E-commerce

Throughout my four years at the universe sits of Gullah, I have learned one very important thing: learning does not end once you graduate high school or university, it is a continuous facet of life that should never be ignored but embraced. I am sure that learn something new every day. It may not be life altering; It may be something so minute that I missed the fact that I learned it. For example, each day In my anatomy class I learn how the human body works. Monday, I didn't know that each vein doses' have corresponding arteries, but on Wednesday, I did.Just last week, I learn d how easy It Is to make tomato sauce. These little events led me to believe that learning never ends and I can use this new knowledge to better my life. The knowledge I gained in high school helped me to succeed in University, and the knowledge I gain In University will help me to succeed In the Job field. I know that over the past four years, I ha eve developed my skills and learned quite a lot. For instance , when I study for a test, it is not Just to memorize the material like I did in high school, but also to under stand the material presented to me.This method not only helps me get great mark s on tests, but now can utilize this knowledge in my every day life. My faith re was a big coffee drinker. He drank 6 cups of coffee a day. After my first year of university, I Lear Ned how to research a topic and present In a simple, effective e manner. I researched the disadvantages and side effects of drinking coffee and GA eve this information to him, in the hopes that he would cut back, which he did. I have also learned that there AR information.For instance, some people are better learners who n they are being lectured to: others learn better independent TTYL, I learn the best when it is hands- on. For instance, in my organic chemist ray class, I understood the concepts a lot better in the laboratory than in class. This as peck of learning also applies to my life as a peer helper. When I first became a peer, there were many procedures, and formats that I needed to learn. I found it very difficult to read a hand out, as my supervisor was lecturing me too. I decide deed that in order to understand these procedures, I need to physically go through h them.This hands- on approach allowed Bases of Competence Skills Portfolio Specifications Fred Veers page 26 of 34 September 2005 me to understand this new information the best and help me to be the most effective at my Job. The development of my ability to learn is also apparent in my social life. In many aspects of my life, I have to be professional, something I never thought I needed to be. In high school, I acted however I wanted, whenever I wanted, even if it left a poor impression of me. I can remember this one incident when I was being particularly rude to my mother at the bank. E-commerce Throughout my four years at the universe sits of Gullah, I have learned one very important thing: learning does not end once you graduate high school or university, it is a continuous facet of life that should never be ignored but embraced. I am sure that learn something new every day. It may not be life altering; It may be something so minute that I missed the fact that I learned it. For example, each day In my anatomy class I learn how the human body works. Monday, I didn't know that each vein doses' have corresponding arteries, but on Wednesday, I did.Just last week, I learn d how easy It Is to make tomato sauce. These little events led me to believe that learning never ends and I can use this new knowledge to better my life. The knowledge I gained in high school helped me to succeed in University, and the knowledge I gain In University will help me to succeed In the Job field. I know that over the past four years, I ha eve developed my skills and learned quite a lot. For instance , when I study for a test, it is not Just to memorize the material like I did in high school, but also to under stand the material presented to me.This method not only helps me get great mark s on tests, but now can utilize this knowledge in my every day life. My faith re was a big coffee drinker. He drank 6 cups of coffee a day. After my first year of university, I Lear Ned how to research a topic and present In a simple, effective e manner. I researched the disadvantages and side effects of drinking coffee and GA eve this information to him, in the hopes that he would cut back, which he did. I have also learned that there AR information.For instance, some people are better learners who n they are being lectured to: others learn better independent TTYL, I learn the best when it is hands- on. For instance, in my organic chemist ray class, I understood the concepts a lot better in the laboratory than in class. This as peck of learning also applies to my life as a peer helper. When I first became a peer, there were many procedures, and formats that I needed to learn. I found it very difficult to read a hand out, as my supervisor was lecturing me too. I decide deed that in order to understand these procedures, I need to physically go through h them.This hands- on approach allowed Bases of Competence Skills Portfolio Specifications Fred Veers page 26 of 34 September 2005 me to understand this new information the best and help me to be the most effective at my Job. The development of my ability to learn is also apparent in my social life. In many aspects of my life, I have to be professional, something I never thought I needed to be. In high school, I acted however I wanted, whenever I wanted, even if it left a poor impression of me. I can remember this one incident when I was being particularly rude to my mother at the bank. E-commerce Throughout my four years at the universe sits of Gullah, I have learned one very important thing: learning does not end once you graduate high school or university, it is a continuous facet of life that should never be ignored but embraced. I am sure that learn something new every day. It may not be life altering; It may be something so minute that I missed the fact that I learned it. For example, each day In my anatomy class I learn how the human body works. Monday, I didn't know that each vein doses' have corresponding arteries, but on Wednesday, I did.Just last week, I learn d how easy It Is to make tomato sauce. These little events led me to believe that learning never ends and I can use this new knowledge to better my life. The knowledge I gained in high school helped me to succeed in University, and the knowledge I gain In University will help me to succeed In the Job field. I know that over the past four years, I ha eve developed my skills and learned quite a lot. For instance , when I study for a test, it is not Just to memorize the material like I did in high school, but also to under stand the material presented to me.This method not only helps me get great mark s on tests, but now can utilize this knowledge in my every day life. My faith re was a big coffee drinker. He drank 6 cups of coffee a day. After my first year of university, I Lear Ned how to research a topic and present In a simple, effective e manner. I researched the disadvantages and side effects of drinking coffee and GA eve this information to him, in the hopes that he would cut back, which he did. I have also learned that there AR information.For instance, some people are better learners who n they are being lectured to: others learn better independent TTYL, I learn the best when it is hands- on. For instance, in my organic chemist ray class, I understood the concepts a lot better in the laboratory than in class. This as peck of learning also applies to my life as a peer helper. When I first became a peer, there were many procedures, and formats that I needed to learn. I found it very difficult to read a hand out, as my supervisor was lecturing me too. I decide deed that in order to understand these procedures, I need to physically go through h them.This hands- on approach allowed Bases of Competence Skills Portfolio Specifications Fred Veers page 26 of 34 September 2005 me to understand this new information the best and help me to be the most effective at my Job. The development of my ability to learn is also apparent in my social life. In many aspects of my life, I have to be professional, something I never thought I needed to be. In high school, I acted however I wanted, whenever I wanted, even if it left a poor impression of me. I can remember this one incident when I was being particularly rude to my mother at the bank.

Macbeth and Integrity Essay

There are seeds of self-destruction buried in all of us that will bare only misfortune if allowed to grow. Macbeth’s guilty path to his des Integrity is define as many things, value, honor, morality, and so on. These principles are the gears that run society. Integrity is one’s identity and to maintain it one must not violate it. Those who are guided solely by their individual ambition will ultimately become a victim of fate leading to the imminent corruption of value, honor, and principles of society. In the words of Henry Thoreau â€Å"There is no value in life except what you choose to place upon it and no happiness in any place except what you bring to it yourself. † Macbeth’s value of his own life is evident in his thoughts â€Å"Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player. † His strife for power guided the events that determined the downfall of his life. His values in life were no longer present and his integrity had collapsed beyond repair, so he vowed to continue with his strife for power knowing that the end of his life was inevitable. Some would question why Macbeth would continue on with his careless strife for power, but when someone has hit â€Å"rock-bottom† they do not think logically. No person was ever honored for what they received. Honor is rewarded for what a person gives. Macbeth was honored by many in the beginning of the story, but this honor was superficial. History has proven that you cannot simply cheat your way to being honored, you must earn it. When you cheat, you lose sight of what is important in your life and Macbeth was a cheater of extreme proportions. When Macbeth heard that his wife had passed he did not care for her, instead he worried more about upcoming threats involving his power â€Å"She should have died hereafter. There would have been a time for such a word. † Ultimately karma prevailed and Macbeth’s inventible downfall was nearing. The foundation of leadership is undoubtedly integrity. Without it, success is not possible. One that gains power or leads without integrity is bound to collapse. Macbeth is a prime example of this. Macbeth uses murder to cheat his way to power. Murder is like potato chips you cannot stop eating after one chip, you continue to eat due to impulse. After several murders Macbeth realizes that his collapse is inevitable, but in his mind he has gone too far to retreat. His life is now nothing more than a slow burning fire waiting to be put out. Creeps in this petty pace from day to day to the last syllable of recorded time, and all our yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! † Integrity is one’s identity; inner image. Integrity is not conditional is does not simply change like weather. Macbeth never reached true greatness this is because true greatness is never achieved by cheating you must earn it. To be successful one must be an embodiment of integrity and all its components.

Caledonia Products Essay

There are a lot of factors that Caledonia must consider when they are thinking about buying versus leasing a property. Leasing brings many positive savings in a company; there are many incidentals that may come up while owning a property, such as the unexpected repairs. Leasing can help with long term savings for a company; it provides the comfort of trying new areas out. If Caledonia starts to branch out, opens up new locations in different states, leasing the building will be a lot smarter of an idea than it would be to buy. Not knowing how well the company will do in that state, will provide tons of savings if things do not go as planned. Along with saving during the long term, Caledonia will be saving in overall taxes. However, if Caledonia has owned a previous leasing site and business is moving. It will be smart for them to go ahead and buy some property. They will be able to save in the long run with owning instead of leasing, because this location will be considered a long term. While owning the site, doing renovations to the building will never be an issue. You will not have to go through the hassle of a third party to the store/ property up to standards to the market. There is already a process with getting permits pulled and getting construction sites up to code. Depending on the overall move that Caledonia wants to go in will have to be based off of their initial plan on getting more property. As mentioned there are many different pro’s and con’s on why either leasing or buying can be considered an option.

