Green Mountain Coffee Roasters free essay sample

Roasters reveals the following : 1. 1 Strengths i. Product Consistency By utilizing state-of-the-art roasting software, GMCR is therefore able to maintain their level of product consistency, ii. Unique Products Its key success is in differentiating its coffees. The coffee beans have been carefully selected and then roasting them in small batches to ensure consistency and to maximize their taste and flavor differences. This one of the reason why are the Green Mountain coffees is different from those of other specialty coffee companies. On the other hand, Keurig also gives Green Mountain access to the office and one-cup segment. iii. High Distribution GMCR flushes nitrogen into its packaged coffee and employ one-way value bag packaging technology that provides a minimum shelf life of six months for the company coffee as customer is able to retain the freshness of the coffee in the package. This in turn, allows GMCR to expand it’s distribution, without any worries about compromised quality. We will write a custom essay sample on Green Mountain Coffee Roasters or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page v. Socially Responsible Business Practices GMCR is a supporter of social and environmental causes, and being listed in the â€Å"100 Best Corporate Citizens† and â€Å"The World’s Most Socially Responsible Companies† lists. This acts as a bonus to the company’s outlook and reputation. v. Widely Available GMCR’s products are widely available in the market. By targeting various distribution channels and customer categories, GMCR is confident that consumer trial at one point of the distribution level will lead to a subsequent purchase at another. vi. Flagships Flagship customers such as Amtrack, Exxon-Mobile, JetBlue Airways and American Skiing Company are key to the company’s geographic expansion strategy as they provide visibility and sampling opportunities 1. 2 Weaknesses i. Single Product Line GMCR deals with specialty coffee solely, putting it at a serious disadvantage in bargaining with supermarket chains for favorable shelf space. ii. Own Distribution and Sales Force GMCR relied on its own distribution and sales forces to expand the Green Mountain brand in the grocery channel. 1. 3 Opportunities i. Increased consumption Increased coffee consumption in Europe, Asia and Brazil has just expanded GMCR’s distribution opportunities. By targeting and influencing more of the above mentioned countries’ coffee drinkers, GMCR can hope to influence most of the consumers before its rivals do so. ii. Specialty Coffee Market Gourmet, specialty coffee is the bread-and-butter of GMCR’s establishment. A growing increase in consumers seeking specialty coffee will mean brighter prospects for GMCR. iii. Keurig Acquisition Green Mountain acquired 42 percent ownership in Keurig Inc. The appeal of the Keurig K-cup perfectly brewing just one cup of coffee from a variety of coffee selections has contributed to GMCR success in the office coffee services. 1. 4 Threats i. Decrease in coffee consumption The U. S coffee market now only accounts for 20% of world coffee consumption, compared to the 80% during World War II. The coffee market is now moving on to Europe, Asia (particularly Japan). ii. Commercial coffee roasters There is higher competition as major companies seek to enter the specialty coffee industry. Such names include but are not limited to : Phillip Morris’ Gevalia, Procter Gamble’s Millstone and Nescafe. The major coffee marketers make a big push to make their premium coffee brands dominant in the wholesale channel. iii. Starbucks Partnerships Starbucks, seen as a long time competitor to GMCR, upon entering into a long-term licensing with Kraft, will expect to generate extra sales 20-40 pounds of coffee per store per week. This is seen as a threat to GMCR, which has an average sales of 100 pounds of coffee per store per week. Starbucks, which has distribution agreement with Kraft foods Inc. plans to place their coffee in supermarkets along with Kraft Maxwell House brands. Kraft manages all distribution, marketing, advertising and promotion for Starbuck coffee in grocery, warehouse club and mass merchandise store. It featured distinctive, elegant packaging, prominent positions in grocery aisles and the same premium quality as that sold in its stores. Starbucks is also partnering with Dreyer’s for branded ice cream, and Pepsi to distribute bottled Frappuccino. Starbucks become the coffee supplier to 20 million passengers who fly United Airlines each year and mail-order sales division accounted for roughly 2 percent of total revenue. iv. Seattle Coffee Company Acquisition Starbucks acquisition of Seattle Coffee Company in the forth quarter of fiscal 2003 and increased warehouse club revenue due to growth in existing account. The increase was primarily attributable to the growth of the food service business as a results of the acquisition of Seattle Coffee Company and the growth in new and existing Starbucks food service accounts. To conclude Green Mountain’s SWOT analysis, its resource strengths are limited, and the company is a so much smaller compared to the rest of the major coffee marketers, like Starbucks. However, it is carving out a market niche for itself and has done a commendable job of securing wholesale accounts. 2. QUESTION TWO In your analysis of the organization’s strengths, be sure to identify the firm’s Core Competencies using the Value Chain. M. Porter’s value chain is as follows : Source : UK Education, Accounting For Strategic Management According to M. Porter’s value chain, we have analyzed and indentified the firm’s core competencies as follows : 2. 