Definition of Human Resource Planning Literature review

Definition of Human Resource Planning - Literature review Example Few organizations implement this important process due to its time and cost implications, complexity, and inadequate support. More so, organizations often fall back on the notion that H.R.P. is an isolated process but instead it requires integrated support with its strategic business plan along with its HR activities. Therefore HR personnel does not understand the H.R.P. process. Smith et al., (2004) alludes to the notion that there are inconsistencies with support between management along with hurdles resulting in strategies to be last priority and instead focus on short term goals. Instead, the adopted short term focus f daily resource tracking is more cost-effective and simple requiring less management support as opposed to H.R.P. H.R.P. is not a process in itself alone. Succession planning is one key planning area that is taken into account to identify and track high potential employees which are suitably qualified within the organization to compete for key managerial positions in the future (De Cieri et al., 2003). Succession planning is, therefore, a subset procedure f H.R.P. ...Since succession planning involves subjecting a pool f candidates to fast track development programs, the main H.R.P. objective here is to maintain this skills pool particularly in times labor shortages in order to give the company a competitive edge. There is hence a direct relationship between H.R.P., development and succession planning, in which all f these are proactive in nature, focusing on contributing to organizational performance and productivity by minimizing disruption in filling positions which are critical during times f labor shortages (Walker, 1998). Development is, therefore,     essence in succession and H.R.P. When considering succession planning, employee development is an integral strategic process which enables knowledge, skills, and behavior to be acquired to meet job changes and client requirements in the future as opposed to training which is immediate current job improvements (De Cieri et al., 2003). Development is, therefore,     relevance since succession planning involves future orientated fast track development programs. Development programs are aimed at offsetting potential future shortages labors and hence the low skills base. Without this skills base, organizations lose their competitive advantage if development programs are not employed.

1900s Immigration Cruelty Essay Example for Free

1900s Immigration Cruelty Essay For immigrants, life was as bad in America as it was in their homeland. Immigrants faced equally rough conditions no matter where they were. Life was terribly unfair to them. When life got as bad as it did for immigrants, as anyone would, they wanted to distance themselves from the problems. America seemed like the most ideal place to go. Unfortunately, life was no better there than it had been. Even in a prosperous land, immigrants still faced racism and rough conditions. Their lives were full of obstacles. Immigrants emigrated for a variety of reasons, some political, others to escape war, or (in the case of the Irish) famine, but they all emigrated for one common reason; their lives were terrible. People would not leave their family and entire lives behind unless things had gotten so bad that they absolutely had to in order to survive. â€Å"We must look at what immigration to America involves. To the new arrivals, the change is excruciating. Learning a new language and dealing with strange customs make the first years of life in the new land painful The economic system of the United States is a mighty engine of persuasion. It motivates people to do what otherwise they never would †. John Lacs references to this in his essay From Enemies to Neighbors, which explains the troubles with immigrantion. (Lacs) Immigrants faced horrifying conditions, some were near death from lack of food, others were being hunted, or some had just ran out of money; but, they all decided they needed to leave. In the early 1900s, the Irish were in the middle of a famine, Eastern Europeans were facing economic issues, and Jews from all over Europe were being persecuted. Greedy American business owners thought up a way to capitalize on their misfortune, fliers and pamphlets were shipped to troubled countries all over the world by the thousands, these advertised a glorious, prosperous life in America, immigrants were offered large amounts of cheap land. The streets of America were said to be paved with gold. Sounds like a great opportunity to leave behind a hard life, right? (Eyewitness) (Lipford, Timmer, Stephenson, Kwan) Wrong. Life in America was just as bad. The journey over was horrific, immigrants spent months in dank, rat invested ships; but, immigrants hought, â€Å"life will be better when we arrive, right? †. Wrong again, an Italian immigrant said, â€Å"I came to America because I heard the streets were paved with gold. When I got here, I [learned] three things. First, the streets [were not] paved with gold; second, they [were not] paved at all; third, I was expected to pave them†. Upon arriving in America, immigrants were forced to live in shacks, basements, or the horrendous tenements. Good work was difficult to find, when any work was found it was generally backbreaking work for mere pennies a day. A Chinese rail worker said, â€Å"Two extra hours a day, sixty extra hours a month for four dollars. A human body [can not] work that way. † Immigrants lived in slums and ate slop for food. In short, life was not good. At least in their homeland they were not ostracized and ridiculed for the way they dressed, spoke, and acted, as they were in America. Many immigrants were considered worse, if not as bad as the slaves that had been brought to America in its early years. Many immigrants who were Caucasian were called â€Å"white niggers†. When immigrants came to America, they were stripped of their rights. They could not vote, become citizens, or even live in certain neighborhoods or states. This hate towards immigrants was legally sanctioned. This was a shock to many, they had been used to being allowed these simple liberties and now had none of them. (Lipford, Timmer, Stephenson, Kwan) The immigrants of the early 1900s moved for a reason, in their homeland life was not kind to them. Once they arrived in America, they learned something; life was generally just as bad here as it had been back in their native country. Granted, life did improved slightly; because, life was difficult for different reasons. In their homelands, the threat of death was immediate, some did not know whether they would be alive one day, or dead the next. Dictators, enemies or mother nature were trying to kill them. In America, even though there was no famine or dictators, they still had other races, or racist clans and prejudice Americans making life a difficult one. Immigrants already had enough trouble immersing themselves in a completely different culture with completely different customs, without racists tormenting them everywhere they went. Food was abundant, usually poor quality slop, if you could pay for it. Immigrants were notorious to work incredibly hard for mere scraps. This injustice still occurs, even today in uch a modernized age, the work of poor immigrants is exploited so factory owners and businessmen can make a quick buck. Immigrants were nearly killed at home, just to take an awful journey to a prejudice country where businessmen and con artists swindled them out of the little money they had. Willa Cathers book My Antonia, describes this perfectly. In her book, a poor immigrant family arrives in america, only to pay ridiculous prices for simple things, swindling these poor trusting people out of their tiny savings (My Antonia). Immigrants usually lived in places generally worse than before, and had about the same amount of food. Life was equally repulsive no matter where these poor souls went. (Eyewitness) In the long run, life was really no better than it had previously been. Even though life had been rough for different reasons, the level of difficultly was very close to the same. The life of an immigrant was not a good one, it may have improved slightly, but in a long term point of view, things were no better. Regardless of whether immigrants were in America, or living in their original countries, their lives did not improve. No matter where they were, life was hard.

Separation of Powers Essays -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Successful governments in history gained their acclaim by trial and error. The government in the United States is no different. In fact, the structure of the government in the United States has been through many changes: the American government was once feeble and operated with weak alliances between states; however, the present government functions in perfect equilibrium with the separation of powers, the federal system, and regards to democratic ideals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After gaining independence from the British government, the United States wanted to refrain from the all-powerful central government and establish a weak central government where the powers to govern were given to the thirteen states. This form of government was formed with the Articles of Confederation. In this system, each state retained its sovereignty, freedom, and independence. The Articles of Confederation did, however, create a national government. It provided a national legislation, Congress. Congress consisted of delegates from the states, and each state had one vote in the legislation, with no regards to population. The central government had some powers to govern: it can conduct foreign relations, declare war or peace, maintain an army and navy, settle disputes among states, establish and maintain a postal service, and et cetera. These powers, however, were not given to Congress alone; Congress shared these powers with the states. So in many ways, Congr ...

The Evil of the Age :: Short Stories Papers

The Evil of the Age August 26th, 1871, was a humid, busy Saturday at the Hudson River Depot in New York City. Sweat and fatigue had crept in by mid-afternoon, when a porter suddenly smelled the stench of decaying flesh. Along the wooden platform lay hundreds of trunks and bags, piled haphazardly, ready for loading onto a Chicago-bound train. During rough handling in the baggage room, the lid of an ordinary, 2'8" by 18" packing trunk had cracked open, releasing the foul stench. The porter immediately called Robert Vandeward, the baggage-master. Vandeward deliberated for a moment, then moved the trunk, bringing it out of the public eye and into a nearby, open railway building. He wrenched loose the thin rope and flimsy lock that secured the lid, popping it open. First he saw an ordinary quilt. He tossed it aside, and stared at a soiled, bloodstained army blanket. The growing crowd of railway attendants leaned in. As he pulled away the blanket, the attendants gasped and covered their mouths. Doubled up in fetus position was the naked corpse of a young woman, her thin shoulders draped with thick, golden curls. Her body had been crushed into the trunk, her head forced over her breasts and her limbs drawn in tightly. Her mouth hung open in awkward distortion and her bright blue eyes stared blankly from their pale, discolored sockets. The pelvic area was bloody and decomposed. In minutes, railroad officials rushed up and down the tracks in search of the trunk's owner. Police questioned onlookers. Voices rose across the station, as a frenzied chaos spread. Young Alexander Potts, known as "Paddy," spoke up. The twelve-year-old boy helped passengers with their bags, making a living scrambling for spare change. He had helped check the trunk just a half-hour before. According to his testimony, an 18- or 19-year-old woman arrived at the station at 2:30 p.m. in a one-horse coupà ©. She wore a common calico dress and a thin shawl. She beckoned Paddy, saying "Sonny, can you tell me where the ticket office is?" When a truck arrived with the trunk, she paid him to help lift it. She urged him to be careful - it contained glass. She would never be found. Earlier that day, she'd hired the truckman to transport the trunk. Paddy had young, keen eyes. He remembered the small inscription on the truck's cab - "Tripp" - which became, for a brief time, a holy grail of sorts.

