Wednesday, August 26, 2020

A Native Role; Gary Snyder as the seer and prophet in ‘Turtle Island’

A Native Role; Gary Snyder as the diviner and prophet in ‘Turtle Island’ Charles Altieri composes that in his assortment of verse, Turtle Island, Gary Snyder typifies two jobs: the diviner and the prophet. Altieri portrays the two jobs enigmatically, the diviner being one who can look past the superfluous parts of current life to a cleaner sort of experience, while the prophet can verbalize a customary perspective local to the place that is known for America. It could be contended that because of the ambiguity encompassing the portrayal of these two jobs it would be hard not to discover some progression between Altieri’s thought and the sonnets, however in any case the qualification between the two jobs can unmistakably be seen. Two genuine instances of Snyder going about as diviner and prophet are the sonnets â€Å"The Bath† and â€Å"The Uses of Light† separately. Before the two sonnets can be managed, it merits referencing the title of the assortment as fusing both the vision of the diviner and the comprehension of the prophet. The name Turtle Island is an immediate reference to Native American culture, it being a name for the American landmass dependent on the creation legends of a few Native clans. In his exposition â€Å"Gary Snyder: The Lessons of Turtle Island†, Michael Castro composes that the title exemplifies a â€Å"recurrent subject among its sonnets and papers [that there is a] requirement for present day Americans to come back to the view of the earth as a living life form to whom we are related†.[1] Through Castro’s note we can see that in the title, Turtle Island, the soothsayer requires the individual peruser to forsake the inner self so common in current culture, and consider themselves to be fused in a more extensive framework weaved with the physical place where there is America, yet additionally the ear th in general, while the prophet accentuates that this more extensive framework is certifiably not an advanced idea, yet an unmistakably increasingly indigenous and old idea held by the first occupants of the American mainland. Indeed, even in his title Snyder is obviously appeared to help Altieri’s thought of the soothsayer and the prophet, setting a standard for the assortment in general for maintaining a reasonable masterful and representative purpose. In â€Å"The Bath† Snyder, going about as the diviner, challenges current thoughts encompassing the family and cognizance, upholding for an aggregate awareness and an increasingly naturalistic demeanor towards family relations. The sonnet presents Snyder, his significant other, and his young child Kai washing together, and a great part of the symbolism of the sonnet could without much of a stretch be perused as unseemly because of the straightforward language Snyder employments: â€Å"†¦Washing-tickling out the scrotum, little rear-end, His penis bending up and getting hard As I pull back skin and attempt to wash it Chuckling and bouncing, hurling arms around, I squat all exposed too†. [2] This language, focussing especially on Snyder portraying his son’s private parts, fills a need other than essentially stunning the peruser for influence. Or maybe, it represents a receptiveness Snyder and his family have found through their countercultural rehearses that incorporate Native convictions, a transparency that allows a connection among father and child that numerous individuals, both inside the sonnets setting of the 1960s and a contemporary readership, would esteem as wrong. By expelling themselves from the social cognizance of the 1960s and tolerating a countercultural way of life that gets vigorously from Native thoughts regarding the family, Snyder can isolate the body and sexuality, taking into consideration a more liberated connection between his child and himself. As the diviner, Snyder can see through the cutting edge confusions of sexuality and consequently encapsulates a sort of familial experience that is increasingly genuine, delicate, and open than tha t of the more extensive culture of 1960s America. This partition between the body and sexuality that Snyder proposes is proceeded all through the sonnet, and is reached out to an aggregate genuineness through a mutual awareness. All through the sonnet there is an abstain that, however evolving marginally, is based around the inquiry â€Å"is this our body?† [Snyder, pp.12] As Snyder’s portrayal of the familial shower is moved away from focussing essentially on the rawness of Kai and consolidates progressively aggregate activities, for example, â€Å"sucking milk from this our body sends through/shocks of light; the child, the dad,/sharing mother’s joy† [Snyder, pp.13], and picturesque delineations, for example, â€Å"The cloud over the sky. The breezy pines. /the stream sputter in the damp meadow† [Snyder, pp.14], the division between Snyder, his better half, and his child gets obscured and vague. The poem’s end presents Snyder’s family as a bound together entire, indivisible from one another and mindful of their place on the Earth: â€Å"This is our body. Drawn up leg over leg by the flares †¦ Laughing on the Great Earth/Come out from the bath.† [Snyder, pp.14] The movement from the scrutinizing â€Å"is this our body?† to the definitive â€Å"This is our body† shows an acknowledgment of an intrinsic association between the relatives, just as between the body and cognizance. While in an advanced setting the individual is educated to think in a progressively singular way, and to avoid mutual intuition, Snyder, as the soothsayer, fuses Native deduction to show the connectedness of the world, that the individual personality doesn't exist but instead there is an aggregate cognizance that exists in many separate bodies. Besides, the notice of the â€Å"Great Earth† recommends a connection between this aggregate cognizant and the associations that Native culture states exist in the regular world. Going about as the soothsayer in â€Å"The Bath†, Snyder does a lot to camouflage current ideas of egocentr ic awareness and introduces in its place an aggregate cognizance that permits a more straightforward way to deal with understanding. The job of prophet, to perceive and explain a local method of American reasoning that outdates America as a country, can be seen in â€Å"The Uses of Light†, a sonnet that investigates the numerous ways that light is utilized in the normal world. In the sonnet, Snyder records how five distinct substances utilize light, advancing from the least relatable to the peruser to the most: first the stones, at that point the trees, moths, deer, lastly a voice one can expect to be that of Snyder himself assuming the viewpoint of a Native American. In the sonnet Snyder makes a feeling of interconnectedness between these five elements, and furthermore makes a feeling that this connectedness, as a conviction, is antiquated. The principal refrain, â€Å"It warms my bones/state the stones†, exemplifies the stones in a voice that has an older, antiquated, creaky tone, recommending a history to this conviction that originates before Snyder, yet in addition maybe current American culture . As the primary verse, and along these lines the base of the order of life that Snyder has made in the sonnet, the stones represent how profoundly this connectedness is established in the characteristic world. While we, perusers submerged in an advanced culture and method of reasoning, accept that stones, in contrast to plant or creatures, are not living animals, Snyder explains a Native conviction that the world as entire element is a living life form. Life, along these lines, isn't held uniquely by those life forms that inhale and develop, however is somewhat a quality everything in our reality shares for all intents and purpose. The last refrain explains this feeling of Native custom maybe the most plainly: â€Å"A high pinnacle On a wide plain. In the event that you move up One story You’ll see a thousand miles more.† [Snyder, pp.39] As Snyder, for most of the assortment, doesn't discuss a urban domain, yet rather a country incredible fields one, we can expect this â€Å"tower† is definitely not an exacting behind the times building, but instead an allegory. Maybe Snyder is assuming the perspective of a Native American who climbs a slope to overview this â€Å"wide plain†? Light in the sonnet is often utilized as a methods for endurance: it warms the stones, it enables the tree to develop, and permits the deer to be careful about predators, so maybe this Native American is looking over the land for endurance also, needing to â€Å"see a thousand miles more† to scan for food or asylum. Through this understanding Snyder, as the prophet, presents an utilization of light as per a convention local to the American land, also indicating how the indigenous individuals had faith in imparting the light to the world in general and in this manner implementing the connectedness that is so common in Native culture. As both prophet and diviner, Snyder floods Turtle Island with Native American conviction, and makes a dream of America where a conventional interconnectedness exists as the essential main thrust of life. Regardless of whether it is through the diviner of â€Å"The Bath†, or the prophet of â€Å"The Uses of Light†, the message Snyder presents is consistently the equivalent, just the methods he utilizes change. This message can be viewed as a get back to a customary perspective, getting some distance from the cutting edge awareness or mentality, and tolerating a lifestyle suggestive of the old Turtle Island of the Native people groups. References Michael Castro, â€Å"Gary Snyder: The Lessons of Turtle Island†, Criticial Essays on Gary Snyder, ed. by Patrick D. Murphy, (Boston: G. K. Corridor and co., 1991), pp.132 Gary Snyder, Turtle Island, (New York: New Directions Books, 1974), pp.12

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Progressivism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Progressivism - Essay Example The period guaranteed direct primaries and casting a ballot of American seniors. This accomplishment was indispensable in light of the fact that it gave the residents intensity of their system. The progressives had an objective of improving instruction in secondary school through development of crucial offices, for example, play areas. This measure was to stifle certain locale and substitute the urban machines (Henretta and David 253). The urban machines were degenerate and wasteful frameworks of district. The time saw the guideline of work laws thus all individuals particularly ladies had the option to get least wages (Henretta and David 583). Youngster work was in limitation and protection spread for assembly line laborers upgraded. Crafted by progressives encouraged to the review of different issues, for instance, medications and activity of the railroad business (Henretta and David 461). There was firm antitrust laws in addition to diminished taxes. The congress guaranteed control of banking frameworks henceforth improving states of work. Progressivism included established changes permitting personal assessment. The adjustments in constitution modified the political race process prompting sexual orientation thought. The changes banned the deal in addition to fabricate of liquor in different areas. The pioneers of progressivism called for limitation of migrants through control of outskirts, and changing the nationality of the

