Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 26

Marketing - Essay Example Market players are postponing the inevitable change for as long as possible. The services provided by the traditional dry cleaners do not bear up to levels of expectation. Clothes although clean are returned in a malodorous condition, materials damaged in the long term, and with the added ‘bonus’ that Perchloroethylene (perc) is a skin irritant for some people. The chemical has been banned in some areas of the country and it has also been documented as ‘environmentally unfriendly’ and is very harmful and carcinogenic to the employees. The customers and the paying public have been conditioned to this offering and it is in my view that a positive, strong public awareness campaign will help forefront the market, giving SUN Dry Cleaners the first mover advantage. The competitive advantage of Sun Dry Cleaners is that the operations will be set up from scratch which will not involve any switching costs or transaction costs. Also, the market players currently are very afraid of increasing the public awareness solely due to the costs that are involved. This gives SUN Dry Cleaners the advantage, as the company intends to offer substantial benefits in service quality; raising the bar by bringing the industry into the present economic climate. Hence the size of the operations is the benefit for the company. The small size allows SUN to be more responsive and informed along with being better educated and environmentally aware clientele. This business is aimed to be opened in Miami, Florida. The city offers fantastic growth potential and of location is also deliberate off the basis of procuring industry inside knowledge as to customer preference, that is, the need to be able to look and feel the cleaning establishment on a one to one level with the view that confidence will be instilled as to the level of professionalism being employed therein. The current market condition includes several dry cleaners

Position of Women in Society in a Doll's House Essay

Position of Women in Society in a Doll's House - Essay Example In A Doll’s House, Ibsen explores the realism of women’s social position. Nora enjoys a doll’s roles and attitudes, until she learns that a doll’s life is neither appealing nor fulfilling. This paper analyzes the symbolisms and theme of A Doll’s House. Symbolisms, as well as Nora’s and Torvald’s characters, depict the theme of women’s position in society as dolls, which Nora reverses as she reclaims her humanity. One of the strongest symbolisms in the play is the house, which represents the only private space where women actively work, but also remain duly suppressed as genuine actors of society. The title itself talks about a doll’s house. Nora seems to be playing the lead role, since girls play with dolls and she is seen as a mere girl by all men in her life. But Kashdan underscores that she is not an actor, but a doll inside this house, where men see women as: â€Å"†¦dolls to be housed in toy mansions and be ind ulged, but only sparingly† (Kashdan 3). Nora is one of the dolls in society that must be controlled. Men are the ones who do the controlling. When they marry, they treat their wives like dolls that they put into their houses. Men, as traditional breadwinners, own these houses. They are masters, while their wives are followers, most often than not, they are slaves. Before, Nora enjoys being in this house. The house stands for her feminine domestic duties, which she dutifully follows. Gillian Brown calls this as the â€Å"domestic cult of true womanhood† (Lee 623). Nora’s main goal is to create and maintain a â€Å"beautiful, happy home† (Ibsen Act 1). Later on, Nora becomes the breadwinner of the house to make ends meet- a gender role reversal. She is supposed to stay inside the house, a prisoner of the private space where women can only exist with the secondary social roles in life. Torvald, however, does not appreciate his wife’s sacrifices and eff orts. For him, this house is his house to control alone. As Monrad points out that Monrad believes in nature: â€Å"†¦nature, which again is the creation of God, for ever given and unalterable† (Langas 150). Torvald does not want altered gender roles, because it threatens his power and superiority. The door and Tarantella dance represent Nora’s way out of her doll-like existence and an entry into her humanization. One of the ways that Nora humanizes herself is when she diverges from her doll’s roles. Lee says: â€Å"Nora’s ‘humanity’ relies on a sense that she is the exclusive owner of herself, her body and her work† (623). She becomes independent when she takes matters into her own hand and uses lies to save Torvald’s ego and life. Then, she also secretly works and earns money, another act of defiance and autonomy. Nora, however, is not yet aware of her humanity. She does not even use the word human being to describe herse lf until Act 3. During this time, she says: â€Å"I believe that before all else I am a reasonable human being, just as you are--or, at all events, that I must try and become one† (Ibsen Act 3). When she closes the door, she takes control of her life as a human being. MacPherson stresses that people reach their selfhood through their freedom, and Lee interprets this that for Nora, it entails being a â€Å"proprietor of her own capacity (624). She becomes a person, a human being with free will and civil liberties. Nora’

PERSONAL PERSPCETIVE( REFLECT ) OF MANAGING CHANGE Essay

PERSONAL PERSPCETIVE( REFLECT ) OF MANAGING CHANGE - Essay Example Introduction Change occurs from time to time and change is the nature of things. Nothing in this world is constant or unchangeable. Would we like our own house for instance, if for years we had the same furniture, the same upholstery, the same colors? We like to make things different and we also know that any change around the house makes us feel better. The mind wants change but when the mind is not prepared for the change, it resists change. However, if we are informed of the change in advance we become mentally prepared for it and then we are not disturbed. This implies that change causes resistance when change is not accompanied or preceded by effective communication. Change is also a part of the life cycle of any product. When we speak of different stages in the life cycle of an organization or a product or service, change is implied. Abrahamson (2004) believes that without pain no change is possible and justifies that either one must change or perish. Why, then is change in the corporate world a topic for discussions, for theory formation and framework building? Focusing on the personal perception of change management this paper analyzes the factors that influence change as has been seen during the semester projects. The change management process studied during the semester will be reviewed along with the skills necessary for change. Change can occur in an organization for varied reasons ranging from change in the stage of the life cycle, to change during mergers and acquisitions, during downsizing, restructuring and during expansion and growth (Stanleigh, 2008). Change, in fact, is essential for progress as the human mind always seeks something new, something different, something exciting. However, I never realized that change could require so much planning to be effective. Having spent hours on the topic and having read about how changes have been