more gathered and stylistically appropriate. Transitional words will make the text easy to read and understand because it establishes a sequence of ideas and results. Finally, it is essential to pay attention to the conclusions because all findings and discoveries are represented there. You should restate a thesis of the essay in other words to show the central aspect of the whole research. The student should not repeat all main ideas word by word. Instead, one should generally depict the results of the study. In the final section, the author shows if s/he proved or found any mistake in the thesis statement idea. Post-writing Tips: The Last Tip from Our Writers After writing the full text of the essay, it is necessary to proofread it and search for plagiarism. Check all used citations and their correspondence to the arguments of the paper. Pay attention to the structure of the essay, its formatting, and the use of grammar constructions. Correct all mistakes and misspellings to pass a perfect academic paper. Finally, read the paper once more to understand if it sounds well and whether your target readers will enjoy reading it as well. References Essay Tips: 7 Tips on Writing an Effective Essay. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.fastweb.com/student-life/articles/essay-tips-7-tips-on-writing-an-effective-essay General Essay Writing Tips Essay Writing Center. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.internationalstudent.com/essay_writing/essay_tips/ How to Select a Research Topic | University of Michigan-Flint. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.umflint.edu/library/how-select-research-topic Planning and Structuring an Essay. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/ssid/301/study-skills/writing/academic-writing/planning-structure Research paper topics about International Trade | Online Research Library: Questia. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.questia.com/library/economics-and-business/economics/international-trade

Media Ethics Essay Sample

Media Ethics Essay Sample Media Ethics Essay There are different kinds of media the press, entertainment and social media. Thus, there are different ethics for each one but almost similar to each other. In the past decades, journalists adhere to media ethics and have high standards but these days it appears that the press is overpowered by whoever has the bigger money or whoever is closest to the owners of the media company. Media these days are used to cover up other political or economic issues. They are used to inculcating certain ideas to the viewers. A person popular for something good can easily and quickly turn into an infamous one with how the media constantly show him to be. Sometimes real events about war and other crises are being diverted and covered up with other stories. That is how media are these days. Despite the lack of strict adherence to media ethics, here are the general ethics that they should have been following. In journalism, they follow the ethics of accurate and factual reporting, slander and libel considerations, and they have a harm limitation principle. The first one is of course expected. Media are expected to inform everyone else about something true. They need to give the actual facts and not make false truths or make assumptions. However these days, with a large number of media, some are not sticking this kind of morality. Many give false facts to people for the reasons to intrigue, grab attention, and sell. They should be publishing corrections to errors as soon as these mistakes are discovered. However today, when media commits mistakes, some even have the guts to deny their mishap and continue to stick on it. The second one is in line with the sensitivity of the first. Reporting facts is in a thin line with slandering someone especially if the event is leaning towards negativity. That is why it is very crucial for media to report as accurately as possible, so as to avoid libel a nd slander. The third one is to show right judgment and compassion to those that are affected by the event being reported. For example, the news is about a family man murdering a girl, then reporters should also be keen on the children and wife of the guy, and all others related to those involved. Just because they are reporting about them does not mean that they own them. Another form of media is entertainment. The ethics being upheld in this industry are the use of violence, sex, and use of strong language that is why there is always a categorization or rating of the films so to keep audiences aware whether they would be comfortable with it or not. Another one is product placement. Films should not be mainly just about promoting products, therefore they should accordingly use products in their productions, so it does not mainly become a commercial of it. There is also a discretion in presenting stereotypes and taboos in films, so not to encourage the wrong mindset to viewers. So, there is ethics that the media industry has to follow but with the freedom and rights being practiced by practically everyone these days, it has become challenging to keep both the journalists and the entertainers strictly adhering to the rules without modifying it too much to their own advantage.

Trust Me, I Can Do It Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Trust Me, I Can Do It - Essay Example Their parents took a gamble on their future that paid off immensely for their children and the future generations of their family. It was because of that risk that the families took that the future of my own family is so comfortable and promising at the moment. My parent's experience as independent foreign students in the United States helped them build their character and enhanced their decision-making skills. Needless to say, I grew up being regaled by their stories of adventure and mishaps during their time as college students in the United States and wishing to be able to experience the life-changing lessons that my parents did when they were there. Every life lesson that they wanted to teach me about they somehow managed to relate to something that transpired in their lives overseas. I was fascinated by their stories and often told them that I too wished to go to the United States when it came time for me to attend university so that I could experience life first hand the way th at they did. They were actually in total agreement with my desire to study overseas and live independently in the United States. ... Especially since they had spent all their lives shielding me from harm and the dangers of the world. I was their little girl and they wanted to protect me forever if they could. So we began to argue about where I would actually go to university. I still wanted to go overseas and they wanted me to go to a university closer to home for safety purposes. This became a serious point of discussion within our household that often times led to misunderstandings between my parents and I. I knew that I was growing up fast and I needed to flex my independent muscles if I were to become a woman of independent will, strength, and substance in China. I needed my parents to realize that sending me to a China-based university would get me the college diploma that I needed to earn the respect of my peers. But successfully completing my degree overseas would not only get me a diploma but also gain me the respect and admiration of my peers and our business partners.  Ã‚  

How the Federal Reserve System Functions Term Paper

How the Federal Reserve System Functions - Term Paper Example the Fed†) is so deeply interconnected with the entire political system, the inevitably byproducts of central banks are business cycles caused by politically-oriented monetary policies. Politicians use the Fed as a means of imposing fiscal policies that, although look good to constituents, ultimately worsen and damage the economy further (Bresiger, 2001). The following is an account of how the Fed is supposed to work, and the effects that the central banking system is supposed to have. An account of how it actually works is an entirely different matter. The Federal Reserve is, in fact, a tool under public control, overseen and manipulated by government to accomplish the goal of a healthy, vibrant economy. As said before, the question of function is deeply rooted in the question of structure, which is in turn related causally to the history of the Fed. The Fed began with â€Å"panics† in the early 20th century, wherein people raced to banks to withdraw deposits. A fragile banking system at that time was overwhelmed, forcing Congress to draft the Federal Reserve Act, which, has been modified through time to encompass broader and wider responsibilities. The Fed was forced to find the virtuous mean between the moral responsibility of the government and the private interests of banks, which gave rise to countless checks and balances imposed on the system by government influences (Meltzer, 2004). Congress, of course, ever since the first establishment of the Fed, has regulated the system. Based on that, the Fed is answerable to Congress and must work within the Congressional system. However, the Fed still retains a certain level of self-rule in order to carry out its responsibilitie s apart from the political process (Lapidos, 2008). The Fed is composed primarily of three parts: the Board of Governors, the regional Reserve banks, and the Federal Open Market Committee. The first, the Board of Governors, is the agency of the Federal government regulating banks,

What is the future of diversity management Essay

What is the future of diversity management - Essay Example Leadership and diversity are among the most discussed topics in scholarly research. The growing diversity of national and international workforce presents a serious challenge for leaders who must develop new approaches for managing diverse employees and using diversity as the source of competitive advantage. Unfortunately, previous research was increasingly concentrated on searching for â€Å"one best way† of leadership in organizations. Put simply, researchers were preoccupied with an idea to find one, universal leadership model, which would be equally effective in all organizational settings. With time, the idea of â€Å"one best way† was gradually replaced with the ideals of contingency leadership, which came to dominate organizational and leadership consciousness in all parts of the world. According to Day (1991), â€Å"implied in the contingency approach to leadership is the need for leaders to be flexible in their choice of leadership style based on the situation † (p.362). Today, contingency exemplifies the key component of diversity management decisions in organizations: a multitude of diversity management models suggests that there can never be a universal solution to diversity management issues. The current state of workplace development suggests that diversity in organizations will continue to persist. The coming years are likely to witness a dramatic shift from diversity management to diversity cultures in organizations, which will serve an essential source of competitive advantage and an instrument of continuous organizational learning in the long run. Literature review Workforce diversity is rightly considered as one of the most popular and controversial topics in contemporary business literature. Globalization and integration of markets and businesses lead to the growing diversity of employees in small organizations and large corporations. Thus, it comes as no surprise that organizations and professionals in organization studi es seek to develop and test new models of leadership and management, which will let organizations utilize their diversity potential to the fullest. It should be noted, that present day organizations are undergoing a dramatic change in diversity philosophies and principles. Today, the scope of diversity management is no longer limited to increasing the share of minorities in the workforce but implies the need to develop and sustain diversity-sensitive organizations (Dreachslin, 2007). In this situation, senior leaders are expected to develop sound commitment to recruiting, retaining, and supporting applicants and candidates that had been previously underrepresented (Dreachslin, 2007). Furthermore, diversity-sensitive ideology in organizations obligate leaders to convince and educate other stakeholders that diversity is the key strategic value and defines the course of long-term development in organizations. Unfortunately, â€Å"the effects of diversity on performance are mixed† (Haas 2010). The factors mediating the relationship between diversity and organizational presentation are numerous and varied. In the meantime, researchers develop and test new models of diversity management and their implications for organizations. The current state of research displays a tendency toward describing and analyzing numerous models of diversity management and their implications for the future of global business. Mitchell and Boyle (2010) tried to create a single, theoretical framework of diversity management and tested a model of leadership, in which diversity management would be closely connected to innovation and creativity, learning, and organizational transformations. The researchers found out that transformational leaders facilitated the creation of knowledge in organizations, leading to increased recognition of diversity and acceptance of diversity management within the staff (Mitchell & Boyle 2010). However, while