Saturday, August 15, 2020

Kiip

Kiip INTRODUCTIONMartin: Hi, today we are in San Francisco with Brian from Kiip. Brian, who are you and what do you do?Brian: Im the founder and CEO of Kiip and Kiip is a rewards platform thats embed about 3.000 apps today. It actually takes these moments of achievement, that we call it, so when you level up in a game, or you finish a to do, or you log a run, in that moment, instead of putting an annoying ad there we say Hey, why dont we actually reward you with something from a brand that you might like.Martin: Great.Martin: You are quite young and you started your company around about 3 years ago. Can you tell us a little bit more about the background of yourself?Brian: I was born and raised at Vancouver, Canada originally and I actually moved down to San Francisco to work in a company called Digg. Digg at the time was very big, it was about the same size if not bigger than Reddit. But unfortunately Digg actually ended up losing and I actually got laid off six months into the job. Now, after I got laid off, it was when I kind of found myself with extra time and I was trying to come up with something to do next, and thats when I got the idea for Kiip. And I came up with the idea, met some venture capitalists, ended up raising like a seed round, and started the company then. Im also a little bit younger than normal, I skipped four grades in elementary school and high school, so I graduated college when I was 18. So, I started the company when I was 19.Martin: And can you tell us a little bit more about how you found this business idea?Brian: Yeah, so, I was on a flight, I remember looking to my left and to my right, they call it the idle creep, and in that moment in time I realized that there were lot of people on their phones, playing games. And what I was very curious is why gaming was so popular, why people loved it so much, and it struck me that there was this thing that people are addicted to, its kind of like this dopamine rush, this euphoria, when you leveled up or hit a high score. And, unfortunately, when I saw those moments happening, a lot of it was being abused by these banner ads. And so I said Whats the better way to actually acknowledge people when theyre in these moments of elation, or potentially to reward them to acknowledge them? I also was reading this book at the time, called Predictably irrational, and parts of the book talk about this idea of serendipitous rewards, the whole notion of surprise and delight. And I was like, I think that seems very organic, seems very natural. Why cant we make our rewards serendipitous as well? So, weve put that into the model and the rest is history, we decided to make that a core part of our model, it still is part of the model today, where every single reward someone receives is a surprise and delight, which is designed to preserve what they were doing originally wasnt, for them, to use the app to get the reward, rather using the app for the sake of using it, and the reward is more like a nice gift.Martin: Ok, understood.BUSINESS MODEL OF KIIPMartin: Lets talk about the business model, Brian. I mean, you shortly described that you have some kind of ad layer putting into games. Is there more around the business model that we need to understand?Brian: We are using something that isnt a typical ad, and its not even an ad in our opinion, its a reward. So, layers on top of these moments in time, we directly integrate with the apps on one side, on the other side we have brands that come in and want to buy into these moments. So, we actually have to have a marketplace, we have to work with both developers and the brands, which is both complex but also very unique, because to own both sides is very, very tough, but very valuable once you have it. So, now we have it, and we work with now thousands of brands as well, so they come in and say Hey, we want to buy into fitness moments, for example, they pay, what we call it, cost per engagement, which is when someone actually pu ts in the email and claims the reward, and then we revenue share that with the developer. So, theres a way for the developer to make money, the brand is able to participate in the moment when someones happy, and no one annoy them with an ad, and then the user gets something valuable. So, its like a triple win, it really is a win-win-win.Martin: Great. When you started launching the company, how did you acquire the first big advertisers or maybe the developers? And how did you sort this hen-egg problem?Brian: When we brought in our first investors, one of them was obviously the venture capitalist that lead the round, but we also brought on some brand and agency folks. And one of them was founder and CEO of company called Popchips, which was a boutique snack brand, it still is doing very, doing quite well in the US; and then also the CMO of Vitaminwater. And so, those two actually brought on our first customers: Popchips and Vitaminwater. So, I think in the beginning its good to have bit of favoritism, you bring in people who like your model and they want to be able to help you and then, obviously, the next challenge is to make sure you deliver for them. So we did, and so those two were the first two brands. In the terms of the developers’ side, it was just a matter of emailing everybody we could find andMartin: So, quite easy?Brian: It wasnt that easy necessarily because we had to email like a hundred people and we finally got a few developers integrate. So, we had our first few developers and we had our first two brands, and thats whats kicked it all off.Martin: Ok, great.CORPORATE STRATEGYMartin: Lets talk about the corporate strategy. From my perspective, you have kind of advertising market, several kind of devices that you can target, web, mobile etc. And on the other hand you have different types of, lets say, payment modes, like CPM, CPC, and maybe your type of reward. How do you plan to go forward, do you plan to stay in this so-called niche of, I call it reward mobile advertising, or do you plan to branch into other kind of mobile marketing spheres, for example?Brian: We want to be really good in one thing, and that is delivering this content at the right moment. You can be safe to assume that we will expand by looking at more moments, so, find other verticals, like travel, finance, sports, on top of the ones that we already have, like games, fitness, music, food, and productivity. And then other platforms, so imagine wearables or even consoles, or other screens, even your watch, these are things that we have begun to experiments with rewards in. I think theres enough room for our niche to be across every vertical and every platform, the other area we begin to expand into is looking at Kiip as.., almost using Kiip in an entirely different way. So, today brands and developers use us for monetization and for brand engagement. But, what weve realized was that what we were doing around rewards also helped a lot with loyalty and rewa rding. And so we actually are starting to apply the platform in loyalty purposes. So, essentially to replace loyalty programs with something thats more about instant gratification. So, Kiip essentially has become more of a platform play, there are a lot of brands as well. So, theres a lot to do in the reward and the moment category, and we are, I think, the leading company that showed people what that potential is. The sooner we go into other categories of mobile marketing, I think wed begin to dilute our value proposition, and I think thats one of the things we were very good at. We should be focusing on early moments and owning them.Martin: So you believe that the market for this reward based advertising is large enough to grow?Brian: I would say its less of the reward, and more about the moment. So, what we put in that moment is totally up to us. We can put a reward in there, we can put content in there, we can put a coupon, we can put a gift card, we can put more access, we can put, you name it, video, we can do whatever we want. The whole point is in owning this moment and weve started to do that quite aggressively on mobile, but I think owning it even more aggressively in platforms that are not just the device are very, very important for our growth.MARKET DEVELOPMENTMartin: Brian, when we are looking at the market for advertising, and just put us in the perspective of a big advertiser, who wants to put some money on the people. What are the main criteria for him to choose one of the specific marketing channels? And second question would be would the advertiser more look for an, lets say, one stop shop for advertising, where he can put all the money in different channels, or would he rather work together with different types of channels, for example you using as one?Brian: Its a great question. I think theyll always want different things. Ive always seen the pendulum swinging where some people want to consolidate at one stop shop and then they realize th at that one stop shop has control over their pricing and they dont see the transparency, they go back to having multiple partners, they do the multiple partners and they go to this too much logistical complication than they need to go back to one stop shop So, theres always going to be a place for both. Ive never really seen a marketing consolidated towards going for either. There are certainly benefits and disadvantages to both, but I think the truth that were trying to hold here is that theres no one thats been able to figure out the alternative to the banner ad. When you look at the banner ad, no one really wants to click on it on purpose, at least on phones, and so the fact that we are alternative, and potentially the answer to the challenges that theyve been experiencing on mobile engagement, makes us very indispensable. So think of us as like, everyone owns a wired telephone, but when the first cell phone came up, its not like you needed it. But when you started trying it out, you realized that it was a great alternative to being wired to the wall. And were able to provide that alternative. I think banner ads is like traditional solution, the lazy solution, but once you see what could be possible using a new type of engagement, it becomes very powerful.Martin: You are quite big already, but what are the major challenges that you are facing right now?Brian: I think the challenges are more about focusing on the platform, as we know that brands will want to buy into, its almost like trying to predict. So it was like, I would put a lot of money and investment into wearables, and see how we can play in those OS, but what if brands dont really care about that. What if they end up, and many data points are proving that even though everybody thinks thats where brands will go, they might end up doing some really retarded move, or they go back and do basic stuff. So, I dont know and you just have to bet on something. So, were going to bet on it anyways, and were g oing to move the market that way, but those are some of the challenges, making sure we focus on the right areas. And the other challenges are actually less so about marketing and customers, theres always money, theres always customers, we have no problem getting them, its more internal, about hiring and getting the right people. So, its almost as sometimes you can get as many customers as you want, but if you dont have the people in the company that are actually being able to manage that demand, than its a huge problem.Martin: And how did you check your assumptions that the customers, the advertisers want x and not y?Brian: For now, we have the luxury of doing it after weve noticed a bit of the trends. For example video, weve started doing video recently just because we knew that there was so much demand, and this was actually seven months delayed. Like, we noticed the demand in January, and then we started actually launching the product in July, and then we just announced it this m onth. So, we could be a little slower, but the thing is, especially when you know that you have an entranced way for brands to spend money on you, I think at the beginning, when youre at the earlier stages at the company, you got to try everything. For now its, we dont have to try everything, we just have to make sure that if we do try something, we invest well into it, and thats really the key.Martin: How do you manage, from the logical point, lets say the flagship products that already worked, and with some kind of new products that youre testing just the hypothesis on?Brian: Our rule, generally, is that we know that that product, at least within the next 2-3 months will lead us to some imminent revenue, we will invest in it, right, so within 2 or 3 months, and then also if I have the gut feeling. Honestly, at the end of the day, if I think that something might work out of it, then we will go for it. Theres really no other way to tell some times.ADVICE TO ENTREPRENEURS FROM BRIAN WONG In San Francisco (CA), we meet founder and CEO of Kiip, Brian Wong. He shares his story how he came up with the idea and founded his company, how the current business model works, as well as Brian provides some advice for young entrepreneurs.The transcript of the interview is included below.INTRODUCTIONMartin: Hi, today we are in San Francisco with Brian from Kiip. Brian, who are you and what do you do?Brian: Im the founder and CEO of Kiip and Kiip is a rewards platform thats embed about 3.000 apps today. It actually takes these moments of achievement, that we call it, so when you level up in a game, or you finish a to do, or you log a run, in that moment, instead of putting an annoying ad there we say Hey, why dont we actually reward you with something from a brand that you might like.Martin: Great.Martin: You are quite young and you started your company around about 3 years ago. Can you tell us a little bit more about the background of yourself?Brian: I was born and raised at Vanco uver, Canada originally and I actually moved down to San Francisco to work in a company called Digg. Digg at the time was very big, it was about the same size if not bigger than Reddit. But unfortunately Digg actually ended up losing and I actually got laid off six months into the job. Now, after I got laid off, it was when I kind of found myself with extra time and I was trying to come up with something to do next, and thats when I got the idea for Kiip. And I came up with the idea, met some venture capitalists, ended up raising like a seed round, and started the company then. Im also a little bit younger than normal, I skipped four grades in elementary school and high school, so I graduated college when I was 18. So, I started the company when I was 19.Martin: And can you tell us a little bit more about how you found this business idea?Brian: Yeah, so, I was on a flight, I remember looking to my left and to my right, they call it the idle creep, and in that moment in time I realiz ed that there were lot of people on their phones, playing games. And what I was very curious is why gaming was so popular, why people loved it so much, and it struck me that there was this thing that people are addicted to, its kind of like this dopamine rush, this euphoria, when you leveled up or hit a high score. And, unfortunately, when I saw those moments happening, a lot of it was being abused by these banner ads. And so I said Whats the better way to actually acknowledge people when theyre in these moments of elation, or potentially to reward them to acknowledge them? I also was reading this book at the time, called Predictably irrational, and parts of the book talk about this idea of serendipitous rewards, the whole notion of surprise and delight. And I was like, I think that seems very organic, seems very natural. Why cant we make our rewards serendipitous as well? So, weve put that into the model and the rest is history, we decided to make that a core part of our model, it still is part of the model today, where every single reward someone receives is a surprise and delight, which is designed to preserve what they were doing originally wasnt, for them, to use the app to get the reward, rather using the app for the sake of using it, and the reward is more like a nice gift.Martin: Ok, understood.BUSINESS MODEL OF KIIPMartin: Lets talk about the business model, Brian. I mean, you shortly described that you have some kind of ad layer putting into games. Is there more around the business model that we need to understand?Brian: We are using something that isnt a typical ad, and its not even an ad in our opinion, its a reward. So, layers on top of these moments in time, we directly integrate with the apps on one side, on the other side we have brands that come in and want to buy into these moments. So, we actually have to have a marketplace, we have to work with both developers and the brands, which is both complex but also very unique, because to own both s ides is very, very tough, but very valuable once you have it. So, now we have it, and we work with now thousands of brands as well, so they come in and say Hey, we want to buy into fitness moments, for example, they pay, what we call it, cost per engagement, which is when someone actually puts in the email and claims the reward, and then we revenue share that with the developer. So, theres a way for the developer to make money, the brand is able to participate in the moment when someones happy, and no one annoy them with an ad, and then the user gets something valuable. So, its like a triple win, it really is a win-win-win.Martin: Great. When you started launching the company, how did you acquire the first big advertisers or maybe the developers? And how did you sort this hen-egg problem?Brian: When we brought in our first investors, one of them was obviously the venture capitalist that lead the round, but we also brought on some brand and agency folks. And one of them was founder a nd CEO of company called Popchips, which was a boutique snack brand, it still is doing very, doing quite well in the US; and then also the CMO of Vitaminwater. And so, those two actually brought on our first customers: Popchips and Vitaminwater. So, I think in the beginning its good to have bit of favoritism, you bring in people who like your model and they want to be able to help you and then, obviously, the next challenge is to make sure you deliver for them. So we did, and so those two were the first two brands. In the terms of the developers’ side, it was just a matter of emailing everybody we could find andMartin: So, quite easy?Brian: It wasnt that easy necessarily because we had to email like a hundred people and we finally got a few developers integrate. So, we had our first few developers and we had our first two brands, and thats whats kicked it all off.Martin: Ok, great.CORPORATE STRATEGYMartin: Lets talk about the corporate strategy. From my perspective, you have kind of advertising market, several kind of devices that you can target, web, mobile etc. And on the other hand you have different types of, lets say, payment modes, like CPM, CPC, and maybe your type of reward. How do you plan to go forward, do you plan to stay in this so-called niche of, I call it reward mobile advertising, or do you plan to branch into other kind of mobile marketing spheres, for example?Brian: We want to be really good in one thing, and that is delivering this content at the right moment. You can be safe to assume that we will expand by looking at more moments, so, find other verticals, like travel, finance, sports, on top of the ones that we already have, like games, fitness, music, food, and productivity. And then other platforms, so imagine wearables or even consoles, or other screens, even your watch, these are things that we have begun to experiments with rewards in. I think theres enough room for our niche to be across every vertical and every platform, the othe r area we begin to expand into is looking at Kiip as.., almost using Kiip in an entirely different way. So, today brands and developers use us for monetization and for brand engagement. But, what weve realized was that what we were doing around rewards also helped a lot with loyalty and rewarding. And so we actually are starting to apply the platform in loyalty purposes. So, essentially to replace loyalty programs with something thats more about instant gratification. So, Kiip essentially has become more of a platform play, there are a lot of brands as well. So, theres a lot to do in the reward and the moment category, and we are, I think, the leading company that showed people what that potential is. The sooner we go into other categories of mobile marketing, I think wed begin to dilute our value proposition, and