Doing physical exercises is a better way to keep health Essays

Doing physical exercises is a better way to keep health A wholesome body is a prerequisite for our life and work. A wide variety of ways can we adopt to improve our health like eating wholesome food, doing physical exercise, sleeping well, release stress etc. If I had only one choice, I would definitely choose exercise. There are several reasons for me to make the choice. Firstly, in comparison with changing eating habit, doing physical exercise is more easily for people to persist and could achieve an effect in short time. As I known, myriads of people especially women cant resist the temptation of their favorite food even after they had dinner. Changing womens eating habit is really challenging. While doing exercise is different, because every woman wants to keep a good shape, doing exercise could consume redundant energy gained from diet. Besides, there are many forms of exercise when could adopt, from the simplest one like walking to other forms like swimming, dancing etc. For people with busying work, they can just walk to home or workplace as a means of exercise; for people with spare time, they can go to the stadium to swim or play balls. As long as they could persist, they can see their body weight are just under their control only in one week. Additionally, regular exercise has been recognized as an effective method to prevent chronic disease like diabetes etc. in this day and age, peoples health was endangered by chronic disease. As scientists claimed, most chronic disease is caused by unhealthy lifestyle including lack of exercise. If people can do physical exercise at least thirty minutes per day, they are less likely to suffer from chronic disease when they are fifties. Further, doing physical exercises also provide a great opportunity to have fun and release pressure. It has been proposed by scientists that doing exercise can excite our central nervous system and cheer people up. I definitely agree with this viewpoint. Every time I was unhappy, I like to will climb mountains alone or with friends, because when I was climbing mountains, all I though is just how to climb to the top; at that time all my troubles are totally forgotten. When I climb to the summit, the happiness has outweighs all the troubles. Its really a best way for workpeople release unhappy mood. Overall, I believe doing exercise plays a critical role in keeping people fit. People should take actions immediately.

98 Election Vocabulary Terms

98 Election Vocabulary Terms Every November has an Election Day, set by statute as the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November. This day is provided for the  general elections  of  federal  public officials. General elections of state and local public officials are   included on this first Tuesday after November 1. To talk about the importance of any federal, state, and local elections, students will need to understand the key terms or vocabulary as part of their  civics instruction.   The  Social Studies Frameworks for College, Career, and Civic Life  (C3s) outline  the requirements teachers must follow to prepare students to participate in a productive constitutional democracy:​ ....[student] civic engagement requires knowledge of the history, principles, and foundations of our American democracy, and the ability to participate in civic and democratic processes. People demonstrate civic engagement when they address public problems individually and collaboratively and when they maintain, strengthen, and improve communities and societies. Thus, civics is, in part, the study of how people participate in governing society (31). Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor  echoed the responsibility that teachers have to prepare students for their role as citizens. She has stated: â€Å"Knowledge about our system of government, our rights and responsibilities as citizens, is not passed down through the gene pool. Each generation must be taught and we have work to do!† To understand any upcoming election, high school students should become familiar with the vocabulary of the electoral process. Teachers should be aware that some language is also cross-disciplinary. For example, personal appearance can refer to a persons wardrobe and demeanor, but in the context of an election, it means an event that a candidate attends in person.   Teachers can use an analogy to objects students know to teach some of the vocabulary  needed for informed citizenship.   For example, the teacher may write on the board, â€Å"The candidate stands by his record.† Students may then say what they think the term means. The teacher can then discuss with the students the nature of a  candidates record  (something written down or what a person says). This will help students understand how the context of the word record  is more specific in an election: record: a list showing a candidates or elected officials voting history (often in relation to a specific issue) Once they understand the meaning of the word, students may then decide to research a candidates record on websites such as Ontheissues.org. Vocabulary Software Program One way to help students become familiar with this election year vocabulary is to have them use the digital platform Quizlet. This free software gives teachers and students a variety of modes: specialized learning mode, flashcards, randomly generated tests, and collaboration tools to study words. Teachers can create, copy, and modify vocabulary lists to suit the needs of their students; not all words need to be included. The entire list of the 98 words below isavailable on QUIZLETfor teachers and students. 98 Vocabulary Terms for the Election Season: Absentee ballot: a mailable paper ballot that is used by voters who will not be able to vote on Election Day (like military personnel stationed overseas). The absentee ballots are mailed before election day and counted on election day. Abstain: to refuse to exercise the right to vote. Acceptance speech: speech delivered by a candidate when accepting a political party’s nomination for the national presidential election. Absolute majority: a total of more than 50% of the votes cast. Alternative energy:  a source of energy other than fossil fuels, e.g. wind, solar Amendment: a  change to the U.S. Constitution or the constitution of a state. Voters must approve any changes to a constitution. Bipartisan: support that is given by members of the two major political parties (i.e.: the Democrats and the Republicans).   Blanket primary: a primary election in which the names of all the candidates for all the parties are on one ballot. Ballot: either in paper form or electronic, the way voters to show their vote preferences or a list of candidates. (ballot box: the  box used to hold ballots to be counted). Campaign: the process of gathering public support for a candidate. Campaign ad:  advertising in support of (or against) a candidate. Campaign finance:  money political candidates use for their campaigns. Campaign mailing:  flyers, letters, postcards, etc., mailed to citizens to promote a candidate. Campaign website:  Internet website devoted to getting an individual elected. Campaign season: a period of time that candidates work to inform the public and gain support before the election. Candidate: the person running for elected office. Cast:  to vote for a candidate or issue Caucus: meetings where political party leaders and supporters choose candidates through discussion and consensus. Center: representing  those beliefs that are in the middle between conservative and liberal ideals. Citizen: A person who is a legal member of a nation, country, or other organized, self-governing political community, such as any of the fifty U.S. states. Chief Executive:  Presidential role involving overseeing the Executive Branch of the government Closed primary: a primary election in which only those voters who have registered as belonging to a particular political party can vote. Coalition:  a group of political stakeholders that are working together. Commander-In-Chief:  Presidents role as being the leader of the military Congressional district: an area within a state from which a member of the House of Representatives is elected. There are 435 Congressional districts. Conservative:  have a belief or political leaning that favors individuals and businesses- not the government- to find solutions for society’s problems. Constituency:  the voters in a district that a legislator represents Contributor/donor: a person or organization that donates money to a candidate’s campaign for office. Consensus:  a majority agreement or opinion. Convention:  a meeting where a political party chooses its presidential candidate. Delegates:  the people who have been chosen to represent each state at a political party’s convention. Democracy:  a form of government in which people hold power, either by voting for measures directly or by voting for representatives who vote for them. Electorate:  all persons having the right to vote. Election Day: the Tuesday after the first Monday in November;   2016 Election will be held November 8th. Electoral College: each state has a group of people called electors who cast the actual votes for president. This group of 538 people  is chosen by the voters to elect the President of the United States.  When people vote for a presidential candidate, they are voting to decide for which candidate the electors in their state will vote.  electors: people elected by the voters in a presidential election as members of the electoral college Endorsement:  the support or approval for a candidate by a prominent individual. Exit poll: an informal poll taken as people leave the voting booth. Exit polls are used to predict the winners before the polls close. Federal system: a  form of government in which power is divided among a central government and state and local governments. Front-runner:  a front-runner is a political candidate who looks as though he/she is winning G.O.P.: the nickname used for the Republican Party and stands for the Grand Old Party. Inauguration Day: the day a new president and vice president are sworn into office (January 20). Incumbent: a  person who already holds an office who is running for reelection independent voter:  A person who chooses to register to vote with no party affiliation. The decision to register as an independent voter does not register a voter with any third party although these third parties are often referred to as independent parties. Initiative:  a  proposed law that voters can place on the ballot in some states. If the initiative is passed, it will become a law or constitutional amendment. Issues: topics on which citizens feel strongly;  common examples are immigration, access to health care, finding energy sources, and how to provide quality education. Leadership qualities:  personality traits that inspire confidence include honesty, good communication skills, trustworthiness, commitment, intelligence Left: another word for liberal political views. Liberal: political leaning that favors  the governments role in solving society’s problems and a belief that government should take action for creating solutions. Libertarian:  a person who belongs to the Libertarian political party. Majority party: the political party that is represented by more than 50% of the members in the Senate or the House of Representatives. Majority rule: A principle of democracy that the greater number of citizens in any political unit should select officials and determine policies. Majority rule is one of the most important principles of democracy but is not always practiced in societies that value consensus.   Media: news organizations that deliver information through television, radio, newspaper, or the Internet.   Midterm election: a general election that does not occur during a presidential election year. In a midterm election, some members of the US Senate, members of the House of Representatives, and many state and local positions are elected. Minority party: the political party that is represented by less than 50% of the members in the Senate or the House of Representatives.   Minority rights: the principle of a constitutional democracy that government elected by a majority must respect the basic right of minorities. National convention:  National Party meeting where candidates are selected and the platform is created. Natural-born citizen:  citizenship requirements for running for President. Negative ads:  political advertisements that attack the candidates opponent, often trying to destroy the opponents character. Nominee: the candidate a political party chooses or nominates, to run in the national election. Nonpartisan: free from party affiliation or bias. Opinion polls: surveys that ask members of the public how they feel about different issues. Partisan: relating to a particular political party;  biased in support of a side; favoring one side of an issue. Personal appearance: an event that a candidate attends in person. Platform: A political partys formal statement of basic principles, stands on major issues, and objectives Policy: position the government takes on what role the government should have in solving the issues facing our country. Political symbols: The Republican Party is symbolized as an elephant. The Democratic Party is symbolized as a donkey. Political Action Committee (PAC): an organization that is formed by an individual or special interest group to raise money for political campaigns. Political machines:  an organization linked to a political party that often controlled local government Political parties: organized groups of people who share similar beliefs about how the government should be run and how the issues facing our country should be solved. Poll:  sample of opinions taken from a random group of people; used to show where citizens stand on issues and/or candidates. Polling place:  a place where voters go to cast their votes in an election. Pollster:  someone who conducts surveys of public opinion. Popular vote: a  tally of all the votes citizens have cast in the presidential election. Precinct:  a district of a city or town marked out for administrative purposes -usually 1000 persons. Press secretary: a person who deals with the media for the candidate Presumptive nominee:  the candidate who is assured of his or her partys nomination, but has not yet been formally nominated Presidential ticket: the joint listing of the presidential and vice presidential candidates on the same ballot as required by the Twelfth Amendment. Primary election: an election in which people vote for the presidential candidate they want to represent their political party in the national election.   Primary season: the months during which states hold primary elections. Public interest group:  an organization that seeks a collective good that will not selectively and materially benefit the members of the group. Record: information about how a politician has voted on bills and statements made about issues while serving in office. Recount: counting the votes again if there is some disagreement about the election process Referendum:  Ã‚  a proposed piece of legislation (a law) that people can directly vote on. (also called a ballot measure, initiative or proposition)  Ã‚  Referendums approved by the voters become law.   Representative:  a member of the House of Representatives, also called a congressman or congresswoman Republic:  Ã‚  A country that has a government in which power is held by the people who elect representatives to manage the government for them.   Right: another word for conservative political views. Running mate: a candidate who is running for office with another candidate on the same ticket. (Example: president and vice president). succession:  a word that refers to the sequence of who will become President after an election or in an emergency. suffrage:  the right, privilege, or act of voting. Swing voters: voters who do not have a commitment to a particular political party. Taxes: money paid by citizens to fund the government and public services. Third party: any political party other than the two major parties (Republican and Democratic).   Town Hall meeting:  discussion in which people in the community voice opinions, ask questions and hear responses from candidates running for office. Two-party system: political party system with two major political parties. Voting age: The 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution says that people have the right to vote when they turn 18. Voting Rights Act: An act passed in 1965 that protected the right to vote for all U.S. citizens. It forced the states to obey the U.S. Constitution. It made it clear that the right to vote could not be denied because of a person’s color or race. Vice President:  the office that also serves as the President of the Senate. Ward:  a district into which a city or town is divided for the purpose of administration and elections.