MANAGING INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

MANAGING INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS - Essay Example Most of the EU trading occurs in between the European countries itself, owing to its flourishing nature it stands first among exporting and second among importing countries. The key concepts of European Union are, Integration- combining a range of different pieces into a single body, or the removal of barriers to enable the pieces to move closer together (Jones 2008,pp.88-87), Supranationalism – which express the power of EU decisions that override those made by national governments whenever the two conflict (Ibid ,pp.137-138) and the Intergovernmentalism – the idea of different governments of EU working together to protect its national interests (Ibid 2008,p.87). The most important key institutions of European Union are The council of the European Union representing the governments of the member states; European commission which consists of the commissioners appointed by the member states ,the executive body and driving force ; The European Council that comprises the h eads of state/government of the member states which gives political direction to the EU and sets policy agenda and strategies for the EU and European Parliament elected by the people of the member state, law-making body. ... n spreads some precious lessons to the whole world through their integrated efforts and activities which if put into effect may enable all human beings to live in peace and harmony around the Globe. References Jones, A. (2008) A Glossary of the European Union. Edinburgh University Press. The EU & Supply Chain Management The Supply Chain Management (SCM) can be defined as the† management of upstream and downstream relationship with suppliers and customers in order to deliver superior customer value at less cost to the supply chain† which refers to a system of organizations in moving a product from supplier to the customer (Christopher, 2011, p. 3). SCM heavily depends on the areas of operation management, logistics, procurement, and information technology (Ibid). Some suggest it is more accurate to use the term â€Å"Supply network†, viewing the supply chain as â€Å"a network of connected and interdependent organizations mutually and cooperatively working together to control, manage and improve the flow of materials and information from suppliers to end users† (Chopra & Meindl 2010). Different SCM models were proposed for the better understanding and systematic coordination of the business functions. For instance, Supply Chain Council promotes Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) whereas the Global Supply Chain Forum (GSCF) promotes SCM Model. By going truly global with the SCM, business firms can understand the competitiveness and can identify significant links in the network. It also helps to focus on long term issues. According to Chopra and Meindl (2010), the decision phases of a supply chain includes 3 steps the Supply Chain Strategy or design, Supply Chain Planning and the Supply Chain Operations. Essentially the fundamental role of SCM is to facilitate the

Business , fortune companies Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business , fortune companies - Research Paper Example The road was long for Adolf, from a 15 year old orphan to working in a local brew station; this gave him his maiden thoughts. Water from the Rocky Mountains, as they say about it, has given Coors and collaborates a decent rise in the corporate world (Enz, 2010). Thus the only way they market their beer, a strategy that has won them a fortune. With no money and no job, Coors has continued to dominate the business corridors until 2005 when he joined ideas with Molson to stick their company as the fifth largest brewing plant in the world. As it dates today, Coors has an outstanding figure of $13.5 billion in assets and $6.2 billion in revenue. Hence Coors Brewing Company is an example of an immigrant’s success story. The virtues of timing, persistence, and smart investment have all worked for the poor Coors and his company. This is the reason why he is in the Fortune 500 U.S.A Companies. Molson Coors spreads its administration characteristics from the management makeup, operations, marketing, and financial structure (Plunkett & Plunkett, 2009). The company’s management structure starts from the President, who is the CEO of: Europe and Asia (Peter Swinburn) -Next in line is the President and the CEO of Molson Canada (Kevin Boyce) -followed by the Global Chief Financial Officer (Stewart Glendinning) -Global Chief People’s officer (Ralph Hargrow) -Chief Commercial Officer (Mark Hunter) -Global Chief Legal Officer/ corporate secretary (Samuel Walker) -Global Chief Synergies Officer (Cathy Noonan) -Global Chief Strategy and Commercial Officer (David Perkins) -and finally the Global Chief Technical Officer (Gregory Wade). As it is typical with many companies, Coors business process has seen it adopt a model of organization, which they call Coors Enterprise Process Structure (Enz, 2010). This has become the formal method and system of duty and reporting the relationship that ought to control, coordinate and

MANAGING INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

MANAGING INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS - Essay Example Most of the EU trading occurs in between the European countries itself, owing to its flourishing nature it stands first among exporting and second among importing countries. The key concepts of European Union are, Integration- combining a range of different pieces into a single body, or the removal of barriers to enable the pieces to move closer together (Jones 2008,pp.88-87), Supranationalism – which express the power of EU decisions that override those made by national governments whenever the two conflict (Ibid ,pp.137-138) and the Intergovernmentalism – the idea of different governments of EU working together to protect its national interests (Ibid 2008,p.87). The most important key institutions of European Union are The council of the European Union representing the governments of the member states; European commission which consists of the commissioners appointed by the member states ,the executive body and driving force ; The European Council that comprises the h eads of state/government of the member states which gives political direction to the EU and sets policy agenda and strategies for the EU and European Parliament elected by the people of the member state, law-making body. ... n spreads some precious lessons to the whole world through their integrated efforts and activities which if put into effect may enable all human beings to live in peace and harmony around the Globe. References Jones, A. (2008) A Glossary of the European Union. Edinburgh University Press. The EU & Supply Chain Management The Supply Chain Management (SCM) can be defined as the† management of upstream and downstream relationship with suppliers and customers in order to deliver superior customer value at less cost to the supply chain† which refers to a system of organizations in moving a product from supplier to the customer (Christopher, 2011, p. 3). SCM heavily depends on the areas of operation management, logistics, procurement, and information technology (Ibid). Some suggest it is more accurate to use the term â€Å"Supply network†, viewing the supply chain as â€Å"a network of connected and interdependent organizations mutually and cooperatively working together to control, manage and improve the flow of materials and information from suppliers to end users† (Chopra & Meindl 2010). Different SCM models were proposed for the better understanding and systematic coordination of the business functions. For instance, Supply Chain Council promotes Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) whereas the Global Supply Chain Forum (GSCF) promotes SCM Model. By going truly global with the SCM, business firms can understand the competitiveness and can identify significant links in the network. It also helps to focus on long term issues. According to Chopra and Meindl (2010), the decision phases of a supply chain includes 3 steps the Supply Chain Strategy or design, Supply Chain Planning and the Supply Chain Operations. Essentially the fundamental role of SCM is to facilitate the

Treatments for Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus Research Paper

Treatments for Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus - Research Paper Example Since its earliest explanation many of years ago, diabetes has remained a chronic progressive illness (Rubino et al. 1). The illness now affects over 200 million individuals globally, and diabetes-associated death is anticipated to go up by 50% in the next decade. The occurrence of the disease, from 1994 to 2004, among elderly individuals, went up by 63% (Rubino et al. 1). Diabetes is, at the moment, ranked as the 6th leading cause of death in the United States (Rubino et al. 1). In many other nations, it ranks far higher due to their extremely poor techniques of dealing with the illness. In the United States Prospective Diabetes Study, people with diabetes were treated with insulin, diet modification, sulfonylurea and metformin in order to ease the illness (Sloan 194). Even with the innovative pharmacotherapies (drug therapies), diabetic patients still develop micro- and macro-vascular effects. Diabetes is associated with increased stroke- and cardiac-related deaths, blindness and k idney failure, as well as 69% of the non-trauma lower-limb amputations (Sloan 194). The illness as a preoperative risk element confers much better morbidity than a previous myocardial infarction in cardiac surgery. Whereas this numbers indicate to us that this disease will be a global health concern of the next generation, its actual pathophysiology is yet to be defined. Alternative treatments targeting diverse models of this disease need vigilant and responsible assessment. A tremendous body of proof now showcases that surgery for type 1 diabetes can achieve complete illness remission, an objective almost unprecedented in recent diabetes care (Perry 22; Montenero 98; Fox 1550). Data gathered over many years of surgery showcases the success and durability of diabetes management gained after the surgery. Metabolic surgery is, at the moment, emerging as a field devoted to the development of surgical processes, particularly intended to treat diabetes. However, what about non-surgical treatment? Type 1 is treated non-surgically with insulin replacement – normally through an insulin pump or insulin injection, along with dietary management, usually including vigilant monitoring of blood glucos e levels with the use of glucose meters and carbohydrate tracking (Fox 1545). This paper will center on whether one should consider surgical or non-surgical treatment for diabetes. It will discuss the many surgical and non-surgical options currently available, as well as those under study. Evidence In the early 80’s, medical surgeons identified that a lot of patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) who had undergone pancreas transplant and islet cell transplant for treatment of the disease experienced a complete diabetes remission (Fox 1546). This remission confirmed to be durable. Since then, numerous studies have come up confirming the efficiency of pancreas transplant and islet cell transplant in treating T1D. In the meta-analysis of 30,000 diabetic patients, Cremieux (590) found diabetes resolution in 97.6 percent of patients experiencing biliopancreatic change or duodenal exchange, 84.9 percent resolution after islet cell transplant, as well as 47.9 percent diet management. I n an American diabetes study, a probable case-matched study compared diabetic patients undergoing surgery (pancreas or islet cell) with medication or non-surgical procedures (Rubino et al. 1). The data was gathered from 4,000 diabetic patients, who were tracked for over two years and others tracked for over a decade. The occurrence of diabetes at two and 10 years was overwhelmingly lower in the group that underwent surgery compared to the individuals who went for conventional treatment (Rubino et al. 1). Diabetes reduction rates as two and 10 years were 80 percent and 30 percent respectively following surgery and 20 percent and 11 percent with medical therapy respectively. A lot of people have argued that the decade remission rate is much lower than expected due to the high percentage rate of