1 Technology Development Nitrogen-based one-way valve packaging allows GMCR to increase the shelf life of it’s coffee, thus leading to a higher Convection air roasters combined with specific roasting programmes for each bean type allows GMCR to create â€Å"signature† coffees, distinguishing itself from other coffee companies. 2. 2 Inbound Logistics GMCR obtain their coffee beans from Mexico, Guatemala, Peru, Indonesia and other coffee-growing countries. This allows for a wide variety of coffees to be made. By obtaining its resources for multiple locations, GMCR is at lower risk of being affected by shortages. 2. 3 Marketing and Sales GMCR has over 100 varieties of finished coffee products, which caters to consumer taste and preference, in the specialty coffee sector, the market niche which it has identified. Partnership with Wild Oats and Costco allows for greater penetration into the wholesale and supermarket channels. The Keurig K-cup ownership by GMCR has tremendously increased business prospects for GMCR. With the precedence of online shopping, similarly, coffee is set to follow, as more and more consumers are starting to brew their own coffee from the comfort of their own home or office. 2. 4 Services According to Wikipedia (16 JUL 2007), GMCR has also launched delivery services to cater to consumers. Cafe EXPRESS is Green Mountain’s automatic delivery coffee club that rewards their end consumers with discounts, free gifts, and special perks and privileges that only Cafe EXPRESS membership brings. Besides coffee beans, Green Mountain also sells brewer and accessories to the end consumers out there. Therefore consumers are able to get all the necessary equipment within one stop. 3. QUESTION THREE Identify and evaluate the strategies that the organization has pursued to maintain its growth and leadership position. GMCR has adopted a differentiation strategy, therefore creating prestige and brand image. Ever since GMCR entered the specialty coffee market back in 1981, it has created over 100 varities of finished coffee products, and with the use of technology to enhance consistency and quality, edged over its competitors. Green Mountain’s strategy has several key elements: A key component of management’s growth strategy was to make Green Mountain coffees readily convenient and available for consumer trial by the cup at convenience stores, office coffee services, and food service establishments, thereby spurring sales of green Mountain coffees in supermarkets and specialty food stores. Green Mountain has a wide selection of high-quality coffees. There are about 90 varieties. Green Mountain’s coffee products included single origin, estate, certified organic, Fair Trade, flavored, and proprietary blends of coffee sold under the Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and Newman’s Own Organics brands. Green Mountain also emphasis on 2 distribution channels which are; i. Catalog sales To promote catalog sales, Green Mountain focused solicitations on catalog customers who bought regularly, especially members of the company’s â€Å"Coffee Club† who had customized standing orders for automatic re-shipment. Recently, the company had begun pursuing ways to increase traffic on its website both to build brand awareness nationwide and boost direct sales to consumers where the company had a limited presence in supermarkets and specialty food stores. ii. Wholesale accounts Supermarkets, specialty food stores, convenience stores, hotels, restaurants, universities, travel and office coffee service customers, and food service companies. Major wholesale customers included the American Skiing Company alpine resorts, Amtrak, ARAMARK, ExxonMobil Convenience stores (almost 2,000 locations), Fred Meyer Stores, Hannaford Bros. Supermarkets, Kash N’ Karry Food Stores, Kings Super Markets, Nestle Waters of North America, Price Chopper, Shaws Supermarkets, Sodexho and Wild Oats—see Exhibit 6. Acquiring additional â€Å"flagship† customers was viewed as key to the company’s geographic expansion strategy because they provided great visibility and sampling opportunities On the other hand, Green Mountain is also providing high levels of sales and equipment service support to its supermarket accounts which helps them to win over supermarket chains to stocking and supporting the Green Mountain brand in their stores. Every Green Mountain’s coffee bean has been carefully selected and then roasting them in small batches to ensure consistency and to maximize their taste and flavor differences. This is why the Green Mountain coffees is different from those of other specialty coffee companies. The company’s strict quality control and distinctive aroma has resulted in the strong customer loyalty to the brand. The Green Mountain coffee was sold in a variety of packages including whole bean, fractional packages, and one-cup Keurig  ® portions. The packaging equipment for Keurig K-Cup portion packs was also owned by Green Mountain Coffee and Green Mountain paid a royalty to Keurig for each K-Cup sold. Green Mountain’s strategy will be classified as focused differentiation (where the focus has been on the New England and mid-Atlantic regions as well as on specialty coffees). However, the company is transitioning to a broad differentiation strategy in the sense that it is expanding geographically. 4. QUESTION FOUR What factors should the organization consider in the development of its future strategy? 4. 