Comparison Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Comparison Critique - Essay Example rd (Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons, presumably met Theseus in combat), he will wed her â€Å"with pomp, with triumph, and with reveling’ with a grand celebration to begin at once and last until the wedding. The order that was given to the youth to be in the merriment mood shows that there was overuse of authority to the people in the society who had little or nothing to say at all. This can be a good example of dictatorship. The kings are also known to be dictators in the countries that they rule because the leadership is inherited without giving much consideration to the leadership qualities (Bloom and Janyce 28). Egeus, an Athenian citizen, arrives at Theseuss palace with a crisis. Hes made plans for his daughter, Hermia, to marry Demetrius, but this other guy named Lysander has managed to steal his daughters heart. Now Hermia refuses to marry Demetrius. Egeus is outraged and wants Theseus to give Hermia the death sentence for her disobedience, per Athenian law. The marriage arrangements seem to have failed because the daughter refuses to marry the man that the king had chosen for her. This is an indication that the king does not accept to give other people a chance to make their own choice. He dictates even the family members a total dictatorial society (Shurin 195). Duke Theseus wants to be reasonable, so he advises Hermia to be a good girl and listen to her father. Hermia flat-out refuses, so Theseus gives her two alternative options: 1) accept the death penalty as punishment for disobedience, or 2) become a nun and remain a virgin forever. Hermia has four days to decide her fate. In the society, there are always advisors who will come to give advice on the basis that they care. They come to persuade someone to do something to please someone. Duke is such a person who is advising Hermia to wed someone who is not her choice but her conscience tells her not to. Sometimes it is good to follow someone’s conscience because it is always right on some situations

HRM and Personal Practice Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

HRM and Personal Practice Report - Essay Example In the short term, I would like to complete successfully my studies in HRM at Cardiff Met and have to get a Bachelor degree with a minimum classification of Second Class Honors Upper Division. In the long term, I will continue my studies in HRM filed through a post-graduate specifically in Master of Science program at Manchester University, which could help me to enhance my skills in HRM. One of the positive attributes of the presentation is that it has a good introduction, which serves the purpose of preparing the audience for what to expect in the course of the presentation. Similarly, the presentation makes it easy for the audience to have a clear understanding of the content. This is achieved by defining of strategic HRM terms used in the course of the presentation. Seemingly, the presentation was thoroughly researched on, as reference materials are included at the end. Another positive attribute of the presentation is the fact that the recommendations that have been outlined at the end of the report are related to the content that has been discussed in the course of the presentation. Over and above, it is imperative to acknowledge that the structure of the presentation is ideal. This is supported by the fact that the slides are well organized and that the content is well presented. In as much as the presentation appears to be the finest article, it fails to meet the expectations at some instances. For example (Dennis, 2006) that is referred to in, the presentation has not been properly cited. In as much as the research has covered most of the aspects of strategic HRM, it has failed to give examples of institutions whenever necessary. If I were to repeat the task, I would develop the presentation by giving specific examples of organizations that have implemented the strategic aspects of HRM successfully or unsuccessfully. Similarly, I would make the presentation clear and

Act of vandalism - Graffiti Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Act of vandalism - Graffiti - Term Paper Example One reason why graffiti is often considered to have little artistic merit is that it is often done by young people who are still developing and practicing their artistic abilities. There is no guarantee that just because someone has the ability to graffiti that their work will necessarily be any good in the artistic sense however this is defined. Graffiti is connected with gangs who use tags to mark their territories, often to warn off other gangs as described by the web page Graffiti Art. In Northern Ireland large wall paintings, often on gable ends, serve as territorial markers between the different sectarian groups. In New York it appears on sub way cars. Sometimes graffiti, especially tags, which came into prominence in the1990’s, is used as a form of initiation, especially if in a hard to reach place. This gives it associations with both serious organized crime such drug dealing, as well as anti social behavior and what are seen as the more serious acts of vandalism such as smashing windows arson. Although some spectacular graffiti is done using spray cans, most is done on such places as toilet walls or back seats of buses, either by scratching into a surface using a sharp object (this type of graffiti is undoubtedly vandalism as it damages) or using a pen or pens. The aim of top graffiti artists such as Banksy in the United Kingdom, and is to create their own unique and recognizable style and to have their pieces in prominent places where they will attract attention.

INTRODUCTION TO WESTERN PHILOSOPHY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

INTRODUCTION TO WESTERN PHILOSOPHY - Essay Example Furthermore, it tells us that knowledge is acquired through the exercise of reason, understood as a faculty that can operate independently, in whole or in part, of a posteriori evidence. One of the elements which is most central to Nietzsche’s philosophy is illustrated in his famous declaration that, â€Å"God is Dead!† (Cahn 1227) This affirms a complete rejection of metaphysical, moral, and religious truths as grounds for reality. Unlike the Socratic philosophical canon, Nietzsche contends that the spiritual dimension is illusory. To Nietzsche, the existence of God, religion, morality, ethics, free will, freedom, and laws are mistakes for they are nothing but imaginary causes, an imaginary psychology. In his view, such things are nothing but mere projections of one’s psychological desire for security and calculability in life. In addition, it presupposes a denial of universal morality as the basis for human conduct. Nietzsche believed that once the existence of God is unveiled as an illusion, then it follows that God can no longer be implemented as the foundation for human ethical conducts. This leads to the assertion that all inquiries, dispositions and morals will be founded on the subjective will of individual self. Thus, unlike the Socratic philosophical canon, Nietzsche affirmed the individual self as the basis of all inquires and norms. This is Nietzsche’s theory of the will to power. Nietzsche’s (Cahn 1241) will to power is defined as the drive to dominate the environment. This drive, so central is the Will to Power. This Will to Power is more than simply the will to survive. It is, rather, an inner drive to express a vigorous affirmation of all a person’s powers. In doing so, the individual shall not only reaffirm his or her own subjective standards but moreover, they will gradually reach the consciousness of the higher type of man, the Ubermensch or Superman. For Nietzsche, the temperament of the Superman sha ll enable individuals to revitalize faith in their creative powers and this earthly existence. However, Nietzsche declares that not all people can attain the awareness of this superior type of individual. He claims that only those who excel in their mental and physical constitutions can procure the temperament of the Superman. He insists that the superman must have complete freedom, i.e. that one should not decide to practice a certain code of ethics, for the will to power will gradually decline. By this, the individual weakens and suffers. To explicate further, Nietzsche accused Christianity for advocating virtues that undermine and destabilize one’s will to power. Here, Nietzsche presents his doctrine of the two-fold history of good and evil. This doctrine reveals that there exists two types of morality, i.e. master morality and slave morality. For Nietzsche, master morality is one that is built on the will to power. He is one who considers that which is good = Powerful; ba d = Weakness. Also, he is one who practices generosity, not out of pity but out of excess. Those who practice this type of morality are the elite and noble men, meaning those who determine their morals according to their own personal standards. On the other hand, slave morality is that, which is

Population Demographics data for non US countries Essay

Population Demographics data for non US countries - Essay Example Analysis of the graph shows that South Africa does not have a steady increase in her population. During the millennium year, the country had a population of forty five million people that increased steadily to about forty nine million in two thousand and five (Ominde and Ejiogu 2012). This represents an increase in population of about four million. However, from two thousand and five to two thousand and ten, the population of South Africa increased to fifty one million people. This shows an additional two million people. In fact, the last census survey reveals a growth rate of negative zero point zero five. Over the same period of five years, the population growth was negative. This trend does not reflect what happens in other African countries bearing in mind that the country enjoys a stable economic, social, and political environment. The causes and Impact South Africa is a country on the list of the fastest growing economies. This enables to provide high quality services to the citizens. The country has improved her infrastructure increasing the rate of rural to urban migration. This affects the birth and death rates. The birth rate has increased following provision of the quality maternal healthcare, which reduces the death rate. The availability of family planning services counters this trend. Education also plays a major role in checking the population of South Africa.... Education also plays a major role in checking the population of South Africa. South Africans have adequate reproductive health information. They understand the right time to bear children and this reduces the fertility rate as most women spent time in school hence they bear children when after their teenage ages. This is not the case in other countries in Africa such as Kenya. Comparatively, there many women in Kenya who become mothers around the age of fifteen as they do not go to school and they still stick to traditions as opposed to South Africans. The low population growth rate makes South Africa capable of sustaining food demands of her people. Families also get involved in economically productive activities and this gives time to the government to invest in other non-food projects such as the development of IT. The population of South Africa is more educated when compared to other Africans countries as both the citizens and the government have adequate disposable income for en lightenment. Kenya Total population (x 1000) Population aged 0–14 (%) Population aged 15–64 (%) Population aged 65+ (%) 1965 9 505 48.4 48.0 3.6 1970 11 252 49.1 47.5 3.4 1975 13 486 49.6 47.1 3.3 1980 16 268 50.0 47.1 3.0 1985 19 655 50.0 47.2 2.8 1990 23 447 49.0 48.3 2.7 1995 27 426 46.5 50.8 2.7 2000 31 254 44.3 52.9 2.8 2005 35 615 42.7 54.5 2.8 2015 43 513 42.5 54.9 2.7 (Ominde 2012) Tracing the status Kenya is a country in found in East Africa in the southern Great Lakes region. The country is largely multi-ethnic. The country had a population of thirty-eight million people basing on the national population census conducted by the government in two thousand and nine. The country conducts a national census every ten years with the last one in two thousand and nine and the next

Factors of Civic Disengagement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Factors of Civic Disengagement - Essay Example However, changes in social structures, economic needs, and order of priorities altered several social obligations. As what Robert Putnam (2000) pointed out, residential mobility, economic hard times, and busyness are prime factors of civic disengagement. To best suit the fluidity of lifestyle of today’s Americans, â€Å"thin, single-stranded... are replacing dense, multi stranded, well-exercised bonds† (Putnam, 2000, p. 184). These bonds are more informal which suit the kind of life they lead. One would say that American civic engagement is slowly declining but this is of course, because of several logical and valid reasons. In the striving economic situation and the frequent rise of price for basic commodities, working individuals are not to blame for disengaging from social activities; however, this is not to approve of it but rather, a more considerate point to address the growing economic needs of the family. On the other hand, Putnam (2000) contends that however th ese busy people work for better financial situation, â€Å"economic good fortune has not guaranteed continued civic engagement† (p. 194); busyness does not excuse them of disengaging from civic life. Another factor is residential mobility (p. 204). The Americans’ mobility largely depends on economy; where employment opportunity is dense, they would be willing to relocate.

