Ecco Market Analysis Research Paper Example

Ecco Market Analysis Paper EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ECCO is a Danish shoemaking and retailing company that was founded by Karl Toosbuy in Bredebro, Denmark in 1963. The company’s vision is to be the ‘most wanted brand within innovation and comfort footwear’ – which they intend to attain by constantly and courageously researching new paths, investing in employees, in core competencies of product development and production technology. While trends in the market with regards to fashion and elegance are deemed important, usability has been ECCO’s highest design priority. By 2004, ECCO had its main markets in the US, Germany and Japan and worked constantly on creation of new markets with emphasis on regions like Asia, Central and Eastern Europe. The financial ownership was kept within the company and ECCO refrained from issuing Initial Public Offerings despite financial constraints in the beginning of the 21st century as the company believed that that would inhibit their risk taking abilities. ECCO’s production strategy has been unique in that 80% of the production was in-house. The company regarded their ‘direct injected’ technology as a key asset and believed it gave them an edge over the competitors. A decade of more than satisfactory growth later, ECCO ventured towards internationalizing its operations by establishing its upper production unit in Brazil in 1974. Since then, the chief drivers of internationalization have been i) creation of new markets ii) leveraging the relatively cheap cost of labour. By May 2004, ECCO was finalizing its plans to set up production in China. The Report has covered Situational Analysis for ECCO’s present day operations and market presence. We will write a custom essay sample on Ecco Market Analysis specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Ecco Market Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Ecco Market Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer It has covered Competitor Analysis taking into account its main rivals in the international market. The report also contains valuable recommendations for future growth strategies. TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY1 SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS:3 Products and Markets:4 The Global Value Chain4 Advantages of the Global Value Chain6 Drawbacks of the Global Value Chain6 Competitor Analysis6 RECOMMENDATIONS7 SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS: The internationalization program was taken up to optimize various activities associated with the value chain. Having already established operations in Portugal, Slovakia, Indonesia, Thailand ECCO was gearing up to set up shop in China as part of the internationalization of the value chain. By doing so it intended to utilize the cheap labour costs, use China as a launching pad to export finished goods to the market the world over. ECCO had one tannery located in Netherlands, and two others next to factories in Indonesia and Thailand. While the complete ownership of tanneries meant ECCO could exercise sufficient quality control over the leather used, it also means added overheads and incurring maintenance costs. Products and Markets: The ECCO group produces footwear for men, ladies and children in the casual, outdoor and semi-sport shoes categories for two different seasons – spring/ summer and autumn/winter. The distribution of sales in 2004 across the categories was as follows. Bulk of the share fell to ladies at 47%, followed by men at 30% and 11% and 12% for children and sport respectively. The year also saw the ECCO group introducing the range of golf shoes which was met with outstanding success as market research showed the brand being preferred by more than 90% of the golfers. The chief markets for ECCO were the US, Germany and Japan, accounting for more than 90% of the exports. The US remained the most important market with the shoes selling for a high price. The US market accounted for 26% of the total sales in 2004. The Global Value Chain Inbound Logistics ECCO retained a close control of the entire value chain right from procuring the leather to packaging of the shoes. ECCO had one tannery located in Netherlands, and two others next to factories in Indonesia and Thailand. The Netherlands facility handled prototyping, laboratory and ramp-up production f leather, while those in Indonesia and Thailand performed full-scale production of leather. These tanneries supplied leather to all the production units across the world. The bulk of the raw hides originated from Germany, France, Denmark and Finland. ECCO’s production strategy was well-differentiated from its competitors in that ECCO handled 80% of the production of shoes on its own (which was in k eeping with its focus of close control) whereas most of its competitors had outsourced most of the production, concentrating more on design and marketing of their products instead. The company employed a technology that they termed ‘direct injection technology’ which accounted for 80% of the total production. Because it was hard to imitate and gave them a competitive edge, the company was averse to outsource production. The remaining 20% was outsourced as these did not benefit from the direct injection method. ECCO began internationalizing operations in 1974 since it established an upper production unit in Brazil. Portugal ECCO set up its first full-scale production unit in Portugal in 1984. Initially Portugal had a significant share in both production of the uppers and shoe assembly. However, with rising labour costs, the numbers came down, as production shifted to Indonesia and Thailand. ECCO consequently reduced the number of employees and invested into technology to make the unit more high-tech. Indonesia Opened in 1991, the Indonesian production unit handled shoe uppers, accounting for 40 to 50 per cent of the demand. A distinct drawback was that obtaining raw material could take up to eight weeks and shipping the finished goods to the distribution centres upto five weeks. Thailand The Thai unit encompassed both tannery and assembling operations. This unit was a success story in terms