Self Awareness Essay Example

Mindfulness Essay Example Mindfulness Essay Mindfulness Essay What's more, moral judgment Attitudes Cognitive style (towards change) Developing versatility and duty Determine data securing and assessment Interpersonal style Determine inclinations and connection designs (Carbolic 2005) Preserving face Known to self to others Arena know to others Facade Not known to self Blinds Unknown Dwyer (2000) Communication in Business: Strategies and inquire Self observation ; Think about the picture you have of yourself. Rapidly Write the initial 6-10 words that strike a chord ; Of these words compose the words that are in your Arena and those in your exterior. ; Give instances Of each Work with accomplice ; What picture do they anticipate? Compose the initial 4 words that ring a bell. ; Discuss your discoveries. Each in turn! Recall ; Any disparity between recognitions can fill in as a learning open door for both ; What have you realized of your bloodspot or exterior? Perceptual mutilations Stereotyping summing up ; Halo impact attribute overwhelms messiness ; Central propensity midpoints everything ; Contrast impacts assessments influenced ; Projection ; Perceptual safeguard called upon to protect our self-observation (Wilson 2010) In bunches ideas utilized ; Did you for the most part use descriptive words which will in general be evaluative things which will in general be impartial action words which will in general be conduct arranged ; What have you realized of your perceptual channels? What perceptual bending do you for the most part use? Exercises to be scholarly Ones discernments can never be absolutely precise ; Rephrase what is said ; Question your decisions of others making a decision about others has life suggestions ; The more prominent self-comprehension the simpler not to make outrageous decisions.

Costs associated with occupational and corporate crime Essay

Expenses related with word related and corporate wrongdoing - Essay Example Personal expense infringement is a well known cubicle wrongdoing. As indicated by an article in New York Times, tax avoidance costs governments around the world more than $3.1 trillion every year. Such an incredible loss of more than $3.1 trillion in yearly income is an exceptionally enormous issue, yet it is exceedingly difficult to get cubicle hoodlums. As indicated by a report distributed by the World Bank in 2011, over 5.1% of worldwide GDP never arrives at the administration workplaces as charges. Europe is presently confronting an emergency as a result of this widespread tax avoidance. The most noteworthy measure of assessment income is lost by the US, about $337 billion. The US is trailed by South America and Italy (Werdigier). Theft is a sort of word related wrongdoing and research guarantees that â€Å"the yearly expense of misappropriation is 12.42 billion dollars† (Zarka). However, look into proposes that the greatest expenses are related with desk wrongdoings. For instance, it is asserted that â€Å"the American business network lost $50 billion of every 1980 to cushy crime† (Eitzen refered to in Long), which is in excess of multiple times the expenses related with all road wrongdoings. These are simply quotes since truth is that word related and corporate violations can't be precisely estimated. Office crooks are difficult to get in view of their high position which is the reason correctional facilities are packed with socially and monetarily distraught guilty parties who have perpetrated a low-class road wrongdoing. Numerous issues are experienced by analysts who attempt to reveal costs related with word related and corporate wrongdoings. It is constantly simpler to evaluate costs related with road violations since individuals behind these wrongdoings have no word related or corporate foundation. These are jobless individuals commonly having a place with poor class. Be that as it may, the issue with word related and corporate lawbreakers is that the higher callings and

Understanding And Application Of Knowledge In The Area Of SOCIAL

Understanding And Application Of Knowledge In The Area Of SOCIAL Understanding And Application Of Knowledge In The Area Of SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY â€" Essay Example > Understanding and Application of Knowledge in the area of Social PsychologySocial psychology is considered to be a field of knowledge created by the overlapping fields of sociology and psychology. Professionals within both sociology and psychology tend to adopt different approaches to social psychology. Psychologists hold the view that the individual influences society, while sociologists take the opposing view, that society influences the individual. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that, apart from being a controversial area of study, knowledge in the area of social psychology can contribute towards the solving of social problems in the real world, provided it is properly understood and applied. One example which demonstrates the effective use of social psychology is the concept of stereotypes. Stereotypes are simplified evaluations of social groups and their members, based on (usually externally visible) characteristics such as gender, age, nationality and so on. The se characterizations are either of a positive or negative nature and they tend to be widely shared, especially by members of a particular social, political, economic or ethnic group (Myers, 2008). According to the author, “Stereotypes are often based on observable characteristics such as appearance, personality traits, typical interests and aspirations, and preferred activities and occupations. ” Some stereotypes are factual, some stereotypes are exaggerations of fact, while other stereotypes are complete fabrications. The risk of using stereotypes is that they are simplifications of reality and generalizations about the assumed characteristics of groups. Therefore, stereotypes do not necessarily predict the actual characteristics or behaviour of any member of stereotyped groups. However, it is important to note that many stereotypes are adopted early in life, before a child has independent knowledge and/or experience of the groups they refer to. Unfortunately, stereotypes are usually more hostile in the presence of social tensions and conflict between groups, and they are often a cause and/or effect of prejudice and discrimination. In a nutshell, Moghaddam (1998) states that stereotyping happens when any member of a social group is presumed to have the same characteristics as other members of the group, despite any actual differences between members of that social group. According to this author, stereotyping is not inherently wrong, as it is not always an intentional act of abuse. Nevertheless, the author acknowledges that stereotypes held about groups which are minorities or considered to be subordinate are commonly negative. .Some stereotypes are acquired through personal experience with members of the stereotyped group, but such stereotypes are vulnerable to bias due to differences in perception between members of different groups. It is not uncommon for the behaviour of one member of a group at a particular time to be interpreted as the standard b ehaviour of all other group members all the time. Other stereotypes exist as the result of an individual’s interactions with family, friends and the media. These interactions operate to fortify stereotypes, because individuals are constantly bombarded with simplified generalizations about other groups, and so stereotypes become strongly implanted into social norms. In addition, the media contributes towards the reinforcement of prevalent stereotypes, as media practitioners also believe in many stereotypes.

How E-Commerce Has Become Vital to World Economics

Now e-commerce is become so vital to world’s economics. E-commerce is an vital driving force of the world economic growth. The development of modern logistics in e- commerce environment, made the logistics in the development of in validation, networking, smart direction. The logistics manufacturing in China happening late, not modern enough, controlling the development of e-commerce logistics in China. This article research base on the domestic and international study of e-commerce logistics, analyze the characteristics and mode of e-commerce logistics, combined with the current situation and existing problems of e-commerce logistics in china, which proposed the development trend of e-commerce logistics system information technology in china is the integration of Logistics and purchasing. Over a year ago, China’s track to e-commerce management would have been tough to predict, even as the tech boom in the US and new markets saw the improvement of e-commerce as an important B2C and C2C channel. In 2000, China had yet to improving some e-commerce applications, and had only 2.1 million overall internet users. Payment procedure and physical distribution tools to enable the development of e-commerce trades were well-grew in other markets, but were just lacking in China. Today with Chinese internet consumers rapidly upcoming 600 million, and e-commerce profits development from 2009 until 2012 covering 70 percent compounded annually, China is on step to pass the United State andShow MoreRelatedSmall And Medium Enterprises ( Smes )1423 Words   |  6 Pagesrole in economic development in many countries around the world (Kotelnikov, 2007). Although SMEs contribute lots of stimulus to the national economy, they commonly suffer from a lack of nationwide geographical presence and an inability of provide their services 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. The implementation of e-commerce eliminate these adverse conditions and promotes SMEs to extend wider markets without expanding their physical presence (Quaddus Hofmeyer, 2007). E-commerce has a strongRead MoreIct For The Development Of Smes Essay1439 Words   |  6 PagesGovernments around the world have put in place policies to encourage the growth of local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as they can help directly alleviate poverty by increasing income levels and creating jobs (ESCAP, 2012). At the same time, the global economy has become increasingly depended on the Information and communications technology (ICT) for market access and information. SMEs need to have access to and use of ICT to engage in the regional and global economic business networks. If SMEsRead MoreInformation And Communications Technology ( Ict ) For Market Access And Information Essay1699 Words   |  7 PagesGovernments around the world have put in place policies to encourage the growth of local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as they can help directly alleviate poverty by increasing income levels and creating jobs (ESCAP, 2012). At the same time, the global economy has become increasingly depended on the Information and communications technology (ICT) for market access and information. SMEs need to have access to and use of ICT to engage in the regional and global economic business networks. If SM EsRead MoreE Commerce And E Business Essay1437 Words   |  6 PagesDue to economic growth and information technology development, the competitive travel market is stimulating a high demand of customers for international travel (Lin Fu, 2012). Travel customers actively search various websites (Expedia, Priceline, Travelocity, etc.) on the Internet for travel needs and deals (Xiang Gretzel, 2010). The travel industry is facing drastic changes today, regarding business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce and business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce, because many people areRead MoreThe Impact of the Internet on Globalization Essay1276 Words   |  6 PagesThe Impact of the Internet on Globalization Globalization, a growing phenomenon that can be described as a â€Å"shift toward a more integrated and interdependent world economy† (Hill 7), has been the subject of many books and discussions for the past decade. Along with the development of microprocessors, the Internet is perhaps the most significant technological innovation of our time, playing a substantial role in the growth of globalization. The Internet facilitated the expansion of the movementRead MoreRelated Literarureand Studies of Online Selling Website1450 Words   |  6 PagesFrishman a Basic Level Expert Author The online selling field may seem infinite in scope, too, with millions of potential customers worldwide. But, success in selling collectibles on the Web is gained in much the same way as it is in the physical world, by knowing buyers needs and meeting them. Success can depend to a great degree on whether or not you are offering collectible properties able to meet at least one of these three key comm ercial elements: Not easily obtainable locally.   Wide appealRead MoreCustomer Relationship Management and Sales Force Automation1735 Words   |  7 PagesDISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. How is e-business â€Å"redefining old business models, with the aid of technology, to maximize customer value? e-business is more than just buying and selling of products and services through the means of digital media. Whereas e-commerce concentrates on buying and selling, e-business encompasses e-commerce and a whole lot more. For example, e-business includes both front – and back-office applications that form the engine for modern business. e-business is redefining oldRead MoreHow Is the Internet Reshaping What We Mean by Culture?1436 Words   |  6 PagesHow is the Internet reshaping what we mean by culture? During the 20th century, electricity, the telephone, the automobile, and the airplane made the world more accessible to people and transforming our society in the process. Most people had to call their local bank to check their statements. Or wait for the paper invoice in the mail. The latest score for last nights hockey game were found in the local newspaper. Then came the accessible worldwide system of interconnected networks called theRead MoreEssay How Is The Internet Reshaping Culture1362 Words   |  6 PagesHow is the Internet reshaping what we mean by culture? During the 20th century, electricity, the telephone, the automobile, and the airplane made the world more accessible to people and transforming our society in the process. Most people had to call their local bank to check their statements. Or wait for the paper invoice in the mail. The latest score for last nights hockey game were found in the local newspaper. Then came the accessible worldwide system of interconnected networks called theRead MoreThe Privacy Of A Computer System Essay1538 Words   |  7 Pagessectors. Also, how those data privacy breach could impact someone’s personal, social and economic life. With the advent of information based society, private data became a big product of marketability and that market was flourished to interrelate other aspects of human life. Also recent introduction of another form of privacy concern in this connected world, which is also an organized crime called â€Å"Phishing†. One of the latest computer-related problems to arise is phishing, in which e-mails lure unsuspecting

