SWOT Analysis for My Writing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

SWOT Analysis for My Writing - Essay Example In the essay I have used simple sentences that are easy to understand. The sentences are short and precise. This makes them easy to comprehend and understand. The paragraphs are also short and the sentences link making them to be characterised by coherence unity and adequate development of the ideas. The points are valid and supported by strong ideas and arguments. I have used good vocabulary that is easy to understand. The paper also have some elements of creativity as it carries my personality opinions and individuality. The weaknesses in my writing is some spelling errors that is evident in parts of the essay. Some words are not spelt correctly hence lowering the quality of the essay. The paper has also elements of poor grammar that makes some sentences cumbersome to read. In some paragraphs the sentences are not well organised. The ideas are distorted making the essay difficult to understand. Some sentences are not logical and clear inhibiting the coherence of some paragraphs. Some sentences lack appropriate punctuation marks. I failed to put comas and full stops this makes some sentences to be unnecessarily long and difficult to understand. English being my second language the grammar used was in some cases poor. My paper also lacks a clear conclusion. The opportunities I had in my writing was the availability of the writing centre. I was able to acquire information and ideas from the writing centres. There was also the online dictionary which helped in confirming the meaning of some words. I also got appropriate vocabulary in relation to my subject and topic from the online dictionary. The library also came in handy in acquiring information and ideas which support my writings. In the library there were books and journals which provided supportive information and guides for the writing. The writing instructor from Saint John College also played a big deal in ensuring the quality of the

At-Risk Program for Alcohol and Drug Use Essay Example for Free

At-Risk Program for Alcohol and Drug Use Essay When observing the schools in our communities, many choose not to notice that there is a serious problem concerning drug and substance abuse within the student population. Drug and alcohol abuse has become a serious problem for many students in the state of Alabama. There are over 40,000 adolescents in the state of Alabama that have used illegal drugs in this past month (Inspirations for Youth and Families, 2011). This is an alarming number that needs the support of the community, state funded programs, and the school district. There are currently over 15,000 youths in the state of Alabama that need help with substance abuse problems and are not receiving the proper care and help they deserve (Inspirations for Youth and Families, 2011). This community needs an at-risk program that targets the students who have become victim to drug and alcohol abuse. Identifying students in our schools who may be using drugs or alcohol is not an easy task. There are several signs that students could convey during schools hours that draw the attention of teachers or classmates. This program will be available to any parents concerned about their children with substance abuse, or students exhibiting at-risk warning signs. Warning signs of an at-risk student that will be eligible for a drug and substance abuse program may exhibit several traits that set them apart from the rest of the student body. These include smelling like alcohol or drugs, missing or skipping class, a dramatic change in academic involvement, trouble with authority, and getting involved in fights or showing an increase in aggressive behavior (Indiana University of Pennsylvania, 2012). Students who exhibit any of these signs would be recommended to participate in the drug and alcohol program. Periodic drug screenings in schools for students expressing these signs is another measure that will be taken to inform educators and parents of the students experimenting with illegal substances and need our help and support. This drug and alcohol program will meet the needs of the students in our community by providing them a haven where they can turn without worrying about getting into trouble. This program is not meant to judge these students, but to help them overcome the pressure they feel from their peers and their habitual drug and alcohol abuse. This program will be in every school in the Montgomery County school district. It will target students in grades five through 12. The guidance offices will have specific laws and rules to abide by to find at-risk students and enter students into the drug and alcohol program. The guidance office will have the responsibility of meeting with students when there are not program meetings, keeping a log of the student’s success and information on the drug/alcohol abuse, drug screenings, parental involvement, and so forth. Program meetings for all students involved in the drug and alcohol program will be held three times a month at the George Washing Carver High School Gymnasium, taking place after school for three hours from two in the afternoon to five in the evening. Buses will be supplied at all schools to transport the students to the main center at Carver High School, and then will be available to transport these students home. The staff at our meetings will include guidance counselors from every school in the district, teachers, and volunteers from the community. There will be a certified psychiatrist at every meeting to meet with students considered high-risk. If these high-risk students show signs of serious addiction or dependence, extra therapy sessions will be provided through the school district and rehabilitation options will be explored. This drug and alcohol program will be supported by the Montgomery County Department of Human Resources and Covenant Health Centers who implement the Alabama Recovery Center. Both of these state departments will ensure the success of the drug and alcohol program so the students in our community have access to the best resources. The Montgomery Department of Human Resources has social workers who will be able to meet with at-risk and high-risk children and make contact with family members on the students’ behalf. All cases of adolescent drug abuse must be referred to DHR by state law. This resource will be both beneficial for the students and the community. The Alabama Recovery Center have experienced and licensed staff that work with drug and alcohol abuse in adolescents through intensive  out-patients treatments programs (Covenant Health Centers, 2012). They provide counseling options, individual or family oriented, to best meet the required needs of the student. Their substance abuse programs consist of a 12 week intensive outpatient program that includes after care programs and custom programs working in accordance with several state departments such as DHR (Covenant Health Centers, 2012). With the Montgomery County Department of Human Resources and the Alabama Recovery Center, this new drug and alcohol program will have the support it needs to become a success to our students and the community. The positive impacts the drug and alcohol program would have on our community, schools, and school district are endless. The positive impact it would have on our community is to help adolescents that have fallen victim to drug and alcohol abuse and give them the support these students deserve. This will make sure that the children and teens in our community have a chance to a bright future to become productive citizens for this community. The positive impact this program will bring to our schools is intervention and honesty. Students can communicate with their teachers on a personal basis and let them into their private lives. This will allow the schools to become responsible concerning the essential help that is needed for at-risk students. It will give schools the chance to intervene in situations that involve drug and alcohol abuse. Schools will be the most important level where the student body can be reached to deal with the issues of peer pressure and drug/substance abuse. This program will bring positive impacts to the school district by keeping drugs and alcohol off school campuses and away from the student body. The district will observe dramatic changes in the population of students who have abused drugs and alcohol. The district will reap these rewards by becoming part of a positive change by implementing this program. The school district will see the change in students. This will raise the educational rating of the schools in the district. There are several steps necessary to implement this new drug and alcohol program. The first step is to find and receive funding for this drug and alcohol program. â€Å"The Department of Educations Safe and Drug-Free Schools  and Communities Program (SDFSP) provide funds for virtually every school district to support drug and violence prevention programs and to assist in creating and maintaining safe learning environments† (National Drug Control Policy, 1999, para.12). This is where our source of funding will come from. Once we have received proper funding, the second step is to begin training the guidance counselors, teachers, and volunteers who will be helping this program. The third step is to inform the local community about the new drug and alcohol program to spread awareness. The fourth and final step is to present the at-risk program to the school district’s advisory board. They will make the final decision in regard to implementing the program throughout the schools in the district The drug and alcohol program involving the adolescents in our school systems is a serious concern this community needs to address. This program is planned to target at-risk students by giving them a way to recover from their substance abuse. There are over 40,000 adolescents in the state of Alabama who need help concerning drug and alcohol addiction. The schools in our district are the best ways to identify these students and reach them with kindness, caring, and help. If this district were to implement this program, the student body in the Montgomery County school district will reap essential rewards. These students will have a chance at becoming productive citizens of the community. These students will have a chance to break the substance abuse cycle and become something that we all hope our children will and can become. This drug and alcohol program can bring light into the lives of many students suffering from addiction in our community. It is our job as educators and members of this community to help and give at-risk students a chance. References Covenant Health Centers. (2012). Alabama Recovery Center. Retrieved from http://www.covenanthealthcenters.com/alabama-recovery-center/ Indiana University of Pennsylvania. (2012). Identifying and Confronting Students At-Risk. Retrieved from http://www.iup.edu/page.aspx?id=45873 Inspirations for Youth and Families. (2011). Drug and Alcohol Abuse Among Teens in Alabama. Retrieved from http://www.inspirationsyouth.com/Teen-Rehab-Alabama.asp National Drug Control Policy. (1999). Preventing Drug Abuse. Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/ondcppubs/publications/policy/99ndcs/iv-b.html