of output, employee satisfaction and size. Employee turnover was low and the number increased progressively every year. Also, ECCO discovered that the Thais were good at observing minute details and exhibited high level of skill. Consequently, ECCO focussed production of golf and advanced trekking boots here. Slovakia Set up in 1998, the unit in Slovakia was mainly concerned with assembly and to a smaller degree, shoe uppers. In addition to providing lower cost labour, the unit had the advantage of being located close to the important markets of Poland and Russia. The facility would act as a backup to possible political upheavals in Asia and mitigate the uncertainties arising from unforeseen interruptions. China Although not established by 2004, production facilities had been finalized and planned to be set up in China. ECCO had chosen a site at Xiamen, just North of Guangdong which was supposedly a small yet vibrant community which showed promise and potential. Full scale units supported by an advanced tannery was what ECCO had planned for. The units would serve exports as well as cater to the local markets. Why ECCO should start production in China: * China had recently gained entry into the WTO which allowed for 100% foreign ownership of operations. This was in keeping with their core focus of in-house production and would still allow ECCO to leverage cheap and efficient labour * Chinese markets were growing steadily. Close proximity to the huge market would boost revenues while reducing distribution costs. * It could leverage the established partnership with Aibu and by enhancing the network approach could win the loyalty of Chinese customers. Possible pitfalls and challenges: There was no shortage of local manufacturers trying to copy the ECCO design. ECCO would have to constantly monitor the market scene and spend money on attorneys and litigation to ensure its design is protected against imitation. * Traditionally, ECCO had not spent much on marketing its products. However, to gain share in the competitive Chinese market it would have to aggressively market its brand to carve a nic he for itself. * Since ECCO would be partnering with Aibu for establishing market presence, Aibu would be in a position to wield a certain degree of bargaining power. Advantages of the Global Value Chain Complete ownership of the tanneries enables ECCO to exert stringent quality control on the leather to be used for the shoes. * The tanneries in Netherlands being an important research centre as well, allows access to quality expertise and technical know-how about tanning. * Also, the research facility allows ECCO to explore less polluting tanning processes which would safeguard it against future laws that might restrict polluting practices. * Held-close-to-chest technology and in-house production has given ECCO the competitive edge and allowed huge market share especially for golf shoes. Globalized operations have allowed ECCO to leverage reduced labour costs and proximity to promising markets. * Internationalization has also allowed ECCO to mitigate risk of production interruptions . Drawbacks of the Global Value Chain * ECCO has traditionally not been big on marketing its products, while the competitors thrive on a model driven by marketing. With the changing world environment, this could be risky. * With operations and procurement spread to different parts in the world it takes time to complete the manufacturing process. This leads to an increase in the time to market and could cause depletion in market share. * Bulk of the finished goods are distributed through Denmark, while Denmark accounts for only 6 to 9 % of the sales. Thus the overall cost of distribution would go up. Competitor Analysis Geox Geox owed its success to the perforated rubber soles that included a special waterproof membrane that allowed the moisture to vaporize yet preventing water from entering the shoe. The technology was different from that of ECCO’s and as such allowed Geox its own market share. The production is a mix of in-house and out-sourced while that for ECCO’s is mostly in-house. While the sales were mostly in Italy for Geox, it was increasingly registering growth in the international market. ECCO had a market share of US$ 115 million while the figures for Geox were US$14 million. However, ECCO had only posted a growth of 4. 5 per cent while Geox showed a growth of 250 per cent. Also Geox has decided to lessen its risks by venturing into apparel market. Clarks Clarks was the biggest player in the casual footwear category and displayed a better growth rate than ECCO in 2004 (10. % v/s 4. 5%). Established much earlier than ECCO, Clarks quickly became a global player. Clarks relies heavily on out-sourced production which gives it access to a variety of technologies. However, unlike ECCO, controlling quality of products and material is a significant task for Clarks. Also, this lends a lot of bargaining power to the suppliers. This also implies that Clarks has a pr edominantly marketing based business model as opposed to ECCO that relies chiefly on production of quality goods. Timberland Timberland was a late entrant in the international market. However, with products as diverse as clothing and accessories, Timberland, in 2003, was twice the size of ECCO in terms of product sales. Unlike ECCO, Timberland’s focus is on marketing and has outsourced most of its production. This has led to Timberland having ceded a lot of bargaining power to the suppliers. It lost a lot of margin to the suppliers in the process and was forced to negotiate constantly with the suppliers to achieve normalcy in the cost of goods. RECOMMENDATIONS ECCO has to improve its focus on marketing as well as on branding as with the changing business landscape, it cannot rely solely on the quality of goods especially when international competition is so fierce * Since US is the most lucrative market, ECCO should consider opening up operations in Mexico as the region is close to the US; this would help reduce shipping costs as well as time to market. * ECCO should also look into diversifying into selling accessories and clothing which its competitors have already announced their arrival in.