I think thats one of the things we were very good at. We should be focusing on early moments and owning them.Martin: So you believe that the market for this reward based a dvertising is large enough to grow?Brian: I would say its less of the reward, and more about the moment. So, what we put in that moment is totally up to us. We can put a reward in there, we can put content in there, we can put a coupon, we can put a gift card, we can put more access, we can put, you name it, video, we can do whatever we want. The whole point is in owning this moment and weve started to do that quite aggressively on mobile, but I think owning it even more aggressively in platforms that are not just the device are very, very important for our growth.MARKET DEVELOPMENTMartin: Brian, when we are looking at the market for advertising, and just put us in the perspective of a big advertiser, who wants to put some money on the people. What are the main criteria for him to choose one of the specific marketing channels? And second question would be would the advertiser more look for an, lets say, one stop shop for advertising, where he can put all the money in different chann els, or would he rather work together with different types of channels, for example you using as one?Brian: Its a great question. I think theyll always want different things. Ive always seen the pendulum swinging where some people want to consolidate at one stop shop and then they realize that that one stop shop has control over their pricing and they dont see the transparency, they go back to having multiple partners, they do the multiple partners and they go to this too much logistical complication than they need to go back to one stop shop So, theres always going to be a place for both. Ive never really seen a marketing consolidated towards going for either. There are certainly benefits and disadvantages to both, but I think the truth that were trying to hold here is that theres no one thats been able to figure out the alternative to the banner ad. When you look at the banner ad, no one really wants to click on it on purpose, at least on phones, and so the fact that we are altern ative, and potentially the answer to the challenges that theyve been experiencing on mobile engagement, makes us very indispensable. So think of us as like, everyone owns a wired telephone, but when the first cell phone came up, its not like you needed it. But when you started trying it out, you realized that it was a great alternative to being wired to the wall. And were able to provide that alternative. I think banner ads is like traditional solution, the lazy solution, but once you see what could be possible using a new type of engagement, it becomes very powerful.Martin: You are quite big already, but what are the major challenges that you are facing right now?Brian: I think the challenges are more about focusing on the platform, as we know that brands will want to buy into, its almost like trying to predict. So it was like, I would put a lot of money and investment into wearables, and see how we can play in those OS, but what if brands dont really care about that. What if they end up, and many data points are proving that even though everybody thinks thats where brands will go, they might end up doing some really retarded move, or they go back and do basic stuff. So, I dont know and you just have to bet on something. So, were going to bet on it anyways, and were going to move the market that way, but those are some of the challenges, making sure we focus on the right areas. And the other challenges are actually less so about marketing and customers, theres always money, theres always customers, we have no problem getting them, its more internal, about hiring and getting the right people. So, its almost as sometimes you can get as many customers as you want, but if you dont have the people in the company that are actually being able to manage that demand, than its a huge problem.Martin: And how did you check your assumptions that the customers, the advertisers want x and not y?Brian: For now, we have the luxury of doing it after weve noticed a bit of the t rends. For example video, weve started doing video recently just because we knew that there was so much demand, and this was actually seven months delayed. Like, we noticed the demand in January, and then we started actually launching the product in July, and then we just announced it this month. So, we could be a little slower, but the thing is, especially when you know that you have an entranced way for brands to spend money on you, I think at the beginning, when youre at the earlier stages at the company, you got to try everything. For now its, we dont have to try everything, we just have to make sure that if we do try something, we invest well into it, and thats really the key.Martin: How do you manage, from the logical point, lets say the flagship products that already worked, and with some kind of new products that youre testing just the hypothesis on?Brian: Our rule, generally, is that we know that that product, at least within the next 2-3 months will lead us to some imminen t revenue, we will invest in it, right, so within 2 or 3 months, and then also if I have the gut feeling. Honestly, at the end of the day, if I think that something might work out of it, then we will go for it. Theres really no other way to tell some times.ADVICE TO ENTREPRENEURS FROM BRIAN WONGMartin: You are quite young as a founder, but you still have 3-4 years of experience. Our readers always are like first time entrepreneurs or entrepreneurs. What type of advice can you share with them? Maybe in raising capital at such a young age and maybe compare this situation that you had to the situation now. If you would start the company all over again, what are the differencesBrian: Yeah, its a great question. I would tell them that starting a company and then growing a company or scaling the company are two extremely different things. I would say, for me, starting a company is much easier, like you have the great idea, you can rally everyone around you, you get your first few customer s, you just, youre off to a great start. For some people its very hard to start, for me its easy. Scaling has been a little bit more difficult. And youre talking hiring the right people, sustaining customer growth, having right messaging in the marketplace, dealing with competitors, those are a lot of challenges you face on a latter side of the growth sort of equation. So, the advice Id give people for raising money, in the beginning, its actually not that hard. As long as you have great team, Im talking about amazing team, surround yourself with amazing people, like PhDs, geniuses, savants, whoever you can find that you think would be perfect for solving that problem, bring them in. Once you have that team, its really no question whether or not you can raise, if you have the right people, raising is always very easy conversation half. You might not have experience or track record, but if the people youre starting your company with does, then its another, much easier. So, again, I w ould say in the beginning just having right people is incredibly important. Also, try not to pigeonhole yourself too early on, so like making rules, remember every decision you seem to make, it seems that you can always change in the beginning, will affect you in year 3 or 4. Were talking things like howd you decide to price things, your first price ever, your first few customers in the execution, the first exception you ever made. All those things, as much as you dont thing count now, matter a lot. Around 4 years later, we still find ourselves asking, scratching our heads as to why we made certain decisions in year 1 and year 2, wishing that we would make it differently, which, again, isnt a huge deal, but little things like just deciding what the anchor price was will affect your revenues in millions. Its basically how, thats how this tiny decision that seems in the beginning would be a huge impact over 3 or 4 years.Martin: If you are put in the same situation today, what would yo u do different when raising money?Brian: I think the markets are fundamentally different today than they were four years ago. If I were to attempt to start to raise money now, I think the challenge is really making it sure that you cut through the clutter and the noise, theres too many people solving too many amazing problems. And today, I would say, honestly try to use the new sources of capital, whether it be angel list, or all the crowd funding guys, these are some areas that you could potentially explore to raise capital in a different way. I almost feel like crowd funding is a better model for some companies that can get preorders and use the demand to fund the product. But there are other companies that do need traditional sources of venture capital. As sexy as venture capital might seem, there are other ways to raise money today that are actually better for you. Venture capital has its place, but only for certain profile companies.Martin: What other types of business models a re, would be angel list, for example, applicable?Brian: I think angel is applicable if youre like a celebrity and people know of you and you just press a few buttons and you just raise like $300.000 in one go, which by the way, is very easily done if you have done something before and youre well-known in the ecosystem. If youre brand new, it is almost impossible. Ive seen people Hey, follow my company, Im like Im not following your company, I dont even know you. So, its like, there are things that will work on angels, and things that wont, and then, sometimes theres this pipe dream of the breakout company, and youre like why is he like golden child and all of a sudden everybodys pouring money. Its just, numbers-wise it just isnt going to work out for everyone. Out of the batch of YC companies, out of the batch of the ones that are favorite, out of the ones that end up showing traction by the end of the day, those are the types of companies that will end up getting funding via that m odel. But I think, honestly, if you end up befriending, in a good way, sort of like really accomplished entrepreneurs that have exited, that have a lot of liquid capital, in fact the best way to raise is actually to find the exited entrepreneurs that have too much money to throw around and dont mind throwing 50k, 100k into a round. All of the sudden, you have three of them, you have 300k. And thats more than enough to start, in my opinion, to proof an idea. So, the exited ones are the ones that will have the type of capital that can fund you in the beginning.Martin: What would be your advice on, if you built the minimum viable product, what are the key variables that you should test? In order to get, after youre getting the 300kBrian: Its really hard for the MVP, especially because you can test it with some customers Sometimes your customers dont even know what they want, so its always both sides. You get the feedback from your customers of whether or not they want to use it, and th en you find out later on that because it was so new, they didnt even know what they needed it when you first tested it. And then maybe later on they need it, like they need it like crack, they had no idea. So, I would say that the most important things are whether or not people are using it the way that you imagined they would use it, and then find out why they arent using it the way you imagined them to use it, and then use the input of how theyre using it to inform other product decisions. Because, my favorite stories come from this guy, Stewart Butterfield, that started Flickr. And then recently Slack, which is this really popular enterprise communication tool. Every time hes created these two very, very successful companies, its come from something else. So, when he started Flickr, it came from his games company, it ended up, this sharing of photos ended up becoming the Flickr product. And then for Slack, he started another games company, that didn’t work out, and then he star ted Slack again. Its almost like his model is: let me start a games company and everything else that comes with it just becomes a product, ends up becoming way more successful. Slack is being valued to almost a billion dollars now. Thats like, there are so many stories that Ive seen, not just Stewart, where they would create one thing, and the entrepreneur thinks this is one thing, and then the use case that people have of it, that ends up becoming the really successful use case, because theyre so focused on that one thing they forget to see how everybody else is using it. And then, the other use cases usually are the ones that might be the billion dollar company hiding in there. And the genius entrepreneurs are the ones that can identify that.Martin: But still, if their cash is not sufficient for having this kind of pivot, and showing some traction in this new business model, some VCs might not put money in there.Brian: But thats why you need to surround yourself with geniuses. The y can identify these things, and No, listen, you might think you have this, but you actually have this. And you need people around you that can kind of come up with those ground shattering, some sort of insights, because, too often when youre in it yourself, like myself, Im in it all the way, like really deep, its very hard for me to float up to the top and go Oh, yeah, what do we have here? Its very, very difficult, almost impossible. So, the people who are around you that can do that, or the ones that are very valuable to you.Martin: You started quite fast in the school. Are there any tips on productivity you can share with entrepreneurs?Brian: My productivity tips from year 1 to now are very different. So, year 1 is, you have no such things as sleep, you have no such thing as rest, every day counts, every minute counts. Now, its still the case, but you really need to find sole and almost space to let yourself wonder and think about things that help your business grow. Because, in the beginning, you already know your game plan. You have everything laid out, to build the company and once thats done, the company is built, has its foundation, has its revenue streams, has its sort of operational infrastructure, but now, once those things are all built, like you can bury yourself in that stuff every single day, you need to have enough time to think about what are the next products, what are the next customers, what are the big picture items we need, what are the big partnerships we need to do? You need to give yourself that extra room, which means things like not burring yourself at work just for the sake of burying yourself at work, its very easy to do that. Its very easy to stay at the office until 11pm, midnight, every day. But does that mean that youre more productive than the next guy? Probably not. You need to have that extra room to be able to see the big picture for your company as well.Martin: Might this be from your perspective one of the reasons why VC sometimes exchange in the CEO, because he might not change from this kind of Im focused on the first product, get it ship and thats it, but cannot be, its not able to take step back and think about corporate strategy and what are the next products, roadmap, etc.Brian: I cant really comment on that or know what the decision-making process is like, but I feel like I can certainly understand why some founders and CEOs decide to do certain things because they have different objectives that they enjoy spending time on. The good news is that, because I have a business degree, and I also love operating and I love being visionary at the same time. I think both of those things land nicely, I just need to acknowledge things more explicitly early on and hire operating goals, and thats what were doing right now, so were really in the middle of it right now. I think 4 years later, because Im still here, I think Im hopefully doing something ok, but theres a lot to keep in mind as a company grows .Martin: You said in the beginning that you really should focus on having rock star, super geniuses on your team. Is there some kind of rule that you identified for the number, the size of the team, and what are the criteria for such super geniuses. Whether its really only PhD, something like this, or whether you put it more on other criteria?Brian: I dont just mean PhDs, Im talking of people who have done it before, or very interested in that one single area, very entrepreneurial, maybe have the same drive as you. Those guys work really well when youre between like 3 to 7 or maybe 10 people. The moment you pass 10 people, the moment you got like 15 people maybe, youre going to lose some of these people, because they want to be part of something early on. So when I say in the early days, having those people to support now, maybe you dont want to hire another ridiculous, early stage, savant guy, because they wont survive at a 70 person company. Theyre just not designed to be in a lat er stage business. So theres different types of people you want to hire. Now, what you need is loyalty, what you need is very, almost machine like efficiency, which will come from people who have done this before, and also are very used to scaling vs. the ambiguity of the start. And so the good news is that those people wouldnt have joined your company in year 1 or year 2, but they will join your company in year 3 or year 4, which is whats happening now.Martin: And how do you find this type of savants, for example?Brian: You got to hang out with really smart people. These are big events, these are like going to things like TED, these are going to things like Davos, these are going to things like DLD, founders, all this really big events, you want smart people like that, and also three intros. Usually, smart people hang out with some people. So, once you get to know one or two or three, they all hang out in different areas and you end up getting to know them, stuff like that. The cha llenge today is that there are a lot of really big problems that need to be solved, and these smart guys are in definitely lot higher demand, so I think you want to find them in non-conventional sources, though I feel like the ones that already have done it in the whole Silicon Valley system, have extremely high views of how valuable they are. And Im not saying that they overvalue themselves, they certainly know exactly how much theyre worth, so they will charge a lot. But if you look at a guy whos a recent PhD in like University of Florida, or some random place in the US, they have no idea how cool they are, you want to find these people. Those are the guys, and gals, Im sure can be able to help you, and may not understand how they fit in the startup ecosystem yet.Martin: Ok. Imagine a friend of yours ask yourself: Brian, what is your most valuable advice that you can give me when I want to start my own company? What would you tell him?Brian: Single, most valuable piece of advice: ask a lot of people for a lot of help. Just ask people. Im talking like, even if you didnt think that person would respond to your email, just email them and ask them for help, because asking, I think, is very underrated, and you never know whats going to happen. And you might be, some parameters of your network or your intelligence, like me, I think Im not even that smart when it comes to lot of things were trying to attack, but just the fact that I ask people for help, moves the needle, gets things done, those people are willing to help, the ones that end up responding to you. If they dont respond you, its not like they would help you anyways, so it ended up being good thing that you actually open those doors. Because if you dont ask people, they dont know how to help you.Martin: Should you only ask people that you know or?Brian: No, ask people who you have no idea Ask people who are strangers. Thats the beauty of tackling the problem, is that even that you dont know this person, what will bring you together is this problem youre trying to solve. And everyone, I feel, always want something exciting to sink their teeth into, theres not a single person that I met in my life I want to have very boring, unfulfilling life. There are people who want that excitement, how much of that excitement is definitely up for you to discuss with that person, but they will certainly, in the beginning at least, want to dip their toes in there and try to at least help you in some way or fashion.Martin: Ok. Brian, thank you very much for your time.Brian: Thank you.Martin: And if you enjoyed this interview, you can have a voucher over there, clicking and Have a nice day, thank you.