Introducing Examples of Essay Topics

Introducing Examples of Essay Topics The Dirty Truth About Examples of Essay Topics The college essay is among the most essential characteristics of your college application. Some terrible topics show admissions officers you don't have a great awareness of judgment or maturity, which is a problem as they are building a category of college students who have in order to deal with independent life on campus. You could be given the topic straight away by your professor, or maybe you be free to opt for the topic yourself. For instance, you can opt for a topic for elementary, middle, or higher school. You need to be very careful when choosing an essay topic. It's therefore important to thoroughly consider different college essay topics. Literature essay topics allow you to narrow back on a sure idea or detail, it's important to pick the essay topics you're interested in. As everyone probably knows, simply because you've got a definition essay topic and a couple examples doesn't si gnify you've got an essay. Don't forget, no reader wishes to be lectured at. To compose a superb argumentative essay, there are four important sections of the essay you're likely to have to know about. If you're new to writing argumentative essays, there are a couple of key factors which you can learn that may help you compose a much better argumentative essay. When prior brainstorming is finished, you can begin drafting your essay. The multiple topics might be found, for instance, in the dissertation abstracts international database. The Most Popular Examples of Essay Topics Even if you believe you don't have a lot to have in your memoir, you're able to still make it quite intriguing. Your essay should consist of recent statistics and data from reliable sources. You have to make sure you keep on that 1 side during your whole essay. It is crucial to lay out quotes correctly because it shows you're professional of what you're doing. In the event you're still lacking the inspiration to compose your memoir, you always have the option to arrive at the writing experts at Custom-Writing. Interview essays are written dependent on an interview, performed by the author. Hence, if you'd like to balance your academic and family pressure side-by-side, you can merely secure completely free essay samples so you may have a simple idea of writing proper essays. In the event the interview went well, it is going to be simple to compose an interview essay. There are lots of facets to be considered while looking about for an acceptable topic for an essay undertaking. Thanks to the correct selection of presentation style and a thorough understanding of the goals you wish to attain in your essay, there are plenty of categories essay themes may be broken into. In choosing your topic, it's frequently a good concept to start with a subject which you already have some familiarity with. Very often it becomes tough to choose one par ticular topic either on account of the many ideas in the student's head, or due to their complete absence. The option of compare and contrast essay topics isn't a simple task because you must clearly show your analytical skills. Without strong internal motivation, it is almost impossible to turn into successful. To the contrary, success is all about recognizing your weaknesses and accepting support from those who genuinely wish to assist you. There are a few commonalities across all the essay prompts on the GRE Argument pool page, even past the fact which each task asks you to examine some type of argument and analyze it. Write a response in which you discuss what questions would want to get answered to be able to determine whether the recommendation will probably have the predicted outcome. There are special words and word combination utilized for analytical purposes which ought to be learned too. Last, the detail of real speech makes the scene pop. Therefore, if you begin with a terrible topic, not only will you wind up with a poor essay, but you risk ruining the fantastic impre ssion that the remainder of your application makes. The Benefits of Examples of Essay Topics Reducing smoking can be accomplished through education, as smoking isn't something you need to advocate for. Picking a topic is an essential issue that partly estimates final success of the job. Secondly, you might have freedom to decide on any topic you enjoy. The main reason why some may experience difficulties with their essays is because they choose the incorrect topic. Type of Examples of Essay Topics It is preferable to grow up in a family with a lot of brothers and sisters. Neither is an excellent thing, since they're searching for men and women that are open to receiving new information from professors and not only deciding they know everything already. At times, even when you're writing about an interesting, relevant subject, you can nonetheless look immature or unready for college life due to the manner in which you present that topic the way you truly write your own persona l statement. Also, bear in mind that no college is eager to admit a person who is too close-minded to gain from being taught by other people. You'll have to create a user account and answer questions regarding your academic background and experience before picking a testing date. Going through sample essays would assist you in learning to recognize the suitable topic for you. Shopping online isn't secure or secure. It's possible to access your testing history and score reports for 60 days once they have been reported by means of your on-line account.

Purpose of an Operating System Free Essays

CPU and memory requirements are the most glaring but even hard rive partition size and what kind of disc drive present matters. Within the generations of Windows there is a long list of features that separate them. Windows XP was introduced with personalized start menu options per user using the PC. We will write a custom essay sample on Purpose of an Operating System or any similar topic only for you Order Now XP was the first Windows SO to self-adjust the task spacing as the user opened more programs. Windows Vista introduced Area, Sidebar, and Gadgets in an effort to enhance the users experience but also to make it easier to interact with the main system through the mini-application based Gadgets. Simple services like displaying pictures, turning wireless on or off, ND music playback were available that prior to Vista required a running program. Windows 7 further enhances the user experience with modification to Windows explorer and how it organizes the files and folders in an easier to use format. The use of Libraries enables the SO to index files by content and therefore able to group in a way where the user is able to locate a file even if the file is saved in an unrelated folder. The second largest of the major ASS is used exclusively by Apple. Mac SO is a proprietary system that has a very strict requirement for what hardware will work with the system. Despite the hardware limitations to only Intel Cups and approved motherboards, it remains a huge favorite to certain groups of users like multimedia designers, graphic artists, and music producers. One potential reason for this is because Apple was the first to utilize a simple a graphical user interface (GU’) therefore making it easier to use the system instead of driven by often hard to use and complex DOS commands. With later versions of Mac like SO X, various technologies, such as Anti-Aliasing and Colors are used to dramatically improve the user interface. Another difference is that a user can pen PC files like . Doc and . AXIS within Mac without problem, while Windows requires conversion software to open Mac files. By doing this, Apple has in effect broken down many important barriers while the average PC user has resisted in adopting a Mac over a PC. Despite some advantages, Mac usage is low, roughly 10% or lower of the entire computer market in the U. S. The smallest market share among the ASS belongs to Linux. Users have been slow to adopt it since its inception in October of 1991 by Lines Dorval. Despite little use by average users, there exists many a version or distributions which ghastly dominate the area of computers known as servers, main frames, and super computers. Linux is also the system of choice on much smaller devices like phones and tablets. What makes Linux exciting to use for some is also what keeps most users away; Linux has splintered to over 300 variations. Most are specialized for the devices which it is meant to be installed on, but even for use for the mass market of users there are still four major variations such as Bunt, Use, Red Hat, and Knops. Common trait within Linux is that it has a very small footprint compared to larger ASS like Windows. For computer enthusiasts, one can run a distribution of Linux on hardware that is otherwise vastly outdated or run alongside Windows on the same computer. Another advantage of Linux is the well-established and openly accessible documentation on the commands but also how to configure the System best for the user or the use of the SO as well as how to troubleshoot issues. For software hobbyists and professionals this means that they can basically tailor the system to their needs and cut the dependence on what Microsoft or Apple may offer. Because of the open source nature of the SO, they can both upload fixes and receive enhancements from other users and the committees that oversee Linen’s development. Despite the differences between operating systems a common thread among them is that they help shape the user experience of a computer. By doing so it enhances our desire to continue using computers and their many benefits. Without development of operating systems things such as modern day networks or communications wouldn’t be possible. Since new technologies are constantly bringing us new and better hardware, it’s the operating system and its development that will continue to encourage the user to ultimately enjoy the device. How to cite Purpose of an Operating System, Papers