Free Essays on Fear Of Flying

How Lauren may have learned of her Fear of Flying? How Lauren learned she had a fear in flying? Using the Classical Conditioning theory the possibilities could be endless. Classical conditioning in simple terms is the method in which one determines why and the cause of a condition as well as what has brought it about. There are many stimulus both conditioned and unconditioned that can cause fear or other problems, but the major reason for causes regarding the fear of flying has been mentioned in several articles regarding anxiety disorders. Fear of flying is created by the unconscious mind as a protective mechanism. When using the neutral stimulus explanation, Lauren may not have had a relevant response of interest. Lauren may have learned something or heard someone from her past that caused the continuous fear. Due to the facts in this case, there’s little information to provide us regarding Lauren. First we know she’s afraid to fly, but we have no further information regarding the condition that caused the fear or the circumstances to what led to this fear. The first step in Pavlov’s theory is trying to discover how Lauren’s fear came about, but without more information one can only speculate or guess how Lauren’s condition developed. Pavlov’s theory states several actions and read actions that could have caused Lauren’s Condition. The conditioning of the plane could be neutral stimulus, and the activities on the plane is the unconditioned stimulus. During conditioning of the plane is the neutral stimulus, which is paired with the activities on the plane that is the unconditioned stimulus to produce the unconditioned response, that produces the fear that Lauren has when she is on the plane. After conditioning the neutral stimulus the plane has now become a conditioned stimulus and it produces a conditioned response that is similar to the unconditioned response. This means that Lauren’s fear now ... Free Essays on Fear Of Flying Free Essays on Fear Of Flying How Lauren may have learned of her Fear of Flying? How Lauren learned she had a fear in flying? Using the Classical Conditioning theory the possibilities could be endless. Classical conditioning in simple terms is the method in which one determines why and the cause of a condition as well as what has brought it about. There are many stimulus both conditioned and unconditioned that can cause fear or other problems, but the major reason for causes regarding the fear of flying has been mentioned in several articles regarding anxiety disorders. Fear of flying is created by the unconscious mind as a protective mechanism. When using the neutral stimulus explanation, Lauren may not have had a relevant response of interest. Lauren may have learned something or heard someone from her past that caused the continuous fear. Due to the facts in this case, there’s little information to provide us regarding Lauren. First we know she’s afraid to fly, but we have no further information regarding the condition that caused the fear or the circumstances to what led to this fear. The first step in Pavlov’s theory is trying to discover how Lauren’s fear came about, but without more information one can only speculate or guess how Lauren’s condition developed. Pavlov’s theory states several actions and read actions that could have caused Lauren’s Condition. The conditioning of the plane could be neutral stimulus, and the activities on the plane is the unconditioned stimulus. During conditioning of the plane is the neutral stimulus, which is paired with the activities on the plane that is the unconditioned stimulus to produce the unconditioned response, that produces the fear that Lauren has when she is on the plane. After conditioning the neutral stimulus the plane has now become a conditioned stimulus and it produces a conditioned response that is similar to the unconditioned response. This means that Lauren’s fear now ...

Skin Deep Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Skin Deep - Essay Example A recent newspaper article in the New York Times by Natasha Singer, dated October 4, 2007, titled "SKIN DEEP; Is the 'Mom Job' Really Necessary" reveals an interesting trend in this regard. This essay shall analyze the mentioned article and study its relevance, and the way in which the article corresponds to the ideas and issues discussed by Emma Goldman in "Love and Marriage" and "Woman Suffrage." The essay shall argue that, while the article is well presented in terms of the main argument, the limitation of the article is that the empirical evidences cited by Singer do not present the dangers of the surgical treatment adequately. The article is indeed very relevant to the thoughts expressed by Goldman. Natasha Singer reports about the cosmetic changes that are brought about in a women's body by means of plastic surgery. She discusses the work of Dr. Stoker in California, who promises a "surgical cure for the ravages of motherhood" called "Mommy makeover." Singer sets the reader thinking with her title "Skin Deep; Is the Mom Job Really Necessary" Providing adequate information about what the surgery actually does on the women who go in for the treatment, and why women agree to take the treatment in the words of Dr. Stoker, Singer then begins her attack on such extreme steps taken by women, despite the involved risks of high cost and danger to life. The main argument of Singer as can be understood in two parts: a) women who had altered bodies after childbirth, lost their self-esteem regarding their attractiveness and femininity because of the changed definition of beauty in modern times, with media pressure exacerbating the problem. b) They resorted to the readily available technology to modify their bodies in order to fulfill their cosmetic aspirations even at the risk of hefty expenditure, and danger to life. Singer supports first part of her argument well, and the cost factor in the second part. She states that "narrowing beauty norms are recasting the transformations of motherhood as stigma" and examines the role of the media in accentuating the situation: "...unforgiving standards are the offspring of pop culture and technologyGossip magazines excoriate celebrity moms who don't immediately lose their ''baby weight'' a luxury parenting magazinedescribed post-pregnancy breasts as ''the ultimate indignity'' and promoted implant surgery;" (Singer 1) Citing Diana Zuckerman, the president of the National Research Center for Women and Families, Singer further supports her argument of pressurized mothers, stating that the "the post-pregnancy body" was transformed ''into a socially unacceptable thing," (Singer 1) to suit the marketing goals of plastic surgeons, who could profit from the operations. She provides statistics from the Society of Plastic Surgeons, to point to the increasing numbers - "325,000 ''mommy makeover procedures'' on women ages 20 to 39, up 11 percent from 2005" (Singer 2). Singer cites Dr. Stoker and Dr. Huffaker to give the reader of the cost -ranging from $10,000-30,000. However, the empirical evidences of the women operated, like "Katie Helein" and "Ms. Sharlotte Birkland" (Singer 3) presents only the positive side of the

Outliers and The Rockefellers Habits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Outliers and The Rockefellers Habits - Essay Example This is evident by the way he has intensified research and development in the company as well as the intensive marketing strategies that he has put in place. As a result of his hardworking aspect, he has served in several senior positions such as general manager of Coca-Cola Central Asia and Turkey prior to becoming the CEO (Gladwell 27). Kent is innovative. This has enabled him to diversify the company products based on the market needs. Additionally, the CEO has established an expansive research and development that has ensured that the company brands meet the international standards. In this way, the products are acceptable in all countries. Fifthly, the CEO is academically qualified. Based on the size of Coca-Cola Company, it is imperative to note that the skills that Kent gained while in Tarsus American College, University of Hull and Cass Business School in London have significantly enhanced his performance making him successful. Coca-Cola is focused at developing its employees. In this regard, the company has provided ample opportunities that ensure employees undertake part time studies thus enhancing their skills. For example, the company has established Coca-Cola University that is focused at talent development as well as leadership enhancement. Another notable handful rule of Coca-Cola is to increase productivity. Despite the stiff competition in the soft drink industry, Coca-Cola has undertaken extensive marketing strategies with an aim of putting at bay its rivals such as Pepsi. As a result, the company revenue has continued to increase thus making it one of the most profitable companies in the world. Coca-Cola is also aimed at product diversification to meet the needs of its customers in the international market. Under the strong leadership of Kent, Coca-Cola has launched more than 500 brands thus making its sales to be high in all regions. Through such wide range of products, the company has attracted a large network of