Homicide in Puerto Rico Essay

Crime is not a new phenomenon in any society and it is the duty of the various sections or branches of the criminal justice systems to ensure that their citizens are safe. Peace and harmony are among the major goals of any criminal justice system. Homicide which refers to the cessation of the life of a person by another could be in two major forms; the planned or well premeditated also termed as murder or due to some circumstances or at the spur of the moment or manslaughter. Various theories of crime have been coined to explain crime and delinquency in the society and they range from psychological, biological, conflict, social disorganization, social learning as well as feminist theories of crime. (Burke R, 2005). The psychological and biological theories tend to explain why specific individuals tend to commit crime and are inappropriate when explaining trends of crime in a given region. Feminist theories also tend to be inclined on the role of gender in explaining crime and may also not be appropriate in explaining increasing crime rates in general. The social conflict, social disorganization, social learning theories can be used to explain the homicide rates in Puerto Rico. An exploration of the various theories of crime places the criminal justice system in a better position to respond to crime in the society with improved prevention as well as sanctioning strategies. Strain theory The Merton’s theories of crime also known as the strain theories argue that deviance in the society is as a result of a discrepancy between the societal or culturally set aspirations and the legally acceptable means to realize them. In this regard, the society is blamed for the crime rates within its jurisdiction. Setting goals for her members and then failing to offer the appropriate or institutionally acceptable means to realize them leaves the members of the society in awkward or confused situation. A clear illustration is how Americans have been socialized to embrace the ‘American Dream’ where attaining wealth and material gain are highly venerated. However, the same society fails to resolve the constraints that would deter the Americans from realizing this goal forcing them to behave in various ways that may not be in line with the expectations of the society. The Merton strain theory can best be applied to explain crime rates in poverty stricken regions where out of frustrations the poor behave in different ways as they try to meet the expectations of the society. (Clinard M, 1967). According to Merton’s theory, some act as ‘conformists’ and accept the societal set goals and values as well as the institutionally acceptable means of realizing them. Such people pose no threat to the society in as far as crime and deviance is concerned. Others are viewed as ‘ritualists’ who reject the set goals by the society though they accept or rather respect the institutionally acceptable means of attaining the set goals. Others are deemed as ‘rebels’ who reject the societal goals and values as well as the legitimate means of realizing the said goals. These include the drug and alcohol addicts who result into this habit due to the realization that they cannot attain the societal set goals. To Merton, the ‘innovators’ are those who accept the societal or culturally set aspirations but reject the socially acceptable means of realizing these goals. Burke R. 2005). The innovators are a threat to the societal peace and harmony as they may embrace criminal approaches to attain the set goals. They include drug traffickers as well as prostitutes who indulge in these activities as a way of attaining wealth and material gain as has been stipulated in the ‘American Dream’. Modern strain theorists have expounded on Merton’s ideology to embrace other culturally set expectations for instance those affecting the young people that are not necessarily related to wealth or material gain. In other words, they adopt a social aspect in addition to the economic aspect coined by Merton. These include the desire for academic and sports excellence as well as fame. To them, one’s relations also plays a vital role in determining people’s behavior where those who interact with people favoring deviant behaviors will tend to be deviant while those favoring conformity will not be a security threat to the society. The general strain theory as coined by Akers can be used to explain why the young people engage in drugs and this could further be associated with crime such as homicides. Strain in this context is associated with depression, disappointment, fear and anger which trigger the desire to revenge against the society or which lead to the adoption of coping mechanisms that favor criminal behavior rather than conformity to the societal norms and values. Bearing in mind the poverty conditions in Puerto Rico this theory can be applied to explain the escalating homicide rates in the region. The argument here is that some people will engage in drug trafficking business as a way of accumulating wealth and material gain and can be viewed as ‘innovators’. On the other hand, some will engage in drug consumption and abuse due to their desperation or as an act of revenge against the society. Drug abuse will be rampant for the young people who are likely to engage in gangs favoring the use of drugs after dropping out of schools. Homicide rates will also be higher among the gang members and this is made easier by the higher availability of arms. (Peffer R, 2002). The social learning theory of crime The social learning theory of crime can also be used to explain crime and delinquency in society. Unlike the biological theories that blame criminal behavior on people’s biological makeup, this argues that crime is not an inherent behavior but a learnt behavior. This theory was coined by Ronald Akers and was an improvement of Sutherland’s differentiation theory where he argued that crime portrays learning as an interactive relationship whose success revolves around effective communication. It is thought to take place among people with intimate or close relationships such as family and friends. To learn crime, individuals learn the techniques used from those with the experience. They also get to learn of the motives or drives of committing the crimes they engage in. Another vital aspect learnt in this process is the rationalization as well as attitudes that favour crime. Sutherland suggests that the period or time of contact is quite influential in determining the associations made. Differential associations tend to vary in frequency, duration as well as their intensity. People learn the motives of crime from the definition of legal codes and behaviour is termed as favourable or unfavourable and that which is defined as favourable will be highly embraced while the unfavourable will unfavourable will be avoided. (Sutherland E and Cressey D, 1970). The belief of this theory is that people become delinquent due excess definitions that favour the violation of law rather than adherence to it. In other words meanings are awarded and respected and will vary with varying conditions. Akers developed Sutherland’s work by emphasizing on the role of imitation as well as reinforcement in learning crime. This theory can be used to explain the homicide rates in Puerto Rico where peer influence plays a role in encouraging drug use which in turn triggers indulgence in crime. Interactions with people who define drug use as a favorable act will see the young people engage in drugs to fit in. With time they will rationalize their behavior and after imitating the other gang members they will internalize the use of drugs. Such people are more likely to engage in crime to finance their habits and some may result to drug trafficking. People under the influence of drugs may have an impaired reasoning or judgment capacity and they may comfortably murder those they perceive as a threat to their existence in business. Others may kill in the process of committing other crimes such as robbery with the aim of financing their drug addiction. (Montalvo-Barbot A. , 1997). A limitation of this theory is that it ignores the probability of attracting conformity thus causing no threat to the society’s security. This theory also ignores the role of individual reasoning or decision making process. Some people are not taught to kill and others engage in drugs and eventually crime due to personal reasons rather than being influenced by peers and family members. The social learning theory of crime also fails to offer adequate explanations regarding the origin or crime but only discusses how crime is spread. Another critic is that it is single sided in the sense that it focuses on those who are non criminals. It also assumes that all people have an equal access to criminal and anti criminal behaviour. (Akers R, 2000).

Sexual-Orientation Discrimination essays

Sexual-Orientation Discrimination essays Most workplaces have written business policies that are discussed frequently and openly and are expected to be followed. But unfortunately with this specific issue that is not always the case. A workplace issue can only be an issue if there are rules and regulations specifically stating the difference between right and wrong pertaining directly to the issue. When it comes to discrimination due to sexual orientation most states have yet to pass laws making it illegal to not-hire or to fire on the basis of sexual preference. Even when a company has a clear policy on sexual orientation discrimination, in most cases it seems the rules are being broken unintentionally due to lack of education on the issue. One of the first steps that need to be taken is to change what is currently wrong in todays corporations policies. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation made an effort to take the first step in August of this year. They did what is called a Corporate Equality Index, which polls corporations on policies that affect their gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees, consumers, and investors (Human Rights Campaign, 1). This poll is done to help the general public so they can better decide where to shop, work, and invest their money according to the companys policies. The results were based on whether companies had actual written policies on sexual orientation, offered health insurance to their employees same-sex partners and whether they decline to engage in activities that would undermine the goal of equal rights (Human Rights Campaign, 2). The most interesting part of this poll is the final criteria for the companies sore: whether or not they were willing to change their policies if they did not score well. It was amazing to find out that 92 % of the companies rated either did include these criteria in their companies policies or were willing to change accordi...

Definition and Examples of Double Entendres

Definition and Examples of Double Entendres A double entendre is a  figure of speech in which a word or phrase can be understood in two ways, especially when one meaning is risquà ©. Also called innuendo. One of the most famous double entendres in American advertising is the slogan created by Shirley  Polykoff to promote Clairol hair coloring: Does she or doesnt she? The phrase double entendre  (from the French, now obsolete, for double meaning) is sometimes hyphenated and sometimes italicized. Examples and Observations Rebecca Kordecki . . . created little booties and a slide kit to use while performing moves that strengthen and lengthen the body. The name Booty Slide is a double entendre, she explains: We wear the booties on our feet, but the workout also lifts your booty.(Carlene Thomas-Bailey, American Fitness Crazes Hit the UK. The Guardian, Dec. 28, 2010)While many mento songs are about traditional folksong subjects, from political commentary to simple day-to-day life, a disproportionately large number of the songs are bawdy songs, often featuring poorly-veiled (and delightfully funny) sexual double-entendres. Popular mento songs include references to Big Bamboo, Juicy Tomatoes, Sweet Watermelon, and so on.(Megan Romer, Jamaican Mento Music 101, About.com World Music)Mrs. Slocombe: Before we go any further, Mr. Rumbold, Miss Brahms and I would like to complain about the state of our drawers. Theyre a positive disgrace.Mr. Rumbold: Your what, Mrs. Slocombe?Mrs. Slocombe: Our drawers. Theyre sti cking. And its always the same in damp weather.Mr. Rumbold: Really.Mrs. Slocombe: Miss Brahms could hardly shift hers at all just now.Mr. Lucas: No wonder she was late.Mrs. Slocombe: They sent a man who put beeswax on them, but that made them worse.Mr. Rumbold: Im not surprised.Miss Brahms: I think they need sandpapering.(Mollie Sugden, Nicholas Smith, Trevor Bannister, and Wendy Richard in Are You Being Served?) She touched his organ, and from that bright epoch, even it, the old companion of his happiest hours, incapable as he had thought of elevation, began a new and deified existence.(Charles Dickens, Martin Chuzzlewit, 1844)Nurse: God ye good morrow, gentlemen.Mercutio: God ye good den, fair gentlewoman.Nurse: Is it good den?Mercutio: ’Tis no less, I tell you; for the bawdy hand of the dial is now upon the prick of noon.Nurse: Out upon you! what a man are you!(William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act II, scene three)Its impossible to ignore the prominence of water as a primary motif in black spiritual culture- from the debilitated Gospel pleas to be washed white as snow to the rebellion-coded double entendre wade in the water, which referenced both baptism and escape routes from slavery.(William J. Cobb, To the Break of Dawn: A Freestyle on the Hip Hop Aesthetic.  NYU Press, 2006)Womens Use of the Double Entendre in 18th-Century EnglandOf all the improvements in polite conversa tion, I know of nothing that is half so entertaining and significant as the double entendre. It is a figure in rhetoric, which owes its birth, as well as its name, to our inventive neighbours the French; and is that happy art, by which persons of fashion may communicate the loosest ideas under the most innocent expressions. The ladies have adopted it for the best reason in the world: they have long since discovered, that the present fashionable display of their persons is by no means a sufficient hint to the men that they mean any thing more than to attract their admiration: the double entendre displays the mind in an equal degree, and tells us from what motives the lure of beauty is thrown out. . . .The double entendre is at present so much the taste of all genteel companies, that there is no possibility either of being polite or entertaining without it. That it is easily learnt is the happy advantage of it; for as it requires little more than a mind well stored with the most natur al ideas, every young lady of fifteen may be thoroughly instructed in the rudiments of it from her book of novels, or her waiting maid. But to be as knowing as her mamma in all the refinements of the art, she must keep the very best company, and frequently receive lessons in private from a male instructor.(Edward Moore, The Double Entendre. The World, No. 201, Thursday, Nov. 4, 1756) Pronunciation: DUB-el an-TAN-dra