Lotus Bakery, Case Study Essay Example

Lotus Bakery, Case Study Paper Lotus Bakeries NV International case study Bart Bauwens Director Export November 2010 Personal introduction †¢ Bart Bauwens – 1967 †¢ Master in Business Economics University of Ghent, Belgium – 1991 †¢ Master in Business Administration – National University of Singapore – 2008 †¢ Specialisation in Export Management University of Antwerp, Belgium †¢ 1/1/2000: Start with Lotus Bakeries †¢ Director Sales Marketing Lotus Bakeries Asia Pacific : 1/11/2003 – 31/07/2008 †¢ Since 1/08/2008: Director Export Aim of this lecture : Introduce you shortly to Lotus Bakeries, our products and our structure and link it to our export strategy †¢ Go over some very simple basic principles to take in consideration in export with focus on 4 P’s †¢ Case: introducing Lotus in China †¢ Challenge you to think beyond the known and see international business with different eyes †¢ Q A. Contents : 1) Who is Lotus Bakeries ? †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ 1. History 2. Products 3. Organization 4. Results 5. Corporate Strategy 6. Realisation most important projects 2) Why exporting ? 3) How to start the export adventure ? 4) Case : Introduction of Lotus in China 5) QA 1) Who is Lotus Bakeries ? 1. History 932 1974 1988 2001 2006 2008 Foundation Lotus NV Merger with Corona IPO Lotus brand Acquisition of Koninklijke Peijnenburg (NL) Acquisition of Anna’s Pepparkakor (SE) 2. Products Caramelised biscuits Gingerbread Cakes Waffles Pepparkakor Caramelized biscuits Gingerbread Cakes Waffles Pepparkakor 3. Operational organisation Corporate headquarters in Lembeke 3. Operational organisation Corporate Executive Committee Group Management Team Northern Eastern Europe Belgium Netherlands France UK North America Export 3. Operational organisation Production plants Belgium: 4 France: 2 Netherlands: 3 Sweden: 1 Canada: 1 3. Operational organisation Production plants Canada: Calgary F: Comines Briec SE: Tyreso NL: Enkhuizen, Geldrop, Sintjohannesga B: Lembeke, Oostakker, Meise, Courcelles 3. Operational organisation Logistics centre Belgium – Central logistics centre in Lokeren for Belgium, France, Germany and export 3. Operational organisation Own sales organisations EUROPE San Francisco: USA Canada Singapore: Asia Pacific 3. Operational organisation Other export markets †¢ Export department in Belgium for Europe and Middle East †¢ Cooperation with specialized importers 4. Results 2009 Evolution of turnover – in mio EUR 300 280 260 240 220 200 180 160 140 120 100 56,7 224,5 179,3 152,3 261,1 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 4. Results 2009 EVOLUTION OF TURNOVER in millions of EUR Evolution of turnover 2009 – in mio EUR 275,0 250,0 225,0 200,0 175,0 150,0 125,0 100,0 75,0 50,0 25,0 0,0 1987 1994 1995 2001 2002 2009 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 4. R esults 2009 Total turnover 2009 †¢ 261. 1 mio EUR Evolution †¢ †¢ Compared with 2008: + 1. 7% Like for like: stable evolution in 2009 versus 2008, taking in account: †¢ †¢ †¢ Takeover Anna’s Divestment Harry’s Benelux Falling sales Jaffa Cake Bars with expiry of the contract with Mc Vities We will write a custom essay sample on Lotus Bakery, Case Study specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Lotus Bakery, Case Study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Lotus Bakery, Case Study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Geographical turnover 2009 per area N-America 6,1% NE EU 8,1% UK 5,1% Export 5,1% Belgium 30,5% France 14,0% Netherlands 31,0% REBIT and REBITDA 2009 mio EUR 2009 2008 Evolution % Turnover Depreciation and amounts written off REBIT REBITDA 261. 1 (12. 1) 256. 7 (11. 0) + 1. 7 + 9. 8 34. 6 48. 2 34. 0 45. 7 + 1. 6 + 5. 5 REBIT and REBITDA 6 m 2010/ 6 m 2009 mio EUR Turnover Depreciation and amounts written off REBIT REBITDA 6 m 2010 6 m 2009 127. 2 (5. 6) 17. 5 24. 3 Evolution % 125. 9 (5. 5) 16. 1 22. 7 + 1. 1 + 3. 2 + 8. 8 + 7. 4 5. Lotus Bakeries growth strategy General theme of our strategic choices †¢ We focus our growth objectives on xpanding our best performing products†¦ †¢ †¦not on ‘fixing’ weaker performing products †¢ We believe that†¦ â€Å"The better a product is performing, the further it is away from its full potential† 5. Lotus Bakeries growth strategy Choices â€Å"To become the number 1 branded leader in our specialt y bakery products by maintaining a clear superior taste experience. We want to achieve sales growth ahead of market growth to create room for more investments into the market. † †¢ Original Caramelised biscuits : drive to full potential †¢ Pepparkakor: become clear leader in Nordics and focus on US + Export to Japan. OCB spread: make the success sustainable in home countries †¢ Gingerbread: sharpen positioning and invest behind stars †¢ Waffles: develop star products with international potential †¢ Cakes: invest behind stars †¢ Private label: be very selective Specific growth objectives based on consumer insights (penetration, frequency, value) Strong trade marketing capabilities to win the war in the store Sharp communication on consumption moments linked with brand essence Format innovations to expand star products Maintained lean and flexible supply model to follow the stars and trade activation 5. Lotus Bakeries growth strategy TOP culture TEAMSPIRIT PASSION OPEN DIALOGUE We are using 3 main brands: Lotus, Peijnenburg and Anna’s: Lotus is the main international brand Home markets NL Speculoos BE/FR Nordics International Pepparkakor Spread Ginger bread Waffles Cakes 6. Realisation most important projects. 6. Realisation most important projects. 5. New corporate website 2) Why exporting ? Geographical objectives †¢ Caramelized biscuits: become a global player as market- and brandleader. Geographical objectives †¢ Gingerbread : become market- and brandleader in The Netherlands, Belgium, France Geographical objectives †¢ Cakes : originally regional. Market- and brandleader in the local market of each speciality. Geographical objectives †¢ Waffles: strong presence in countries with own sales office. Geographical objectives †¢ Annas Ginger Thins: maintain leading position in Scandinavia and introduce it world wide. Geographical objectives †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Diversification of the market Need for new turn over Competition in home market Demand from abroad Unique product to bring to the world Love to travel 3) How to start the Export adventure ? How to start the export adventure ? Analysis and home work †¢ SWOT – Analyse †¢ 5 Forces Model of Porter †¢ McKinsey 7S Model †¢ Go – No go †¢ Practical and start †¢ 4 P’s SWOT Analysis 5 Forces Model Porter What determines the average industry profitability ? 7S Model What are our core competences on Company level ? Go – No go Concent ric approach Go ? Start 4P’s or 7 P’s 4 P’s †¢ More in production oriented industries †¢ Product †¢ Price †¢ Place †¢ Promotion 4P’s or 7 P’s 3 extra P’s †¢ More in a service industry †¢ People †¢ Process †¢ Physical Evidence 3. 1 Unique product and unique concept for export Some questions on the product The product for export is not the same as the product for your domestic market: Why? Some questions on the product †¢ Which products can I sell in export? Why should I export this product? †¢ Do I have to adapt the taste, shape, details of the products? †¢ What about the local rules in f. i. food safety? †¢ What about the local rules in packaging and labeling? †¢ What about the size, weight, colour,†¦ of my product? †¢ Is my packaging suitable for overseas export (transport, palletisation,†¦. ) Some questions on the product †¢ Do I have a story on my pr oduct or an unique concept? Does my product requires special production methodes, different from the methodes used for my domestic products? †¢ Do I need to do more indepth research? 3. 2 Price structure for export Bottom up calculation †¢ Cost price calculation: how much does my products cost basically? †¢ Raw materials, labour, overheads, internal transport, warehousing, General Administration costs, †¦ †¢ How much gross margin do I need – want ? Bottom up calculation †¢ Which Incoterm do we use? †¢ Ex Works - inside EU †¢ FOB - overseas †¢ Others: liability? (CF, CIF,†¦) Bottom up calculation †¢ Extra costs for export? Extra packaging extra labels †¢ Transport: refer or not? Special transport modus? †¢ Extra people involved? †¢ Extra documents (certificate of origin, health certificate, transport documents, †¦) †¢ Insurance Bottom up calculation †¢ Extra costs for marketing support overs eas †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Sampling degustation Introduction Listing fees Actions and promotions Local sales team? Instore activities, publicity, advertising, †¦ Top down check †¢ Competition †¢ Who is it and what type of products do they sell †¢ What is their pricing level? Top down check †¢ Market †¢ How much spending power do people have? What proportion of that power is spent to products like mine? †¢ Is the market price sensitive or not? Potential extra costs barriers †¢ Potential Extra Costs †¢ Import duties †¢ Exchange rate: cost of money Potential extra costs barriers †¢ Potential Barriers †¢ Tarrifs †¢ Import duties, Transit duties (India),†¦ †¢ Non-Tarrifs †¢ Rules, laws that change,†¦ †¢ F. i. closure of Chinese ports during Olympics 3. 3 Place : Local Distribution in export What kind of local distribution ? Different forms of partnership in distribution dependin g on how complex you want to go †¢ Agent : intermediair between you and potential clients. You sell to the local client, the agent gets a commission. †¢ Importer: you sell directly to him; he markets your product †¢ Importer wholesaler What kind of local distribution ? Different forms of partnership in distribution depending on how complex you want to go †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Representative office: check the market Sales office: part of own organisation Joint Venture: check the market Local production: own local company Be prepared Who is our local partner ? Checklist. †¢ General information: name, address, phone numbers,.. †¢ How is he structured? Who are his clients? †¢ Geographic structure: e. g. in China: is he all over the country? Own sales people? †¢ Logistics: does he has his own warehouse and trucks? How is he organised? †¢ What other products does he import – distribute – manufacture ? Be prepared Who is our local partner ? Checklist. †¢ Conditioning of the products locally: refrigerator or not, stock capacity, how will he handle our products? †¢ Is he a brand builder? Is he market leader? †¢ Exclusivity or not? Territorial protection? †¢ How to check? †¢ Via internet or own network etc †¢ Via banks, Chamber of Commerce, business Clubs,†¦ †¢ Via Embassy or FIT 3. 4 Promotion : Export marketing Export marketing Brand or Private label ? OEM ? What does our brand means in that country? †¢ What is our brand positioning? †¢ What is our target public there? Export marketing What actions ? †¢ Sampling and tastings †¢ How to measure the impact of actions? How to get the exact figures? Nielsen , GFK,†¦ Export marketing Local ru les on advertising ? †¢ Any restrictions ? †¢ Anything we can’t do ? Export marketing Cost of marketing actions : †¢ How much budget do we need ? †¢ How much is paid by our local partner ? Cultural issues †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Cultural: position of men and women? Religious rules (written or non written) Language Colours Political issues: avoid . 5 People : Internal Structure Internal structure Do we have an export department ? †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Do we need an export manager? Who will do the back office? Can we be reached the whole day? Do we master the languages? Internal structure Export needs to be structured Focus leads to succes. Other departments Logistic department : †¢ Inter company transport †¢ Transport to harbour †¢ Export documents Other departments Quality management : †¢ What rules? †¢ How to use them in a commercial way Other departments IT department : †¢ Internet connections †¢ SAP Other departments Finance department : †¢ Export cost money Other departments General management : †¢ Everybody in the company must believe in export †¢ Communication with collegues and management: personal PR †¢ Take everybody with you in the story 3. 6 Process : Process Procedures, flows, processes etc. by which services are consumed : †¢ How does the supply chain go from our suppliers over our company all the way to the end consumer of our product or service? †¢ How do we manage and controle those processes? †¢ Audits? ISO? 3. 7. Physical Evidence : Physical evidence The ability and environment in which the service is performed †¢ What tools do we need to perform and deliver? How can we measure our clients needs and expectations ? †¢ How can we meet these expectations ? †¢ How to reach customers with other expectations ? 4. Case : Introduction of Lotus in China 4. 1. Prospection phase Prospection phase Since 2000 we started to follow the Chinese market and tried to get insights †¢ How is th e market organised and structured †¢ Who are the local and international players in the market – production and sales ? †¢ How does the supply chain looks ? †¢ What type of consumers do we have and what is the segmentation we can do ? Prospection phase Partner selection : done by 2004 †¢ How do we want to enter the market ? No own production †¢ No own company †¢ No direct delivery to the retailers †¢ ? Via an importer †¢ They know the market †¢ They take ownership and responsability Prospection phase Partner selection : done by 2004 †¢ Who are the import companies? †¢ What is their strenght and potential ? †¢ What kind of contract do we have ? Analyse 2009 : Analyse of existing partner in view of challenges in growth and logistic power for world expo 2010 : new partner selected 4. 2. Start up phase Start up phase : Products : †¢ Only speculoos †¢ Focus on coffee + cookie concept †¢ Single wrapped packs and family packs Start up phase : Region : †¢ China is too big to be seen as one country †¢ Different languages †¢ Different cultures †¢ Different eating paterns †¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¢ Where do we start ? †¢ Shanghai †¢ Rest of China (e. g. Carrefour) 4. 3. Growth phase Sales marketing support 2010 : Sales are supported based on a marketing plan †¢ What action : sampling and tasting, TG/gondola, 2nd placement†¦ †¢ Cost of actions †¢ Estimated volume and sales †¢ Agreed by Lotus Bakeries Sales marketing support 2010 : Support : †¢ Mostly in free sampling goods, participation to exhibitons, tastings †¦ Pricing situation †¢ Mostly our price level in the trade is OK. We are cheaper priced then high end brands like Bahlsen, JDS etc†¦ and of course higher priced then local manufactured products. †¢ Positioning : sophisticated (from Europe), yet accessable. Brand salience in China Challenges : †¢ Need to translate our brand salience and visualise this link with coffee consumption at home. Brand salience in China Challenges : †¢ Consistency in our communication: †¢ Look and feel of new OCB packaging †¢ Sampling booth †¢ Website: www. lotusbakeries. cn †¢ Action and promotions Brand salience in China Challenges : †¢ Technical : how do we make publicity ? What kind of setting ? †¢ What kind of models ? Sampling in the basis Possible sampling places and moments ? †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ World expo at Belgian Pavillion Retail in Shanghai during the expo period In atrium or shopping centra Street : sampling in Nanjing Lu, Huaihai Lu and other main shopping streets †¢ Bars, hotels†¦ during night events ? †¢ Exhibitions : Food Hotel China, Sweets China, at the entrance and corridors, in our booth†¦ Sampling @ Expo †¢ In 3 locations : at the entrance of the Belgian Pavillion, in coffee shop and in shop †¢ Lotus has developped the wrapper and will give 8. 00. 000 biscuits for free †¢ 1 biscuit per second †¢ Biggest sampling action for Lotus ever Sampling @ Expo †¢ The focus is on one pack : OCB 25X1 which is sold in the pavillion at the same price as downtown Shanghai (22 RMB) †¢ Local coordination by PAF trainee Sampling @ Expo Queuing for the Belgian Pavilion Queuing for the Belgian Pavilion sampling sampling sampling sampling sampling In the shop In the shop In the shop In the shop In the shop Questions ? †¢ Thank you for your attention †¢ www. lotusbakeries. com