Leadership (Bill Gates) Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Leadership (Bill Gates) - Term Paper Example He can singularly be credited with launching the personal computer revolution that has helped billions of people to acquire personal computers and also changed the settings of the business world. Microsoft is today a very big corporation that employs more than 71,000 people in different facilities all over the world. Gates has for a long time functioned as the Chief Software Architect as well as Microsoft’s CEO (Strother, 2010). Transformational leadership helps companies to form different ideas which are then implemented. The corporate resources are injected into research to form more cutting-edge products. Transformational leaders usually have personal characteristics that assist them to inspire these type of changes in organizations (Mullins,  2010). Bill Gates, for instance, is known to be an aggressive, charismatic, and knowledgeable man who is also a visionary and an introvert. His original vision was to ensure that every home would have at least one personal computer. To this day, Bill Gates goes annually to Washington’s Hood Canal to come up with ideas about how to continue with the transformation of Microsoft. Microsoft employees are at this time encouraged to submit proposals of how they think the company can benefit from new services or products (Strother, 2010). If Bill Gates is impressed with any of these ideas, he returns to the Microsoft headquarters at Redman to develop the idea further. Due to practices such as these, Microsoft still maintains a strong vitality that has seen it continuously create innovative products. Microsoft has several research institutions; each of which are unique. It also has a suggestion box that allows employees to give their suggestions as well as recommendations to its managing directors. Bill Gates uses participative as well as delegative leadership styles to engage his employees. He has in the past allowed Microsoft’s research teams to freely create the

Relationship Between Sport Participation And Academic Achievement Psychology Essay