Accountability In Administration

Accountability In Administration Accountability in pubic administration is very important aspect to be taken care in every country. The integrity, transparency and accountability are basic principles of public administration and governments must have a check and balance methods to check their bureaucracy for their integrity and honesty. These principles must be adopted and exercised in the country as well as in public administration. The accountability must be done in administration for having transparent and integral government system. Transparency refers to the reliable information keeping and providing citizen services of the country and integrity refers to the honesty and making sure that is no corruption in public and citizens dealings and also no misuse of powers by the public administrators. Public administrators and state heads must develop accountability criteria and the process of accountability must be fair and not one sided. All public administrators and political leaders must be aware of these rules and regulations to abide by so that there are no weaknesses in the process which can be taken for granted by the public servants and politicians. The first basic step in accountability process in public administration is to recognize the efficacy of power. The power or authority is necessary to carry out any development programs and transparency, integrity and accountability can not be obtained by simply cutting powers of administrators (McKinney and Howard, 1998). There is another issue with power that the struggle for attaining more and more powers between bureaucrats, if not eliminated, this conflict can be taken as advantage in future. Accountability is a complex process rather than just tackling the abuses but this practice is essential to attain governmental and public goals. Public trust on departments and government is very important in a democratic country and this can be only achieved by having a fair and strong accountability process in the country. When some public officer misuses its powers and he use these powers for himself instead of using for public service delivery. This also breaks trust of citizens towards public administrators and the government itself. The unethical decisions and acts performed by the public officials are also accountable. The other types of issues in public administration which may arise are blaming of errors on other officer then himself, leaking confidential information, fabricating time/quality/quantit y and reports, misusing of expenses allowed, taking gifts/favors in exchange of preference or personal benefits to clients, taking unnecessary days off and taking extra time for breaks like lunch and dinner etc are some examples of acts by public administrators which must be accountable for ensuring integrity and transparency (Gordon and Milakovich, 2009). In short, accountability is the process for ensuring that public money and powers must be used effectively and with honesty for only public services and country. There must be no misuse of any public power or money by the public administrators and government itself. This also brings trust relationship between the public and the government and its departments. Accountability is a process which must be adopted in every department of the country. Efficiency and Effectiveness Efficiency and effectiveness are important in public administration. Efficiency and effectiveness is desired in every aspect of public administration like utilization of funds by tax payers effectively and efficiency of utilization must be careful, constructive and productive for the public. Effective public administration and services are important because this respond well to the public needs and in a timely situations which are also the political demands of the ruling government and adopt such low cost efficient and effective process which are well targeted, honest, transparent and according to the public interest of the country. Efficiency refers to attaining a goal with least possible cost and resources which is also important to public administration. It is always much more needed to be done in public services and administration than before with spending least resources and achieving more and more productivity. Effectiveness refers to make sure the work done is according to public demands, accountability process is carried out and democratic process is observed (Box, 2009).The decisions made in public sector are according to demands of public which are concluded by the discussions of citizens, discovering issues, developing policies and rules, and managing public administrators to implement these services and programs. Public administration can be effective and efficient if the processes adopted by public administrators are efficient, fast and according to needs of the government and public. E-government processes bring efficiency and effectiveness in the public sector by minimizing the time scales on public level and inter-department communication and processes. E-government enables the public administrators and departments to offer citizen service through one click and their precious time saved. E-government includes online services provided to citizens of the country. This increases the efficiency and effectiveness in spending public money and for right purpose (Cloete and Petroni, 2005). The success of any government and public administration can be measured by efficiency and effectiveness. Peoples point of view regarding the effectiveness and efficiency can be measured time to time by conducting satisfaction surveys, consultations with people directly, and direct individual interaction. The policies must be made keeping in mind about what public requires and where it must be spend and where it must not be spend. In conclusion, efficiency and effectiveness are two basic principles of public administration which must be present in any successful administration. Public administrators who make their policies with consultation of public, consider their requirements and also take feedback about their policies are successful and spending public money honestly, effectively and reliably. The spending of public money must be done according to citizens needs and different tools can be adopted for finding what public needs and requires by the government and public administration. Public services must be delivered effectively and efficiently so that there most of the output can be achieved with the public money and resources. The Legitimacy of the Administrative State The legitimacy of the administrative state claims that it offers opportunities to community engagement and also provides a method for scientific decision making. Rohr (1986) emphasized that the blending of executive, legislative, and judicial powers are aligned according to the separation of powers in a democratic community. He argued that the legitimacy of the administrative state was originally meant for American Senate. It provides a sustainability and permanence to the government system of America and playing a balance role in different constitutional departments of the country government. It also focused on the limitations present in representations in the House of Representatives. The legitimacy of the administrative state empowers future public administrators for playing their own autonomous role by selecting one of constitutional masters where might be clash with one another (Spicer, 2007). Rohr worked on two basic principles: the people of the country if follow illegitimate powers and this is happening in present political environment, a legitimate state must be present to avoid such things. The question of legitimacy of the administrative state was emerged two centuries ago. The legitimacy was questioned because the constitution was not providing base for such an organization. Legitimacy can be accomplished by the state itself by focusing on how it functions and progress for supporting legislations and government. It was supposed before that elected members of the house policy making activities and other relevant activities with evolvement of such policies and how these activities are carried out to present the legitimacy of the administration as well as government itself. Bureaucratic legitimacy is based on the scientific method and professionally. To ensure legitimacy in the administrative state, administrative staff plays their part professionally and specialty. Citizens must trust government because the legitimacy can only be achieved in this case. The legitimacy of the public administrative state can be accomplished by means of expertise, public service, leadership qualities, and vision. Public administrators are responsible for the legitimacy of the state by having direct communication with the community by using their bureaucratic expertise, vision of the government, political leadership and best public service delivery. The legitimacy of the administrative state brings the sustainability to the country and ultimately to the state itself. In conclusion, the legitimacy of the administrative state is the responsibility of the public administrators. They must deliver effective citizen services with honesty and ensuring that the vision of the government is achieved. These efforts bring the legitimacy of the state in view point of the people of the country. The state is considered as stable and strong in terms of its constitution and legislative actions. The legitimacy of administrative state also empowers the government to accomplish their policies and people who elected them to the house must trust them to bring legitimacy. The Politics-Administration Dichotomy The Politics/Administration Dichotomy idea was suggested by Woodrow Wilson in his article The Study of Administration. This article is considered as the base of public administration. The dichotomy offers an enduring image to elected political members, public officers, and students of the public administration. This depicts the real issues of policy and administration decisions which struck in government. Politicians or elected members are liable to make policies agenda and decisions on policies and public servants are liable to administrator programs and providing public services to the community. This dichotomy is meant for eliminating politics in the government departments and leaving politicians to make policies who are elected members by people of democratic country. This has been observed that it is effective to create boundaries of public administration and developing a normative relationship between the public administrators and elected politicians in a democratic community (Svara, 1998). Wilsons suggested that a dichotomy must be present between determinations of government policies must be via politics while its enforcement must be non-political administration. He also emphasized on public sector approach of business like and science of administration. These all formed the public administration early 1940s. This politics-administration dichotomy was used already in Europe a century earlier. It is observed that Wilson essay regarding politics-administration dichotomy is ambiguous (Sapru, 2006). It presented for the first time in American history which focused on the required scientific and systematic study of public administration. His politics-administration dichotomy also urged on professional education which is important of higher education to bring professional bureaucracy in the country. By adopting this dichotomy he appointed on the partisan basis and implies his political power to support his policies and programs. He also successful to bring image of government where administrators were dependent on political and partisan chief executive of the country by adopting approach of centralization and executive leadership while allowing administrator to administrator the internal management matters by giving discretionary powers. Brownlow (1956) was a famous consultant of public administration matters praised the idea of politics-administration dichotomy presented by Woodrow Wilson. In his essay he wrote that Wilson laid a foundation for the study programme which is for everyone in the country who is interested in art or science of public administration. In the modern era, Woodrow Wilsons role in the public administration is not denied. However, it might be argued whether he is founder of the public administration or only a dominant personality for the growth of public administration in America. Wilsons essay about the public administration was part of the administration and politics as the social, political and intellectual ferment till the 19th century. This essay presented the ideas on how to tackle the rapidly changing American economy, social and political-administrative order. The Issue of Representation The issue of representation is present across the globe in public administration. This issue comprises on gender, race, or ethnicity factors. The public administration of any country must be comprised of all races, genders and ethnic groups. The effective representative bureaucracy offers a public administration of all people in terms of demographics so that true representation of all groups is involved in decision making process of the public administration and government. The active representation occurs in bureaucracy when they represent the views of those with similar demographic backgrounds (Kellough, 2010). The representation issues must be tackled down to increase public services quality. Female representation is another major issue in public administration. Because females can only understand better what females of the country need and what policies must be developed to make sure that the public services are offered effectively and efficiently. The demographic diversity must be present in the public officials for tackling diversified issues like religious, ethnic, gender or any other demographic issues. Poor people must be provided with their representation in public administration and government so that all representatives of the community are present. If there is no representation of the poor than there are chances that policies are made only for the landlords, businessmen and corporations. The black people representation is very less in American government and public administration departments and these also created problems for black community. This lack of representation evolved many problems and the trust of black people broken on government (Mosher, 1994). The representation issues are more emerged when there are immigrants and these people representation is not present in the administration. This also creates miscommunication and does not develop trust relationship among immigrants and the public administration. Similarly, the race, ethnic and gender issues creates such problems. The communication gap bears obstacles in developing a trust relationship among government, administration and public. The effectiveness and efficiency is also compromised due to such environment. The representation must be according to the demographics of the country, state and local level. All people must have their proper representation. Females must have their own representation in the public administration as well as in House of Representatives so that all policies and rules are made according to the needs of the females in the country. Minorities must also be represented in the government and in public administration so that the laws must be aligned acco rding to their beliefs and religious independence not compromised. In conclusion, the true representation of every class must be present in the administrative departments and government. This true representation enables government and administrators to develop and implement according to the needs of the people in specific demographics. Equal gender rights must be present in the country and community and this is only possible than there is equal representation of males and females in decision making process. The responsible public administrator Cooper presented the idea of The responsible public administrator in which suggested that the primary responsibility of the public administrator to deal with public interest with honesty and common good responsibility emerged from the fiduciary role of public administration (Boje, 2008). In this the public administrators were the individuals possessing and relied on their own expertise and neutrality. The action taken by such administrators was relied on the scientific and neutral principles. Cooper emphasized on that responsible public administrator knows how to decide an ethical choice in which one might be involved in right action versus wrong action and even sometimes right action versus right action. The individual must build up the skills of moral imagination which involves the capability to create a movie in our minds which must consider the dynamics of the environment in which ethical choice must be taken care (Menzel, 2007). The goal for the responsible public administrator is to bring up the ethical situation of the public servant and develop creative reflection of this situation while not only laying down the public service values (Cooper, 1990). This emphasized on how the public servants are responsible to act ethically and not to take advantage of their powers. Also, public administrators must behave ethically during their public service and do the value-based decisions during while performing their duties. The responsible public administrator must know how to act in a situation where the right action versus the wrong action and in some cases, right action against the right action. The decisions for such actions must be ethical no matter what environment is and also according to values of the government business. Coopers framework provides a solid base for all aspects of public administration involved in decision making and make sure that the public administrator must balance the professional, personal, and organizational values. This framework enables the public servants while they are performing their duties to take decisions neutrally and ethically. Their decisions must be according to the rules and regulations of the government and must not violate any political and governmental rules. The framework not only literate the public administrators about ethics, in fact it demands the actions ethically and practically neutral. In conclusion, the responsible public administrators are important for the democratic government and citizens of the country because these administrators take decisions on all public and national matters neutrally and ethically and also take care of their actions must be according to the law. The democratic government must be successful if they have responsible public servants because there are the people who act upon the government decisions. The democratic government only succeeds by fair play and the public administrators are one of key players of this fair play. These administrators take decisions based upon actions which are right and valuable for community and the country rather than just decision making.