Corkd Essays

Corkd Essays Corkd Paper Corkd Paper Gaining traction with wineries was an integral part of Ronas core strategy, but the finances of the company made getting signing even more vital. Start-up funds were delighting, and Corked was shorthanded on developers; the demands of the new site placed a heavy burden on the lone developer on the payroll. It was encouraging that despite the work needed on the site, users loved it, quickly became loyal, and were growing in number. But the $999 winery sign-up fees were the companys primary source of revenue, so Rona knew that to hire another developer, let alone cover the current payroll, Corked needed more wineries to join?and soon. Background In February 2006, entrepreneurs Dan Benjamin and Dan Stockholder launched Corks, a website dedicated to wine lovers. Corks was Initially Intended to provide people with a place to rate and review wines, and Benjamin and Stockholder envisioned ultimately expanding the site Into a fulfilled wine social network. In this early version, Corks used an ad-based business model and featured a limited relationship with wine. Com whereby users could shop for selected wines from wine-com. The most loyal Corks advertiser was Gary Evanescence, a brick-and-mortar and online wine retailer based in New Jersey. In May 2007, Benjamin and Cathedral felt that Corked had grown large enough that it needed a more suitable home, and they sold the site to Evanescence. Evanescence had developed a passion for wine at a very young age, since wine was his familys business. By the time he was 30, Evanescence had grown the familys local liquor shop into a national brand, renamed Wine Library, by becoming one of the first retailers to sell wine on the Internet. As Wine Library expanded, Evanescence pursued several parallel business ventures that complemented wine retail. In addition to purchasing Corks, Evanescence created a ally wine video blob (a flog) he called Wine Library TV. Wine Library TV aimed to demystify the often Intimidating world of wine, offering viewers an accessible approach. Evanescences humorous, hyperactive style (e. G. , spitting wine into a metal New York Jets Ducked, Ana s Eng Lord Ana rocks on alarm to demonstrate Tailor) struck a chord with web-surfing wine aficionados. Evanescence and Wine Library TV quickly Professor Peter Coles prepared this case. Research Associate Matthew Chaos provided excellent assistance. HOBS cases are developed solely as the basis for class discussion. Cases are not intended to serve as endorsements, sources of primary data, or illustrations of effective or ineffective management. Copyright 2010, 2011, 2012 President and Fellows of Harvard College. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1800-545-7685, write Harvard Business School Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to www. Hobs. Harvard. Deed/educators. This publication may not be digitized, photocopied, or otherwise reproduced, posted, or transmitted, without the permission of Harvard Business School. This document is authorized for use only by Pretests Nair in Understanding the Customer VIM Alamo Square at , 2014. 91 1-026 Corked: Building a Social Network for Wine Lovers developed a dedicated following, eventually reaching over 90,000 daily viewers (self- described as Maniacs). Evanescence activities led some in the media to dub him a wine social media guru and the first wine guru of the Youth era. Evanescence built on his success through consulting, speaking engagements, appearing on talk shows (notably getting Cowan OBrien to put a dirty sock in his mouth), and publishing two books, the second of which, Crush It! , became a New York Times Business Best Seller in 2009. While business ventures and traveling engagements were keeping Evanescence busy, Corked received less attention. Not wanting to go halfway with a project, Evanescence let Corked stagnate almost as soon as he bought it. Meanwhile, Rona was getting her MBA at Harvard Business School. Prior to business school, Rona had spent four years in investment banking and private equity, but her real passion lay in wine and technology. In the summer of 2008, Rona worked for Charmer Sunbelt, a large wine distributor in Brooklyn, N. Y. , where she studied the wine supply chain, measuring the value added in its various stages. That summer, Evanescence and Rona met over beers and instantly connected, talking about wine, social media, business, and family. The next year at Harvard, Rona became president of the HOBS Wine Cuisine Society. She invited Evanescence to visit HOBS and shake things up at the schools sometimes pretentious wine tasting. Evanescence agreed to come that fall. During the visit, Evanescence and Rona talked some more and realized they shared a passion for making wine less intimidating. Evanescence agreed to supervise Rona on an independent field study of Corked. Over the year, the woo hired an outside developer and design team, and put together a plan to overhaul ten Wesley. Six months into the field study, Rona decided that after HOBS, she wanted to work for Corked full time. She put together a proposal for a role and a compensation package, and went to New York City to discuss the idea in person with Evanescence. Rona was nervous; she had never proposed anything like this before, worried that her requests were too aggressive, and didnt know how Evanescence would react. Rona met with Evanescence at an event where he was an invited speaker, which added to her fears of appearing too presumptuous. He stepped outside the event to meet with Rona for, as she described it, as long as it took. She put her offer on the table. Evanescence looked away and thought for about 15 seconds. Then he said, Okay, but then I want you to be CEO. Under the arrangement, Evanescence would provide the initial funding for the company?enough to hire Rona and a full-time developer. Rona would receive equity in addition to her salary. Any additional capital would come from revenue generated from the site itself. Rona accepted the offer, and after she graduated in May 2009, the wheels at Corked started to turn. Evanescence and Ronas first hire was a chief technical officer, Kyle Bragger; subsequently, Rona hired five interns for the summer. Since Evanescence purchase of Corked the site had received no development attention and, at one point, was even hacked and redirected to a pornographic website for a day. Despite the stagnation, the user base had continued to grow. But the lack of maintenance, combined with a flaw in the early site design, created an unusual problem. Corked relied heavily on user-generated content, but the site lacked functionality to check for errors. As a result, the Corked team was faced tit an extensive wine-review database, but one filled with misspelled wines, duplicate listings, and incorrect information. Convinced this data was worth salvaging, Rona spent several weeks correcting errors herself. And to partially address these problems going forward, Bragger developed a wine-input system that made it nearly impossible to add a duplicate wine and let users flag duplicates that slipped through. 2 Envisioning the Corked Community The new version of Corked accommodated two types of users: individuals and wineries (see Exhibit 1 for a screens). For individual users, Corked offered several eaters shared by social networks like Faceable and review sites like Yelp, but with dedicated functionality for wine. Corked users could upload profiles, interact with other users, and choose friends (aka drinking buddies). Users could also review and rate wines, maintain a wine cellar, create wine shopping lists, and, importantly, actively engage Walt wellness. Slice well coeducation was a primary Touch, users could easily navigate to learn about grapes, producers, and wines. Users generated much of this information themselves. Corked directed users to an external, third-party site o purchase wines, and it received commissions for outbound clicks. Individuals could also link their Corked profiles to their Faceable and Twitter accounts. At the same time, wineries could maintain profile pages where they could post information, provide links to their own websites (where, among other things, they could presumably make wine sales), and interact directly with devotees of their wines. Corked hoped that these features would help wineries establish engaging, direct-to-consumer relationships. Accounts for individuals were free, and there were no paid, premium features anywhere on Corked. Only after exiting the site to purchase wine would individuals make any payment. In contrast, a winery account required a $999 annual fee. For this fee, in addition to having access to a profile page, wineries were identified as and were occasionally featured on the sites home page. Corked also featured wines from verified wineries in promotional tasting (during which tasters used Corked to review and comment on the wines), and interviewed verified winery owners for publication in Corks weekly e-mail newsletter. For each winery in the database that did not have a paid account, Corked created a bare-bones page. Wineries could click on a link to claim their page, go through a verification process, and upgrade to full membership. In theory, this could be a means to attract paid accounts, but as of January 2010, no wineries had signed up this way. Rather, direct interaction with Rona and Evanescence accounted for all winery sign-ups. Unlike the original version of Corked under Benjamin and Stockholder, the new version was free of advertisements. Rona reasoned that by creating an ad-free site, she could offer users the best possible experience, which would attract the greatest number of users?those who would remain loyal for the long term. Wineries in turn would respond to a large and active community, and would recognize the value of marketing to such a dedicated group of customers. The marketing that wineries might in engage in?responding to fans and posting detailed information about their wines and vineyards?would itself be valuable content, Rona believed. In developing this ad-free, higher-for-wineries approach, Rona drew from a model used by Sermons, a social network designed for doctors, which let pharmaceutical companies offer information about their drugs if they paid a fee to Sermons. (For information about Sermons, see HOBS case No. 809-142. )1 Competitive Landscape As of January 2010, several websites offered wine social networks, although the most popular of these were somewhat distinct in emphasis and appealed to different kinds of users. (See Exhibit 2 for a floggers perceived positioning of several wine sites. ) 3 For ten exclusive use AT P Snoots. Mom Snoots. Com, launched in June 2007, described itself as the worlds largest and most comprehensive online wine destination. After creating a free account, users could browse wine scores and reviews, and could interact with fellow users, wineries, and other merchants. Shopping was an important part of Snoots offering: users could reach for specific wine varieties, compare pric es across merchants, and make purchases via links to third-party vendors. Snoots also allowed users to track their own inventories online, link their accounts to Twitter and Faceable, and use a free phone application. Online traffic comparisons suggested that Snoots consistently outpaced other wine sites with social networking features (see Exhibit 3 for user trends). In November 2009, Snoots reached 250,000 registered users, which represented a 500% growth rate over a 12-month period. In 2008, Snoots. Com won the Enforcement Group Model of Excellence Award. 