Relationship Between Sport Participation And Academic Achievement Psychology Essay Introduction This research is to identify if there any relationship between sport participation and academic achievement. In additions from thus study also it will show whether sport participation among student may affect their academic or not. The review of literature for this investigation focuses on three primary areas of concern. The research questions are: Is there any difference in academic performance between students who are participate in sport and student who are not participate in sport. Is there any difference in term of academic performance between male and female students athletes. To examine what are the benefits that students athletes get by participating in sport The first area represents the differences of academic performances between student who are participate in sport and student who are not participate in sport, which researcher want to investigate. The second part is to represent is focusing on the differences in academic performance between genders and as well toward on the benefit of participated in sport for academic achievement. Comparison between student that participated in sport and student not participated in sport. As we know, nowadays, a lot of student that involve in sport often make them hard to maintain their result but they can score during the examination (Shuman Michael, 2009). Besides, a lot of student success in their academic are usually active in sport, it will show if there are any differences between student that participated in sport and student that not participated in sport in their academic achievement (Shuman Michael, 2009). One of the first organizations who are concern to the question of the academic performance of student-athletes was the Carnegie Foundation. In its Twenty-Second Annual Report, published in 1927, the commission gave a detailed review of studies that had been complete about the relationship of athletics to scholastic attainment ( Twenty-Second Annual Report, 1927). According to sport participation and academic performance; proof from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (2002) gives positive association between sports participation and academic performance. Besides that, based on Eccles, Barber, Stone, Hunt (2003), studies show that participation in athletic activities is to encourage a wide range of social, physical, and intellectual skills, which leading better in classroom performance. In fact there is fair quantity of proof to support this claim. As noted above, high school athletes on average perform better academically than non-athletes Solt, D.F. (1986). Moreover, Hindma has found that in the Colleges of Arts, Engineering, and Agriculture, the quarter grade point averages for athletes were higher. The average grade point average for non-athletes was 2.153 and 2.168 for athletes. In following these same students through the next four years, Hindman found that the degree attainment for athletes was better in every college and in total 37.2 percent of the athletes attained degrees compared to only 21.5 percent of non-athletes. Other than that, Eaton and Smith (1941) used the percentile grade ratings made on the American Council on Education Psychological Examination as an indication of aptitude and compared this with grade point average as an indication of achievement. Athletes were higher than compared with non-athletes. As been stated above, indicated that students who were involved in sport perform better in academic than those who were not. Besides, there are also possibility that those students who are involved in more sport are generally motivated than those who do not participate in sport. Furthermore, the majority of studies from the past, show those students involved in sport excel in the classroom. This also can be agreed by Ballantine (1981) showed that there is a positive connection between academic achievement and sport participation. Study by the U.S Department of Education (1997) revealed that students who participate in sport are three times more probable to have a grade point average or better (Mihoces, 1996). From this research show that student involve in sport are higher in the academic achievement than student that not participate in sport. Moreover, some previous research states that overall, student athletes graduate at higher rates than students in the general population. The most new graduation rates of 60% compared to 58% for the non-athlete population (Division I Athlete Graduation Rates, 2002). Differences in academic performance in athletes gender Refer to the past research carry out by Roger Whitley performed a study of North Carolina high school students stated that female athletes higher score in academic result. The students were divide into two groups, They were categorized as higher participant or low participant of sport according to the following rule. A student whose number of years in high school is better than their number of seasons participating in sport categorized as low participant (Stegman, 2000). A student whose number of seasons participating in sport is identical to or greater than their number of years in high school is categorized as high participants. This having a student who tried a sport or two as a freshman placed into the athlete category (Stegman, 2000). According from the past research state as below: Based on that, Mark Stegman says, I feel confident arguing that athletic participation does not hurt academic performance and it instills desirable qualities such as physical fitness, goal setting, teamwork, and self-discipline that help in all areas of students lives (Stegman 2000). The impact of sport participation on girls academic orientation was the focus of the number of studies. Feltz and Weiss (1984) found that socioeconomic level and extent of activity involvement were reason contributing to most of the differences between group, in which higher SES levels and higher levels of involvement were analytical of higher ACT scores. SES levels and extent of extracurricular involvement were influential other than students participation categories on females academic achievement. In another study, Synder and Spreitzer (1977) analyzed survey data on participation in sports as related to educational expectations among high school girls. The researcher found a positive relationship between both types of extracurricular participation and educational expectations. This study been showed that , sport for these high school girls may appear to a good result of academic achievement. Based on African-American male students, and presented mixed findings. Sport participation seems to have a positive effects on their educational aspirations (Braddock, 1980, 1981, ; Hanks, 1979; Picou Huang, 1982; Wells Picou, 1980), self-esteem (Braddock,1980, 1981 ; Hanks, 1979), college conscription and graduation (Braddock 1981), competitive orientation (Wells Picou, 1980), and adult earnings (Picou, McCarter, Howell, 1985). For this group of students, sport participation had mixed effect on their grades (Braddock, 1981; Wells Picou, 1980). Based on their investigation indicated that sport participation for these student was positively related to their aspirations to register in college preparatory programs in high school. Moreover, Marsh (1993) concluded from his study that sport participation may have an effect on academic achievement in that the participation where increase motivation. Hawkins and Mulkey (2005) suggested that sport participation created aspirations for African- American males to seriously consider attending college and act more suitably in school. For black female high school athletes, the literature presents a different picture. With respect to their participation in sport activities, we see mixed findings on their educational aspirations ( Hanks, 1979; Picou Huang, 1982), on support to attend college from parents, teachers, and peers (Hanks, 1979; Well Picou, 1980). Besides, Reith (1989) were analyzed through a survey of a large sample of these studies. The Hispanic high school female students who participated in sports were found to be more likely to score well on achievement tests, to stay in high schools and continue their education in colleges than their non-athletic peers. Regression result reveal that both male and female student athletes academic success is to some extent contingent upon the specific nature of their interaction with faculty (Fejgin 1994). The finding also showed that male and female student athletes have minimal differences in their various forms of contact with faculty. The implications of these findings are discussed among student athletes, faculty and advisors in order to improve their roles in establishing meaningful relationships with female and male student athletes inside and outside the classroom (Comeaux, 2005). The benefit of participated in sport. There are a lot benefit by participated in sport which indicated that participation in sports increased students overall interest and commitment to schooling as well as their engagement in more student-teacher contact, more positive attitudes about schooling, more parent-school contact (Crain, 1981; Trent Braddock, 1992). Moreover, Slavin and Madden (1979) found that sports could facilitate positive racial or ethnic relations as well as positive inter-group attitudes and behaviors among school. Crain (1981) reported similar findings. Furthermore, benefit of participated in sport could provide extrinsic rewards to students and help them form social bonds and relationships within school, (Crain, 1981; Slavin Madden, 1979); Trend Braddock, (1992), Besides, sport participation could create intrinsic values for students, according to Kavussanu and Mc Auley (1995). Based on this study, if highly student participated in sport they were significantly more optimistic and experienced greater self-efficacy than those non-athletes (Crain, 1981; Slavin Madden, 1979; Trend Braddock, 1992). Moreover, sport may provide a physical benefit to the student athletes and they can also facilitate the development of lifetime skills such as interpersonal and time management skills by working with a team of peers and coachers and also properly balancing between school work and practice. A number of benefits can be reaped from participation sports. Seaton etal (1965), Durojaie (1976), and John and Campbell (2001) note that participation in sports, which enhances physical fitness, contributes to good health. According to Ekperigin and Uti (1982), physical activity leads to good body posture, that is a balanced development of the whole body, the strength and fitness of all muscles. Sports being a physical activity help students to cooperate and work with others under the same rules and regulations towards a common goal while commenting on re-introduction of sports in Afghanistan Ekperigin and Uti (1982).Arnoldy (2005) observes that sports can be used as a vehicle for creating a safe space and an entrance into the public sphere. Besides that, Clarke (1977) contended that sports should gradually lead to a sense of order and self-control which make student able to control their selves in school or in competition. Furthermore, according from previous research, Weinberg and Gould (1995) athletes have better personality than non-athletes. In their research, they found out that those who play team sports as compared to non-athletes exhibit less abstract reasoning, more extroversion, more independent and less ego strength while those who play individual sports as compared to non-athletes display higher levels of objectivity, more dependency, less anxiety and less abstract reasoning. But, still other researcher have noted that athletes are more independent, more objective and less anxious than non-athletes (Cox, 1998). This showed that being an athletes give more benefit than non-athletes. As been stated above, it showed that sport participation are a lot give benefit to the student that involved in sport. Sport makes them healthier, more independent, gives motivation to them during the class and their training by Seaton etal (1965), Durojaie (1976), and John and Campbell (2001). Besides, sport participation are also make the student more discipline, hard working ethics and more focus in class and in their training by Seaton etal (1965), Durojaie (1976), and John and Campbell (2001). Moreover, sport participation give a good personality of the student where the student will increase their self-confidence, develop positive attitude and able to think professionally by Seaton (1965), Durojaie (1976), and John and Campbell (2001).