1 Publicity Since GMCR has established it’s distribution lines, which it claims that â€Å"at one point of a distribution line, a customer will make a subsequent purchase†, it is the right time for GMCR to go on a publicity campaign. This will raise awareness amongst the coffee drinkers who have been loyal to GMCR’s competitors. With GMCR having such a wide distribution channel, consumers are bound to encounter the distribution lines at some point or another. Therefore we suggest that GMCR consider increasing its advertising budget, exploring all methods to increase public awareness of its coffee. Green Mountain should continue with its present strategy. The company must continue its strong efforts to obtain new wholesale accounts; preferably large regional or even national accounts. Sales growth at Green Mountain is largely dependent on gaining additional retail exposure for the company’s coffees; both in states where it is already fairly strong (New England and the mid-Atlantic) and in states where its market penetration is low. . 2 Franchising and location By reducing the number of outlets which are company-operated, GMCR will save a lot of costs and instead look forward to thriving on franchising revenues. As cities are continuously developing, buildings after buildings are being replaced, a good location may not last forever. Therefore it is wise for GMCR to leave the strategic positioning decisions to the franchise owners, wh o may have lived there for a longer period of time or are locals who have more experience and knowledge. Currently Green Mountain target audience has always been in the United States and it is only available to the niche market. As a result, other coffee drinkers in the United States might not know about Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Other coffee drinker will not be purchasing any coffee from GMCR. The company should look into expanding the target audience in the United States and the other part of the world. In order to reach out to the other coffee drinkers, GMCR should consider in re-opened the company-owned and operated retail stores. GMCR made a strategic decision previously to close down the company-owned and operated retail stores. By closing the company-owned and operated retails stores, it will reduced the presence of the company in the market and other coffee drinkers might not know of the GMCR. 4. 3 Marketing Green Mountain should focus its marketing efforts on securing new accounts where it will not encounter the competitive wrath of Kraft (Maxwell House), PG (Folger’s), or Nestle; all of which have more financial and marketing muscle than Green Mountain. The Management of Green Mountain must get performance of the newly-acquired Keurig subsidiary on track; there is not enough information in the case to offer specific recommendations about Keurig. Green Mountain management seems confident that the problems are temporary and that the acquisition will work out. GMCR offer samplers to new consumer however they would need to complete an online form and to qualify for the free trial and you would need to have at least 12 employees in the office. It is time consuming from the customer point of view and prevent them from completely filling up the information. GMCR are concentrating most of their sales online. Although there are supermarkets or convenience stores that are selling their products, customer like to know where to purchase them however the website does not provide them the information. 4. 4. Product Line Expansion Issues Based on the website http://www. greenmountaincoffee. com, GCMR sells other products beside coffee powders. They have brewers and other coffee-related accessories that are being sold online however customer would like to have the physical touch and feel of the product that is being sold. There are products which cost hundreds of dollars which customer would not purchase the coffee machines online unless they are a regular coffee drinkers of GMCR. By taking their expanded product lines offline and to supermarkets, they will therefore be able to ensure the survival of their accessories. 5. QUESTION FIVE Discuss the importance of changes in the external environment to the organization. We have analyzed the following six environmental factors and its effect on GMCR: Political, Economical, Sociocultural , Technology, Demographics and Global factors. . 1 Political A political campaign to push for greater presence of socially-responsible companies would have an impact on the coffee industry. Socially-responsible business practices come into the limelight now, as consumers are not only concerned about product quality, but the processes which the business goes through to obtain their end-products. Therefore, businesses would have to increase their contributions to charitable/ non-profit organizations to enhance their reputation as a â€Å"company which gives back to the society†. 5. 2 Economical During an economic downturn, GMCR’s sales would decline. People would cut back on unnecessary spending, and specialty coffee is on the list of those items, which people can easily replace by buying coffee powder from home-grown brands, which tend to be cheaper. On the other hand, when the economy booms, people have less qualms about spending more on luxury items like GMCR’s coffee. 5. 