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Physician Assisted Suicide Should Be Legal - 1325 Words

The topic of physician-assisted suicide has become very controversial because of the ethical questions. The physical state of health of the patient, the patient’s personal life, and even the financial pressure of the patient are all factors to consider when contemplating whether or not to legalize this controversial cause of death. Physician-assisted suicide regarding medical ethics states that a physician cannot legally give any patient a lethal injection to end their life, but they can take the patient off of life support in order to increase the process of death. Physician-assisted suicide should be legalized at a federal level and should be morally acceptable for patients who are terminally ill and can no longer be treated to improve their medical situation. Legalizing physician-assisted suicide would allow patients with failing health to decide to end their lives without causing further suffering by trying to fight their illness. Terminally ill patients should be able to decide when to stop fighting an uphill battle. However, if the patient happens to be in such an unfortunate condition to where they cannot speak for themselves, the family member or friend who has the power of attorney should be able to determine when the time comes for the physician to alleviate the suffering. The patient can be â€Å"satisfactorily alleviated† by having their physician inject them or give them a substance that speeds up the process of death, rather than only ending their life support orShow MoreRelatedShould Physician Assisted Suicide Be Legal?901 Words   |  4 PagesWhen society ponders over the idea of physician-assisted suicide, they most likely feel that the act itself would compare to murdering someone. Who really has the authority to sa y what is right or wrong when a loved one wants to end their life because of a terminal illness or a severe physical disability? Should Physician-assisted suicide be Legal in California to make it a euthanasia state like Oregon ? In the article titled â€Å"Nicest Lawmaker Touts Assisted Suicide,† by Clea Benson published The BakersfieldRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide Should Be Legal1578 Words   |  7 Pagesmeasures. One of the alternative options is Physician-Assisted Suicide; defined as the voluntary termination of one’s own life by administration of a lethal substance with the direct or indirect assistance of a physician (â€Å"Physician-assisted†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ). In layman’s terms it means that a physician administers medications to the patients to use on their own terms, and it’s entirely up to the patient whether or not to ingest the medication. I know Physician-Assisted Suicide is a practical solution to terminally illRead MoreShould Physician -assisted Suicide Be Legal? 1473 Words   |  6 Pages Should physician-assisted suicide be legal? This debated subject has no right or wrong answer. Assisting someone in death has a felony murder conviction in some cases. There are a few different ways of being charged, but there are certain circumstances. There are many reasons why I am for it and of course, I have reasons against it. When you have a loved one in a vegetative state, does the family say yes or no to â€Å"pulling the plug?† Is it not the same as assisting a person in death? AnotherRead MoreShould Physician Assisted Suicide Be Legal?761 Words   |  4 Pages We Should be in Favor of Physician-assisted Suicide In a momentous decision released February 6, 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Physician-assisted suicide will be legal in Canada within 12 months. This deci-sion has caused a myriad of controversy. Opponents of physician-assisted suicide argue that the constitution recognizes the sanctity of life and no one has the right to end the life of another person’s. Supporters, on the other hand, argue that patients who experience constantRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide Should Be Legal935 Words   |  4 Pagesdiscusses the ethics of physician-assisted suicide. In the process of physician-assisted suicide, a doctor purposefully provides a terminally ill patient with the means to take their own life. This is often confused with active euthanasia; however, they are not the same thing. In euthanasia, the doctor administers the lethal drug to the patient, but in physician-assisted suicide, the patient must take the lethal drugs themselves. There is much debate over physician-assisted suicide today. Some peopleRead MoreShould Physician Assisted Suicide Be Legal?847 Words   |  4 PagesShould-Physician Assisted Suicide Be Legal In Every State When it comes to the topic of, should physician-assisted suicide be legal in every state, most of us will readily agree that it should be up to a terminally ill person to make that decision. Whereas some are convinced that it is inhumane, others maintain that it is a person’s decision to end their own life. I agree that physician-assisted suicide should be legal in every state because in most cases, people that are terminally ill should haveRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide Should Be Legal1494 Words   |  6 PagesPhysician Assisted Suicide A tough issue on the rise in the United States is whether or not Physician Assisted Suicide (PAS) should be legal. Physician Assisted Suicide allows a physician to prescribe a lethal dose of medication to a patient to end their life. However, the patient has to take the drugs on their own. PAS would be only offered to those suffering from a terminal illness with less than six months to live. The way these patients go about treating and or living with a terminal illnessRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide Should Not Be Legal2017 Words   |  9 PagesEnglish 100 Melody Kowach Say No to Physician Assisted Suicide Has anyone ever heard of the term Assisted suicide? The term assisted suicide â€Å" is suicide committed with the aid of another person, who is usually a physician. It usually is called physician assisted suicide because a doctor is providing information on committing suicide with lethal doses of drugs (Assisted). There are many people with a terminal illness considering assisted suicide. Assisted Suicide is legal in five states which is OregonRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide Should Be Legal1223 Words   |  5 Pagespractice of physician assisted suicide. This would allow terminally ill patients, many of whom have cancer, to make the difficult decision to end their lives peacefully. Doctors are able to simply write their patient a prescription, designed to end a person’s life in a non-painful way. Doctors and medical personnel have struggled with this topic, exploring the various consequences and benefits that come with making assisted suicide legal. Currently, physicia n assisted suicide has been made legal acrossRead MoreShould Physician Assisted Suicide Be Legal? Essay1745 Words   |  7 PagesShould Physician Assisted Suicide Be Legal? Every day in the United States 1,500 people are diagnosed with a terminal illness. These people are given few options when determining if the wish to try treatment and if treatment does not work, how to deal with the end of their lives. (author unknown, â€Å"Cancer†) With this horrible future ahead of them many may wish to make amends before it’s too late, however, an increasing number of people are seeking an alternate solution. In states such as Oregon, Washington