Biography of Prince Albert, Husband of Queen Victoria

Biography of Prince Albert, Husband of Queen Victoria Prince Albert (August 26, 1819- December 13, 1861) was a German prince who married Britains Queen Victoria and helped spark an era of technological innovation as well as personal style. Albert initially was seen by the British as an interloper in British society, but his intelligence, interest in inventions, and capability in diplomatic affairs made him a respected figure. Albert, who eventually held the title prince consort, died in 1861 at age 42, leaving Victoria a widow whose trademark attire became the black of mourning. Fast Facts: Prince Albert Known For: Husband of Queen Victoria, statesmanAlso Known As: Francis Albert Augustus Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Saxe-Coburg-GothaBorn: August 26, 1819 in Rosenau, GermanyParents: Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-AltenburgDied: December 13, 1861 in Windsor,  Berkshire, EnglandEducation: University of BonnSpouse: Queen VictoriaChildren: Victoria Adelaide Mary, Albert Edward, Alice Maud Mary, Alfred Ernest Albert, Helena Augusta Victoria, Louise Caroline Alberta, Arthur William Patrick, Leopold George Duncan, Beatrice Mary VictoriaNotable Quote: I am only the husband, and not the master in the house. Early Life Albert was born on Aug. 26, 1819, in Rosenau, Germany. He was the second son of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and Luise Pauline Charlotte Friederike Auguste, Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, and was greatly influenced by his uncle Leopold, who became king of Belgium in 1831. As a teenager, Albert traveled to Britain and met Princess Victoria, who was his first cousin and nearly his age. They were friendly but Victoria was not impressed with the young Albert, who was shy and awkward. He attended the University of Bonn in Germany. The British were interested in finding a suitable husband for the young princess who was to ascend to the throne. British political tradition decreed that a monarch could not marry a commoner, and the British pool of appropriate candidates was small, so Victorias future husband would have to come from European royalty. A flirtation with Grand Duke Alexander Nikolaevich, heir to the Russian throne, was heartfelt and mutual, but marriage was deemed strategically, politically, and geographically impossible, so matchmakers looked elsewhere. Alberts relatives on the continent, including King Leopold of Belgium, essentially steered the young man toward becoming Victorias husband. In 1839, two years after Victoria became queen, Albert returned to England. She proposed marriage and he accepted. Marriage Queen Victoria married Albert on February 10, 1840, at St. James Palace in London. At first, the British public and the aristocracy thought little of Albert. While he was born of European royalty, his family was not wealthy or powerful. He was often portrayed as someone marrying for prestige or money. Albert was quite intelligent, however, and was devoted to helping his wife serve as monarch. Over time he became an indispensable aide to the queen, advising her on political and diplomatic affairs. Victoria and Albert had nine children, and by all accounts, their marriage was very happy. They loved being together, sometimes sketching or listening to music. The royal family was portrayed as the ideal family, and setting an example for the British public was considered a major part of their role. Albert also contributed to a tradition familiar to Americans. His German family brought trees into the house at Christmas, and he introduced that tradition to Britain. The Christmas tree at Windsor Castle created a fashion in Britain that was carried across the ocean. Career In their early years of marriage, Albert was frustrated that Victoria didnt assign him tasks that he felt were up to his abilities. He wrote to a friend that he was only the husband, not the master in the house. Albert busied himself with his interests in music and hunting, but he eventually became involved in serious matters of statesmanship. In 1848, when much of Europe was shaken by the revolutionary movement, Albert cautioned that the rights of working people had to be seriously considered. He was a progressive voice at a crucial time. Thanks to Alberts interest in technology, he was the main force behind the Great Exhibition of 1851, a grand show of science and inventions held at a stunning new edifice in London, the Crystal Palace. The exhibition, intended to showcase how society was being changed for the better by science and technology, was a great success. Throughout the 1850s, Albert was often deeply involved in the affairs of state. He was known for clashing with Lord Palmerston, a highly influential British politician who served as foreign minister and also prime minister. In the mid-1850s, when Albert cautioned against the Crimean War against Russia, some in Britain accused him of being pro-Russian. While Albert was influential, for the first 15 years of his marriage he did not receive a royal title from Parliament. Victoria was disturbed that her husbands rank was not clearly defined. In 1857, the official title of prince consort was finally bestowed upon Albert by Queen Victoria. Death In late 1861, Albert was stricken with typhoid fever, a serious disease but not usually a fatal one. His habit of working long hours may have weakened him, and he suffered greatly from the disease. Hopes for his recovery dimmed, and he died on Dec. 13, 1861. His death came as a shock to the British public, especially as he was only 42 years old. On his deathbed, Albert was involved in helping to lower tensions with the United States over an incident at sea. An American naval vessel had stopped a British ship, the Trent, and seized two emissaries from the Confederate government during the early stages of the American Civil War. Some in Britain took the American naval action as a grave insult and wanted to go to war with the U.S. Albert viewed the United States as a nation friendly to Britain and helped steer the British government from what surely would have been a pointless war. The death of her husband devastated Queen Victoria. Her grief seemed excessive even to people of her own time. Victoria lived as a widow for 40 years  and was always seen wearing black, which helped create her image as a sullen, remote figure. Indeed, the term Victorian often implies a seriousness that is in part due to Victorias image as someone in deep grief. Legacy There is no question that Victoria deeply loved Albert. After his death, he was honored by being entombed in an elaborate mausoleum at Frogmore House, not far from Windsor Castle. After her death, Victoria was entombed beside him. After his death, he became better known for his statesmanship and his service to Queen Victoria. The Royal Albert Hall in London was named in honor of Prince Albert, and his name is also affixed to Londons Victoria and Albert Museum. A bridge crossing the Thames, which Albert suggested building in 1860, is also named in his honor. Sources Albert, Prince Consort: British Prince. Encyclopedia Brittanica.Prince Albert Biography. Biography.comLove Before Prince Albert: Queen Victorias Suitors. History Extra.

Security Automation in oil and gas company Assignment

Security Automation in oil and gas company - Assignment Example In 2002 the National Research Council also emphasized the importance of research for systems that can guarantee security in the oil and gas industry (National Research Council 2002). This study would focus on the Security Automation systems used in the oil and gas industry, as these systems have been found to have a critical role in increasing security in the industry’s firms. I have been motivated to do research on this topic mostly because of the following reason: the security problems reported in oil and gas companies are many; the firms producing SA systems have tried to develop products that are effective in controlling the industry’s security risks. However, so far, the limitation of these risks has not been secured. I believe that this study could help the industry’s firms to locate effective security tools. Also, the study could help me to increase my knowledge on the needs and challenges of the firms operating in the oil and gas industry. My studies, so far, are related to computing; my involvement in a research project related to the practical use of computing systems would help me to become more competent in managing these systems in different operational environments. The topic of this study focus on a ‘researchable problem’ and not to a ‘personal problem’ as this view is based on the following facts: a) the security threats for the firms of oil and gas industry are many, b) most of these threats cannot be appropriately controlled due to the failures reported in the security systems used in the industry’s firms and c) the importance of this problem has been highlighted by organizations, as explained in the first section of this proposal, but also by academic researchers. In other words, the potential involvement of SA systems in the oil and gas industry is an issue related to the daily operations of all the industry’s firms; it is not an issue that affects an individual at personal level. The ‘Scientific method’ of research is

Summarized article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Summarized - Article Example These events are mentioned by the author as an anecdotal introduction to understanding the potential changes in international finance in the near future. This paper will offer a summary of the article highlighting the main ideas presented by the author (Forsyth). The author of this article describes how quantitative bond easing is likely to affect the interest rates in different regions. The author mentions the outstanding roles of the federal reserves in creating a balance of situations and eliminating concerns on the fear gauge. China, for example, has declared a lowered bank reserve requirement while the bank of England will follow suit soon. This will happen after America announces its trimming of monthly purchases of bonds. The author places emphasis on the critical role held by the US in the global financial scene. This is specifically because of the dollar, which has been used as a reserve for global currencies since the 1920s. In the past, there has been evidence that the US makes use of its â€Å"exorbitant† privileges and eventually exploits other nations. This is because the dollar still remains the center of global currency. It is both a reserve in store houses that serve other central banks and the primary currency used i n finance and trade internationally (Forsyth). The globe also relies on the dollar as the effective media when indulging I transactions and investments. The dollar has also been described as having made America’s banking and financial system very liquid and deep. Therefore, since only the US can produce the much needed dollars that control the global finances, it enjoys an exorbitant privilege. As the author outlines, there are the implications of such a privilege. An evident one is the fact that, the US can print dollars and use such in exchange for goods produced in other regions. The US can also indulge in cheap borrowing because borrowing is done in the currency it produces. Other

Managing Decision Making Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Managing Decision Making - Essay Example David Olsen is one person who had a visionary style of decision making through which he was able to accommodate the views of other workers with a friendly perspective and this contributed to him being liked by many employees. This style enhances transformational leadership (Mintz and DeRouen, 2010, p.47). This is as opposed to Sally Olsen who had a different perspective and a style for decision making which aimed at preserving the company regardless of the facts of the issues that other people could have. Her style of decision making may cause many people to avoid their participation in an organisation’s projects (Speier, Vessey and Valacich, 2003, p.63). Bella Murphy, Ben Simmonds and Archer Wilson are kind of managers that are using a motivator style of decision making; this is indicated by the way they respond to the different things they encounter in the organisation by ensuring that they listen carefully to the people who surround them and having their view and perspectives considered (Verma, 2009, p.37). Through their action, they are able to establish their decisions in a way that ensures that they include the perspectives of others as opposed to Gregory Jones, Madeline Roberts and Charles Morriss who remained resistant to change and never make any consultation. The decision making styles of the three prevented fast progression of the company in attainment of a reliable system of managing funds. Bella uses catalyst style as she motivated the site manager to give their views about â€Å"Trackit† and encouraged them to learn to use it. Ben Simmonds is a person that has indicate a flexible decision making style since he wa s able to decide on ways to assist different people that needed him. This style enables a leader in a management in an organisation to be productive in his or her delivery of services for he has many ways of responding to issues (Coscarelli, 2007, p. 23). In order to enhance participation

Research- managing small business Research Paper

- managing small business - Research Paper Example RAYZ is small company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, having business interests in digital marketing and social media. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the behaviour of small business with respect to established theories and principles, taking RAYZ as an example. In most of the developed countries such as the United States and United Kingdom, big companies or corporates contribute heavily to economic development whereas in developing countries such as India and China, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in streamlining economic progress. Small business or SME has different definitions in different countries. As the name indicates, small business or SME is nothing but a business in which the revenue generated and the number of employees working is below certain standards. These standards will be different in different countries. While the United States has not set any criteria for defining SMEs, the European Union defines Small enterprise as a company with fewer than 50 employees, and medium-sized enterprise as a company with fewer than 250 employees (Investopedia, 2015). Saudi Arabia is one of the most rapidly developing states in the Middle East at present. As in the case of India and China, SMEs contribute heavily to the development of the KSA. A lot of small business operates in the Kingdom by the locals as well as foreigners. RAYZ is one such small company, started in Riyadh 2012 by a young group of creative and ambitious individuals. Bandar Alwabil and Yazeed AlGhuraibi are the founders of RAYZ which is specialized in digital marketing and social media business. Rayan Alwabil is the Chief Executive Officer of the company while Yazeed AlGhuraibi is working as the Chief Operating Officer of the company at present. Around 30 employees work in various departments of RAYZ now (RAYZ, 2015). The