Major Earthquakes are Inevitable in Indiana’s Future Essays -- Earthqu

Major Earthquakes are Inevitable in Indiana’s Future An earthquake felt throughout the Midwest on June 18 was a shaky reminder that earthquakes can occur anywhere. The earthquake, whose epicenter was located north of Evansville, was felt through most of Indiana and surrounding states, as reported by the Indianapolis Star. The quake was not the largest in Midwestern history, only registering a 5.0 on the Richter scale, nor did it do much damage. However, it was a wake-up call reminding those who haven’t paid attention to past warnings about the possibility of larger, more destructive earthquakes. Earthquakes, by Webster’s dictionary definition, are, â€Å"a shaking or trembling of the earth that is volcanic or tectonic in origin.† World Book Encyclopedia reports scientists believe that more than 8,000 earthquakes occur each day without causing damage. A little more than 1,000 each year are strong enough to be felt. Earthquakes occur in the general sense, anywhere on land. Other earthquakes go by different names, such as volcanic eruptions and tsunamis, large tidal wave storms that occur underwater, primarily in the Pacific Ocean. Earthquakes are a natural part of the Earth’s evolution. Scientific evidence leads many geologists to believe that all of the land on Earth was at one point in time connected. Because of plate tectonic movements or earthquakes, continental drift occurred separating the one massive piece of land in to the seven major continents today. Further evidence supports this theory, starting with the Mid-Atlantic ridge, a large mass of plate tectonics, which are increasing the size of the Atlantic Ocean while shrinking the Pacific. Some scientists believe that the major plate moveme... ...nd others for injuries, look for and extinguish small fires, inspect your home for damage, listen to the radio for instructions, and expect aftershocks. Tectonic plate movement can occur as close as two and up to 450 miles below the Earth’s surface. According to the Indiana Geological Survey, Indiana’s fault lines are further underground than those in California and Alaska, causing more minor quakes in the Midwest. However, Hoosiers should heed the recent earthquake as a warning for future quakes. Earthquakes can and do happen in Indiana, and almost anywhere else in the world. This is the one natural disaster that people cannot avoid no matter their location on Earth. And, being unprepared can have devastating results. Samuelson said, â€Å"Another earthquake or series of them the size of the New Madrid earthquakes is inevitable in Indiana’s future.†

Orson Welles’ Use of Long Shots

Orson Welles, Hollywood’s boy genius, brought his innovative approach which has, as Andre Bazin states in Orson Welles: A Critical View: â€Å"shaken the edifices of cinematic traditions†. One of the formal characteristics that he is most well known for is the use of long takes. Although the use of long takes was already established in film, as many of the first films had no edits, Welles incorporated long takes effectively in his films to overload scenes with activity adding more dramatic tension.The films that his formal characteristic stands out the strongest are two of his more popular films Citizen Kane and Touch of Evil. Orson Welles’ theatrical background and his love for painting are probably the greatest contributions to his long takes in which an entire scene is shot with a camera using deep focus lens to capture everything clearly within the frame. As seen in both films the long shots can be static or tracking shots. Because of the deep focus, his long shots were more effective for creating complex mise-en-scene, overflowing the frame with multiple actions.Although using long takes are effective, they require talented crewmembers and are both very expensive and time consuming. Welles even stated in an interview that he â€Å"obviously prefer to control the elements in front of the camera while it’s rolling, but that requires money and the producer’s trust†. The overall effect created each scene as its own complete unit of time and space. It also allows the viewers freedom to scan the scene and look wherever they wish, which is like how one would see real life or sitting in a theater watching a play.In the film Citizen Kane Orson Welles use of long take is seen throughout the entire film. Orson Welles’ director of photography Gregg Toland used very wide-angle lenses bringing the angle of the shot close to that of the eye’s normal vision. With such open composition at Welles’ disposal, it p rovided him with â€Å"the tools needed to inject heightened tension and dramatic intensity† that wouldn’t have as much of an impact with traditional montage editing styles.For instance, during the scene of Citizen Kane in which young Charlie Kane’s future is being laid out for him, the audience watch his mother going over financial papers with the banker and Charlie’s future guardian in the foreground, Charlie’s father complains about his lack of control in the situation in the middle ground and deep in the background Charlie is seen through the far window playing in the snow unaware of the tragic twist that will affect his life. Seeing the different story elements all in one shot adds more dramatic tension, and even dramatic irony to the story.In the film Touch of Evil, Welles returns to his use of long take and deep focus after returning to Hollywood’s machinery, crewmembers and big budget capable of supporting his innovative formal chara cteristic. Before then, Welles made movies in Europe and had to resort to using short takes due to lack of money and very few European crews being capable of performing the long takes. Welles opens the film with a 3 minute 30 second single shot that starts with a close-up of a bomb being placed in the trunk of the car before it drives off.Then the camera elevates and follows the occupants of the car, then follows the Vargas couple with the car returning to cross the US-Mexico border. Finally it ends with the Vargas couple kissing before the car explodes off screen. The use of the single long shot in this scene was effective in creating dramatic tension with the audience, showing Welles’ brilliance with timing and dramatic irony. The fact that the audience is expecting the bomb to go off at the different instances when the car stops at crossings and is near vendors, customs officials, and the Vargas couple builds anticipation for an explosion.The car later explodes off screen giving the audience dramatic relief while at the same time robbing them of a visual explosion. Orson Welles’ use of long shot allows him to pack the screen with action and give the audience the illusion of freedom to follow what they want in a scene making the audience being more invested because they believe they found out the conflict on their own. Through this illusion he is able to add more dramatic tension and dramatic irony to his work making it rich in content and catharsis as he did in Citizen Kane and Touch of Evil.Works Cited Bazin, Andre. Orson Welles: A Critical View. New York: Harper & Row, 1978. Print. Citizen Kane. Dir. Orson Welles. Perf. Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore. Released by RKO Radio Pictures, 1941. Riedlinger, Michael C. â€Å"Orson Welles - Painter. † Senses of Cinema. 30 Dec. 2009. Web. 24 Apr. 2012. . Rosenbaum, Jonathan. Discovering Orson Welles. Berkeley: University of California, 2007. Print. Touch of Evil. Dir. Orson Well es. Perf. Orson Welles. Universal Pictures Co. , 1958.