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Representations Of Religion And Western Media - 1499 Words

Representations of Religion in Western Media Islam There is a current obsession in western media, (during the last decade) pertaining to â€Å"Islam and the West†. This current obsession is filled with negative signifiers with the global media’s predominantly negative, and to an extent racist portrayal of Islam and Muslims. Muslims are generally represented as violent, fanatical, bigoted, or as extremists and terrorists. Media coverage of Islam-related issues has changed drastically since the start of the new millennium, both in quantity and quality. The events the of September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, cast Islam into the forefront of global media: not only did coverage of Islam rapidly increase, particularly in news and entertainment media, but the way in which Islam was represented by the media changed as well. The most prevalent Islamic stereotype in western media is the radicalized Muslim insurgent, firm on waging jihad, or holy war, against the Western world. This stereotype usually dep icts violence as an inseparable part of being Muslim, as well as the religion being a justifier for the violent actions. An example of this kind of a negative stereotype can be seen in the character of Sayid Jarrah on ABC’s LOST. Jarrah, the only central Muslim character on the show, previously worked for the Iraqi Republican Guard as a communications officer and interrogator, and is frequently shown using torture techniques to extract information from prisoners.Show MoreRelatedThe Way Western Media Reports Events1073 Words   |  5 PagesThe way Western media reports events going on in the world influences the attitude Westerners have towards those events. Whether or not the media portrays the entire story or the full truth, most Westerners do not question the reports. Currently, Western media incorrectly portrays the members of the terrorist group ISIS as pure Islamic followers because of their use of verses in the Quran to justify their extremist actions. However, ISIS has a vastly different interpretation of the Quran than otherRead MoreAre Representations Of Islam Realistic?1661 Words    |  7 PagesAre representations of Islam realistic in the news? http://www.ukessays.com/essays/media/countless-stereotypes-and-negative-representations-media-essay.php http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/politics/6758207/1-in-5-British-Muslims-have-sympathy-for-jihadis-in-poll.html Countless stereotypes and negative representations exist about Islam by the Western media in specific the news. It is known that media is very powerful source that shapes people s minds and opinions. For some people, theRead MoreSouth Park Is The Third Longest Running Animated Series1636 Words   |  7 PagesSouth Park is the third longest-running animated series in the United State; it is famous for its crude language, dark humors and satires on current global and pop culture events, in which create a lot of controversies on political, social and religions context. The following content will analysis â€Å"South Park† in the aspect of circuit of culture. Production South Park is first on air on Comedy Central, which is an American basic cable and satellite television channel that is owned by Viacom, whichRead MoreEdward Saids Theory Of Orientalism1561 Words   |  7 PagesThe theory of Orientalism was made popular by Edward Said in his 1978 work ‘Orientalism: Western Concepts of the Orient’. This essay will examine an Orientalist approach to specific countries’ people and religions. For the purpose of this essay I will focus on Orientalism in relation to the religion of Islam and the country of Thailand. In addition to this, also discussed will be the criticisms and successive philosophical challenges to Orientalism. First it is important to define Said’s OrientalismRead MoreReligion Is Not For Christianity And Islam1509 Words   |  7 PagesIt is a widely accepted fact that religion is not limited to Christianity and Islam. Instead, it also incorporates issues such as the fanaticism of expertise, worldly humanism, the consumer culture as well as the consecration to Thursday Night Rugby among other illustrations. Analysis of the historical definition of religion, it has been found that the five core features of religion are also met by politics. For this reason, it is hard to distinguish religion from a policy. As pointed out by theRead MoreStereotypical Representations Of Racially Marked Female Bodies760 Words   |  4 PagesAndrea Cameron 130131120 WS 203- OC1 Dr. Bianca Rus June 25, 2015 Assignment #2: Stereotypical Representations of Racially Marked Female Bodies The world of Disney it is not necessarily magic for everyone. In Western popular culture there is an endless buffet serving stereotypical ideologies for racially marked women. The media often relies on representation of articulation of ethnic women as animalistic, inferior and outside the natural. Films tend to utilize signifiers that express race, classRead MoreCultural Practices Influence The Way We Perceive The World1682 Words   |  7 PagesCultural practices influence the way we perceive the world. Our Western world is more exposed to â€Å"different† things yet have a difficult time accepting Eastern cultures and how things beyond us work. A major issue that is affected by culture is sexuality. A subtopic of sexuality is, slut shaming. Slut shaming is, â€Å"the act of making any person feel guilty or inferior for certain sexual behaviors or desires that deviate from traditional or orthodox gender expectations,† (Your Dictionary). My outsideRead MoreEssay about Cinema and Religion684 Words   |  3 PagesCinema and Religion Entertainment media are contributing to the emergence of new and novel forms of spiritual and religious phenomena in our contemporary (and past) culture. The essays in this issue explore diverse facets of the morphing relationship between entertainment, spirituality and culture. Over the last century, the cinema has played a vital role in the expression and representation of Judeo-Christian religious practices and beliefs. Early cinema told the life of Christ in the PassionRead MoreThe Photographer Into Afghanistan With Doctors Without Borders Essay1691 Words   |  7 Pagesfueled by, â€Å"a profound respect and love for the people of Afghanistan, and a belief in the importance of their work† ( Lefevre x). The importance in that work was to show humanity in the faces the media portrays as terrorists. The media also portrays Afghanis for being uneducated, sheltered, and driven by religion. Throughout the book there are examples of Afghans that deserve empathy, but one page st ood out from the rest: page 176. It displays Bassir Khan’s businessmen and bodyguard sitting unamused inRead MoreThe Evidence For The Secularisation Of Western Europe1660 Words   |  7 Pagessecularisation in Western Europe. Although it will examine both for and against, the essay will reach a decision on whether or not Western Europe is secularised. Secularisation is defined by Wilson (1982) as â€Å"a social process whereby religious institutions, thinking, and consciousness are losing their social significance†. This is relatively true in Western Europe, due to industrialisation and new technological and scientific research. The move from one ‘canopy’ religion to a branch of religions and the

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

All about Interest Groups, Political Parties, and Nominations and Campaigns Free Essays

The American system of election is very expensive, time consuming and tedious to the aspiring presidential candidates. The length of the process determines the prosperity of a candidate from any political party. Although this time range favors some candidates its complexity and cost disqualifies other candidates. We will write a custom essay sample on All about Interest Groups, Political Parties, and Nominations and Campaigns or any similar topic only for you Order Now Since not all top party leaders are interested in the presidency, the aspiring candidates have to meticulously orchestrate their announcement of candidature to capture the public while at the same time win the approval and loyalty of their leaders. This occurs during the caucuses and primaries in which starts the road to the White House as argued by (Lader, 2006). This system has flaws for states like Iowa that still relies on caucuses. The suitable candidate can easily be locked out of the race early if they lack popularity with the party heads. The numerous questions and hole punching that is involved in these levels can easily elevate or disqualify a candidate depending on their eloquence, smartness or simply their political correctness at that particular time. The highly televised primaries on the other hand have rather seen luminaries in larger states like New York and California succeed. Celebrity entertainers have recently been used to rally support for candidates during such primaries. Such trends show modern day success stories for democracy. The future of election currently relies on modern day technology and chat rooms that are famous especially with the youthful population. Showbiz and technology such as Facebook and Twitter are the next level of campaign strategies since they have the most audience of the voting population. Campaign themes also have credited to the success or failure of modern day candidates. 2. Political Parties. The growth of democracy in the U.S is credited to the evolution of political parties and their strong affiliations to the public. The political parties have fashioned themselves around the figure of the president for administrative and political influences. Although this is fashioned to enable uniqueness of voice and solidarity in opinions, it has alienated the public from decision making compared to their British counterparts. This brings about personal political ambitions to the parties, where presidents only push their aspirations while sidelining the shared collective responsibility for the entire nation and the political parties. The problem is that the public has no say in decision making since the president does not have to consult the Congress in decision making. The failed link between the people and their presidents thus causes dissatisfaction and polarization. 3. The Interest Groups. In light of the common good of the American society, the power of the interest groups can only be sustained to its least degree possible. If not, their extremism of expression tends to only favor the thought of certain groups and alienate other groups. These groups are small; the allegiance to any of these groups automatically paralyses the success of a presidential candidate. These interest groups have drawn allies in the mainstream political parties thus dividing the country in lines of opinion and policies. The strong constitutional structure silenced these groups yet the concept of pluralism enhances cooperation while reducing polarization of the country. This maintains freedom, versatility and balance of political power. 4. Conclusion. The systems of election and campaign in the primaries and the caucuses are truly beneficial to ensure transparency. Unfortunately, the tedious nature of this journey can be reviewed by the use of technology and inclusion of pluralism that favors the power balance. The American population should therefore be encouraged to embrace chat room groups and pluralism to motivate the growth of their democracy. Reference Lader, C. (2006). How to prepare for the AP U.S. Government Politics Barron’s How to prepare for the AP US Government and Politics Advanced   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Placement Examination. Barron’s AP Unites States Government Politics (4th   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ed). New York: Barron’s Educational Series. How to cite All about Interest Groups, Political Parties, and Nominations and Campaigns, Papers