Development of Sukuk in the Middle East Research Paper

Development of Sukuk in the Middle East - Research Paper Example ure of Sukuk has been introduced and developed because the structure of payment of bond on the basis of western method is not allowed or permissible in Arabian countries. Sukuk establishes a relationship between the return and the cash flow from financing of the assets. The financing in case of Sukuk is applicable only in case of identifiable assets. The structure of Sukuk is developed in such a way that it provides adequate return to its investors without violating the rules and regulations of the Islamic law. There are varieties and different types of structure of Sukuk that is associated with the underlying asset. The most well known and familiar type of Sukuk is related to the partial ownership of the asset and it also includes the other types of bonds that is related or associated with the partial ownership of debt, business, project or investment. Sukuk can also be defined as the undivided shares that is related or associated with particular projects or special investment. The investor of Sukuk has common share that is related to the investment in the ownership of the asset but it does not represent or deals with the debt that is owed to the issuer of the instrument. During the period of classical reform of Islam the concept of Sukuk has derived from the word cheque which represents or signifies the document which resembles a contract or a right or obligation that is entered by the parties and it has been introduced complying with Shariah. The evidence resembles that Sukuk is used extensively during the Islamic period for transferring the financial obligations or liabilities that has originated from the trade and other commercial activities. The importance and the need or requirement for the use of Sukuk has increased gradually in the perspective of modern Islamic culture and it deals with the concept of monetization of the asset and it is commonly known as securitization of asset which is attained through the process of issuance of Sukuk. The potential

Research- managing small business Research Paper

- managing small business - Research Paper Example RAYZ is small company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, having business interests in digital marketing and social media. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the behaviour of small business with respect to established theories and principles, taking RAYZ as an example. In most of the developed countries such as the United States and United Kingdom, big companies or corporates contribute heavily to economic development whereas in developing countries such as India and China, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in streamlining economic progress. Small business or SME has different definitions in different countries. As the name indicates, small business or SME is nothing but a business in which the revenue generated and the number of employees working is below certain standards. These standards will be different in different countries. While the United States has not set any criteria for defining SMEs, the European Union defines Small enterprise as a company with fewer than 50 employees, and medium-sized enterprise as a company with fewer than 250 employees (Investopedia, 2015). Saudi Arabia is one of the most rapidly developing states in the Middle East at present. As in the case of India and China, SMEs contribute heavily to the development of the KSA. A lot of small business operates in the Kingdom by the locals as well as foreigners. RAYZ is one such small company, started in Riyadh 2012 by a young group of creative and ambitious individuals. Bandar Alwabil and Yazeed AlGhuraibi are the founders of RAYZ which is specialized in digital marketing and social media business. Rayan Alwabil is the Chief Executive Officer of the company while Yazeed AlGhuraibi is working as the Chief Operating Officer of the company at present. Around 30 employees work in various departments of RAYZ now (RAYZ, 2015). The

Risk Template Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Risk Template - Essay Example The subsequent analysis of the differences or variances and the action taken are a vital part of the control mechanism. III. Internal Risks. These risks have a great impact on the project and its success, but they can be easily eliminated and avoided. To achieve the task requires clear definition, good planning, clear roles and responsibilities, appropriate resources and regular reviews as the project proceeds. IV. Quality Risks. There is even evidence that, despite the formal utilization of quantified cost-benefit approaches, the practical implementation of safety and quality may be achieved by informal means. A new or changed design can be costly, as it may need new tools, or new layout of works and employees may have to be retrained (Crouhy et al 2000). Quality policy must be formulated in terms a designer can understand and act upon. V Resource Risks (Baseline schedule is closely connected with the efficiency levels which are driven by the normal productivity that can be expected from the type of person or equipment allocated to each activity, and the efficient allocation of the person or equipment is driven by the project schedule) Risk Low Probability Medium Probability High Probability High cost of raw materials in future (needs additional changes in design) X New (innovative) materials appeared in 3-4 years X VI Schedule Risks. Breakdown is not chronological and does not involve itself in worrying about what has to be done, it merely breaks down the objective of the project into some sensible and convenient groups (Frame, 2002). Also, it is important to note that within each department managers will find a hierarchy translated into a part of the project schedule structure. Risk Low Probab

Guidelines for Proposal Write Up and Presentation Essay Example for Free

Guidelines for Proposal Write Up and Presentation Essay The proposal should be about 2-4 pages. The basic content can be as follows. 1.1 Executive Summary An Executive Summary, which provides a brief (about two paragraphs) overview of the proposed project. This is probably the most important section of your proposal, because it provides a clearly defined problem and proposed solution procedure, and a description of the expected project deliverables. The Executive Summary is often the only section of your proposal that some readers will read; and must present all the relevant information as clearly and effectively as possible. It is often the last thing to be written. 1.2 Goal The specific objectives of project. What are the defining features and benefits of this product? 1.3 Background and Motivation What are the needs or problems that you are trying to address? Why do these needs (still) exist? Why are these problems worth solving? Who is the customer? Write 2-4 paragraphs. -What is the setting and history behind this project? -What is the problem to be addressed? -What are some current approaches to this problem? -Why is this problem worth solving or worth solving better? -How will this product be better than previous approaches? 1.4  System Architecture and Approach This section identifies the approach that the team will use to meet the project objectives. You should explain here your principal tasks, their  duration, their sequence and their particular purposes. Wherever possible, the methods and task to be performed should be outlined in logical sequence and explained in detail. Do not assume the reviewer will fill in the gaps in your logic. A common way of identifying project milestones and due dates is to use a graphic representation of the task relationships, such as a Gantt Chart (a bar chart showing timeliness for each principal task) or a PERT/CPM Chart (a network representation of the project that shows the sequential relationship between project activities). The Solution Procedure should also describe the relevant instrumentation and facilities required to complete the research or product development. The Solution Procedure should include a budget that estimates the anticipated RD costs over the life of the project. Wherever possible , provide sufficient commentary on the budget to facilitate 1.5 Deliverables Briefly list project deliverables. When you are done, what will you deliver to the customer? 1.6 Team Organization (Optional) This section provides a summary of the groups qualifications for the project. Identify key personnel and describe directly related education and experience. Also include each members responsibility for the duration of the project. An organizational chart to identify the specific areas of responsibility of each team member may be appropriate. 1.7  Required Resources (Optional) The list of resources/help that you hope to get from the instructor. 1.8  Time Table Part of the proposal will be a proposed schedule. This time table will be used to evaluate and manage the project. Key assumptions that affect the plan should be documented here. The project plan should be updated throughout the life-time of the project. Examples at: http://readyset.tigris.org/nonav/templates/plan.html 2 2.1  Project Proposal Presentation  Length 10 to 15 minutes presentation + discussions afterwards, in total 25min each person. If you decide to use powerpoint, you should prepare for 10-15 pages of slides. 2.2 2.3 Motivation (the same as proposal write-up) Input/Output Define the task. Show some brief examples that will be produced by by your project. 2.4 System Architecture (the same as proposal write-up) If the project includes many components, you can select the most crucial parts to present. 2.5 2.6 Time Table (the same as proposal write-up) Implementation Details (optional) You could briefly talk about the approaches you are using, and why they fit into the task. 2.7 Preliminary Demo (optional) If you have some preliminary system done by your presentation date, show it to the class. 2.8 Summary and Closing Mark (optional) Briefly recaps the key points of the proposal. Summarize the current problem, the steps you propose to take to solve the problem, and the benefits to the client.