International Marketing Essay Example for Free

International Marketing Essay Many researches has been conducted on flight companies that are operating and connecting all the continents, but this research is about a company that started in 1940s in an Arab country in the middle east, the company is call flight Emirates, first the company was aimed to deliver flying service in United Arab Emirates and in the region, but as soon as the company raised revenues and added new shares the company thought of going further and compete in the global market. The amazing and surprising part in this company is its ability to rapidly grow and compete perfectly in the global market not only that, it has achieved its objective in that competition as you will see in the paper. The contents of this research are four parts, in the first part we will take you through how the company started and expanded to the global market up to United State of America, vision and mission of the company in the market place. In the second part you will see how the PEST and other driving forces has effect the company operations in United States and other countries, while reaching part three the research will show how the company’s segmentation, distribution, pricing and product strategy are being perform, and we shall conclude with a comprehensive summary, analysis and present the results that we have got through out our research. The unifying them in this research is the company ability to compete in a higher competitive environment like USA not only that but resulting on generating revenue and adding value to its original capital, the company also can be count as one of the biggest flight companies in the world due to its capability and differentiation in the market place. Finally, let’s hope that our research will be a vital added value to previous researches in the same matter. PART ONE: 1.1 About flight Emirate: The beginning of Emirate flight goes back to 1959 when Sheikh Rashid Saed the government official opens the Dubai international airport and announces that Dnata company with only five staff will be in charge of ground handling services, in 1978 Mr.Manrice Flanagan was appointed by Sheikh Rashid to be the general manager of dnata company which is the operating company for flight Emirates, Mr. Flanagan later on in 1984 design how the company could possibly move to serve in air service, and with acceptance of Dubai government the company requested Pakistan international airline to lease them two aircrafts, the deals were struck to fly into Karachi, New Delhi and Bombay in India. In 1985 Sheikh Mohamed gifts two Boeing 727-2005 to the airlines, these two Boeing increased the operations where the airline was able to fly to more than twenty countries. Sheikh Ahmed later on in 1990 signed an agreement with Asian Aerospace exhibition in Singapore to add airbus A310-300s to the company. In 1992 Emirate flight become the first airline to install video system in all seats in all classes in the same year the France government allow officially the flight to operate in the country, by that time the company’s work forces become 11,000 employee. Ten years later exactly in 2011 the company managed to fly to more than 120 destinations world wide, and recorded a profit of ($1.6 billion) and bought the largest Boeing in history 50777-300ER. Flight Emirate as part of its marketing strategy has sponsored number of events and competitions e.g in 2012 the company sponsor Tennis in united state and crick’s Indian premier league. As we mentioned earlier the Dnata Company headed by smart board of directors is not an easy company and the proof is that its ability to raise the capital to $ 2 billion and the workforces from 11,000 to 62,000 employees in 2012 as it was the most profitable year for the company. The company now call the Emirate group and consist two parties Emirate and dnata company and has expanded into many business for instance, hotels, workshops and tourism and the are operating all over the world. 1.2 Flight Emirate in North and South America: Flight emirates operates in North and South America challenging Americans airlines in delivering air services it flies to Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Urguay, Canada and United States, within the United States the company operate in more than six states creating a competitive environment and adding valuing advantage to this market. The free market economy adopted by United States is a difficult market to compete in if you don’t have a competitive advantage, the flight emirate with its uniqueness and appropriate tactics has a lots of winning games as we shall discuss it later on in part three, and you will realize that the company has attracted the market using different approaches. 1.3 Flight emirates management orientation toward global business: Flight emirate as we stated earlier in our introduction started as a small company call dnata in Dubai, therefore the management structure in the early 1950 was regiocentrics but after the Dubai government increased the capital and instructed many deals the company management changed in 1960s to be geocentric orientation as the views the entire world as a potential market and strive to develop their brand and integrate in global market. The reasons why we categorize the company as a transnational company are the followings: (1) The company operates in more than 100 countries and flies all over the world. (2) The company’s work forces are more than 62,000 employee spread in six continents. (3) The company assets i.e (flights, workshops, hotels etc) are not all based in Dubai. In conclusion to this regard the emirates company management can be classified as a combined of two management structures, reogiocentric a nd geocentric because in its starts the focus was regionally but later on they progress in global scale till they adapt the geocentric orientation structure. 1.4 Flight Emirate vision and mission: Vision: The vision of flight emirate is very simple as we mentioned earlier the company started as ground services company in 1940s but after Dubai government decided to inject more capital the business increases and ambitions become more than just being a ground service company therefore in 1960s the company decided to focus broader in flight services not only in Dubai and in the region but even globally. Now the vision is to be a â€Å"leading company in flight and tourism world wide providing excellent, safe and customer satisfaction†. Mission: The mission of the company is to ensure that the flight is the choice of every traveler and to create a business competitive environment and add valuable service to the market. Differentiation, opportunities and development of a star brand in the Gulf region and all over the world is the purpose of the company’s today’s focus. PART TWO: The Business Environment: 2.1 Political, Economic, social and Technological analysis (PEST): The business environment where the company operates is an important situation that we have an obligation to express in this research, many forces drives and affect the market place of any operating company, to analyze the situation we read the political, economic, social and technology changes. Political and Economic aspects: The country where flight emirate generated from is United Arab Emirate in middle east one of the world’s largest country in oil production, the economic growth and political stability are the sign of advancement in that country. UAE currently undergoing rapid expansion in investment and private venture, the government made number of commitments to strengthen and reform its investment regulatory and make conducive environment for exports and imports. United States and UAE are strongly partners in many political alliances, economic benefits, social and cultural activities the exchange numerous of interests in regard to these issues. Politically, the relationship between the United Arab Emirates and United States has been positive and productive for more than 30 years they are a reliable allies in many military, economic, and social affairs, the United State view UAE as source of stability, tolerance, innovation and a leading figure in the Gulf region. After the US tragedy in September 11 2001 where 2,996 including hijackers killed, the US foreign policy changed a lot including the relationship with UAE based on the fact that two of the hijackers were from UAE, immediately after the attack the background security checks for an Arab visitors was very high and research shows how some harassment and hates developed against Muslim in US. In conclusion to the political environment where flight emirates operates i,e in US there is no negative impact due to the strong and smooth relationship between the two countries. Economically, the UAE is the US single largest export market in the Middle East with $1.5 billion in 20 11 most are machinery, aircraft, industrial and other valuable items, US imports from UAE in 2011 was 2.44 billion most are crude oil, aluminum and other things. The US petroleum companies played a big role in development of UAE energy sector, more than 800 US firms are operating in the UAE investing in different sectors and injecting UAE market with new jobs and opportunities of Arab youth. The research also found that the US, UAE relationship is a long term partnership and each state in US probably has its own trade relationship with UAE. Research also found that UAE is the larger operator of Boeing 777 aircraft in the world, in November 2011 Emirate flight placed an order for $ 24 billion record breaking for 50 Boeing 777-300 ERs, before that there were number of orders for purchasing Boeing from US which make the company the most consumer of this type of flights. In conclusion to economic relationship between the two countries, the flight emirates is the world’s largest operator of Boeing 777 and serves non-stop flying from Dubai, also the robust trade and investment relationship between UAE and USA is based on the political stability and diplomatic understanding. Socially, the UAE and US have a lots of social partnership in numerous of activities, UAE is an open country for visitors and legal immigrant, its population is extremely liberal and open minded society compare to the other countries in the region, UAE attracts many investors and tourist including US citizens, the US population in UAE estimated to be 4,000 people working in different sectors of production. UAE population in USA is recorded not to be affected by any violence or discrimination against any human right because US treat and protect the entire resident equally but individual harassment does exist because of personal behavior. According to researches, after September attack where two were from UAE as we stated earlier the Americans views on Islam and Arab has changeed a bit of which number of travelers to and from Arab world has decreased. Technologically, as technology refers to the application of science and research into industrial or commercial objective, it has affect societies all over the world, flight emirate in its existent relies on technology in all its operation and has benefit so much in US market on this matter, marketing customers service and other operation are possible in flight emirate because of technology and the latest news in this regard is the announcement of the company recently that it will allow all the passengers to use their cell phone in its all f light operating in US market very soon, that could not be possible if the company was not connected with USA. To conclude this topic technology has not negatively affected the operations of flight emirate in USA, it has really been a source of inspiration for the company. 2.2 The Effect of Culture and Sociology: In United States market culture as (education, religion, values, attitude etc) play a big role in business place, flight emirate with its unique study of American’s culture has found it a useful environment to operate in, US is a multi cultural community where different ethnic groups coexist without any discrimination. US market is a free economy where competition is the only factor that can push you to the top or crash you down, flight emirate adapted those diversities and without any exclusion and that is why it has been able to compete with US fight companies in the market place, as we stated earlier the only side effect on flight emirate in US market was what follows September attack when a group of terrorist from middle east and with Islam background hijack US flights and threaten US as a sovereign country, the result on that was the reduction of travelers from and to Arab countries, raising the searching system which actually targ eted travelers from Gulf countries and individual harassments by some indigenous citizens. In conclusion to culture and sociology the company does record much challenges in US market based on these aspect but the following points are what we think to be the company’s threats in US market: 1-Flight emirate generated from Arab country therefore it might be a target of terrorist and use as a cover to make insecurity in USA. 2-Services in the flight emirate are indirectly affected by Islam as the crew do welcome passengers by Quran prayers on board, this activity does not satisfy non Muslims on board. 3-Wearing of AL hijab by Arab women is not an acceptable sign by some people. 4-Citizens of UAE started to avoid traveling to USA because of long waiting visa due to background security checks. PART THREE: THE COMPANY MARKETING PLAN 3.1Marketing (country) selection and entry strategy: Flight emirate operates in more than one hundred countries and flies over six continents, the research has an interest in US market and here are the reasons why the company chosen to compete in US industry: -The airline copes and encourages free competition with other market player using a strategy known as â€Å"the open skies strategy†. -The political environment and the strong relationship between USA and UAE encouraged flight emirates to choose US as useful market to operate in. -USA is an open economy where the market competition is the art of the game, flight emirate with its quality services and competitive advantage choses to be part of it. -US dollar is the most powerful currency in the world, since the company adopted this currency to be the company main fare in its all operations than the company got it profitable to operate and expand in US market. -Flight emirate benefit mo re from long haul flying which also save fuel consumption as well as non-stop flying from Dubai to USA is profitable. -The Boeing 777 is the major aircraft used by the company hence all the accessories, parts and maintenance is cheaper and available in United States. The above reasons plus the growing business opportunities between US and UAE has increases the demand for direct flying from Dubai to United States. 3.2 Segmentation, Targeting and positioning: Flight emirate like any other flights in the airline industry has a specific strategy on targeting and positioning its self in the market place, below are the airline targets: 1-Emirate flight is one of the big airline in the world, the rapid growth of Dubai and its good relationship with other countries especially US had given a chance to the company to position it self as the major carrier between the two countries and inside the US, the company currently operates in eight states in US market targeting the following segments: 2-The demand for traveling to Dubai by tourist and business people has increased and especially in summer session where Dubai attracts more than seven million tourists. 3-Expatriates, because Dubai is a working environment and highly paid city, the demand for people to travel to and from Dubai increased hardly, many US citizens live and do business in Dubai while the also regularly visit their homes, therefore flight emirate is playing that role of targeting those group. 4-Transit passengers, before the haul long flying strategy being implemented by many companies were suffering from waiting hours, passengers from US did fly to middle east or Dubai connecting through Europe, flight emirates made it easier to dominate this segment by offering direct flight between Dubai and USA and found it very profitable. Because of demand increase within the United States, flight emirate with its quality services and golden brand attracted those groups and the company positively responded and got it much profitable. 3.3 Information and research strategy: The aim of this strategy is to keep the company growing and competitive in the market place, the information and research are the heart of any successful company, it explore opinions and attitude of customers and allow the company to predict the future result of the company’s operations. Flight emirates value information technology and research and has invested a huge of amount approximately $200 million and deployed 2,200 employees, recruited from the most qualified institutions in the world. The company’s IT department and research after ensuring solutions for the company also provide services for other business in the region as the generate revenue to the company from that services. Research found that flight emirate invest heavily in information technology and research for smooth operation and acknowledging the customers needs and demand in US market. 3.4 product strategy: Oil prices has been unstable and challenging in world’s market place for many flight companies to perform perfectly with out any conciliation or interruption, flight emirate has made it easier by signing a deal with several major oil companies to supply jet fuel to them all the time with a specific price, that deal remain unchangeable no matter what the future market may present, this fuel strategy has maintained the company profitability high among the competitors. The fight also gain a lot of profit base on product strategy through it plan of long haul flying, direct from US to Dubai because this kind of service attract big number of passengers of which the company provide cheap prices. In this strategy also the company has divided its portfolio into two, airport services and infrastructure, the airport service has to ensure the safety of passengers baggage and belonging up to the last destination, this strategy has build confident between the company and the customers. The free competition strategy that was adopted by the company enable the customers view their opinion in the services, employee training and capacity building in the company has been a successful part of the product strategy because it keeps the delivery of service in a high position. Buying new aircraft every short period is one of the promotion for product strategy and what kept the company delivering excellent services in US flight industry. 3.5 Pricing strategy: Pricing strategy is the secret of any successful company, the first thing the company does was to keep US dollar as the standard currency of exchange in the company, based on the fact that dollar is a powerful and stable currency and is convenience to all passengers regardless of their country of origin, this strategy made the company’s profit always high. The company has a sufficient strategy that enable passengers enjoy cheap pricing either in short or long haul flying, this has been a competitive advantage to the company, the company has been in the market for a short time which mean the company does not charge legacy fee in its ticket because there is no burden of pension as other companies do, the well train and qualified financial managers that the company has are playing a role of keeping the financial plan in a safe environment. The most important factor that keep flight emirate cheap and profitable is the variety of aircraft that operate in diffe rent allocation this gives the passengers the option of choosing the cheaper the can afford. All the above are supported by the fact that prices of flight are not being fixed any where because it depend on the market demand, what keep flight emirate cheap and affordable is their continuation of reading the market rightly.