Internet Radio Essay -- Expository Technology Essays

Internet Radio When a new technology is pioneered or discovered it is often the case that this new technology is used to emulate the function of old technologies, for example, when Marconi was inventing the radio he was trying to emulate the function of the telegraph system and saw the defracation of radio waves as an obstacle. Eventually these new technologies mature and the advantages and disadvantages are weighed up and used in their most effective capacity. Internet radio is a prime example of this kind of technology convergence, which uses the world wide web, â€Å"the publicly available worldwide system of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching over the internet protocol (IP)†¦..made up of thousands of other, smaller business, academic, and government networks†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (WWW.WORDIQ.COM 2004) to transmit live, streaming audio information from all over the world. Whilst this media cross over is still in its relative infancy, current developments show t hat internet radio has the potential to make local broadcast radio almost obsolete. Arguably, the first regular internet radio ‘broadcast’ started in 1993 when Carl Malamud established Internet Talk Radio featuring a regular Geek of the Week interview segment. (Naughton, John 2004) This was radio by name only, in reality the radio show had to be down loaded in full as a sound file before it could be listened to, the technology had not progressed far enough to listen to the interviews ‘live’. The other down side to this system was that the files were exceptionally large and took a long time to down load. This all changed in 1994 (Naughton, John. 2004) when a company called ProgressiveNetworks created audio streaming technology in which a file could be p... ...ssed 11 September, 2004] Naughton, J. (July 21, 2002), "The Golden Age of Internet Radio", (The Guardian), Available: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,759023,00.html(Accessed: 2004, September11). Naraine, Ryan (July 26, 2002) â€Å"Web Radio Law Changes Introduced† (www.internetnews.com) available at http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/1433921 [accessed 11 September, 2004] Reed, Fred (August 5, 2004), " Internet Radio - Redefining through Personalization ", (Knight Ridder Tribune Buisness News), Available: http://www.digitalhollywood.com/SanJoseWedSix.html [Accessed 11 September 2004]. Sawhney, Harmeet and Lee, Seungwhan (October 2000), â€Å"Areas of Innovation, Fringe Groups and Discovery of New Liberties of Action†, (www.slis.indiana.edu), [Available] http://www.slis.indiana.edu/CSI/WP/wp00-03B.html (Accessed September 11, 2004)

Group

How meaning will be checked Pronunciation features to be highlighted Cross the gender gap at work. -To change to a Job that is not traditionally done by someone of your gender or sex. Ignore the prejudice – To take no notice of unreasonable opinions against you Sexism. – When someone is treated unfairly because of their sex or gender. The Equal Opportunities Commission. – A government agency that fghts sexism and prejudice in the workplace. Plumber – A person whose Job is to fix water pipes, baths, toilets, etc. Noun phrase Noun collocation Noun CCQSWhat do we call it when we change to a Job which is not traditional for someone of your sex or gender? ccqs When someone has an unfair opinion of you because of your race, sex or background, what do we call that? Prejudice What's another word we use when we want to say that we dont take notice of something? To not pay attention to something or someone? Ignore. What do we call it someone is treated unfairly or b adly because of their sex? Sexism Prompts Does anyone know who the Equal Opportunities Commission is? It's a government agency that fghts sexism and prejudice in the workplace. Picture and CCQs What is this person doing?What is this person called? /kros ¶ac†°endag ¦p/ weak form in Ida/ Isekslzlm/ /plAma/ Timing/ Int When? Who? What? Stage Aim: Why? Procedure: How? 5 mins -ros ss Lead – In To set the context for the lesson For students to practice speaking T gives short talk about Jobs she has done in the past T instructs students: answer these questions about these Jobs. Handout activity 1 Ss work, T monitors Peer check T instructs: Check with your partners, discuss and explain your answers with each other. OCFB via nomination To present lexis students may find difficult in the listening text Cross the gender gap t work.Elicited via CCQS Elicited Vis ccqs Sexism The Equal Opportunities Commission Prompts: Elicited via photo 3 mins TOS Gist Reading For students to get an overall understanding of the text by practicing reading for gist Handout first article. T instructs: Read this article quickly and answer the question: â€Å"Does anything surprise you about this article? † Peer check: Quickly compare and discuss with your partners OCFB via nomination. 10 mins Reading for specific information For the students to practice reading for specific details Task a: Split class in half: GROUP A (Pink): Read about Jenny.GROUP B (Blue): Read about Alex. T instructs: Answer these questions about your person. Ss work, T monitors. T instructs: GROUP A find someone in GROUP B, compare your answers. Read your partner's text. Answer key at the back. 12 mins Communicative Follow Up For students to practice speaking in response to the text. T asks: What do you think? Write questions on WB. Answer these questions and discuss in groups of threes. One student leads the discussion, another student prepare to summarize what the group said for the class. Ss discu ss,