Analysis of Class, Status and Power Essay Example for Free

Analysis of Class, Status and Power Essay Karl Marx and Max Weber are among the famous theorist who formed the pillar of the study of society. This come about in their contradict theories the conflict and protestant ethic respectively. It is understood that these two people lived in different eras, Marx being exposed to conditions and perspectives of the eighteen century whilst Weber dwells in the nineteen century where noticeable changes on the fast emergence of innovative technology, and a path where modernity take its toll (the industrial revolution) (Tui, 2014). The theories of Marx and Weber were applicable in their times with regards to the type, functions and interactions existing within society. As follows is the discussion of their main arguments on the contrary of their perspectives on the basis of society. According to Karl Marx, society of all hitherto is the result of social stratification and conflict. The organized economic activities and mode of production, determined the division of labor which causes the formation of two classes, the bourgeoisies and the proletariat (the rich and the poor) showing opposition (antagonistic interaction). The proletariat (working class) controlled the modes of production while the bourgeois owned the means of production (Brym Lie, 2007). The conflict theory by Marx, argued that a position in a productive system is the basis of peoples conflict. The rich attained privilege of accessing revenue and surplus whilst the poor did not resist, but remained subordinate. The bourgeois also maintained their interest by suppressing and maintaining the subordination of the proletariat (Worsley, et al., 1970). A revolution originated on the fact that men realized how capitalism deprives them of self-independence and freedom. Capitalism also increased inequality within society and enhanced further subordination of the working class. Marx believed that in the future there will be classless societies ( (Worsley, et al., 1970)). Therefore modern society is the result of the breakdown of the feudal system; the proletariats were being absorbed by the bourgeois to work in their factory, hence bringing so ciety to the end of communism (Tui, 2014). But also a classless society still experienced antagonistic, a trend of dependency between these two class, that is the bourgeois depend on the manual labor and productivity of the proletariat and vice versa, for their stability and co-existence. In contrast, Weber, in his theory, the protestant ethics, believed in hard work, personal achievement and motivations. It focuses on  individual actions and most importantly an individual’s knowledge and skills to bring about transformation of new society. In other words people consciously making decision at important times or junctures (Tui, 2014). People whom abided to protestant ethics and maintain the spirit of capitalism succeeded economically. He emphasized the importance of the growth of the service sector of the economy, with its many non-manual workers and professionals. He also articulated that capitalist development was not just caused by favorable economic conditions but religious beliefs also plays an important role (aw areness to the society of values and virtues: right and wrong) of facilitating great capitalist growth. He argued that Marx, fails to see that people in society can improve their condition in terms of education, technology to attain a better standard of living. Weber, also showed the flaws of the Conflict theory whereby he said that a revolution is not necessarily the solution to dissatisfaction and grievances. There are medium of resolving matters peacefully whereby the government is required to improve such conditions (Weber, 2005). In light of the above arguments, there is also controversy and contradiction in their discussion of class (created by eligibility and accessing to product of economy), status (social honor or professional position) and power (the ability and opportunity to control) (Worsley, et al., 1970). According to Marx, in society, there are two distinct classes: the bourgeois and the proletariat. These classes were inherited and there is nothing that can be done apart from revolution that can make the differences. The revolution would result in a classless society w here the state come to own the means of production. According to Marx, whoever has a class will have a complimentary standard of status and power. For him class is the originator of all kinds of status in society and source of power. He also stated that traditional status ascribed was used to acquire power such as the members of the noble family were born and entitled to rule. This class of nobles subsequently has high social status (Brym Lie, 2007). Weber strongly argued that class, status and power were three totally different categories. Status and power were achieved through ones commitment and successes. It favored the concept of meritocracy which allows people to rise or fall to a position that matches their talent and efforts ( (Brym Lie, 2007)). All of these were independent of each other. It is not necessary of an individual  or group of people in high class to have a corresponding level(s) of status and power. In general, class is directly related to how people have access to part of the society’s resources. Class should be related to your ability to buy power or your market position (Tui, 2014). Such as a proletariat can become a very important figure in government just because of his/her qualification, oratory skills and achievement. For example a Chief Executive Officer (CEO), commissioner of police, captain. These people worked their way like every proletariat from scratch and because of their ambition and hard work they are able to become successful, even though they do not have a royal or ruling background After having compared the two theories of Karl Marx and Max Weber, the latter theory of protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism by Max Weber is considered the best and useful theory to understand and explain the dynamics of my local society. Kiribati society is an example of an egalitarian society whereby people are equal and have the same rights and opportunities. The decision making process and access to government’s resources and all opportunities are carried out following established processes and procedures. Everyone is given a chance to talk for themselves or by a representative (Teitiniman, 1993). As mentioned earlier, access to opportunities are open to everyone such as position in government and non-government organization through advertisement. Eligible candidates announced and a screening test is conducted to screen out best candidates. It takes one’s effort, hardship and commitment towards professional development in order to improve life conditioning, status and attainment of power for example people acquiring scholarship for higher qualification and to qualify a higher post with high salary in the government institution (Itaia, 1979). According to Koae (1993) and agreed by Macdonald (2001) there are existing mediums of solving any grievance and dissatisfaction. These are put up in writing to the concerned department and or are taken up to court. Communities’ views and perspectives are considered as a means of improvement to policing strategies such as that adopted by the Kiribati Police Services. Elections of leaders are conducted on the basis of the public vote towards candidates (Brechtefeld, 1993). As Weber highlighted, class, status and power are achieved which is correspondingly true of my Kiribati society.  Peoples’ hard work irrespective of religious beliefs and traditional social cl ass and status, have equal and equitable access to opportunities which determine social and economic standings in my society. Bibliography Brechtefeld, N., 1993. The Electoral System. In: H. V. Trease, ed. Atoll Politics. Christchurch: Macmillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies, pp. 43, 44, 45. Brym, R. J. Lie, J., 2007. Sociology Your Compass for a New World. third ed. California: Thomson Wadsworth. Itaia, M., 1979. Rebirth Te Mauri, Te Raoi, ao Te Tabomoa. In: KIRIBATI Aspects of History. Suva: Institutes of Pacific Studies, The University of the South Pacific, pp. 123,124. Koae, T., 1993. Corrupt and Illegal Electoral Practices. In: H. V. Trease, ed. Atoll Politics. Christchurch: Macmillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies, pp. 105-110. Macdonald, B., 2001. Cinderellas of the Empire. Suva: Institute of Pacific Studies, The University of the South Pacific. Teitiniman, T., 1993. Serving the People. In: H. V. Trease, ed. Atoll Politics. Christchurch: Macmillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies, pp. 343, 344, 345. Tui, R., 2014. Social Structures in Modern/Contemporary Societies. Suva: s.n. Weber, M., 2005. The Protestant Ethic and The Spirit of Capitalism. New York: Taylor Francis e-Library,. Worsley, P. et al., 1970. INTRODUCING SOCIOLOGY. 1 ed. Victoria: Penguin Education.