implemented within different organizations, I realize that change has to be effectively managed. When I com pare it with an individual’s life, I find change in our life has to be equally well managed. Change cannot be a hap hazard process. This paper will reflect on the change management process adopted by Apple and McDonald's and what planning went behind the change. Critical Review We were first analyzed the organizational change undertaken by Apple. The drivers of change at Apple were competition, finances and open unidentified markets. These were arrived at through SWOT analysis and Five Forces Model which helped to understand the initiative for change undertaken by Apple. However, it appears that Apple’s focus was on enhancing profits as the employees as well as the customers were confused with so many models available at the same time in the market. They did not have a customer-centric approach which is essential for any new product launch. They did not try to understand customer needs and communication was lacking at Apple. Communication and information must precede c hange. This sounds so simple to implement but what I have learnt through reading and find it extremely interesting, is that communication is not a simple term that encompasses the quality or the ability to talk. It does not merely mean to inform or speak; it also means to listen. Having the strength and courage to listen to subordinates in an organization enhances communications (Pfeffer & Sutton, 1999). Thus, listening is also a part of communication. The

The potential impact of the current debt crisis in Europe on the U.S Essay

The potential impact of the current debt crisis in Europe on the U.S. finanancial market - Essay Example Thus major U.S. political allies could lose their positions, weakening consumer confidence in Euro zone. Europe is the major American exports market with 22.5 % of the total U.S. exports. This implies that U.S. exports will be hurt. Moreover, considering since 2008 government spending and exports have been the major U.S. economy drivers. The debt crisis will halt the recovery of the economy, thereby increasing the unemployment rate. In addition, according to FED Chairman Ben, U.S. has little financial exposure to the indebted countries. Financial markets in Europe and America are highly correlated. This implies that if the current debt worsens further, it will affect France and Germany, where major U.S. banks have significant exposure. This implies that due to the indebtedness of European banks, other banks will be hesitant to give credit on the fear of failure of payment. In case of extension of credit they would demand more security before credit maturity translating to enforced asset sales. This will drive the cost of borrowing high. This would drive down commodities prices and seize up of financial markets, another 2008 Lehman Brothers Scenario. In the financial market, debt crisis has led to great speculative trading. This is due to the uncertainties and recession fears in the market poised by the Euro zone debt crisis. This has translated to loss of major indices like the Dow Jones, stocks and variances in commodity prices. This is because many of the companies in United States have affiliates in Europe, leaving them exposed to the debt crisis. This has further translates to low investor confidence, and even shunning of financial markets. In the event of further debt crisis, it may result to the collapse of these markets (Trahan and Krantz, 2011). The market turmoil caused by the Euro zone crisis will negatively affect the U.S. household retirement and saving funds. This will amount to American household losing part of

Financial services Essay Example for Free

Financial services Essay HSBC wants to be known as the world’s local bank and this tagline reflects HSBC positioning as a globe spanning financial institution with a unique focus on serving local markets. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd (HSBC) was established in 1865 to finance the growing trade between China and the United Kingdom and currently, it is the second largest bank in the world. In spite of serving more than 100 million customers through 9500 branches in 79 countries, the bank works hard to maintain local presence and local knowledge each area. Its fundamental operating strategy is remaining close to its customers. As chairman Sir John Bond said â€Å"our position as the World’s local bank enables us to approach each country uniquely, blending local knowledge with a worldwide operating platform. † Ads for the HSBC campaign depict two different ways of culture Profile of company and the description of the market where HSBC operates HSBC has got over 7. 500 offices in 87 countries. It is very widespread and has around 220. 000 shareholders in 124 countries and territories. It provides a full range of financial services being Personal Financial Services, Commercial Banking, Corporate Investment Banking and Markets Private Banking. HSBC mainly operates in Europe, Hong Kong, Asia-pacific region, Australia and America. It is interested in the emerging markets of Asia-Pacific region and is continuously heavily investing in these regions. The major top UK competitors of HSBC are Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland and Those are the corporations operation where HSBC carefully investigates and tracks at all times. However HSBC is not a bank that follows the ideas and the management manners of its competitors. HSBC Holdings PLC has shown steady growth in share price over the last five years and clearly indicates that a company is worth investing in. HSBC Group also demonstrates constant growth and is a very reliable corporation. These enable us to recommend investing in HSBC because of its growth opportunities and bright profitable prospects. The HSBC banking corporation is on third position in the world in regard to assets ownership. Almost 22% of HSBC’s profits have been derived from Hong Kong, which is a well known operational centre. Known as the world’s local bank, HSBC has a history of helping millions of customers globally in order to achieve their financial aspirations. They understand the importance and functioning of different markets through their experience in international trade. As a result, HSBC has grown into a company or banking institution that has the deepest respect for different cultures and people connected to these cultures. Their motto is to look at their customers as individuals and strive towards providing them with a personalised service and credit card products that will fit each of their specific needs. Simultaneously, HSBC Group has been trying to build up a good reputation in the US and conquer the markets of HSBC – North America, proudly stands one of the top 10 financial services companies in the United States. Its combined team reached more than 53,000 employees works with the common goal of meeting the needs for about 100 million customers. After achieving the goals in US, the company focused on developing countries and is more interested in the emerging markets of Asia-Pacific region and is continuously heavily investing in these regions. Furthermore HSBC is considering moving its head office from London to Hong Kong. Britains greatest bank, warned key shareholders that this was unsatisfying full-year results have made arguments for shifting HSBCs domicile to Hong Kong unsatisfying†. The investors