Compare and contrast about the book Indian Killer and movie, Smoke Signal Essay

‘Inidan Killer’ by Sherman Alexie can be kept under the term murder mystery books, however there are lots more than the mysterious killings. Sherman wants to take his reader on a journey through the dark heart of current Native American life. The reader finds a mixture of substance abuse which gives rise to self-hatred, which is mixed with an ironic pride of being the native of America. With analysis of the characters of the book reader feels that the fuel is present there to ignite the fire. It is felt that the difference due to the color of the skin results in sourness in any relationship that arises between a dark kinned and a white skinned person. The story mainly surrounds a man, John Smith who was immediately adopted after his birth by a white couple. Throughout the book John is seen suffering a complex because of his skin color as he is of Indian origin. He previously has no idea about what an Indian is except from the books that her mother bought to read, from some documentaries and movies. He knew that no white people would like his or her daughter to date with one who is an Indian or simply just because of his dark skin. During one of the protest powwow, John meets an Indian called Marie Polatikin who also fights for the njustice Indians are facing. The protest usually included a professor of Native American literature class and a cop who later turned to be a mystery writer as both were quite partial to the Americans. Days passed and both, John and Marie were busy with their respective works but in the meantime the tension between the white and native communities also started to rise. The first body due to these differences was found with owl feathers and another white college student suddenly disappeared from an Indian casino parking area. This gave rise to violence against Indians in Seattle and a group of men started beating Indians f that area. To retaliate this, Marie’s cousin brother tortures a white hitchhiker in the same way as he was tortured by his stepfather who also was a white man and tried to beat the â€Å"bad† Indian out of him. The characters and the situations described in â€Å"Indian Killer† are actually representing an existing widespread problem. Three types of Indians are shown, one that are drunk which means that even if they are aware of the wrong treatment from the white community they don’t say a word in protest because they think they would not be able to defeat the whites. The second type of Indians are noble or good Indians who are in such positions that they don’t usually get disturbed due to these events. If any Indian from either of the two categories uttered a word about land claims or anything that seemed for the whites like threatening for their status quo, was immediately tagged as malcontent or radical. This was the third and the most problematic category of Indians for the existing whites. And this is the category that Sherman Alexie deals with in his book, â€Å"Indian Killer†. The reader gets carried away and starts caring for the characters o matter whether they are white or Indian because nothing actually matters, as all the characters are human and interesting. When Marie tells that the reason behind the killings is the ghost dance, Sherman Alexie wants his readers to examine their opinion of Indians and the consequences of the way they had been treated in past. Sherman Alexie has made use of overt and subtle racism along with harsh reality and few descriptions of violence. The story and plot goes along swiftly and straightforwardly. This novel can be an eye opener for those people whose land it was where their families had immigrated. Smoke Signals† is a movie which is also written by Sherman Alexie and is a film in which a young Indian, Victor makes a trip to pick up his father’s ashes who had fled from the family years back. Victor sets off in search of his father and everything about him and in this way tries to find his identity too. He has to borrow money from his neighbor and friend Thomas who in turn wants Victor to take him along his journey. Unflinching frankness of Indians is seen in the film and the comic scenes that make people laugh loud are in fact satire on Indians or the rest of Americans. Thomas here is seen quite considerate about his friend’s pain and he has helped Victor quite a lot of time in life. Later in the film Victor meets his father’s neighbor and one time lover and comes to know about the reason of his abandonment. Sherman adds real color to the story of â€Å"Smoke Signals† with Indian reservations. Sherman has introduced confrontation of Indians and rest of Americans in a very peculiar way. A man, who has a tag, â€Å"racist redneck† written on his forehead, takes over the seat where Victor and Thomas were seated and that too of no particular reason at all. It is seen hat even when the film flashes from back to past and from â€Å"present† to â€Å"past† or vice versa, there is no change in the background or the people or the dress they were wearing. Alexie has talked about Indian reservation in the film as if it existed from long past without even considering the progress. But here Victor gives a fighting chance for survival and to move on. This is the point where Sherman’s character John and Victor of the book â€Å"Indian Killer† and film â€Å"Smoke Signals† can be compared. Both of them are not ready to surrender to the injustice by the rest of Americans towards Indians. They oth fight for their existence and identity. The film â€Å"Smoke Signals† was written by an Indian writer and almost the entire cast is cool, calm and collected of Indians. Smoke Signals† is an important movie and a turn point for Native North America because of the long misrepresentation of them on silver screen. The Indian Victor is stereotyped and along with Thomas looks like a typical Indian. Thomas has a lot of stories to tell throughout the movie and tells personal stories along with family histories and myths. There is no shyness in the movie about the drunkenness or hopelessness of the people in the past. Everyday and persistent racism is seen in the movie once they leave the reservation. The film is a journey of two young Indian men to more mature ones. In the film Victor is seen reminding Thomas of behaving like an Indian and to stop grinning all the time. In both the film â€Å"Smoke Signals† and the book â€Å"Indian Killer† the Indian characters are not ready to leave their identity and come face to face with racism. There are references from popular cinema in the movie as well as the book â€Å"Indian Killer† every now and then. The film leaves the audience and the readers of the book feel that the uthor has much more to explore and to say but due to their limitations they have stopped and ended. It seems that both the stories are original and even if the movie does not have any famous or big names attached to it is worth watching and realizing the real status. The story itself is very simple but the characters of the present generation do not seem to surrender to the prevailing situation and circumstances. They fight for justice and want their identity back by hook or by crook. â€Å"Indian Killer† and â€Å"Smoke Signals† both show the differences between father nd sons and the troubled relationships of the two generations. Usually films appear to be personal but this film with a simple story line is quite universal in nature. The characters are confronted with racism fact to face and the manner Sherman Alexie has presented the situation is very unusual. Sherman’s style is somewhat typical and in both the stories he has taken almost the same issue of racism but presented it in a different way. His characters are quite strong and not ready to accept injustice to their community and they fight for it throughout the story.