3 Sociocultural As society becomes more and more fast-paced everyday, people would eventually have lesser time on their hands during office hours. With more deadlines approaching, people spend more time in the office, sometimes even having their lunch in the office. Activities such as having an hour-long lunch break would eventually become a luxury for working adults. As such, they would hesitate to even spend their time queuing up for coffee. GMCR’s stores would suffer a decrease in revenue because of a dip in customers during working hours, however, their Keurig K-Cup and coffee bean sales would increase, as more people would prefer brewing their own cup of coffee within the comfort of their own office. The workforce continues to get larger and larger everyday. More and more people are entering the workforce, and coffee consumption would increase since coffee consumption in the office is considered a norm, and more people would therefore be consuming coffee. Health concerns over caffeine would constantly harass the coffee industry. As more health reports are released everyday regarding the side effects of caffeine, companies should strive to provide more varieties of de-caffeinated coffee, so as to cater to the group of consumers which are more health conscious. . 4 Technology Better technologies are developed everyday. The construction of highways and roads allows for less transportation time for goods, so that they can be delivered earlier. This in turn reduces transport costs, as more transport alternatives become available. Focusing on the coffee industry, technology is crucial to the production of coffee beans. The preservation of coffee beans, as demonstrated by GMCR’s nitrogen valve bag packing technology, allows for coffee beans to have an increased shelf life. This is extremely crucial as it allows a business to expand its distribution. Moreover, a longer shelf life would appeal to the consumer as they are able to buy in bulk for future use, and not have to return to the supermarket on a frequent basis. Improvement in technology allows for faster processing times and better quality control. Therefore this would have a serious impact on the coffee industry, not only to gain the edge over their competitors, but also to increase customer confidence that the product they are buying is indeed value-for-money. . 5 Demographics An aging population would mean more adults (18 and above), therefore naturally contributing to an increase in coffee consumption. The National Coffee Drinking Trends survey of adults 18 years and above concluded that 79% of adults consume coffee in 2000, 78% in 1999, and 75% in 1997, which is a total increase of 4%. 5. 6 Global i. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Coffee bean prices seem to be driven by supply and demand for i nstance, a bad crop can drive prices up and a good growing season with high yields can drive prices down. Or even adverse weather and growing conditions could produce sharp upward spikes in prices of coffee beans, especially premium and relatively scarce varieties. In recent years, green coffee prices had been under considerable downward pressures due to oversupply. The low coffee price ranges generally experienced in recent years were not considered high enough to support proper farming and processing practices for top grade coffees, potentially endangering supplies of premium grade beans. But getting high quality beans was definitely a factor for the sellers of premium coffees. To protect their access to supplies of top grade beans, many specialty coffee companies, including Green Mountain, had entered into long-term contracts to purchase needed supplies from the growers of high quality beans. In addition, companies from time to time purchased coffee futures contracts and coffee options to provide additional protection when they were unable to enter into coffee purchase commitments or when the price of a significant portion of their committed contracts were not fixed. ii. Bargaining Power of Customers Most whole bean specialty coffees for home consumption were purchased in supermarkets or neighborhood grocery stores. Supermarket retailers are in a very strong position to drive a hard bargain in granting shelf space to the many premium coffee brands wanting retail exposure—many of these brands are relatively unknown and the companies marketing them are small (like Green Mountain). Supermarket chains have considerable leeway to switch out low-selling brands and replace them with more popular brands. Individual consumers have no bargaining power beyond that of switching brands henever they are dissatisfied with the brand they are currently using. 5. 7 Conclusion The biggest source of competitive pressure is rivalry among competing brands like Starbucks Coffee while the other two big sources of competitive pressure are the bargaining power of retail chains and the continuing entry of additional brands. The industry is probably ripe for consolidation—500 specialty and pre mium brands probably cannot survive (unless most remain niche brands for a limited clientele). Strong regional brands with an attractive product and a good brand image—like Green Mountain—may well be able to grow at the expense of weaker brands. . REFERENCES 1. UK Education : Accounting for Strategic Management, [Online] Available at : http://www. ukeducation. org. uk/Documentation. asp? key=1340 2. University of Cyprus : Green Mountain Handout, [Online] Available at: http://www. pba. ucy. ac. cy/staff/Green%20Mountain-Handout. pdf 3. Wikipedia : Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, [Online] Available at: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Green_Mountain_Coffee_Roasters 4. Green Mountain Coffee : Green Mountain Coffee, [Online] Available at: http://www. greenmountaincoffee. com INDIVIDUAL REPORTS – WONG JUN WEI Question 1 : Undertake a SWOT analysis of the organization in the case. The SWOT analysis on Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) are as follows : Strengths i. Product Consistency By utilizing state-of-the-art roasting software, GMCR is therefore able to maintain their level of product consistency, ii. Unique Products GMCR uses specific roasting programmes for