Discuss a portion of the clip Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discuss a portion of the clip - Essay Example Firstly, the film producer relies on music to place the film in its immediate context. Application of Nazi anthem illustrates the political era depicted by the films plot. The filmmaker intends to illustrate life in the midst of wars and political revolutions. Thus, the clip applies music to illustrate the thin boundary that exists within emotions. The clip illustrates romance that flourished in the midst of war and anguish. Despite the immediate political situation, the characters purposed to maintain their romantic relationships. La Marseillaise is the French national anthem and it stands out as a symbol of love and harmony throughout the film. Finally, the film uses sound tracks or music to enhance interest among its audience. The use of popular music such as the French national anthem makes the audience associate themselves with the film, hence increasing their interest. Both pieces of music illustrate different points of view among the film’s

Marbury v. Madison Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Marbury v. Madison - Essay Example In the confusion of changing from the Adams administration to the Jefferson administration Marbury’s commission was not delivered. Madison, following Jefferson’s orders, did not deliver the commission but withheld it from Marbury because he was a Federalist. The commission was signed by Adams and all was in order except the commission was not delivered. Marbury was denied his commission and prevented from becoming a Justice of the Peace in Washington. At the time of the Jefferson administrations refusal to deliver the commission to Marbury the Supreme Court had been appointed but was a relatively weak institution. John Marshall (a Federalist and cousin to Jefferson) was the Chief Justice and was appointed by Adams during his administration. Although Jefferson was Marshall’s cousin, both disagreed greatly when it came to politics. Jefferson was a Democratic Republican while Marshall was a Federalist. So, it was assumed that when Marbury brought his case to the Supreme Court he would receive a ruling that, influenced by a Federalist, would benefit him. William Marbury did bring his case directly to the Supreme Court and requested a ruling that included a Writ of Mandamus which forces a government official to follow through with official duties and, in this case, deliver the commission. Marshall was in a tough predicament as he needed to deliver a fair ruling but knew that the Supreme Court had little power. Jefferson could have possibly ignored a ruling that did not benefit his administration further degrading the power of the Supreme Court. Marshall was tasked with answering three questions (from Supreme Court Cases: The Dynamic Court): With these questions in mind Marshall deliberated with the court and then delivered the unanimous ruling of the Court. The ruling was given on February 24th of 1803. The ruling concluded that Jefferson and Madison were wrong in denying Marbury the commission as Marbury had a right to the job as

UPS Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

UPS - Case Study Example The last part of the paper will sum up the main points discussed and recommendations will be given with regards to the measures that can be taken in order to effectively deal with the problems discussed. Description of the organization and problem identification United Parcel Service was founded in 1907 in USA and it specifically dealt with delivering an assortment of parcels and goods sent through its office to different clients. It started from humble beginnings where all packages were delivered by foot, street bicycle as well as street car. However, the company re-engineered itself to become a state-of-the-art delivery service when it introduced its first delivery car, a Model T Ford in 1913. The organization witnessed positive developments and went through different stages until 1980 which saw the passage of the passage of Motor Career Act which deregulated the whole trucking industry. The organization even introduced air services as it sought to diversify its activities to counter competition which was intensifying as a result of the deregulation exercise of this industry. However, increased competition as a result of deregulation compelled the organization to allocate large amounts of capital to modernize its data processing department. The deregulation of the freight industry also posed immense challenges to UPS given that the emerging entrants utilized low cost services such as the Federal Express Corporation. As such, it has been observed that data processing operated with poor equipment and the service provided was poor given that it fell beyond the competition that existed in technological and programming capabilities. Up until 1981, the department of information faced unprecedented challenges of technologically more advanced competition from Federal Express and RPS. It was realized that in order for UPS to remain the dominant carrier package delivery service, it had to join the competitors in the age of computer technology. Whilst UPS had the most extensive ground network, it had apparently been left in core areas such as technological innovations which included scanning, radio-dispatched pickups, package tracking, and data-acquisition devices. Despite the mission which was meant to â€Å"to provide management with the information it needs to meet the company’s goals in a responsive manner and at a reasonable cost,† the company fell short of achieving this goal given that it had limited numbers of employees with the requisite skills to execute the information requirements of the company. The main problem facing UPS is that it has to implement changes in order to meet the marketing and technological challenges that have been co mpounded by the deregulation exercise in this industry. It is facing a dilemma particularly in making decisions to hire or recruit talent from within the company or hire experienced people in information systems from outside. The problem with locating talent within the company is that most of the employees have experience in hub and package centers and have less experience in the new dispensation of information and communication technology. On the other hand, the problem related to hiring people from outside is related to re-orienting them to fit in the culture of the organization, training them, matching their expectations and helping them grow to meet the expectations of the organization. Stakeholder analysis The main players in this particular case are the employees who are responsible for executing all the tasks within the organization. Any change to the

Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions Theory

Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions Theory In the past decade of increased globalization and diversity, business across borders has increased. Although cross border business faces a lot of challenges not only from the political and socio economic paradigm but also from culture (Porter, 1990). National culture has gained importance, as it is significant in managing global operations. Multinational business strategy research has long acknowledged the importance of national cultural characteristics as determinants of management behavior (Cheng, 1989; Rosenweig and Singh, 1991). So now, what is culture? It is true that no two human would know the same things but they often have great deal of knowledge in common. This common knowledge or collective memory to a large extent make people work together, communicate and live together. This forms communities and if shared among enough people in a country, its characteristics are called national culture. The common knowledge constitutes one of the elements which make national culture uni que (The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, 2nd edition, revised and updated, by E. D. Hirsch, Jr., and James Trefil, is reviewed). There are a lot of theories that attempt to explain culture like the ones proposed by Fons Trompenaar, 1993; Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck, 1961, Edward T.Hall but Geert Hofstedes Cultures consequences has been remarkably influential and his work has provided the foundation for many studies on, intercultural relations (Hart, 1999), cross-cultural management control systems design (Harrison McKin- non, 1999), international business research (Chandy Williams, 1994), and psychology (Baskerville, 2003; Oyserman, Coon, Kem- melmeier, 2002; Schimmack, Oishi, Diener, 2005; Triandis, 2004), most often seeking to determine how differences on cultural dimensions (i.e., power distance, individualism, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity) impacted work related values and behavior. (National Culture, Leadership and Citizenship: Implications for Cross-cultural Management, p 78) According to Geert Hofstede the culture is defined as collective programming of mind and explains that it lies between human nature on one side and individual personality on the other (Hofstede, 1991). Hofstedes cultural framework has been applied in a wide variety of contexts and his work has gained great support and is of prime importance to many researchers in various disciplines. As stated by Baskerville, Cultures Consequences demonstrates an average of 94 citations per annum in the last 18 years. Part of this level of usage appears to reflect efforts of researchers unaware of debates concerning the legitimacy of Hofstedes dimensions (R.F.Baskerville, 2003). So huge is the acceptance of hofstedes work. Geert Hofstede an expert of studies in culture from Netherland developed a cross- culture model. The five dimensions of culture are defined as follows Power Distance: the extent to which the less powerful members of organizations and institutions (like the family) expect and accept that power is distributed unequally (Hofstede, 1991: 28; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401). Uncertainty Avoidance: intolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity (Hofstede, 1991: 113; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401). Individualism versus Collectivism: the extent to which individuals are integrated into groups (Hofstede, 1991: 51; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401). Masculinity versus Femininity assertiveness and competitiveness versus modesty and caring (Hofstede, 1991: 82-3, 1998b; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401) (McSweeney, 2002) Hofstede defined culture as a Collective programming of mind, his concept of culture promotes an image of the individual as merely a passive carrier of a predetermined cultural template (Ailon, 2007; Ailon -Souday Kunda, 2003). As much as Hofstedes work has been universally accepted as I was researching I came across a number of critics for his work (e.g Galit Ailon (2008); R.F.Baskerville (2003); McSweeney (2002)). It was then it dawned on me the validity of the theory that even I had used in my graduate dissertation like an unquestionably acceptable principle. As G.Ailon (2008) stated it is not he (Hofstede), the individual, who is of interest here; instead,the discursive practices that governed his text that predominated and ran through him (Foucault, 1972: 139)that are of interest. So here I am going to critically evaluate his theory within a certain degree of my personal understanding of it although heavily relying on the articles of McSweeney and Galit ailon. A significant aspect of national culture research of Hofstede is the transparency with which he related the cultural dimensions with other studies of country or national differences for the purposes of making international comparisons. Each of the dimensions of index was compared to seven other national measurements: GNP, latitude, economic growth, population size and growth, population density and organization size. So the socio economic data used by him does describe cultural dimension rather the historical origins of nations. (R.F.Baskerville, 2003). His study comes to show that a nations attributes are culturally influenced. And most of the critiques have remarkably questioned the simplest of facts that many have failed to think. As Mikael Sondergaard puts it , most of the debate on hofstedes work has been on the following aspects of his study: surveys are inappropriate instruments to measure culture unit of analysis of nations is not the best unit suited for studying culture One company cannot provide information about the entire nations culture IBM data is old and obsolete Four dimensions cant tell the whole story (http://geert-hofstede.international-business-center.com/Sondergaard.shtml). I am going to be discussing the above mentioned in detail now, though Hofstedes work has entailed substantial contribution in the field of cultural studies there are some pertinent issues that leaves doubt on the validity of the typology produced by him. It is not possible for national culture to be uniform, there is considerable diversity. An assumption of a homogeneous culture can only be made by assuming that culture is coherent, pure, stable, and nothing external like other cultures and non cultural factors influence a national culture.(McSweeney, Forthcoming) Which is hard to believe in reality because when a number of cultures and subcultures co-exist it is impossible for it remain independent and completely uninfluenced by the other. Otherwise we have to consider cultures as being tough enough to withstand any attempts to change them. Some of the issues are discussed in the due course. The surveys were the backbone of the study. The surveys were carried out on 40 IBM subsidiaries around the world between 1964 and 1973 and used about 117000 questionnaires. Most of the researchers state that a survey is not an appropriate instrument for accurately determining and measuring cultural disparity. This is especially apparent when the variable being measured is a value which culturally sensitive and subjective (Schwartz, 1999). Two surveys were carried out and results are a combination of responses from both the surveys. A closer examination revealed that not all questionnaires were used and that the average number per country was small and sometimes evens a minuscule. In only six countries () the number of respondents were more than 1000 and in Pakistan was only 70 The narrowness of the Hofstede surveyed research population radically compounds the scale problem (McSweeney, 2002). This leads to a doubt in the statistical integrity of the results obtained from the survey. A s Schwartzs (1992) puts it that one cannot derive the normative ideals of a culture from the average of individual responses (p. 51). The PD (Power distance) index was based on three questions in the IBM questionnaire. The first question was a five point scale , and it asked how frequently in their experience employees were afraid of expressing disagreement with their managers and second and third questions asked about their preferred leadership style (autocratic, persuasive, consultative, and democratic) and the style that closely matched their boss. G.Ailon (2008) states that in each stage of the research process an attempt of neutralization is visible. This begins with the standardized uniform questionnaire that has been used worldwide. In effect, how- ever, uniformity was, meant ot direct respondents in the paths determined by a Western, managerially oriented research team. The questionnaire coerced a western axis of comparison on non-western cultures. It had a egalatarian portrayal of western culture and ignored racial and colonial inequalities and defined racial power distance under uncertainity avoidance. Th is fact, enabled a country like South Africa due to apartheid to be represented in the sample by white respondents only whether partial in terms of population sample, questionnaire content, or both, it constituted a political act that, however unwittingly, neutralized racism and colonialism by excluding them from measurement.Hofstede also tried to neutralize certain aspects of the dimension by universalisation, stating that Hierarchial inequality is something we inevitably find, the essence of organsation and so the choices given on the questionnaire was already based on the notion of its universal inevitability thereby trapping the respondent in an invisible way to positively answer the neutrality and inevitability of the managerial power.(G.Ailon, 2008).Though they had choices , and their answers did vary, these were again manipulated and labeled in such a way that hofstede tried to expropriate the meaning of the answers from his respondents, claiming, in so many words, that anyth ing they said proves his point-using their voices to turn his hypotheses into axioms (G.Ailon, 2008). The large power distance in France and Belgium (which were exceptions in Nordic, Anglo, Germany) he attributed to the cultural inheritance of Roman empire, likewise the small power distance in Pakistan he attributes to their Islamic religious background and belief that all are equal in the eyes of god. He used such exemptions to justify his claim that small PD countries are economically developed, large PD countries are less developed or developing.(Ailon.G, 2002). It emphasizes that those from small power-distance cultures are likely to accept responsibility, while those from large power-distance cultures are likely to be more disciplined (Triandis, 1993) The Uncertainty Avoidance (UA) index was based on three questions again and they were related to the frequency of nervousness and tension at work, the second was How long do you think you will continue working for this company? Please indicate the extent to which you personally agree or disagree . . . [that] company rules should not be bro- ken- even when the employee thinks it is in the companys best interest (Hofstede, 1980:76 -77, 405, 408 409). Hofstedes book states those in weak uncertainty-avoidance cultures may be very high in basic innovations, while those in strong uncertainty-avoidance cultures may triumph in precision manufacturing. (Triandis, 1993) Though Hofstede admits that better indicators could have been developed in ascertaining the UA, because it wasnt a familiar concept when they developed the IBM questionnaires, he very strongly and emphatically links a high UA to a number of socio-psychological tendencies. (G.Ailon, 2008) low UA, for example, is suggested to result from advanced modernization; older democracies; dense populations in poor countries and sparse populations in wealthy countries; tolerant religions that stress relativity; historical events marked by less legislation and more settlement of disputes by negotiation and/or conflict, as opposed to mere inheritance of developed systems of legislation; low mean age of population leaders; and smaller organizations (1980: 185). The suggested consequences of low UA include slower economic growth after World War II, weaker nationalism, less aggressiveness versus other nations, looser societies, stronger feelings of citizen competence, a casuistic approach to legal is sues, a stronger accent on lay competences as expressed by having more nurses per doctor, more religious tolerance, pragmatic or introvert meditative religions, rel- ativism, empiricism rather than theoricism in social sciences, more ambitious employees, managers who are more involved in strategy issues, and so forth (1980: 186-187). He is just forcing people to envision a world where everything is interconnected through simple logic (G.Ailon, 2002). At a point Hofstede states people from lower UAI cultures will tend to do better in cross-cultural contacts (1980: 398), I doubt this as it is something that is related to individuals personal communication skills and doesnt matter if he were from a country with a low UA index. Hofstede justifies the power of managers with a western background that they have a low UA and Small PD and so they are most suited for strategic and cross cultural management. So is that only the western managers have this skill which they imbibed from culture a nd their counterparts around the world lack this vital skill. (G.Ailon, 2008) The Individualism (IDV) index was based on work goal questions in which the respondents were asked to rate the importance of a variety of statements, in which high IDV were attributed to giving importance to doing a job leaving out personal and leisure time and, low IDV were attributed to having good physical skills and training opportunities at work. These tried to assess a person independence from organization and second to assess what the individual expected from the organization. (G.Ailon, 2008) As McSweeney put it power distance and individualism and collectivism were statistically identified by him only in nationally averaged data. At the level of individuals, they had near- zero inter-correlations (Bond, 2002; Schwartz, 1994) for those dimensions and thus no explanatory power at that level. Hofstede states that those from high-collectivism cultures may show employee commitment, while members of organizations from high-individualism cultures can profit from management mobility . Hofstedes book states that those from cultures high in femininity may be able to provide personal services, custom-made products, and be especially successful in biochemistry, while those in masculine cultures may excel in mass production, efficiency, heavy industry, and bulk chemistry; The masculinity index like the IDV was also based on work goal question and it attempted to measure the extent to which respondents endorsed ego goals (related to earnings and advancement) and social goals (related to cordial relations at work place and a friendly atmosphere). This index is based on the universal dissection relating to sexual character and goals, in which men are more assertive and tough and women are more nurturing and Tender. He states that the distribution of labor is affected by the goals of the organization. This according to me is true but he also goes to say that business organizations have goals of achievement which relates to the masculine index and it is not surprising they are run by men and their climate is set by men, which I as a girl would detest. Not just from a point of defending my own sex but from the common world examples, A study organized by the Finnish Business and Policy stated, Companies managed by women are on average ten per cent more profitable than those with a man as CEO. The study was conducted on atleast 14000 limited liability finish companies in 2003. (http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Study+companies+managed+by+women+more+profitable+than+those+run+by+men/1135230562325). Even in a country like US which has a fairly good masculinity index of 62, You have companies form the fortune 500 like yahoo, pepsico, New York Times and Kraft foods that are run by women ceos so it doesnt necessarily mean one has to be a man to be the big boss. Though national culture is not theorized as the only culture or a totality of cultures, within a nation, but by definition it culturally distinguishes the members of one nation from another. (McSweeney, 2002). Hofstede says that each country has a unique culture. I would slightly differ from that opinion, because that sort of unique cuture may be attributed to the cultural heritage and aspects like performing arts that may vary from country to country uniquely but on the basis of individual attitude and behavior it seems a little irrelevant. If you take India for example, it is culturally diverse and it does have numerous subcultures but the attitude and behaviors differ so widely even inside a subculture. Hofstede states that National culture is said to be carried by all individuals in a nation (1980a: 38) or a central tendency (1991: 253). The IBM survey responses within each country were characterized by radical differences. This now leaves doubt on his assumptions of national culture as being same in all individuals in a nation. He assumed that the average tendency of the IBM employees responses as the national representative. There seems to be no valid reason to prove it due to the complete ignorance on the background of those interviewed, who mostly well educated, middle class The samples for his study was exclusively from a single company called IBM. A study fixated on only one company cannot possibly provide information on the entire cultural system of a country (Graves 1986, 14-15; Olie 1995, 135; SÃ ¸ndergaard 1994, 449). The responses were also from only the marketing and sales executives of the company for which Hofstede claimed they shared the same organizational culture as that of all the other employees of IBM. The cultures carried by each respondent are effectively assumed to be three exclusively non-interacting and durable cultures: the organizational, an occupational, and the national. He assumes there is only one IBM culture and not cultures, which, as it were, possesses all employees and every occupation has a common worldwide occupational culture (McSweeney, 2002). Furthermore, McSweeney also evidences Hofstedes blind assumption that every individual in the company had the same organizational and occupational culture regardless of the commi tment and loyalty each individual had to his organization and also the duration of service by the employee to the organization which are all factors that lead to the bond that an employee creates overtime with the organization he works for. Though after a few years Hofstede did acknowledge that there is a variety of distinct cultures within and between units of the same organization and also redefined his statement on organizational culture so his assumption made in the first study wouldnt be invalidated (McSweeney, 2002). It is not known if the factors he redefined are supposed to be self evident. Regarding occupational culture, as McSweeney puts it, Hofstede assumes that members of a single occupation around the world share the same occupational culture. Clarification regarding his acknowledgement of cultural heterogeneity in organizations is needed i.e. it lacks clarity. Another instance where we might raise a brow is authenticity of replies by the questionnaire respondents, thou gh the answers were confidential, the respondents prior knowledge of the end purpose of the survey might have influenced their answers so as to improve theirs or their divisions position (McSweeney, 2002). Yet hofstedes reliance on his supposition that the answers are immune to respondents gaming and were the pure outcomes of unconscious pre-programmed values (1980a,1991; Hofstede Peterson, 2000). Another aspect is the comprehensiveness of the questionnaire to elicit all the necessary inputs to assess a culture. As McSweeney stated in any circumstance the IBM subsidiary had many nationally atypical characteristics. When initially IBM had centralized control and its US ownership during a period in which foreign direct investment was comparatively new. In instances where working for high technology was rare in third world countries like Bangladesh and India than in an industrialized nation like United states. What happens when countries are integrated, for instance the integration of Hongkong into the Peoples Republic of China (McSweeney, 2002).Does the national characterization change? Does the attitude and behavior of people at work place change immediately? Do we immediately consider a nation with a larger sample to portray the national culture of two countries? Political influences and social institutions, law are the non cultural feature that influence culture in a large way and that Hofstede excludes and denies having a link with national culture. For example, Christmas was once illegal in England, during 1647, during which singing Christmas carols could end a person in prison for almost six months but it was later reinstated in 1660. Dont you think this must have has an obvious effect on the culture (mental programming) that children born and raised in that 22 year period developed. Though this is dated way before the study was undertaken I have quoted it as an example to say there might have been other consequences that might have likely influenced any cultural feature. Hofstede might acknowledge these as exceptions but they have to considered when drawing conclusions about a nations culture. Has Hofstede really identified all the primary cultural level dimensions? Many others like Schwartz have tried to identify some national cultures using different questionnaires and have produce very different descriptions. In fact Schwartz(1994) found seven cultural level dimensions which indeed was acknowledged by Hofstede as simply not being identified because questions related to those dimensions /descriptions were not asked in his survey. Hofstede gave a bipolarity to each of his dimensions for example the individualism and collectivism , but as Triandis (1994) puts it , the two can coexist and are simply emphasized more or less depending on the situation. But Hofstedes dimensions do not consider such co-existence and blindly ignores such important cultural qualities.(McSweeney forthcoming) Another obvious flaw I found on the credibility of his typology is his addition of the fifth dimension: Confucian Dynamism (1991) or long versus short-term orientation'(1999). He extracted this from a Chinese Values Survey (CVS) by the Chinese culture connection group which identified hofstedes fourth dimension (Uncertainty avoidance) as irrelevant to their population and downgraded it to a non universal dimension.(Bond,1988;lowe Oswick,1996).As stated by Mcsweeney(2002) from the wide literature of culture , it is still essentially a thing to be grasped and cannot be described by dimensions and units. Another consideration advanced by researchers is if Hofstedes model reflects the present day (Roberts and Boyacigiller, 1984; Sondergaard, 1994). Hofstede (1980a, 1991) assumes that cultural values are stable over time. But is his work out of date after thirty years? Hofstede claims to have identified entire nations culture and not that which is specific to workplaces (McSweeney, 2002) and Producers of scientific knowledge, it seems, not only misrepresent the Rest (the primary emphasis of postcolonial writing; e.g., Said, 1978) but also misrepresent the West. (G.Ailon, 2008) There is no denial that Hofstedes work has given substantive findings. His findings do tap some of underlying significance of nations culture. However interpreting them and using it to deal with other nations requires a certain degree of caution. Hopefully, these findings eventually lead to a valid measure that captures the richness of the various cultural dimensions and can be deployed at an individual level. Given the diversity of the world marketplace, it is essential for marketers have a proper measure of culture in order to understand consumer behavior. (Blodgett et al, 2008) As McSweeney puts it Hofstedes research can legitimately be called a cross-national opinion comparison only from the point that data from organizations in different countries were compared Culture is conceptualized as a force, as a determinant, but descriptions of it are based on analysis answers to fixed-choice questions.(McSweeney, forthcoming), which I think were manipulative enough (even if it wasnt in certain cases, they were justified by researcher to correlate with his findings) to extract the desired answers of the researcher. It was argued that what Hofstede identified is not national culture, but an averaging of situational specific opinions from which dimensions or aspects of national culture are unjustifiably inferred. Hofstedes claim to have empirically measured national culture differences relies on crucial but unwarranted assumptions. (Mc Sweeney, forthcoming). Hofstede has given bipolarity to each dimensions for example his masculinity and Femininity any culture will present a number of contrary adages (All good things come to those who wait and time and tide wait for none as a part of its repertoire (Mcsweeney, 2002) Hofstede miserably failed to identify that theses bipolarities could co-exist in any situation. Hofstedes replies to McSweeney were evasive and non-adhering to the main aspect of the critique. As G.Ailon (2008) put is If one accepts the framework, it basically follows that one must also accept the logic of the critique. Generalizations about national culture are no good. Him identifying a nations culture with the responses from a very small sample in each country (compared to the countrys population except for those 6 countries with more than 1000 respondents), and also using the questionnaires that werent created purely for research purpose is a very visible flaw. He tried to expropriate the meaning of the answers from his respondents, claiming, in so many words, that anything they said proves his point and used their voices to turn his hypotheses into axioms (G.Ailon, 2008) The analysis throws light on the dominance of western theories, regardless of intentions, it reinforces a certain set of values of managers, Westerners, Europeans while at the same time devaluing the Rest. Though he tried to compensate and praise the east by adding his fifth dimension. I would say Hofstede tried to provide like a Single Magical formula (Elman Service, 1968:409) and easily valued culture using statistics and scientific stamps and Xs and Ys. Just so that this would allow research to be completed more quickly and easily through employment of his prefabricated depictions of causal national culture. This actually in my view devalues culture that has a myriad of ethos. His employment of very unusually sophisticated statistical techniques in the late 1970s probably were a reason for his models legitimacy (Oyserman et al. 2002a, for an overview) To conclude, from what I infer from all the readings, more research is needed to give a tough measure of culture and also identify the shifting cultural maps which is greatly influenced by, and influences, globalization and technology, however this is difficult to achieve and may have temporal value due to the dynamic nature of culture. References: McSweeney, Brendan. (2002) Hofstedes Model of National Cultural Differences and Their Consequences: A Triumph of Faith a Failure of Analysis. Human Relations. 55, no. 1: 89-118. Ailon, Galit. (2008) Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Cultures Consequences in a Value Test of Its Own Design. Academy of Management Review. 33, no. 4: 885-904. 3. Blodgett,Jeffrey, Aysen Bakir, and Gregory Rose. 2008. A Test of the Validity of Hofstedes Cultural Framework. Journal of Consumer Marketing. 25, no. 6: 339-349 Baskerville, Rachel. (2003) Hofstede Never Studied Culture. Accounting, Organizations Society. 28, no. 1: 1-14. Testa, Mark. (2009) National Culture, Leadership and Citizenship: Implications for Cross-cultural Management. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 28(1): 78-85. Jones, M. (2007) Hofstede Culturally questionable?. Oxford Business Economics Conference. Oxford, UK, 24-26. Triandis, H. (1993) Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind. Geert Hofstede. , 38(1), 132-134. In my opinion Mikael SÃ ¸ndergaard on Cultural differences by Mikael SÃ ¸ndergaard.Available: http://geert-hofstede.international-business-center.com/Sondergaard.shtml, (Accessed:2009, December 27) McSweeney, Brendan. (Forthcoming) Dynamic Diversity: Variety and Variation Within Countries , 1-25.