have been shocked by the swift gear-change in HSBCs review of its domicile but some others have already told the HSBC that they would sponsor the move. Some other investors said that they understood the move and that the bank had been a change of tone as HSBC reviews its domicile. UKs capital terms for the main banks, now is one of the greatest in the world and according to the Basel terms, is expected to go even higher. Although HSBC refine to the investors that if the terms in Hong Kong is more relaxed requirements, that can cost less and develop more profit by making it the best use of its balance sheet. The loss of HSBCs head office in London, despite the fact that abused for months because of the raise in financial arrangements, would be a severe blow to the Coalition which, admitting some of its banker criticism is relying on a private-sector-led recovery. However, HSBC supported that it elects to stay in UK and told that an approaching change in its position was entirely hypothetical. Marketing environment of HSBC The most important intention of the report is to investigate the business environment of HSBC Holdings PLC. HSBC Holdings also is one of the market leaders in today’s banking world. HSBC head office it can be found at London’s Canary Wharf on the HSBC tower. HSBC stands for Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, which was established by a man from Scotland, named Thomas Sutherland, in 1865. The report presents information about the company’s activities, financial performance and market environment. Going through few major topics will provide investors with reasonable overview. The first part of the main body will primarily focus on the Company’s Profile and Activities, afterwards the analysis of macro-environment and the micro-environment of the company, evidence of an audit of key competences within the company followed with the recommendations and conclusion. Macro-Environment Analysis PEST ANALYSIS POLITICAL Government is responsible for protecting the public interest. Political stability affects business decision. Consumer protection. Regulations of business activities. ECONOMIC Competitor activity. Competition for resources. Savings. Unemployment numbers. SOCIAL Work life balance. Trends in consumer behaviours. Leisure. Lifestyle. TECHNOLOGY Technological arrange is speeding up. Technology develops now products (internet). Improved communication. Internet business. POLITICAL ANALYSIS HSBC banking has been sheltered by the regulations and policies made by different governments in the countries where they are working. The company has been able to remain to the policies agreed by each government to make sure that the company will be able to accomplish business operation successfully and effectively. HSBC Company also formulates their own defence strategies besides any governmental restrictions and limitations. ECONOMIC ANALYSIS Being one of the world’s leading and completive businesses in conditions of banking and finance HSBC said to have a secure and successful economic strength. In spite of lots of dangers that they meet in many parts of the world, the management of HSBC make what they need to be able to go beyond such struggles and to have a better economic condition and create a shield against unemployment. SOCIAL ANALYSIS HSBC is being affected by the circumstances of the society in which they are in use. By the side of this HSBC tries harder to make sure that each society is given the same chances to take the benefit of the resources given by the organization. The company adhere to having good name and relations in the society that belong to secure that everything will be customary and under control. TECHNOLOGICAL ANALYSIS The urgent situation of information technology, internet and generally the improvement of technology effects how HSBC has been working in the past years. The company search for different systems and used internet to get to their costumer all over the world and also help them know the latest trends in the global business. Except from these, the company also uses special facilities which help then to advance their productions and operations and also make them to achieve their goal. Technological breakthroughs can create new industries which might prove a danger to presented organizations. To summarise PEST analysis looks at the business strategies to understand the environment that the company is working and also to take the advantages and benefits to minimize the threats and the dangers for the business. Micro-Environmental Analysis -Porter’s Five Forces Potential entrants HSBC has many threats from Tesco, Sainsbury’s and a large number of other markets consider to enter into banking industry as a result of high profits that the specific kind of industry offers. Large super-markets in UK seek to enter without considering that those threats sometimes breakdown organisations such as HSBC. Although, HSBC received several threats from the market, they were still able to create high standards for the competition. Strong branding images are used from HSBC, so the company will not result in loss of customers. Bargaining power of customers An organisation created a value which has affected the occupation from one of the two important forces customers’ power. The role of this force contains the customers concentration along with the size. In other words, HSBC managed their customers as a result of allowing the company to gain customer loyalty. The strategy that was used by HSBC allows them to have a chance becoming a world leader in banking industry. Threat of substitutes: Another significant threat that HSBC faces is that competitors provide new products and services. This threat gives the opportunity to the company to work hard as a result of being sustain to its position. HSBC’s strategy focuses on the four different customers’ sections. Bargaining power of suppliers: Customer power mirrors to supplier power. This force focus on two important points. The first one is the significant size and concentration of suppliers and the second one the differentiation in the materials being supplied. HSBC use the strategy of charging markets with different prices according to differences of the price of each buyer. Rivalry among current competitors: There have many rivals in the banking and financial sectors. HSBC used efficient strategies to ensure its leadership position in the market among rivalries. Moreover, due to the capabilities of other rival companies, HSBC develops strategic plans to confirm that they are permanently being the first choice of their customers in banking industries. Nowadays, as we cross the mountain of financial crisis, a number of banks went to liquidation . SWOT Analysis STRENGTHS International Finance. Record Profits. Listed in London. China. WEAKNESSES Poor Performance. Brand Name. OPPORTUNITIES Growth on emerging economies. Biggest Bank in Middle East. Low mortgages interest rates. THREATS Moving back to China. New Regulations. Fewer Revenues from the integration of financial markets. STRENGTHS International Finance Since HSBC is a global company itself is well qualified to advise other companies on aspects of international business. With offices around the world, for the international client HSBC often cannot be defeated in this area. HSBC knows how to succeed in Mergers and Acquisitions (M E) and the organic and the effective development. Record Profits Last year, HSBC experienced the most profits ever for a UK high street bank. HSBC have revealed their profits more than doubled in 2010 to ? 