Travel And Tourism Industry And Virgin Atlantic

Travel And Tourism Industry And Virgin Atlantic The first organisation I want to talk about is Virgin Atlantic. Virgin Atlantic is an extremely popular and successful airline. Virgin Atlantic provides many services on board their flights, and its a scheduled service. Organisation Two: The Tour Operator Thomson. The second organisation Im going to talk and describe is Thomson Tour Operators which is part of the TUI group. Thomson are a multinational tour operator, and they offer a great deal of services towards the consumers who choose to holiday with them. A tour operator has major responsibilities towards the consumer, the travel agent that books the holidays, flights and other ancillary services, and even airport staff from ground handling and aircraft maintenance. Although Thomson can fall under the category of airline, they are also a tour operator and travel agents. Thomson is listed in all three component areas. Thomson specialises in package holidays, but it doesnt just limit the company to that. It provides a great deal of services towards the customer such as: Flights Hotels Car Hire Insurance Package Holidays Below I will analyse and discuss the services of each of the above listed products. Flights: Flights are a crucial product of Thomson. With Thomson creating package holidays to match their customers specific needs, they need a way to transport them to their destinations. Thomson have a large fleet of aircraft in their company, almost the majority being Boeing 767s. When a customer books a holiday with Thomson, naturally, the travel agent or their company website that books the holiday, has to arrange seats on an aircraft. Thomson are a chartered airline, and offer many inflight services, at a small cost, or sometimes, depending on the service completely free. Thomsons airlines offer the customer services such as Duty Free, on board entertainment, meal and drinks services, premium class and priority handling. This is a difference with low cost budget airlines, as a charge has to be made for all services, right down the baggage allowance. When a customer books a package holiday, or even just a flight, for a specific date, a seat on one of Thomsons aircraft has to be available, otherwise, the customer can simply not go on that date. Hotels: Travel companies and tour operators leases hotel rooms from many chains of hotel, so their customers can reside there whilst on their holiday. This all comes back to availability, if a customer books a package holiday, the flight seat has to be available, along with a hotel room, or as many rooms required by the consumer. However, this is not that big an issue, as computers and technology makes this easy for travel agents or even the customer at home. Hotels have to be up to the standard stated on Thomsons website, if Thomsons state that a hotel has five stars, it has to have five stars, again with product description, if the website of the travel agent where the holiday was booked states that the hotel has a sea view, then it must otherwise this breaches the trades and product description act. Hotels have to live up to not only the consumer expectations, but the Tour Operators too, in this case Thomson. Thomson wants the customer to have a relaxing and enjoyable time whilst on holiday, and if the hotel is damaged, or services are not up to scratch, this can seriously jeopardise the customers overall happiness and satisfaction. The consumer may, or probably will complain to a travel rep onsite, and this is reported back to Thomson or the travel agents where holiday was booked, the Tour Operator may choose to terminate the contract if a high volume of complaints are received, as this will not only damaged the hotels name, but also Thomsons too, who are responsible for the customers satisfaction. Errors like this can prevent return business, and referral to that customers friends. Its all about first impressions. Now within the hotel, there are many roles that have to be performed daily or regularly. A major role that is essential, not only to maintain the hotel is cleaning. The hotel has to be clean, not only for the image and reputation of the hotel, but for the customers satisfaction. If a customer walks into the lobby, and finds garbage and paper all over the floor, their first impression of their accommodation will not be the best, and may put them off from enjoying their holiday all together. Rooms are cleaned daily in hotels, but certain hotels have gone green meaning services such as bed sheets are only changed every other day, and towels are washed every few days, unless stated by the customer, by the use of a card that informs the cleaners to take away and replace the towels and sheets. Hotels are responsible for the satisfaction of the customer, as well as the travel reps, and tour operator. All staff in hotels should be friendly, including the cleaners. Hotel staff are responsible along with a travel rep, in this case a Thomson Travel rep to ensure that the customer is enjoying him/herself. If a customer has a problem, they should feel like they can approach a travel rep, or a member of the hotels staff, to complain and have the problem addressed. Complaints should be dealt with quickly and appropriately. If there is an issue with a hotel room, and the customer is dissatisfied, then the customer should either be given a replacement room, or have the problem resolved as quickly as possible. Pass Three: Write a review on the different types of interrelationships in the travel and tourism industry for example: Chains of distribution, integration (Including both Horizontal and Vertical) and interdependencies. Use diagrams where applicable to illustrate your review.