Important College Application Deadlines You Cant Miss

Important College Application Deadlines You Can't Miss SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Timing is everything. Nowhere is this saying more true than in the college application process. From taking the SAT to writing your personal essay to submitting your Common App, the process takes months, if not years, to complete. So when do you need to finish gathering all your application materials and submit them to your colleges? That all depends on your deadlines. This guide will go over the different options for college application deadlines, plus step-by-step instructions on how to keep track of them all. First off, what are the different options for applying? What Are the Options for College Application Deadlines? There are thousands of colleges in the U.S., all of which may offer one or more of the following options for applying: regular decision (RD), early action (EA), early decision (ED), and/or rolling admissions (RA). The first three options have set deadlines, while rolling admissions is the odd one out with a range of time within which a student must apply. When preparing to apply, you have to carefully research each school's policy. Some early action schools place restrictions on your applications to other colleges. Early decision involves a binding contract in which you promise to enroll in the school if you get accepted. Make sure you understand the rules, along with the pros and cons, of each option, before choosing one for your college applications. To give one example, early admission pushes your college planning timeline earlier by a few months. Before choosing to apply early, you'll have to get ready with your SAT or ACT scores, recommendation letters, personal essay, and course grades. When you apply to your favorite schools, you want to make sure you're sending the very best application you can. Another major consideration is financial aid. When you apply early decision, you agree to enroll before getting to see your financial aid offer. This could be a dealbreaker for a lot of students, so ask yourself this question before jumping into ED and finding yourself in a tough situation. These are two of the most important factors when planning out your application strategy. This guide willgo into more detail about your application timeline below, but first let's look at the most common college application deadlines 2019 and popular schools that have them, starting with regular decision. Most regular decision deadlines are in January. What Is Regular Decision? The majority of students apply to school regular decision. These are the college application deadlines you might have heard all about, usually in the beginning of January (so much for a relaxing winter break). The most common RD deadline is January 1. January 15 is a popular one, too. One big exception to the January deadline involves the schools in the University of California system. The UC application deadline is uniquely early at November 30. There are also some schools with late deadlines in February, March, or April. In some cases, you'll need to complete part of the application before the final deadline. For example, if your school requires or recommends an interview, in some cases you'll set this up earlier. Most commonly, though, you'll apply in January and then hear back sometime in March or April. You might be waiting for a lot of notifications, as you can apply to as many schools as you want under regular decision. Unlike some of the other options, there aren't any restrictions placed on you when you apply RD. Whether you're interested in the NYU application deadline or Stanford deadline, you need look no further. The RD deadlines of some popular colleges are listed below. Regular Decision Deadlines of Popular Schools School Regular Decision Deadline American University January 15 Boston College January 1 Boston University January 6 Bowdoin January 1 Brandeis January 1 Brown January 2 CalTech January 3 Columbia January 1 Cornell January 2 Dartmouth January 2 Duke January 2 Emory January 1 Georgetown January 10 Harvard January 1 Johns Hopkins January 2 MIT January 1 New York University January 1 Northwestern January 2 Princeton January 1 Stanford January 2 Tufts January 1 UNC Chapel Hill January 15 University of California November 30 University of Chicago January 2 University of Michigan February 1 University of Notre Dame January 1 University of Pennsylvania January 5 University of Southern California January 15 University of Virginia January 1 Vanderbilt January 1 Villanova January 15 Wellesley January 15 Yale January 2 Some of these schools also offer early action or early decision. Read on to learn about early action and the EA deadlines of some well-known schools. What Is Early Action? Early action pushes your deadline and notification earlier by a few months. The most common EA deadlines are November 1 and November 15. You'll hear back in December, maybe before you've even sent off your RD applications! Under early action, you could get accepted or denied. There's also a third option unique to early admissions: getting deferred. Getting deferred means that your app is pushed into the regular applicant pool to be evaluated again later. With more and more students applying early each year, early admissions is getting ever more competitive, and deferrals are becoming more common. It is possible that you could get accepted in the next review cycle. You might call the admissions office and ask for further information if you get deferred. You could also send your mid-year grades or updated test scores to improve your application. Don't despair if you get deferred- but do be proactive and figure out your next steps. A few schools have a restrictive or single choice early action program that prevents you from applying to more than one school under EA. These schools include Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford, and the University of Notre Dame. If your school's not restrictive, then you can apply early wherever you want. But as MIT says, "If you apply to another school during Early Action that does have a restriction, MIT requires that you respect those rules...you may not simultaneously apply to MIT." Besides the rare single choice EA program, early action doesn't have any other restrictions. You're not obligated to accept if you get offered a spot based on your EA application. Like with your RD schools, you have until the national response date of May 1 to make and submit your decision (and deposit). Being able to wait until May 1 to choose your college allows you to gather all your acceptances and compare financial aid offers. As you'll see below, this opportunity isn't available if you apply early decision. Before delving into how ED differs from EA, let's take a look at some popular schools with early action and their deadlines. Early Action Deadlines of Popular Schools School EA Deadline CalTech November 1 Georgetown* November 1 Harvard* November 1 MIT November 1 Princeton* November 1 Stanford* November 1 UNC Chapel Hill October 15 University of Chicago November 1 University of Michigan November 1 University of Notre Dame* November 1 University of Virginia November 1 Villanova November 1 Yale* November 1 *Restrictive or single choice early action. Most schools offer one or the other when it comes to early action and early decision, though there are a small number that offer both, like UChicago. Much of what was true for EA holds true for ED, with one important difference- early decision is binding. Want to build the best possible college application? We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. What Is Early Decision? What exactly do people mean when they say that early decision is binding? They're referring to the contract that you, plus your school counselor and a parent, sign when you apply ED. With this contract, you agree to enroll in the school if you get accepted. You're saying both that the school is your first choice and that you have no doubt you'll attend if accepted. If you apply ED and receive that happy news, then you'll accept the offer, send in your deposit, and withdraw any other applications you made to other schools. You might be wondering how you can agree to attend a school before seeing your financial aid offer. If so, you'd be right that this is a potentially big drawback to applying ED. You're expected to commit without first seeing any commitment of financial aid from the school. Does this mean you shouldn't consider applying ED if financial aid is important to you? Not necessarily. If you have a dream school and you'd like to communicate your enthusiasm by applying ED, then I'd recommend speaking to its financial aid office about what its process is like. Do they meet all demonstrated need? Is there any possibility of renegotiation if your offer isn't what you thought it'd be? Make sure to answer these important questions before binding yourself to a contract you might not be able to fulfill. The binding agreement you make with ED is the main feature that differentiates it from EA. Otherwise, it might have the same exact deadlines and notification dates. You might apply by November 1 or November 15 and hear back in December. Some schools also offer Early Decision II. ED II still involves a binding commitment, but it pushes the deadline a couple months forward to January. Since early decision apps are put on the fast track, you'd hear back sometime in February. Below is a list of popular schools that offer early decision and their ED I and/or ED II deadlines. Early Decision Deadlines of Popular Schools School Deadline for ED I Deadline for ED II American University November 15 January 15 Boston College November 15 January 15 Boston University November 1 January 6 Bowdoin November 15 January 1 Brandeis November 1 January 1 Brown November 1 N/A Colby November 15 January 1 Columbia November 1 N/A Cornell November 1 N/A Dartmouth November 1 N/A Duke November 1 N/A Emory November 1 January 1 Johns Hopkins November 1 N/A New York University November 1 January 1 Northwestern November 1 N/A Pomona November 1 January 1 Smith November 15 January 1 Tufts November 1 January 1 University of Chicago November 1 January 2 University of Pennsylvania November 1 N/A Vanderbilt November 1 January 1 Villanova November 1 N/A Wellesley November 1 January 1 Wesleyan November 15 January 1 So far, all these application options involve specific set deadlines. You have to get your application, test scores, and everything else in on time. Late materials could hurt or eliminate altogether your chances of getting accepted. There's one other option in the world of college admissions that's a bit more flexible: rolling admissions. Schools with rolling admissions open up a range of time for apps to "roll in"- and notifications tend to be spaced out over a few months, too. What Is Rolling Admissions? If your school has rolling admissions, then it gives you a window of time in which to submit your application. This period of time typically ranges from the fall to the spring. There's no specific Penn State deadline, for example. Penn State makes its application available on September 1 and reviews submissions on a rolling basis. Some schools claim to have rolling admissions (RA), but also have a priority deadline in November or December. Penn State's priority deadline is November 30. If you're really excited about a school, then you should try your best to meet the priority deadline. Effectively, this turns your RA school into one with a deadline. But at least its rolling policy gives you a safety net in case something comes up and you miss the priority filing date. Even if your school doesn't have a priority deadline, it's a good idea to set one for yourself and get your application in early. RA is done on a first come, first served basis. There's always the possibility that spots could fill up, or get more competitive as there's less and less space for new students. Besides upping your chance of admission, another motivating factor could be that the sooner you apply, the sooner you'll hear back. You might hear back just a couple weeks after applying, or the school might send out notifications on certain fixed dates throughout application season. Either way, the sooner you submit your app to them, the sooner they can give you an answer. RA, unlike ED and some EA programs, is not restrictive. You can still apply anywhere else you want. Some schools with rolling admissions include Penn State University, University of Pittsburgh, Indiana University, Michigan State, University of Maine, University of New Haven, University of Alabama, and the University of Tulsa. After reading through these options, you've noticed that schools vary in their deadlines and policies. Sometimes the admission policy of one school, like single-choice EA, affects how you'll apply to other schools on your list. You want to make sure you're not breaking any rules or mixing up any key dates as you go through the process. With all these dates and deadlines, how can you keep track of everything? Keeping Track of College Application Deadlines You might get lucky and find that all your deadlines are January 1. Or you might have a mix of dates, with a restrictive November deadline, some January ones, and a few that are rolling. It's critical to keep everything recorded and organized, and not just so you get everything in on time. Your deadlines help determine other steps in the college app process, like when you should ask for rec letters and what dates you can take the SAT or ACT. A lot of schools use a helpful online system called Naviance to keep track of your deadlines and requirements. Your Common Application will also show your college deadlines and most of the steps you've completed so far. Considering all the accounts you'll create- Naviance, Common Application, College Board- make sure to write down all your user names and passwords and keep them in a safe place. You definitely don't want to deal with the frustration of having to change passwords each time you log in or get locked out of your account the night of the deadline! All the organization that applying to college requires will help you develop and maintain good habits throughout senior year and into college. If you prefer to have a hard copy or to reinforce the deadlines by writing them down, you could also create your own list of colleges and deadlines, along with a checklist of what you need to do. Here's what this would look like in its most basic form: School Deadline Option Deadline College 1 Regular January 1 College 2 Restrictive early action November 1 College 3 Rolling admissions Apply by April (I’ll apply by January 5)* *If your school has rolling admissions, you may set a deadline for yourself. You can find full lists of early action deadlines and early decision deadlines in our guides, or you can search for "College Name + deadline." It's always a good idea to double check the most recent information from the college itself, as schools occasionally change their policies. As I mentioned above, your deadlines affect how you get ready to apply. Some components that especially require early and thoughtful planning are the SAT and ACT, your letters of recommendation, and your personal essay. When Should You Take the SAT or ACT? Students almost always improve their scores when they retake the SAT or ACT. Taking the official test is valuable experience that you can learn from. Plus you can study your score report and prep to improve the next time. To give yourself opportunities to retake the SAT or ACT, you want to take it for the first time long before your college deadline.; If you're applying regular decision, then you might take the SAT or ACT for the first time in the fall of junior year and again in the spring. Since it takes about three weeks for scores to be released, you might have a few more opportunities to take in the beginning of 12th grade, like in August, September, November (or maybe December). If you're applying early admissions, then August, September, or October would be your last chance to take the SAT or ACT. It'd be pretty nerve-wracking to put so much pressure on this last minute test date. Ideally you'd have your scores all set by the end of junior year. You could even push the schedule mentioned above back, so that you take your first test in the spring of sophomore year. By knowing your deadlines, you can plan out your testing dates and study schedule to ensure you've achieved your SAT or ACT target scores in time to apply. Same goes for your recommendation letters. When Should You Ask for Recommendation Letters? A second component that requires advance planning is your letters of recommendation. You should ask your teachers at least a month before your deadline. It can also be a good idea to ask 11th grade teachers at the end of junior year, when they remember you best. Besides making the request, you also should be filling out a "brag sheet" or sharing ideas with your teachers on what would go into your ideal recommendation letter. This means you've done some thinking about what you'd most like admissions officers to know about you and your goals for the future. If you're applying regular decision, you should ask your teachers in November, if not earlier. A lot of teachers set a quota- they can only write so many letters. If you know your English teacher will be bombarded with requests, for example, make sure to ask early! If you're applying EA or ED, then you should ask in when school starts up again in August or September. Again, you could also ask at the end of junior year and just follow up with a reminder in the fall. Finally, you'll also be working on your personal essay for a few months before your deadlines. When Should You Write Your Personal Essay? I'm sure none of you have ever stayed up all night writing an essay due the next day...or maybe all of you have. But if there's one essay you shouldn't leave for a last minute all-nighter, it's your personal essay for college. Even though it's a short essay- only 650 words for the Common App- it's a big challenge. Actually, the shortness of it is part of what it makes it so tough. How can you hone in on a specific experience that reveals something unique and significant about your identity in so few words? Because it's such a challenge and so important in your college application, you want to start thinking about it early. Some students go through several changes of topics before discovering the best one. Even just reading the prompts and mulling them over are important parts of the writing process. Your ideas will benefit from incubation. You might be out running or taking a shower when an exciting essay topic pops into your head. Apart from the brainstorming stage, drafting and revising takes a long time too. With only 650 words, you want to be careful that you're choosing the right ones and expressing yourself as clearly, powerfully, and vividly as you can. You might also elicit feedback from friends, parents, and teachers and incorporate their suggestions in your essay. Or not- above all, it's your voice and your story to tell. The summer before senior year is a great time to work on your personal essay. At the very least, I'd recommend starting two to three months before your deadlines. No late night writing frenzies for your college essay- put the time and thought into crafting an essay that admissions officers will remember. Other important aspects of your application are any other supplemental essays, sending your transcripts, and of course, the application itself. Take time to fill everything out accurately and write about your extracurricular activities in a compelling way. Finally, proofread and double check everything before pressing submit! At this point, you should have a clear sense of the various deadline options for U.S. colleges and how to prepare your application in time. Let's go over the most important points to remember when applying to college. Key Points to Remember College offer one or more of the following four options for applying: regular decision, early action, early decision, and/or rolling admissions: The majority of students apply under regular decision. It usually has a January deadline and a March or April notification. Early action usually has a deadline in November and a notification in December. Some schools require single choice early action. Early decision is binding, meaning you agree upfront to enroll if you get accepted. ED deadlines might be in November and/or January, and you'll find out if you got in a month or two later. Preparing your college application takes a long time, especially your SAT or ACT tests, recommendation letters, and personal essay, so plan ahead. Above all, make sure to keep track of all your deadlines and plan out each component of your application. Spacing out the process will help you break it down into manageable steps and balancing it with your course work and extracurricular activities senior year. All this organization will help you with any projects and applications that lie in your future! What's Next? We're continually updating our site with in-depth guides to help you through the college process. Learn more about choosing a college, requesting recommendation letters, and preparing for the SAT and ACT. What College Should You Go To? How to Choose Should I Go to a Big or Small College? When is the FAFSA Deadline? Choosing your SAT / ACT Dates: When's a Good Time for You? The Ultimate SAT Study Guide for SAT Prep 4 Amazing Sample Rec Letters from Teachers Plus many more articles to help you apply to college and understand college admissions! Want to improve your SAT score by 160points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Assignment brief Essays