Marketing Analysis of Tesco

Marketing Analysis of Tesco 1.ORGANIZATIONS ORIENTATION An organization orientation depends upon the marketing concept and the market orientations, which are the foundations of strategic marketing. Marketing concept exists on the fusion of all marketing activities. When they are combined, the company can achieve higher profitability (Hooley 2008: 6, 7). Tesco has developed a strategic customer relationship management which builds and keeps a valued customer awareness and powerful brand engagement. Its position in UK is strengthened by overtaking Sainsbury in 1995 and by its online home grocery service (Jobber 2010:583). 2. MARKET SEGMENTATION, POSITIONING, TARGET MARKETING Market segmentation is the process of understanding the characteristics and demand of different individuals. Tesco gather customer information from the loyalty card scheme and identifies their purchasing habits and behaviour patterns, which are used for segmenting customers based on their needs. Customers are grouped based on their similarities. With this information, Tesco introduced different clubs like the kids club, the food club, the baby and toddler club, Healthy living Club. Market segments are chosen for targeting and a marketing mix strategy is selected for that target market (Jobber 2010:262,584).To develop an effective strategic marketing there should be an upstanding positioning of product and services in the market. Positioning is an iterative and vital process in retail marketing. The main goal of positioning is to develop and maintain a remarkable place in the market for the company and its product. Positioning starts with the product (Kalafatis 2000).Nevertheless, Tes co has a brand image and they are proud of its brand value ( Martenson 2007).Keys to successful positioning is clarity, consistency, competitiveness and credibility. Repositioning is carried out when customer needs or target market changes. Repositioning strategies include image repositioning, product repositioning, intangible repositioning, tangible repositioning (Jobber 2010:285,288). 3. MARKET ORIENTATION Marketing orientation is achieved by marketing concept (Blois 2000: 21). It is defined as all the departments working together to develop and understand customers current and future needs and to meet them to keep the customers satisfied (Hooley 2008: 8). The elements of market orientation include Customer orientation, Competitor orientation, and inter functional orientation. 4. CUSTOMER ORIENTATION Marketing oriented companies are primarily focused on customers. They get the needs and problems of their customers and find a better solution for them (Blois 2000: 22). Tesco strategy is based on loyalty card scheme and gets information about individual customers and their different needs. The club card helps the customers to save their money when they accumulate points in the card. Club card can be used at any Tescos partners (Jobber 2010:583). Tescos objectives and guidelines are aimed directly at customer satisfaction and it is assessed regularly (Hooley 2008: 11). Customer orientation depends on the employee performance. It results in positive outcomes of the company. It determines the relationship quality of the organization and relationship quality highly depends upon the company loyalty (Macintosh 2007). 5. COMPETITOR ORIENTATION The organization should identify the short-term and a long-term capability of the competitors. A deep understanding of the competition is needed. For Tesco the competitive positioning applies at the level of the companies. In UK the leading grocery retailing competitors include Tesco, Sainsburys and Asda (Hooley 2008: 208).We need to understand the competitors profit sources, position in the market, marketing strategies (Best 2004: 7).Tesco collects information about the activities and conduct regular benchmarking against the competitor offerings (Hooley 2008: 12). 6. LONG-TERM PROFIT FOCUS This is the ultimate objective of all the business. The main objectives of Tesco are to be a successful international retailer, to be strong in non-food as in the food business, to open more stores across the world. The International strategy of Tesco requires a long-term approach (Tesco PLC 2009).The decisions of Tesco are guided by long- term plans rather than short -term benefits (Hooley 2008: 12). 7. INTERFUNCTIONAL COORDINATION Interfunctional coordination concerns with the coordination of all company resources to create a value for target customers. To create an impenetrable competitive position, we have to rely on the coordinated efforts of various functions and people within the organizations. Cross-functional relationship plays a decisive role (Hooley 2008: 12). Tesco has a dedicated team approach to develop and deliver market-based customer solutions (Best 2004: 48).They work together and support each other to serve customer .The financial and management department work closely with the operators of the retailer world. Commercial departments make decisions to deliver best products at best possible prices. Corporate purchasing departments work with suppliers. The graduates in Tesco strive to generate revenue. Distribution team works to deliver products in the right time to different stores. The effective systems IT department improve online shopping for customers and they raise the contacts between vari ous business areas to streamline the entire processes. The marketing team of Tesco works with customers to understand their needs and current trends. The property and engineering department do all the support works of the stores (Hooley 2008: 12). 8. ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Marketing orientation can be described as a variety of organizational culture that places the highest priority to establish and maintain the best customer value while considering the interests of stakeholders like investors, employees, suppliers (Blois 2000: 21). The core purpose of Tesco is to create value for customers to earn their lifetime loyalty (Tesco PLC 2009). All the staffs work like a team .They gives respect each other and treat customers in a way they feel satisfied. Face to face meetings, trips are conducted and Staffs are rewarded for their work they do. They offer discounts and benefits for the staffs also provide more salaries, training, flexible working hours and health and safety measures are observed as compared to other retailers. Tesco welcomes all people regardless of age, sex, ethnicity etc. Human rights policies are applied to all members (Tesco PLC 2009). Store Loyalty is the output of customer satisfaction and customers will visit the store regularly. All e mployees understand their responsibilities to create satisfied customers (Martenson 2007). 9. TESCO STRATEGIES Tesco has a well-established strategy for their business success. About 70% of the trading and profit is from UK. They are the market leaders in markets outside UK. They have four different store formats like Express, Metro, Superstore, Extra and one trial format Home plus, for non-food and clothing. As an international retailer, they mainly focus on the local customer needs and understand them. They make sure the board appeal. They have various own brands of superior quality to customers to compliment their style of living. Tesco looks after the people working with them (Tesco PLC 2009). Market Corporate responsibility is an opening for growth. The values are the no one tries harder for customers and treat people how they want to be treated (Tesco PLC 2009). The Tesco steering wheel represents performance and is a strategy-driving tool. (Tesco PLC 2009). A sale in non-food is a key part of the strategy. They provide with the best quality and price. Tescos non-food includes electrical, home entertainment, clothing, health and beauty, stationery, bookshop and soft furnishings, seasonal goods, opticians and pharmacies (Tesco PLC 2009). In retailing services, Tesco offers more to the customers. Tesco personal finance has products from credit cards to insurance. Online grocery shopping is made effortless with Tesco.com. Tesco Telecoms offers a wide range of services from mobile network, home phone service, internet access and an internet phone service (Tesco PLC 2009). The Success of Tesco depends on trust and satisfaction of the customers. Overall, Tesco has a strong marketing orientation and compelling marketing strategies which results in the customer satisfaction and the higher levels of profitability. Every Little Helps Tesco to be a market leader (Tesco PLC 2009). 10. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE As Armstrong (2005) defined, competitive advantage is the advantage over competitors obtained by providing better value to customer. It is important to company who wants to win the customers and establish a profitable relationship with them (Armstrong Kotler, 2005). Before the organisation is choosing the right competitive advantage on which to build up its competitive strategies it must analyze the industry environment normally by using the porters 5 forces analysis. 11. Porters Five Forces Analysis Introduced by Michael Porter in 1979, Porters 5 Forces is a powerful tool to analyse the attractiveness of an industry. This framework involves a relationship between competitors within an industry, potential competitors, suppliers, buyers. It helps management to understand both the strength of the current competitive position, and the strength of a position organization want to be. (Michael Porter, 2008) A diagram below shows the Porters 5 forces clearly. 12. Threat of New Entry: As porter said the ability of people who newly enter your market might affect your power. If the barrier to entry the market is low and your have little protection for current position, then the new competitors can easily enter the market and weaken your position. (Michael Porter, 2008). In terms of new entrants Tesco does not have much threat because of the high barriers for new comer to entry into the supermarket industry. According to the TNS (Taylor Nelson Sofres, the leading market research group) data Tesco occupies over one third of grocery market share in UK, and is along with Asda, Saintsburys, Morrisons become the big four which has hold over 68% of UK overall grocery market. This strong solid position makes Tesco the market leader and giant in UK supermarket industry. Due to the massive market share has been hold by the big four, the barriers for new entrants are obviously quite high. It is hard for new retailer to obtain the market share and challenge the existing powerfu l player such as Tesco. In addition, another high barrier for new entrants is the supermarket industry needs huge capital and personnel involved but needs long time to get the return. Therefore, there are high barrier for new retailers entry into the existing supermarket industry dominated by big four. Thus, if Tesco sustains its strong position in the market it will have less threat from new entrants. 13. The power of buyer: According to Porter the buyers have the power to drive price down. Small number of buyers and powerful buyers for a company can likely having greater power on driving the price (Michael Porter, 2008). Generally say, in supermarket industry there is little bargain power for buyers with supermarket because all the prices are fixed price. Moreover, the bigger number of consumers will reduce the power of buyers. Therefore, it is little power of buyers to Tesco due to huge number of customers and little bargain power of buyers in this industry. However, customers can still switch buying from one supermarket to another by many factors. First, the price is the primary factor determinates customers buying activities. In this respect, Tescos strategy is based on its cost advantages. The organization aims to be the best value retailer. Tesco stated its price has been cut by 17% between 2000 and 2006; even facing the higher energy price challenge during the recent recession Tescos price has bee n dropped down by 1.8% last year. Second, due to the differentiation of product is little in the supermarket industry; customers can switch buying easily, thus, to attract and keep customers is relying on their loyalty to the store. Tescos report claims it has the UK number one loyalty card scheme and it has over 13 millions active Clubcard holders. Overall, the power of buyer is little to Tesco and Tesco has big advantages on low price and customer loyalty. 14. Power of suppliers Porter said the suppliers also have power to drive up the price. The power of driven is determined by the number and the strength of suppliers. To the Britain biggest grocery supermarket Tesco, the power of supplier is very little because Tesco has vast numbers of supplier across overall markets. The overwhelming market power of Tesco makes suppliers have no bargain power to it; instead, some of suppliers rely on Tesco. As a buyer Tesco has huge demand and great power to the supplier. However, Tesco also relys on their suppliers to achieve its objectives, without those suppliers Tesco could not deliver best value goods to the customers. Therefore, Tesco has established the long term constructive partnership with suppliers. According to Tescos report, it has over 1,500 suppliers who have been working with Tesco for five years or more. Based on a survey taken in 2008 by Tesco, there were over 90% of UK suppliers thought Tesco was trustworthy. Moreover, Tesco also provide the opportunit ies to small producers and local suppliers. For example, Tesco has opened five new regional buying offices around Britain and hosted regional road shows to attract and increase the number of local suppliers for selling their goods through Tesco. As the result, the small suppliers get more business opportunities meanwhile they help Tesco getting hundreds of new lines into stores. In sum, Tesco has little threat from power of supplier and company achieved its objectives by establishing the trustable partnership with suppliers. 15. The Threat of substitutes Porter introduced this threat as the other industry or business has the ability to substitute you and attract your customers. Although Tesco has head position in the supermarket industry, somehow, the substitutes still exist. For example, eating-out is a substitute to buying food from supermarket. However, a recent survey by analyst Buckingham Research has found that 75% of British families will stay at home during the recession rather than eating out. Under recession, the threat of eating-out to supermarket is less than ever. Another substitute worth to be considered is the online shopping. Nowadays, as the technology growing fast the online shopping becomes easy and trendy. However, it can not completely substitute the real life shopping especially for the food purchase. The technical problem, delivery problem and communication problem may bother people to buy online. Moreover, the real life shopping is also a part of social life to most of people, which would be simply substitute by clicking screen. In sum, the threat of substitute to Tesco is higher than buyer, supplier and new entrant. 