Monday, May 4, 2020

Book-Keeping and Accounting for Entrepreneurial - myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theBook-Keeping and Accounting for Entrepreneurial Finance. Answer: Policy and procedure on Accounts Receivable As mentioned in the question, the company follows a policy of giving discount to debtors for Net 2/7 days, which implies that 2% discount would be awarded to the debtor, in case he/she pays the amount within 7 days of its becoming due. This is one of the policies being followed in many of the companies in order to increase the volume of collection and improve the DSO, i.e., daily sales outstanding. The normal credit period being offered to the debtors by the company is 30 days from the date of invoicing and besides this; the credit is approved only to the approved customers with the credit limit of $2000. If at all, the credit limit needs to be increased for a particular customer, the same needs to be approved by the management. The company also follows a policy of giving the reminders through mails and phone calls to the customers once the normal approved limit of 30 days is crossed and it becomes due for more than 30, 60 and 90 credit days(Baresa, Bogdan Ivanovic 2017). Assuming some rational figures, below is the illustration of factoring: The company may get its accounts receivable factored through an outside agency or it may go as per its own policy. The option available with the company is recourse and non-recourse, non-recourse means the outside agency/factor will bear all the risk of bad debts and in case of recourse factoring, the factor will not bear the risk of the bad debts and the liability will be on the company. Besides this, we have assumed that the factoring commission will be 0.5% of the total receivables of the company but in case of non-recourse, the same would be increased to 3%. To control this entire accounts receivable officer would be put in place that would be paid an administrative cost of $200 monthly. Also, assumed that 40% of the debtors have utilised the benefit, of paying within the limit of 7 days. The last assumption is bad debts in the normal course of the business are 10% of the receivables amount. In the above example, three options have been taken: Option 1: non-recourse factoring Option 2: Recourse factoring Option 3: No factoring From the results, it is clear that the company will best perform in case the non-recourse factoring is opted for based on the assumptions taken. Policy and procedure for accounts receivable The date of the policy will be 20th August 2018. The policy will be authored by the employee and will be approved by the management. The purpose of the policy will be to state the methods of maintenance of the accounts receivable of the company. The main responsibility will be assigned to the sales department and the cashier to manage the overall accounts receivable. The management will provide the required supervision. The human resource team will appoint qualified person for the role, who can manage the accounts effectively(Moraczewski 2017). The main procedures will be: Supply Of Credit It is important that the company must have a sound credit policy, where the customer who are provide credit, must get their accounts verified. There must be specific credit limit depending on the credit worthiness of the customers. Once the credit is allowed, proper checking of the payment must be done and it must be timely tracked. Invoicing Procedures The management of the invoices is an important part of accounts receivable. The business will try to accelerate the sales by issuing the invoices as soon as a transaction is completed. The invoices must contain all the details. There must be proper policies as per which the accounting department should issue the invoices and the sales department should enter the records. Accounting procedures helps in keeping attack of the total sales made, invoices issued and payment received from the customers(Abor 2017). Statements The company needs to maintain certain statements and records with respect to the total number of customers who are given credit. Total number of invoices issued and the total amount that is received and all must be properly recorded and reconciled in the end of the accounting period. Collection From Customers The most important step is the collection of the amount from the customers. In standard business there is a 30 days policy in case the customers pays in advance they can be given discount. Regular reminder should be given to the customers in case the amount is due. Bad debts should be booked in case the customer fails to pay the amount(Muller, Ward Moodley 2017) Bibliography Abor, JA 2017, 'New Venture Development and Sources of Financing', Entrepreneurial Finance for MSMEs , pp. 21-50. Baresa, S, Bogdan, S Ivanovic, Z 2017, 'SPECIFIC FORM OF SHORT-TERM', UTMS Journal of Economics, vol 8, no. 2, pp. 119-129. Moraczewski, E 2017, 'EVALUATE YOUR FUNDING SOURCES', Strategic Finance, vol 98, no. 8, pp. 23-24. Muller, C, Ward, M Moodley, T 2017, 'The relationship between the management of payables and the return to investors', Journal South African Journal of Accounting Research, vol 31, no. 1, pp. 35-43.

Saturday, March 28, 2020

Irony Of What Is To Come Essays - The Story Of An Hour,

Irony of What is to Come In, The Story of an Hour, written by Kate Chopin, there are many hints of irony shown throughout the story which are finally revealed in the end. This short story reveals the allusion, the unexpected joy, and finally the reality of what has really happened to Mr. Mallard. Mrs. Mallard is alluded and given the information that her husband is dead. From this allusion comes the unexpected joy. This unique situation was revealed to Mrs. Mallard, and the unexpected joy of not having anyone to control her is so overwhelming that she starts making plans for the future. When she finally realizes that the information given to her was incorrect, she is forced to face the harsh reality of not having all of her freedom. This topic shows the irony of not knowing the right information, and jumping the gun before this information is confirmed. The allusion that Mrs. Mallard comes to accept as reality is that her husband is dead, but she makes no effort to find out if this information is true With the allusion of Mr. Mallard's death, Mrs. Mallard starts making plans for the future. These are explained in great detail by Stephen R. Shuchter in the Dimensions of Grief Adjusting to the death of a Spouse. The allusion that Mr. Mallard is dead gives Mrs. Mallard an overwhelming sense of freedom, and throws out all rational thinking. When Mrs. Mallard is alluded and given the information that her husband is dead. "It was he who had been in the newspaper office when intelligence of the railroad disaster was received, with Brently Mallard's name leading the list of killed. He had only taken the time to assure himself of its truth by a second telegram, and had hastened to forestall any less careful, less tender friend in bearing the sad message"(Chopin 452). When Richards finds out this disturbing news of his friends death, he only reads the telegram and then goes and tells Mrs. Mallard. This news over her husbands death is quite inaccurate, when in fact he is very much alive but she is misinformed and is brought to think that he is dead . After being oppressed for so long Mrs. Mallard jumps right into making a new life for her self . "While the surviving spouse is learning new tasks and roles, he or she is simultaneously "trying on " new aspects of identity , new self-concept: as future "mother-father," "sole supporter," "boat operator," "single person," " autonomous functioner," "lonely widow," or "incapable and helpless victim"(Shuchter 114). This shows that Mrs. Mallard is living and accepting the fact that her husband is dead and is ready to move on with her life. She makes the transition of being married to being a widow rather quickly without much thought or asking any questions such as, what if he is really alive and not dead, which would be a perfectly natural response to the death of a spouse. "Her f ancy was running riot along those days ahead of her. Spring days, and summer days, and all sorts of days that would be her own" (Chopin 452). This further shows the transition made by Mrs. Mallard or making plans for the future and living in the allusion that her husband is dead. "The anticipation of this future reality allows the surviving spouse to experiment with such self-perceptions and work toward realizing those that make the most sense or are the most desirable. The still-living spouse can also contribute his or her version of the vision and reinforce the more positive views" (Shuchter 114-115). The fact that Mrs. Mallard keeps on living in the future and not facing reality is her biggest downfall. " She saw beyond the bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely" (Chopin 452). She is already on the last stage of accepting the death of a spouse. She is only setting herself up to be disappointed, and she will be let down when she sees M r. Mallard in the end. The unique situation which is revealed to Mrs. Mallard that gives her the unexpected joy of not having anyone to control her, this

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Sending an E-mail Without Proofreading is Like Shooting a Gun Without Aiming

Sending an E-mail Without Proofreading is Like Shooting a Gun Without Aiming Sending an E-mail Without Proofreading is Like Shooting a Gun Without Aiming Sending an E-mail Without Proofreading is Like Shooting a Gun Without Aiming By Mary For most professionals, communicating by e-mail is a part of daily life. E-mail is a very convenient way to communicate basic information to one or more people. Even though most professionals feel that e-mail makes their lives easier, there are also a number of complications related to e-mail usage. When you press send on an e-mail message, you have transmitted what amounts to a permanent written record of your thoughts on a particular subject to another person. The other person is free to read your message, delete your message, or forward your message to any number of other people. As any businesspeople who have ever found themselves in trouble over a little thing like a few shredded documents can tell you, having a permanent written record of your words is no laughing matter. Of course, if your words are riddled with grammatical mistakes, misused words, poorly written sentences, and typographical errors your e-mail messages very well may become laughing matters. Your co-workers may be very entertained by evidence that your writing skills leave something to be desired. It is a fact that people form impressions about your level of intelligence based on how you write. If you send e-mail messages that are full of errors to co-workers and clients, they are likely to form a negative impression of you. Make sure to carefully proofread all e-mail messages before you hit send. Keep in mind that you know where you are sending your e-mail, but you don’t know where it might end up. A misfired e-mail message that is full of mistakes can shatter your reputation. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Spelling category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:10 Grammar Mistakes You Should AvoidExcited ABOUT, not "for" Capitalizing Titles of People and Groups

Wednesday, February 19, 2020

Individual Case for Taxation Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Individual for Taxation - Case Study Example In joint tax return, there are deductions for itemized and standard deductions from adjusted gross income. Standard deductions are income amounts that non-itemizers subtract from their contributed income basing on the filing status. The examples of such deductions are medical expenses, charitable contributions, home mortgage interest and property taxes. Itemized deductions are deductions from the taxpayer’s gross income for money spent on goods and services throughout the year. The deductions convert taxable income into non-taxable income that one spends on various taxes privileged items. The examples of such itemized deductions are interest paid on investments, casualty and theft losses, hobby expenses and cash contributions to charity and churches. A thorough examination of the items in the joint tax return reveals that the following items will be claimed: firstly, the real estate tax for example registration fees for motor will be claimed to convert the taxable amount to non taxable income. Moreover, interest margin paid on investments of the couple either jointly or separately is claimed (Genders 2013). Additionally, medical expenses for the betterment of couples’ life shall be accounted for in joint tax return to relieve them. Nevertheless, expenses and charitable contributions that are contributed by the couple will be claimed for deduction in the process of taxation. From the above calculation, 2013 has a better taxable income to the revenue authority because of the less personal exemptions deductions that are deducted from the adjusted gross income. For instance in the scenario in, we have taxable income of $102800 as compared to year 2014 where we have a taxable income of $ 102750. The effect is brought in by a decrease in the personal exemptions by $50. Other issues to be identified are: the age of the couple whether they are above 65 years or less. This helps in determination of the standard

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

Marine Corps O&M Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marine Corps O&M - Assignment Example In addition, funds are provided to assist landing force training, marine detachments afloat and security forces given the duty to guard the naval and other government activities ashore, Norway prepositioning and maritime prepositioning ships. Some of the shore facilities that get support from this appropriation include; one Marine Corps system command, eleven air installations, one Marine Corps combat development, two expeditionary warfare training groups and one Marine Corps air ground combat. These shore facilities are maintained at high level of standards to ensure that there is effective utilization of resources and avoidance of major replacement costs while at the same time allowing for operations and maintenance of Marine Corps on an effective and economical basis. Furthermore, this Marine Corps appropriation endorses other activities such as second destination transportation of things, special training of personnel, overhaul of equipment and repair, and other expenses that might be incurred. This appropriation uses the Marine Corps supply system that offers Marine units with relevant and proper equipment and material in quantity, time, condition and place required. It is also important to note that this appropriation provides support programs to Marine Corps such as quality of life which includes services such as child care, youth development, and procurement of relatively cheap equipments needed to outfit new military development projects at Marine Corps camps and compensation for injuries incurred while on duty. The Marine operation and maintenance budget request of $ 4,961.4 million shows an increase in budgetary allocation to maintain and sustain the operation of Marine Corps. Budget for operating forces is made up of two tasks, USMC propositioning and Expeditionary Forces. In this case, the expeditionary forces activity