E-Procurement and Competitive Advantage

E-Procurement and Competitive Advantage 1.0 Introduction The Internet plays an important role as it is revolutionizing the way in which business is conducted around the world. In new millennium with the emergence of electronic system, organizations are strained to shift their operation from traditional way to e-business had lead clear increase in global competition which threaten existing businesses and modernize business practices. Apart from that, technology is consider an integrate part of any business as technology can contribute to economic growth, increases productivity and quality of products as well as increases competitive advantages of industrial sectors. Besides, the developing of technology is in an increasing pace and dramatically changes business models in business sector. In such competitive environment resulted from globalization, firms must create more dynamic strategy over their competitor to survive in the business sector. Due to competition from various companies has increased as advancements in technology; it has broken down the traditional barriers to entry the market. Therefore, at the ever changing world, procurement process has been transformed into strategic resources. The use of new technology in procurement has provided substantial benefits. However, some organizations are exploiting competitive advantage through mergers, acquisitions, supply and distribution channel imptovements (Hamel and Prahalad 1994), as cited in Longenecker and Ariss (2002). 2.0 Research Objective To determine that whether e-procurement can achieve competitive advantage To investigate whether total quality management can achieve competitive advantage To examining whether implementation of e-procurement in total quality management can help to achieve further competitive advantage. 3.0 Research Questions Does e-procurement results in competitive advantage? Does total quality management results in competitive advantage? Does implementation of e-procurement in total quality management can help to achieve further competitive advantage? 4.0 Hypotheses E-Procurement can result in competitive advantage. Total quality management can result in competitive advantage. Implementation of e-procurement in total quality management can provide further competitive advantage. Literature Review 5.0 E-Procurement and Competitive Advantage 5.1 Conceptualization of E-Procurement Nowadays, the evolution of e-procurement is becoming more successively and interested on a global scale. According to Min and Galle (2003), e-procurement is defined as business-to-business purchasing practice that utilizes electronic commerce to identify potential sources of supply, to purchase goods and services, to transfer payment, and to interact with suppliers (as cited in Pearcy and Giunipero 2008, p.26). Besides that, electronic procurement consists of e-Maintenance Repair Operate (MRO), web-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), e-sourcing, e-tendering, e-auctioning, e-exchanges and e-informing (Min and Galle 2001; Knudsen 2003; Walker and Harland 2008). Apart from that, an Aberdeen Group (2001) found that e-procurement technologies are divided into 2 categories: direct procurement and indirect procurement (cited in Angeles and Nath 2007). Direct procurement is the purchase of high volume raw materials that used in the manufacturing process of a finished product (Harrigan et al. 2008). Whereas indirect procurement is the purchase of maintenance, materials and operation goods that are not directly involved in the production process such as office supplies, personal computers and advertising (Bof and Previtali 2007). Apart from that, procurement process involves a complex series of events which allows a firm to more from the basic need to reaching a final purchase decision through technical specification and potential supplier evaluation (Robinson et al. 1967, cited in Osmonbekov et al. 2002). Hence, many firms in diverse industries adopt the strategy of e-procurement and focus on restructuring the entire order-to-delivery process rath er than specific task in order to improve the efficiency of purchasing or supply management function as well as reduce operation costs of organization. 5.2 Conceptualization of Competitive Advantage The achievement of sustainable competitive advantage has long been the goal of companies and organizations. However, due to the rapid change in the global environment, researchers from various backgrounds have come up with their own different perspectives to identify definition of competitive advantage. In traditional industry, the importance of industry structure and market position plays significant roles to achieve competitive advantage (Porter 1980, cited in Ma 1999; Passemard and Kleiner 2000). According to Pfeffer and Vega (1991), the conceptualization of competitive advantage can be described as organizational practice, resource and asset that used to improve an organizations competitive position in the marketplace (as cited in Longenecker and Ariss 2002). Porter (1985) further description on competitive advantage grows out of the firms unique ability in creating superior customer value (as cited in Ma 2002, p.525). However, recently, Rindova and Fombrun (1999), state that competitive advantage is built on relationship and not an exchanges sustained social interactions in impressions which may affect future behaviors (cited in Tzokas and Saren 2004). 5.3 Competitive strategies in E-Procurement E-procurement has been seen to have the potential to play a pivotal role in a firms endeavours to create a competitive cost advantage that lasts for many years, hence grounding sustainable competitive advantage (Bloomberg et al. 2002, p. 14) cited in (Pires and Stanton 2005). In order to achieve sustainable competitive advantage, company should concern on the implementation of organizational business strategy in area of e-procurement. However, if the organization fails to apply a successful strategy, it will result in loss of business productivity and competitiveness which will undermine the long-term performance of the organization. Apart from that, a firm can enhance its market position and competitive strength by developing procurement strategy. Below are the competitive strategies which e-procurement can achieve competitive advantage: 5.3.1 Cost Reduction The reduction of purchasing cost has been recognized as one of the most significant purposes in procurement (Collis and Montgomery 1995), since the average manufacturing firm spends half of its sales revenue on the purchase of materials (cited in Ordanini and Rubera 2008). Furthermore, research shows that by using e-procurement can achieve cost saving which average reduction in purchase price of 17 per cent (Bartezzaghi and Ronchi 2005, cited as Harrigan et al. 2008). Additionally, by implementing e-procurement in an organization, it can help us to reduce purchase price of materials and costs that related to internal workflow of activities such as equipment and labour costs. With the use of electronic procurement, transactions can be proceed through HTML, EDI, e-mail and Internet which can eliminate the usage paper requisition for placing order, invoice as well as receipt (Sarkis et al. 2004). Additionally, Companies using e-procurement have reported savings up to 42% in purchasing t ransaction cost associated with less paperwork, which translates into fewer mistakes and more efficient purchasing process (Davila et al. 2002). 5.3.2 Efficiency Maximization E-procurement can improve the efficiency of the process which order fulfillment time can shortened up to 80 per cent (Minahan 2001, cited in Harrigan et al. 2008) as well as reduced the inventory levels (Min and Galle 2003). Thus, e-procurement has impact on the purchasing cycle time and delivery time. In order to achieve high quality performance, mostly organizations has seen the benefits of applying new technologies in its manufacturing processes because it can manufacture in a high volume production without any concerns in regards to cost. The investment in advanced equipment has enabled the company to achieve a high level of process capability that could not achieve by manual processes. Due to there are many repetitive and complicated tasks that machines can do which human being cannot do it. According to Bof and Previtali (2007), electronic procurement can accelerated the flow of important information between buyers and suppliers as well as elimination of transaction errors by transform the way of purchasing raw material from traditional methods to online. Currently, the use of internet serve as a foundation of data flow for strategic manufacturing purpose in e-procurement such as using barcodes in firms to manage the raw material. As the workflow automatically routes information through the purchasing process without re-keying all the date, user can use it easily and with a minimal error. According to Smith and Correa (2005), they stated that by using e-business can lead to highly accurate information gathering though proper database via internet and it enable to indentify each product moving throughout supply chain. Apart from that, the information that recorded in the system are stored in a real-time fashion, therefore, users can acquire an accurate tracking in supply chain compared with the traditional manual methods. Therefore the adoption of e-procurement will improve efficiency that can strengthen competitive advantage in firms and industries. In general, firms should adopt the e-procurement strategies to achieve competitive advantage among the competitors. For instance, firms need to learn the management practices which are reduce production costs by elimination waste and achieving higher efficiency to capture the attention of the suppliers. 6.0 Total Quality Management and Competitive Advantage 6.1 Conceptualization of Total Quality Management (TQM) Since 1980s, TQM has been regarded as one of the competitive strategies for firm to improve their competitive advantage and has widely implemented throughout the world (Kuei et al. 2001; Brah et al. 2002; Rad 2006). Besides that, TQM has been widely regarded as rational structure and scientific tools for the improvement of quality as well as improve competitive advantage (Sun 2000; Li et al. 2002). There is no universally agreed definition on TQM as many researchers have their own beliefs and prejudices towards the term (Martinez-Lorente 1998; Sun 2000; Psychogios and Priporas 2007; KlefsjÃÆ' ¶ et al. 2008). However, the definition provided by researchers is more like vague descriptions than definitions and contain terms as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ a philosophy, which à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ an approach for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (KlefsjÃÆ' ¶ et al. 2008). As just an example, Rad (2006) defines TQM as a philosophy which provides a template for success to an organization through customer satisfaction. On the other hand, in recent years, a tendency toward agreement on a system perspective of TQM has been suggested. One such definition is from Hellsten and KlefsjÃÆ' ¶ (2000), who define TQM as a continuously evolving management system consisting of core values, methodologies and tools, the aim of which is to increase external and internal customer satisfaction with a reduced amount of resources (cited in KlefsjÃÆ' ¶ et al. 2008, p. 121). The definition provided by Hellsten and KlefsjÃÆ' ¶ (2000) is stated clearly as it consists of three components which are interdependent and supporting each of the values to sustaining a culture based on a kernel of core values. 6.2 Competitive strategies in TQM In order to compete with the increasingly of competitors, it has forced organizations find ways to reduce costs while maintaining customer satisfaction and making continuous improvement to the products. Since 1980, TQM has been recognized as a way to achieve goal by establishing a quality-based culture for improving customer satisfaction. Apart from that, TQM has been widely recognized as one of the most competitive weapon, if implemented successfully, provides a competitive advantage for organizations through quality (Martins and Toledo 2000; Beskese and Cebeci 2001; Prajogo and Sohal 2004). In order to achieve the goals of organization, they should implementing successful TQM strategies. 6.2.1 Quality Focus Currently, TQM have become a key focus for organizations as it considers as tools for improvement quality. According to Mandel et al. (2000), he noted that the implication of quality as a factor of international planning. Quality improvement refers to the efforts on increasing effectiveness and efficiency in order to satisfy customer expectations (Talha 2004). Organizations must plan the strategic to implement quality improvement planning into their business plan. If the organization has emphasized quality as an important strategic, this will leads to higher sales and operating profits as well as improve the competitive positions of the firm as the customers will pay more to quality products that satisfy them. Also, nowadays customers are become more sophisticated, continuous improvement in product quality is essential to satisfy their needs. Therefore, once the organizations satisfy the requirements of customer, items are producing according to specifications, it will minimizing defective items and the cost of rework (Khan 2003). Yet, TQM will increase the organizations competitive advantage because they concentrated on the improvements to offer superior quality of products to its customers (Martins and Toledo 2000). Hence, quality improvement is essential for the very survival of a company to achieve competitive advantage. 6.2.2 Customer Focus Customers have their expectations towards an organization which they patronize. If the expectations are not met, they will get dissatisfied and stop patronizing the organization; hence customer satisfaction is one of the important elements to attain competitive advantage. According to Bergman and Klefsjo (2003), satisfied customer are loyal customers and loyal customers are profitable customers and profitable customers make lucrative businesses and happy owners (cited in Bergquist et al. 2005, p. 312). However, customers are usually irrational. In order to develop their potential quality, companies need to develop the strategies on customer focus. Generally, customer focus means as the activities of the companies are intended to benefit the customer but the customer is seen from the companies own perspective (Lagrosen 2001, p.350). Organizations should make an effort to gain information regarding the needs and wants of the customer rather than always focus on the companies view of product and its features. 6.2.3 Process Focus The goal of process management is to zeroing down the defective and failures rate as well as reduce process variation by building quality into the production process which can reduced cost. According to Ou et al. (n.d.), inferior quality manufacturing process will increase high scrap rate and rework rate which will lead to use more resource to produce qualified products. Therefore, firms should concern on process management to avoid the occurrences of unnecessary costs such as waste costs by finding quality problems immediately. TQM implementation can directly increasing firms quality performance by improving manufacturing process, has indirect effects on increasing customer satisfaction as well as the reputation of firms. By reducing unnecessary waste cost such as waste of production, avoidable process and waste of defects, firms can put into practice of lean production. According to Womack and Jones (1996), lean production has its origin in philosophy of achieving improvements in most economical ways with special focus on reducing waste (cited in Dahlgaard and Dahlgaard-Park 2006, p. 264). For instance, firm can designing the production process and giving orders and instructions to the workers. The improvement of manufacturing efficiency will improve customers satisfaction and eventually the companys financial performance. 