various types of coffee, thus creating their â€Å"signature† roasts. By offering products which are unique in the market, this allows GMCR to stand out from their competitors. iii. High Distribution Packaging technology allows GMCR’s coffee to have a long shelf life. This in turn, allows GMCR to expand it’s distribution. iv. Socially Responsible Business Practices GMCR is a supporter of social and environmental causes, and being listed in the â€Å"100 Best Corporate Citizens† and â€Å"The World’s Most Socially Responsible Companies† lists. This acts as a bonus to the company’s outlook and reputation. v. Widely Available GMCR’s products are widely available in the market. By targeting various distribution channels and customer categories, GMCR is confident that consumer trial at one point of the distribution level will lead to a subsequent purchase at another. Weaknesses i. Brand Awareness Consumers are less aware of GMCR, as compared to Starbucks, which has a higher advertising budget to create consumer awareness. Opportunities i. Increased consumption Increased coffee consumption in Europe, Asia and Brazil has just expanded GMCR’s distribution opportunities. By targeting and influencing more of the above mentioned countries’ coffee drinkers, GMCR can hope to influence most of the consumers before its rivals do so. ii. Specialty Coffee Market Gourmet, specialty coffee is the bread-and-butter of GMCR’s establishment. An increase in consumers seeking specialty coffee will mean brighter prospects for GMCR. Threats i. Decrease in coffee consumption The U. S coffee market now only accounts for 20% of world coffee consumption, compared to the 80% during World War II. The coffee market is now moving on to Europe, Asia (particularly Japan). ii. Commercial coffee roasters There is higher competition as major companies seek to enter the specialty coffee industry. Such names include but are not limited to : Phillip Morris’ Gevalia, Procter Gamble’s Millstone and Nescafe. iii. Starbucks Partnerships Starbucks, seen as a long time competitor to GMCR, upon entering into a long-term licensing with Kraft, will expect to generate extra sales 20-40 pounds of coffee per store per week. This is seen as a threat to GMCR, which has an average sales of 100 pounds of coffee per store per week. Starbucks is also partnering with Dreyer’s for branded ice cream, and Pepsi to distribute bottled Frappuccino. Question 2 : In your analysis of the organization’s strengths, be sure to identify the firm’s Core Competencies using the Value Chain. They have brewers and other coffee-related accessories that are being sold online however customer would like to have the physical touch and feel of the product that is being sold. There are products which cost hundreds of dollars which customer would not purchase the coffee machines online unless they are a regular coffee drinkers of GMCR. †¢GMCR are concentrating most of their sales online. Although there are supermarkets or convenience stores that are selling their products, customer like to know where to purchase them however the website does not provide them the information. GMCR offer samplers to new consumer however they would need to complete an online form and to qualify for the free trial and you would need to have at least 12 employees in the office. It is time consuming from the customer point of view and prevent them from completely filling up the information. Question 5 Discuss the importance of changes in the external environment to the organization †¢Custome r taste and preference will change and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters would need come up with new flavours of coffee to retain existing customer.

Distribution essays

Distribution essays Since the introduction of the World Wide Web in 1990 it has grown from a means of communicating for physicists to having more than forty million users. This tremendous growth and interest in the Internet can only mean that great opportunities lie ahead for companies and their products. Digital marketing is changing how businesses are able to get their product to the consumer. It is allowing the channels of distribution to become shorter. In order to understand the channels of distribution and how they are becoming shorter, the concept must be explained. The traditional channels of distribution consist of the product, producer, wholesaler, retailer, and the consumer. This means that first there is a product. Then there has to be someone to produce the product. The product is usually produced in mass quantity. Then the wholesaler purchases the product from the producer and then sells it to the retailer at an increased price. The retailer then advertises the product to promote it to the consumer. The retailer also sells the product to the consumer at an increased price. This process makes for very long channels with increased costs of the products. Digital marketing has changed the flow of distribution channels. It has done this by allowing the channels to become shorter. Products may pass directly from the producer to the consumer, via a digital marketer. This means that instead of having multiple channels in distribution there might just be three. Producer, virtual marketer and consumer. It could also be just producer and consumer (Kleindl, Brad, 1996:10). One of the ways that digital marketing can shorten the channels of distribution is by eliminating the retailer and the intermediate wholesaler. The producer will be able to deliver the product directly to the consumer with the help of the digital marketer and the shipper of the product. This means decreased time periods and also allows the producer to produce ...