2 Accelerated. Mom In 2003, former Microsoft manager Eric Levine designed an online system to track his own extensive wine inventory and document his experiences at wine tasting. Impressed with his work, Olivines friends encouraged him to expand the system so they too could manage their wine collections and record reviews. On April 25, 2004, Levine opened Accelerated. Com to the public, letting users register free. By integrating wine reviews with their own inventories, users could better understand whether to open a particular bottle or to hold it until it matured, which was often a critical question for wine collectors. In January 2010, Cellar Tracker reported 93,374 users with a total of 1 5,922,545 bottles in their collective inventories. Though registered use was free, Levine solicited voluntary payments of $30 per year for users with fewer than 500 bottles, $60 per year for those with 500 to 1,000 bottles, and $100 per year for those with larger collections. Paid users could access the sites premium features, which included automatic valuation of ones collection using data from Wined. Com. 4 In January 2010, Cellar Tracker announced and demonstrated a site redesign that further emphasized social networking features. Over the 12 months preceding January 2010, Cellar Tracker ranked Just behind Snoots in traffic, but had a large lead over its competitors in time spent per user visit. Venire. Com Founded in 2005, Venire. Com was primarily a wine search engine that offered limited social networking features. Venire had a database of over 1 million wines and used proprietary crawl technology to maintain current price listings for each entry. By creating a free account, users could review wines and retailers and could malignant snooping lists, out Vulture 010 not offer tracking AT personal well collections. As of 2009, Venire ranked consistently lower than its competitors in daily page views and time spent on the site. September 2009 Reliance By September 2009, Corked was ready to reliance with its new social networking features and pricing structure. The companys reliance strategy consisted of two components. First, Corked planned a broad PR and social media campaign timed to coincide with the coming public launch. Just before the launch, Corked would host a grand unveiling of the site and wine-tasting perchance party 4 in New York City to which it would invite key influences. Second, Corked had in place variety of features and promotions to sustain momentum after the launch. The Corked team was confident that it could use Evanescence celebrity to grab attention and attract new sign-ups. But equally crucial was keeping newly recruited wine lovers engaged while on the site so they would ultimately become desirable, long- term users. Rona and Evanescence recruited 14 wineries to sign up for full memberships and join in the unveiling of the new Corked. 5 The team also sent loyal Corked users and New York supporters invitations to the party, to be held on Monday, September 14, at Corked headquarters. Over the course of the evening, a collection of wine lovers sampled wines, while Evanescence and Rona personally demonstrated the new features of the website. Attendees tasted wines from the 14 reliance wineries and wrote reviews on their laptops. Representatives from the reliance wineries as far away as South Africa sat in front of computers at home awaiting user comments. Soon, tasters were interacting with the winemakers and vineyard owners of the wines they were sampling. The community was operating Just as the Corked team had envisioned. As hoped, the tech-savvy attendees spread the word about their experience by tweeting, posting Faceable updates, and blobbing. (See Exhibit 4 for one of the blob posts. ) Although the tasting was a success, Corked needed to do significant development work before it could release the new site to the public. But two days after the release party, Evanescence was featured in the Wall Street Journal for his growing social media influence. Because of the hits to the website and the number of e-mails Corked started receiving, Rona wanted to open the site ahead of schedule. Even though a number of bugs still needed to be fixed, Evanescence agreed, and Corked opened to he public on September 16, 2009. A flurry of blob posts and several articles in influential tech outlets accompanied the launch, and user traffic spiked (see Exhibit 5 Tort an article In electronic). To build on the excitement of the launch, the Corked team devoted significant time and effort to recruiting more users. A first step was to reach out to users from the old, stagnant Corked to let them know that the site was active again. The team found that many of these former users had migrated to competing wine review websites, but some were amenable to returning. Evanescence celebrity was a key tool in reaching UT to new users. By posting links on Twitter approximately three times per week, Evanescence was able to direct many of his followers to the site. Wine Library TV was also a useful recruiting tool. After each tasting episode, Evanescence would provide viewers with a direct link to Corked so they could post a review of the wine he had Just discussed. Corked also used Twitter to recruit users unfamiliar with Evanescence. By searching for wine-related tweets, interns at Corked would find and correspond with users who indicated an interest in wine. If there was a mutual fit, the Corked interns, Ewing careful not to be too aggressive, would encourage the posters to add their commentary to the Corked site. In the weeks following the launch, Twitter led to about 200 fresh Corked user sign-ups each day. (See Exhibit 6 for growth trends. ) Corked provided incentives to keep new users engaged. It introduced a newbie badge that users could earn once they performed certain activities, like uploading a picture to the site and posting a minimum number of reviews. Corked also launched a contest in which the users who wrote the most reviews each month won a trip to New York to a wine-tasting party with Evanescence and the Corked team. Evanescence believed that maintaining fresh content was important in bringing repeat users to the site. While user-generated reviews were a source of material, Corked introduced a feature to ensure that new articles about wine were available on the site on a regular basis. Led by senior editor Jonathan Trumann, Corked Content employed a model inspired by the Huffing Post. Guest 5 writers would create content that would be available on Corked. Corked would simultaneously license the content to other websites, and since the articles included links to Corked, they generated traffic (and potentially new users) back to the site. Corked also made plans to release a mobile application. The company signed a deal with Bridgeheads development team BOOK to craft a tool for Corked users to read, rate, and review wines while on the go. Corked competitors Snoots and Cellar Tracker each offered their own phone application, although user reviews of these applications suggested that reception had been lukewarm. Challenges Ahead Reflecting on wineries concerns when deciding whether to Join, Rona knew that wellness wanted to De addle to measure ten Detentes AT cork to Justly D TN ten price and the resources they would need to maintain an account. How could current, verified wineries know how much business their paid account at Corked had brought them? And more important for recruiting purposes, how could wineries predict the relevant metrics before signing up? Other concerns arose, such as the sites limited ability to allow wineries to customize their profiles?for example, by adding photos. Most of these seemed easy enough to fix, but then again, development resources were limited. The $999 price point seldom came up as an obstacle, although Rona knew that she could never really be sure if silence on price reflected politeness or an unwillingness to sound petty or damage relationships with Evanescence. Broader questions lurked in the background. Had Corked properly balanced effort spent on recruiting wineries with effort recruiting individual users? Was recruiting wineries essential to developing a thriving community? Was there a risk of signing wineries up before enough users were active on Corked, leading to wineries frustration about limited activity? Perhaps Corked should focus on other ways to increase its user base and activity on the site, so that down the road, wineries wouldnt think twice about the value of signing up. But how long would that take? With a tight budget, it was not clear that Corked had the luxury of patience. 6 Exhibit 1 Corked. Com Home Page Source: Corked LLC, http:// www. Corked. Com, accessed January 27, 2010. 7 Exhibit 2 Article In grape (September 22, Class vs.. Mass and the Battle for Your Tasting Notes By Jeff Leftover Its somewhat De arguer for wine enthusiasts to state that they believe in the demagnification of wine: a chicken in every pot and a wine glass on every table. As the saying goes, if I had a nickel for every time somebody said they wanted to demystify wine Id be a very wealthy man, indeed. Vive been thinking about this since word came out last week via a press release and an article at Outstretch that tasting note and social community site Corked reluctance with a new CEO (Lindsay Rona?a freshly minted Harvard MBA hired by Gary Evanescence who assumes the mantle of Chairman). In my opinion, watching these various communities develop and grow is some of the most dynamic and interesting water cooler action in wine today. Historically, tasting note sites like Cellar Tracker, Evincible and Corked started out as a closed-off combination of personal cellar management and tasting notes, but has quickly morphed into their own communities on par and exceeding many of the most heavily trafficked wine sites on the web. Pick Your Flavor Each of these sites brings the same basic premise to the table, with very different executions. Evincible is the Wine Advocate of the online wine tasting note scene collectible wines with a very high-end user. Cellar Tracker, easily the largest service of its kind, is more of the Wine Spectator / Wine Enthusiast audience?educated and smart while casting a wider net of inclusiveness for wine lovers. And, Corked. Well, Corked is a bit of a mystery and deserves time to develop under focused leadership, UT its not a stretch to say that their audience consists of a significant population of those Just earning their first wine merit badge. How else to explain the fact that one of the top rated wines is a Timescale dessert wine, alongside a 95 Chateau Maraud? It is ironic that these three sites represent the three different strata of customers in the wine world. And, each takes different approaches to their ongoing development strategies. Evincible is one of a myriad of services offered by wine company Finally. Evincible aids the Finally cause as a complementary vehicle for their high-end audience interested in cellar management and other wine portfolio needs, with tasting notes acting as an ancillary benefit. Credit where credit is due, Alder Yarrow, the online wine communitys most influential writer is, by day, a user-experience expert who worked on the Evincible redesign project. His combination of wine knowledge and usability expertise creates a very elegant site experience. Cellar Tracker, the grand old dame of this space, is more community and tasting notes driven with a very high-level of activity from their user base, having recently notched their one millionth tasting note. Compare to Evincible self-reported number of ASK tasting notes and you can see the wide delta in user engagement, if not quantity of users. 8 For ten exclusive use AT P Offered as a donation-based service with some premium offerings, Cellar Tracker sprung out of founder Eric Olivines desire to create exactly what he has today?an online community of wine lovers trading thoughts and notes on their bottled wine adventures. Whats lacking in elegance in design (Eries rolling out a new version sometime in the next couple of months) is made up for by depth and breadth. Corked, on the other hand, is definitely more proletariat if Evincible and Cellar Tracker are bourgeoisie. With a decidedly more common touch, Corked is re-launching with the idea of bridging the gap directly between winery and consumer. Leveraging Faceable Connect, a universal web sign-on of sorts, with direct integration into Faceable, Corked has a tremendous opportunity to tap into the very significant segment of the wine consuming public that drinks the stuff, but doesnt wax poetic with purple prose. The fact that Corked is directly integrated with Faceable also allows them to ramp up number of users very, very quickly. Heres the thing about these tasting note sites they havent been tapped for marketing from wineries, though Corked is looking to change that. Their business model is to engage wineries to setup a page on the Corked site for an annual subscription fee of $999, allowing the winery to directly engage with consumers. Its a smart move, with a lot of implications. Life Gets More Complicated I can imagine a very near future where even the most casual of wine fans is avidly logging their notes as an ongoing historical Journey of their wine adventure. And, given my belief that winery marketers will come to tasting note sites, all tasting note ties, coupled with what could be a huge expansion in people doing tasting notes online, this has me wondering what it all means. Unfortunately, people want to associate with people that are like them. Sure, I want to demystify wine and I want more people to enjoy wine because a rising tide raises all ships, however, Id prefer not to have to spend a whole lot of time around somebody who thinks Burgundy is a jug of wine, or somebody whose self-proclaimed love of wine takes them about as far as the wine aisle at Safety looking for a $7 Reselling?especially if I have a choice of where I hang out online. So, ultimately the question is this: as tasting note sites become a widespread tool in the arsenal of people who pursue their love of wine online, and wineries engage on that turf, what will ultimately happen?