6.3 Adoption of e-Procurement in Total Quality Management to achieve Competitive Advantage There is no clearly evidence shows that the adoption of e-procurement in total quality management can achieve further competitive advantage, however it can be shows that the ways of both e-procurement and TQM are almost using same strategies to achieve competitive advantage. 6.3.1 Business-to-business (B2B) E-procurement E-procurement is defined as the use of information technologies to facilitate business-to-business (B2B) purchase transactions for materials and services (Wu et al. 2007, cited in Walker and Harland 2008). With the development of B2B e-procurement, the traditional method of business are replaced by the electronically transactions. Besides that, BCB e-procurement can help TQM in achieving competitive advantage. 6.3.1.1 Cost Minimization Application of e-procurement practices into total quality management is beneficial as it can improve facilitation of efficient and cost-effective trading routes to conduct business. According to Harrigan et al. (2008), e-procurement can reduce purchasing costs by amending the way raw materials are purchasing from traditional methods to online ordering. With the implementation of e-procurement, transactions can be proceed via e-mail, electronic data interchange, fax which can directly eliminate paper usage such as invoice, receipts as well as paper catalogs. However, Turban et al. (2006) argues that systematic procurement transactions tend to waste time on non-value-adding activities such as handling errors in ordering and invoicing, data entry which often time consuming and costly to trace (cited in Aboelmaged 2009). 6.3.1.2 Efficiency Maximization Apart from the cost reductions arising from transactional, e-procurement can also contribute to efficient purchasing process in many ways. As earlier mention, TQM have been emphasized that its main focus is improving products quality, therefore it may be less paying attention on giving maximize efficiency. Consequently, by implementation e-procurement in TQM can achieve maximum efficiency. It is obvious that e-procurement greatly helps improve communication with suppliers providing access to the information 24 hours a day. Therefore, the system availability can makes it easier for businesses to receive order from the supplier and summit an order. By providing greater access, firms can reduce the purchasing cycle time and improved performance between buyers and suppliers. According to Choudhury et al. (1998), repetition in the procurement system will increase the efficiency and result in a higher level of electronic integration between buyers and suppliers (cited in Walker and Harland 2008). 6.3.1.3 Methods of B2B e-procurement Previously, most of the organizations are using traditional modes of communication such as phone, fax, memo and face-to-face. However, through evolution of the technologies, organizations can improve the speed in business transactions through the utilization of the B2B e-procurement methods: 1. Reverse Auctions. A reverse e-auction is a form of the electronic data communication which provides a forum wherein several suppliers compete online for contracts offered by a customer (Tassabehji et al. 2006). Due to no human intervention along with computerized accessible format, it can help both parties gain form less paperwork, shorted cycle times for circulation requesters for quotations, faster responses to potential bidders and reduced transaction costs (Plouffe et al. 2001). 2. Lean procurement. Lean procurement generally imply on small quantity of products purchased frequently from few suppliers, who deliver the items in exact quantities at the specific time and place (Wilson and Roy 2009). It also further noted that lean procurement unlike the traditional purchasing system such as TQM where the price considerations, suppliers are evaluated through the reliability, behaviors, performance as well as price. Based on the traditional purchasing system, the relationship between buyers and suppliers are based on the long-term trust and commitment. 3. Internet. Through internet, companies have ability to speed up the business transactions through a faster way as it allows companies to pay invoices and payment electronically. Besides that, the use of internet through videoconferencing provides a visual contract which allows companies communicate with the suppliers (Samaniego 2006). 7.0 Theoretical Framework Competitive Advantage E-Procurement Total Quality Management 8.0 Research Methods 8.1 Explanatory My research is about the ways of e-procurement and total quality management in achieving competitive advantage of organizations. In the literature review, I am explaining the relationship between e-procurement and competitive advantage as well as total quality management and competitive advantage; therefore my research is an explanatory study. According to Saunders et al. (2009), explanatory study is known as causal study which is emphasizes on explaining the relationships between variables. 8.2 Research Philosophy The research philosophy that I adopt in the literature review is epistemology. Epistemology concerns what constitutes acceptable knowledge in a field of study (Saunders et al, 2009, p. 112). This research will be mostly exploring the strategies of how e-procurement and TQM to achieve competitive advantage. Besides that, although many successful cases that shows that e-procurement and TQM can provide competitive advantage to an organization. However, I may not be able to know that e-procurement and TQM can achieve competitive advantage. Therefore, I a going to do this research to find out how e-procurement and TQM can help an organization achieve competitive advantage. Furthermore, the fact that it is an explanatory study also makes this research epistemology. Both the cause and the effect are known under an explanatory effect. In this research, I will acts as a positivist. A positivist will prefer working with an observable social reality and that the end products of such research can be law-like generalizations similar to those produced by the physical and natural scientists (Remenyi et al., 1998, p. 32, as cited in Saunders et al., 2009, p. 113). Therefore, I will only based on the quantifiable observations which I can see, hear and touch to develop hypotheses. 8.3 Approach Deductive approach is an approach of working from more general idea to a more specific idea and also known as waterfall approach and therefore, conclusion follows logically from the premises (Gill Johnson, 2010). My research will utilize deductive approach since the theory and hypothesis have been created at the starting of the research. Besides that, the research itself is an observation to further confirm the relationship between e-procurement, TQM and competitive advantage as well as allows me to test and confirm my hypothesis. 8.4 Method The research measurements used in this study will be mixture of qualitative and quantitative factors. A quantitative research aims at determining the relationship between one thing and another (Denzin Lincon, 2005). A qualitative research is used to address research questions that require explanation or understanding of social phenomena and their contexts (Ritchie and Lewis, 2003). In this research, I will more focus on quantitative research instead of qualitative research. By using quantitative research, I can find out the following data: 1. The percentage of organizations which are successfully achieving competitive advantage after adoption of either e-procurement, TQM, or both. 2. The percentage of organizations which adopt neither e-procurement nor TQM, but have achieved competitive advantage. Besides that, I plan to apply structured questionnaire and interview which form by structured questions and answers. Structured interviews use questionnaires based on standardized set of questions which can be result more accurate and credible data. Although quantitative research is the main focus in this research, qualitative research is still under consideration towards these issues. Under qualitative methods, I will be using semi-structured and in-depth questionnaire and interview. A semi-structured questionnaire or interview is where the questions are structured but the answers are left unstructured. However, in-depth questionnaire or interview is where both the questions and answers are unstructured. Therefore, my research choice is Mixed Methods whereby both quantitative and qualitative methods are being considered. 8.5 Strategies The strategies that can be implemented in conducting this research are survey. Survey is a research strategy that involves the structured collection of data from a sizeable population (Saunders et al., 2009). The reason for choosing survey as my strategy is survey allows me to collect the quantitative data which I can analyze quantitatively using statistics. By using survey, I can easily calculate the percentage of increase in profits after implementing e-procurement and TQM. Through the survey, questionnaire will be given. Structured questionnaires bring convenience for me when carrying out the percentage calculation. Another strategy that can be implemented is archival research which makes use of administrative records and documents as the principal source of data (Saunders et al., 2009). In this research, archival research can used to identify the companies in the past that have been successful in achieving e-procurement and TQM and changing effects that has led to their success. 8.6 Sampling Sampling techniques are used to define the target population by keeping with the objectives of the study. Hence, sampling methods are techniques for collecting sub-volumes from larger volume of target population (Groves et al., 2010). Sample selection will be done on a random basis to avoid selection bias. In this research, the sampling method that will be use is stratified random sampling. Stratified random sampling is a modification of random sampling in which you divide the population into two or more relevant strata based on one or a number of attributes (Saunders et al., 2009, p. 228). I will divide all companies in Malaysia into 4 groups which are companies that implement e-procurement, companies that implement TQM, companies that implement both e-procurement and TQM as well as companies that do not implement both e-procurement and TQM. In this case, companies will be selected using random sampling. Besides that, 50 questionnaires will be distributed randomly to every company. 8.7 Time Horizon In terms of time horizon, my research will be considered as cross-sectional study. Cross-sectional study refers to data gathered only once over a period of time. Since this research must complete within 1 month, I am not be able to analyze the development of e-procurement in future. Therefore, my research will more focus on the e-procurement of e-procurement nowadays and explain the relationship between every variable. Besides that, this research typically deals with historical data, hence the necessity to get results frequently is comparatively low as the industry conditions will not change rapidly. 8.8 Possible Result For the hypothesis of this research to be true, it must be supported by the fact that adoption of e-procurement in TQM can provide further competitive advantage. Besides that, the results of the survey as well as archival research should show that the companies that implement neither e-procurement nor TQM can achieve competitive advantage. However, if the result of this research shows that the adoption of e-procurement in TQM does not achieve competitive advantage then the hypothesis of the research will be proven false. 9.0 Conclusion Based on reading of literature, I can suggest that hypothesis of this research paper is accepted. It clearly shows that e-procurement and TQM on business can achieve and sustaining competitive advantage in business world nowadays. The development of e-procurement does give a huge impact on business management will continuing technological revolution provides a number of challenges for firms today. An efficient e-procurement should implement competitive strategies to achieve competitive advantage as well as enhance market position in market. Besides that, a further competitive advantage can be gained by implementing e-procurement in TQM. Hence, it can be concluded that adoption of both e-procurement and TQM can bring organization to achieve further competitive advantage. However, in practice, TQM benefits are not easy to achieve. Many organizations and companies have difficulties in implementing TQM due to lack of consistent senior management commitment, superficial knowledge of imple menters of TQM as well as lack of strategic plan for change. In other words, TQM can have a dramatic impact on an organization. (4258 words) 10.0 References Aberdeen Group. (2001). Best Practices in e-Procurement: The Abridged Report. Aberdeen Group, Boston, MA. Cited in Angeles, R. and Nath, R. (2007). Business-to-business e-procurement: success factors and challenges to implementation. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal. Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 104-115. Aboelmaged, M.G. (2009). Predicting e-procurement adoption in a developing country. Industrial Management and Data Systems. Vol. 110, No. 3, pp. 392-414. Angeles, R. and Nath, R. (2007). Business-to-business e-procurement: success factors and challenges to implementation. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal. Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 104-115. Bartezzaghi, E. and Ronchi, S. (2005). E-sourcing in a buyer-operator-seller perspective: benefits and criticalities. Production Planning and Control. Vol. 16, No. 4, pp. 405-412. Cited in Harrigan, P.O., Boyd, M.M., Ramsey, E. and Ibbotson, P. (2008). The development of e-procurement within the ICT manufacturing industry in Ireland. Management Decision. Vol. 46, No. 3, pp. 481-500. Bergman, B. and KlefsjÃÆ' ¶, B. (2003). Quality from Customer Needs to Customer Satisfaction. (2nd edn). Studentlitteratur, Lund. Cited in Bergquist, B., Fredriksson, M. and Svensson, M. (2005). TQM: terrific quality marvel or tragic quality malpractice?. The TQM Magazine. Vol. 17, No. 4, pp. 309-321. Bergquist, B., Fredriksson, M. and Svensson, M. (2005). TQM: terrific quality marvel or tragic quality malpractice?. The TQM Magazine. Vol. 17, No. 4, pp. 309-321. Beskese, A. and Cebeci, U. (2001). Total quality management and ISO 9000 applications in Turkey. The TQM Magazine. Vol. 13, No. 1, pp. 69-73. Bloomberg, D., S. LeMay and J. Hanna. (2002). Logistics. Prentice Hall. Cited in Pires, G.D. and Stanton, J. (2005). A research framework for the electronic procurement adoption process: Drawing from Australian evidence. Journal of Global Business and Technology. Vol. 1, No. 2, pp. 12-20. Bof, F. and Previtali, P. (2007). Organisational Pre-Conditions for e-Procurement in Governments: the Italian Experience in Public Health Care Sector. The Electronic Journal of e-Government. Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 1-10. Brah, S.A., Tee, S.S.L. and Rao, B.M. (2002). Relationship between TQM and performance of Singapore companies. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management. Vol. 19, No. 4, pp. 356-379. Choudhury, V., Hartzel, K. and Kosynski, B. (1998). Uses and consequences of electronic markets: an empirical investigation in the aircraft