Is Expected Utility a good theory for explaining how people make Essay

Is Expected Utility a good theory for explaining how people make choices - Essay Example Therefore, it is virtually impossible to distinguish the most important factors from the least important ones. More often than not, economic theorists and scholars in statistics and probability choose to describe one single element of human decision-making and fail to account for a variety of subjective influences and objective circumstances that change the decision-making reality. Theory of Expected Utility is fairly regarded as one of the most challenging, controversial, and sophisticated theories of making choices. Theory of Expected Utility provides a brief insight into how individuals weigh and choose the anticipated utilities of different actions and decisions. Unfortunately, Theory of Expected Utility is too narrow to explain how people make choices: the theory exhibits unbelievable insensitivity to emotional and probabilistic factors and does not account for the natural human striving to preserve emotional and rational status quo by all possible means. Theory of Expected Util ity (or Expected Utility Theory – EUT) is rightly considered as one of the most complex and controversial explanations to how people make choices.... Apparently, EUT relies on the intrinsic striving by humans to be rational and objective in their choices and decisions. It should be noted, that the roots and origins of EUT date back to the middle of the 18th century, when the first solutions to the St. Petersburg paradox were developed (Cohen 1994). Daniel Bernoulli was the first to propose an idea that any expectation and decision-making that follows would be integrally linked to the notion of personal worth or personal utility, which individuals attributed to each particular option (Cohen 1994). Moreover, it was due to Bernoulli that the process of making choices was presented in numerical terms (Cohen 1994). With time, making choices came to exemplify a complex set of rational steps and acts, which laid the ground for making one specified preference over other stated options (Cohen 1994). As a result, EUT was developed to reflect a theoretical belief that any option could be assigned a numerical value, generally described as â⠂¬Å"utility†, with the process of making choices directed toward the option with the highest expected utility (Cohen 1994). Despite its theoretical contribution, EUT is too narrow to reflect, discuss, and predict how people make choices. The growing body of scholarly criticism does not leave any room for EUT. The fact is in that individuals are being governed by a variety of non-rational, emotional, subjective meanings that are beyond the scope of EUT. EUT does not account for the fact that individuals tend to make emotional choices and are willing to preserve their status quo by all possible means. Therefore, EUT can hardly be a relevant means of explaining how people make choices. Rather, it presents only one, narrow dimension of the complex process of taking the

Any bisiness artical that has been new nd happened for the last few Essay

Any bisiness artical that has been new nd happened for the last few months - Essay Example All factors of production in the business, may it be, labor, capital, raw materials or enterprise works towards achieving a common goal that is set for the company, and all activities carried out within the business are supposed to lead the company towards achieving its ultimate goal (Nolan, pp.148-152). Businesses additionally are run in a systematic manner, involve various processes, and have a number of rules and regulations that must be followed by those involved in it. One can observe additionally a number of departments in every business that manages various activities, such as the marketing department, finance department, promotion and advertising department, customer care department, etc (Nolan, pp. 20-39). A number of external and internal factors, which may include inflation rates, interest rates, and the exchange rate of a country’s currency can also influence every business and various skills are required in order to run a business smoothly and successfully along w ith achieving its objectives. Recently, due to the earthquake in Japan, which was followed by a tsunami, many changes have occurred in a number of businesses in the country. In an article by Alex Taylor (2011), found on the CNN website, the author (Taylor, 2011) talks about how Japan’s auto making industry is down but not out. He states that the two natural disasters that recently occurred will surely cause various shortages in the industry, but as noted before, Japanese automakers have the power to find their way out of catastrophes successfully. The author (Taylor, 2011) further states in his article that a Toyota representative had reported that no deaths or injuries have been under notice in the Toyota parts plants and subsidiaries, but the plants have surely suffered damage. According to Alex (Taylor, 2011), Toyota plans to keep its 12 main assembly plants in the country closed until Tuesday and the company’s representative stated that this might cause Toyota to l ose 95,000 units of cars that could have been under production. Due to this, Toyota reduced acceleration of the process of production in North America in order to conserve parts (Gholz, pp. 26-30). Japan’s auto making industry (Shimokawa, pp. 56-64) is currently trying to recover and resist from coming to an end, while people in the country are busy burying the dead, rescuing and curing the living citizens and dealing with the aftermath of the great disaster. Korea’s Tong Yang Securities states that production in the industry will surely not be able to come back to normal very soon, even though security analysts are quite busy doing their job and evaluating the results of the major catastrophe. Statistics (Taylor, 2011) included in the report show that in six months after the earthquake that occurred in January 1995, â€Å"shares of Toyota, Honda, and Nissan dropped by 22%, 35%, and 40% respectively† (Taylor, 2011), and it took the companies around one month abo ve a year to recover from the massive destruction and loss caused by the earthquake. At that time, Honda and Mazda, both halted the production of their vehicles and parts for the rest of the week after the disaster, and there was a loss of production of about 36,700 vehicles a day (Taylor, 2011) globally. The author of the article (Taylor, 2011) fu