Assignment brief Essays Assignment brief Essay Assignment brief Essay Structure and Organization of the Retail Sector Betty wants you to produce a Powering presentation for the Magazine introducing different tillers together with the many ways and places in which retailing is conducted. Where possible note any changes that have taken place In any particular sector e. G. Closures and the reasons for this. 1. Definition of retailing. 2. Describe in your town centre the different sectors of the retail industry that exist and their specific role within the community. . Discuss the different types of retailer and location Include the following Independent Multiple chains Supermarkets Department Stores Public Place Not for pronto Discount stores Catalogue stores Tell shopping Internet retail parks shopping entrees Factory outlet centers social network shopping. Regional shopping centers retail parks and shopping centers. 4. Find data to show the size, trends, changes, developments and employment characteristics of the retail industry. 5. Explain how retailing has changed over the last 40 years TTL Task 1 Merit The Editor of Retail Today is delighted with your findings and presentation. She now wants you to extend the PPTP comparing the function of different retailers and the rationale for the choice of their location. You must feature two case studies: EGG Tests and Marks and Spencer . Describe with an example the location choices retailers have available for the placement of their premises. 2. State the rationale, function and retail benefits behind retailers choices of these locations? 3. Describe their activities, products and services and how they have changed examining at least four different formats and locations for their retail outlets, number of employees, sales area, number of enterprises, turnover Ana product strategies. 4. Identify why these retailers prefer different locations and explain the retail functions they perform ND if they have used new development or re-development sites. . What do you think will be the future formats and locations of these two businesses MI Assessment criteria: Pass 1 describe the structure and organization of the retail sector Merit 1 compare the function of formats and locations of retailing Featheriness High school AS 2014/2015 1/5 BITE National Diploma in Business Unit 29 Understanding Retailing Scenario The Editor wants to send you out on location to investigate the role of retailing in the distribution of goods and services . The Editor has promised a large financial bonus as a large national newspaper is interested in the latest trends and findings about distribution and logistics. The Editor has promised a large financial bonus as a large national newspaper is interested in the latest trends and findings about distribution and logistics. Task 2 With reference to different types of retailers from different sectors you can use (Amazon and Sad) describe their distribution channels and processes 1. Distribution Channels: Availability AT products (tale, place, quantity movement of goods from manufacturer to retailer to consumer Wholesalers as intermediaries Retail control of the supply chain (own brands, e-retailing) Provision of product enhancing functions e. G. Transport, storage, after-sales service 2.

Free Essays on Boys Will Be Boys

Barbara Kantrowitz and Claudia Kalb’s, â€Å"Boys will be Boys† article, explains how after years of research on girls, boys must also be put under the microscope, in efforts to reach a further understanding of the adolescent male. The two authors start their article by pointing out, that boys and girls come from two completely different â€Å"planets†. They have two different â€Å"crisis points†, which are stages of emotional and social development, where things can go seriously wrong. Kantrowitz and Kalb both feel that boys need more attention because they are the ones who are more likely to have discipline problems at school and most likely to commit violent crimes and end up in jail. In the article Kantrowitz and Kalb use many interesting studies, and statistics, to help the reader understand the difference between boys and girls. A study that caught my eye is the one that was done by the Children’s Hospital in Boston, where boy babies are prov en to be more emotionally expressive than the girls who tend to be more reflective. This was picked up when the researchers noticed that for the most part the boys would cry when they were unhappy, whereas the girl babies would suck their thumbs. Out of this study came the conclusion that girls innately could be more able to control their emotions. Later on in the article, Kantrowitz and Kalb go on to explain how boys are forced to shut down positive emotions, and that this could lead to the only one socially acceptable outlet; anger. Another big difference that is pointed out by the authors is that boys and girls develop physically and intellectually at very different rates. Either way Kantrowitz and Kalb make it apparent that in both sexes a strong parental bond is vital. Parents can do many things including teaching their children by example. Specifically with boys, they can channel their son’s energy into constructive activities like sports, and encouraging qualities suc h as empathy. ... Free Essays on Boys Will Be Boys Free Essays on Boys Will Be Boys Barbara Kantrowitz and Claudia Kalb’s, â€Å"Boys will be Boys† article, explains how after years of research on girls, boys must also be put under the microscope, in efforts to reach a further understanding of the adolescent male. The two authors start their article by pointing out, that boys and girls come from two completely different â€Å"planets†. They have two different â€Å"crisis points†, which are stages of emotional and social development, where things can go seriously wrong. Kantrowitz and Kalb both feel that boys need more attention because they are the ones who are more likely to have discipline problems at school and most likely to commit violent crimes and end up in jail. In the article Kantrowitz and Kalb use many interesting studies, and statistics, to help the reader understand the difference between boys and girls. A study that caught my eye is the one that was done by the Children’s Hospital in Boston, where boy babies are prov en to be more emotionally expressive than the girls who tend to be more reflective. This was picked up when the researchers noticed that for the most part the boys would cry when they were unhappy, whereas the girl babies would suck their thumbs. Out of this study came the conclusion that girls innately could be more able to control their emotions. Later on in the article, Kantrowitz and Kalb go on to explain how boys are forced to shut down positive emotions, and that this could lead to the only one socially acceptable outlet; anger. Another big difference that is pointed out by the authors is that boys and girls develop physically and intellectually at very different rates. Either way Kantrowitz and Kalb make it apparent that in both sexes a strong parental bond is vital. Parents can do many things including teaching their children by example. Specifically with boys, they can channel their son’s energy into constructive activities like sports, and encouraging qualities suc h as empathy. ...

Is the media machine an asset or an obstacle for peace activists Essay

Is the media machine an asset or an obstacle for peace activists - Essay Example The peace movement, being a social movement, is aimed at achieving or maintaining world peace by ending situations that bring conflicts in the human society. In this respect, they work towards ending wars and minimizing the use of violence to resolve disputes. This is accomplished by use of alternatives such as diplomacy, non-violent resistance, pacifism, peaceful demonstrations, supporting political candidates who denounce violence, moral purchasing, and lobbying for certain legislations to be enacted to promote peace. The media, both electronic and print, has been a great asset to peace activists who use it to pass their points across to the general public (Chatfield and Kleidman, 1992). On the other hand, it has also acted as an obstacle to peaceful missions around the world. This paper seeks to analyze how much of an asset and obstacle the media has been to peace activists. The reason WPP (Women Peacemakers Program) and other organizations are putting so much effort to get mainstream media’s attention is because the media’s attention towards peace has been wanting (Woman Peacemakers Program, 2004). In many cases, the media applies only limited effort towards training specialists to cover peace related activities. Compared to sports, humour, business news and fashion which never seem to have shortage of specialist journalists, security and peace issues have very few specialist journalists. Most media companies avoid the trouble of having their journalists specialize only in peace issues. Peace activities to them do not sell and hence are likely to be shunned in most times. The situation is made worse by the meagre financial incentives accorded to peace journalists. Specialists in this area who stick to journalism are in fact viewed as minority. During the cold war period subjects like NATO and Communism came to public focus (Chatfield, 1973). Peace activists at this time, unfortunately, were subject to stereotypical

Ideology of the American Public Accounting Profession Coursework

Ideology of the American Public Accounting Profession - Coursework Example The researcher states that public interest is the collective well-being of people and the institutions they serve. Failure to fulfill this mandate can have very serious adverse consequences such as what happened to the Arthur Andersen auditing firm for being complicit in the Enron scandal. This paper examines the role of accounting in serving public interest versus self-interest when accountants and auditors are engaged for their services. I will state the answer to the above question is in the negative in relation to the financial crisis brought about by the bursting of the real estate asset price bubble and the issue of stock buybacks within the context of academic research. Real life as used in this paper refers to actual business and economic conditions; regulations pertain to all the government orders issued to control the conduct of business to protect the public interest. The accounting profession adopted a code of ethics and professional conduct for its members to guide them in serving a public interest. The dilemma that most accountants face often is the conflict of interest between public interest and their self-interest. In conflict-of-interest situations, the tendency is to side with private firms that had engaged their services. The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) was formed to guide members in 164 countries how to conduct themselves to resolve issues involving professional ethics in diverse areas like public accounting and auditing. The chief ethical dilemma of most accountants is what constitutes timely and full disclosure. Another example would be the issue of what is appropriate to use: historical cost accounting or fair value accounting. There are plenty of materials that discuss the advantages and the disadvantages of either of these approaches. Accounting reports prepared for financial users such as investors and shareholders do have the important bearing on investment decisions because people rely on them. Accounting is used to improve risk disclosure among publicly-listed companies in terms of adequate internal controls so investors feel assured. Financial statements have a public interest when investors use them in evaluating the alternatives in several companies. Professional bodies emphasize to all members to put public interest over and above self-interest and accept full responsibility for all their work. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has guidelines to integrate global capital markets through a common language for financial reporting through the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). It is now used in a hundred nations.