10 billion with every region in the black for the first time since 2006. Listed in London HSBC is listed primarily in London and Hong Kong stock exchanges, which saves the company a lot of grief in complying with new U. S. legislation Sarbanes-Oxley law. Many companies have chosen to list on foreign stock exchanges, except America, because of expensive new regulations. China HSBC has 140 years of experience in China. Since China is the place to be today for companies and banks, HSBC benefits for being so old Chinese company and accepted by the Chinese people. The best news for HSBC is that, like other companies grow in China, it does too. The reason this happens is that it wins new customers and new global opportunities with each passing day. The HSBC has the largest network of any foreign bank in China and deeply understands the Chinese market and the customer. In a world that is increasingly going the way of China, this is quite a boon to HSBC. WEAKNESSES Poor Performance There is a poor performance in the section of personal finance services. HSBC try to fix these problem years ago. But the problem is there every year. Brand Name While it is certainly a global company, HSBC came late in the game to decide to execute a comprehensive marketing strategy and take advantage of the global brand. Because he had created so many different banks in different countries at different times over a period of one hundred years, which set them up with different names Hong Kong Bank of Canada, the British Bank of the Middle East, etc. Not even all of these banks prior to 1998, bore the logo of HSBC. In 1998, they were all branded together, but the previous lack of branding and name changes can damage the HSBC brand recognition. Customers may have thought that HSBC was responsible local bank and did not realize that HSBC had already serving for decades. OPPORTUNITIES Growth on emerging economies Apart from the growing Chinese middle class Brazilians and Indians have begun to appear as consumer culture, and thus increases wasteful consumers. Some residents of those countries in the past does not even own a bank account, but companies such as HSBC is ready to move in and benefit from the growing middle class in these areas. In places like Argentina and Turkey, HSBC experienced pre-tax profits by 50% in the past years. This is where it grows more. Biggest Bank in the Middle East The other banks are removed from the Middle East. However, HSBC has been running regional activities at the local level and have been rewarded for his efforts with numerous awards and honours for the Middle East market. HSBC is a trusted name there, and the company benefited from new democracy in Iraq by establishing a presence in the country. HSBC is the largest international bank in the Middle East. Low Mortgages Interest Rates The low mortgage interest rate increases the revenues and market’s shares. HSBC has made some records on this. THREATS Moving Back to China The banking colossal HSBC has been most explicit threat yet that it might move its headquarters from London because of the narrowing regulatory noose. New Regulations The investors of HSBC have been warned that future profitability will be affected by the new global policies designed to make the sector of financial more secure, but smoothed the blow with the promise of increasing dividends. Marketing Mix Of HSBC Marketing: HSBC was known as one of the biggest banking and financial services organization in the global. It has more than 9,800 offices worldwide and employs over 253, 000 people in 85 countries in the world and nowadays, the competition of banking company is very demanding and challenging. Therefore, many different organizations should be used strategic management so that compete effectively and successfully in theirs. In order to competing with other organization successfully, HSBC was able to use many strategies such as Marketing Mix, SWOT Analysis, PESTLE Analysis, and Porters Five Forces Analysis. These strategies focus on four customer groups include Private Banking, Personal Financial Services, Commercial Banking, and Corporate Investment Banking and Markets, and these will help HSBC reach their organization goal. In Marketing Mix once the company is ready to choose business strategy, it has to begin planning the details of marketing mix or 4Ps (Kotler at el. 2008). The main aspect of Marketing Mix is product, price, place and promotion that the firm combine to produce the response it wants in the target of market segmentation. Product HSBC uses hexagon symbol which means one of the world leading brands for customer experience, corporate social responsibility and represents brand recognition. HSBC provide a full range of service, such as personal finance, commercial banking, corporate investment banking and markets, private banking, insurance, mortgage, credit cards and so on. Price In Price and Service Strategies, normally a low price will attract more customers, but HSBC did not focus on pricing strategy. They decided to use service strategy. For example, employee in HSBC serve customer with the best service. Place HSBC comprises around 9,800 offices in 85 countries especially Hong Kong, China, and UK. HSBC group moved its headquarters from Hong Kong to London. Also, HSBC provide the facility of â€Å"Internet Banking† where customers can access their account 24 hours per day and 7 days per week without going bank. Promotion Advertising is the best way to do promotion. HSBC also used many kind of advertising for their promotion, such as billboard, TVC, print ad, newspapers, spot radio and also website. In addition, HSBC sponsored with many company and exhibition, such as Jaguar, HSBC Women’s Champions. Segmenting, Target Markets and the behaviour of customers in segmenting of HSBC Marketing: The market segmentation can help the marketing manager to determine the best marketing mix for organizing and serving the unique segment. This process is dividing the markets into the segments for the potential customers and has the objective for improving the competitive position of the company which can serve its customer better customer service. Market Segmentation is a subgroup of people or organizations sharing one or more characteristics that cause them to have similar product needs. Generally, the segmentation strategy is the division of the defined market in the smaller groups for the potential users of the products and can exhibit significant and meaningful variables which can represent the increased and measurable opportunity for the products positioning or investing the resources within the organization and can raised the forecasted marketing achievement objectives in the entire organizational goals of the business. The information technology is considered to be one of the major tools for the functionality scale worldwide of the company. It has its own website and it also has the e-business for internet, interactive, PC internet, and the telephone banking. In order to achieve the company’s marketing objectives, the organization needs to develop its marketing strategy or the marketing program that is centre to the detailed specification of marketing mix and it also includes the internal control as well as the procedures for assuring of effectively implemented and part of this is