Lab Report Essay Example for Free

Lab Report Essay As part of my module Nip1002 I was required to perform a set of observational skills which included; pulse, blood pressure, respirations, hand washing and urinalysis and then compare them to previous results. In this lab report I am going to discuss blood pressure in detail. Procedure * Explain the procedure to the patient and gain consent * Wash hands thoroughly following the hand wash technique to prevent the transfer of bacteria * Clean equipment e.g. blood pressure cuff and stethoscope using antibacterial wipes * Ensure the patient is comfortable and has been resting for 10 minutes * Remove tight clothing and support the arm at heart level, overestimation or underestimation can occur if it is not at the appropriate level * Ensure you have the correct cuff size for the patient or this could give an inaccurate reading * Locate the brachial artery and apply the cuff * Estimate the systolic pressure by using the radial pulse and inflate the cuff until the pulse cannot be felt. This is important to provide an estimation and avoids error in reading. * To take the patient’s blood pressure use a stethoscope and place on the brachial artery pulse and inflate 20-30 mmHg higher than the estimated systolic pulse * Immediately release the pressure using the thumb valve at approximately 2mmHg per second. If it is deflated too rapidly you may not hear the sounds accurately * The systolic pressure is the level when clear tapping sounds first appear and the diastolic pressure is the level when the sounds disappear * Record the measurements on an observation chart and compare the previous results as this will allow changes in the patient’s condition to be monitored appropriately (see appendix 3) * Remove the cuff and explain the reading to the patient * Clean all equipment and wash hands again to prevent cross infection (Glasper, Richardson; McEwing, 2009, p.168 169) Discussion The heart is located in the centre of the chest and is protected by the rib cage. The heart receives oxygenated blood from the lungs through the pulmonary veins. It then goes to the left atrium, to the left ventricle, to the ascending aorta and is pumped around the body. The superior and inferior vena cava delivers de-oxygenated blood to the right atrium from the body. (See appendix 1) It then goes to the right ventricle, pumps through to the pulmonary trunk to the right and left arteries and then to the lungs. (Tortora and Derrickson, 2011, Chapter20) Blood pressure is the force exerted by the blood on the walls of blood vessels and this should be at a certain level to ensure that the body is functioning correctly. Blood pressure varies from person to person but the normal reading for a healthy adult is around 120/80. (BPA 2008) The top number is called systolic blood pressure and is the highest pressure attained in arteries during systole. The bottom number is called diastolic blood pressure and is the lowest arterial pressure attained during diastole. (Tortora and Derrickson, 2011, p.814) The blood pressure reading that I got on my patient was 120/90 this was slightly higher from the previous readings which were 90/50 and 90/60. Although this reading is slightly high I would not consider it to be a case of hypertension. Hypertension is when your blood pressure readings consistently show readings of 140/90 mmHg. (NHS, 2010) A persons chances of having hypertension are raised due to a number of factors; age, weight, family history and diet. Hypertension creates a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes. ((Glasper, Richardson; McEwing, 2009, p.170) Reflection I am going to use Gibbs (Glasper; Richardson, 2011, p.xix) reflective cycle (see appendix 2) to analyse my reflection. I did a set of observations which included; pulse, respirations, blood pressure, hand washing and urinalysis. When I was doing the observations I was very nervous and I was aware that I was being evaluated which made me feel stressed. Overall I think I did well in the exam because I remembered all the steps and got it done in the time limit. I felt I could have done better if I wasn’t as nervous, as I feel this affected my skills technique. Looking back on the exam I think I was lacking in communication skills as I did not talk to the patient enough. In conclusion it is important that all vital signs are monitored as this can be one of the first indications that a patient is deteriorating. Blood pressure is one of the most important physiological measurements used to diagnose a patient’s condition. References BPA (2008) what is normal blood pressure? [online]. BPA. Available from: http://www.bloodpressureuk.org/BloodPressureandyou/Thebasics/Whatisnormal [Accessed 27th July 2012] Glasper, A. Mcewing, G. and Richardson, J., (2009). ‘Introduction’ in Glasper, A, Mcewing G, and Richardson., Foundation studies for caring. Palgrave McMillan, pxix Glasper, A. Mcewing, G. and Richardson, J., (2009). ‘skills for physiological assessment’ in Glasper, A, Mcewing G, and Richardson., Foundation skills for caring. Palgrave McMillan, p168 p169 Glasper, A. Mcewing, G. and Richardson, J., (2009). ‘skills for physiological assessment’ in Glasper, A, Mcewing G, and Richardson., Foundation skills for caring. Palgrave McMillan, p170 NHS (2011) High blood pressure: hypertension. [online]. NHS. Available from: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Blood-pressure-(high)/Pages/Introduction.aspx [Accessed 5th of August 2012) Tortora, G, and Derrickson, B,. (2011). ‘The cardiova scular system: Blood vessels and hemodynamics’. In Tortora, G and Derrickson, B., Principles of Anatomy and Physiology: Maintenance and continuity of the human body’ (13th edit) Wiley. p814. Tortora, G, and Derrickson, B,. (2011). ‘The cardiovascular system: The Heart’. In Tortora, G and Derrickson, B., Principles of Anatomy and Physiology: Maintenance and continuity of the human body’ (13th edit) Wiley. Chapter 20. Appendix 1