Brand Loyalty in purchase of Sports Apparels

Brand Loyalty in purchase of Sports Apparels Purpose The following paper tries to determine whether brand loyalty is a mediator between brand name, product loyalty, price, store environment, promotion, service quality and the intention of a customer to purchase sports apparels. The study presented uses Brand Loyalty to investigate the relationship between brand name, product loyalty, price, store environment, promotion and service quality and consumers intention to purchase. Design/Methodology/Approach A questionnaire was distributed to students of B-schools India in the age group of 18 30 years of age asking about their preferences when purchasing sports apparels. The results of the questionnaire were analyzed using the four step method for mediation analysis Findings Brand Loyalty partially mediates brand name, product loyalty, price, store environment, promotion, service quality and the consumers intention to purchase. Research limitations/Implications The biggest limitation was that the study was confined to the age group of 18-30 years of age. Also it doesnt explore the factors which constitute the independent variables. Future study needs to widen the scope of study by including consumers in the age group of 30 plus. Also it needs to incorporate the factors which influence consumer to recommend the product to others. Practical Implications The managerial implications of the research are immense. It guides mangers to choose the most important factors while opening up a new store as the study establishes that service quality is the most important factor which influences the consumers decision to buy sports apparels Originality/Value This paper is one of the first studies which examines how brand name, product loyalty, price, store environment, promotion and service quality translate into intention to purchase. Paper Type Research Paper Introduction Indians nowadays have developed a fetish for sportswear. This impact can be seen across all age groups; Be it youngsters in the nascent stages of skill-development in the area of interest in the sports domain, athletic adolescents, young men and women with their addiction to gymnasiums or mid-aged and old people who try and look trendy when they go for their daily walks or perform light exercises. This has resulted in a huge demand for sports apparels and it can be seen in the huge variety of sport apparels developed by major brands like Nike, Adidas, Puma etc. A positive trend was observed in Italy in purchase of sportswear in summer/spring. (Dusi, 1999). Though there are very few retailers of sportswear in the market but the competition is very fierce among them. A paper by Wernerfelt in 1991 shows that customers are willing to buy more if the brand name is considered to be superior. (Wenerfelt, 1991) Managers realize that brand retention is a very important factor that decides consumer behavior. They also consider customer retention as a very important factor that actually decides performance of a particular brand (Sasser, 1990). Hence knowledge of brand loyalty is a must for managers. Factors of Brand Loyalty: The independent variables Brand Name ( (Aaker, 1996); (B.D., 2000); (R.W., 1978): Brand name plays a pivotal role in customer retention of advertisements in comparison to a product which is not endorsed by any brand, A brand name may influence a persons buying behavior since hard core followers of a brand purchase all products of a particular brand irrespective of the intrinsic factors. Such dedication to a particular brand is decided by both emotional and physical attributes of the brand name. The complete importance of a brand comes into picture when a choice is to be made between 2 similar products. In such cases the product with a better brand name would be preferred. Product Quality (G.S., 2005), (D.A., 1988), (C., 2000) Consumer may return to a brand repeatedly if it scores high on product quality. The factors which decide the quality can be fitting, size measurement, color, function and performance of merchandise. Fitting is of paramount importance in apparels since they actually define the comfort level of an individual using them. Material once again is important since it defines the durability of the product. Some customers also relate to a particular color. Also how long it takes for the color to fade also determines its quality. Functional attributes like breathable, water-resistance, easy to wash are other parameters which decide the quality of the product. The performance of the merchandise also effect customer psyche since a merchandise having huge sales would make the customer think that the quality of the product must be good to generate such sales. Price ( (B.D., 2000): (Rayner, 1999); (Krishnamurthi, 1991)): Price is another important factor in consumer behavior. If a customer is a hard-core loyalist then he would be willing to pay a premium for the brand in consideration and would be relatively less sensitive to prices. A customer has a perceived value of a product in his mind and a favored brand name enhances this value by leaps and bounds. Hence here the customer is willing to pay more than the expected price if the brand name is preferred. A loyal customer is less price sensitive. Store environment A stores environment, its location and the number of outlets it has also influence the consumers shopping pattern ( (Evans, 1996); (Milliman, 1982); (Grewal, 2002)). If a consumer is satisfied with the variety of products available in a store and the services provided to him then e becomes loyal. Also characteristics of other shoppers, the behavior of salespersons, the displays, the store design, and the advertisements displayed, signs, colors etc. are other factors that affect consumers. Also if the store is attractive from the inside, the shopper would be encouraged to spend more time inside the store and may purchase more which ultimately would affect his loyalty to the brand which owns the store. Perceived store image also has a direct impact on the intention to purchase. Promotion ( (Czernawski, 1999); (Evans, 1996); (Komal)): Promotion forms one of the most important components of the 4 Ps of marketing. It includes advertising, sales promotion and personal selling. Advertising includes print media, electronic media and billboards. The paper by Evans shows that how advertising shapes a key role in determining whether a person becomes loyal to a brand or not. A lot of times advertisements are the first point of contact between a person and the product and hence the image and perception of the product is formed in the mind of the customer through this mode only. Thus good advertisements in any form are a way to attract brand switchers and generate loyalty among them. A research paper by Komal Nagar lays emphasis on the fact that consumer promotions have a positive impact on brand switchers but not on brand loyalists. Service Quality ( (Yonggui)Service quality is a form of personal selling only since it includes direct contact between a salesperson and the customer. A lot of time impulse buying is motivated by salespersons only. If the salespersons are friendly enough then such kind of stores is generally preferred others. If a bonding develops between the salesperson and the customer then it gradually spreads over to customer and the brand/store. Also personalization in the form of personal attention the customers gets at a store significantly influences loyalty. In banks and other financial institutions service quality is the most important factor that determines reputation. Research Background and Hypothesis Price and Brand Loyalty Wakefield and Inman (2003) define price sensitivity as the extent to which individuals perceive and respond to changes or differences in prices for products or services. Further, Jin and Suh, (2005) define Price consciousness or price sensitivity as the degree to which the consumer focuses exclusively on paying low prices. Customers are generally seen to be price sensitive, and sales promotions have a significant effect on their choice behavior (Gazquez-Abad, 2009) characterizing the deal-proneness of consumers by analysis of price sensitivity and brand loyalty: an analysis in the retail environment. Brand loyalty towards clothes in a leading market, sometimes called Generation Y is also significantly influenced by price consciousness It was one of the three variables recognized as having a positive influence on brand loyalty. According to Cadogan and Foster (2000), price is probably the most important consideration for the average consumer. But Consumers with high brand loyalty are willing to pay a premium price for their favored brand, so, their purchase intention is not easily affected by price. Other studies also suggest that Brand loyal customers tend to be less sensitive to price. Further, research suggests that price shows a positive relationship with brand loyalty Price has also increasingly become a major point in consumers judgments of offer value as well as their overall assessment of the retailer In addition, customers have a strong belief in the price and value of their favorite brands and they compare and evaluate prices with alternative brands (Evans, 1996); Consumers satisfaction can also be built by comparing price with perceived costs and values. If the perceived values of the product are greater than cost, it is observed that consumers will purchase that product. Ho: There is no significant and positive relationship between price and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Ha: There is a significant and positive relationship between price and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Product Quality and Brand Loyalty Quality is relatively tough to define. If Japanese philosophy is to be kept in mind, then quality is zero defects. According to another definition, quality is conformance to requirements (Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry 1985). Here a difference needs to be made between perceived and objective quality. Perceived quality has been defined as the consumers judgment about a products overall excellence or superiority. Perceived product quality is a global assessment characterized by a high abstraction level and refers to a specific consumption setting Objective quality refers to the actual technical excellence of the product that can be verified and measured (Monroe and Krishman, 1985). Romano and Vinelli (2001) state that quality must be guaranteed in apparel sector for customers to remain brand loyal. Consumers today are becoming more and more quality conscious. Quality Consciousness is defined as the tendency of consumers to intentionally search and get the highest possible quality products in their purchases (Sporles and Kendall 1986). Brand loyalty towards clothes among a leading market called Generation Y is significantly influenced by quality consciousness. (Ertekin.) Functional attributes in sportswear include quick-dry, breathable, waterproof, odor-resistant, lightweight, and antimicrobial and finally, durability which is the use life of garments. For instance, some consumers wear their sportswear for heavy work and some for leisure and sports, as they need a lot of movement, while durability is an important consideration in purchasing sportswear (D.A., 1988) Perfectionist or quality consciousness is defined as an awareness of and desire for high quality products, and the need to make the best or perfect choice versus buying the first product or brand available. (Sproles, 1986) This indicates that quality characteristics are also related to performance. Also notable is the fact that consumers may repeat purchase a single brand, or switch between different brands depending on the product quality offered. Ho: There is no significant and positive relationship between product quality and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Ha: There is a significant and positive relationship between product quality and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Store environment Brand Loyalty Retail store perceptions such as store image and familiarity are extensively studied for apparel brands. (Forney, Park and Brandon 2005) Brand reputations and evaluations are built up over time evoke sales as consumers tend to be brand loyal and brand driven under the influence of store attributes such as staff, layout, location atmosphere. Fulberg (2003) adds that using merely music in a store to create attitudinal loyalty for the brands can be possible. Further Omar (1999) emphasized that the store environment was the single most important factor in retail marketing success and store longevity. If consumers find the store to be highly accessible during their shopping trip and are satisfied with the stores assortment and services, these consumers may become loyal afterwards (Evans et al., 1996). The stimuli in the store, such as the characteristic of other shoppers and salespeople, store layout, noises, smells, temperature, shelf space and displays, sign, colors, and merchandise, affect consumers and serve as elements of apparel attributes. (Abraham, 1995) Also background music played in the stores affects attitudes and behavior. The slow-beat musical selection leads to higher sales volume as consumers spend more time and money in a conducive environment. Research also suggests a positive and significant relationship between store environment and sportswear brand loyalty. Ho: There is no significant and positive relationship between store environment and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Ha: There is a significant and positive relationship between store environment and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear Brand name Brand Loyalty Famous brand names can disseminate product benefits and lead to higher recall of advertised benefits than non-famous brand names. (Evans, 1996) In case there are a lot of brand names in the market, many of which are unfamiliar, consumers may prefer and trust the major brand names. Also brand personality provides links to the brands emotional and self-expressive benefits for