Discontinuity in Self-Reliance and When I Consider How My Light Is Spen

Discontinuity in Self-Reliance and When I Consider How My Light Is Spent  Ã‚        Ã‚   Ralph Waldo Emerson emphatically proclaims in "Self-Reliance" that "the highest merit we ascribe to Moses, Plato, and Milton is that they set naught at traditions but spoke†¦what they thought" (515). Emerson declares that Milton’s greatness is attributed not to conformity but rather to originality. Milton’s break with consistent expectations is epitomized in his use of a Petrarchan sonnet in the poem "When I Consider How My Light Is Spent." Nonconformity and discontinuity in a man’s approach to life are the doctrines espoused by Emerson in his work "Self-Reliance," and Milton embodies an Emersonian outlook while inwardly searching for personal truth in his sonnet. The lack of formal structure in the works of the two authors enhances rather than inhibits the reader’s grasp of the literature. Although both Emerson and Milton employ a discontinuous literary style in their respective works, Emerson revels in his lack of continuity to further prom ulgate his ideology of nonconformity and inconsistency while Milton’s use of discontinuity is procured in an attempt to understand his place before God. The foundation for comparing the two works will be based on the following definition of discontinuity: any literary approach that deviates from standard structural form. The absence of formal structure in Emerson’s "Self-Reliance" has been derided by some critics as an "insuperable handicap" to an appropriate understanding of the work (Warren 200). A thorough examination of the work, however, evokes two fundamental claims: Emerson provides a basis for some semblance of structure, and complete continuity is antithetical to the fundamentals of Emerson’s "Se... ..." The American Tradition in Literature. Eighth Edition. Ed. George Perkins. New York. McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1994. Milton, John. "When I Consider How My Light Is Spent." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Sixth Edition. M.H.Abrams et al. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1996. Nicolson, Marjorie Hope. John Milton: A Reader’s Guide to His Poetry. New York: Octagon Books, 1983. Packer, B.L. "Emerson’s Fall: A New Interpretation of the Major Essays." 19th Century Literary Criticism 38 (1993): 200-208. Robinson, David M. "Grace and Work: Emerson’s Essays in Theological Perspective." 19th Century Literary Criticism 38 (1993): 223-230. Warren, Joyce W. "Transcendentalism and the Self: Ralph Waldo Emerson." 19th CenturyLiterary Criticism 38 (1993): 208-213. Wilson, A.N. The Life of John Milton. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1983.      