Impact of Technology on Warfare :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Impact of Technology on Warfare Technology changes every day, sometimes the events in our life shape what new technology we use. You would have to be living in a hole not know that we are in conflict with Iraq, and this event has changed digital warfare. The U.S. army has come up with a digital warfare system called Army Battle Command System. This system can scan digital street maps, monitor enemy positions, zoom in on individual buildings through satellite imagery and download instructions from commanders. The Army Battle Command System has been but in to a hand full of Humvees in Iraq. This technology was originally designed for battlefield combat which was tanks and helicopters, but now they have found that it is much more useful for hunting rebel leaders and trailing street fighters. This new technology helps the commanding officers know what is going on by that they can be back at there command base and watch raids unfold on large screens and watch real time footage. This allows them to know what exactly what is taking place. The technology has allowed commanders to plan complicated raids and organize battle gear and hundreds of soldiers within two hours. At that speed , they say, it played an important part in capturing Saddam Hussein and other fugitives. One important element to the system is that each military vehicle is tracked by satellite and it appears as a moving blue icon on a computer screen inside these Humvees that have been equipped with the Army Battle Command System, this is important to the Humvee driver because now he is able to know where all tanks and other army vehicles are located and this is said to have helped reduce the amount of friendly fire incidents. Back before they had this technology the drivers would have to radio back to the command base and inform them on there location, â€Å"No longer do you have guys on a map putting little stickers where things are at, now it is digitally done. It allows commanders to move more rapidly, more decisively, more violently.† [1] A helpful feature that the Army Battle Command System has is a touch screen monitor which allows the officer to place icons on the map and have it appear on screens throughout the system which makes them able to show enemy position, possible ambush locations, fugitive hide outs and locations of newly found roadside bombs.