Monday, January 27, 2020

Tesco Plc

Tesco Plc Strategic analysis: a case study of Tesco Plc with reference to Chinese market  · Introduction: This assignment is relating to strategic analysis of Tesco Plc. Main focus is given on global expansion of Tesco in Europe, Asia and U.S. it is difficult to sum up all strategies that has been adopted by Tesco PLC in different parts of the world therefore to be more effective emphasis will be given on strategic analysis of Tesco in China. Furthermore this assignment is focused on the reasons why Tesco has opted to go international. I will analyse certain aspects such as location advantage, to analyse that what was the reason that Tesco has chosen Asian market for it business operation and will include pull factors such as cheap labour, low production cost and increased population, ownership advantage i.e. Toscos reputation, name recognition and goodwill etc and Internalization that how Tesco handles it markets secrets (not to be copied by its competitors) by securing ownership control, as in Chinese market Tesco successfully entered with 51%-49% joint venture with a local company but to secure absolute ownership Tesco increased its shares to 91%. The assignment will also concentrate upon push factors that what were the reason in the UK market that compelled or instigated Tesco to expand its operation to overseas markets. These reasons include UK market saturation, overseas market size, increased economic growth in the home market that enables the company to invest in foreign market and less opportunities of financial growth in the local market because of high competition, exploiting resources etc I will also link different theories with Tesco global strategy i.e. (1) Strategic international expansion (2) Porters five forces (3) Porter diamond model (will be exhibited in appendix) (4) Swot analysis (will be exhibited in appendix) (5) Dunnings electric theory etc It will also analyse the role of Tesco club card loyalty scheme in gathering information from its customers in order to know customers behaviour and need. Furthermore the study also concentrates upon Toscos strategic initiatives i.e. customers focus, act local, maintain focus, use multi formats, developing capacity and build brand etc which is used by the company in its domestic market and overseas. The assignment also contains a COMPARISON OF Tesco with its market rivals i.e. Wal-Mart and Carrefour and their strategic approaches in overseas markets. Similarly the study will also look at Tescos strategy of sourcing to low cost producers and Tescos own brand i.e. Tescos value products etc.  · Company background: Tesco was founded by Jack Cohen in 1919. Since its inception the company has gone through different development stages and Tesco is now one of the UKs largest retailers and is one of the top three retailers in the world. Tesco is operating business activities in three main regions in the world i.e. Europe ( Republic of Ireland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Turkey and Poland) Asia ( China, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand and India) and U.S . The company has 3,799 stores located in Europe, Asia and U.S and has employed over 440,000 people around the world.[1] Tesco has adopted different strategies for gaining entry into foreign markets i.e. Acquisition of The Three Guys chain in Ireland in 1979, Acquisition of Catteau in France in 1992, Acquisition of 51 per cent of Global in Hungary in 1994, Acquisition of K-Mart business in Czech Republic/Slovakia in 1994, acquisition of Savia in Poland in 1995, acquisition of ABFs Irish food retailing business in 1997 Acquisition of 75 per cent share of Lotus in Thailand in 1998, Partnership with Samsung (81 per cent) and the acquisition of Homeplus in South Korea in 1999, Acquisition of one Makro store in Taiwan in 2000, Joint venture with Sime Darby Bhd (Tesco share 70 per cent) in Malaysia in 2001, Acquisition of HIT hypermarket from Dohle Gruppe in Poland in 2002, Acquisition of the C Two (C2) in Japan in 2003,[2] Joint Venture in China and wholly owned subsidiary in India. Strategic analysis of Tesco: The main driver of Tescos successful business is because of overseas expansion, moving to higher margin non-food merchandise and maintaining a strong UK core business. Its UK success has been built on low prices, cultivating customer loyalty, offering a range of different store concepts and expanding into retailing services, such as banking and insurance. Tescos focus on non-food items has led some to wonder whether it is fair to compare Tesco with the other grocery retailers at all as it seems to have become a consumer goods company.[3]  · Tesco long-term strategy: Tesco is growing with enormous speed. The company is following its long-term strategy based on five main initiatives, i.e. core UK business, international growth, Non-food, retailing services and community plan are the main objectives of achieving its long term success. Tesco has adopted an effective and constant growth strategy which has enabled the company to strengthen its core UK business and expand into new developed and developing markets around the world. The rationale for the strategy is to develop the scope of the business to enable the company to deliver strong, sustainable long-term growth and competitiveness by following the customer into large expanding markets at home and overseas by serving their needs through selling a wide range of products and services such as food products, financial services, non-food products and telecoms etc.[4] The strategy of diversification and global expansion of Tescos business operation was laid down in 1997 and has been the foundation of Tescos success in recent years. The new businesses which have been established and developed over the last decade are competitive and profitable and have enabled the company to lead largest market outside the UK.  § Core UK business: UK is the biggest market for Tesco and the company aims to provide all its customers with excellent value and choice. The company has developed a range of formats such as Tesco Express convenience stores, Tesco Metro stores, Tesco Super stores and Tesco Extra Hypermarkets.[5] The UK grocery retail market remains the largest source of revenue for Tesco, representing some 50% of last years (2008)  £59.4 billion of sales.[6]  § International growth: Tesco is expanding its presence across the world with main focus on customers need. For the purpose of better understanding of local customers and providing excellent services Tesco employees local staff which helped the company to achieve market leading position in Asia and across Europe. The company is giving more emphasis upon developing a range of local formats i.e. Express stores and Value stores in order to serve the needs of smaller communities. The companys overall performance of overseas businesses was very strong in 2009, particularly against the background of increasingly challenging trading conditions in international markets as the effects of the economic downturn on consumers have grown and spread around the world. [7]  § Non-food: In the beginning Tesco was popular as a food retailer but with the passage of time non-food remains an important part of Tescos strategy and the company continue to grow both sales and market share. Tesco has adopted the policy of differentiation and has now extended its policy to selling non-food items such as clothing, electrical goods, books etc.[8] Similarly Tescos online non-food business, Tesco Direct, continues to grow rapidly, increasing sales by more than 50% in 2009. The company is also planning to introduce an online clothing offer making fashionable, affordable clothes easier to buy for many more customers.[9]  § Retailing Services: Developing Retailing Services has been part of Tescos strategy for over a decade with the aim of bringing value and simplicity to customers through services such as telecoms and financial products. After ten years of success, we have given it a renewed focus and in July we announced that Andrew Higginson would relinquish his role as Group Finance Director to take on the role of Chief Executive of Retailing Services. He has assembled an experienced team to really drive forward this part of the strategy, which we believe has the potential to deliver  £1 billion of annual profit in the next few years.[10] With the rapid changing life style for satisfying customers needs Tesco provides new products and services like online shopping, personal finance and telecoms etc.  § Community plan: Tesco is also playing an active role to be a good neighbour in the communities where the company operates its business activities. We understand the importance of behaving responsibly in all our operations. Over the past year, we have worked even harder to be a good neighbour and have strengthened our contribution to the wider communities we serve.[11] All communities have their own individual concerns and priorities and so each of our countries has its own Community Plan. Whilst the goals and targets are tailored specifically to each country, each plan is underpinned by five core promises: actively supporting local communities; buying and selling our products responsibly; caring for the environment; giving customers healthy choices; and creating good jobs and careers.[12] Tesco believes that its success depends on listening to the customers, and responding to their feedback by giving them what they want. Often the most significant contributions the company can make to communities are at the truly local level and so over the past year the company have appointed over 250 Community Champions in stores and depots across six countries. These members of staff are dedicated to working with local schools, charities and services to support the causes that matter most of its customers.[13]  · Tesco in Europe:  · Tesco in Asia:  · Tesco in U.S:  · Tesco FDI: Foreign Direct Investment plays an important role in global economic growth and development. Due to global economic system competition increased and different governments are making strategies to reduce or remove trade barriers and encourage foreign companies for investment. Multinational companies are trying to enter new emerging economies to gain competitive advantage over their competitors.  · Tesco JV:  · sourcing: To ensure that we offer the best possible prices for customers we buy many products globally so that we benefit from our scale. We have an international sourcing office based in Hong Kong which is responsible for buying 100,000 non-food products for the Group. The international sourcing operation has seen rapid growth in the last few years and now sources 60% of our clothing in the UK and 40% of hardlines, including electricals, homewares, entertainment, toys and books. In Europe it provides over 25% of our hardlines and 85% of our clothing and we have recently started to source products for Asia. In the last year our international sourcing team shipped 72,000 containers from 54 ports.[14] We also have sourcing centres in China, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Turkey, with smaller offices in Thailand, Czech Republic and Italy. [15] We have invested in buying hubs where we have a critical mass of suppliers and shipment volumes. It helps to be close to our suppliers so that we can ensure great quality products, delivered from ethical sources, on time and at the best price.[16] Where possible we try to source products direct from factories rather than through agents or middlemen. This way we can ensure the lowest possible cost price as well as making sure that our products are sourced safely and fairly. We also manage to strip out more costs by consolidating freight volumes. This gives us the best shipping and transportation rates, which can be passed on to the customer in the form of lower prices.[17] Strategic analysis of Tescos expansion to china: to look at Tescos expansion strategy into Chinese market there are many factors involved. Reasons of Tesco global expansion: Tescos expansion was spatially characterised as being largely regional in nature and less global oriented. Cautiously, Tesco had decided to dominate the smaller central European markets that were unlikely to attract much attention from the large retail multinational peers such as Carrefour and Wal-Mart who preferred to focus on the larger markets. The company incrementally entered markets rather than entering several markets at the same time.[18] Tescos huge growth in this country is a hard act to follow. With the domestic market increasingly saturated, some UK supermarket chains, namely Tesco, Sainsbury (who have now sold their interests in the USA) and MS have looked to overseas markets to maintain their positions. This is a whole new ball game, bringing into play competition with large firms from other countries, such as US retailing giant Wal-Mart and French multinational Carrefour.[19] Main reasons for an organization to expand their business operation to overseas markets include saturated markets, growing economies and improving transportation systems and in some countries business environment seems more attractive than others. Most recently, Tesco has moved into China and the USA, and its rivals i.e. Carrefour has started pulling out of some eastern European countries while focusing on its Chinese strategy and Wal-Mart is also expanding business operation aggressively worldwide.[20] Determinants of foreign market entry modes: The choice of entry mode into a foreign market has a great impact on the success of a firms international operations, so consequently, related theories and critical determinants will be represented in the following section as to understand the relationships between MNEs and different factors. Mode of entry into foreign market: Tesco used a combination of multinational entry mode strategies within one country. As previously discussed, Tesco entered the central and eastern Europe by acquiring a relatively small chain of convenience stores in Hungary, a supermarket business in Poland and a department store chain in the Czech Republic and Slovakia (see Table II). It was certainly unusual for such a large public company to become involved in these operations, and even competitors at the time questioned the logic of their approach. However, the use of â€Å"seed acquisitions† with a view to develop knowledge of the market before expanding organically through store-by-store development allowed Tesco to minimise their own human and financial capital in the face of potential economic and political uncertainty.