Analyze the Running Case on pages 456-457 of the textbook Essay

Analyze the Running Case on pages 456-457 of the textbook - Essay Example To finish all projects in time, it is important to allocate sufficient resources and manpower to all projects. The first step will be workforce planning which involves anticipating and integrating human resource in order to preempt contingencies that would prevent delivery of a project in time and at the allocated budget. Each project will have a work plan which gives the expected progress with time, budget, resources and expected contingencies and ways of mitigating them. For the parts carried out by the company procedures and work instructions, a standard progress reporting form will be prepared with fields for the report date, status of the project as a percentage, expected status as of that date from the project planning, budget used as a percentage of the total, next report date and a description of the progress made in the project. "We are also concerned that the longer the full implementation takes †¦.† By Kevin Johnson, USA TODAY advertisement on FBI behind schedule, over budget on computer system. From this it is quite evident that a project that goes beyond the stipulated plan bracket ends up by being costly. To implement the completion of the project within the budget bracket, PMO executes the project(s) through four phases where in the initial stages, the PMO team is trained on the basic project management processes, standards to be followed when running the project (Mahnic, & Zabkar, 2012) . For the projects to be carried out by subcontractors, and partners, progress reporting dates will be agreed upon and included in the progress contract. A similar progress reporting form will be used by external contractors with actual inspection by Wild Solutions staff to verify the claims of the submitted progress report. Control process for progress reporting focus on software design schedule, construction schedule, budget and resources (Mahnic, & Zabkar, 2012). Under design schedule, reporting will focus on how well the completed part of

PESTLE Analysis Ford Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

PESTLE Analysis Ford - Lab Report Example The major product segment of the company includes cars, trucks and utility vehicles (Ford, 2013b). Ford cars are perceived as affordable as well as luxury cars in the market. The large product portfolio, including products such as Sedans, Hatchbacks and SUVs, cater to large group of customers. The company has differentiated itself from other automobile companies though its vision and understanding of the impact of culture on the automobile industry in future. In the present report, the current strategies and tactics implemented by the company are discussed and analyzed. A macro environmental analysis has been done to find out the present socio-cultural and environmental factors affecting United Kingdom and how the organization needs to make strategies in order to cope up with these situations. Methods and Reasons The company embraces all the traditional objectives which were given by its founder. However, looking at the current environment and continuously changing business and polit ical culture, the brand has also established many strategies to compliment with the change. Ford is the current leader in innovative cars (Ford, 2013c). Features concerned with safety, advanced technology and effort for energy and efficacy are important factors which influence the strategies of the company. Employees in the organization work together as a team and as a global and lean enterprise for leadership in automobile (Mistry, 2005). The company operates by aggressively structuring with the objective of profitable operations. The current demand for automotives is very volatile and the mix of models has to be constantly changed to meet the demands of the customers. The organization focuses on accelerating developments of those products and services which are valued by their customers. To remain profitable and well as growing, the company always makes sure that financial planning is appropriate and the balance sheet is continuously improving. The brand operates on the goals of p roviding profitable growth. The brand has its presence in over 30 countries and the company has taken all measures in providing exact requirements of the different market. Looking at the different market preferences, the company has specialized in providing personalized designs and models suiting the geographic and demographic profiles of the markets where the organization is operating. PESTLE Analysis Political Continuous growth in campaigning and elections has widened the political environment in the United Kingdom. Presence of small clusters of specialty groups makes it extremely difficult for a large organization to concentrate on one political group. Factors such as exchange rates, oil prices and free trade flows have a direct impact on the functioning of automobile sector. In the present political scenario, volatility in oil prices due to various political unrest in Arab as well as major oil producing countries, have resulted in revamping of the strategies and budgeting by maj or automobile companies. Foreign regulations and laws and foreign ownership regulations may also impact the overall revenue generation of the company in the countries where it is operating. Economic Like the rest of the automobile companies, Ford motor has also suffered huge losses due to the current recession and volatile economic and business environment. The recession that occurred in 2008 was followed by downfall of the banking industry. However, Ford has been able to stay afloat and keep a profitable business during

Is President Barack Obama a Good President Essay

Is President Barack Obama a Good President - Essay Example In a reflective analysis of the various aspects of the President-ship of the current president of the US, one may undoubtedly argue that Barack Obama is one of the most prominent and effective leaders and presidents in the history of this great nation. First of all, his life story very well reflects the true American story – incorporating the â€Å"values from the heartland, a middle-class upbringing in a strong family, hard work and education as the means of getting ahead, and the conviction that a life so blessed should be lived in service to others.† (President Barack Obama). Therefore, the President has been aware of the American story very well which has helped him tremendously to shape his opinions and policies as a president of the people. The vast amount of experience in the public service arena has contributed to the success of Obama as a great leader and president of the nation which is also reflected in the nation’s unwavering belief in his ability to unite people around a politics of purpose. Some of the fundamental points to argue why Barack Obama is good president and effective leader of the nation include his intelligent leadership; he is not war-hungry or money-hungry; the effect of his genial and luminous personality on diplomacy; his civil rights struggles; his awareness of an overall reform of the various political policies of the nation, etc. In consideration of these features of his leadership and many others, one must argue that President Obama is one of the most effective and successful presidents that the people of the United States have ever seen. It is important to remember that, when President Obama was elected as the 44th President of the United States, there was a great expectation about his ability to lead the nation from the front to a great period in the history of the nation and he seemed like a different kind of leader in comparison with many of his predecessors. Definitely, he has lived up to those expecta tions which earned him high reputation even in the international scenario. As the BBC Radio 4’s Today program evaluates, President Obama has not just been the first black man in the White House but also ‘a new sort of American president’: thoughtful, reflective and determined to represent all of his country. (Mardell). This remark about the leadership of the president very well reflects the various aspects of the policies of his government. All through his tenure, the President has given great thought and reflective attitude towards the various issues facing the nation, be it economic crisis, employment issues, or matters of international affairs. Most of the Americans considered, and still consider, President Obama as the most important transformational figure of the nation who can lead this great nation to meet the demands of the contemporary world. The former state secretary Colin Powell was right when he endorsed Barack Obama describing him as a ‘transf ormational figure’ who was the right president for this moment in time. In his words, President Obama is the right choice for leading this great nation as he has both style and substance. (Bennis, 2009, p. 223). One of the major factors that contribute to the success of Barack Obama as the transformational president of the nation is his leadership qualities. It is important to recognize that the world’s hunger for effective leadership at the international scenario has been satisfied by the election of this charismatic new leader as the president of the United States on November 4, 2008. Millions of Americans wept with pride in their country and relief on the night of his victory as he had triumphed over old prejudices. â€Å"One result of Barak Obama’s extraordinary election is to remind us of just how thin our leadership bench is.†

Small and Medium Enterprises Master Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Small and Medium Enterprises Master - Essay Example SME also receives integrated solutions which are tailored to their particular requirements, to the right connections, to the secure accesses, also to the professional services and to the intelligent networks. SMEs are the enterprises which are working in order to make the Swiss economy the world's best economy. Small and medium-sized enterprises are also considered as the backbone of the Swiss economy. Along with this Credit Suisse also considers it as an important in order to support the Swiss SMEs by operating a consistent as well as reliable lending policy and also by offering them various advices on various topics such as the succession planning. In the previous year 2008, the Credit Suisse also increased its particular credit volume to SMEs by 5%, figure which is much higher than the annual growth rate of the country's gross domestic product and services. The bank has also its business relationship with around 100,000 Swiss companies; it means that almost every third SME is a client of the Credit Suisse. Along with this the general banking services, which they provide SMEs with various alternative forms of financing that also allow their clients in order to obtain various products to meet their individual needs and demands. In addition to all this system, they also make available thei r international know how, that how their business actually works. All of this, combined with their other services which are offered throughout the bank, means that they are also able in order to give the competent advice to all the Swiss companies. They are also always on hand in order to support their clients planning so that they can easily invest or can also launch different kinds of the business activities in the growth markets like China. Clients can also count on their extensive, on also their global network and their many years of experience. Their aim is to be able to use their products and also their respective expertise in order to assist all the companies and also all the entrepreneurs, particularly in those time when there is an economic difficulty, and to be one of the reliable partner in the long term goal and planning. (Haathi, Hall and Donckels, 185) Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are one of the principal and also the driving forces in the economic development. They basically stimulate the private ownership and also the entrepreneurial skills, they are also flexible and can therefore adapt quickly to all the changing market supply and demand situations, they also generate employment, try to help the diversify economic activity and tend to make a significant contribution to trade and also to exports. Different transition economies have also acknowledged that SMEs are very much crucial for the industrial restructuring and have also formulated the national SME policies, all the different kinds of programmes and the enterprise development policies. In order to improve their economic situation and also to achieve their goals related to their development, different macroeconomic policies must also translate into a certain on the ground in order to help the business turn opportunities which are the outcomes from the globaliza tion of the overall world economy into an actual export