the market segmentation whereas if this is properly controlled or implemented, then it will greatly contribute to the achievement of the overall goals and the marketing objectives of HSBC. Many of the analyst believed that most of the financial institutions rely mainly on the generic marketing strategies. For the past years, HSBC is known as having the strong brand which can maintain the string perception for the minds of the customers. This can take the time for establishing much resource in keeping be remembering by the other customers as the local banks as well as managing in transferring the brand equities to the corporate brands. The Market Segmentation is the centre for the strong development of marketing strategy which involves the identification of the customers’ perception, needs, expectation, and the buying behaviour in order for them to group homogeneously for the customers who can be satisfied as well as marketed to the similar manner. Therefore, there had been expectation that the one segment can differ from the another activity to the customers profile and to the buying behaviour which has the connection to the sales and marketing activity in establishing these customers which is an ample factor for having these knowledge. The market segmentation is not only to group the customers but to shrewd the certain segment for the development of the clear brands position which as part of the integral process of market segmentation. The company now can launch the marketing strategies which use the marketing segmentation for managing its growth for strategic outlook. This can be done by the deliberation of the revenue generation culture and maintaining the prudent risk or the market risk while investing further to the people. The company has focused on the customers’ needs as a main issue for their development and had been done by dividing the customers in their location and with respect to their culture. In this regard, the company had recognized that most of the customers want to have the long term relationship to the company, ambitious and confident, and has the high productivity and focused to the marketing. In the detailed telephone interview, the respondent noted that the market segmentation of the company for the products and services for the groups of different location worldwide are effective and most of the generated profits had been use in overseas subsidiaries. In this regard, the company can manage to capitalize the presence overseas as well as the local knowledge and the expertise so that they can bring the new customers for opening the new accounts as well as looking at the other services and products that offered by HSBC. The company also had been optimistic that most of the customers prefer HSBC for the long term experience and having the well trained staff added to the lower charges and to the broad range of the products. Lastly, this market segmentation is considered to be generic wherein it greatly depends on the region for the several subsidiaries of the location of HSBC and some of the strategies are put to good. In 2003, HSBC had invested huge amount for proprietary relationship to the customers and to their management system so that the customers are managed efficiently. Therefore, they handled greater customer care and process of financial requirements in order to generate the customers’ satisfaction. For example, In UK HSBC generated much customers contacts for more than one million and led to the expansion of the existing relationship while the internet goes to the heart of every customers and their convenience which is important channel to the customers. In this manner, the e banking of HSBC can be available for the 17 territories and countries worldwide. The commercial banking is one of the strengths of the company which includes the incorporated business as the partnership, sole traders, trading entities, and associations. In this area of business, the company main contacts to the customers are the network managers’ relationship which managed and established to the local branch level or the expansion of the commercial banking centres so that they can meet their future and existing customers into their international reach while the corporate and investment banking can prove that the company can give the competitive advantage which can provide services for 25,000 subsidiaries and 1,200 customers for more than 50 countries. Because product managers can understand customers needs, then the group is supporting the teams through investing into the increase automation for the software and to the risk management, to the intranet site, to the central support of relationship management and having the geographical knowledge. In line with the private banking, the relationship to the managers can operate on the cross border basis in order to serve requirements which specialize for the clients for the different sectors which are all in line to the differentiated approach of the group into the international private banking. Because of increasing the customer base for the company, it build services centre for every particular transactions. In order for the company to remain competitive, it had invested that it can introduce the company in the introduction of the supporting and functionality expansion. The company had compelled to the metric of high level which can provide the actionable data. In line with this, HSBC had surveyed 27,000 customers all over the 24 countries which consist of customers’ experience. The findings that presented by are higher cost-t-serve goes across the entire aspect of HSBC in the professional or personal experience. Upon the movement of the company in its segmentation to the other regions, its product and services had been aligned to the needs of the market segments as the needs to banking through information technology. Through this service, the design for the right distribution channel in reaching the every distinct group so that they can stay contact. This segmentation had been essential to every single business detail that runs the bank in recognizing its long term growth. Conclusion and Recommendation for improvements of HSBC: In conclusion we would like to state that HSBC Group is in constant search of further development and its key data of latest year’s financial performance proved that they are succeeding in their aims, as the company is showing increase in almost all aspects of its business. It has shown steady growth in total profits in all most important regions of operation. It has also achieved large earnings per share increase over the last five years. The company has recently made a successful growth in the Middle-East region and expects continuous growth in profits from that region. In Asia all business segments exceeded and also contributed to overall function of the HSBC Group. From our point of view, in a company that has reached such huge size and success, there is not much that can be improved, considering their financial performance. It is worth mentioning, that HSBC Group should give more attention to the rapidly developing internet banking system. The information presented in this report is enough to make the final decision and as far as we are concerned it is good and reliable company to invest in. It is a perfect long-term investment. HSBC Group has around 220. 000 shareholders in over 124 countries and this only adds to its reputation and proves its trustworthiness.