The Relationship of the United States With Russia

The Relationship of the United States With Russia From 1922 to 1991, Russia was the largest part of the Soviet Union. Through most the final half of the 20th Century, the United States and the Soviet Union (known also as the USSR) were the principal actors in an epic battle, referred to as a Cold War, for global domination. This battle was, in the broadest sense, a struggle between communist and capitalist forms of economy and social organization. Even though Russia has now nominally adopted democratic and capitalist structures, Cold War history still colors U.S.-Russian relations today.​ World War II Prior to entering World War II, the United States gave the Soviet Union and other countries millions of dollars worth of weapons and other support for their fight against Nazi Germany. The two nations became allies in the liberation of Europe. At wars end, countries occupied by Soviet forces, including a large part of Germany, were dominated by Soviet influence. British Prime Minister  Winston Churchill described this territory as being behind an Iron Curtain. The division provided the framework for the Cold War  which ran from roughly 1947 to 1991. Fall of the Soviet Union Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev lead a series of reforms which eventually lead to the dissolution of the Soviet empire into a variety of independent states. In 1991, Boris Yeltsin became the first democratically elected Russian president. The dramatic change led to an overhaul of U.S. foreign and defense policy. The new era of tranquility that ensued also led the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists to set the Doomsday Clock back to 17 minutes to midnight (the farthest away the clocks minute hand has ever been), a sign of stability in the world stage. New Cooperation The end of the Cold War gave the United States and Russia new opportunities to cooperate. Russia took over the permanent seat (with full veto power) previously held by the Soviet Union at the United Nations Security Council. The Cold War had created gridlock in the council, but the new arrangement meant a rebirth in U.N. action. Russia was also invited to join the informal G-7 gathering of the worlds largest economic powers making it the G-8. The United States and Russia also found ways to cooperate in securing loose nukes in former Soviet territory, although there is still much to be done on this issue. Old Frictions The United States and Russia have still found plenty over which to clash. The United States has pushed hard for further political and economic reforms in Russia, while Russia bristles at what they see as meddling in internal affairs. The United States and its allies in NATO have invited new, former Soviet, nations to join the alliance in the face of deep Russian opposition. Russia and the United States have clashed over how best to settle the final status of Kosovo and how to treat Irans efforts to gain nuclear weapons. Most recently, Russias controversial annexation of Crimea and military action in Georgia highlighted the rift in U.S.-Russian relations.

Frederick Taylors Scientific Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Frederick Taylors Scientific Management - Essay Example Because of this work, Taylor gains the reputation of being the father of scientific management. Scientific management methods, as put forward by Taylor, "called for optimizing the way tasks were performed and simplifying the jobs enough so that workers could be trained to perform their specialized sequenced of motions in one best way" (Frederick Taylor and Scientific Management 1). The formulation of scientific management is Taylor's response to the working conditions during his time. It should be noted that prior to scientific management, the various works in the factory are solely performed by skilled craftsmen who have acquired their knowledge and skills through long and tedious apprenticeships. Having no particular specifications from the management on how jobs should be performed, workers during the period are given much autonomy, giving them the sole discretion on how their jobs should be performed. Thinking that their apprenticeship has been adequate in shaping and preparing for the jobs required, management are often left with other decision making tasks. However, scientific management changed this situation in the workplace by "taking away much of this autonomy and converting skilled crafts into a series of simplified jobs that could be performed by unskilled workers who easily could be trained for the tasks" (Frederick Taylor and Scientific Managemen t 2). Taylor, through his time and motion studies formulated the most scientifically efficient in doing performing a single task which do not only lessen the workload for each employee but also shorten the time that the task is performed. The main contribution of Taylor in the field of management can be delineated within the bounds of management service practice and organisational management. The main premise of Taylor in the concepts which he put forward is the utilisation of scientific principles in every situation including the solution of problems in business organisations (Frederick Winslow Taylor 2). Through his exposure on steel workers, Taylor has observed what he calls soldiering which he explains as "underworking, that is, deliberately working slowly so as to avoid a full day's work" (Taylor 6). He observes that the current situation facilitates this inefficiency of workers. According to him, there are three primary reasons which causes soldiering: first, the universal belief that if workers become productive, less workers will be needed causing elimination or termination; second, the non-incentive wage system which encourage workers to work at a slow pace considering that they will be paid the same wage regardless of the amount of work that they finish; and third, the reliance on rule of the thumb measures and the absence of optimal work methods in order to enhance efficiency (Frederick Taylor and Scientific Management 4). With this, Taylor lays down the four principles which become the foundations of scientific management. Scientific management calls for the replacement of the rule of the thumb work methods with systems derived from scientific studies (Frederick Taylor

What caused the korean war Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

What caused the korean war - Essay Example The Korean War, civil and military struggle that was fought on the Korean Peninsula and that reached its height between 1950 and 1953, was originated in the division of Korea into South Korea and North Korea after World War II (1939-1945) . Efforts to reunify the peninsula after the war failed, and in 1948, the South proclaimed the Republic of Korea after the elections held under the United Nations and the North established the People’s Republic of Korea under the influence of the USSR. In 1949, border fighting broke out between the North and the South. On June 25, 1950, North Korean forces crossed the dividing line and invaded the South. Soon, in defence of the South, the United States joined the fighting under the banner of the United Nations (UN), along with small contingents of British, Canadian, Australian, and Turkish troops. In October 1950, China joined the war on the North’s side. By the time a cease-fire agreement was signed on July 27, 1953, millions of soldiers and civilians had perished. The armistice ended the fighting, but Korea has remained divided for decades since and subject to the possibility of a new war at any time3. In this paper, I will talk about causes of Korean War. World War II ended in Sep 1945, with the total surrender of Japan. Now little Korea, a bone without meat, was in paw reach of Russian armies. Dictator Joseph Stalin was all too well aware of Korea’s value as a foil against Russia’s traditional rivals, China and Japan, and as a checkmate to the United States which, having won the war in the pacific, was bound to play a leading role in establishing the new order in Asia4. He was set to overrun Korea, not to prepare it for freedom, but to convert it to Communism and thereafter exploit it. This has been his plan in central Europe, where he had first liberated, then, held captive, what are called the Iron curtain countries. In 1943, after the Cairo conference, Stalin had agreed with US,