PESTLE Analysis Ford Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

PESTLE Analysis Ford - Lab Report Example The major product segment of the company includes cars, trucks and utility vehicles (Ford, 2013b). Ford cars are perceived as affordable as well as luxury cars in the market. The large product portfolio, including products such as Sedans, Hatchbacks and SUVs, cater to large group of customers. The company has differentiated itself from other automobile companies though its vision and understanding of the impact of culture on the automobile industry in future. In the present report, the current strategies and tactics implemented by the company are discussed and analyzed. A macro environmental analysis has been done to find out the present socio-cultural and environmental factors affecting United Kingdom and how the organization needs to make strategies in order to cope up with these situations. Methods and Reasons The company embraces all the traditional objectives which were given by its founder. However, looking at the current environment and continuously changing business and polit ical culture, the brand has also established many strategies to compliment with the change. Ford is the current leader in innovative cars (Ford, 2013c). Features concerned with safety, advanced technology and effort for energy and efficacy are important factors which influence the strategies of the company. Employees in the organization work together as a team and as a global and lean enterprise for leadership in automobile (Mistry, 2005). The company operates by aggressively structuring with the objective of profitable operations. The current demand for automotives is very volatile and the mix of models has to be constantly changed to meet the demands of the customers. The organization focuses on accelerating developments of those products and services which are valued by their customers. To remain profitable and well as growing, the company always makes sure that financial planning is appropriate and the balance sheet is continuously improving. The brand operates on the goals of p roviding profitable growth. The brand has its presence in over 30 countries and the company has taken all measures in providing exact requirements of the different market. Looking at the different market preferences, the company has specialized in providing personalized designs and models suiting the geographic and demographic profiles of the markets where the organization is operating. PESTLE Analysis Political Continuous growth in campaigning and elections has widened the political environment in the United Kingdom. Presence of small clusters of specialty groups makes it extremely difficult for a large organization to concentrate on one political group. Factors such as exchange rates, oil prices and free trade flows have a direct impact on the functioning of automobile sector. In the present political scenario, volatility in oil prices due to various political unrest in Arab as well as major oil producing countries, have resulted in revamping of the strategies and budgeting by maj or automobile companies. Foreign regulations and laws and foreign ownership regulations may also impact the overall revenue generation of the company in the countries where it is operating. Economic Like the rest of the automobile companies, Ford motor has also suffered huge losses due to the current recession and volatile economic and business environment. The recession that occurred in 2008 was followed by downfall of the banking industry. However, Ford has been able to stay afloat and keep a profitable business during

Small and Medium Enterprises Master Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Small and Medium Enterprises Master - Essay Example SME also receives integrated solutions which are tailored to their particular requirements, to the right connections, to the secure accesses, also to the professional services and to the intelligent networks. SMEs are the enterprises which are working in order to make the Swiss economy the world's best economy. Small and medium-sized enterprises are also considered as the backbone of the Swiss economy. Along with this Credit Suisse also considers it as an important in order to support the Swiss SMEs by operating a consistent as well as reliable lending policy and also by offering them various advices on various topics such as the succession planning. In the previous year 2008, the Credit Suisse also increased its particular credit volume to SMEs by 5%, figure which is much higher than the annual growth rate of the country's gross domestic product and services. The bank has also its business relationship with around 100,000 Swiss companies; it means that almost every third SME is a client of the Credit Suisse. Along with this the general banking services, which they provide SMEs with various alternative forms of financing that also allow their clients in order to obtain various products to meet their individual needs and demands. In addition to all this system, they also make available thei r international know how, that how their business actually works. All of this, combined with their other services which are offered throughout the bank, means that they are also able in order to give the competent advice to all the Swiss companies. They are also always on hand in order to support their clients planning so that they can easily invest or can also launch different kinds of the business activities in the growth markets like China. Clients can also count on their extensive, on also their global network and their many years of experience. Their aim is to be able to use their products and also their respective expertise in order to assist all the companies and also all the entrepreneurs, particularly in those time when there is an economic difficulty, and to be one of the reliable partner in the long term goal and planning. (Haathi, Hall and Donckels, 185) Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are one of the principal and also the driving forces in the economic development. They basically stimulate the private ownership and also the entrepreneurial skills, they are also flexible and can therefore adapt quickly to all the changing market supply and demand situations, they also generate employment, try to help the diversify economic activity and tend to make a significant contribution to trade and also to exports. Different transition economies have also acknowledged that SMEs are very much crucial for the industrial restructuring and have also formulated the national SME policies, all the different kinds of programmes and the enterprise development policies. In order to improve their economic situation and also to achieve their goals related to their development, different macroeconomic policies must also translate into a certain on the ground in order to help the business turn opportunities which are the outcomes from the globaliza tion of the overall world economy into an actual export

Jebediah Springfield Paper Essay Example for Free

Jebediah Springfield Paper Essay Did you know that the annual celebration of the founding of Springfield brings all the people of Springfield together and raises the overall happiness levels of Springfield by over 65%? This may show why Lisa Simpson should not tell the truth about Jebediah Springfield to the people of Springfield. The reason why Lisa Simpson should not tell the truth about Jebediah Springfield to the people of Springfield is because it would cause an uproar, and ruin the holiday and therefore the happiness of the people. Lisa Simpson should not tell the truth about of Jebediah Springfield to the people of Springfield because it would cause an uproar. For example all the people that were celebrating the holiday would be out raged if they heard that their beloved hero, Jebediah Springfield was in fact a bloodthirsty pirate and enemy of George Washington named Hans Sprungfeld. This proves that the people of Springfield would be angry because they would be thrown into a different reality in which Jebediah Springfield is a fraud. Granted there will be some people who are open to this idea and are not furious because maybe they had a hunch that there was something odd about Jebediah Springfield and his story. Quite simply that would be prospectus for someone to be open to such an idea. It would be the equivalent of saying that Benjamin Franklin was a pirate or a murderous thief. Lisa Simpson should not tell the truth about Jebediah Springfield to the people of Springfield because it would cause an uproar. Lisa Simpson should not tell the truth about Jebediah Springfield to the people of Springfield because it would ruin the holiday and therefore the happiness of the people. For example in the episode it show many of the townsfolk celebrating and showing their support for Jebediah Springfield and they all seem to be very happy. This proves my point of saying that the holiday brings happiness and celebration to the people and also brings them all together. It is true that some people such as Hollis Hurlbut know the truth and do not celebrate the holiday because they know Jebediah Springfield was a fraud. Also if one person such as Hollis Hurlbut knows the truth other must know too. However, the number of people who know the truth must be small do to the fact that there were large amounts of people celebrating in the streets of Springfield on the holiday. Lisa Simpson should not tell the truth about of Jebediah Springfield to the people of Springfield because it would ruin the holiday and therefore the happiness of the people. In summary the reason why Lisa Simpson should not tell the truth about Jebediah Springfield to the people of Springfield is because it would cause an uproar, and ruin the holiday and therefore the happiness of the people. Think would you want someone to tell you that all the events that happened on July 4, 1776 were all a hoax and that you’ve been celebrating a sham for your whole life. Even if it were true would you really want to know?