Essay on video games violence Essay Example for Free

Essay on video games violence Essay The gaming industry greatly impacts how people, from young children to adults, spend their time. According to Health Magazine (2009), â€Å"90 percent of kids aged 8 to 16 play video games, and they spend about 13 hours per week doing so (more if you’re a boy). † Whether its educational, or just plain fun and entertainment video games have evolved greatly in the last 40 years. Today’s sophisticated games are in a class of it’s own with it’s realism and impressive graphics. With this ever advancing technology, comes better games with realistic situations. There’s no harm in playing video games for recreation. However, the problem lies within the violent video games and the aggression that these video games cause in children. For years researchers and experts have issued studies linking video games to aggressive behavior. It’s a controversial subject, nonetheless, it shows just how powerful the affect the games have on children. To illustrate, CBSnews. com reports a story of a 17 year who bought the popular game, â€Å"Grand Theft Auto†. In this game, the player is encouraged to do as much illegal activity and engage in as much violent behavior as they can to be rewarded with accolades and higher points. The more heinous the act, the higher you move up in the game. After playing this game for nine months, the 17 year old gunned down three men, two police officers and a dispatcher in a county jail, in the same style he was trained from the video game. In the kids statement to police, he said : â€Å"Life is like a video game. Everybody’s got to die sometime. † This is just one example of aggressive behavior as a result of violent video games, but there are many more cases. Children’s minds are very impressionable, and violent video games are harmful to their minds because of how interactive and realistic these games can be. According to research by child psychologist David Walsh, as further reported in the article, violent video games can be linked to physical aggressive behavior in children because of the brain. His study revealed that the teenage brain is not fully developed. Violent video games have a deeper impact on a teenage brain versus an adult brain. Walsh further states, it’s â€Å"largely because the teenage brain is different from the adult brain. The impulse control center of the brain, the part of the brain that enables us to think ahead, consider consequences, manage urges thats the part of the brain right behind our forehead called the prefrontal cortex. Thats under construction during the teenage years. In fact, the wiring of that is not completed until the early 20s. Therefore, since children’s mind are still underdeveloped, violent video games have a negative effect and cause children to believe aggression is appropriate. From the National Institute on Media and Family, six medical groups issue warnings as to the effects that violence has on children: (1) â€Å"Children will increase anti-social and aggressive behavior. (2)Children may become less sensitive to violence and those who suffer from violence. (3) Children may view the world as violent and mean, becoming more fearful of being a victim of violence. (4) Children will desire to see more violence in entertainment and real life. (5) Children will view violence as an acceptable way to settle conflicts. † From studies to real life examples of violent behavior, video games has shown to have an influence on children’s behavior. Violent video games will not be going away anytime soon. The only solution to combat the issue of violent video games is for parents to be actively involved in their children’s free time and take an interest in what their children play. Once parents are informed on their decisions to allow their children to play violent video games, they will know that if choosing violence, it will have an effect on the impressionable child mind.Parents beware. References Harding, A. (2008). Violent video games linked to child aggression. Health Magazine. Retrieved from http://www. cnn. com/2008/HEALTH/family/11/03/healthmag. violent. video. kids/ Bradley, E. (2005). Can a video game train someone to kill? Retrieved from http://www. cbsnews. com/stories/2005/03/04/60minutes/main678261. shtml 2010. Fact Sheet. National Institute on Media and the Family. Retrieved from http://www. mediafamily. org/facts/facts_vlent. shtml.

Distinguishing personnel management and human resource management

Distinguishing personnel management and human resource management P1: Distinguish between personnel management and human resource management and discuss the historical development and changing context in which they operate?   Personnel Management:      PM is basically an administrative record functioning at operational level. PM attempts to maintain fair terms and conditions of employment while at the same time efficiently managing personnel activities for individual departments and the activities which result ultimately in achieving organizational success. Human Resource Management:- HRM is concerned with carrying out the same functional activities conventionally performed by the personnel function such as HR Planning, Job analysis, recruitment and selection, employee relations, performance management, employee appraisals, compensation management, training and development but it performs these functions in a qualitatively distinct way as compared with personnel management. History of Human Resource Management:-   The concept and name of human resource management has been changed many times throughout the history. The changes were mostly because to the change in social and economic activities throughout the history. Human resource management came to birth when industrial revolution took place in the year 1833 then the industrialist incepted to increase their production and they raised the burden of work on the employees by having 60 hours a week. The workers became fed up of this circumstance and they took decision among themselves to find out the solution for this problem. After this workers were losing interest in their work and they divided in different groups and all this caused less production. The industrialists came to know this, they straggle to satisfy the workers but however the workers were not happy with that and formed their Trade Union. Now the industrialists gave full authority to one manager. In spite of this the problems remained constant because the manager was not able to ha ndle their problems then the workers went to strike for their rights.  Ã‚  This led to the formation of personnel management. Personal management was working only when clashes arise. PM was dealing on bargaining, so this system also failed to motivate the employees, in addition PM was not able to take full control of it. The combination of wartime production demands, government wage price controls and the need to negotiate cooperative agreements forced many companies to expand their personnel staffs and control their HR practices. Such basic HR practices as job classification systems, hiring standards, uniform pay grades and written disciplinary procedures were developed for the first time by many companies.    Another early donor to HRM was called the human relations movement. Two researchers, Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger included human factors into work. This movement began as a result of a chain of studies conducted at the Hawthorne facility of Western Electric in Chicago between 1924 and 1933. The purpose of the study was to conclude the effects of illumination on workers and their output. The studies pointed out the significance of the social interaction and work group on output and satisfaction. The human relations movement eventually around the mind 1960s became a branch and a contributor to the field of organizational behavior; because of this progress all the industrialists and peoples came to know that human beings are the most valuable assets of an organization.    