Determination of Factors Contributing to Success Essay

These factors will be uncovered by nalyzing the internal and external factors influencing strategic alliances and the phases through which these alliances evolve. In order to provide this research study with a practical element two case studies within the airline industry have been incorporated, namely the Swissair Qualiflyer Alliance and Star Alliance. These case studies represent a successful and an unsuccessful alliance, which are analyzed on a basis of the provided literature study, in this case the phases through which these evaluation of the case studies numerous supportive results were identified, ontributing toward establishing determinant factors, which emphasize the importance of a successful implementation of the different phases, however limitations affect the reliability of this study, due to the lack of evidence found in various different phases. Keywords: strategic alliances, internal and external factors, strategic alliance phases Introduction In past years a visible increase in the amount of strategic alliances, concerning firms with varying economic objectives, was observed (Das, Teng 2000). Strategic alliances are the â€Å"relatively enduring inter-firm cooperative arrangements, involving flows and inkages that utilize resources and/or governance structures from autonomous organizations, for the Joint accomplishment of individual goals linked to the corporate mission of each sponsoring firm† (Parkhe 1991, p. ). The amount of strategic alliances has recently doubled, predicting additional raise in the future (Booz, Allen, Hamilton 1997). Especially alliances in the form of non-equity based, which are defined as two or more firms developing a contractual-relationship in order to establish competitive advantage by combining resources and capabilities (Globerman 007), have increased in importance which is visible in non equity alliances accounting for 80 per cent (Hagedoorn 1996). Strategic alliances provide firms with the opportunity to recognize synergies through combining operations, such as in research and development, manufacturing etc (Aaker 1995; Addler 1966). The growth of strategic alliances is related to growing competition and globalization (Das, Teng 2000). This is in alignment with Doz and Hamels (1998) view which states that globalization as well as changes in economic activities is a consequence for the growth in strategic alliances, which is visible in various different industries Hagedoorn 1993). The primary reasons for the growth of the number of alliances is 1) the ability of cost savings in executing operations 2) the ability to access particular markets 3) the reducing of financial and political risk in addition to cheapest labor and production costs (Wheelen, Hungar 2000). A strategic alliance by definition is a hybrid organizational form which Jensen and Meckling (1991) refer to as a network organization. Harbison and Pekar (1998) highlight numerous common characteristics visible within strategic alliances, namely a required commitment of at least ten years, he connection of the partners is based on equity or on shared capabilities, a complementary relationship based on a shared strategy, increasing companies’ value in the market place, the pressuring of competitors and the willingness of sharing and leveraging core capabilities. Nevertheless, strategic alliances have noticeable high instability rates (Das, Teng 2000); furthermore, according to Kalmbach and Roussel (1999) the failure rates are approximately as high as 70 per cent. Studies conducted by Das and Teng (2000) reportedly state that encountered problems are witnessed in he first two years of two thirds of all alliances. This study is going to provide a more in-depth analysis on the factors that are necessary for determining success in all strategic alliances. Starting with an analysis of strategic alliances based on the as to which extent these factors play a crucial role in the determination of success rate of strategic alliances. In order to incorporate a practical view on the strategic alliances, this study will additionally implement two case studies to the analysis. Conceptual Model [pic] This conceptual model starts the literature study on strategic alliances as a central concept. From this central concept, emphasis is drawn on internal and external factors influencing strategic alliances, as well as on the different phases through which alliance evolve. Additionally, strategic alliances lead to either successful or unsuccessful alliances. Based on the research from Bronder and Pritzl (1992), Hoffmann and Schlosser (2001), Waddock (1989) and Wolhstetter, Smith and Malloy (2005), a framework of seven phases is established. Within these seven phases the most important activities and processes are analyzed, including reasoning behind strategic alliances, potential intensions for forming strategic alliances, partner election, external factors influencing the design of the strategic alliance, negotiation methods, followed by the structuring of the alliance. Furthermore, implementation and management of the strategic alliance is examined. Finally, the last two phases concerning the evaluation of the formation of strategic alliances and the termination of the partnership are discussed. Resulting from this literature study are two outcomes, namely a successful implementation of the phases and an unsuccessful implementation. In order to apply a practical element to this thesis, two case studies ill be analyzed, those of Qualiflyer, which turned out to be an unsuccessful alliance and Star Alliance, which was able to incorporate a success strategic alliance in the airline industry. After analyzing the cases the findings compared to the literature analysis, will hopefully correlate to each other and the determinants that influence more success in alliances can be established. Problem Statement Based on past literature research studys the outcomes of implementing strategic alliances as a change strategy in organizations is unfavorable, especially when looking at the failure rates. Nevertheless, the adoption of strategic alliances is a customary implemented firm strategy (Gulati 1998), as a means of securing their competitive position. Much research is conducted in order to provide more guidance in determining factors that achieve sustainable strategic alliances, therefore in this thesis the main research question is; What factors determine the success of strategic alliances? This research question will be addressed by the help of analyzing and answering these various sub-questions; Why do firms choose strategic alliances as a change process? What are the potential ntentions of a strategic alliance? activities and processes occur in which phase? Preview of the organization of the thesis This report begins by indicating the problem that strategic alliances are a favorable organizational change strategy in the business world today, however the failure rate is extremely high. Secondly, by applying literature analysis the main determinants influencing more success in strategic alliances will be uncovered, which will be coupled to the case study part of the thesis where the determinants will be compared to the specific cases. Finally, the thesis will conclude on the part if the eterminants uncovered in the literature study correlate to the findings in the case study. Methodology and Research Design In this thesis the methodology contained two specific approaches, including a literature study as well as evaluating two case studies. Firstly, the literature analysis was conducted; with as primary focus an in-depth analysis of academic articles. The findings of the literature study are compared to two case studies, those of the Qualiflyer alliance and Star Alliance. These two cases were chosen because they represent the different outcomes an alliance can hold, namely the successful mplementation the alliance strategy at Star Alliance and the unsuccessful outcome of an alliance strategy of the Qualiflyer alliance. In addition, even though these two examples vary substantially in size, which provides difficulty when comparing the two alliances, they both started off at reasonably the same size; therefore this thesis incorporated these two examples anyway. This evaluation will be conducted by means of desk research, exploring the different implementations of this strategy. The time frame of the case studies is from the first phase up until the last phase, through hich they evolved, in order to identify dependent unsuccessful and successful aspects. The significance of implementing case studies in this thesis is relating the findings from the literature analysis to real life cases of both a successful alliances as well as a non-successful alliance. Furthermore, comparing if the determinants of success found in the literature analysis correlate with the factors observed in the cases. Internal versus External factors Influencing Strategic Alliances Our internal tensions perspective framework (Figure 2, Appendices) of strategic alliances comprises three airs of competing forces-namely, cooperation versus competition, rigidity versus flexibility, and short-term versus long-term orientations (Das, Teng 2000). Competition is defined as pursuing one’s own interest at the expense of others, while cooperation is the pursuit of mutual interests and common benefits in alliances. This tension of cooperation versus competition is most salient in selecting alliance partners, the first of three major stages in the alliance making process, along with structuring and managing an alliance (Das, Teng 1997). In conclusion, the stability and success of trategic alliances will be inversely related to the difference between the cooperation level and the competition level. Rigidity refers to the characteristics of mutual to adapt, unencumbered by rigid arrangements. The dominance of either flexibility or rigidity may change the status quo and trigger the evolution of a new structure, which leads to unsuccessful alliances. Therefore, the stability of strategic alliances will be inversely related to the difference between the rigidity level and the flexibility level. Short-term orientation views strategic alliances as transitional in nature, with a emand for quick and tangible results, whereas long-term orientation regards alliances as at least semi permanent entities, so that more patience and commitment are exercised. A strategy that reflects only one temporal orientation is not compatible with the foundation for a sustainable strategic alliance, in other words the stability of strategic alliances will be inversely related to the difference between the short-term orientation and the long-term orientation. Furthermore, the three internal pairs of contradictory forces are interrelated within an evolving system, resulting in the ollowing propositions, namely that the levels of rigidity and cooperation will be positively related when the partners have a short-term orientation in strategic alliances. However, a negative relatedness at a high level of rigidity, cooperation and rigidity (Das, Teng 2000). will be negatively related when the partners have a long- term orientation in strategic alliances (Das, Teng 2000). According to Das and Teng (2000) the contradictions and tensions in these force-pairs may lead to an overthrow of the status quo namely, the strategic alliance. Strategic alliances can nevertheless e sustained and successful if a careful balance between these competing forces can be maintained. According to Todeva and Knoke (2005) external factors influence alliance formation, due to differing economic condition and organizational frameworks in partnering countries; these can include legal requirements, price controls, distribution channels and contract enforcement. Furthermore, these regulative state activities comprehend the freedom when firms are forming alliances. Moreover, the formation of an alliance necessitates the authorization of national governments. Additionally, of influence to the formation of alliances is the omplicated collection of relations visible with firms, such as business associations, local governments and elite universities. On an industrial note alliances are influenced on an interflrm basis by direct impacts, where the decision on which activities to internalize is based on severity of competition within the industry and the organization of ad hoc product markets, in the challenge for increased market share, the cooperation for specific advantages and the process of internationalization (Todeva, Knoke 2005) . The partner under consideration for the formation of an alliance is in a certain sense an external factor. Firms are susceptible in the case of partnering with a dominant firm (Pennings 1994), due to technical and economic rationales. Thus, technology is a specific part of the process to establishing organizational boundaries as well as intrinsic structures. Of importance to alliances is obtaining research and development advantages, which to certain extent differs across industries on terms of expenses and the sources provided by the government (Todeva, Knoke 2005). Every alliance design commences with negotiations, thereafter the phase of structuring the alliance in which various aspects are aligned, such as he objectives of both parties, organizational structures, functional operations and cultures (Ring, van de Ven 1994). The distinguishing of phases through which strategic alliances evolve plays an essential role in the development toward successful alliances, which according to Bronder and Pritzl (1992) evolves through the three stages, which are categorized as strategic decision, confguration of strategic alliance and partner selection. Where Bronder and Pritzl terminate their research on the establishment of phases other researchers continue in identifying essential phases, for the reason that partner election as final phase represents an incomplete evolution of strategic alliances. With regard to the research conducted by Hoffmann and Schlosser (2001), the identification of strategic alliance phases resulted in a five phase path through which strategic alliances evolve, namely strategic analysis and decision to cooperate, search for a partner, designing the partnership, implementation and management of the partnership and finally termination. When comparing both Bronder and Pritzls (1992) and Hoffman and Schlossers (2001) phases, a comparison is visible in the primary hases of strategic alliances, namely the strategic analysis and decision to cooperate (Hoffmann, Schlosser 2001) which corresponds with the strategic decision phase from Bronder and Pritzl (1992). Furthermore, the partner selection phase is visible in both frameworks on strategic alliance phase. The main difference between the two studies is the more detailed approach from Hoffmann and Schlosser (2001) also distinguishing phases after the partner selection process. Finally, a study building on Waddocks (1989) work, which suggests that strategic alliances progress through hree phases, which are identified as initiation, establishment and maturity, Wohlstetter, Smith and Malloy (2005) consistently debated that the strategic alliances