Shell’s strategic position in the light of its external and internal environment

Shell’s strategic position in the light of its external and internal environment Shell Strategic Analysis The paper analyses Shells strategic position in the light of its external and internal environment and the key forces and pressures acting on it. The paper takes an overview and then uses PESTLE, SWOT and Value chain analysis to provide a strategic insight of the firm. PESTLE; SWOT; Value Chain Analysis Shell Strategic Analysis Introduction and Company Overview Shell Group provides energy and petrochemical services across the world. With its headquarters in Hague, the Netherlands, and largest subsidiary in the United States, its mission is to position its self as a global leader in the oil and gas sector with a superior competitive advantage in terms of meeting energy demand responsibly. Shell Group belongs to Royal Dutch Shell Plc, based in Wales and England (Shell, 2010 [online]). Its upstream strategy focuses on the exploration of new natural reserves of oil and gas and investing in projects to gauge technological and know-how value-added advantages. As for the downstream strategy, the company selects growth markets to invest in and uses existing assets to acquire consistently high cash returns (Shell, 2010 [online]). Performance focus, growth delivery and new project plans form its strategic framework with strong priority given to competitive performance, profitable growth and sharper delivery. The group operates in more than 90 countri es with over 100,000 employees and 44,000 service stations. Shell has the share of 2% in the global oil market and 3% in the gas sector. In 2009, its earnings were $12.7 billion which fell sharply from 2008s $27 billion figure (Shell, 2010 [online]). The paper will explore how the external and internal environments of the company are affecting its strategy and operations and overall success. Comprehensive PESTEL Analysis Political Forces As declared by EU and UN, carbon emissions are to be charged with penalties and taxes, oil and gas companies have been forced to settle government pressures through partnership agreements and alliances to support their operations by offering an incentive to the government in the form of the betterment of the economy. Oil has been found to gauge economic development of a country (BBC, 2010 [online]). Due to its intense demand, especially in the U.S, government tends to come under the pressure of the leading giants and ease strictness on them, though; they still raise questions regarding the environmental impacts but with the demand pressures from the customers, governments allow Shell and companies alike to find new reserves to meet the demands (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). However, these new means include bio-fuels which do not harm the environment. But Shell has strong reliance on oil and gas reserves and has no intention to venture into bio-fuels in future despite of all social an d political pressures. Shell has been engaged with the Climate Action Partnership with the US, as an attempt to gauge a positive image of the company in terms of a socially responsible business, while it actually uses highly carbon intensive production methods (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]).The partnership is focused towards reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere, but while the government is going in that direction, Shell, using its strategic alliances with the government has lessened the regulatory control over its high carbon emitting fuel products. Shell has been forced to take on such diplomatic measures to ease political and regulatory pressures onto the company, when it faces a decline in the conventional natural oil reserves and has to find new alternative forms of oil reserves to meet the demand, which are more carbon intensive but allow it to stay profitable (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). In underdeveloped nations such as Nigeria, which craving for basic necessities, welcomes companies like Shell to bring in foreign direct investment and more job opportunities. Thus, despite of social pressures to reduce exploitation of workforce and gas flares that is destroying lives, the government gives ease to the multinationals in order to support the growth of the economy (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Free trade agreements among the European and Americas allow Shell to more profitability engage in exports of oil. Russia is a hub of oil reserves and Shell took on the opportunity to exploit the reserves in Russia to meet the challenge of its growing demand, and its increasing lack of conventional oil reserves around the world. Russian government, previously had a high export duty on oil imports, has recently reduced it by 2.6%, which is benefiting Shell and other oil companies with their plants in Russia to export the oil products to their home countries and respective countries where they sell the fuels (Shell, 2010 [online]). Environmental Forces Conventional oil reserves are fast declining but Shell since 1995 has been engaged in finding new forms of oil reserves as oil sands in Canada to oil shale, but with the expense of environmental degradation (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). Research has shown that carbon emissions are much higher from the unconventional oil reserves being used in the manufacturing of fuel, and Shell having invested a large amount of capital in projects to extract oil from unconventional reserves has become the worlds most carbon intensive company (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Social Forces Oil and gas companies harm not only the environment but to the workforces as well as there are various security and health issues to consider. 20 people were reported to have died due to severe working conditions in 2009 (Shell, 2010 [online]). In Nigeria, Shells operations have been causing gas flares consistently which has caught social attention but the company is reluctant to take action due to its cost reduction strategy (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Globally, consumers are engaged in responsible consumption and the companies have been obliged to encourage responsible consumption (Dess, 2009). Shell took on the initiative in 2007 to advertise itself as a manufacturing facility that does not harm the environment but uses its waste (carbon dioxide) to cultivate flower growth (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). This encouraged consumers to develop a positive image of Shell but later on, news reports on the matter suggested a different story. Only one of the plants in Netherlands was engaged in the flower growth while the rest were heavily involved in carbon emissions (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). This hampered Shells image further as not only was its accused of destroying the environment but also of misleading the consumers. Technological Forces The oil and gas industry has been benefited greatly owing to technological advancements in drilling and extraction of oil and gas. Heavy capital investments are required to acquire the advance technological equipment to extract oil and gas from unconventional reserves. Shells biggest strength is its investment in smart technologies that allow it to make the most out of the oil and gas reserves (Shell, 2010 [online]). Economic Forces Oil prices have increased the world over, which has resulted from heavy taxations from the government due to which costs of production have risen (Shell, 2010 [online]). Using extensive, costly technology which requires heavy investments, further forces the companies to charge high prices for fuels (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). There is a growing demand for energy, which is expected to rise up by 57% in the next 20 years (Shell, 2010 [online]). This becomes a challenge when there are fewer natural reserves of oil and gas left to meet this demand. Shell has used its scenario planning efforts to invest in new projects to extract oil and gas from unconventional reserves to be able to meet the growing demand in future, but this also translates to higher prices for customers (Shell, 2010 [online]). Legal Forces Environmental safety and carbon emission regulations have increased for all oil and gas companies, including Shell (BBC, 2010 [online]). With the growing concerns all over the world over the drastic changes occurring in the environment due to global warming, the government raises strong questions against major companies responsible for global warming, the oil and gas companies. Shell and BP are quite on the main screen when such allegations are put forward. Oil and gas companies are enforced with strict employment safety and health regulations as the manufacturing plants are dangerous for human health. This has a heavy cost potential for companies (Hill, 2009). Comprehensive Porters 5 Forces Analysis Level of Competition There is a high level of competition in the industry but among few players. Shells major competitor is British Petroleum. British Petroleums strategy has also been focused on acquisitions, partnerships and alliances to build up a larger framework to meet growing demand. Currently BP has acquired contractual agreement with the government of Azerbaijan and Gulf of Mexico, while Shell gauged its success in 2009 in Iraq, Canada, and Australia and also in the Gulf of Mexico (BP, 2010 [online]). The competition among these two companies is intense due to their similar strategy to obtain cost reduction, performance focus and growth. While, BP has invested in solar energy, giving in to the political, social and environmental pressures, Shell is still glued to the oil and gas reserves to stay ahead in the game (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). While BP has lowered its stakes by investing in solar energy, Shell is playing a much risky game by perusing new oil reserves through heavy capital investments (BP, 2010 [online]). Threat of Substitutes With the advent of alternative energy sources, the threat of substitute products has risen, such as from bio fuels. Many companies are now investing in bio fuel technologies to respond to social, environmental and political pressures (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). Threat of New Entrants Threat of new entrants is low, as it requires a heavy capital investment to set up plants and use advance technology for extraction domestically and internationally to meet the demands. There are heavy fixed costs involved in the industry which can only be curbed once economies of scale are received (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). Bargaining Power of Suppliers Bargaining power of suppliers is low. There are few suppliers in the industry. The industry is focused on low cost production and, thus, alternative energy sources are searched and invested in heavily, the suppliers of which are low, but under the influence of the manufacturers (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). Bargaining Power of Customers Bargaining power of customers is low as there are not many fuel companies available in the industry which offers conventional, alternative and bio mass fuels. Detailed SWOT Analysis Strengths Shell has obtained competitive edge in terms of technology. In 2009, it spent over $1.2 billion in research and development activities (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell has obtained first mover advantages by using unconventional oil reserves which has given its cost benefits (Shell, 2010 [online]). The company has taken a much focused strategy for performance, which has allowed it to reduce costs by $1 billion by 2010 (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell signed a joint venture with Cosan (S.A) Company to produce and sell ethanol and extract power from sugar cane in Brazil. The company sensed its cost benefits and its prospect to enhance its presence in the ethanol market (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell has invested $ 1 billion in solar and wind energy which is part of Shell Renewables SBU (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell has 20% brand preference which is the highest among its competitors (Shell, 2010 [online]). Weaknesses Shell currently has a severe lack of association with bio fuels, which are growing in demand There is also lack of substantial countering of the social pressures and the media exposures on part of Shell (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Opportunities Bio-fuel and low-carbon emission fuels sector is growing and is highly encouraged by the government, society and is healthy for the environment (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). Promoting a better health and safe environment in the plants is a good opportunity for Shell using commercials or public relations campaign. Threats Government and interest groups are taken strong actions against heavy carbon emitting fuel companies, like BP and Shell Heavy investments in unconventional gas reserves are full of stakes as these reserves allow for a large amount of carbon emission. This is potentially dangerous for the companys image and acceptance (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). Value Chain Analysis Primary Value Chain Activities Inbound Logistics Shell is currently in contract with Cosan, a Brazilian company to supply ethanol. Azherbaijan and Russian suppliers are also used to supply oil and gas reserves (Shell, 2010 [online]). Operations The performance strategy involved restructuring and reorganizing the operations of the company to upstream and downstream where priorities were towards performance focus, competitive growth and new project investments. The overall operational performance has also met with improvement as efficiency rates have rose. The reorganization will allow faster implementation of future growth strategies as well (Shell, 2010 [online]). Outbound Logistics Shell has an extensive global outbound logistics network which allows it to distribute the refined oil in the most cost efficient manner. It uses light transportation (Shell, 2010 [online]). Marketing and Sales Shell markets itself as the largest fuel provider, where its service centers are located in 90 countries worldwide. It adds the image of an innovation and quality-focused company which does not compromise on performance. Although, Shell has previously received an excellent amount of sales revenue, recently, there has been a decline, due to rise in oil prices, rising social exposure of the workforce exploitation and environmental degradation by the company (Shell, 2010 [online]). Service Shell uses its helpline service to address customer complaints and queries. Other than that, there is no extensive or special form of service that Shell offers to customers with regard to complaints and queries. Shell service stations have the direct interaction with the customers and the company makes sure that the employees address to customers appropriately and offer services in the standard way (Shell, 2010 [online]). Support Value Chain Activities Procurements Shell is now engaged in e-procurement, using the help of SAPs support systems to enhance its supply chain activities. SAPs support offers an ERP system that allows procurement to be done online (SAP, 2010 [online]). Technology Development Over $1.2 billion have recently been spent by Shell in research and development of new technologies to gauge the most benefit out of the reserves of oil and gas and find new opportunities for investments (Shell, 2010 [online]). Technological innovation development in extracting energy is a key strength of the company and it is continually engaged in investing in new technologies that would give it an edge over its competitors. Human Resource Management Human resource activities are the most challenging for Shell as it has to face several employment issues starting from health, and work environment to safety issues. These are true for factory workers who work in high danger zones (Shell, 2010 [online]). In Nigeria, a high rate of people dying in the factory has become common. As shell is a global competitive company, it seeks highly talented and experienced people who seek innovation and growth for the company for its management. Shell offers learning and development opportunities for its diverse workforce. It offers monetary and non-monetary forms of incentives to employees (Shell, 2010 [online]). The human resource management uses online application system for interested candidates and uses simulation based testing tools for hiring appropriate employees for middle management and senior management posts. Firm Infrastructure Shells infrastructure is heavily reliant on technological support, by means of ERP, data management, research and development, marketing, procurement, human resource management, extraction and production operations (SAP, 2010 [online]). This allows a strong network of coordination and communication to be maintained globally. Conclusion Shell Group with industry leadership in terms of cost, quality and technology, is faced with immense social, political, economic and legal challenges. Its strategy to focus on performance, new ventures to exploit unconventional oil and gas reserves and achieve profitable growth in return has met success, but the pace has slowed due to economic influences. for big oil giant like Shell, keeping diplomatic alliance with the governments of many countries has become common but this not something to rely on and to put heavy capital investments at stake like Shell is doing right now, by continuously investing in new plants for oil and gas extraction from unconventional reserves such oil sands and oil shale. Such attempts are increasingly causing environmental degradation and the government may go strictly against them in future once more drastic environmental changes become dominant. Clever strategy is to continue ethanol and solar and wind energy production and invest in more bio fuel ener gies to tap new opportunities.