Human Resource Management gets more into practice as people are acknowledging from HRD and HR practices and these departments are fulfilling all the requirements of the employees, are managing all human resource and are giving full rights to every one. Now in all successful organizations there are HRM departments Shifting from Personnel Management to HRM The significant role of HRM is reflected in the transformation of the personnel management purpose from one of concentrating on employee welfare to one of managing people in a way which matches organizational and individual goals and providing employees with intrinsic and extrinsic reward. Therefore today Human Resource Management is historically known as personal management which deals with official system for the management of the people within an organization. Different Stages of shifting from Personnel Management to HRM: First stage: HRM earlier react in an even way to problems as they arise. Effective HRM seeks to connection HRM issues to the largely strategy of the organization with the most effective HRM policies and practices included into such corporate policies and strategies to strengthen or transform an organizations culture. Integration is required in two senses (1) integrating HRM issues in an organizations strategic planning (2) securing the acceptance and addition of a HRM view in the decisions of line managers. The HRM policy in worth of the various functions for example training and recruitment etc should be internally reliable Second stage:-   structure powerful cultures is a way of promoting demanding organizational goals in that a strong culture is intended at uniting employees through a shared set of managerially authorized values such as excellence   service and innovation etc. However there can be anxious between a strong organizational culture and the need to change situations and to be elastic particularly in the highly competitive and fast changing environment in which employers have to work on daily basis. Speedy change demanded by the market is sometimes tough in an organization with a strong culture.   Third stage: The mind set that people are a changeable cost is in effectual HRM which is replaced by the view that people are a resource and that as community capital it can be developed and can add to competitive advantage. Mostly it is accepted that competitive advantage is gained through well educated and trained motivated and dedicated employees at all levels. This recognition is now almost considered worldwide and important of management training and growth are the middle pillars of HRM.    Fourth stage: The view that the interests of employees and management or shareholders are different and confliction though considerably true in the past as organization which practices effective human resource management seeks to classify and promote a commonality of interests. important examples are training which enhances employment security and high earning ability for employees while at the same time rising the employees value to the enterprise goals of healthier productivity and performance pay systems which increase earnings without important labor cost increases and which at the same time endorse higher performance levels goal setting through two way communication which establishes joined goals and objectives and which provides basic rewards to the employee through a participatory process.   Fifth stage: Top to down communication tied with restricted information flow to keep power within the control of management give a way for sharing of information and knowledge. This transform facilitates the creation of faith and commitment and makes knowledge more fruitful. Control from the top is in successful HRM being replaced by increasing employee contribution and policies the ways in which the larger Japanese enterprises have installed participatory schemes and introduced information distribution and two way communication systems are instructive in this view. In enterprises that tend to have company missions and where there are fundamental values that shape their corporate culture HRM becomes a part of the strategy to attain their objectives. In some types of enterprises such as one in which permanent technological change takes place the goal of successfully managing change at short intervals often requires employee collaboration through emphasis on communication and involveme nt. Shifting of personnel management to HRM took place in three stages:   1) Records and Administration 2) Accountability Regulations 3) Competitive Advantage 1) Records and Administration In first stage the main activities which were taken out by personnel department were plan Company picnics setting up vacations enroll workers for health are exposure planning retirement parties increase diverse workforce and contain health care cost. 2) Accountability Regulations During this phase most important framework of rules and regulations started rising in the company. In 1970 the duty of the HR manger was to keep their organizations out of court. In the 1980 HR mangers had to address staffing costs linked to mergers and acquisition and downsize.   The economic issues associated to an increasingly worldwide and completive workplace characterize the 1990. 3) Competitive Advantage The aim of this shift stage is from just securing fulfillment to the more determined one of winning promise. The employee resource therefore becomes worth investing in and training and development thus assume a top profile. These initiatives are linked with or even predicated upon a propensity to shift from a collective orientation to the management of the workforce to a distinctive one.    P 2: Assess the role, tasks and activities of the human resource practitioner Human resource management plays a vital role in the success of every organization. Human resource management is concerned with the development and implementation of human resource strategies which are integrated with corporate strategies to ensure that the culture values structure of the organization quality motivation and commitment of its members contribute fully for the achievement of organizational goals. In big organizations it plays a very important and positive role in its success however it is difficult to deal with all the activities. HRM makes the quality of work life desirable in the organization.   ROLES AND TASKS OF HR Manager HR manager plays an important role in developing and maintaining polices. HR manager should motivate employees to make them fruitful for the organization. HR manager should conduct recruitment process effectively and efficiently, so that the skillful people could hire for the organization. HR manger is responsible for increasing the skills of the employees to make their performance better. HR manager should make the standards of performance so that the employees performance can be judged. HR is responsible to make a good environment in which the employees can work effectively and efficiently. HR manager should keep aware the employees about new policies of the organization and guide them. HR manager should develop a leading edge for the effective management of the people to maintain competitive advantage. HR manager should recommend the strategic direction for employees and ensure its implementation. HR manager should co-ordinate the design, implementation and administration of human resource policies and activities to ensure the availability and effective utilization of human resources for meeting the companys objectives. An Ideal HR Manager HR managers are very important for any organization because they makes polices, develop strategies directing and coordinating human resource management. The most important responsibility of HR manager is interviewing and recruiting candidates. HR manager of MOBILINK should develop its people to work hard for higher standards. HR manager of MOBILINK have to make recruitments of best talent because humans are the basic tool for having competitive edge in the market for most of the organizations. They should analyze the performance level of the employees and if they find it below standards so they have to motivate them and give them training of developing their skills to be productive for the MOBILINK organization. HR manager have to make good relationship with different departments like marketing, operation and finance and make himself aware of new updates to to prevent miscommunication. P3:- Evaluate the role and responsibilities of line managers in human resource practices? The Different roles Responsibility of line manager Line manager plays an important role in the success of HR manager. Line manager should deliver the task and responsibilities on time to the senior management. Keep informing the management about the progress in the organization. Line manager should defend the company strategy or management strategy when talking to the work group. Clear appropriate picture to the work group to keep them informed of the rules and polices and have to look out the ways to become more efficient. Line manager should set tasks and standards for the employees. Line manager should also have to provide training and development to the employees when needed. Line manager should involve group people in decision making and to understand their needs and to motivate them. Should also provide reasons for decisions and represent the view and ideas of work force to higher authorities. Line manager should maintain the good environment. Line manager have to take the following points in mind in order to make their activit ies better.   