Impact of Transnational Corporations on NICs

Impact of Transnational Corporations on NICs Introduction What are TNCs? Trans National Corporations (TNCs) are companies which operate in at least 2 countries. Its organization is very hierarchical with the headquarters as well as research development often located in the mother country. Production centers tend to be host countries. When organization becomes more worldwide regional headquarters and regional research development will widen in the manufacturing countries. This gives TNCs many advantages, such as right of entry to the global market, cheap labor, low production costs, consequently greater profits. The headquarters of these remains in its mother country, usually one of the most developed countries in the world, like USA UK. Their established factories throughout the world, which either make parts or entire finished goods for the company to sell on the global market. Among all the TNCs in the world, Most of them are oil companies such as Exxon (Esso) BP, car manufacturing companies (for instance Toyota, Ford, Nissan and Volkswagen). Other familiar companies like Sony, IBM and Coca-Cola are also defined as being TNCs. Trance National Corporations are established globally for their advantages, to earn more profits. They bring with them both positive and negative impacts for the country that plays host to them. Top 10 TNCs in 2009 TNCs manufacturing high-tech Scientific instructions, pharmaceuticals microelectronics, (Mitsubishi, Sony, Glaxo- Smithkleine) Large volume consumer goods Tyres, Motor vehicles, televisions other electronic products (Toyota, Daimler, Ford, Volkswagen, General Motors) 3) Mass produced consumer goods cigarettes, beverages, breakfast cereals, cosmetics branded goods (Mars, Uniliever, Nestle, Kraft foods) 4) Service Banking/ insurance, freight transport, advertising, hotel chains and fast food outlets (IN group, AXA, citigroup, HSBC, Allianz, Dexia) TNCs organize manage economic activities in different regions develop trade inside between units of the similar corporation in different regions. It means they can often control the terms of trade and can diminish the effect of quota boundaries on the movement of products, go around trade tariffs. Advantages to TNCs TNCs have the ability to take advantage of spatial differences in factors of production. They can utilize differences in the accessibility of labor, capital, and building or land costs. e.g. 2002 Dyson moved its production from a plant in Malmesbury, Wiltshire to Malayasia to take advantage of cheap labor. Dyson did retain several hundred jobs in Wiltshire for RD saving of 30% in production costs0 They can locate to take advantage of government policies such as lower taxes, subsidies and grants and less strict legislation on employment and pollution. They can get round trade barriers by locating production within the market where they want to sell. E.g. Nissan in Sunderland, Toyota in Derby. Japanese car firms have been attracted to locations in the EU because of quota restrictions on the import of Japanese made vehicles into European manufacturers and gain entry to the European market What are NICs? Country that has within recent decades experienced a get through into rapid productivity growth, rapid export oriented economic growth, quick industrialization farther a high amount of investment and assets formation largely funded from local savings, and a high tendency to export, with end user durables and machinery accounting for a large share of exports. Superior examples are South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore. These countries invest capital and production facilities in other developing countries like China, Vietnam, India, and some countries in South East Asia. Within 20th century lots of East Asia countries were industrialized such as South Koria, Taiwan, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Japan. These states are called as Newly Industrialized Countries or (NICs). They are also sometimes referred to as Tiger Economies because of the growth rate of these counties. The governments of NICs controlled over industrial development motivated industries to export manufactured products to abrade such as more developed states. The exports profits were re-invested in the local economy. Local businesses did grow; wages rose workers did spend their new assets to buy domestic goods and services thus motivating further growth. This type of rotation or knock-on effect, in which money paid out by businesses is reinvested inside the country, is often called the multiplier effect. NICs have been being succeeded for the last 30 years. That successfulness of these economies has contributed to the turn down of manufacturing industries in MEDCs like UK. Industries struggled to compete with the NICs competition, because their production cost and wages were very low. Characteristics of NICs Countries whorled market exporter share is increasing, they often copying existing products then reproducing for a much low price. Continues growth in the production sector that results for more exports continues increasing of GDP. Generally NICs Can be developed by three stagers, thats traditional society to a developed country society. Three stagers are explained below. The time frame of whole process can be minimum 30 years. Traditional society: There are more labors work under the industry, its labor oriented. Concentrating on small cottage-style traditional industries, concentrated on local raw materials. Instance could include food processing, textile manufacture Most of the time, lots of people are still work in the primary sector, doing things include farming. Using primary technologies most of the people have less money. Import the products what they want, that indicate county is not producing what they actually needed addicted to import products. Import substitution industries: The country does promote its own industries. Newly started companies imitate products from well known market giants and then produce them for low price. The government operates tariff barrios for the products are being imported trades that make similar products. The purpose of that is protecting their own domestic companies whilst they grow. Instance industries are computer manufacture, car manufacture, electronic goods and other electrical goods, like hi-fis. Export orientated industries: The new companies established in their own country they are unleashed upon the global market. Industries are being capital intensive, using high technology aimed at earning a big profit. The gross domestic product (GDP) of the country starts to increase, mostly growing at well over 5% per year which is a wonderful rate. Now the country has been being an NIC. How do TNCs affect to the NICs economy their environment? Investment: Advantages: The companies earn, invest, bring foreign currency into the country. Though most of their earnings come back to the companys country of host, all the remunerations do come to the local economy Disadvantages: The salaries paid to host country workers are very low and a lot of companies have been accused of exploiting the workforce before benefiting it. There are often tax incentives for these TNCs to locate in countries in the Developing World. Due to the fact that they get lots of their profits out of the country that says the real economic benefit to the country could be limited. Technology: Advantages: TNCs help the development of the NICs by bringing in latest technology and new knowledge that the host country doesnt use. Disadvantages: Unless the company actively participates in a program to educate local companies in the new technologies, the countrys industry will not really benefit. TNCs are not going to share too much information. If the local industry competition will increase because of new knowledge TNCs have to compete even with the local companies. Transport: Advantages: The new TNCs mostly help to develop transport links around the company area. Disadvantages: Mostly serve only the direct roads, rails that needs of the company, not the surrounding area as well. Employment: Advantages: They create jobs opportunities for the NICs domestic employees. Disadvantages: Most of the jobs opportunities are highly skilled so the company uses their own people to do the work. Because of the technological environment of these companies. Remain less jobs opportunities. Urbanization -launching a TNC in a city in NIC does encourage urbanization. Young migrant workers gather to the city. It influence to the rural communities their development Environment/Safety: Advantages: Companies bring with them the environmental friendly technologies expertise to decrees harmful pollution establish a safe working environment. Disadvantages: a lot of TNCs have very bad history on pollution and worker safety. They have been complained of trying to cut both safety of working environment and environmental pollution in order to keep costs down. . Overall impact to the Economic growth Development of NICs can be potentially promoted by transnational corporations through their activities that generate economic growth. Some evidence exists that the foreign exchange and foreign direct investment that TNCs provide can improve the performance of the economy of the NICs which they operate in. The process of economic growth is impacted by the TNCs through influencing the quality and amount of new capital formation, transfer of soft and hard technology, expansion of trade opportunities and the development of human resources. Further, Such as Province of China, Taiwan, and South Korea demonstrate, that under some conditions economic growth can foster social development. For example in Taiwan, enormous growth of economy has been combined with increased educational levels, longer life spans, improved health conditions, advanced housing conditions, political liberalization and enhanced civil liberties. Theoretically TNCs can uplift the development of the NICs society by fostering economic growth; practically this relationship exists for two reasons. Mainly, in the host countries it is not clear whether transnational corporations are really responsible for the growth of economy. In the most recent two notable cases related to economic transformation, Taiwan and South Korea, a negligible role was played by transnational corporations. Further, TNCs actually have the ability to prevent NICs local economic growth by running local entrepreneurs out of the business zone, along with the importing of main goods and services, reducing large amounts of the profits from their local NICs, and transferring royalties and fees to the main companies which are located away from the host economy. Secondly, even if the economy of the NIC is not developing, there is a tenuous relationship between social development and economic growth. Even though there is an global economic growth annually, it is yet hard to prevent the problems of poverty, unemployment, inequality in wealth, and such other issues of social malaise. For example In Cote dIvoire, from 1960 to 1975 the TNCs could have helped to foster aggregate the growth of the economy, they did only a very little to uplift the development of the society: increase in unemployment, income distribution expanded and nationals increasingly started losing the control over the industrial capacities of the country. In some, under some circumstances TNCs can act as the engines of growth of economy, the power of economy is very rarely harnessed to the achievement of development. Overall impact to the Environment Transnational corporations can have a negative impact through a demotion of resources in the environment to the social development. And over the past ten years such entities had been responsible for environmental disasters. For an example, Union Carbide in Bhopal, India, Exxons Valdez spill off Alaska, and Texaco in Ecuador. To a group of environmental problems TNCs have been linked. Fifty percent of the green house emissions are generated by them, in which they are responsible for global warming. Furthermore they are also the users of ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and they are also producers of CFCs. Explaining further, transnational corporations are responsible for the pollution of land, air, wetlands, water and the oceans. Ultimately, through their mining activities and commercial logging, there is a contribution to deforestation by the TNC. For example in the mid-1980s, there was a control of 90per cent of the logging by the foreign corporations in Gabon and in Congo it was 77 per cent. As a result of such mining and logging negative effects such as flooding, loss of topsoil rapid run-off of rain have occurred; Farmers are economically not in a rich status to buy the land from forest owners and usually TNCs dont internalize such social costs. Hence such negative externalities cannot be p revented. The relationship between TNCs and the environment is massively complex even though transnational corporations can definitely obstruct social development through their environmental practices .But yet the Critics dont mention that consumption of environmental resources should be abstained by transnational corporations, instead they should promote sustainable growth and development via their activities. In the meantime there is a practice by the TNCs to follow demoted environmental standards in the developing countries with comparison to the developed countries; and it is found with evidence that environmental practices are more responsible in developing countries than in local firms functioning in such countries. Nevertheless, critics emphasize that, as a result of having better resources they have better access to research and development, It is the responsibility of the TNCs to promote environmentally sustainable practices and they bare that responsibility. Some companies undergoing so much of pressure have started to follow more environmentally responsible policies. Example, a maligned polluter named Dow Chemical, had to establish one-and-a-half days each session with the environmentalists brief senior management quarterly. The salary of the manager was pegged to the goals of the environment, and a toxic release of 32 per cent between 1988 and 1991. Further some laudable environmental practices were also implemented by the IBM including rewards for the employees for technical innovations which helped to comply with the environmental standards. Finally 18 environmental awards were won by ATT since 1990. On the other hand, expect these three companies majority pillage to consume environmental resources from the countries that are developing and they consume these environmental resources in a destructive and unsuitable manner. practices which certainly hamper prospects for social development. Some of the companies that involves in issues related to the environment are General Electric and DuPont, for example, Dupont was responsible for toxic chemical releases in 254 million pounds during the period of 1991 in the United States , and this has led to minimize such practices that destroys environment. e.g. In December 1984, one of the worlds worst industrial disasters occurred in a Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India. Poisonous gas leaked from a negligently maintained chemical factory killing 3,000 and injuring over 200,000. See Reinhold (1985), Lueck (1985) and Everest (1985). An Exxon ship called the Valdez crashed off the coast of Alaska, spilling thousands of gallons of oil into the ocean and killing large amounts of marine life. The company untruthfully maintained that the oil spill had caused only minor damage and that the oil spill had been satisfactorily neutralized (de George, op. cit., p. 5). Conclusion -s-cool.co.uk. (). Geography GCSE: Industry. Newly industrialised countries: South Korea. (), . http://www.s-cool.co.uk/gcse/geography/industry/industry-in-the-developing-world.html