differentiation. This is important for brands which have only minor physical differences and are consumed in a social setting where the brand can create a visible image about the consumer itself. This is an especially valid point for sports apparels industry. Brand name is the creation of an image or the development of a brand identity and is an expensive and time consuming process. Consumers generally tend to perceive the products from an overall perspective, associating with the brand name all the attributes and satisfaction experienced by the purchase and use of the product. Ho: There is no significant and positive relationship between brand name and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Ha: There is a significant and positive relationship between brand name and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Promotion Brand Loyalty Promotion is a marketing mix component which is a kind of communication with consumers. Promotion includes the use of advertising, sales promotions, personal selling and publicity. Research suggests that if one brand is sufficiently stronger than the other and if advertising is cost effective, then the stronger brand loyalty requires less advertising than weaker brand loyalty, but a larger loyal segment requires more advertising than a smaller loyal segment. Moreover, stronger brand loyalty requires more trade promotion spending under these conditions. (Aggarwal, 1996) According to Rowley (1998), promotion is an important element of a firms marketing strategy. Promotion is used to communicate with customers with respect to product offerings, and it is also a way to encourage purchase or sales of a product or service. Sales promotion tools are used by most organizations in support of advertising and public relations activities, and they are targeted toward consumers as final users. Advertising is known to be a non-personal presentation of information in mass media about a product, brand, company or store. It greatly affects consumers images, beliefs and attitudes towards products and brands, and in turn, influences their brand loyalty (Evans et al., 1996). Ho: There is no significant and positive relationship between promotion and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Ha: There is a significant and positive relationship between promotion and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Service quality Brand Loyalty Service quality is commonly defined as the service which should correspond to the customers expectations and satisfy their needs and requirements (Gronroos, 1990). Service quality is a kind of personal selling, and involves direct interactions between the salespeople and potential buyers. Consumers shop at specific stores because they like the services being rendered and are assured of certain service privileges. The impact of salespeople-consumer relationships more often than not result in long term orientation of consumers towards the store or brand. Trust in salespeople appears to relate to overall perceptions of the stores service quality, and results in the consumer being totally satisfied with the stores in the end. Additionally, personalization (i.e. reliability, responsiveness, personalization and tangibles) significantly influence consumers experience and evaluation of service, and in turn, affects the brand loyalty of consumers (Mittal, B. and Lassar, W.M., 1996). Gronroos (1990) notes that the quality of a service as perceived by customers has three dimensions attached to it: functional (or process) dimension, technical (or outcome) dimension, and image. Ho: There is no significant and positive relationship between service quality and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. H1: There is a significant and positive relationship between service quality and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Brand Loyalty as a mediator and Intention to purchase Brand loyalty is defined largely as a consumers strong commitment towards a particular brand to the extent where the consumer will be motivated to obtain that brand exclusively on every purchase transaction and is constantly looking out for any marketing activities related to the brand (Baldinger, 1996). Loyalty is one factor that many studies have shown to have a strong influence on purchase decision (Alvarez et al., 2000). Research suggests that brand loyalty is the main variable which influences the purchase decision process of both national and store brands. Loyalty does not only influence the decision of store choice, but also the brand choice and the quantity of products purchased. Studying purchase intentions is very important in the retail segment, including sports apparels. Several studies have reported a positive correlation between purchase intentions and purchase behavior. (David, 1996) Impulse purchase is also very important for a segment such as sportswear. (Armstrong, 2006)revealed that approximately 30% of the total purchase of university athletic teams licensed merchandise was impulsively purchased by the universitys students. Ho: There is no significant and positive relationship between brand loyalty and intention to purchase on consumer sportswear. H1: There is no significant and positive relationship between brand loyalty and intention to purchase on consumer sportswear. The model illustrating the constructs is given below: Methods Measures The constructs were measured with the help of Likert scales. They responses ranged from 1(strongly disagree) to 5(strongly agree), except in the case of intention to purchase scale which ranged from 1(strongly disagree) to 7(strongly agree). Sample The sample was collected using an online questionnaire. A total of 146 people responded to the questionnaire. No personal information of the respondents was collected, apart from their age, as the study focuses on the age group of 18-30. Intention to purchase: Intention to purchase was measured with a three-item scale found in a paper by Baker, Michael J. and Gilbert A. Churchill, Jr. (1977). A sample item is If you needed a sport apparel would you prefer this brand if you saw it in a store longer? Brand name: Brand name was measured with a four-item scale found in a paper by Cadogan, J. W. and Foster, B. D. (2000). A sample item is the prestigious brand name and image attract me to purchase this brand Product Quality: Product quality was measured with a five-item scale found in a paper by Sproles, G.B. and Kendall, E. L. (1986). A sample item is the materials used by the brand of the sportswear are comfortable Price: Price was measured with a two-item scale found in a paper by Cadogan, J. W. and Foster, B. D. (2000). A sample item is the increased price would not hinder my purchase decision Promotion: Promotion was measured with a three-item scale found in a paper by Wong Foong Yee and Yahyah Sidek (2008) A sample item is advertisements of the brands attract me to purchase more frequently. Service quality: Service quality was measured with a four-item scale found in a paper by Mittal, B. and Lassar, W.M. (1996). A sample item is the salespersons of the stores are well trained and knowledgeable Store environment: Store environment was measured with a four-item scale found in a paper by Dhruv Grewal, R. Krishnan, Julie Baker, Norm Borin. A sample item is the brand has good store locations and easy to access Brand loyalty: Brand loyalty was measured with a four-item scale found in a paper by Odin, Yorick, Nathalie N. Odin, and Pierre Valette-Florence (2001). A sample item is the brand name is the first thing I look for when I purchase sports apparels Step 1: It summarizes the results of a regression analysis using intention to purchase as the criterion variable and the six independent variables as predictor. It is clear that the independent variables are significantly related to intention to purchase of sports apparels. The values achieved are R2 = 0.374, F = 13.846, p Service quality and Store environment were most significantly related to intention to purchase. Step 2: It summarizes the results of a regression analysis using brand loyalty as the criterion variable and the six independent variables as predictor. Results signify that independent variables are also significantly related to brand loyalty. The values out of regression are R2 = 0.358, F = 12.913 and p Service quality again was most significantly related to brand loyalty. Step 3: It summarizes the results of a regression analysis using intention to purchase as the criterion variable and brand loyalty and six independent variables as predictor. From the results obtained we can see that all the independent variables and brand loyalty are significantly related to intention to purchase. The values out of regression are R2 = 0.391, F = 12.650 and p Brand loyalty and store environment were more significantly related to intention to purchase than other variables. The values of beta for all the independent variables in step 1 were greater than their values in step 3. This signifies that the relationship, although still significant, is reduced in magnitude. Hence there is a partial mediation effect. Service quality was most significantly related to intention to purchase out of all the six independent variables. Price and promotion, on the other hand, were least significantly related. Discussion and Implications The current study explored the intention to purchase vis a vis Brand Loyalty. Brand name, Product quality, Price, Service Quality, Store environment and promotion as independent variables. The mediator here was Brand Loyalty. The study was unique in the sense that it explored the intention to purchase while considering the factors of brand loyalty. This study provides an effective tool to apparel makers while opening up a new store in the sense that it enables them to exploit the major factors to leverage upon the buyers intention to purchase by focusing more on the factors which affect the Brand Loyalty the most. Among the factors of Brand Loyalty service quality emerged as the single biggest factor which partially mediated by Brand Loyalty influences the customers intention to purchase. The results entail that sales person consumer relation will more often than not result in long term association of the consumer with the brand. Also it is clear from the results obtained that users dont consider promotion as a factor while deciding upon the apparel to purchase as it has the lowest correlation with the consumers intention to purchase. Also price considered as an important factor in previous researches emerged as another factor which is insignificant compared to other variables except for store environment. This can be explained on the basis that the consumers already have an image of the brands. This is enforced by factors like service quality, product quality etc. and the price factor is not given any weightage. There is also a second reason for this. This is that all the brands we included i n the consideration set of the people filling up the survey are priced similar. This is a very important result in the sense that it guides the apparel stores to provide better service. Another important result which emerged was the insignificance of promotion. Promotion here comprises both advertisements plus the discounts given in the form of clearance sales, sweep stakes, coupons etc. This doesnt contribute to consumers long term brand loyalty. Although it can lead to sudden interest in consumers mind regarding the particular brand offering the discount but it certainly doesnt translate into long term brand loyalty. Brand name is another factor which emerges as a strong variable which important influences the consumers intention to purchase. Consumers tend to perceive the products from an overall perspective, associating with the brand name all the attributes and satisfaction experienced by the purchase and use of the product. But it is clear from the research that it cannot be attributed as the single biggest factor which influences the consumers brand loyalty or intention to purchase. Limitations The biggest limitation of the study which stems from the design of the research is the focus on the age group 18 to 30 years of age. We controlled this variable consciously to study the behavior in this age group. But the age group 30+ is a very big chunk of consumers who buy sports apparels. Taking into account their preference is bound to change certain findings in the study presented above. Another important limitation of the study is that the study doesnt explore the factors which make up the independent variables i.e. factors like promotion entail a multitude of factors like advertisements, personal selling, discounts, clearance sales and sweepstakes. All these factors in promotion and many more in factors like store environment, service quality could not be explored. This stemmed from the fact that if we had decided to explore all these factors then the questionnaire would have been very long. Another thing where the study lacks is that it doesnt explore how to retain customers . Although brand loyalty is very important factor in retention of consumers but this is not the only factor. Scope for Future Research There is a lot of scope for improvements and enhancing the results obtained in the research presented. The biggest perhaps is to include the consumers in the age group above 30 years and above. This is because that they form a big chunk as consumers in the sports apparels. The inclusion of consumers in this age group will provide a holistic study of their preferences. Another way forward is to incorporate in the study the factors which influence the consumers to recommend the product to other. Word to word mouth is very important factor especially in the peer group in the age group of 18 30 years of age. Also as stated in the limitations study we could not include the factors which make up the independent variables e.g. exploring which factors influence the most in service quality so that the store owner can concentrate on those factors more in order to provide customer an enriching experience so that long term relationship between consumers and the brand.