Line manager should be a positive role model Line manager should be honest to others and help the employees and give guidance about their job. Line manager should have to speak against injustice. Line manager should be self confident. M1:- Discuss how the concepts of PM and HRM are practiced in an organization? We have selected MOBILINK as an organization. The HR mission statement of MOBILINK is given as To lead the organization in enhancing its human capital and creating a winning environment where everyone enjoys contributing to the best of ones ability. HR Practices and personnel management at Mobilink: These are few of the HR and personnel management practices Recruitment   Selection Training Development Compensation   Performance Appraisal System   Occupational Health and Safety measures   Career Planning and Development   Research and Development Reward Management Employee Relations Planning: Now after the emergence of new telecom companies in the market the market becomes more competitive and employees are less loyal to the company. Whenever they get any better opportunity than the existing one they go for that which is their right. Due to this fact MOBILINK do not have any formal strategy for succession planning. They do consider the people from inside but proper success plan is not practiced in MOBILINK these days. But now due to market trends they transformed new strategies according to the management that it is not useful to invest in the employee at a larger extent. They do develop their employees for their career planning but no formal success planning is practiced. Recruitment and Selection: In MOBILINK the requirement for the new job is communicated by the respective managers to the HR department. After that the HR department looks for the possibilities of internal and external recruitment. Internal Recruitment: In MOBILINK internal recruitment is done the higher grades like managers and directors. When there is a vacancy the HR department views the past performance of the employees working at lower levels and chooses the right one to promote him/her to that position. But if there is a vacancy for managerial position and none of the suitable employee is available with in the organization then external recruitment is carried out. EXTERNAL RECRUITMENT In external recruitment the duty of line manager is to prepare a form for the job about their need in the organization. Then the role profile of that job is dent to functional director by line manager after his approval it is forward to the HR department. HR manager confirms the availability of the budget required and the cost of the advertisement for that job. After than by forecasting budget along with job profile sent to HR director for his final approval. Line and HR manager again sit together for short listing the people and the following criteria is adopt by them. Quality of earlier schooling Extra curricular activities Marks obtained Overseas travel Age Relevant experience The HR department then issue letters to the short listed candidates along with blank application forms by time date and venue for the preliminary interview and candidates is asked to bring along completed application forms. A two-member panel of HR and line management carries out the interviews managerial functional and supervisory skills. After clearing the preliminary interviews, people apply for different jobs are tested in different ways by a panel of cross functional assessors in the case of management selection. Resource management Rational decision making Communication skills Creative thinking Business development Influencing The HR department is responsible for assessments training details o rumination packages and conditions of services. Prepare letter and finalize other documents. M2: Make an effective judgment about PM and line manager responsibilities in studied organization. HR helps LINE manager in offering them coaching creating managers role plays for meetings, and providing them toolkits to refer them. In MOBILINK Peshawar they do not have formal HR department and final recruitments are done at ISLAMABD head office. They do have informal set up for hiring internees and also perform the responsibilities of HR manager in coordination with other major departments. In MOBILINK Islamabad head office they have formal HR setups for making decisions for other regions as well. Strategies are there in MOBILINK for HR manager to provide help to LINE manager in performing their job. HR manager clarify the standards, expectations, performance goals and ask line boss for his feed back regularly. HR manager of MOBILINK look ways for line manager to get him out of jams and prevent him for making serious errors. There may be some conflicts between the priorities of HR and of line management, in this situation a manager has to work hard for identifying issues and makes alternative for addressing it. HR manager when presenting bad news, try to bundle it with good news also but be careful to avoid letting problems drag for extended periods of time waiting on good news to happen. Line managers and supervisors are responsible for enforcing and promoting the work environment of dignity. They must take every action to prevent the unsuitable behavior. Line managers and HR managers are expected to communicate clearly to their staff members about their policies of harassment, discipline etc. MOBILINK is considering having the best HR in PAKISTAN and they have retained this edge. According to the judgment the HR department of MOBILINK is achieving their desired results. They have a good relationship with the different departments like finance, marketing etc. D1: Evaluate the roles and responsibilities of HR manager and line manager in the organization as compared to their ideal role. The HR manager of MOBILINK is performing well against the ideal situation. HR manager is good in communication and makes people understand that what he is saying. Manager also has the knowledge of principles and procedure of recruitment and also effective and efficient in providing the services to customers and personnel. HR manager is a good speaker and also have the ability to recognize what the other person is saying and also have strong working relationship internally and externally. HR manager is pleasant with other employees on the job and displaying a cooperative attitude. The standard for the ideal manager are SELF MOTIVATION The person that the manager is hiring for the job has to be capable of doing work without the close supervision of the boss. Communication skills Confidence and personality plays important role in the abilities of manager to communicate. Manager should be capable of clear communication with their fellow managers customers and employees. GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE SKILLS Manager should be excellent in dealing with clients and customers. Manager should have the skills to make the difficult customer happy. So in that way the organization can hold their customer and business can grow. CONFLICTS RESOLUTION Manager should be capable of handling conflict in the organization. Manager need to be calm and able to identify and listening issues discuss it resolve it and followed up. Its important for a follow up check to ensure there are no further problems. SETTING GOALS Manager need to focus on a specific goal and able to assign the tasks to the employees. RESPONSIBILITY Managers responsible for ensuring the tasks assignments and dead line needed to be met and hire appropriate people and handle the situation which tends to be profitable in the end. KNOWLEDGE ABOUT ORGANISATION A manager should have all the knowledge about the organization so that he/she would be capable of giving answers to their clients customers and staff members. LEADERSHIP SKILLS Managers should have strong leadership skills. Managers are the leaders in work place. Manager need to be a good speaker and assigning tasks. Manager should also be able of handling group of people and should lead the group or team in the right direction. D2: Suggest recommendations for realistic improvement against the defined Human resource is one of the most exciting and challenging departments of the organizations. People are very important in any organization. MOBILINK has a strong HR system and therefore we did not found many drawbacks in their HR practices. There are some but it can be better by little effort. RECOMMENDATIONS Following are some recommendations based upon our analysis. We observed that employees are not aware of their depth policies o the employee are lacking in the knowledge about policies which is the responsibility of HR manager to aware them. MOBILINK HR should have to monitoring and measuring employee s performance. HR lacks in terms of career planning and development so MOBILINK has to recognize this function in their policy statement. MOBILINK should have to increase in its recruitment sources so that they will not loose the potential candidates. HR manager should have to make clear communication with their lower staff which in terms makes the organization beneficial.