Heart Failure Case Study Essay

Your client, Mr. Black, is a 72-year-old man who called his TeleNurse Line from home and, based on the symptoms he described, was advised to go directly to the Emergency Department at his local hospital. His admitting diagnosis is exacerbation of heart failure (HF). His Ht is: 5’9†, Wt. 235 lbs. He states that his usual weight is about 220. Upon admission, his symptoms are: extreme shortness of breath; unable to tolerate lying flat; heavy, aching feeling in his chest; respirations labored @ 32/min.; radial pulse 108 and regular; BP 150/78; color dusky and O2 Sat is 82% on room air; slight diaphoresis; peripheral edema is 3+ pitting, ankle to knee bilaterally and sacral edema is also present. Bilateral BS present with coarse crackles in both lower lobes. He appears frightened and anxious; he states, â€Å"This is the worst it has ever been – please don’t leave me alone.† Past Medical/Social History: Coronary Artery Disease (CAD), hypertension, cor pulmonale, emphysema-moderate stage. He smoked 2 packs per day for 35 years, and quit 5 years ago. Hospitalized 3 times previously for HF; the most recent hospitalization was 6 months ago. He is a retired insurance salesperson; married and lives with his wife in a condominium. Sedentary life-style; plays golf occasionally. He skipped his diuretics over the weekend because he was golfing. 1. Which stage of the NYHA classification system and the ACC/AHA staging system would Mr. B’s symptoms best fit within? Why? I think his NYHA classification would be Class II. He has Coronary Artery disease and ordinary activity causes fatigue for him Mr. B’s ACC/AHA stage is Stage D. He has been hospitalized 3 times previously for HF. 2.Discuss the differences between right and left heart failure, consider the   pathophysiology, physiological progression, and signs and symptoms. Left Sided: -The most common -Results from left ventricular dysfunction. This prevents normal forward blood flow causing blood to back up into the left atrium and pulmonary veins. Increased pulmonary pressure causes fluid leakage from pulmonary capillary bed into the interstitial and then the alveoli -Manifests as pulmonary congestion and edema Right Sided: -occurs when right ventricle fails to contract effectively. -Causes a backup of blood into the right atrium and venous circulation. -Venous congestion in the systemic circulation results in jugular venous distention, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, vascular congestion of the GI tract, and peripheral edema -May also result from an acute condition such as right ventricular infarction or pulmonary embolism -Core Pulmonale can also cause right sided HF -Its primary cause is Left sided HF. Left sided HF results in pulmonary congestion and increased pressure in the blood vessels of the lungs. Eventually chronic pulmonary hypertension results in right sided hypertrophy and HF 3. Mr. Black’s orders include: a bedside chest x-ray, ECG, echocardiogram, and the following labs: Troponin I, CK-MB, CBC with differential, BNP, Digoxin level, Electrolytes, Mg++, ABG’s, BUN and creatinine. What is the rationale for performing each of these diagnostics tests? How will the findings/information obtained from the tests be useful in managing Mr. Black’s care? Bedside chest x-ray: ECG Troponin I: present in MIs CK-MB: CBC: BNP: High in patients with HF Digoxin: Electrolytes Mg ABG BUN Creatinine: Mr. Black is stabilized and transferred to the Cardiac Telemetry unit with the following orders: Oxygen at 2-4 liters per nasal cannula to keep O2 Sat > 90% Complete bed rest with HOB elevated 60-90 degrees, legs dependent Saline Lock IVFurosemide (Lasix) 80 mg I.V. push Stat I&OFurosemide (Lasix) 80 mg I.V. push every 8 hr. Daily weight Albuterol Inhaler 2 puffs twice per day Pulse oximetry – continuousK-Dur 10 mg. p.o. daily Foley catheterASA 81 mg p.o. daily TelemetryMetoprolol 100 mg p.o. twice daily Diet: 2 Gm Na Lisinopril 10 mg p.o. daily Fluid restriction of 1000 mL/dayHCTZ 50 mg p.o. daily Code status: Full codeDigoxin 0.25 mg p.o. daily; Hold for HR < 60 bpm Lovenox 60mg SQ every 12 hrsDucosate sodium 100 mg p.o. daily 4. Discuss the rationale for each of the orders above Patients with HF typically have oxygenation problems Furosemide is a loop diuretic Daily Weight- water retention Pulse ox- monitor O2 Foley Catheter: monitor output and on bed rest K Dur: ASA Metoprolol: beta blocker that treats high BP Lisinopril: ACE inhibitor for HTN Lovenox: Prevents and treats clots Fluid Restriction: Excess fluid strains the heart Digoxin: Treats rhythmic problems Ducosate: Stool Softener 5. Identify 3 priority nursing diagnoses to include in the nursing care plan for Mr. Black. Excess fluid volume Decreased cardiac output Impaired gas exchange 6. What changes/assessment findings would alert the nurse that Mr. Black’s condition is worsening? Fatigue and dyspnea continue to worsen, weight continues to increase, edema and chest pain worsens, pleural effusion and dysrhythmias begin to develop, hepatomegaly, and renal failure begins to occur Mr. Black responds well to the treatment plan and his acute symptoms resolve within 3 days. His weight returns to 220 lbs. and he is able to perform his ADL’s with minimal SOB and able to sleep comfortably with 2 pillows. Discharge plans are finalized. 7. Which state of the NYHA Classification system and the ACC/AHA staging system Would Mr. Black’s symptoms now fit? NYHA- Class II ACCF/AHA- Stage C 8. Select 2 discharge topics (your choice) to focus on. Discuss what should be included in the discharge teaching plan for Mr. B. (and his wife) for each topic. Activity and rest: exercise training can improve symptoms of HF, however Mr. B needs to understand that he will need lots of rest during and after exercise and that he shouldn’t overexert himself. Teach Mr. B’s wife to monitor his exercise and encourage him to take breaks when needed Drug therapy: Teach Mr. B and his wife the expected action of all his medication and how to recognize drug toxicity. Also teach him and his wife how to take a pulse rate and what range the pulse rate should be in. Teach them the symptoms of hypokalemia and hyperkalemia if diuretics are order. Self BP monitoring may also be appropriate in Mr. B’s situation. Heart Failure New York Heart Association Classification American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Guidelines Treatment Recommendations Stage A. People at high risk of developing heart failure (HF) but without structural heart disease or symptoms of HF -Treat hypertension, lipid disorders, diabetes. -Encourage patient to stop smoking and to exercise regularly. -Discourage use of alcohol, illicit drugs. -ACE inhibitor if indicated Class I. Patients with cardiac disease without limitations of physical activity. Ordinary physical activity doesn’t cause undue fatigue, palpitations, dyspnea, or anginal pain. Stage B. People who have structural heart disease but no symptoms of HF. -All stage A therapies -ACE inhibitor unless contraindicated -Beta-blocker unless contraindicated Class II. Patients with cardiac disease who have slight limitations of physical activity. They’re comfortable at rest. Ordinary physical activity results in fatigue, palpitations, dyspnea, or anginal pain. Class III. Patients with cardiac disease who have marked limitation of physical activity. They’re comfortable at rest. Less than ordinary physical activity causes fatigue, palpitations, dyspnea, or anginal pain. Stage C. People who have structural heart disease with current or prior  symptoms of heart failure. -All stage A & B therapies -Sodium-restricted diet -Diuretics -Digoxin -Avoid or withdraw antiarrhythmic agents, most calcium channel blockers, and nonsteroidal anti- inflammatory drugs. -Consider aldosterone antagonists, angiotensin receptor blockers, hydralazine, and nitrates. Class IV. Patients with cardiac disease who can’t carry out any physical activity without discomfort. Symptoms of cardiac insufficiency or of the anginal syndrome may be present even at rest. Any physical activity increases discomfort. Stage D. People with refractory heart failure that requires specialized interventions. -All therapies for A, B, and C -Mechanical assist device, such as biventricular pacemaker or left ventricular assist device -Continuous inotropic therapy -Hospice care Caboral, M. & Mitchell J. (2003). New guidelines for heart failure focus on prevention. The Nurse   Practitioner, 28, 22. Evaluation of Edema Four-point scale 1+ to 4+: 1+ – pitting barely detectable 4+ – pitting persistent and deep (1† or 2.54 cm.)