Link these jobs with these jobs skills & qualities needed :: Business and Management Studies

Link these jobs with these jobs skills & qualities needed Personal Qualities While certain jobs will require specific skills, there are a number of personal qualities that must employer look for in an employee regardless of job role. These skills are:  · Communication Skills  · Manual Skills  · Using Initiative  · Flexibility  · Reliability  · Enthusiasm  · Problem Solving  · Motivation  · Intelligence  · Honesty  · Time Management  · Team Working Skills  · Dependability  · I.C.T Skills Communication Skills Ability in the areas of language understanding, communicating expressively, and practical language skills is needed in most basic job role. Communication is the art of successfully sharing meaningful information with people by means of an interchange of experience. E.g. Coaches wish to motivate the athletes they work with and to provide them with information that will allow them to train effectively and improve performance. Communication from the coach to athlete will initiate appropriate actions. Manual Skills Many employers will look for employees who have some basic manual skills. Manual skills workers should be able to lift boxes, carry large packages, mop the floor, and climb steps and ladders to reach files or products. E.g. A shop assistant should be manually skilled so that when customers ask for products that are on the top shelves he/she can get it. Using Initiative Employers want staffs that get on with their work happily without complaining. The employees should use their own brain power. E.g. If an employee keep on asking his/her senior about everything on the work she/he is doing that means she/he is not using their initiative. Honesty Employees should be honest to their employers instead of lying to and not coming to work. Making excuses not to come to work saying that I fell off sick, I had to go to an appointment. Even if an employee takes money out from the organisation without asking the employer that is not honest. E.g. an employee in the HSBC bank took out money from the bank without asking. Efficiency Efficient employees have to work at a high standard as possible and

Autobiography of a Coin

I was born in mines. My body is made of various metals. Thus I have no fixed race. I am a hybrid. I remember the day when I was put into a furnace. The whole of my body was burning red hot. Finally, I remember vaguely to have melted. I was put into mcould and given a new shape. When I regained consciousness, I found that I had completely changed. My body was shining brightly. When I had put on my new shape, beautiful designs were put upon both sides of me. I began to smile with joy. After the pains of fires, I had become a personage with some status. I remained at the mint for a few days with a number of brothers and sisters.We were lending a happy life full of golden dreams about our future lives and careers. It was a red letter day in the history of my life, when I was put into a huge bag along with all my brothers and sisters and placed in a bus. We knew we would see the light of the day. Our grand careers were going to commence. We were on the threshold on a new life. Of course, for some time it was suffocating. But we did not mind. We knew our troubles were short lived and would come to an end very soon. We therefore suffered patiently ‘the mild yoke of God’. We were taken down at a majestic building.My friends told me we had reached ‘The State Bank’. I heaved a sigh of relief but my troubles were yet not over. I was closed in a safe. It was rigorous imprisonment. It was rumored that armed constabulary guarded the doors of our prison. We were sad at heart. We had run from frying pan to the fire. All our hopes were on the point of being shuttered. We prayed to god and one day he did listen to our prayers. A gentleman came to my rescue. He took me and some of my brother home and put me in a chest. The next day he gave me to his child, who was very pleased to see my glittering appearance.I was also glad to have obtained this young friend. I had thought that I shall get an oopportunity of enjoying the company of my friend for a long t ime. But alas! He went straight to a sweet-seller and threw me at his shop. The sweet-seller knocked my head against the ground. I had learnt the lesson that life is not a bed of roses. It is really full of dangers, difficulties and disappointments. To cut a long story short, I have been leading a free, vagrant life. I have been with old and young, rich and poor, men, women and children. I have been with doctors and cobblers, cycle-merchants and lawyers, sstudents and company managers.It is impossible to recount all the adventures. I have had all the ups and downs. Now I am old and weak. Time was, when I was young, fresh, energetic and fiery. Now I am mere ashes. I am worn-out and weather-beaten and my heart is as grey as my head. I only console myself with the thought that I have always received love and affection in my life. Everybody has taken great care of me and kept me as best he could. For this all generosity, I thank everybody with all my heart. I have no ambition. I am only waiting for the day, when I shall go back into the lap of my creator (the in charge of mint).