16. The Threat of Competitive Rivalry: This threat comes from the competitors and also is affected by the new entry, substitute, power of buyer and supplier. The threat of competitive rivalry to Tesco is high although it is the largest grocery supermarket in UK. Asda, Sainsburys and Morrison are the three main competitors of Tesco. These three companies also have big portion of market share and compete with Tesco through price, product and promotions. The competition between the main grocery supermarkets remains fierce. Tesco has been reported that the market share has been losing and dipping in UK market since 2009 by many main Medias such as Times, BBC news and Guardian. Reports said according to the last figures of 2009 Tescos market share dropped from 31.3% to 30.7% of UK grocery sales. Meanwhile, Asdas market share rose to 17 % from 16.7 % and Morrisons went up to 12.1% from 11.7 %. TNS reported against the UK grocery sales rise 6%, Tescos sales rose 4% which below the market growth. However, Morrisons and Asda were all found beyond the growth of the market, seeing sales rise 9.7% and 7.2%. Moreover, the discounter supermarkets Aldi and Lidl also compete with Tesco as consumer cut back on spending during the recession. In addition, TNS also claimed that Waitrose, the John Lewis-own supermarket as the up-market grocer is fast growing in grocery market. On the other hand, because Tesco also set foot in non-food industry there are so many competitors such as Shell, BP, Amazon, O2, etc. To sum up, Tesco has highly threat from many competitors in both food and non-food industry. Therefore, Tesco must take its competitive advantages to prevent from threats of competitors. 17. Competitive Advantage of Tesco Through the porters 5 forces analysis the competitive advantages of Tesco can be outlined. First, the significant market power is the big advantage of Tesco. The great market power makes Tesco is able to put up barrier to new entrants and weaken the power of buyer and supplier; it also gives Tesco ability to beat the competitors. Second, namely cost advantage, the big economic scale enables Tesco to reduce the cost at extremely low level and thereby providing the low price to customers. Third, diversification makes Tesco has a further advantage to win the market because Tesco expands the broad markets such as financing, telecom and retail service rather than just food market and spread its business worldwide. To sum up, if Tesco follows its competitive strategy by aware of the threats and competitive advantages, it will keep the strong position in the industry and beat its competitors. 18. MARKETING MIX Firstly, the term Marketing Mix was widely adopted after Neil H. Boren published his article The Concept of the Marketing Mix in 1964, where he described marketing managers as a mixer of ingredients. The ingredients in Borens marketing mix included product, planning, pricing, packaging, branding, distribution channels, personal selling, advertising, promotions, display, servicing, physical handling, fact finding and analysis. Which was later grouped into four categories by E. Jerome McCarthy, today know as the 4Ps of marketing, shown below However, some people argue that along with the Marketing Mix 4 Ps concept, we should add another 2 Ps, which are people and packaging. 19. PRODUCT It is rare to discuss price without the presence of a product and to enable us understand the link between Price and Product. Kotler Armstrong (2006) define a product as anything that can be presented to a consumer for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption that might satisfy a want or need. They further define a consumer product as the product bought by the final consumer for personal consumption. According to Ferrell (2005), the product is the core of the marketing mix strategy in which retailers can offer consumers symbolic and experiential attributes to differentiate products from competitors. However, it is also concerned with what the product means to the consumer. Product is about quality, design, features, brand name and sizes (Borden, 1984). Wulf et.al. (2005) found that private label products could offer even better quality than national brands but at a lower price. The domestic competitor reacts to the intensifying price competition by engaging in selective price cha nges. A product is a physical good, service, idea, person, or place that is capable of offering tangible and intangible attributes that individuals or organizations regard as so necessary, worthwhile or satisfying that they are prepared to exchange money, patronage or some other unit of value to acquire it. (Blythe 2007) Core products: Core Products are the core benefit that is being sought by the consumer by buying the product, like the cheaper call rates and ease of recharge top up available to Tesco Mobile customers. Actual /Tangible products: Actual Products are all the tangible features/benefits that are associated with the core product such as its features or design, level of quality, packaging, size. There is no clear distinction between a pure tangible product and a service. The Tescos give away deals for the new 3G i-phone deal Augmented products: are the intangible features/benefits associated with the core actual product such as the branding, warrantees, delivery, guarantee, and after sales service. Tesco mobile, for example, is a tangible product, but it often comes with a warranty and software updates. A firmsproduct line refers to the variety of similar commodities that the firm holds, Tesco for example, makes a large range of inter-related goods, Many of Tesco stores stock over 40,000 product lines. Even a Tesco Express stores stock a choice of well over 2,000 lines. ProductDepthrefers to the variety of commodities offered within each product line. Tesco stores stock : Healthy Living products, Free From products for people with food allergies and intolerances, Special healthy Kids snacks and Organic product lines and the recent announcement by the Tescobank CEO Benny Higgins of plans to launch an assault on the mortgage market by the end of 2010, hoping to take advantage of the current problems in the sector. Targeted at providingTescocustomers with financial advice, car and home insurance credit cards, mortgages and current accounts.(MINTEL 2009). Products often go through alife cycle.Initially, at the introduction stage a product is launched. Since the product is not well known and is usually expensive (e.g. the , as). Eventually, many products reach agrowthphase where sales increases dramatically. More firms enter with their models of the product, sometimes with added innovations. Unfortunately, the product reaches amaturitystage where little growth is sighted. For example, in the UK, almost every household has at least one stereo sound system. Some products may also reach adeclinestage, usually because the product is swapped for something better. For example, CDplayers experienced declining sales as more consumers switched to MP3 players and i-pods. Ansoff Theory is a series of suggested growth strategies that set the direction for the business plan. illustrated below Market Penetration: here the business strategy focuses on selling existing products in existing markets.This strategy aims at four major objectives: Maintaining the market share of current products Securing growth market Dominance Drive out competitors with support of an aggressive promotional campaign and favorable price strategy Increase product usage by existing customers e.g. With the Tesco Loyalty Club card scheme. Market Development: here the business strategy seeks to sell its existing product into a new market. The various approaches to this include: New geographical markets e.g.- exporting Tesco UK products to the Express shops in Ireland and Malaysia New Product Dimension or Packaging New Distributional channel Implementing different pricing policies for different markets segments Product Development: refers to a growth strategy where new products are initiated in existing markets. This often requires development of new competencies in the case of Tesco Bank and its new job vacancies for competencies in the financial sector. Diversification points to the growth strategy where a business markets a new commodity in a new market. Unfortunately, for this strategy to be adopted a clear objective of its advantages should be explored and risk assessments carried out seeing as the business may have little or no experience in the new area. Roughly one quarter of Tescos sales, was own label. Many leading retailing companies have substantial grocery interests. Of the top 25 companies in 1978, 22 were involved in groceries retailing, of which 10 can be considered leading firms in the groceries sector [Akehurst, 1983: 169, Table 5] 20. Price : Price refers to the value assigned to something by the seller to something purchased, offered for sale, to a buyer as their willingness to pay for the product and services delivered (Gilbert 1999). Price is the only element in the marketing mix that is revenue generating- all of the others are costs. It should therefore, be used as an active instrument of strategy in the major areas of marketing decision making. Pricing in the international setting is more complicated than in the domestic market, because of factors such as government influence and additional costs (Becker and Thorelli 1980). The price of an item is an important influence on the value of sales made. In theory, price is really determined by the discovery of what customers perceive is the value of the item on sale. Recent research has shown that demand-based pricing is associated with higher retailer gross margins; whereas past price dependence is associated with, lower retailer gross margins (Nijs, Srinivasan, and Pau wels 2007). There are a number of pricing policies used by Tesco today, which include: 21. Market-led Pricing: also known as competitive pricing, this simply accepts the price which competitors are charging for a product and then price its product at the same level or slightly lower in order to gain some advantage over competitors. Significantly found in markets where there is close competitors. For a company like TESCO it is important to monitor other competitors and in order to maintain customer loyalty against discounters, the adoption of a more aggressive pricing strategy was launch by the advent of budget private label ranges and backed up by advertising focusing on price comparisons. Despite challenges due to rising energy prices, but with innovations such as the reusable plastic trays, which was introduced in the fresh food areas have helped make savings these savings are pass on to customers. According to the OFT this led to a fall in real food price between 2000-2005.as shown below 22. Cost-Based Pricing: also known as cost plus Pricing, involves working out the businesss total fixed and variable costs and then adding a percentage of profit. Here the business has to consider the total number of items that it plans to produce and sell. The big advantage of cost-based pricing for TESCO is that the company is guaranteed to make a profit on its sales since it has covered its costs. However, in operating cost-based pricing it is very important to be aware of competitors price. However, this poses a threat when businesses are unable to sell the expected quantity of the product, perhaps because competitors are offering the same goods at a lower price. 23. Price wars In a competitive market such as grocery market, businesses sometimes engage in price wars in which prices of some goods are slashed to a very low price in order to secure sales. Price wars swamped grocery retailers, as the switch to private labels from branded packaged food continued to gather pace. For instance, Tesco and ASDA propose freezing of tax on some products at 15% despite an increase in rates to 17.5%(MMR 2010) This is risky because advantages gained are short-lived and rival, businesses tend to respond by slashing prices even further. If pursued long enough, price wars would cut profits seriously and in the end, only customers benefits by the low prices. 24. PENETRATION PRICING 25. ECONOMY PRICING: Stores such as TESCO, which allegedly charge the lowest prices, attract many consumers based on this conception alone (Peter Donnely, 2007). Among retail stores, the pricing strategy has become the fundamental point, as they need to compete in terms of pricing to lure more customers. Berman (1996) added that among the pricing policies which are of major concern to retail store outlets are the High-Low Pricing and Every Day Low Pricing (EDLP) strategies. This is sighted in operators who have significant economies of scale and buying power (Gilbert 1999). 26. VALUE PRICING This ensues where external factors such as the recession or increased competition forces companies to provide VALUE product and services to retain sales, they are especially important to families on a budget and have made a significant contribution to making healthy food accessible to all. Tesco now has in store 95 fresh fruit and vegetable value lines, and are working with the Pre-School Learning Alliance to help parents and children in some of the UKs most deprived areas make healthier choices. Value pricing may have a negative impact on the profit margin of the company (tesco.com N.D). 27. GEOGRAPHICAL PRICING This is evident where there are variations in price and demand in different parts of the world. TESCOs prices are a little higher in some town centre and neighbourhood stores because of higher overhead costs (mainly rents and rates). These costs are spread over a smaller volume of sales, and can only be recovered by charging prices that are, on average, higher. Example was when Tesco first moved into Ireland the products it sold was more expensive than they were in their UK stores (Irish Times 1998). This was because the UK suppliers were charging the Ireland stores more than they were charging the UK stores. This triggered some conspiracies and allegiances between key stakeholders in the industry resulting in a widespread anti-Tesco campaign (Poole and Clark 2002). In Conclusion Pricing a product too high or too low could mean a loss of sales for the organization. Therefore, appropriate pricing strategies and policies should be put in place for the various market segments, to ensure 28. PROMOTION Significant P in Marketing Mix 4P (Product, Price, Promotion and Place). Although the 4P characterization has led to widespread use of the term promotion for describing communications with prospects and customers, the term marketing communications is preferred by most marketing practitioners as well as by many educators. Consider that we may want to use marketing communications to refer to the collection of advertising, sales promotions, public relations, event marketing, and other communication devices. Promotion is considered as Sales Promotion (Shimp 2007). Marketing Communication is used by organisations to communicate with customers with respect to their product offerings. In this sense, Marketing Communication is one side of the communication process with customers. Market research, in which suppliers seek to elicit information on consumer requirements from consumers, is the complementary component of the communication process. The following summarises this very simply: (Rowley 1998). According to Rowley (1998) producer should communicate to reach the customers and in turn should listen to the customers needs and requirements to enhance the product and service. Tesco proudly announced that one of the reasons to its Success is listening to their Customers and its suppliers. Tesco has adopted multiple qualitative research techniques to reach their customers such as focus groups, accompanied shops, home visits to collect the feedback and respond quickly with corrective measures. Modestly they say, Its simple we listen and respond, providing customers with Marketing Analysis of Tesco Marketing Analysis of Tesco 1.ORGANIZATIONS ORIENTATION An organization orientation depends upon the marketing concept and the market orientations, which are the foundations of strategic marketing. Marketing concept exists on the fusion of all marketing activities. When they are combined, the company can achieve higher profitability (Hooley 2008: 6, 7). Tesco has developed a strategic customer relationship management which builds and keeps a valued customer awareness and powerful brand engagement. Its position in UK is strengthened by overtaking Sainsbury in 1995 and by its online home grocery service (Jobber 2010:583). 