Essay on the Human Spirit in Frankenstein and Picture of Dorian Grey

Similarities of the Human Spirit in Frankenstein and The Picture of Dorian Grey The human spirit is one of the most beautiful forces in the world, but it is also one of the most vulnerable. In the novels Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde, this idea of the human spirit is portrayed clearly. Both novels have similar aspects about the human spirit, but they also have their differences. Both novels have main characters who are influenced greatly by someone that they admire, and they are destroyed by that influence. The difference that these novels have is that in Frankenstein, the main character is influenced and destroyed by something he creates himself, while in The Picture of Dorian Grey, the main character is influenced and destroyed by his friend and mentor. Again, both novels portray the human spirit's motivation and vulnerability. In the novel Frankenstein, Victor, the main character, is driven to insanity and death by his motivation, his own creation. He dedicates all of his time and knowledge to create a living human being from dead tissue. This "monster" becomes his motivation and influence throughout the rest of the novel. Victor blames himself and feels guilt for all of th... ... Dorian converses with Lord Henry, and takes everything that Lord Henry said seriously, even though not everything that Lord Henry said was right. Basically, the difference that these two novels have over the idea that the human spirit is a very strong, but vulnerable force is that a person's motivation to do something great and his infatuation with that great thing will influence the spirit greatly, sometimes totally, and that believing in someone and somebody so much, no matter what they say, you will listen to them and let them have total control over you and your actions, even though that influence probably doesn't know that.

The Benefits of Home Schooling Essay -- Education School Teaching Essa

Advantages of Home Schooling Home schooling was developed out of the desire to give students an opportunity to have a more personal, one-on-one relationship with their teachers and have a chance to learn at their own pace without being left behind by their fellow students. It was also designed to give the parents more of an opportunity to be involved in their child’s education by supervising the classes, getting to know the teachers on a personal basis, and having the flexibility to change class times and not worry about their child missing important information if they cannot be in class on a certain day. Although home schooling is considered by some to do more harm than good, especially with respect to the student’s socialization skills with other children, many parents opt to take advantage of this opportunity to further their child’s education and create a more comfortable, informal environment in which to learn. Depending on the particular Home School and the preferences of the family, home schooling can often serve to enhance the religious education and understanding in the students. Many people from many different religions choose to home school their children because religiously affiliated home schools find ways to integrate religion into everyday lessons. For examples, a handwriting lesson might include copying passages and scriptures from the bible, or a science lesson might discuss the idea of Creation as opposed to Evolution. A math lesson involving multiplication by two could incorporate the idea of Noah’s Arc. Another appeal of religious home schooling is the strong emphasis on morals and character development in the students rather than a strong focus solely on factual knowledge. The Christian Home Edu... ...d on November 23, 2003, from http://www.hslda.org/courtreport/V19N5/V19N501.asp. Neill, Monty (2003 November 21). Leaving Children Behind: How No Child Left Behind Will Fail Our Children [Electronic version]. Phi Delta Kappan, 85, 225-229. â€Å"Resolution on Improving Teacher Quality.† July 1998. American Federation of Teachers. Retrieved on November 23, 2003, from http://www. aft.org/about/resolutions/1998/quality.html. Scheuerman, William E. â€Å"Public Higher Ed: Battle Ground in the Tenure Wars.† The NEA Higher Education Journal. Thought and Action Fall 1997. Pages 63-77. Smith, Pete (2002). Mentor academy. Retrieved November 23, 2003, from http://www.mentoracademy.org/administration.cfm. Withrow, Gail S. (1998-2002). Religious approach to homeschooling. Retrieved November 23, 2002, from http://www.hometaught.com/app_religious.htm

Request for New Equipment Essay

As of present, the computer equipment in our department unfortunately falls short of our business needs, causing frequent problems and lapses in quality. Thus, due to using a limited version of MS Word, lack of CD burning capabilities, hard drives with only 3 gigabytes of memory, and a 7-year-old black-and-white printer, we are unable to produce sales materials of the quality competing with that of our rivals. This fact has been confirmed by our customers who poorly review our brochures, user manuals, reports and other materials missing adequate appearance to a great degree because of limited technological possibilities. Now that we plan a major marketing offensive including the introduction of a website for product advertising, we feel that the time is ripe to update our inadequate computer equipment through the purchase of new hardware and software. This will also allow us to make a breakthrough in raising productivity, eliminating frequent paper jams, glitches in connection to other departments and need to special-order replacement ink cartridges. Considering the fact that Marketing & Sales and Word Processing departments regularly use our printer and fax machine, we feel that it will be fair if each of them undertakes at least 20% of the costs for lease or purchase of new equipment. If the heads of Marketing & Sales and Word Processing departments prove unwilling to share the financial burden, we believe that it is time for these units to purchase their own equipment. We ask you to allocate funds to the needs of our department out of the general equipment budget as upgrading our technological capabilities will contribute to the general rise in the company’s productivity. In the appendix you will find specifications of the equipment that we ask you to purchase or lease.

Environmental Analysis Essay

Introduction This essay will discussed one of the most controversial environmental issue climate change along with some of the facts including how people first discover that climate change does existed; as well as legitimation in climate change globally; public debate; and the way in which government response to this issue. Furthermore this paper will discuss the role of science to identify the existence of climate change. Identification and legitimation of the issue Climate change is one of the biggest environmental challenges that the world encounters. It has obvious impact on our planet causing higher temperature, shifting seasons, sea levels rising. These phenomenon are closely tide up with world’s economic as it affect businesses around the world. The British government report warned if no action is taken to control carbon emissions climate change would cost 5 to 20 percent of the annual global gross domestic product. (Climate change impacts, 2011). The United Nation’s intergovernmental Panel on Climate change published a report in 2007 regarding the discovery of Global Warming since the 20th Century. (IPCC, 2011). The possible reason for this phenomenon may be caused by human activity. The appropriate definition is explained by the IPCC, which states that climate change is â€Å"a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods.† (IPCC, 2012) Many countries have taken the initiative to legislate appropriate regulation regarding climate change. In 2010 a published article noted that â€Å"Qinghai† is one of the first province to establish a regulation that holds local government and state owned enterprises response in coping with climate change (Xinhuanet, 2010). The statistic have shown that â€Å"Qinghai† ‘s temperature in general has been rising by 0.35 centigrade every ten years compare to the world’s average of 0.13 centigrade. (Mu Xuequan, 2010). This regulation will stress the importance and specified the local government’s responsibility on climate change. Public Debate The argument around the topic of climate change is one of the most controversial topic because it involved in whether climate change is man made or its simply nature forces. Some scientist believes that the temperature of earth is actually getting colder not warmer due to the cycle of the sun. This is known as the â€Å"Sunspot cycle†, sun gets a little bit hotter and colder every 11 years and when it gets colder it causes the temperature of earth to get colder too. Other scientist argued that the change of temperature is so small that it can barely be detected. Most scientists agree that an increase in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the main cause of global warming. They argued about the details of the effects of global warming on the earth. However it is generally agreed that it will lead to worldwide changes in weather patterns, gradual melting of the ice caps and rising sea levels. These changes will impact on your lifestyle, agriculture and the survival of other organism. (Haire, M et al, 2000). Energy savings, emissions reductions and water resource conservation and many other works related to climate change need to be considered Government policy response Recent years many countries have impose law relevant to combat climate change. Energy savings, emissions reductions and water resource conservation and marketing â€Å"green† have been the primary goal amongst most organization. Country like Australia is promoting energy efficiency measures through a wide range of programs and rebates. The election of Kevin Rudd in 2007 especially shows a major change of the Australian government policy through Australia’s ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. In terms of some specific initiatives the Australian government also continue the measure of mandatory renewable energy target scheme. And since 2010 the Government also established a climate change committee with the main purpose of investigate â€Å"options for implementing a carbon price and help build consensus on how Australia will tackle climate change† (Parliament of Australia, 2012) Role of science Science has played an important part in proving the existence of climate change by observation and experiment. This graph above depicts the global change in sea level since the end of the last ice age. During this 15,000 year period sea level has increased approximately 125 meters. Conclusion By evaluating the historical development of climate change we can conclude that climate change is the most important and challenging environmental issue. Regardless of the disagreements, climate change has been proven exist by scientific research. It has drawn the public attention and requires international cooperation among different governments. Reference Haire, M et al (2000). Core Science3. Singapore: Kyodo. P110-111. IPCC (2011) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. [online] Available at; http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_cn.pdf [Accessed: 27 Jul 2012]. Parliament of Australia (2012) Australian government response to climate change. [online] Available at: http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/Browse_by_Topic/ClimateChange/Governance/Domestic/national [Accessed: 27 Jul 2012]. Sunspots and climate (2000) Sunspots and climate. [online] Available at: http://www-das.uwyo.edu/~geerts/cwx/notes/chap02/sunspots.html [Accessed: 27 Jul 2012]. The Nature Conservancy (2012) Climate Change Impacts. [online] Available at;