Salman Rushdie

Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie is unarguably one of the most controversial contemporary English novelist. His novelistic sensibility is individualistic and entrepreneurial, making him a literary risk-taker even at the age of 58. He hates all orthodoxies-religious as well as literary. His literary iconoclasm has won him a distinguished place in pantheons of worlds contemporary writers. Whereas his religious iconoclasm has made him an infamous figure amongst the Muslims worldwide. He stands for free speech in writings. His novels are often political statements. ‘The Satanic Verses’ brought this Indian born Muslim uthor violent ire from Muslim world. The novel was interpreted as blasphemous and an insult to prophet Muhammad. Overnight Rushdie became an iconoclast for his blasphemy. It was the first instant in modern times that a government had issued a death sentence ‘ fatwa, in Islamic fashion’ to a foreign national. And the censorship on this novel by the Islamic c ountries caused much international diplomatic crisis. The Western and the Muslim world was now culturally divided. The core value of ‘ freedom of expression ‘ was pitted against the ‘intolerance for insult to Prophet. Muhammad’ , the messiah of Muslims. The novels of Salman Rushdie evoked much controversy even before The Satanic Verses. Rushdie as a writer played the role of an ‘antagonist to the state. ’ Many have called Rushdie an intellectual who criticizes or ridicules nearly everything. It is this intellectual daring that offends and embitters people. His books attack and revile the Gandhis and modern India, the leadership in Pakistan,American foreign policy,fundamentalist Islam and Britain et al . He critisizes the West for their social, cultural and political colonialism. His ttacks come with his charecteristic non-chalance, typical of him. If Rushdies views are to be interpreted, ‘ insults’ are justified as a part of artistic freedom which should ensure liberty to ‘offend’ cherished beliefs. Rushdie is a self-confessed aposta te. This further provokes the ire of Muslim clerics. This essay begins by assuming that ‘intellectualism’ is not an end in itself and therefore should be sensitized to the needs of global audience. Reason in art should not evoke passions, else, it shall defeat it’s own purpose. An artists reason should be in harmony with his own passion for art. In ‘Kahlil Gibran’s’ words , a man’s reason and passion are the rudder and sails of the seafaring soul. If either of them is broken he can but toss and drift or be at standstill in mid-seas. There is even a school of thought advocating ‘Art for art’s sake’. Politicizing art has it’s own perils . A political statement made through a literary or artistic work in truth further divides the society. History is replete with examples of civil unrest caused when artist makes a political statement through his work of art. Hence, the people are ‘right to be offended’ by Rushdies novels. However, Rushdies novels have often offended people because of misinterpretation or rumors. He has been considered to be siding with the West instead of the Islamic Orientalists. The language of the book ‘ English’ was a matter controversy. His novels have been considered to be based upon flights of literary imagination, subjectivity and unscientific facts. Hence there have been numerous complaints about the novels inaccuracies; lack of critical appraisals and historical research. The Muslim world limits free speech as a part of it’s religious ethics and ethos. They are not yet prepared for he concept of free speech and blasphemy against religion. The gulf between the Christian West and Muslim Middle-East remains and has Historical roots mentioned in the holy books like Bible and Qur’an. Hence any artistic work by an individual iconoclast might be considered as a war propaganda of America and Britain against Islam. What adds fuel to this fire is that despit e the passionate protests by the Muslim world many Western governments didn’t ban The Satanic Verses. The Western media widened the gulf between the Muslim protesters and Rushdies supporters. Far from peace making efforts it spiced the affair. Rushdie earned $ 2 million USD in the first year of publication of ‘The Satanic Verses’. The ‘ Fatwa’ ,bans and international protests only gave Rushdie more publicity. The public got the much wanted spice. The West has become immune to taboo and sacrilege. Blasphemy is nothing new. Many controversial and dangerous works of art are freely available in the West. Blasphemy against Jesus doesn’t shock the West anymore. The Nazi holocaust portrayed in many films sells defying controversies. There is much cynicism in the West. Perhaps a consequence of too much progress with materialism. Consequentially, there is utter disregard to human sensitivities. The West just can not understand the cultural apparatus in which the Muslims are brought up. Islam is most sacred to them. Satanic Verses thus caused hurt and anger to the Muslims. The media too turned away from the Muslims during and after the Rushdie Affair. Muslims felt estranged and isolated. The West gauges other societies with their ability to assimilate into their own society. Muslims were portrayed as narrow- minded ‘fanatics’ and ‘fundamentalists’ because they were ‘anti-democratic’ and ‘anti- liberal’. After the Rushdie Affair the anti-Islamic sentiment was reborn in the West. The anti-Islamic tradition has been depicted in Western literature even in the Medieval period. Rushdie offended the Muslims with direct derogatory references to Prophet Mohammad and his companions. The texts in his novel ‘ The Satanic references ‘ cast aspersion on the chastity of the supremely revered prophet Muhammad. He rebukes the Muslim society to the extent of calling it Jahil ( Ignorant). Western critiques use their own yardsticks to measure Muslim reactions and literary attacks on them. Muslims have been ontinually offended by Rushdie. Adding insult to injury his publishing company, Random House, announced publishing a new paperback edition of The Satanic Verses on April the 7th 1998; the day Muslims celebrate Eid Ul-Adha, the holiest day of the Islamic calendar ( Abdul Adil's article ‘Rushdie Provokes Muslims', The Muslim News, 24th April 1998). Rushdies adventures with the pen don’t end up with ‘The Satanic Verses’. He paints a dismal and grotesque picture of Pakistan. Many orthodox patriotic Pakistani Muslims would protest it. He describes Pakistan as being caught between bscurity and march towards modernism. In the novel ‘Shame’ he makes a mockery of the political turmoil, military coups, corruption and censorship on art in Pakistan. In his characteristic style he chooses the characters of his novels based upon real life political figures. He writes political satires that insensitively ridicule these political figures and the political establishments themselves. In ‘The Moor’s Last Sigh’ Salman Rushdie lashes at Hindu fanaticism. Rushdies ‘Hindu fanatic character’ is convinced of eliminating Muslims from India. Bombay bursts into flames of communal riots. He comments Bombay is no more the city of his youth days – the bustling metropolis. He now describes it as a city of religious fanatics and mafia dons. The book is about the countries departing from harmless and innocent way of life. In the novel the downfall of a family portrays the downfall of a nation. The Rushdie compares Hindu fundamentalism with the Nazi racist ideology justifying minority genocide. Rise in Hindu fervor, popularly known as ‘the saffron surge’ can be considered as a representation of a Hindu political stance. His comparative analysis with Nazism in World War –2 Germany is taking things a little bit too far. This might offend many Hindu conservatives. In this way Rushdie exaggerates the spurt in Hindu activism to the extent of being destructive to India as a secular nation. In ‘Midnight’s Children’ he accuses Indira Gandhi, the Prime Minister of India of assuring the Hindu majority vote by appropriating the images of Hindu Goddesses. He accuses right wing Hindu’s of distorting History and accuses them of taking revenge from History. He criticizes all political parties in India on some or the other ground and spares none. Conclusion : Thus, it is reasonable to conclude that the people are right in being offended by Rushdies novels. He doesn’t censor his own flamboyant spirit as a writer. His personal dislikes bias his literary works. Iconoclasm should be ventured if it is tolerable. Rushdies daring intellectual attacks in his literary works reflect his insensitivity towards peoples core beliefs. What offends people even more is that he doesn’t regret the damage that people assume he causes. Perhaps he is too ahead of the people in time. A fact that he himself doesn’t realize. The gulf between the liberal West and the predominantly Oriental. East can’t be bridged overnight. Especially not with a few strokes of the pen. In an ideological conflict between these two rival parties other groups with vested interests make gains. For example : the Western media, the oil companies etc. 9/11 and it’s aftermath have heightened the tension and sensitivity in the relations between the West and the Muslim world. In this scenario his novels could be even more offensive. They could act as catalysts and trigger violent protests. The 9/11 terrorist attack has once again opened the wounds and the scars left by crusades in the course of History. Rushdie is anti-establishment. He has to take this stance as he is by nature against all orthodoxies. His works are political statements in themselves. The political satires he writes win him political ire. He makes rivals not only out of individuals and groups but also out of political establishments. Even the purpose of his intellectual activity, journey and destination are unknown. Sheer intellectual activity leads nowhere. Intellect is like a knife that cuts both ways. It hurts both the parties. The sea of life can be crossed only in an arc of faith.