process is organized into three similar phases namely initiation, operations and evaluation. When comparing these views with the earlier stated reasoning on strategic alliance phases merely a fguration is enabled as to which phases from Bronder and Pritzl (1992) and Hoffmann and Schlosser (2001) are in comparison with Wohlstetters et al (2005) view and could be placed within their views, for example the artner selection phase distinguished the above stated views is probably placed within the initiation phase identified by Wohlstetter et al. (2005). In order to provide this thesis with an in-depth view on the phases through which strategic alliances evolve a combination of the three above stated views is implemented. Phase 1: Strategic Decision According to Bronder and Pritzl (1992) a clarification of the firms’ position is to be analyzed, refer ably because this is identified as the first direction toward alliance formation. Pumpin (1987), states that the evaluation of the actual situation of the firm s identified by exploring its mission, possible values and core competencies. Additionally, the firm identifies the reasoning behind incorporating an alliance strategy. According to Eisenhardt and Schoonhoven (1996), Harrigan (1985), Link and Bauer (1989), Pisano (1991) and Teece (1992) technological change faced by firms is related to the favorability toward flexible organizational forms like alliances. Additionally, Ciborra (1991) and Oster (1992) state that high-tech industries, in which learning and flexibility are key characteristics, will preferably choose alliances, lexibility, firms favorably adopt a merger and acquisition strategy. The flexibility of strategic alliances is suitable as organizational structure due to the fast expiring of new knowledge and the lengthy learning time from partners (Eisenhardt, Schoonhoven, 1996; Hagedoorn 1993). Furthermore, these flexible organizational structures appear more effectively in uncertain environmental situations when adjusting to changes (Lawrence, Lorsch 1967; Pffeffer, Salancik 1978). In continuation of Powells (1996) view, Hagedoorn and Duysters (2002) predict that strategic alliance xperience positively contribute to choosing alliances as instrument for obtaining external innovative capabilities. This view is aligned with that of Kogut et al. (1992) and Gulati (1993) who accentuate the relationship between actual alliance formation and past alliances, however emphasize on a more social basis. Therefore, the formation of strategic alliances is dependent on both strategic as well as social factors. According to Eisenhardt and Schoonhoven (1996), an extension of the resource-based view provides a basis for examining the relationship through which alliances form by means of strategic and social resources. This research study contributed numerous outcomes on strategic alliances to existing literature, namely that increasingly challenging market conditions and Jeopardous organizational strategies result into an increase of alliance formations as an organizational change process. Additionally, of importance to the rate of formation of alliances are managerial characteristics, visible when large, experienced teams were implemented through previous employers, the rates of alliances increased (Eisenhardt, Schoonhoven 1996). In conclusion of their research Eisenhardt and Schoonhoven 1996) state that in cases of either a vulnerable strategic situations or a strong social situation the likelihood of the formation of strategic alliances increase. Phase 2: Initiation Phase The initiation phase is characterized by informal structures and communication channels as the critical issue is the development and understanding of the purpose for strategic alliances (Waddock 1989). According to Hitt et al. 1997), the potential intentions to be realized behind entering into strategic alliances are categorized into three market types 1) namely markets characterized by slow cycle, which adopt trategic alliances for original intentions such as the gaining of access to restricted markets, establishing franchises in a new market and maintaining market stability 2) in markets characterized by a standard cycle amongst the intentions able to be achieved are the gaining of market power and access to complementary resources, over coming trade barriers, gaining knowledge and learning about new business techniques 3) in the final market, the fast cycle, the achievable goals are the speeding up of the entry of new products and services in addition to new markets, maintaining he market leadership position, sharing the risky Research and Development expenses and overcoming uncertainty. Furthermore, several internal conditions drive the initiation phase including, a champion taking responsibility, complementary needs and assets, compatible goals and trust. According to Waddock (1989), the main responsibility of the champion is the guidance of the organization through the initiation phase, especially visible in the process of partner selection. Stated in the initiation phase is essential for identifying needs in addition to the process of partner selection. Complementary needs and assets appear in various different forms, however is one of the main reasons for partnering (Oliver 1990; Robertson 1998). Additionally, the main goal of partnering is achieving compatible goals among the partners, which might not have been achieved otherwise (Austin 2000; Das, Teng 1998; Kanter 1994; Oliver 1990; Robertson 1998; Spillett 1999). Finally, the initiation phase stands no chance without trust, which is mainly established through existing networks (Austin, 2000; Waddock 1989; Waide 1999), within these networks similar interests are the main characteristic. Phase 3: Partner Selection The purpose behind strategic alliance partnering is to initiate and prolong a long- term partnership, which enables more effective competition with others firms which are positioned outside the partnership Carillo 1988; Walker, Poppo 1991). The crucial decision toward the correct partner selection is the primary focus after pursuing this alliance strategy (Hitt, Tyler, Hardee, Park 1995). According to Koot (1988) the selecting of a partner is a complex process however crucial to the success of an alliance. In the partner selection process perspectives of both resource-based and organizational earning provide an explanation as to why certain partners are selected (Barkema, Bell, Pennings 1996). In explanation, firms own certain resource endowments (Barney 1991) however, in order to obtain a competitive position in a specific market supplementary resources are necessary (Hitt, Nixon, Clifford, Coyne 1999), which is the main objective for engaging in strategic alliances. Hitt et al. (2000) argues that of importance to the partner selection process is the firms’ embeddedness in both emerging markets and developed markets. Furthermore, the access to necessary esources for leveraging as well as the obtaining of capabilities for learning are primary reasons for the selection of partners. Table 1 in the Appendices, state the concluding outcomes on the selection of partners by Hitt et al. (2000), which explains the fundamental elements of the process toward partner selection. Eisenhardt and Schoonhoven (1996) and Dacin and Olivers’ (1997) view state that legitimacy enhancements are an additional intention for establishing alliances, therefore the partner selection process is focused on those providing strong intangible assets, for example strong reputations. According to Bronder and Pritzl (1992) critical to the partner selection process is the establishment of fundamental, strategic and cultural fit. This fundamental fit is achieved if a win-win situation for both parties is established and potential value is increased. The strategic fit is realized when the alliance involves partners with harmony of the business plans. Finally, the cultural fit is an essential success factor for partner selection, which is accomplished after acceptance of cultural differences among the partners. Phase 4: Designing the Partnership Niederkofler (1991) argues that the negotiation process must essentially interpret learly understandable resources and interests of the partners involved, in order for the creation of strategic and organizational fit to be achieved, which will direct the accomplished through open and detailed communication, circumventing hidden agendas of any sort. The consequence of this open communication translates into a coherent attitude of sincerity toward the different partners, which demands trust. In addition to strategic fit, the negotiation process also initiates a solid basis for the enforcement of an operational fit within the partnership, which can be viewed in Figure 1 of the Appendices. An important aspect of the negotiation process is the creation of flexibility, which is increased through contract provisions in addition to developing and prolonging of trust. The process of conquering complexity in operations embarks with the communication of the discovered complexity, followed by a tracking and solving of this difficulty, which results in the avoidance of any operational unalignments. The flexibility within the partnering arrangement, in addition to trust, permits renegotiation processes within the partnership; however a coherent basis must be accomplished (Niederkofler 1991). The success of alliances is highly dependent on a competent and effective alignment, therefore of importance is the designing of the partnership, thus the structure implemented. This structure is in need of a fine constructed collection of strategy, procedures and management views, which can be viewed as the internal alignment (Miles, Snow 1994). In the process of obtaining internal alignment interests as well as environmental aspects must be balanced between the partners, enabling a profitable situation (Douma, Bilderbeek, Idenburg, Looise 2000). Additionally, their framework, Figure 3, Appendices, stress the act that the five features must sufficiently be aligned to prevent failure. One of the features, namely strategic fit, is established when expected advantages and possible risks are weighed against that of the individual interests in the alliance. Various driver of strategic fit can be identified, starting with a shared vision. Further conditions necessary for strategic fit are compatibility of strategies (Brouthers, Brouthers, Wilkinson 1993), strategic importance (Doz 1988), acceptance into the market and mutual dependency. In addition to strategic fit, organizational fit is a ecessity, however due to the differences in many aspects, such as market position, organizational structure and views, management style, this is a complex task. By clarifying these differences an understanding between partners is achieved. Numerous drivers toward organizational fit are identified, namely as stated above the addressing of organizational differences (Doz 1988) furthermore, essential drivers are facilitating strategic and organizational flexibility, minimal complexity to enhance manageability (Killing 1988), efficient management control, enhancing long-term tability by investigating possible strategic conflicts and finally, the achievement of the strategic objective. Of influence, however to lesser extent are the three remaining features in the framework, which are human, operational and cultural fit. Human fit is particularly of importance in alliances processes (Boersma 1999) and according to Lewis (1990) the cultural fit is specifically an issue among employers and employees, which translates to their functioning in for example boardrooms. Finally, operational fit, also relates to the functioning of the alliance and is often susceptible to various ontingencies, therefore must be aligned. Research and Development activities have gradually evolved since the 1980s (Peterson, 1991). Creamer (1976) and Pearce (1989) identified three primary types of Research and Development activities, namely basic purpose is an understanding of the inherent and fundamental scientific development, however disregarding commercial applications. Furthermore, applied research employs knowledge conceived from the basic research to certain dimensions such as technical problems or related commercial technology aspects. In conclusion, basic research generates new facts and theories which are thereafter roven through applied research. These proven facts are generated into products and processes in the development stadium. The intention of development activities is the configuration of applied research contributions into commercially feasible products, processes and technologies Oansen 1995; Jones, Davis 2000). Phase 5: Implementation and Management of the Partnership The role of the management of strategic alliances is valuable for the progression of the alliance toward a successful outcome, however it is complex to manage (Koza, Lewin 2000). An important aspect in serving this complexity is the acquiring of nowledge from past engaging in alliances, which provides meaningful know-how to be leveraged (Kale, Dyer, Singh 2001). The framework of the four C’s of learning and leveraging alliance know how provides a tool for obtaining valuable knowledge. The four components in the framework are, capture, codify, communicate and create, and coach (Kale, Dyer, Singh 2001), also visible in Figure 4, Appendices. Capture refers to managements’ role of accessing and obtaining of valuable alliance insights and past experiences. To codify past experiences and practices contributes to the accomplishing of alliance specific needs. In order to have a common thread through the organization on these past knowledge practices, communication is essential in sharing experiences. Additionally, the creation of networks within the alliance facilitates the distribution of these valuable experiences and knowledge. Intrinsically executed coaching and education programs increase the ability to obtain alliance skills. An additional benefit from coaching is the establishment of informal social networks, which provides assistance in key situations. Furthermore, networks are critical to the development of opportunities, the assessing of concepts and obtaining esources in order to construct the new partnership (Aldrich, Zimmer 1986). The incorporation of social networks within a firm improves communication between partners, which in turn results in improved decision making processes (Gulati 1993). Various intentions for the implementation of networks can be identified, one specific is the preserving of advantages (Lorenzoni, Baden- Fuller 1995). According to Madhaven, Koka and Prescott (1998) the initiation of inter-organizational networks is created by exogenous factors, which could include competition background and specific industrial activities. Building on this theory, Gulati et al. (1997) argues that the initiation of these inter-organizational networks is dependent on two aspects, namely exogenous resource dependencies, which achieve motivation of the cooperation and an â€Å"endogenous embeddedness† dynamic, which in turn familiarizes toward partner selection. According to Stinchcombe (1990), in flows of network information meaningful views are discovered,