Graham vs Connor

Graham vs. Connor On February 21st, 1989 Dethorn Graham, a diabetic was having an insulin type reaction. He called his friend Berry and asked if he could pick him up and take him to buy juice from the local convenience store to stop the reaction. When he arrived at the store Graham noticed the long line at the cash register and decided the wait was too long. He ran out of the store and got back into Berry’s car and asked if he could take him to a friend’s house around the corner.A city police officer, Connor, was on patrol when he noticed Graham enter the store and leave quickly, and became suspicious. The officer followed Berry’s car and performed an investigative stop. Connor had both men sit and wait while the officer made sure nothing had gone on inside of the store. Responding back up police arrived on scene and did not listen to Graham’s explanation of his condition. The handcuffed him and ruffed him up a little in the process, Graham received multip le injuries.Officer Connor let Graham go after discovering that he had done nothing wrong. Graham sustained multiple injuries. Graham filed a law suit in the District Court under against all respondents, stating that Connor and the other officers had used excessive force in making the stop, in violation of Graham’s 14th amendment. In this case there are many things that Graham and Connor could do differently. Being a diabetic I believe that Graham should have been provided an insulin shot and he should have it on him at all times.Also when entering the store I believe that Graham should have alerted a worked or the people in line that he was having a reaction and to allow him to move to the front of the line. I believe that Graham could have been nicer to the officer, when he was in the car Graham stated, â€Å"If he thinks I'm going to sit here in the car while I'm dying to wait for him to find out something when there really is nothing. (1)† If he would have explaine d to the officer that he was having a sugar type reaction the officer may have been more helpful.There were a few things that the officer did that he could have done differently to stop any problems. First Connor did a good job in making an investigation stop, due to the suspiciousness Graham displayed. When Connor pulled over Berry and noticed something wrong with Graham that should have become the main focus of the officer. After Berry told the office that his friend was having an insulin type reaction, Connor should have immediately called an ambulance. This way there is no problem and that Graham would not be in harm.The officers should not have been as tough as they were with Graham, unless he was fighting, then the appropriate force should have been used. If not then the force was unnecessary. I believe that the officers were not right in what they did. I believe that Graham had a serious medical condition and was not being treated for it. I believe the force used against Grah am was used not to protect but to just cause harm. There was no proven evidence that graham did anything wrong.The officer was going all off what he believed may have been a crime, and in the long run could have caused a more serious injury to Graham. I do not believe that a person should just be able to complain that they were being mistreated without and evidence, because that would happen too often by people who want easy money. Work Cited (1) â€Å"Graham v. Connor, Trial Record. † Graham v. Connor, Trial Record. N. p. , n. d. Web. 08 Apr. 2013. (2) â€Å"Graham v. Connor – 490 U. S. 386 (1989). † Justia US Supreme Court Center. N. p. , n. d. Web. 8 Apr. 2013.

Diversity (Women and Lgbt)

Associate Program Material Diversity Organizations Worksheet Complete the following table with notes and thoughts related to your findings: Site| Thoughts/Notes| www. madre. org| International women’s human rights organization that uses human rights to advance social justice. This organization’s mission is to advance women’s human rights all over the world. | http://justice-equality. org| Organization for Justice and Equality. This organization’s goal is the upholding of justice and the promotion of equality in the U. S.Their emphasis is on civil rights, government policies and operations, ethical issues and consumer grievances. | www. thetrevorproject. org| A national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. This organization is the only one that focuses only on teens and young adults. They are also the leading crisis resource for anti-bullying initiatives. | W rite a 750 to 1,050- word paper answering the following questions: * What has been the status of women in the United States throughout history?Throughout history, women have always been beneath men in the amount of respect they received, the lack of equality of rights and more recently salary. Even though women are stronger than men emotionally and sometimes it seems women are stronger than men when it comes to giving birth and then taking care of the family, while still working a full time job, women still get the short end of the stick. Even the Catholic Church doesn’t recognize women as the head of the household. There is no wonder; the Catholic Church doesn’t allow women in the pulpit either. * What is the status of women in the U. S. oday? The current status of women in the United States has improved a lot in the past 80+ years. Women don’t have to stay at home and raise the children any longer, where in the past there wasn’t a question of it happeni ng. Women now have equal rights in most areas in the country, but they are still behind in the salary department especially in specific industries. Women now hold positions as CEOs of large companies, but again their salary might be a bit lower than that of a man working for a different company The fact that women can take on just about any occupation available is a big change also.There are many occupations that are male oriented, but women have busted through some of those walls also. * What are some examples of concepts or constructions of masculinity and femininity that you see in society and in media? Concepts of masculinity in society lately have been young men sporting short hair again and wearing button down shirts with jeans. Also some middle-age and older men are starting to grow out their beards. This is most noticeable in the media though. Examples of concepts of femininity seem to change too often to notice. It seems though that short skirts are on their way back though in general.I have not noticed anything significant with the women in media or even with celebrities. The only time anything is really noticeable is during the award shows, but then that is just fashion for one evening. * Historically, what has been the social status of GLBT people? Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender and recently Questioning people have had a harder road than some of the larger minority groups in this country. Many years ago, being a ‘gay’ male or ‘lesbian’, might have meant they were going to lose their friendships or connection to family.The alternative lifestyle has opened up the doors of discussion in churches and all the way up to the White House. They have been an unaccepted people for a very long time. All the people of the GLBTQ community want is to have the same rights as married heterosexuals when it comes to marriage and adoption, as well as just to be accepted for who they are. * What is the status of GLBT people in the U. S. today? Today Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender people are a lot more accepted then say 30+ years ago, but there is still vast room for improvement.Depending on the state, it is now legal for gay men and lesbian women to get married. The same goes for adoption also. Currently there are about twelve states in the country that do not permit GLBT adoptions. That is because some of those states don’t recognize the couple as a true couple. They are basing their decision on the Bible, even though there is supposed to be a separation of church and state. Since the church does not acknowledge the GLBT lifestyle, they will never be accepted by the church. * What are some social and political issues relevant to women and GLBT people in the U.S.? In politics, women seem to be equal to men in the United States. The Supreme Court got their first female justice on September 25, 1981 when Sandra Day O’Connor was appointed. The next major milestone was the first Hispanic female j ustice. Sonia M. Sotomayor was appointed on August 8, 2009. Because of the last election, the senate has 20 female Senators, which is the most in history. Nancy Pelosi became the first female Speaker of the House. As for members of the GLBT community, there are a handful of gay men and lesbian women who are known in government.Their lifestyle choice did not stop them from getting elected which is hopeful in the long run. They were voted into office because their constituents thought they were the best person for the job. I think the political arena is tougher for GLBT to navigate because it is such a hot topic between church and state and Democrats and Republicans. A person that claims to be conservative won’t be able to also come out as someone from the GLBT community. Most likely because Conservatives don’t accept the GLBT lifestyle to begin with.Socially, women have the edge of GLBT people also. Women have been accepted socially way longer then they had the right to vote. Granted, the socialization was usually just woman socializing with women; it was still an acceptable thing. For the GLBT community, they tend to socialize more amongst themselves than in any other forum. Not saying, they won’t socialize at all with heterosexuals. If they aren’t socializing with people that know they are of that lifestyle, they are not making it known that they are of that lifestyle. REFERENCESJohnson, R. (2013). Where is Gay Adoption Legal? About. com Guide. Retrieved from http://gaylife. about. com/od/gayparentingadoption/a/gaycoupleadopt_2. htm Supreme Court of the United States. (2013) Members of the Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved from http://www. supremecourt. gov/about/members. aspx Terkel, A. (2012). Women In Senate: 2012 Election Ushers in Historic Number of Female Senators. Huffington Post. com. Retrieved from http://www. huffingtonpost. com/2012/11/07/women-senate-2012-election_n_2086093. html