Agent Nouns

Agent Nouns Agent Nouns Agent Nouns By Mark Nichol Why singer, but actor? Why doctor, but dentist? Why customer, but client? There seems to be no logic to the variation in endings for agent nouns. An agent noun, a word that identifies a person’s occupation or profession, place of origin or residence, or other association, or a device that performs a task, generally signals its function with a suffix. However, various endings are possible, and though the spelling of such words, because of their ubiquity, is often obvious, no set of rules is always reliable. Some people posit that the -er ending is found in words derived from Germanic sources, while the -or ending denotes Latinate words, but that’s not always true. (For example, adapt is from Latin, but its agent noun is adapter, not adaptor.) Alternatively, the -or ending appears in words referring to figures of authority (director, governor, inspector), but employer, manager, and teacher are counterexamples. (Occasionally, an agent noun has more than one spelling, as with adviser and advisor. It’s common practice in such cases to always prefer, for consistency, the first option listed in the dictionary, although in this case, doing so means that a writer will write adviser yet will spell the adjectival form advisory.) Another ending for agent nouns, -ist, might at first seem to consistently correspond to a positive value judgment, in that we associate it with scientist and words for those in scientific specialties (biologist, physicist), as well as powerful people (industrialist, philanthropist), but note the neutral bicyclist and the negative bigamist. Likewise, notice the variable status of people identified by the terms cineast (also spelled cineaste), enthusiast, and pederast, as well as the tongue-in-cheek neologism ecdysiast. Some endings for agent nouns are often associated with pejoratives, though there are exceptions. For example, beggar, burglar, and the archaic pedlar end with -ar, but so do registrar, scholar, and vicar. Bastard, coward, and drunkard, but steward and wizard. Mongrel and wastrel, but colonel and sentinel. Less common endings that might be associated with positive or negative words are -ant (accountant, but vagrant) and -ent (client, as well as agent itself, but indigent). Other rare examples are -aster (poetaster), which originally neutrally denoted partial resemblance but came to be exclusively derogatory; -ista, which is employed in lightheartedly pejorative terms such as fashionista (there’s also barista, borrowed from Italian, which in turn borrowed bar from English); and -nik (beatnik, peacenik), which in Russian or Yiddish is neutral but acquired a negative connotation in American English during the Cold War. As mentioned in the definition of â€Å"agent noun† above, that term also refers to inanimate objects. However, no consistent classification is possible for this subgroup: Why washer and dryer, but refrigerator? As revealed in these examples and the many terms for human agents referred to above agent nouns follow no rules of etymology or connotation. 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 Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:10 Rules for Writing Numbers and Numerals50 Types of PropagandaShow, Don't Tell

You have been invited by the government of Trinidad and Tobago (West Essay

You have been invited by the government of Trinidad and Tobago (West -Indies) to advise the political leader on economic development initiatives that can help - Essay Example Windfalls from surging prices of energy, exploitation activities of new gas fields and moves towards industrial capacity expansion have contributed in no small measure to vibrant economic activity, strengthening of foreign reserves and excess liquidity witnessed in the financial system. Certain indicators like capacity strains in the construction and other sectors, tightening of the labor market and an accelerated inflation point towards the operation at full or near potential of the economy. To ensure that Trinidad and Tobago’s economy is improved upon and achieves a high performing economy status, the need for certain economic development initiatives cannot be overemphasized. According to a 1999 estimate, the GDP of the country stood at about $9.41 billion dollars at growth rate of about 5%.the purchasing power parity or GDP per capita also stood at about $8500 in 1999.A further breakdown of composition by sector of the GDP reveals that services has the highest input of 54% followed by industries with 44% and by agriculture with 2%-according to a 1998 estimate. Exports from the country in 1998 had a value of $2.4bn (f.o.b).In order to raise the standard of living for current and future generations, there is an important need to strike a delicate balance of efficient investment of energy windfalls in promoting social objectives and economic diversification while avoiding an overheating of the economy and inflationary trends by the strategic pacing of energy reven ues. It is important to note that, the gulf between the non-energy sector and its energy counterpart has widened with the non-energy sector witnessing a fiscal deficit alongside an accelerated public spending increase. Urgent steps need to be taken so as to reverse overdependence on revenues from the oil sector. Human development and infrastructure should be allocated high-quality spending. Given the upward trend in inflation and the real

Critically evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of universal and Essay

Critically evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of universal and contingent approaches to human resource strategy. Give examples to illustrate your answer - Essay Example Since the human resources act as the cornerstone of an organization, that may enhance its productivity and total sale as well as strengthen the brand image and reputation in the market among others. Not only this, the position and supremacy of an organization might also get enhanced only if the employees and the leaders work optimistically and efficiently. Moreover, the brand value and position of the organization might get enhanced thereby amplifying its profitability in the market among many other existing rival players. Other than this, the organization might retain its portfolio in this competitive market only if it implements all sorts of universal or best practices within the organization in an effective way. Such practices might amplify the inner skills and talents of the employees that may boost their level of performance and total output of the organization to a significant extent among many other co-players. This essay is divided into five phrases mainly highlighting the importance of universal and contingent approaches within an organization. Along with this, it also discusses the pitfalls of implementing such types of approaches with an organization with relevant examples as well. In order to maintain the efficiency and dominance in this aggressive market, the most essential strategy is extensive planning and scheduling of the human resource needs and requirements. By doing so, the organizational management might understand the desired requirements of the work-forces to accomplish the future goals and objectives of the business group. Apart from this, with the help of this type of planning’s, the organizational management might attain a link among human resource management and overall strategic planning of the group. This might prove effective for the organization to analyse the working capabilities of the existing work-forces, the type of