2. MARKET SEGMENTATION, POSITIONING, TARGET MARKETING Market segmentation is the process of understanding the characteristics and demand of different individuals. Tesco gather customer information from the loyalty card scheme and identifies their purchasing habits and behaviour patterns, which are used for segmenting customers based on their needs. Customers are grouped based on their similarities. With this information, Tesco introduced different clubs like the kids club, the food club, the baby and toddler club, Healthy living Club. Market segments are chosen for targeting and a marketing mix strategy is selected for that target market (Jobber 2010:262,584).To develop an effective strategic marketing there should be an upstanding positioning of product and services in the market. Positioning is an iterative and vital process in retail marketing. The main goal of positioning is to develop and maintain a remarkable place in the market for the company and its product. Positioning starts with the product (Kalafatis 2000).Nevertheless, Tes co has a brand image and they are proud of its brand value ( Martenson 2007).Keys to successful positioning is clarity, consistency, competitiveness and credibility. Repositioning is carried out when customer needs or target market changes. Repositioning strategies include image repositioning, product repositioning, intangible repositioning, tangible repositioning (Jobber 2010:285,288). 3. MARKET ORIENTATION Marketing orientation is achieved by marketing concept (Blois 2000: 21). It is defined as all the departments working together to develop and understand customers current and future needs and to meet them to keep the customers satisfied (Hooley 2008: 8). The elements of market orientation include Customer orientation, Competitor orientation, and inter functional orientation. 4. CUSTOMER ORIENTATION Marketing oriented companies are primarily focused on customers. They get the needs and problems of their customers and find a better solution for them (Blois 2000: 22). Tesco strategy is based on loyalty card scheme and gets information about individual customers and their different needs. The club card helps the customers to save their money when they accumulate points in the card. Club card can be used at any Tescos partners (Jobber 2010:583). Tescos objectives and guidelines are aimed directly at customer satisfaction and it is assessed regularly (Hooley 2008: 11). Customer orientation depends on the employee performance. It results in positive outcomes of the company. It determines the relationship quality of the organization and relationship quality highly depends upon the company loyalty (Macintosh 2007). 5. COMPETITOR ORIENTATION The organization should identify the short-term and a long-term capability of the competitors. A deep understanding of the competition is needed. For Tesco the competitive positioning applies at the level of the companies. In UK the leading grocery retailing competitors include Tesco, Sainsburys and Asda (Hooley 2008: 208).We need to understand the competitors profit sources, position in the market, marketing strategies (Best 2004: 7).Tesco collects information about the activities and conduct regular benchmarking against the competitor offerings (Hooley 2008: 12). 6. LONG-TERM PROFIT FOCUS This is the ultimate objective of all the business. The main objectives of Tesco are to be a successful international retailer, to be strong in non-food as in the food business, to open more stores across the world. The International strategy of Tesco requires a long-term approach (Tesco PLC 2009).The decisions of Tesco are guided by long- term plans rather than short -term benefits (Hooley 2008: 12). 7. INTERFUNCTIONAL COORDINATION Interfunctional coordination concerns with the coordination of all company resources to create a value for target customers. To create an impenetrable competitive position, we have to rely on the coordinated efforts of various functions and people within the organizations. Cross-functional relationship plays a decisive role (Hooley 2008: 12). Tesco has a dedicated team approach to develop and deliver market-based customer solutions (Best 2004: 48).They work together and support each other to serve customer .The financial and management department work closely with the operators of the retailer world. Commercial departments make decisions to deliver best products at best possible prices. Corporate purchasing departments work with suppliers. The graduates in Tesco strive to generate revenue. Distribution team works to deliver products in the right time to different stores. The effective systems IT department improve online shopping for customers and they raise the contacts between vari ous business areas to streamline the entire processes. The marketing team of Tesco works with customers to understand their needs and current trends. The property and engineering department do all the support works of the stores (Hooley 2008: 12). 8. ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Marketing orientation can be described as a variety of organizational culture that places the highest priority to establish and maintain the best customer value while considering the interests of stakeholders like investors, employees, suppliers (Blois 2000: 21). The core purpose of Tesco is to create value for customers to earn their lifetime loyalty (Tesco PLC 2009). All the staffs work like a team .They gives respect each other and treat customers in a way they feel satisfied. Face to face meetings, trips are conducted and Staffs are rewarded for their work they do. They offer discounts and benefits for the staffs also provide more salaries, training, flexible working hours and health and safety measures are observed as compared to other retailers. Tesco welcomes all people regardless of age, sex, ethnicity etc. Human rights policies are applied to all members (Tesco PLC 2009). Store Loyalty is the output of customer satisfaction and customers will visit the store regularly. All e mployees understand their responsibilities to create satisfied customers (Martenson 2007). 9. TESCO STRATEGIES Tesco has a well-established strategy for their business success. About 70% of the trading and profit is from UK. They are the market leaders in markets outside UK. They have four different store formats like Express, Metro, Superstore, Extra and one trial format Home plus, for non-food and clothing. As an international retailer, they mainly focus on the local customer needs and understand them. They make sure the board appeal. They have various own brands of superior quality to customers to compliment their style of living. Tesco looks after the people working with them (Tesco PLC 2009). Market Corporate responsibility is an opening for growth. The values are the no one tries harder for customers and treat people how they want to be treated (Tesco PLC 2009). The Tesco steering wheel represents performance and is a strategy-driving tool. (Tesco PLC 2009). A sale in non-food is a key part of the strategy. They provide with the best quality and price. Tescos non-food includes electrical, home entertainment, clothing, health and beauty, stationery, bookshop and soft furnishings, seasonal goods, opticians and pharmacies (Tesco PLC 2009). In retailing services, Tesco offers more to the customers. Tesco personal finance has products from credit cards to insurance. Online grocery shopping is made effortless with Tesco.com. Tesco Telecoms offers a wide range of services from mobile network, home phone service, internet access and an internet phone service (Tesco PLC 2009). The Success of Tesco depends on trust and satisfaction of the customers. Overall, Tesco has a strong marketing orientation and compelling marketing strategies which results in the customer satisfaction and the higher levels of profitability. Every Little Helps Tesco to be a market leader (Tesco PLC 2009). 10. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE As Armstrong (2005) defined, competitive advantage is the advantage over competitors obtained by providing better value to customer. It is important to company who wants to win the customers and establish a profitable relationship with them (Armstrong Kotler, 2005). Before the organisation is choosing the right competitive advantage on which to build up its competitive strategies it must analyze the industry environment normally by using the porters 5 forces analysis. 11. Porters Five Forces Analysis Introduced by Michael Porter in 1979, Porters 5 Forces is a powerful tool to analyse the attractiveness of an industry. This framework involves a relationship between competitors within an industry, potential competitors, suppliers, buyers. It helps management to understand both the strength of the current competitive position, and the strength of a position organization want to be. (Michael Porter, 2008) A diagram below shows the Porters 5 forces clearly. 12. Threat of New Entry: As porter said the ability of people who newly enter your market might affect your power. If the barrier to entry the market is low and your have little protection for current position, then the new competitors can easily enter the market and weaken your position. (Michael Porter, 2008). In terms of new entrants Tesco does not have much threat because of the high barriers for new comer to entry into the supermarket industry. According to the TNS (Taylor Nelson Sofres, the leading market research group) data Tesco occupies over one third of grocery market share in UK, and is along with Asda, Saintsburys, Morrisons become the big four which has hold over 68% of UK overall grocery market. This strong solid position makes Tesco the market leader and giant in UK supermarket industry. Due to the massive market share has been hold by the big four, the barriers for new entrants are obviously quite high. It is hard for new retailer to obtain the market share and challenge the existing powerfu l player such as Tesco. In addition, another high barrier for new entrants is the supermarket industry needs huge capital and personnel involved but needs long time to get the return. Therefore, there are high barrier for new retailers entry into the existing supermarket industry dominated by big four. Thus, if Tesco sustains its strong position in the market it will have less threat from new entrants. 13. The power of buyer: According to Porter the buyers have the power to drive price down. Small number of buyers and powerful buyers for a company can likely having greater power on driving the price (Michael Porter, 2008). Generally say, in supermarket industry there is little bargain power for buyers with supermarket because all the prices are fixed price. Moreover, the bigger number of consumers will reduce the power of buyers. Therefore, it is little power of buyers to Tesco due to huge number of customers and little bargain power of buyers in this industry. However, customers can still switch buying from one supermarket to another by many factors. First, the price is the primary factor determinates customers buying activities. In this respect, Tescos strategy is based on its cost advantages. The organization aims to be the best value retailer. Tesco stated its price has been cut by 17% between 2000 and 2006; even facing the higher energy price challenge during the recent recession Tescos price has bee n dropped down by 1.8% last year. Second, due to the differentiation of product is little in the supermarket industry; customers can switch buying easily, thus, to attract and keep customers is relying on their loyalty to the store. Tescos report claims it has the UK number one loyalty card scheme and it has over 13 millions active Clubcard holders. Overall, the power of buyer is little to Tesco and Tesco has big advantages on low price and customer loyalty. 14. Power of suppliers Porter said the suppliers also have power to drive up the price. The power of driven is determined by the number and the strength of suppliers. To the Britain biggest grocery supermarket Tesco, the power of supplier is very little because Tesco has vast numbers of supplier across overall markets. The overwhelming market power of Tesco makes suppliers have no bargain power to it; instead, some of suppliers rely on Tesco. As a buyer Tesco has huge demand and great power to the supplier. However, Tesco also relys on their suppliers to achieve its objectives, without those suppliers Tesco could not deliver best value goods to the customers. Therefore, Tesco has established the long term constructive partnership with suppliers. According to Tescos report, it has over 1,500 suppliers who have been working with Tesco for five years or more. Based on a survey taken in 2008 by Tesco, there were over 90% of UK suppliers thought Tesco was trustworthy. Moreover, Tesco also provide the opportunit ies to small producers and local suppliers. For example, Tesco has opened five new regional buying offices around Britain and hosted regional road shows to attract and increase the number of local suppliers for selling their goods through Tesco. As the result, the small suppliers get more business opportunities meanwhile they help Tesco getting hundreds of new lines into stores. In sum, Tesco has little threat from power of supplier and company achieved its objectives by establishing the trustable partnership with suppliers. 15. The Threat of substitutes Porter introduced this threat as the other industry or business has the ability to substitute you and attract your customers. Although Tesco has head position in the supermarket industry, somehow, the substitutes still exist. For example, eating-out is a substitute to buying food from supermarket. However, a recent survey by analyst Buckingham Research has found that 75% of British families will stay at home during the recession rather than eating out. Under recession, the threat of eating-out to supermarket is less than ever. Another substitute worth to be considered is the online shopping. Nowadays, as the technology growing fast the online shopping becomes easy and trendy. However, it can not completely substitute the real life shopping especially for the food purchase. The technical problem, delivery problem and communication problem may bother people to buy online. Moreover, the real life shopping is also a part of social life to most of people, which would be simply substitute by clicking screen. In sum, the threat of substitute to Tesco is higher than buyer, supplier and new entrant. 