Flora and Fauna Essays

Flora and Fauna Essays Flora and Fauna Essay Flora and Fauna Essay | Flora and Fauna| | 10/3/2013| | Outline Australia’s unique flora and fauna: Australia has a large variety of unique flora and fauna spread all over the continent, from coast to coast, including in the ocean. More than 80 per cent of the country’s flowering plants, mammals, reptiles and frogs are unique to Australia, along with most of its freshwater fish and almost half of its birds. Australia is home to more than 140 species of unique marsupials, including kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, wombats and the Tasmanian devil, which is now found only in Tasmania. There are 55 different species of kangaroos and wallabies, native to Australia. Australia’s marine environment is home to 4000 fish species, 1700 coral species, 50 types of marine mammals and a wide range of seabirds. Most marine species found in southern Australian waters occur nowhere else. Australia has over 1000 species of Wattle and around 2800 species in the Myrtaceae family, (gum trees and eucalypts). Describe the threats to Australia’s flora and fauna: Extinction Since European settlement of Australia began, a little over 200 years ago, 18 species of Australian mammals and about 100 species of native plants have become extinct. Currently about 40 species of mammals and many hundreds of species of plants are threatened with extinction. These figures are among the worst in the world. Extinction is a natural ongoing process. However at the moment the majority of extinctions are caused by humans. We can clearly tell that it is the humans that are doing the damage, because of the unusually fast rate of extinction. The current rate of extinction in Australia is 100 times the background rate (naturally occurring rate of extinction). There are many things that cause extinction, some of these are: * Habitat loss Natural causes (flood, fire, drought) * Introduced species Picture Caption: This image shows the crisis that Australian flora and fauna are presently in. In this image the more red the region is, the more species in region are thought to be endangered and threatened. As we can see the species under the most threat reside around the capital cities and the coastal regions. This is because habitat has been clea red around the capital cities and higher numbers of threatened species. Also over 50% of Australia is uninhabitable so many plants and animals live in coastal areas because they cannot survive in central Australia. : That is also why we might see higher threatened species rates on the coasts of Australia. Habitats under threat: Habitat loss is currently the main cause of species extinction in Australia. The main causes of habitat loss in Australia are; agriculture, clearing for urban living, logging and mining. When an ecosystem has been dramatically changed by human activities, it may no longer be able to provide the food, water and shelter all animals need to survive. Every day there are fewer places left, wildlife can call home. Most native species cannot exist outside a natural ecosystem. Australia is one of the top ten land clearing nations in the world. While clearing rates are starting to decline, we are still clearing more vegetation then we are planting or are able to regrow naturally. This continuous trend threatens Australia’s environment and flora and fauna species. In addition clearing land increases the chances of erosion and sedimentation of waterways and reduces water quality, also dramatically affecting our flora and fauna. Introduced species: One of the greatest threats to Australia’s Flora and Fauna is introduced species. Australia has a large number of introduced mammals and birds. Introduced frog species, have caused extinction of many native species, due to a massive change in the food pyramid. A prime example of an animal that is greatly damaging Australia’s native species is the Cane toad, which was introduced originally to destroy the harmful cane beetle. It is damaging Australia’s native species, because larger animals see cane toads as prey and therefore hunt them. When cane toads are ingested, a poisonous toxin is put into the predator causing rapid heartbeat, excessive salivation, swelling and eventually death. The animals that commonly suffer are native reptiles, snakes and crocodiles. Risk of natural hazards: It isn’t only humans that are causing the irreversible damage to Australia’s native species. A very small threat to our animals is natural causes. These causes include fire, erosion, floods, drought, landslide and cyclones. Many of these things are a very common occurrence in Australia. One of the main natural hazards that Australia faces often is fire. Tens of thousands of animals died in the Victorian bushfire. Not including the many thousands that had to be euthanized afterwards, due to severe burns and dehydration. Most are small, non-flying animals that could not escape the flames. Insect populations took the worst hit. Natural factors usually occur at a slower rate and therefore cause a low extinction rate. Human activities occur at a faster rate and cause higher extinction rates. Human activities are mostly responsible for the present extinction rates. Current policy position: Different governments around Australia have various pieces of legislation that protect Australia’s flora and fauna. The state governments are responsible for the bulk protection and sustainability of flora and fauna, while the federal government has little power over matters relating to flora and fauna. Many rules/laws on these legislations are very similar and have a few small differences to fit each state/ territory’s needs. However all legislations aim to protect all native species from harm, minimise the loss of habitat and to prevent extinction. These types of flora and fauna legislations are in place in all states/ territories around Australia. An example of this type of legislation is the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act from 1988, which was the first Australian legislation to deal with issues relating to flora and fauna. The Flora and Fauna Guarantee act Victoria (1988) is designed to: * Protect species Protect genetic material and habitats, * Prevent extinction and * Allow maximum genetic diversity within the state of Victoria. Future action plan: There are many individuals, groups and governments that are having big impacts on the state of Australia’s flora and fauna. Some of which are positive and some are negative. The majority are positive; however there are more steps that individuals, groups and governments could take to ensure a brighter future for Australian native species. Individuals Wildlife Tourists Wildlife tourism is watching wild animals in their natural habitat. Australia has a large amount of wildlife tourism due to our unique flora and fauna species. These include; kangaroos, koalas, echidnas, dingos, platypuses, wallabies and wombats. Animal tourism in Australia is very beneficial not only for the tourists but also for the animals. When tourists come to Australia, they are educated about the animals, their habitat and how important it is to protect these animals. The tourist’s views and opinions are then changed and they walk away caring more for the animals and plants, as well as the importance of maintaining biodiversity. Secondly a proportion of the revenue raised from tourism goes towards more educational projects as well as conservation projects, which are very beneficial to all animals. Wildlife Tourism has many positives and the Australian wildlife tourism is moving in the right direction, but there are more highly important steps that need to be taken by the Australian tourism industry, to protect flora and fauna. When building accommodation for tourists, animal’s homes and habitats are often knocked down, causing disturbance to animals and leading to increased vulnerability. As explained earlier habitat loss is one of the major causes of extinction and should be minimised as much as possible. Instead accommodation should be constructed away from animal’s habitats, where it does not affect them too much. Secondly stricter rules should be in place to prevent the feeding of animals by tourists. Feeding of wildlife by tourists can have severe consequences for social behavior patterns. Artificial feeding can also result in a complete loss of normal feeding behaviors. When feeding of animals stops some animals are unable to locate their natural food sources. Hunters Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife or feral animals, by humans for food, recreation, or trade. Although hunting is not very common in Australia, it is still having a big impact on Australia’s flora and fauna. Hunting is seen by some as good for the environment as well as flora and fauna, because it keeps feral pests in check and gives native animals a chance. The majority of animals hunted, are feral. These include non-native animals such as rabbits, hares, feral goats, pigs, buffalo, feral donkeys, horses and camels, which have been proven to endanger our native animals. Also the taxes from hunting activities go to the state or federal governments for such purposes such as enhancing wildlife habitat and managing and maintaining national parks. These things are beneficial, however it is quite clear, in the case of hunting the negatives outweigh the positives. The main reason is hunters are only allowed to pursue specific species. Some environmentalists argue that hunting creates an imbalance in the natural elements of the environment. For instance, if an animal that is typically a predator is hunted to lower numbers, their prey will increase in number. Nature has a delicate balance and hunting can have an impact on that natural balance. Opponents to hunting claim that animals have their own ways of population control and humans are not needed to aid that process. Groups WIRES WIRES are the largest wildlife rehabilitation charity in Australia. It is not for profit organisation that provides rescue and rehabilitation for all native Australian fauna. All animal rescuers and carers are volunteers. WIRES mostly respond to individual public reports of sick, injured or orphaned native wildlife. WIRES volunteers will rescue a sick animal, foster it and release it back into the wild. WIRES also educate kids about the importance of native animals and how to act and look after them to ensure they remain happy, healthy and in abundance. After rehabilitation of animals, WIRES releases animals back into the environment. However as we know, animals have a lower chance of survival after being released as they are not adapted to certain ways of living, predators and finding food. They may also be hunted. This is why WIRES needs to develop reserves where the animals can be released and monitored. With no roads and anti-poaching patrols, to ensure the best chance of survival. Green Groups (Australian bush heritage fund) There are many different green groups across Australia, dedicated to protecting Australia’s diverse environment, especially its unique Flora and Fauna. One of these is the Bush Heritage Fund, which is a national, independent, non-profit organisation that’s aim is to preserve Australias biodiversity by protecting the bush. It is Australias most widely supported environmental national organisation. The Australian Bush Heritage Fund has a very simple yet effective scheme of protecting the biodiversity of flora and fauna. They do this through the creation of reserves on private land. The land the fund purchases are private and protected, meaning that no one can hunt/degrade habitat on the land. This means animals can live naturally, without harm. For example, the fund now owns Naree station. This reserve in Naree protects many native and impotant plants and animals. These include: Animals on protected on the Naree property: * Brolga (vulnerable) * Freckled duck (vulnerable) * Little red flying fox * Pied honeyeater (vulnerable) * Spotted harrier (vulnerable) Brown treecreeper (vulnerable) * Kultarr (endangered) The reserve also protects iconic plants such as: * Coolabah tree * Bimblebox * Leopardwood * Beefwood * Supplejack * Belah The things the fund is doing are great and very beneficial for the flora and fauna of Australia. However, the fund could be doing many other things to protect our native flora and fauna. Firstly they should be conducting more research on the flora and fauna of Australia, to ensure they are purchasing the most important pieces of land, where the most vulnerable species are located. Secondly the fund should introduce education schemes for land owners, teaching them how to best manage their land to protect flora and fauna, as they have more land than the fund and therefore bigger impact on the flora and fauna. Zoos Zoos are defined as a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they are bred. However nowadays zoos are much more than that. Many zoos have now set up conservation society’s, such as the Taronga conservation society. There are a number of things zoo’s conservation societies do to help protect animals. This includes educating people about animals to help them make better decisions, breed animal populations that are endangered/ critically endangered, to increase their numbers and give the species a better chance of survival and help sick/ unwell animals to recover with vetinary care. These things are all important, however there is so much more zoos could be doing to ensure the preservation of animals. Firstly when they release animals into the wild, they may become sick or hunted again. Zoos should therefore establish protected reserves where no hunting/ poaching is allowed and all animals especially re-released ones are safe. Secondly zoos should establish anti poaching patrols to make sure a minimal amount of animals are hunted in the first place. Lastly zoos should lobby for better legislation concerning poaching and habitat destruction, as they have a much bigger voice and authority than many other people/groups. Government National parks/ state parks National/State Parks are large areas of public land set aside for native plants, animals and the places in which they live. They also protect places important to Aboriginal people. Because the area in National parks is protected, no habitat is allowed to be cleared as the land is owned by the government. This ensures there is not a loss of habitat leading to vulnerability of certain species of animals and plants. National parks also educate visitors, both adults and children alike, about the importance of Australia’s native flora and fauna and what steps need to be taken to ensure they can survive. The education scheme also teaches about how individuals, even children can have an impact on the native species of Australia. These things are all fantastic and there was nothing to fault about national arks, until recently. Unfortunately within a few months, we will start seeing hunters being allowed to hunt in national parks. This should be stopped as it is a danger to tourists and native animals that live in the national parks. Also this type of activity will disrupt the natural food chain that has developed in national parks. This will also mean tourists w ill be more hesitant to visit national parks due to hunting, leading to less people being educated about Australia’s flora and fauna and smaller amounts of money being raised, to fund vital environmental schemes.