[21] There are a number of strategies that can be adopted by an organization as a mode of entering into foreign market i.e. foreign direct investment, wholly owned subsidiary, joint venture, franchising, licensing and contract manufacturing. Some of these strategies are associated with high risk such and needs high investment and management skills i.e. wholly owned subsidiary and direct acquisition and some of them are exposed to minimal risks from overseas markets i.e. licensing, franchising, contract manufacturing and joint venture. Joint venture is a lowest risk strategy that accompanies greater benefits for the organization such as gaining overseas market knowledge and knowing consumers behaviour from overseas partner, risk sharing and gaining quality management capability.[22] Tesco has opted joint venture in order to gain entry into Chinese market. The company has gained a substantial presence in China in 2004 by signing an agreement of 51%-49% joint venture with a host company Shanghai Hymall Commercial Retail Group which was subsequently increased to 90%-10% in 2007.[23] Market attractiveness: Reasons of global expansion: There are a number of push factors and pull factors that plays an important role in an organizations decision of expanding business operation to foreign markets. The following are the main factors that motivated Tesco to invest in China. Push Factors: Home market saturation: When a business organization decides to enter into a foreign market there are a number of push factors that instigates such organization to invest in foreign market. In the case of Tesco the main factor of its global expansion is home market saturation as there is no room for further expansion because of large number of retailers and high competition. Increased capital gain from home market: Another reason of business expansion to Chinese market could be increased capital and better performance of Tescos business in the UK market which has enabled the company to expand its business to more profitable regions i.e. china. Pull factors: Foreign market attraction: The existence of potentials and financial gains in overseas markets are important pull factors that attract foreign companies to invest in such markets. Chinese market is expanding with enormous speed and it has been predicted that the market will worth $596bn by 2010 which gives an insight to foreign companies i.e. Tesco and its rivals, to exploit the existing potentials in Chinese market.[24] High quality production at low cost: Similarly high quality production at lower cost and the availability of cheap labour is another pull factor that attracts foreign investment. To look at China labour is very cheap and the country is capable of producing high quality products at competitive cost, there for it is very advantageous for Tesco to invest in Chinese market. China is the prime location of sourcing for Tesco products within china and for its business in the rest of the world. Tesco club card loyalty scheme: Tesco is using club card loyalty scheme as a marketing tactics in order to know customers behaviour in purchasing products from Tesco[25] and in return this scheme leads to customers commitment to do business with the organisation, to purchase their goods and services repeatedly, and recommend the services and products to others.[26] Dunnings: To make an effective strategic analysis of Tesco in Chinese market it would be better to take into consideration the Dunnings Electric theory. This theory includes location advantage, ownership advantage and internalization. Motives of International Expansion Many companies expand their business internationally, and compete within the globe market. They know their domestic market better than abroad, and they may face the customs, language, tariff regulations, transport systems and volatile foreign currencies for international operation. This means they will have to face many new challenges, if they decide to enter into a new foreign market, but why do they do so? There are several motives for international expansion (Jobber, 2001). Saturated domestic markets: There are few opportunities for the company to expand in the domestic market with sales and profit pressure. This is one of the major drivers of international expansion. Many of the European supermarket chains were fuelled by the desire to take a proven retailing formula out of their saturated domestic market into overseas market. Small domestic markets: For some industries, survival means broadening scope beyond small national markets to the international arena. Companies cannot compete against with other strong global competitors. Therefore, internationalisation is the fundamental condition for them to survival. Low-growth domestic markets: when economy is in recession at home, companies want to seek new marketing opportunities in more buoyant overseas economies. Customer drivers: Customer expectation is also one of the factors, which affect the companys decision to go international. This is increasingly common in advertising, with clients requiring their agencies to coordinate international campaigns. Competitive forces: when the several companies in the same industry go abroad, this cause others to follow in order to keep the market share and growth rates. This is particular in oligopolistic industries. The attack of the foreign competitor entering into the domestic market is also another factor affecting a companys decision to go abroad. Cost factors: High national labour costs, shortages of skilled workers, and rising energy charges can raise domestic operation costs to uneconomic levels. These factors may stimulate the company to choose foreign direct investment in low costs areas, such as Asia, Central and Eastern Europe. Foreign market expansion can also reduce costs by gaining economies of scale through an enlarged customer base. Portfolio balance: Marketing in different regions provides the opportunity of achieving a portfolio balance, and each region may have different growth rates. By marketing in a selection of countries, the problems of recession in some countries can be balanced by the opportunities in more buoyant economies in other countries. First Buy successful companies abroad, not ones that need turning around:There followed a strong expansion overseas in the 1990s, with ever more significant movement into growing markets such as Hungary and the Czech Republic, Thailand and South Korea. Here Tesco was buying into successful companies, but also ensuring neighboring markets were targeted and that its expansion strategy included eventual market domination. Hence the second lesson for internationalization success: Second It is all about market synergies and market share: Internal strategic processes. One of the chief concerns for retail strategists is market selection. Tesco decided to enter into markets where local competition was soft, hence the initial forays into Eastern Europe and South East Asia, away from the harsh gaze of other expanding giants such as Wal-Mart. Tesco also adapted to opportunistic events, and decided on different entry modes in order to develop knowledge. Hence the next lesson: Third You will never learn anything until you open some kind of store somewhere: External strategic processes. Tesco were comparatively weak internationally compared to bigger, more experienced rivals, despite their increasing dominance in the UK, but it nevertheless decided on an aggressive, organic expansion strategy in its target markets that left some analysts wondering about its long-term prospects. However after sticking with the strategy, it has been paying off, with its vulnerable period seen as a necessity for long-term growth internationally. It also had problems over planning procedures in foreign countries, particularly Ireland, but negotiated with central government for mutual benefit. Also key were Tescos dealing with shareholders, who were initially wary of risking their investment abroad, and there were reports that the City held back expansion within European in the 1990s. However as initial forays such as Catteau became successful, however gradually, soon the debate surrounded the pace of expansion. Tesco initiated a ‘‘ What is apparent from the completed study is that despite concerns from analysts and shareholders about its internalization strategy, and despite negative local press and resources issues, Tesco got it right. public relations exercise to get shareholders more on board with their internationalization strategy, although this was seen through by many, and exerted debatable influence. Internal operation functions. Many international ventures founder on the failure to commit enough human capital to a project, and this constituted Tescos next lesson. Fourth Use strength and size at home to secure the best human resources overseas In order to compete with the likes of Carrefour in their own jardin, Tesco had to make sure it had the very best people on hand to drive its expansion. Experience with financial capital and marketing were also imperative, ensuring that the correct strategies and knowledge was on hand in foreign markets. This is particularly the case in the latter category, where expansion can be seen as an invasion by the home press. While Tesco almost inevitably suffered some bad press initially, the adoption of an intensive PR campaign once business success started to develop overseas highlighted the need for an evolutionary marketing strategy. [27] Factors underlying Tescos success An analysis of the UK online grocery market highlights five factors that have been critical to Tescos success profit model focus; smart mover entry; leveraging â€Å"reach†, â€Å"richness† and â€Å"affiliation† (Evans and Wurster, 1997); strategic positioning (Mintzberg and Waters, 1985; Hamel, 1997); and brand power. [28] The first ‘Fresh Easy Neighborhood Market opened in Hemet, 75 miles east of Los Angeles on 1st November 2007. As the Financial Times commented: ‘Tesco†¦has staked its fortunes on an innovative new store that is about a quarter of the size of a traditional US supermarket, building on the success in the UK and Europe of its Tesco Express local stores. Some elements of the Hemet store will be familiar to UK shoppers. But the store also includes a â€Å"kitchen table† where a staff member heats up samples of prepared foods such as pizza and chicken curry. In a further innovation, all the check-out registers require customers to scan their own goods with staff on hand to assist (Financial Times, 4 November 2007).  · Conclusion: [1] Tesco Introduction: cited at http://www.cn.tesco.com/en/aboutus/aboutus_history.htm [2] P. Mark (2005), Retail multinational learning: a case study of Tesco, Aston Business School, Aston University, Birmingham, UK, International Journal of Retail Distribution Management Vol. 33 No.1, 2005 pp. 23-48 Emerald Group Publishing Limited [3] Corporate Watch UK, Tesco: a Corporate Profile: Cited http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/?lid=252 [4] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [5] Tesco Introduction: Cited http://www.cn.tesco.com/en/aboutus/aboutus_enterprise.htm [6] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [7] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [8] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [9] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [10] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [11] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [12] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [13] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [14] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [15] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [16] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [17] Tesco p Annual Report and Financial Statements 2009 [18]International Journal of Retail Distribution Management Vol. 33 No. 1, 2005 pp. 23-48 Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0959-0552, p 30 [19] Corporate Watch UK, Tesco: a Corporate Profile: Cited http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/?lid=252#world [20] Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour do battle in the East, VOL. 24 NO. 2 2008, pp. 5-7, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 0258-0543 [21] International Journal of Retail Distribution Management Vol. 33 No. 1, 2005 pp. 23-48 Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0959-0552, p 31 [22] Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour do battle in the East, VOL. 24 NO. 2 2008, pp. 5-7, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 0258-0543 [23] Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour do battle in the East, VOL. 24 NO. 2 2008, pp. 5-7, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 0258-0543 [24] Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour do battle in the East, VOL. 24 NO. 2 2008, pp. 5-7, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 0258-0543 [25] Tesco American Dream, Doing it differently, Emerald insight, VOL. 24 NO. 2 2008, pp. 11-15, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 0258-0543, p 13 [26]T. J. Jason. W. Karen (2006), University of Abertay, Dundee, UK, British Food Journal Vol. 108 No. 11, 2006 pp. 958-964 Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0007-070X (originally cited in (McIlroy and Barnett, 2000, p. 348). [27] The secrets of Tescos expansion success, How the UKs largest supermarket is creeping up on Carrefour and Wal-Mart: DOI 10.1108/02580540510630650 VOL. 21 NO. 11 2005, pp. 5-7, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 0258-0543 [28] The UK grocery business: towards a sustainable model for virtual markets Ray Hackney Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK, and Kevin Grant and Grete Birtwistle Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow, UK, International Journal of Retail Distribution Management Vol. 34 No. 4/5, 2006 pp. 354-368, Emerald Group Publishing Limited