16. The Threat of Competitive Rivalry: This threat comes from the competitors and also is affected by the new entry, substitute, power of buyer and supplier. The threat of competitive rivalry to Tesco is high although it is the largest grocery supermarket in UK. Asda, Sainsburys and Morrison are the three main competitors of Tesco. These three companies also have big portion of market share and compete with Tesco through price, product and promotions. The competition between the main grocery supermarkets remains fierce. Tesco has been reported that the market share has been losing and dipping in UK market since 2009 by many main Medias such as Times, BBC news and Guardian. Reports said according to the last figures of 2009 Tescos market share dropped from 31.3% to 30.7% of UK grocery sales. Meanwhile, Asdas market share rose to 17 % from 16.7 % and Morrisons went up to 12.1% from 11.7 %. TNS reported against the UK grocery sales rise 6%, Tescos sales rose 4% which below the market growth. However, Morrisons and Asda were all found beyond the growth of the market, seeing sales rise 9.7% and 7.2%. Moreover, the discounter supermarkets Aldi and Lidl also compete with Tesco as consumer cut back on spending during the recession. In addition, TNS also claimed that Waitrose, the John Lewis-own supermarket as the up-market grocer is fast growing in grocery market. On the other hand, because Tesco also set foot in non-food industry there are so many competitors such as Shell, BP, Amazon, O2, etc. To sum up, Tesco has highly threat from many competitors in both food and non-food industry. Therefore, Tesco must take its competitive advantages to prevent from threats of competitors. 17. Competitive Advantage of Tesco Through the porters 5 forces analysis the competitive advantages of Tesco can be outlined. First, the significant market power is the big advantage of Tesco. The great market power makes Tesco is able to put up barrier to new entrants and weaken the power of buyer and supplier; it also gives Tesco ability to beat the competitors. Second, namely cost advantage, the big economic scale enables Tesco to reduce the cost at extremely low level and thereby providing the low price to customers. Third, diversification makes Tesco has a further advantage to win the market because Tesco expands the broad markets such as financing, telecom and retail service rather than just food market and spread its business worldwide. To sum up, if Tesco follows its competitive strategy by aware of the threats and competitive advantages, it will keep the strong position in the industry and beat its competitors. 18. MARKETING MIX Firstly, the term Marketing Mix was widely adopted after Neil H. Boren published his article The Concept of the Marketing Mix in 1964, where he described marketing managers as a mixer of ingredients. The ingredients in Borens marketing mix included product, planning, pricing, packaging, branding, distribution channels, personal selling, advertising, promotions, display, servicing, physical handling, fact finding and analysis. Which was later grouped into four categories by E. Jerome McCarthy, today know as the 4Ps of marketing, shown below However, some people argue that along with the Marketing Mix 4 Ps concept, we should add another 2 Ps, which are people and packaging. 19. PRODUCT It is rare to discuss price without the presence of a product and to enable us understand the link between Price and Product. Kotler Armstrong (2006) define a product as anything that can be presented to a consumer for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption that might satisfy a want or need. They further define a consumer product as the product bought by the final consumer for personal consumption. According to Ferrell (2005), the product is the core of the marketing mix strategy in which retailers can offer consumers symbolic and experiential attributes to differentiate products from competitors. However, it is also concerned with what the product means to the consumer. Product is about quality, design, features, brand name and sizes (Borden, 1984). Wulf et.al. (2005) found that private label products could offer even better quality than national brands but at a lower price. The domestic competitor reacts to the intensifying price competition by engaging in selective price cha nges. A product is a physical good, service, idea, person, or place that is capable of offering tangible and intangible attributes that individuals or organizations regard as so necessary, worthwhile or satisfying that they are prepared to exchange money, patronage or some other unit of value to acquire it. (Blythe 2007) Core products: Core Products are the core benefit that is being sought by the consumer by buying the product, like the cheaper call rates and ease of recharge top up available to Tesco Mobile customers. Actual /Tangible products: Actual Products are all the tangible features/benefits that are associated with the core product such as its features or design, level of quality, packaging, size. There is no clear distinction between a pure tangible product and a service. The Tescos give away deals for the new 3G i-phone deal Augmented products: are the intangible features/benefits associated with the core actual product such as the branding, warrantees, delivery, guarantee, and after sales service. Tesco mobile, for example, is a tangible product, but it often comes with a warranty and software updates. A firmsproduct line refers to the variety of similar commodities that the firm holds, Tesco for example, makes a large range of inter-related goods, Many of Tesco stores stock over 40,000 product lines. Even a Tesco Express stores stock a choice of well over 2,000 lines. ProductDepthrefers to the variety of commodities offered within each product line. Tesco stores stock : Healthy Living products, Free From products for people with food allergies and intolerances, Special healthy Kids snacks and Organic product lines and the recent announcement by the Tescobank CEO Benny Higgins of plans to launch an assault on the mortgage market by the end of 2010, hoping to take advantage of the current problems in the sector. Targeted at providingTescocustomers with financial advice, car and home insurance credit cards, mortgages and current accounts.(MINTEL 2009). Products often go through alife cycle.Initially, at the introduction stage a product is launched. Since the product is not well known and is usually expensive (e.g. the , as). Eventually, many products reach agrowthphase where sales increases dramatically. More firms enter with their models of the product, sometimes with added innovations. Unfortunately, the product reaches amaturitystage where little growth is sighted. For example, in the UK, almost every household has at least one stereo sound system. Some products may also reach adeclinestage, usually because the product is swapped for something better. For example, CDplayers experienced declining sales as more consumers switched to MP3 players and i-pods. Ansoff Theory is a series of suggested growth strategies that set the direction for the business plan. illustrated below Market Penetration: here the business strategy focuses on selling existing products in existing markets.This strategy aims at four major objectives: Maintaining the market share of current products Securing growth market Dominance Drive out competitors with support of an aggressive promotional campaign and favorable price strategy Increase product usage by existing customers e.g. With the Tesco Loyalty Club card scheme. Market Development: here the business strategy seeks to sell its existing product into a new market. The various approaches to this include: New geographical markets e.g.- exporting Tesco UK products to the Express shops in Ireland and Malaysia New Product Dimension or Packaging New Distributional channel Implementing different pricing policies for different markets segments Product Development: refers to a growth strategy where new products are initiated in existing markets. This often requires development of new competencies in the case of Tesco Bank and its new job vacancies for competencies in the financial sector. Diversification points to the growth strategy where a business markets a new commodity in a new market. Unfortunately, for this strategy to be adopted a clear objective of its advantages should be explored and risk assessments carried out seeing as the business may have little or no experience in the new area. Roughly one quarter of Tescos sales, was own label. Many leading retailing companies have substantial grocery interests. Of the top 25 companies in 1978, 22 were involved in groceries retailing, of which 10 can be considered leading firms in the groceries sector [Akehurst, 1983: 169, Table 5] 20. Price : Price refers to the value assigned to something by the seller to something purchased, offered for sale, to a buyer as their willingness to pay for the product and services delivered (Gilbert 1999). Price is the only element in the marketing mix that is revenue generating- all of the others are costs. It should therefore, be used as an active instrument of strategy in the major areas of marketing decision making. Pricing in the international setting is more complicated than in the domestic market, because of factors such as government influence and additional costs (Becker and Thorelli 1980). The price of an item is an important influence on the value of sales made. In theory, price is really determined by the discovery of what customers perceive is the value of the item on sale. Recent research has shown that demand-based pricing is associated with higher retailer gross margins; whereas past price dependence is associated with, lower retailer gross margins (Nijs, Srinivasan, and Pau wels 2007). There are a number of pricing policies used by Tesco today, which include: 21. Market-led Pricing: also known as competitive pricing, this simply accepts the price which competitors are charging for a product and then price its product at the same level or slightly lower in order to gain some advantage over competitors. Significantly found in markets where there is close competitors. For a company like TESCO it is important to monitor other competitors and in order to maintain customer loyalty against discounters, the adoption of a more aggressive pricing strategy was launch by the advent of budget private label ranges and backed up by advertising focusing on price comparisons. Despite challenges due to rising energy prices, but with innovations such as the reusable plastic trays, which was introduced in the fresh food areas have helped make savings these savings are pass on to customers. According to the OFT this led to a fall in real food price between 2000-2005.as shown below 22. Cost-Based Pricing: also known as cost plus Pricing, involves working out the businesss total fixed and variable costs and then adding a percentage of profit. Here the business has to consider the total number of items that it plans to produce and sell. The big advantage of cost-based pricing for TESCO is that the company is guaranteed to make a profit on its sales since it has covered its costs. However, in operating cost-based pricing it is very important to be aware of competitors price. However, this poses a threat when businesses are unable to sell the expected quantity of the product, perhaps because competitors are offering the same goods at a lower price. 23. Price wars In a competitive market such as grocery market, businesses sometimes engage in price wars in which prices of some goods are slashed to a very low price in order to secure sales. Price wars swamped grocery retailers, as the switch to private labels from branded packaged food continued to gather pace. For instance, Tesco and ASDA propose freezing of tax on some products at 15% despite an increase in rates to 17.5%(MMR 2010) This is risky because advantages gained are short-lived and rival, businesses tend to respond by slashing prices even further. If pursued long enough, price wars would cut profits seriously and in the end, only customers benefits by the low prices. 24. PENETRATION PRICING 25. ECONOMY PRICING: Stores such as TESCO, which allegedly charge the lowest prices, attract many consumers based on this conception alone (Peter Donnely, 2007). Among retail stores, the pricing strategy has become the fundamental point, as they need to compete in terms of pricing to lure more customers. Berman (1996) added that among the pricing policies which are of major concern to retail store outlets are the High-Low Pricing and Every Day Low Pricing (EDLP) strategies. This is sighted in operators who have significant economies of scale and buying power (Gilbert 1999). 26. VALUE PRICING This ensues where external factors such as the recession or increased competition forces companies to provide VALUE product and services to retain sales, they are especially important to families on a budget and have made a significant contribution to making healthy food accessible to all. Tesco now has in store 95 fresh fruit and vegetable value lines, and are working with the Pre-School Learning Alliance to help parents and children in some of the UKs most deprived areas make healthier choices. Value pricing may have a negative impact on the profit margin of the company (tesco.com N.D). 27. GEOGRAPHICAL PRICING This is evident where there are variations in price and demand in different parts of the world. TESCOs prices are a little higher in some town centre and neighbourhood stores because of higher overhead costs (mainly rents and rates). These costs are spread over a smaller volume of sales, and can only be recovered by charging prices that are, on average, higher. Example was when Tesco first moved into Ireland the products it sold was more expensive than they were in their UK stores (Irish Times 1998). This was because the UK suppliers were charging the Ireland stores more than they were charging the UK stores. This triggered some conspiracies and allegiances between key stakeholders in the industry resulting in a widespread anti-Tesco campaign (Poole and Clark 2002). In Conclusion Pricing a product too high or too low could mean a loss of sales for the organization. Therefore, appropriate pricing strategies and policies should be put in place for the various market segments, to ensure 28. PROMOTION Significant P in Marketing Mix 4P (Product, Price, Promotion and Place). Although the 4P characterization has led to widespread use of the term promotion for describing communications with prospects and customers, the term marketing communications is preferred by most marketing practitioners as well as by many educators. Consider that we may want to use marketing communications to refer to the collection of advertising, sales promotions, public relations, event marketing, and other communication devices. Promotion is considered as Sales Promotion (Shimp 2007). Marketing Communication is used by organisations to communicate with customers with respect to their product offerings. In this sense, Marketing Communication is one side of the communication process with customers. Market research, in which suppliers seek to elicit information on consumer requirements from consumers, is the complementary component of the communication process. The following summarises this very simply: (Rowley 1998). According to Rowley (1998) producer should communicate to reach the customers and in turn should listen to the customers needs and requirements to enhance the product and service. Tesco proudly announced that one of the reasons to its Success is listening to their Customers and its suppliers. Tesco has adopted multiple qualitative research techniques to reach their customers such as focus groups, accompanied shops, home visits to collect the feedback and respond quickly with corrective measures. Modestly they say, Its simple we listen and respond, providing customers with