Strategic Management for Bunkers Indoor Golf Center Essays

Strategic Management for Bunkers Indoor Golf Center Essays Strategic Management for Bunkers Indoor Golf Center Paper Strategic Management for Bunkers Indoor Golf Center Paper Bunkers Indoor Golf Center is a great place for people of all golf abilities to enjoy the game of golf all year. Bunkers brings 42 different golf courses from around the world to the people of Spokane. Anyone can play the most popular courses in as little as one hour, if they are playing by themselves or about three hours if playing a foursome. In addition to the great courses Bunkers will offer professional golf lessons, professional club fitting, a nine hole putting green, and four soft white sand bunkers for chipping practice. Bunkers is a great place to learn and enjoy the game. To ensure the business gets off on the right foot management has conducted a SWOTT analysis and a balanced scorecard. Strategic Management and Planning Strategic management is the process of creating and implementing decisions that will enable a company to achieve its long-term objectives. It is the process of specifying the companys mission, vision and objectives, developing policies and plans, often in terms of projects and programs that are designed to achieve these objectives, and then allocating resources to implement the policies, plans, projects and programs. Strategic management seeks to coordinate and integrate the activities of the various functional areas of a business in order to achieve long-term organizational objectives. (Wikipedia.org, 2009) To ensure Bunkers Indoor Golf Center is organized properly form the very beginning the company will utilize the four functions of management. These four functions are as follows, planning, organizing, directing and controlling. Strategic Planning is a process for determining what a business could become and how it can achieve that goal. It takes a look at the full potential of the business and tries to link the businesss objectives to the actions and the best way to achieve them. Strategic Planning offers a systematic process to ask and answer questions confronting a management team. The first step to great management is planning. This is the most important step as it will set the stage for everything to follow. Because Bunkers Indoor Golf Center (Bunkers) is a new company it is still working out the bugs; planning is always an ongoing process. The company plans everything from the type of advertising to the way it handles employee performance evaluations and everything in between. During the strategic planning stage management is busy identifying goals, objectives, methods, and the resources needed to carry out those methods, including employee responsibilities and dates for completion of tasks. During this planning stage the owners have employed several types of strategies; the first being a business plan, followed by program planning and strategic planning. In the business plan the owners will identify the growth of the business and set a plan for the first five years. This plan is the most important in the beginning because it is the one the banks look at to determine if the business has direction. It includes financial goals, hiring of additional employees, objectives, a mission and the keys to success. It is a large plan and is used as the blueprint for the other plans. As leaders create the business plan, the company will concentrate on the programs and strategies it will use to gain and retain customers. The programs consist of a discount program, complementary items for customers, and many other considerations. During this planning stage Bunkers tried to find programs that would be beneficial to the company and its customers and help it to retain existing customers and gain new ones. At this point, its owners are making the decisions regarding employee dress codes, code of conduct, the employee hand book, and deciding on the way it should evaluate employee performance. The owners will also decide what steps they would use during employee discipline, and what they could offer employees. Each part of the program planning stage opens the door to another. The strategy phase of planning is essential to the success of Bunkers. It includes the types of advertising, how to gain new customers, how to retain existing customers, how and where to market the business, as well as who to market to. The strategy phase is the most exciting because it offers a chance to be very creative and make new connections. This area of business is very competitive and requires a great amount of time and effort to acquire customers. This phase will be the most enjoyable and is one that can never be stopped, it is essential to continue growing. Knowing how to create and manage a strategic plan is essential to the success of the company both in the beginning and during its continued success. The business owner cannot afford to ignore the planning stages of the business and it is something that cannot ever be stopped. The overall success of any business can be contributed to the effort and dedication put into the strategic plan as well as the management of the plan. It is an essential part of the business and must be maintained and revised as the company grows. Mission Vision Statement An important function of the strategic plan is to create a mission for the company. In some cases this can be difficult, but rewarding to the company if done correctly and honestly. The mission statement should be a clear representation of the companys purpose. It should incorporate meaningful information that addresses concepts such as the moral/ethical position of the company, public image, the target market, products/services, the geographic area and expectations of growth and profitability. (Center for Business Planning, 2009) The vision statement is a different concept altogether, although sometimes confused with a mission statement. A vision statement is a description of a desired outcome that inspires, energizes and helps the company create a picture of the target. The best vision statements for result areas describe outcomes that are five to ten years away, although some look even further out. (Time Thoughts, 2008) To get the business off to a good solid start a mission statement was created. It was done so to give the owner, management, employees and the customers an idea of who the company is and what it wants to do. The following is the mission statement for Bunkers Indoor Golf Center. Bunkers Indoor Golf Center (Bunkers) is an oasis for all golf junkies of all abilities, from low handicappers and weekend golf warriors alike. Bunkers is dedicated to providing enthusiastic customer service and support to golfers who demand the best golf experience possible in an indoor environment. Bunkers is also dedicated to providing the largest and broadest selection of virtual golf courses in Spokane. Bunkers brings together a team of dedicated people who love golf and believe it is their job to help its customers to enjoy this great game even more. Every employee shares the same commitment to excellence, a commitment that will assure that each and every customer has a rewarding and enjoyable golf experience. This simple one paragraph mission statement sums up the company and its goals to help them better enjoy the game of golf. The mission statement gives the customers and employees a general guideline and can help them understand the motivation behind Bunkers. It is important that everyone involved with the company understand this and is ready to help meet and exceed the customers expectations. The vision statement is a completely different process all together. This statement drives the company forward to achieve its long term goals. Bunkers vision statement is relatively simple and direct. Bunkers is committed to making people happy by providing a consistently high quality experience that emphasizes the complete golf experience in an indoor setting. This vision statement is short to the point and shows the commitment that Bunkers has to strive to exceed the golfers expectations. Spokane is a small city and is home to several excellent golf courses. However, due to the logistics of the city, some of the more famous and exciting golf courses are difficult play. The owner has had the opportunity to play some of the countrys best courses and when talking to other golfers found that most weekend golfers would love to play these, but given their ability or finances they would not or could not play them. Bunkers has teamed up with the leading golf simulator company in the world (Full Swing Golf) to offer these famous courses to the golfers in Spokane. Without the cost or fear the golfers of Spokane can play 42 courses from around the world year around without leaving the city. In addition to the low handicappers and weekend warriors, Bunkers would like to work with the local school golf teams to offer a year around practice facility to help develop their skills. The schools can reserve tee times in the same manner as the general public but at a discounted rate. The passion for golf runs deep at Bunkers and as such would like the opportunity to expose as many first time golfers to the excitement the game offers. To aid in this Bunkers wants to work with the Boys and Girls Clubs, Boy and Girl Scouts and Big Brother and Big Sister Clubs. There are so many children that would never have to opportunity to experience golf; Bunkers feels it is necessary to reach out to as many as we can in an effort to promote the game of golf and to broaden the experiences of their life. Golf teaches many life lessons such as patience, determination and perseverance as well as teaching etiquette and promoting health (when walking a course). Todays youth can learn form golf and i t is a sport they can play their entire life. In an effort to meet the desires of all golfers, Bunkers will host virtual golf tournaments, complete with prizes, offer golf lessons, a putting green and soft white bunkers for chipping practice. The tournaments will consist of three rounds and golfers can play their rounds anytime during the week. This will give them the best opportunity to compete and enjoy the experience. Golf is a game that can be fun frustrating, to say the least it is the only game the owner loves to hate. It teaches so much and can be so enjoyable, fresh air, clean environment, polite people, and exercise. This is why Bunkers want to promote the sport year around. Spokane has long winters and as such the opportunity to play is limited to only a few months. Bunkers will be open seven days a week, 12 months a year. With this schedule golfers can keep their golf groove all year and get better and shoot lower scores. Understanding the wants and needs of the customers is essential to the long term success of any business. If a company stops valuing its customers or neglects to listen to their questions or concerns, the company will become stagnant and possibly end up shutting down. Having a road map to the follow in the form of a vision statement is essential to the long term grow and success of the company. The vision statement helps customers and employees see where the company wants to go and the tools it will use to get there and when it plans to do so. Just as important is the mission statement. It is the foundation on which the company is built. Without it the company would most likely not exist. SWOTT Analysis In an effort to create a successful business Bunkers management has conducted a SWOTT analysis. Management conducted the SWOTT and included economic, legal/ regulatory, technological, strategy, structures, resources and culture analysis. Economic SWOTT Economic factors play a large part in building of any business. As a strength to keep business loans to a minimum Bunkers will lease the simulators from Full Swing Golf (FSG). The company offers lease with the option to purchase after 24 months. The simulators are the largest upfront expense; however, the lease gives Bunkers the opportunity to allocate funds to other important categories. Bunkers has found a location that will be convenient to customers, the lease a full service lease that includes garbage, water, electricity and snow removal, it is also a graduated pay format, beginning at the , lowest monthly payment and increasing yearly until the payment meets the full cost. This will be important as the cost will remain low while in the early stages of growth. The need to hire employees that have a passion for golf is necessary, as such Bunkers would like to offer a competitive wage to keep employees excited about work and excited about the game. Washington has a minimum wage of $8.55 per hour. Bunkers intends to pay a starting wage of $10.00 per hour and increasing after a performance review at the six month mark. The business loan will be needed to build the enclosures for the simulators, the platform for the chipping green, the platform for the putting green, and the sand for the greens. Office supplies will also come out of the business loan, computer for the office, cash register/computer, and general office supplies. The weakness for the new business is the need for a business loan. The need to rely on outside funding is necessary; however, it can be a weakness as we will have to pay back a loan for several years. In addition the need for a loan to start, the economy will play a large part in the interest rates the business can get. The recent dip in the economy may force those that would be regular players to cut back or maybe not to play at all. This is the most frightening aspect of the business. To keep people playing we will offer specials and packages that will enable golfers to play regularly. The opportunity portion of the economic SWOTT is the most exciting. This is where Bunkers can be creative and make plans for growth. The opportunity for growth is great. Spokane is a golf friendly community and has long cold winters. The need for a place to keep the golf groove is necessary and offers the potential for growth. Bunkers will also increase customer visits by hosting tournaments and prizes for the winners. IN addition to tournaments, Bunkers will offer golf lessons, swing analysis, club fitting, and a small amount of Bunker logo items, most likely hats and shirts. The threat portion is the most frightening. To be realistic management had to think about the current economic situation and decide if now is the best time to open a business is. Management feels it is a good time. Other factors management took into consideration were will other similar businesses open and offer the same entertainment, will golf shops offer more simulators and simulator activities (swing analysis, club fitting), will employees offer free golf to friends and family, taking away from profits (we will set up family discounts to combat this), great summer weather will be large threat to the business. Legal/Regulatory SWOTT Bunkers would like to develop relationships with the children clubs of Spokane as well as the local school golf teams. The legal aspects of this will be in the creating of a contract that benefits both parties. To avoid having a city business license that is very expensive, Bunkers ahs decided to open the first location in the North Spokane area, it is a growing area ( residents and business are all moving north) where business licenses are less expensive. Starting the business with only a few employees will reduce the amount of payroll tax, unemployment tax and work comp cost. The cost of the permits as well as the time it take to obtain an alcohol permit is a weakness. This is time consuming, it include an in depth look into the past of the person applying for the permit. It takes months to obtain the permit and it is subject to random visits by the state. Bunkers will offer only beer and wine, however the permit is still the same for all businesses selling alcoholic beverages. In addition to the alcohol permit the state also requires the company to obtain a food handler permit. Costly and always requiring training for employees this is also time consuming as well as costly to the company as it has to pay the employees for the time they spend taking the tests. The opportunity to build relationships with the children clubs and schools is a a great opportunity. The contracts will help the children expand their horizons and also give them the opportunity to learn a new game or improve at it. The contracts will include stipulations that state Bunkers is not responsible for the care of the children and a parent or guardian must be present to allow play. The biggest threat to the Bunkers is injury to customers. All customers playing in the chipping area will be required to sign a release of liability. There is always the chance of sand in the eye or getting hit by a club or ball. Under aged drinking is another threat and will be dealt with according the state law. Strict rules will help elevate this problem. Parental guidance is also necessary to avoid injury and to keep the business from the liability of children. Technologic SWOTT Having a business that depends on technology can be exciting and frightening. Full Swing Golf offers the best golf simulator on the market. They are constantly improving the graphics as well as introducing new golf courses. To help increase revenue Bunkers will try to incorporate the newest courses, most recent graphic cards and the best projectors and screens available. As hardware is used it wears out and can slow game play. To combat this issue we will constantly maintain the equipment and run diagnostic test of the machines to ensure fast reliable use. Technology is finicky. Depending on it can be a weakness in its own. Slow computers, projector bulbs, damage to sensors can all create havoc in the business and reduce profits. Full Swing Golf offers maintenance plans to protect against los in revenue. In addition to the maintenance plans Bunkers will contract with Networks Rx a computer networking company to ensure our cash register/computer, office computers and simulators all work and are connected using quality servers and materials. Technology is always changing; this can be an opportunity and a threat. As technology changes we must change with it. New faster servers can create the best game play possible. New courses, new graphics and better graphic can help the company grow and will create lasting customers. Incorporating additional elements such as swing analysis, club fitting, and lessons can also be attributed to changing technology. The largest threat is a down computer system. Bunkers is dependant on technology to function. Having down system will prove a debilitating factor, without it the company cant function and will see a loss in revenue. This will prove fatal if it is a lasting issue. Having Networks Rx at our disposal will help alleviate these potential issues. The biggest trend in technology is always changing computer systems. Faster processors, better graphic cards, more memory in servers and new golf courses will be a great trend. The need to keep up with this is essential and can also be seen as a threat, weakness, trend and strength if utilized. Bunkers will be the place to go in the long cold Spokane winters. Strategy SWOTT Strategy is necessary to compete in a competitive market. Spokane does not have a indoor golf center, and word of mouth advertising, strategic fliers and a radio spots will be necessary to Bunkers growth. Using the school golf teams and the children clubs will be necessary to the word of mouth advertising and the growth of the business. In addition marketing the business, utilizing golf tournaments to increase the customer base will be a great strategy. Bunkers would also like to incorporate professional lessons, club fitting to entice customers. Bunkers is a place a golfer of any age can enjoy a full round of golf, a positive aspect of the courses elderly golfer and young golfers can play a round with out the strenuous effort. Bunkers is a ground up business and is in need of constant marketing and upgrading to keep people interested. That will be the most challenging portion of the business. The management team will need to be proactive when the weather changes and use promotions to keep player coming back during the summer months. Spokane summers are gorgeous and people will want to play outside. Management will need to promote the tournaments, climate controlled area, professional lessons to keep people playing indoors all year. Opportunities will be numerous in the strategy area. Holding tournaments that golfers can participate in any time during the week, professional lessons and club fitting will also be an area that will keep people coming back. Bunkers will use the positive image of working with the boys and girls clubs and schools to its advantage and as a strategic opportunity to gain a hold on the community. To keep customer happy and excited to play Bunkers will offer discounted rates depending on the number of golfers in the group. As always the threat of a new business opening and taking customers is always a threat. The perfect summer weather in Spokane can also be seen as a threat to the strategy Bunkers uses. As noted in prior sections the threat of golf stores using simulations in their shops may reduce the lessons and club fitting. The game play will always be a strong point of Bunkers as it is the main focus of Bunkers. The use of technology to create customer email lists will be a beneficial tool. Management will create the list and email specials, promotions and tournament results. In addition to the above listed uses of email Bunkers will also use this portal for suggestions comments and reservations. The use of email will also fit into the technology strengths and opportunity portion of the SWOTT. Structure SWOTT Bunkers management will seek the best most qualified employees possible. The strengths of this company is based on the golf experience of its management team. The owner and his family are avid golfer and have played some of the best courses in the country. To keep the business moving in the right direction nit is necessary to hire individuals that have a love for the game and like using technology. The application process will include phone calls to previous employers; letters of recommendation from school coaches (for students) and student must maintain at least a 3.0 gpa while employed. To maintain the best possible work force Bunkers will utilize regular performance reviews. Weakness will include hiring students. This is not a weakness in the traditional sense; this will be in the sense that management will have to plan for students to take time off for extracurricular activities like golf tournaments and other school and family activities. Technology is a large part of the business and as such it is imperative to hire those that have a love for technology and passion to keep customers happy. Opportunities to hiring students are to expand their knowledge of technology and to give them real world job experience. By requiring students to maintain a certain gpa will help them achieve long term goals and will help management create a positive atmosphere. Using student part time workers will help the company save money in benefits and unemployment taxes. In addition to broadening the horizons of the students we can help them learn technology skills and problem solving skills that will be beneficial to them as they mature. Threats of having employees are normal to all businesses. Management can reduce these by educating employees, utilizing safety rules, hiring positive, motivated trust worthy people will reduce threats as well. Hiring students may cause an increase in employee turnover. To reduce this we will educate, train them and offer positive enforcement to maintain eh best employees possible. Resources SWOTT Bunkers is owned by an avid golfer, and has access to country club professional golfers and high school golf coaches. In addition to the golf pros Bunkers has built in technology company in Network Rx, that can help maintain and trouble shoot office servers, and networks. Some of the funding will come in the form of bank business loan and personal holdings. The need for a business loans is a weakness for Bunkers. The need to tech support professionals to keep the company moving and to keep customers playing is a weakness to Bunker as well. Every golf simulator has proprietary software that only their technicians can repair. Depending on vendor technical support is costly, time consuming, can reduce the profits, and keep a system closed until the technician can fix it. Opportunities are great for Bunkers. Leasing the simulators on a lease to own helps the company save resource and still own the equipment at the end of the lease agreement. There are currently no indoor golf facilities in the Spokane area. An opportunity to grow and prosper is great in addition to give the people a great winter activity. Spokane is located in the Inland Northwest, one hour east of the Idaho Washington border and two hours south of the U.S. Canada border. Depending on outside tech support it costly and can take a great amount of time to receive new parts or for the technician to arrive to install or repair new parts. A positive trend for golf and Bunkers is the fact that there is always a new golfer. Everyday people try golf and Bunkers offers them a place to try it in a safe controlled environment. We will let children ages five and older participate with the participation or guidance of a parent or guardian. Culture SWOTT Golf has a culture of its own and Bunkers will try and maintain it to the best of their ability. Bunkers will offer a clean safe, environment for people to learn or advance their game. Management will build relationships with the children clubs in Spokane as well as the local golf teams and schools. Teaching children the game of golf can teach them things the can use their whole life, patients, perseverance and dedication. Golf is a game that one can play their whole life and Bunker looks forward to helping them start the right way. There are not too many weaknesses of this business from a culture standpoint. From a business standpoint, this business caters to only one demographic. By opening a business that offers entertainment to golfer only can be seen as shortsighted. However, golfers have the desire to play and in some cases it is a great place for good clean fun. The opportunity to expose someone to golf is something that Bunkers is excited about. Golf is a great game that anyone can play not matter age, color, or athletic ability. There is the chance that someone would never play a round of golf at an outdoor course, Bunkers offers them a place to try the game in a reduced amount of time. A person that has never played may not be excited about playing a game for three to four hours and not enjoying the game. Playing a full 18 holes in one to two hours is more enticing to beginners and people that are short on time. The threat of customers becoming bored with Bunkers is a threat management cannot take lightly. With technology constantly changing Bunkers can try to avoid this by updating courses as often as possible. Offering additional resources like lessons, club fitting, tournaments, snacks and beverages will help keep people interested and coming back. Balanced Scorecard The balanced scorecard is a strategic planning and management system that is used extensively in business and industry, government, and nonprofit organizations worldwide to align business activities to the vision and strategy of the organization, improve internal and external communications, and monitor organization performance against strategic goals. (Balanced Scorecard Institute, 2009) The importance of the balanced scorecard is to improve performance by focusing on what matters, increase focus on strategy and results and to improve the communication of a companys vision and strategy. This company has thought about for several years. He has jotted down plans, ideas, drawn floor plans and talked with bankers and even scouted out locations. Over the years, he has had time to think about the business and how he wants it to operate. The owner has spent a great deal of time trying to get ideas together to make this a place people will want to visit. The owner has planned for the simulators (the main focus of the business), the bunkers, putting green and even how to run a fun, convenient tournament. Before the SWOTT and the Balanced Scorecard, he never put a great deal of thought into the actual numbers and financial goals. Until five weeks ago this was just a dream. Now it is becoming a reality. Over the years the owner worked for several companies and found some of them had great corporate values and it trickled down to the employees and made them feel like they were more than just an employee. That is a feeling the author wants to create for the employees of Bunkers. He found that by giving the employees some basic instructions and letting them make decisions makes them feel they are valued and they are not taken for granted. By doing these little things and not micromanaging a company can reduce employee turnover and reduce expense in training and retraining and utilize those fund in other manners. The long term goals are relatively simple, Bunkers wants to grow and open stores in cities nearby, thereby offering more people the chance to play in a convenient location. In addition to this he wants to link the locations for tournament play. The values of Bunkers are derived from various sources; some personal experiences and others are derived from other successful business models. The author is a business owner and feels he has created a strong employee culture, high employee retention, sound business practices and he feels these same qualities can carry over to Bunkers. The basic values the firm will use in this business are the same that many use in their daily lives: respect, patients, honesty, and integrity. These values have served the owner well personally and will do the same in any business setting. He has created a successful carpet cleaning business with these values and feels he can build Bunker with the same. The mission of any business is to grow and prosper. Bunkers wants to do the same. The firms mission is to create a place where people can come to meet friends, play, learn and enjoy the game of golf. The company want to create a fun comfortable atmosphere where people of any ability can come to play or learn the game that they love. All too often the owner hears people say they do not want to play golf because it takes too long, they cannot walk that far, they are nervous to spend the money on a round and not like it. Bunkers can change that, There are no long walks, no galleries watching and making them nervous, It is a great place to see if golf is for them, and for those that play and enjoy it it is a great place to play courses once thought to be playable once in a lifetime. There is something for everyone young, old, high handicapper or low handicapper; there is a course for anyone. The SWOTT analysis forced the owner to take a good honest look at the business. He was a little intimidated in the beginning, but soon found it to be a valuable part of the strategic plan. After completing the analysis he was even more excited to continue the process and change the weakness to strengths in an effort to build the best most efficient business possible. Bunkers is dedicated to providing quality, safety and fun in a controlled atmospheres. By following the SWOTT and the Balanced Scorecard Bunkers can avoid some of the pitfalls of opening and operating a ground up business. The SWOTT is a necessary tool and should be utilized by the management team of Bunkers Indoor Golf Center. Golf is a great game enjoyed by millions of people and Bunkers want to bring the fun to everyone year around.